Page 66 of Shifting Years
But I did.
"I wish for him to return!" Whatever energy, emotion, or will mixed earlier wasn't there now. Henry turned more shell-like and grew to the size of a school bus. Long curved claws clicked along both sides of his body as if they were mandibles.
Henry's bulbous head jerked side to side, clicking at the air as if trying to smell me. He had no nose—just a gaping, circular maw bristling with teeth.
Then he inhaled.
A cyclone of wind roared toward him as he sucked in deep, tasting the air.
I scrambled back, frantically rubbing wilted blueberries against my bare skin before pressing myself into the bushes.
Henry coiled, massive and monstrous and he turned.
Not toward me.
Toward the cabin.
To Penny, Mary and their baby.
To my Angel.
***
Chapter Twenty-Four
Mike
"No!" I screamed. "I'm here! Takeme!"
It didn't answer. Fur exploded over my skin as my body twisted too fast, sending me stumbling. Vomit burned my throat and dripped onto the dirt as bones snapped and reformed. An armored worm silently slithered out of sight, faster than a speeding Trans Am.
Protect. Chase.
Can't smell prey. Why no scent?
Run straight.
Instinct made me howl, and a confused wolf-song echoed back before being abruptly cut off. For a few seconds, there was nothing. Then came the screams, groans, and finally, faint yips.
New authoritative howls came, not directed at me but at others in town. I was still over a minute away and couldn't do anything except listen to the scream-howls. Yips cut off quickly, and I prayed I didn't hear wolves die.
He would have made it to my Angel by now. No paranormal had ever harmed a child. That's what we told ourselves, like the lie that all Alphas were kind to Omegas.
Quicker than was healthy, I shifted back into my naked form, trembling. The strain of the spell and shifting so quickly drained me completely. With shaking legs, I forced myself to my feetand ran toward the wreckage of Penny and Mary's cabin. The air was thick with the scent of splintered wood, blood, and a single, uneaten chocolate chip cookie.
"Where is she?" I screamed to the sheriff.
He argued with Wyatt, no longer the young kid from years ago. A fear I had never seen in the mustached man's eyes reflected before he faced his older teenage son. "You stayhere,Wyatt."
"Pa, you need all the men."
"I do, and some are neededhere. Promise me you'll stay."
Wyatt was almost a man, burning to prove himself. He turned away, not as a child but someone ordered tonothelp his pack.
The sheriff turned with a scowl and took me to the side, away from shifter ears. "What do you know about this?"
The words tumbled out while I fought back tears of shame. I gasped when he said a huge, metallic serpent took my Angel. At least he didn't sayate.
