Shift (Castlerock Shifters Book 1) Read online

  “Same time then? And don’t worry – I’ll be here. No wolves, I promise,” he said with a wink. He turned and headed out of the clearing. This time he went east.

  Well, that mystery was still at the top of her list... where on earth did the boy live?

  Nine

  Quinn

  Quinn waited in the woods beyond Jaisey’s cabin, to the east. He was struggling to figure out what had just happened to him. When he’d accidentally alerted Jaisey to his presence behind her, she’d turned and managed to search out his eyes. He wasn’t even sure that she knew what she was looking at, but the feeling of rightness when their eyes had met and held had him completely out of sorts. The only response he’d had was, again, that feeling that she was his.

  He could no longer fight what he felt for her. It didn’t make any sense. She wasn’t a wolf; wasn’t a shifter. Everything he’d ever been taught or led to believe argued that this was impossible. But, with the feelings and emotions rushing through him, he had no choice but to disregard those beliefs.

  He paused in thought. He hadn’t known about the Ishak’s pack either. Was it possible the elders had conveniently left out other crucial information? His annoyance with their tactics was mounting. He needed answers and instead, the elders only led him to more questions.

  Dismissing those thoughts, his frustration once again focused on his reaction to Jaisey. As much as he’d shied away from the term, he could think of nothing more accurate, more permanent to describe what he wanted her to be – his mate. What had felt too animal before, now felt right. He had no idea what to do with that information. He needed to get her out of his head; needed to speak with Aatu and find out exactly what was happening to him.

  He’d circled her clearing several times, trying to pick up any scent that didn’t belong. There were none, though that didn’t mean much with the Ishaks able to mask their passing.

  He curled up, trying patiently to wait for Seff, who was on the porch having a nice dinner with her. It took everything he had to push away the jealousy he felt toward Seff sitting there with her. He wanted to be the one sitting with her sharing a meal, chatting casually and laughing with ease. And the food smelled good. Really good. His stomach growled in protest.

  He hadn’t slept in a long time and his last meal had been even longer than that. He shook off the uncomfortable feelings and tried even harder to distract himself from her.

  He returned his focus to his other dilemma – the Ishaks. He tried to recall everything he had ever been taught about them. Knowing now that they were more than just myths from stories, he focused on the details he’d heard over the years. He needed something to give him an edge in finding or tracking them.

  He felt blinded and he hated the feeling that they could be out there now; stalking, waiting, watching. The only comfort he took was that they had the same blindness. Now that he knew they were coming and going, he would be sure that none of the pack left the protection of the valley without covering... he stopped mid-thought.

  Stupid!

  He knew exactly how to track them; it was so obvious. The Healer had even hinted at it when he said they had many ways of watching.

  It was with the power from the valley. He, like all his pack, could focus on that power. It was disorienting, but it showed things in the real world in a different light – literally.

  He closed his eyes and focused, reaching out with his mind for the valley power. It met him easily and he felt himself wrapped in the odd power. When he opened his eyes, he saw the same clearing that he had been looking at all evening. Except now, he could see the traces of light left behind by the creatures that had come through.

  It had been one of the most obscure lessons at an early age - auras. It had been fun at first, but quickly became tedious and boring; he’d only half paid attention when the lessons had gone on and on. He did remember that humans left behind shades mixed of silver and blue, and sure enough, leading from the western forest to the cabin door was a clear silvery-blue streak, resembling something akin to fog – changing shades as it ebbed and flowed.

  Auras would fade within a few hours, so if he could see it, he could count on it being a fresh trail. Right next to Jaisey’s was the yellow trail from Jack. It was very pale, which touched on the wolf in him and then next to that was the deep gold trail where Seff had walked. His pack had a beautiful golden shimmer. He’d always liked the way that looked.

  The members of his pack that were transplants from the Dragasani pack were a coppery color, but as they spent more time in their valley they changed to the golden of his own. He didn’t know what color the Ishak’s auras would be, but he knew he could and would find it; even if he had to go all the way back to their territory. He wondered vaguely if the power from the valley would stretch that far.

  His heart lifted with this discovery. What was it about the elders that they felt the need to let him discover all this information for himself? Must everything be used as a teaching moment? Would it have been so bad to just tell him how to track them? He silently wondered then, if they already knew the aural tone of the Ishaks. And again, he had to wonder why they had not seen the intruding wolf if they were watching.

  Seff rose and headed off the porch of the cabin. He turned to say something to Jaisey about seeing her tomorrow and then continued to where Quinn waited. Their senses were beyond exceptional when they were in wolf form, but even in human form, they were able to see and hear things a normal human couldn’t. He knew Seff would have heard him easily where he had settled in the forest.

  He joined Quinn, who shifted, and they started working their way around the clearing toward the south. The boy started in on his description of his evening with Jaisey. He seemed to think she was an exceptional cook. Quinn smiled, enjoying the details. He wasn’t surprised that Jaisey had seen him in the forest, but it did make him wonder – had she felt the connection too? He shook the thought off quickly. Of course she didn’t, she wasn’t pack.

