Shifter Magick (7 page)

Kera felt lucky that Maddox found her interesting but she didn’t feel anything but distain regarding Andrew. She was partial to Nick too but for an insane reason. In her mind, he saved Maddox’s life.

“Turn left up here.” Rebecca instructed her flatly.

Kera glanced over at Rebecca and thought she needed something comforting to say. The road began to curve and Kera slowed down as her heart rate sped up. This was it. Around the corner was where Andrew had shown up. Kera pulled forward and stopped on the spot Andrew had stood in her dream. She got out of the car and ran to the edge of the road. Sure enough, the tree’s were still cracked and broken.

“Nice guess.” Rebecca said from behind her.

Kera looked to her left and saw that point of impact. The tree on the side of the road still had black flecks of pain imbedded in the bark. “What was he doing up here?” Kera found herself asking.

“I don’t know.”Rebecca’s flip flops made a lot of noise as she walked around. “There isn’t anything up there.”

“Nick saved him?” Kera asked her as she looked down and saw the large tree that was half dead from the severity of the impact.

“How do you figure that?” Rebecca asked angrily. “What aren’t you telling me Kera?”

Kera wondered what she had done to strike a nerve with her roommate. “Nothing.” She said innocently. “I read about it in an old paper I found in the library this morning.”

Rebecca scowled at her. “It was never in the paper. Maddox has money and his uncle owns the paper. The
story never ran and no one knows what really happened up here. We followed the tow truck. He didn’t even go to a hospital in the area. You’re lying to me.”

Kera was caught. She didn’t know what to say. Her mind raced. “We should go.” She said when she couldn’t come up with anything better. She didn’t feel like sorry cut it.

“Yeah.” Rebecca said angrily. She turned on her heals and stomped away.

They hadn’t made it very far from the jeep. Kera closed her eyes and took a breath. She smelt the dirt and dust that she remembered from her dream but also something else that was out of place but strangely familiar to the situation.

She looked around but turned quickly when Rebecca screeched.

“Back away slowly.” Kera demanded.

Rebecca shook her head and stared at the large wolf in front of her. The intelligence in the wolf’s eyes caught Kera by surprise. She guessed the animal thought it had just bagged some fast food. If Rebecca wasn’t about to move, Kera would have to move her.
She
stepped lightly and made a few steps progress before the wolf bared its teeth. The hair on the back of her neck stood up at the warning.

Her blood pumped adrenaline through her veins and Kera felt a beast stretch out inside of her. She gasped for air and saw the wolf make its move. Inside Kera screamed. She watched the wolf reach Rebecca first and knock her over with the force of a
two hundred pound monster.

Before the beast could sink his teeth into her roommate, Kera used all her might to tackle the creature. They rolled and Kera came up in a crouch. Her gaze flickered to Rebecca and either by force or by fear, she was out.

In the hesitation, Kera lost her element of surprise. The animal jumped against her chest and knocked her backwards. She fell down the mountain in the same way Maddox had. As she tumbled, Kera saw the wolf run after her. It was going to strike before she stopped moving.

Kera kicked out and connected with its snout.

The wolf yelped and opened its large mouth and clamped its jaw around her ankle.

Kera cried out in pain. She could feel the rocks tearing at her skin through the barrier of her clothes. Her attacker rocked its head side to side ripping her ankle further. She felt herself being dragged up the mountain. This wolf was strong. Her mind made a point to tell her that instead of coming up with an escape plan. Kera ignored her pain and reacted with panic. Using his grip on her as a focal point, she pulled herself in a sitting position and struck it in the side of the head.

When he let go of her, Kera felt something inside of her escape. Pain radiated every muscle and bone in her body. She screamed a
nd it came out as a roar
. Her body trembled as it happened. This beast she imagined showed itself. This beast that lived inside of her was angry.

The beast took control when Kera couldn’t.

Kera found herself pumped up on adrenaline and instincts she couldn’t begin to understand. She roared out a warning and saw her reflection in the wide stare of the wolf’s eyes. She was the shade of night and as big as the wolf. Her muscles were lean where he was stocky. She had claws and teeth and was ready to use them.

Kera felt her beast flex its claws and crouch the way she’d seen a house cat do before it pounced on a string. It felt right. Kera felt the soil roll through her claws as she dug them into the ground. Her hind le
g
throbbed and she now knew why it was dangerous to mess with a wounded animal.

There was no doubt in her mind that her beast was willing to kill to protect itself. The wolf twitched and her beast tensed. The dance began. The wolf moved and she reacted. Fear and intellect battled inside the eyes of the vicious animal before her. It needed something from the situation but didn’t know how to obtain it. Kera wasn’t going to be dinner and neither was her roommate.

Finally, the wolf bolted with speed she didn’t know was possible.

Exhaustion followed. She revolted when her instinct was to lick her wounds. She was too human still to let herself do such a thing even when she was in this strange animal form. Instead she focused on fingers and toes instead of claws and fur. She welcomed the pain and rushed the change along.

Her memory from the year after her mother’s death finally turned useful. The beast used to appear at any mention of her mother. She first felt the tears then the trembling and the beast would tear her clothes to shreds either from the change of from anger.

Finally she
had found a way to keep her clothes on through the change. She didn’t have a clue where they went but today she was grateful. Her clothes were torn but she wasn’t without.

As pain radiated through her whole body, Kera turned her thoughts to Rebecca. She was still out cold. Kera forced herself to limp over to her and check her wounds. Her head was bleeding from a pretty large gash but she was breathing steadily.

