Page 34 of Hunted in the Shadows
But I settled my resolve and nodded at Jon. “After that strange feeling by the wreck, I—”
Before I could finish, the early morning stillness was shattered by a scuffle of movement. Footsteps beat against the ground. Abark.
I tensed, whipping my head around to find the source. There was no tingle of a monster's presence, but—
A blur of fur shot out from between cars, lunging for Jon.
In an instant, I was back in the Dottage basement. Decaying jaws snapped in the dim light, ripping into Jon’s flesh. His face would soon pale with infection, and then, the voices—the voices.
A guttural “no!” clawed up my throat. They couldn’t have me again. Couldn’t havehim. Mist shrouded my hands, stolen from the saturated air. Jagged icicles took form, ready to plunge through skin and bone, ready to end this before it started—
“Stop, hey!” Cliff’s voice snapped me back to the present as he waved a hand in front of me. “It’s fine, Sylv—just a golden retriever.”
Breathing heavily, I saw Jon stumble back against a nearby pickup truck as the silky-haired dog hopped up on its hind legs and shoved its muddy front paws enthusiastically against him. Jon used one hand to hold it back, but it bounced up again in determination to lick his face. Even as I lowered my hands, I couldn’t consolidate the riotous terror pounding through my veins with Jon’s growing grin.
Steadying my breath, I tucked the gem shard into my pocket. I tentatively flew closer, managing a weak laugh as the dog whimpered for affection and wagged its tail so hard that its whole body swayed. “Pet it before it eats you alive.”
The dog’s excitement drew the attention of at least three more dogs who observed with interest. A few others snoozed under the trees indifferently. I spotted the sharp eyes of a couple of cats peeking out from beneath ruined vehicles.
“Strays?” Jon straightened, placating the golden retriever by stroking its head.
“They’ve got collars,” Cliff said. “Gotta belong to the owner. Looks like they’re shitty at being guard dogs. We should get on with it before they start barking, though.” He searched the ground, then knelt to grab a chewed-up rubber ball from the dirt. With a sharp whistle, he drew the golden retriever’s attention and tossed the ball into the maze of vehicles.
At once, the golden retriever bounded off with a few other dogs scrambling after.
The hunters hurriedly popped open the trunk and began sorting. I wrinkled my nose at the scent of stagnant rainwater that pooled within, though it hardly seemed to bother them. They worked as one, exchanging no more than a word or two as they decided what to stuff into the duffel bags and what to conceal deeper in the trunk.
No less than a minute passed before the golden retriever galloped back. It dropped the ball by the hunters and nosed Jon’s leg, whining insistently. Jon sighed and reached for the ball, but I beat him to it. With a whispered spell, I conjured a small gale of ice and aimed it downward to send the ball spinning across the lot. Three dogs bolted after it.
“I’ll keep them busy,” I said, meeting Jon’s surprised look with a grin. I flexed one arm. “Call if you need me to carry anything.”
He scoffed. “Stay close.”
The dogs were a bit brighter than I thought, seeming to make the connection that I was the one moving the ball when I shouted my spells and used exaggerated gestures. Whenever one dog would catch the ball, they would bring it back and drop it under my hovering shadow.
“Hazel would love you,” I sighed before sending the ball a few dozen feet away, rolling beneath several cars.
Eyeing the vehicles, I noted that not all of them were in ruins. Perhaps Jon and Cliff could have one of those. My stomach churned as I wondered if I’d hurt their chances of affording a car by ordering multiple desserts last night.
Don’t be silly. A hot fudge sundae can’t cost as much as a car.
I recalled Jon deftly swiping silverware from the table last night and tucking it into his coat. Perhaps his skills extended to cars, too. Surely the owner wouldn’t noticeonemissing in this labyrinth.
As I flew deeper into the maze of vehicles and oaks, my musings came to a halt when I found myself mere feet away from the chain link fence that circled the property. Peeking out from behind curtains of moss, I found the two-story building tantalizingly close, slightly obscured by fog. It was different than the Dottage mansion—smaller, for one thing. But there were signs of life that hadn’t been present outside of Alice’s home. Wicker furniture sat on the porch, surrounded by a plethora of more chew toys. Stairs on the side of the building led up to another entrance on the second floor, the balcony crowded with potted plants that would make even the most seasoned earth affinity jealous.
Itching for a closer look, I flew past the moss. Scrambling paws and a whimper came from below, drawing my attention down to the returned ball.
Chuckling, I was about to send it bouncing away from the fence when I heard a gasp.
Goosebumps prickled up the back of my neck when I laid eyes on a human woman mere feet away. I’d flown right into her path from behind the tree, eye-level with her.
She staggered two steps back, dropping what she held in her hands. The ceramic bowls shattered on the ground, sending kibble over the gravel. The sound may as well have been an explosion in the peaceful lot. Distantly, I heard Jon and Cliff call my name in alarm. The dogs, oblivious of any trouble, excitedly clambered for the fallen food among the shards.
The human woman snapped out of her shock, trying to block them. “No, no—get!Get!You’ll cut yourselves!”
Without thinking, I shouted my spell to launch the ball toward the house. The woman yelped in alarm, but it did the trick—the golden retriever went sprinting to find its toy, and its friends followed.
Eyes wide, the woman brought her stare back to me, pressing a hand over her chest. “You were… playing with them?” she breathed.