  When Seff was finished, Quinn took his turn filling him in on what he had figured out. Seff smacked himself in the head with his palm for not figuring it out himself. Quinn laughed at the boy’s response, enjoying the moment of lightheartedness. He wished things hadn’t gotten so complicated since their game of chase.

  “I haven’t even looked for the stupid colors since we had to learn all of them for the animals and stuff. We could see if there’s a residual trace where that one was,” Seff suggested. Though, from his tone, he clearly didn’t see that it would be helpful.

  Quinn had thought about that and thought it unlikely. Since the scent was several hours old it would have faded by now, but he decided it couldn’t hurt to try. Besides, it wasn’t really that far out of their way heading back to the village. And maybe they would get lucky and stumble across the trespasser.

  Quinn felt the lack of sleep catching up with him at an incredible rate; exhaustion was setting in quickly. He’d not slept in two days, other than his short nap earlier in the afternoon.

  He shifted and Seff did the same. They ran, barely pausing where the scent still lingered. There was no trace, and even Jaisey’s presence had faded from the trail. They also came across no aura’s they didn’t easily recognize.

  Unfortunately, to learn the aural tone of the Ishaks, they would have to stumble across one of them or cross into their territory. Whatever it took, Quinn was up for it. He would keep his people safe, and he unequivocally included Jaisey as well.

  He realized he was crossing the line now too. Humans were to be watched and protected – nothing more. Sure, they interacted with humans away from the mountain with ease, but here it simply wasn’t done. Worse still, he knew she would leave and when she did, it seemed his heart would go with her.

  He shook off the thought. It wasn’t possible to feel so much for her. He was sure his head would be clearer with some sleep. So, he focused on the steps that led him home. He just needed to get home and get some much-needed rest.

  Ten
<
br />   Jaisey

  Jaisey worried that Seff would stand her up again, even though he’d reassured her that he’d be there. But, to his credit, he showed up – ten minutes early. Jaisey had to rush to finish getting things pulled together.

  Seff offered to carry the small cooler with the sandwiches and sodas. She handed it over and grabbed her bag with the towels and her book. She’d made a batch of brownies after Seff had gone the night before, knowing that Seff would be thrilled. It didn’t take much to make the kid happy. She’d also realized the night before, that like her brothers, food was a sure thing.

  She wasn’t sure how she would feel heading through the forest again, but as it turned out, between Jack’s antics and Seff’s never-ending stream of conversation, she had no time to start over-thinking things. Though he never stopped talking, he’d managed to not really tell her anything about himself or his family. It was amazing.

  When they reached the clearing, a startled family of deer bounded off into the forest to the south. Jack, of course, gave chase and she had to call him back.

  “What would he do with one if he caught one?” Seff asked with a chuckle.

  Jaisey smiled and laughed, sure that Jack didn’t even know. The real upside was that there were no wolves today if the smaller prey animals were out and near the water. Well, Seff had promised no wolves. She laughed at the thought.

  “So, can you dive?” she asked Seff.

  “Better than you, no doubt,” he replied with a challenge. She laughed and proceeded to put him to the test.

  They spent the better part of the morning trying to outdo each other as they leapt from the waterfall. Seff eventually gave in and admitted she was the better diver. After that, they swam and floated. Seff mentioned food before she was hungry, which didn’t surprise her a bit. They ate in silence, enjoying the beautiful weather.

  Seff laid back on his towel after he ate, apparently quite satisfied.

  “So, Jaisey,” he began, “you want to get back in the water?”

  She studied him for a few moments before responding, “How about we play a game instead?”

  “Like what?” he asked propping himself up on his elbow.

  “Well, it’s a game my mom used to play with us. It’s sort of a twenty questions game. Each of us gets to ask a question in turn to the other. If you can’t answer, or refuse to answer, the other gets a point. It has to be something that the person should or could know though. Then, whoever ends up with the most points can have the loser do something for them,” she explained with a smile.

  He was silent, considering.

  “What kind of thing does the loser have to do?” he asked cautiously.

  She laughed, “Oh, anything. Servant for a day… foot massages… yard work. My brothers always chose to have someone do their chores for them. I usually picked a book and had my mom read it to me.”

  “I like it. Servant for a day, how is that a bad thing?” he laughed.

  She smiled and pulled out a brownie for each of them.

  “Oh, right on!” he said taking his. The smile that lit up his face was priceless. She loved making him smile, and thankfully it was an easy thing to do.

  “Who goes first?” he asked through a bite of brownie.

  “You can unless you want me to go first to show you how it’s done,” she said.

  “Whatever,” he paused to swallow his last bite of brownie and then looked back at her bag with a hopeful grin. She laughed and reached into the bag to grab another one for him.

  “Yeah, you go first,” he said, taking another bite.

  She thought for a moment. She decided to start with easy questions. She already knew how guarded he was about his family. If she really wanted to win, she could throw those questions at him near the end.

  “Okay. What is your favorite color?” she asked.

  Seff raised an eyebrow, “Blue.”

  She nodded, “All right, your turn.”

  “That was way too easy a question,” he said.

