books 1 - 3

by Ella J. Smyth

  “Are you going to stay here with your human? Or will you keep me company?”

  He growled quietly, then licked her hand and face again. Once he was satisfied with his work, he sat on his haunches and looked at her expectantly. Adi stood up, grabbed her suitcase, and put on her jacket. As she walked towards the exit of the bungalow, there was nobody to see her off. She hadn’t expected it anyway.

  Maybe after the fight was over, she might be able to return. Always assuming this was Nina’s handiwork, and that Honi hadn’t suddenly fallen out of love with her. She pulled the door shut behind her and looked west, where the road slanted downhill. Maybe she would be lucky and manage to hitch a ride.

  She set off, pulling her suitcase behind her. She tried to stay positive. Maybe this was a good thing. Maybe getting out from under Nina’s influence would allow her to think clearer and come up with a plan. Straightening her shoulders and lifting her head, Adi began whistling defiantly. Ho’neo walked beside her, invisible to anybody but other spirit walkers’ eyes. She was not alone. Maybe this was how it was supposed to be—saving the world, including her boyfriend, with the help of a borrowed spirit animal.

  32

  By the time Honi stormed out of the house, the hailstorm had moved on towards the valley. He registered grimly how the dark clouds shrouded the wide vista of empty cornfields with their ominous light and the blurry mist of precipitation. The weather matched his mood, it seemed.

  He couldn’t have stayed any longer in Adi’s presence, overwhelmed by a sense of betrayal that seemed to strip him of rational thought and left him a victim to his emotions. And what emotions they were—rage, anger, bitterness.

  The further he walked, the more his rational thinking kicked in. Why had he blown up like that? Yes, he felt betrayed that she hadn’t been honest with him, but if what she said was true, she’d kept it from him in order to protect him. He’d have acted no differently in the same situation.

  That Ho’neo had picked that precise moment to show up from wherever he’d gone to… that hurt. But Ho’neo wasn’t his slave. The creature had a mind of his own. He was his link to the supernatural, to hidden worlds that no human other than spirit walkers could visit corporeally. He gave his allegiance freely. Was his behavior a subtle way of censure, of telling Honi he was out of order?

  Honi sighed. Maybe it was. The more he thought about the fight, the more he twisted and turned his words in his mind, the more he realized he’d been overly-harsh. Adi’s look of shock, of disbelief, should have stopped him before he’d said anything he’d regret. The whole thing seemed like it had happened to a different version of himself.

  Honi looked up and found himself in front of Melinda and Con’s house. Shit, he’d forgotten about Con’s injury. It wasn’t too late yet. He’d inquire after the boy and maybe mention his idea of a spirit quest for him. It would take his mind off the situation with Adi. They could both do with a cooling-off period. He’d go back later and apologize.

  Nodding to himself, he knocked on the door and waited. When the door opened, he was surprised to see Con instead of Melinda. Honi swept his gaze up and down the teenager in front of him. Con wore a ratty pair of sweatpants, a bulky thickening on one calf indicating where the bite had been bandaged.

  “Hi, Con. I just wanted to find out how you are. Is your mom in?”

  Con shook his head, shifting to find his balance as if he were a little dizzy. Honi grabbed his arm to steady him.

  “Shit, you should be in bed. Come on, I’ll help you.”

  Before Con could protest, Honi had pushed the door open and guided the teenager towards the living room. He stopped, his mouth dropping open. The only light came from a naked bulb, dangling from the ceiling, throwing an eerie weak glow over a scene of chaos.

  Every surface was covered in empty bottles. Beer, whiskey, wine bottles—Melinda apparently wasn’t picky about what she poured down her gullet. The smell was overpowering. The air was pregnant with the throat-clenching stench of cheap booze, cigarettes, and sweat. Honi gulped, fighting his gag reflex. He lowered Con onto a chair after he swiped the seat clear of trash.

  Then he strode to the window and ripped it wide open. He leaned onto the sill, taking deep breaths of the cool air, desperately drawing the positive ions of the recent hailstorm into his lungs. What a mess. Where was Melinda when her son was so obviously in need of being looked after?

