by Keri Hudson
“Bunker… no, Baxter, Jane Baxter.” Caleb gave it some thought. “Animal Control, that would be a good cover. I suppose either one is possible.”
“But wait… wouldn’t they be injured?”
“They would be now, at least for a time. We shifters heal quickly, and we’re hard to kill. You shot that thing three times in the head and it still walked away. In the end, it probably wound up ejecting the buckshot before shifting back with hardly a scratch.”
Abigail seemed horrified as she gave that some thought. “My God,” she said, seeming to realize just what they were facing.
“But whoever the shifter is, the real question is why he… or she… keeps coming around here. If the target was here before my brother arrived, that means… it’s one of you.”
What little color there was in Abigail’s face seemed to drain from it. “It’s not me, Caleb, I swear it!”
He cracked a little smile. “No, of course not, Abigail. I’m afraid maybe… Daniel.”
“What? Daniel, no, Caleb, no!”
“Take it easy, Abigail, it’s… it’s not that bad a thing. You spend more time with him than anyone else. Have you… noticed anything along those lines?”
“Li’l Danny turning into a bloodthirsty monster? No, nothing like that.” After an awkward silence, Abigail added, “I’m sorry, I… I didn’t mean that. You’re not a bloodthirsty monster, I… I didn’t mean to imply that… that you—”
“It’s all right, Abigail, it’s a lot to digest.” Abigail nodded her wordless agreement and surveyed the dark woods, clinging all the tighter to Caleb’s strong arm.
She asked, “So, if Daniel is a… a shifter…” Caleb nodded, and Abigail went on, “that means one of his parents must be?”
“Exactly,” Caleb said. “Could have been his mother, but the odds of a shifter mother leaving her cub or pup, well, it’s unlikely.”
“Unless she was chased off by this… this bear shifter.”
“Yeah,” Caleb admitted. “But most mothers of any species would stand and fight to the death.”
After a morbid moment, Abigail asked, “Does that mean… that the bear shifter killed her too?”
“It’s possible,” Caleb sighed. “But then… why didn’t it kill the child? That’s obviously what they’re after.” Reading her sorrowful expression, Caleb added, “If our theory is correct, and it may not be. Could be Daniel and his parents are all perfectly normal.”
Abigail nodded, seemingly working it out behind that lovely face. “Then… who’s the shifter at Armstrong House?”
“That’s what we’ve got to figure out.”
Caleb glanced over to see Lulu watching them from the house, white eyes wide. Caleb turned and waved her over, Lulu hesitating. But she finally stepped out of the house and to Caleb and Abigail standing on the back porch.
“Yes, suh?”
“You alright, Lulu?”
“I’m… I’m fine, suh. You? Miss Abigail?”
“I’m fine, Lulu.” A tense silence passed before Abigail asked, “Lulu, if there’s anything you want to tell us…”
Lulu was clearly thinking things through before finally saying, “I… I’m afraid, that’s what. All these animals… I seen what you done, suh—”
“It’s okay, Lulu,” Caleb said. “You remember what you said before, about the house… being haunted?” Lulu nodded, and Caleb went on. “Well, this is what you were sensing, Lulu. You weren’t wrong. But the forces you’re sensitive to, they can protect you as well as threaten you, do you understand?” Lulu nodded again. “I’ll protect you,” Caleb added, “I’m your friend, you don’t have to be afraid.”
Lulu seemed to give it some thought before turning and walking back into the house.
Edith stepped out past Lulu to smile at Caleb and Abigail. “Mister Kahr.”
“Please—”
“Caleb,” Edith said, “whatever you say, whatever you ask—”
“Edith, as I was just telling Lulu, you don’t have to be afraid of me. I understand that you’re fearful of what you saw. That thing, that huge bear, that’s what killed my brother. He was… he was special, like I am. If you’re religious, you might just think of us as… as angels or something like that.”
Edith stood there with an expression of complete confusion, brows arching, eyes shifting around, biting her lower lip.