  “The idea is to get to know the other person. That makes it easier, later on, to figure out what questions they won’t answer,” she explained with a wicked grin.

  “Ah, got it. When is your birthday?” he asked.

  “May fourteenth. I just turned twenty” she replied.

  “Really? I have a good friend with the same birthday, only he’s a few years older than you,” he said with a smile. She replied with a nod.

  “What food do you absolutely hate?” she asked.

  “Broccoli,” he answered without hesitation, screwing up his face in disgust. She laughed.

  “What type of animals do you like?” he asked.

  “Any with four legs,” she replied with a smile, reaching over to pat Jack who was napping in the sun. Seff smiled, seeming pleased with that answer.

  “Um… do you have any brothers or sisters?” she asked.

  “No.”

  “Have you been to any other countries?” he asked.

  “No.”

  “Do you have a girlfriend?” she asked with a wicked grin.

  “Ew… gross, NO!” he said, screwing up his face.

  “Do you have a boyfriend?” he asked, turning the question back on her with an arch in his eyebrows.

  “No.”

  “Seriously?” he asked.

  “Only one question at a time,” she said in a disapproving voice. “Have you ever broken any bones in your body?”

  “Nope. Sprained a few though,” he said with a grin. He seemed proud of that fact.

  He was quietly thinking, so Jaisey took the break in the conversation to grab them each a soda from the cooler.

  “Ah,” he said looking up at her with a wicked grin, “What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?”

  She paused. That was a good one to skip. It wasn’t so much that she had ever done anything that bad. She just figured it wouldn’t be a good idea to give the kid any ideas.

  “Not going to answer that one,” she said, grinning wickedly. “Have you ever cheated on a test?” she fired back at him.

  “Yes,” he said sheepishly, with a dip of his head.

  She’d figured he wouldn’t answer that one since her brothers never did. Of course, not answering in that case, was just as good as giving a yes.

  “What are you the most afraid of?” he asked.

  After a moment of hesitation, she replied, “Spiders.” She hated to admit her weakness, but in all honesty, a spider could, and would, make her scream and run. She laughed at herself; Seff laughed too.

  “Spiders? But they’re so small,” he said still laughing.

  “Moving on… who do you love most in the world?” she asked.

  Seff stopped at that one. He seemed to be thinking really hard. That was unexpected.

  “I think I’ll pass,” he responded, his face saddened by the question.

  “I’m sorry Seff… are you all right?” she asked.

  “Hey, it’s my turn,” he chided, his smile returning, though with less intensity. “Have you ever stolen anything?” he asked.

  “Yes, but it was unintentional, and I went right back in the store and paid for it when I realized,” she replied. Seff smiled again at that one, his humor returning.

  “What do you wear to bed?” she asked.

  He blushed, but replied, “My boxers. How many books have you read?”

  “Ooh, good one. I don’t know, dang it,” she replied. He smiled at his small victory.

  “Hmmm… that puts you up one. Time to pull out the tough questions. How many pushups can you do in a row? And you have to prove it,” she said.

  He laughed, “Duh! Two,” And he proceeded to do two push-ups.

  “Cheater,” she replied with a huge smile. That was very clever of him; her brothers had never thought to do it that way. They were super competitive though, so they picked high numbers.

  “Can you do a backflip into the water?” he asked. “And you have to prove it too.”

  She th
ought about just answering no, but in truth, she could.

  “Fine, yes,” she said standing and heading to the water. Seff rose too and followed her. He applauded her flip, though she overturned a little. He gave a yell and flipped in as well, making a huge splash.

  Back in the water, Seff pronounced the game over and himself the winner.

  “So. What would you like as your prize?” she asked. She just knew she would be doing some sort of manual labor for him. That was just the way boys were.

  “Can I think about?” he asked. The somewhat sullen face had returned.

  “Sure,” she said hesitantly. She didn’t want to give him too much time to come up with something.

  “The thing is, I don’t have any brothers or sisters. And, I know we just met, but you seem kind of like a big sister would be. I’ll have to figure something out,” he explained. “Don’t get me wrong, I have plenty of friends, and I know just what they would be doing for me,” he laughed evilly. “But you… no, I want to pick something special.” He laughed at her expression, “And by special, I don’t mean anything bad.”

  “Well, when you decide, you let me know,” she replied, touched. He thought of her like a big sister. That was sweet. She realized she was feeling similarly about him. She’d never had a little brother. This had become such an easy and natural friendship, it felt like family.

  She glanced up at the sky. They had been in the clearing for a few hours now. She figured he’d have somewhere he would need to be, so she suggested they call it a day. He reluctantly agreed and they packed up to head back to her cabin, but not before he managed to get the last brownie from her.

  The walk back was completely uneventful, compared to the day before. When they reached the clearing by the cabin, he stopped and looked all around like he was searching for something. She raised an eyebrow in question, but he didn’t offer an explanation and walked her right up to the door.

  “So, any plans for tomorrow?” he hedged.

  “Not really. Why don’t you come by if you can? I’m sure we can figure something out,” she replied with a smile.