  “Con?”

  The teenager sat on the chair where Honi had placed him, staring blankly in front of him. He was so pale that he glowed in the dim light. Honi had to repeat his name twice before the boy lifted his head. There was a suspicious sheen in Con’s eyes.

  He said weakly, “I didn’t ask you to come in here. You weren’t supposed to see this. If my leg didn’t hurt so much, I would clean up, and the room would be spotless.”

  Honi’s chest tightened at the boy’s words. He was hurt, a child still, yet felt responsible to cover for his sorry excuse of a mother.

  “Where is your mom, Con? Is she in the house?”

  Con shook his head. “She went out. To get groceries, she said.”

  “When was that?”

  “I don’t know—right after you dropped me off at Doc Russell’s, I suppose.”

  Honi frowned. That had been hours ago. Melinda should have been back by now.

  “How did you get home?”

  “The doc dropped me off. He wanted to talk to Mom about going back for another dose of rabies vaccine.”

  His face scrunched up in an expression of disgust so childlike that Honi had to grin.

  “Really? Did it hurt?”

  Con’s eyes sparked fire. “Oh my God. Yeah, it hurt! He injected that shit into my arm and told me to count myself lucky. Apparently, they used to stick needles into the stomach twenty years ago.”

  The outrage in his voice made Honi smile. It was good to see a little fire in the kid. His apathetic acceptance earlier had scared him.

  “Anyway, I need to go back in three days, then another four, then the last one two weeks from now. Just awesome.” He huffed.

  Honi thought for a moment. Con seemed fine, other than he felt he needed to clean up his mom’s mess.

  “Here, let me help you tidy,” he finally declared. “Where are the trash bags?”

  He worked quickly, tossing everything that didn’t belong in the tiny room. Opening all the windows made a huge difference, and soon, the room was cleared of all the booze bottles and cans. Honi fetched a damp rag and wiped off the surfaces where sticky liquids had spilled.

  Con watched him, once again slipping into a half-defiant, half-defeated silence. Honi tried to engage him in small talk, asking him about school, friends, but Con clearly wasn’t interested in chatting. Eventually, Honi couldn’t delay any longer. He squatted down next to Con’s chair.

  “So… you told me about those nightmares you’re having. Are they still as bad as before?”

  Con nodded, his eyes weary. He really did look as if the weight of the world rested on him.

  Honi continued, “I talked to our shaman, and we may have thought of a solution to your problem. It’s a little unusual nowadays, but might help you.”

  While Honi talked, Con had tilted his head, listening silently. He didn’t interrupt him and even looked interested towards the end. When Honi paused, Con nodded at him to continue.

  “Okay, let me go back a little to explain. You’ve heard of spirit walkers, right? Well, they aren’t old stories. They exist. I’m one, and so is Adi. She’s actually more powerful than I am, but let’s keep this between the two of us, okay?”

  Honi’s lame attempt to add a little levity paid off. Con grinned broadly.

  “Yeah, she’s bossy enough without it, right?”

  Honi cuffed him lightly, smiling to let him know he wasn’t serious.

  “Shush. I can say that because she’s my girlfriend, but you can’t.”

  Con zipped his mouth with his thumb and index finger, then settled back to he
ar the rest of the story.

  “Anyway, we think you have the gift as well.”

  Con opened his mouth, but Honi lifted his hand.

  “Let me explain. The coyotes that attacked you—did anyone else see them? No? Don’t you think it odd that there were quite a few people there, from all around the village, and not a single one saw two coyotes running away? Except for Adi and me. Those animals disappeared because Adi forced them to.”

  Con’s eyes grew wider as he continued listening.

  “These weird dreams you’re having—they’re part of your gift. Right now, they’re scary, and you haven’t been trained how to control them. But once you’ve found your own spirit animal, you’ll be able to travel between different worlds whenever you want to.”

  “My own spirit animal?” Con asked weakly.