Kera picked her up and put her in the back seat of her jeep. She didn’t know if it was a good idea to move her, but she couldn’t leave her out in the open. Her energy was draining at an alarming rate and
Kera didn’t know how much use she would be in a few minutes. She gasped with each step she took as she rounded to the driver’s seat.

Once inside she realized she shouldn’t drive.

If it was just herself she would have waited it out and hoped for the best but Rebecca needed help.

Without a second thought, Kera dug out her phone and called the only person who would know where she was.

Maddox.

“Hello?” His deep voice rumbled through her.

“Maddox
,
” She rasped. “It’s Kera.”

“I can’t talk right now Kera.” Maddox told her softy.

Kera sobbed as pain stabbed her leg and her heart at the same time. “Please.” She begged softly. “Help me.”

“Kera.” Maddox voice turned panicked. “Where are you?”

“Your place.” She told him. “No.” her mind began to fog over. “
The mountain with the … no … accident.”

“You’re on a mountain.” Maddox pressed. “Which mountain?”

“Your mountain where you almost died.” She whimpered. “A wolf…”

“Kera I’m coming.” He told her. “Just hang on.”

Tears rolled down her face as she felt herself lose the fight to hold her phone. It slid down her body and thudded on the floor at her feet. Kera’s head rolled to see it soaking in a pool of blood. “That’s a lot of blood.” She whispered to herself.

“Hang on.” She heard Maddox call from the phone.

She didn’t. Kera’s world went black.

“Hon
ey, how do you feel?” Her dad
asked her.

Kera was still listening to the argument in the hallway. The nurse argued with the doctor and they were both wrong. She was fine.

“You lost a lot of blood.”
Her dad
continued. “I got here after you came out of surgery.”

Kera looked at him. She was still surprised she was in a hospital. “Surgery?” She asked him. “Did they find anything out of the ordinary?”

Dad
frowned and looked back to the door. “Maybe I should get the doctor to explain it to you.”

“No.” She grabbed his hand and held him there. “Don’t worry about it. I’m glad you came but I feel fine. I just…”

“You were attacked by a wild animal Kera.”
Her dad
scolded her. “Of course I would be here. You are my daughter and your wellbeing is more important to me than the cost of a plane ticket.”

Kera winced. He knew her too well. “I want to get out of here.” She told him sternly. “Now.”

Her dad
shook his head. “You just woke up thirty minutes ago.”

“I hate hospitals.” Kera argued. It wasn’t a lie. He despised them with all of her heart. “I want to go back to my room. I can lay in bed there just as good as I can lie in bed here.”

“
Kera
…” he began.

“Dad, I’m twenty and I can do it with or without you.” She threatened. His painful expression made her hate herself but the doctor and nurse were already out to prove they were right.

“Let’s wait to see what the doctor says.”

Just then the doctor came in with the nurse. “Hello.” The doctor greeted them. “How are you feeling?”

“I want to go now.” Kera told him. “I will do whatever you advise in the comfort of my own room.” Her voice left no option for arguments and the doctor blinked in surprise.

“I don’t think that is a good idea.” He said. Instead of speaking with her, he turned to her father and began talking about treatment and therapy.

“No.” Kera said loudly. “Bring me some
crutches
.”

The nurse hesitated. “A wheelchair would be better.”

“Fine.” Kera shrugged. She looked at the doctor. “You can’t keep me here. I’ll keep off the foot.”

“You’re lucky to still have a foot young lady.” He told her angrily.

Her father
st
epped in front of the doctor. “She
’ll need to sign the discharge papers if I’m not mistaken.”

Kera felt her heart swell with love for her father. He was a military brat and had an air of authority that when he used it, he was never questioned. She was grateful. It got her a wheelchair and crutches. She even let
her dad
convince her to stay in the hotel room with him so he could watch over her. She
watched old movies with him and talked about anything but what happened. They have both become experts at it.

That night after her father fell asleep, Kera thought about Maddox. He didn’t have an explanation about what happened. Everyone had asked her so far. She told them about the wolf knocking Rebecca down and Kera said she came after it with a stick. The wolf bit her before she beat it off.

Rebecca’s parents had visited right before they left the hospital. The mother cried and said the animal should be hunted. Rebecca had a concussion and was going home on leave. Her mother said she wouldn’t allow her return until it was safe.

The father looked at her like she was responsible and she guessed he was right.

Kera wondered what Maddox thought happened. Was he upset she knew more about his accident than he told her? What was he doing when she called? Was it a date? Was she the first in a long line of many?

She fell asleep fitfully trying to convince herself she was
n’t
jealous of an imaginary girl who stole his attention from her.

Getting to her dorm room the next day was more difficult than the hotel. She had to convince her dad that she would be fine maneuvering up four flights of stairs every time she had to leave and come back.

She lied and told him she had friends and Sam argued that her friends might be a class when she needed them. Kera promised they had flexible schedules and that wasn’t a lie. Imaginary friends didn’t have anything to do but help her out.

This comforted her father but he still drug his feet until he almost missed his flight. Right before he left he handed her a neatly wrapped present from his suitcase. Kera recognized the paper and listened numbly as he told her that it was from her mother. She had a key in her purse that had been wrapped in the same paper
five years ago
.

He gave her a hug and didn’t press her to open it. Kera held back the tears now that she was alone with the package.
To distract herself, she pulled off her bandages and looked at the rows of stitches in the shape of a wolf bite. It would
n’t be long and
she would be able to take them out. She healed really fast. Hopefully the doctor and nurse would forget about their argument.