“Yes, sir,” was all she seemed ready to say before she cleared her throat and added, “you’re… you’re okay?”
Caleb nodded and looked at Abigail. “Good thing nobody was driving by when the shots rang out. I’m not in the mood to hear from that detective again.”
After a moment to ponder, Abigail said, “Unless… he’s the shifter.” The undeniable truth of it sank in as they all considered the ramifications.
Edith broke the silence with, “I… I just got a call from Master Armstrong, in Amsterdam. He… he says he’s coming home on the soonest flight.”
Abigail looked at Caleb with obvious concern, then back at Edith to ask, “Did you… tell him about—?”
Edith nodded and looked at Caleb. “He asked that you be here when he arrives.”
Caleb had no way of knowing if that was foreboding or promising, but he had no reason to fear the man. He was eager to meet him, in fact, his instincts telling him that the great man himself would be the key to solving the mystery of Armstrong House once and for all.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Caleb was spraying the vegetable garden, keeping a steady eye on the woods around the property, Abigail and Daniel reading at the table behind the house and overlooking the expansive backyard. The topiaries stood on the east side of the yard, silent and still in a never-ending vigil.
Caleb stopped to smile and wave at the two, who returned the gesture. Caleb could see that he’d touched something deep in Abigail’s heart, and she’d done the same. Caleb had been alone for years, afraid that the violence of his inherent state and the lifestyle that went along with it would be too dangerous for any innocent such as the lovely Abigail. But she seemed willing, and even more than that, she seemed to have a real affection for him, pure and loving, like herself.
Caleb relished the rush of warmth that pulsed through his tissues just to look at her, just to recall the musky moments they’d shared and to imagine the nights to come. Edith had her disapproval, Caleb understood that. And the return of Master Armstrong would raise bring what had happened between them to the surface, Caleb had little doubt. But he looked at Abigail and saw a treasure he’d been seeking his whole life. Nobody and nothing were going to take that away from him.
But there was something out there that wanted to do just that.
More questions wriggled in the back of Caleb’s brain. Edith said the great man was coming home, but she didn’t say that he was bringing his wife back with him. That meant the old man must have failed to find her, or that he did and she refused to return with him. Is it the killings that brought him back? Does he know about the shifter?
Or is he nearby even now, having never gone to Europe at all. But… why?
Theories developed in Caleb’s brain, growing like the tomato plants at his feet. Could Master Armstrong be the bear shifter? Could he be the one who attracted Carl here, who killed my brother? But… why not remain here at the house? Is he drawing in lupines, killing us one by one in some kind of systematic death trap?
The idea didn’t last long.
No, there are too many of us. He’d have to know he’d be doing this forever, trapping and killing lupines one at a time. But the idea didn’t lack merit the more Caleb thought about it. Certainly possible, he had to admit.
But that brought up a troubling prospect. If Armstrong’s a shifter, Caleb realized, his son may very well be one too. Caleb looked at Daniel with a new perspective. The boy sat happily with his beloved tutor, looking at the dinosaur book she held open in front of him. He glanced at Caleb and smiled, then back at the book. He’d seen what Caleb had done, Caleb didn’t d
oubt it. He’d witnessed the battle, the shift probably to and from his lupine form. But he wasn’t terrified by it as most children might be. He hardly seemed phased at all, as if it were perfectly natural to him, even pleasing for him to know there was a shifter in the house.
Again.
Caleb had to wonder, Is Daniel a young shifter? Is he the one attracting the alpha predators, the coywolves? That would make him the target of the ursine, and that would have drawn Carl’s protective nature to this place. It makes sense. But… what about the mother, did she know? Did she only find out recently and run away, or… did she never have the chance to run at all?
“Caleb?” Caleb snapped out of his reverie to see Abigail looking at him with a quizzical expression on her pretty face. “Everything all right?”
“Yeah, just… just mulling things over.”
Edith stepped out from the house, leading Animal Control officer Jane Baxter and her two cronies, tall, younger men. “Miss Baxter,” Edith said, “from Animal Control.”