  Honi filled him in about Ho’neo, about how every person had a spirit animal, how Con would never be alone again once he found his. The teenager’s eyes were filled with hope, and a big smile stretched his mouth across his whole face.

  “So what’s Adi’s spirit animal?” he finally blurted out. Honi should have expected the question—a question he had no answer to.

  “Adi is different. She isn’t from our culture, so for a long time, I didn’t think she could be a spirit walker. We’ve found others, though. One guy in Germany has a chipmunk, which is also weird, because they aren’t native to Europe. Adi hasn’t got one for some reason. We don’t know why or if she’ll ever have one. Right now, she’s borrowing my wolf.”

  Honi thought he’d covered his chagrin well, although Con’s knowing grin proved otherwise.

  “Why is she borrowing your wolf?”

  Honi sighed. “We had a fight, and Ho’neo took sides.”

  “Was it your fault?”

  Honi hesitated. The fight hadn’t been his fault, but his reaction and storming out… That was down to him. He waited too long to answer, apparently, because Con went on, “Why are you hanging out here, man? Go back and make up! The longer you wait, the harder it gets. Trust me, if my dad hadn’t run away every time they fought, he’d still be around, and my mom wouldn’t drink so much.”

  The pain in his voice cut right through Honi. He stood up and wrapped his arms around the teenager. Con stiffened for a moment before relaxing into the hug.

  “You’ll be okay, Con. We’ll figure out a way. You’re right—I’ll talk to Adi. And afterwards I’ll find your mom. And I’ll be back to tell you how we’ll find your spirit animal.”

  Con tightened his grip, then pushed Honi away. He looked exhausted. Honi knew the kid would fall asleep the minute he was alone. He dragged a blanket over his slight body, then left the house as quietly as he could.

  33

  Adi cursed as the suitcase’s tiny wheels snagged on a stone and flipped the damn thing over for the nth time. The jolt of the handle twisting in her hand threw her off-balance for a moment. She stopped and stared down the hill. She had no plan other than to get out of here. Far in the distance, across the valley, Lawton beckoned.

  She breathed out a big sigh, then turned to the spirit wolf who returned her look with a baleful glare. His ears were flattened to his head and his tail drooped listlessly. He was just as depressed as Adi.

  The cold wind blowing off the mountains behind her stung the exposed skin of her neck. It smelled of snow, and winter was going to hit hard according to her forecast app. Shivers were running up and down her arms. She desperately needed a better jacket if she wanted to be comfortable in the coming cold.

  The noise of tires crunching over loose stones behind her startled her out of her thoughts. She turned and lifted her arm, smiling tentatively as she recognized the driver. It was the fry cook, Honi’s friend Joe, who had been so friendly when she met him. But as their eyes met, there was no spark of recognition in his handsome face. In fact, he looked past her as if she weren’t even there.

  Adi had to step back because Joe drove so close to her, he nearly clipped her with his sideview mirror. She barely managed to pull the suitcase out of the car’s path before it disappeared down the hill. Adi shouted some choice words after Joe, but he was already out of earshot.

  A growl made her turn her head. Ho’neo stared at the brushes next to the road. Adi followed his line of sight. Something moved; something small. Surely too small to be dangerous, but Ho’neo’s growl grew louder and louder. Suddenly, his massive head swung towards her, and he leaped.

  Adi squealed in surprise, but the launch wasn’t aimed at her. The wolf flew past her, and two animals that had crept up near to Adi’s legs, scattered. Her mouth dropped open as she whirled around. A large lizard, only a few feet away, hissed at her. Its split tongue darted in and out of its mouth, its eyes trained on her with malignant concentration.

  There were spirit animals on both sides of the road. Ho’neo jumped from one scattering group of creatures to the next. They never stayed still long enough for him to do any damage to them. Prominent among them were desert creatures—lizards, mainly. Sickly-looking reptiles, with shedding skins and dull eyes, just like the ones Nina kept.

