Crescent Wolves - G. Bailey Page 0,12
shifter. And trust me when I say that rogue shifters don’t last long.”
I shake my head in disbelief. “But that’s not fair,” I protest. “I didn’t ask for any of this! Now you’re saying that if I don’t give up everything I have here, they’ll never leave me alone?”
“No,” agrees Samantha. “It’s not fair. But it’s the reality of the world we live in.”
“Besides,” Josie says, her tone gentle but firm, “what’s left for you here, anyway?” I feel like her eyes are boring a hole into me, seeing more about my life than she has any right to know.
And why shouldn’t she? some part of me asks. Look at you. You’re dirty, you’re alone, you’re lost, and you have nowhere to go. It doesn’t take a genius to see that.
True enough. But I’m not about to give up my freedom so easily. I’ve spent my life being passed from one person to another, never getting a say in it and never being in charge of my own fate. I’d rather be alone than be a prisoner. “I don’t have much,” I agree, “but I’m not giving up any more of what I have to make other people happy.” I square my shoulders, looking from one woman to the other. “Thank you for the offer,” I say, “but I’ll take my chances.”
Josie bows her head, and Samantha gives me a curt nod. “Okay,” she says at last. “If that’s what you want. You’re making a mistake, though, and I think you know that.” I open my mouth to argue, but she holds up a hand. “Relax,” she says. “It’s all right. I’ll tell you what, though…” She turns to look at Josie, who nods, seemingly already knowing what she’s going to say. “We aren’t leaving the city until the morning,” Samantha tells me. “It’s a little past midnight now. We’re going to depart from the docks on the south side of the city--the pier down by the old marina. If you change your mind--and I strongly suggest you do--come meet us there at nine AM. We’ll be going whether you show up or not. Think hard about this, Millie.”
“Okay,” I say, nodding. “But I’m not going to change my mind.”
“If you say so,” Samantha says. “In that case, we’ll say goodbye now.” She motions to Josie, who nods to me before turning and heading in the direction of the door. “Be seeing you,” Samantha says, and follows her.
I’m left to watch them go, feeling more alone than I ever have before.
It takes me a long time to go back to sleep. After setting an alarm on my phone, and noticing that the battery is getting low--I’ll have to find a place to charge it before too long, I spend a long time back on the sheet of cardboard, staring at the ceiling. For a while I’m afraid to go to sleep, wondering if the thugs from earlier are going to return--this time with friends--but after more than an hour I let myself relax a little. If they were really going to come back, they probably would have done so already. Most likely they don’t want to take the risk, and I don’t blame them. I’m not under any illusions that these powers--whatever they are--aren’t dangerous.
The longer I lie there, trying to find sleep, the more I start to have second thoughts. Was I too hasty to send the women away? It was obvious they wanted to help me, and as shocking as this all is, wouldn’t it be better to have someone in my corner, someone who understands what’s happening to me? What if I transform again and hurt myself… or someone else? Then there’s what they said about humans coming after me if that happens. With no family to speak of, it would be easy enough for them to make me disappear, to whisk me off to some black site where I’ll never be heard from again, all in the name of keeping the human world safe from shifters.
I can feel a fresh wave of anxiety bubbling up inside me, and if it weren’t for the fact that I’m physically exhausted, I probably wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. Eventually, though, I drift off, uncomfortable as I am on the hard concrete floor, and when I do, I dream.
I’m in a police interrogation room. The detective has his hands on the desk, his eyes furious as he stares down at me. I don’t feel quite right, and there’s a