“It’s Ms., actually,” Jane said, turning her attention to Caleb and Abigail. “We’re here to check the traps.”
“I checked them,” Caleb said.
Jane seemed to try to ignore him, offering a chipper smile on her boxy face. “Just part of the job.” She turned to the other officers and said, “Boys?” They nodded and walked off across the yard to check the traps they’d placed a few days before.
Jane lingered, looking Abigail up and down. “And how are you today, Miss Sanderson?”
“I’m… I’m fine, Ms. Baxter… officer.”
“Call me Jane,” she said with a wink. “Say, there’s the spring fair in Fall River tomorrow. Any thoughts of going?”
Abigail looked at Caleb, who was actually a bit amused watching her discomfort. “Well, I… um…”
“We could meet up there,” Jane said. “I know all the best booths.”
Abigail shrugged and stammered. “I, um, I’d be looking after Daniel, so…”
“Well, that’s perfect! My niece will be in town, she’s about Daniel’s age. Looks like he could use a friend.”
Finally, Caleb had enough. “She’ll be in my company at the fair,” he said, polite but powerful. “Both of them will be.”
Jane looked Caleb up and down, as if she were trying to hide her true feelings with a fake smile on that big, handsome face of hers. “S’that so?” She turned to Abigail, who nodded her confirmation. “Oh, I see,” Jane went on, cracking an awkward chuckle. “Well, that doesn’t mean we can’t all meet up, have a good time. That’s all I meant anyway.”
Caleb nodded, giving the poor woman an easy out, but not without a glance at Abigail, who returned it with a knowing nod.
Jane said, “I’ll go see to my fellow officers, make sure they’re not screwing up the traps.” She offered another awkward smile before pushing off, across the yard and toward the woods. Abigail seemed distressed, which Caleb attributed to several likely reasons, only one of which was being hit on by a lesbian Animal Control officer right in front of her new lover, not to mention the love of her life.
Abigail sad softly, “I don’t like her.”
“The feeling doesn’t seem to be mutual.”
“No, I mean… I get a weird feeling about her.”
“You think… she’s our man?”
“Don’t joke, Caleb, this is serious.”
“You’re telling me?” Caleb took a moment to consider it, the theory making good sense. “Still, she is in the proximity.”
“And Animal Control? It’s a perfect fit for somebody like that.” She looked at Caleb to add, “Somebody like you, I mean, or, I mean…”
“It’s okay,” Caleb said, “I understand.” Being different was just something Caleb had gotten used to. He knew he made normalos ill at ease, even those who loved him. But what worried Caleb most was finding the ursine shifter, and Jane Baxter did seem as likely a candidate as any.
Thinking out loud, Caleb said, “Could she be here… looking for a mate?”
Abigail seemed to think about it before answering the question with a question. “You mean… as a human, or…?”
“Both, maybe,” Caleb had to answer. “I’ve never heard of that, but I suppose it’s possible. That would certainly have pitted her against my brother. You and he weren’t…?”
“No, Caleb, I… I told you that.”
Caleb nodded, glad to believe her. “Could be that the ursine was attracted to you, and she attracted Carl. Natural forces would have pitted them against each other in any case.”
Abigail clung to Caleb, speaking softly. “Caleb, I… don’t let her get me!”
“I won’t, Abigail, I promise.” Both watched as Jane faded into the woods, neither sure of who or what they were truly looking at.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The spring fair in Fall River brought out the local population from all over the area. It was a hard call to go; it meant leaving Armstrong House unguarded, with only Edith and Lulu to hold the fort. But Caleb was confident that neither of them were the shifter’s target, so they’d be left unmolested. Though there was still the possibility that the shifter would come in, kill them both, and be waiting for them in ambush. Neither would have time to call him for help, and if they did, he’d never have time to get there.
But he considered it a low risk. Daniel or Abigail seemed the more likely targets, and they’d be with him in Fall River, walking among their most likely suspects as to who the ursine shifter might be. If anything, Caleb realized, he’d be on the prowl at the fair, and being there might be the best way to draw him out.