  It was as if they wanted to make sure she was leaving Heota. Wearily, Adi kept her eyes on the animals as she picked up the handle of her suitcase once again and continued walking downhill. She had to trust Ho’neo that he’d keep them away from her. She wouldn’t be able to fight them all—there were just too many.

  Very soon, the energy in the air changed. She had reached the mysterious barrier that separated Heota from the rest of the country. She stretched out her fingertips, flinching at the static shock. Despite knowing what to expect, the pain was a lot stronger than before, running up past her hand all the way to her elbow. Gritting her teeth, she pushed forward until she cleared the barrier.

  “Well, that was harder than it looked. Right?”

  There was no response, not even the light push of a wet nose into the palm of her hand. She looked down, then behind. The spirit wolf was gone. There was nobody, no spirit animals, no humans. She was truly by herself. Well, crap. She’d enjoyed Ho’neo’s company, although it wasn’t the first time he’d gone off unexpectedly. Heaving another bone-tired sigh, she began walking again. Maybe once she hit the main road, somebody might stop for her and give her a ride.

  The wind had picked up even more. Little dust devils danced down the road, mocking her. The mini-tornadoes picked up all kinds of debris—empty chips bags, bits of dried grass. Usually she would have smiled at the sight, but today, they couldn’t cheer her up. With every step she took away from Honi and her dreams of being accepted by his family, her mood dipped lower. She’d given up fighting the cold. Her hands were like ice, and even though her jacket was zipped up all the way to her chin, the skimpy fabric did nothing to protect her thin body against the dipping temperatures.

  She could have cried with relief when she finally reached the main road. And there, incongruous in this wild landscape, was a bus stop. It looked fairly new and hadn’t been vandalized and graffitied like so many she’d seen. There was even a schedule that hadn’t been torn down. Adi peered through the dulled plastic cover. Two buses passed this route per day, which was more than she’d hoped for. The next one was due in an hour.

  She settled down on a dusty plastic seat, covered in black squiggles, but otherwise clean enough to sit on. Adi stared along the empty road, avoiding turning her head towards the mesa far above her in the distance. Just as her eyes were drooping and her head fell forward with fatigue, a loud rumble announced the arrival of her ride to Lawton. She straightened up and waved at the bus driver.

  The relief of the warmth inside the vehicle after being outside for so long was incredible. She paid for a one-way ticket and struggled to an empty seat with her luggage. The bus driver didn’t wait for her to sit down and pulled away sharply. Adi had only managed to catch a quick glimpse of the other passengers, but they seemed to be mainly older folks. Nobody that would bother her. She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes, allo
wing the rumble and movement of the large bus to rock her into a doze.

  When she opened her eyes again, they were in the outskirts of Lawton. A large lady squeezed past her through the narrow walkway towards the exit. The bus slowed down, and as the doors opened, Adi spotted a motel sign just down the street. She jumped up.

  “Stop, I need to get off here!”

  The bus driver had already closed the doors and threw her an unfriendly look. She smiled apologetically, and the doors opened again. Adi nearly tumbled out of the vehicle in her rush to get off.

  Two minutes later, she stood in front of a typical one-story structure. It was one of those cheap motel chains that seemed ubiquitous in this part of Oklahoma. After following the sign to reception, Adi booked a single room for the night. As she’d hoped, off-season prices were low. The old man behind the counter made her fill out a form, but showed no interest in her otherwise. He handed over an old-fashioned key with a heavy brass attachment and pointed her towards room nine.

  When Adi opened the door, her eyes widened. She hadn’t expected much, but this place managed to under-deliver even on her low expectations. There was a musty-dead smell, as if a mouse had died here and rotted into the brown, threadbare carpet. The pink polyester bedspread had been in use for at least three decades. There were no chairs to sit on, so Adi moved to the bed and sat down gingerly.

  The telltale crinkle of a plastic mattress cover made her squeeze her eyes tight for a moment. These four walls had probably seen more than their fair share of desperate people coming through. Tonight she would sleep in her clothes, for sure. God knew what nasty stuff had soaked into the fabric over the decades. She wanted as little as possible of her own skin to touch the sheets.