The quaint little downtown area of Fall River was crowded with pedestrians, car traffic cut off for four blocks of booths selling food and crafts. In Borden Park, carny rides were glittering with gaudy lights and spun with mechanical insecurity.
They approached a series of midway games, generally crooked gambits including BB guns, a penny toss, a ring toss. The three wound up at the BB gun target booth, the teenager behind it smiling as if he knew he was rooking his friends and neighbors.
“Shoot the star out, win the prize!”
Behind him, paper targets were lined up on metal clips—small, white paper squares with a black star in the center. Massive teddy bears, bigger than Daniel himself, hung along the rear upper wall of the booth.
But this was a con Caleb knew, and he handed the kid two bucks and picked up the BB rifle. Abigail and Daniel stepped back, the teenager behind the counter doing the same. Caleb lined up the sights, knowing already that they were deliberately mis-set. He took a quick shot to find out how badly the sights were off, noting where the hole punched in the paper. Once that was triangulated, it was a simple matter.
Pap! Pap pap pap pap pap pap pap!
Caleb shot at the paper, but not at the star at all. Instead, he shot out the paper just under the clip until the piece of paper fell and wafted to the ground. Caleb set down the rifle as the teenager picked up the target, tattered at the top but untouched in the middle.
Caleb put down the rifle and turned to Daniel. “Which one do you want, Daniel?”
But the teenager handed Caleb the paper. “Sorry, but you didn’t hit the star at all.”
“No,” Caleb said flatly, pointing at the clip. “See that little scrap of paper still attached to the clip? That’s the paper that counts, not this. Give it to me.” The teenager stood with a tilted head, confused, before turning to the clip and pulling out the little scrap of paper before handing it to Caleb. “You see a star on this paper?” The teenager shook his head and Caleb turned to Daniel. “The white one?”
Daniel shook his head. “Brown!”
Caleb turned to the teenager behind the counter, handing him the tiny scrap of shot-up paper. “The brown one, please.”
Abigail beamed at Caleb as Daniel took the big bear, barely able to carry it. Abigail carried it for him, leaning against Caleb in affectionate nuzzling as they walked on.
“Well done,”
a familiar voice said from the crowd behind them. Caleb, Abigail, and Daniel turned to see Det. Paul Hume strolling up behind them, a smile on his bony face, brown curls tight against his angular head. “The BB gun, I mean.”
Caleb looked the high-ranking local cop over. “What else would you have meant?”
Hume glanced at Abigail, smiling but saying nothing. Instead, he looked down at Daniel. “Having fun?” Daniel only buried his face in Abigail’s side. Hume turned his attention to Caleb. “You’re staying in town, I suppose.”
Caleb just stared Hume down, letting no response be his only response. Hume huffed, as if he’d read the signals perfectly. Hume went on, “I hope you’re… at peace regarding your poor brother’s demise.”
Caleb nodded, sharing a glance with Abigail before returning his attention to Hume, who said, “You two seem to be getting along. That’s… that’s nice.”
Caleb looked the cop up and down, not having to say, That’s none of your business.
But Hume looked Caleb up and down too, taking a step forward and thrusting his chin in a vague act of general aggression. “You’re a vet, Iraq and Afghanistan.”
This told Caleb that the cop had been researching him, that he was a person of interest to the Fall River Police Department. And it told him that Hume knew he was dealing with an adversary not to be underestimated. But why Hume would consider him an adversary was what troubled Caleb, not any of the threatening postures the small-town cop might assume.
After a prolonged silence, Hume went on, “You’re not prone to PTSD, are you?”
“Post-traumatic stress disorder?”
“That’s right,” Hume answered. “Shooting at the wildlife the way you are, out in the countryside again. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.” After another long pause, Hume went on, “You can get help. There are therapists, programs… not here, but in Boston, or… or anywhere else. Here in Fall River, we just don’t have that kind of capacity.”