Heir of the Dog Black Dog - Hailey Edwards Page 0,55

skin on my head, tugging the twin holes over my eyes and peering through the slashes.

Calm. I had to get calm. Ignore Rook. Forget Mom. Shaw—don’t even go there. All those things got shoved into the farthest corner of my mind.

Skin tightening, I felt when the pelt latched on to me. Remembered sensations swamped me. Grass tickling the sensitive pads of my feet. The crisp bite of fresh vegetation. Warm sun on soft fur. Scattered impressions rose to the surface of my mind and tugged me under their spell. Magic quivered over my flesh, folding my essence onto itself, stacking me neatly inside the pelt.

With a nod to me, the Rook hopped from our room through the short tunnel into a four-way intersection.

It took me longer to acclimate, but I managed. Both the rook and the púca appeared surprised to see me so soon, which grated. Lucky for them, the worst I could manage was wriggling my cute button nose at them.

If birds could smirk, that damn bird was shooting one right at me.

“We’re ready.” I used magic to carry my voice and prove my superiority over Mute McSmirkypants. “Let’s go.”

The púca darted down a tunnel before the words were out of my mouth—mind? I couldn’t blame him. We had endangered his home and family. I just hoped by leaving that Rook and I hadn’t jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Chapter Twenty-Five

“This is as far as I go.” The púca worried his front paws together. “Once you have left, I will tell the hunt you’re no longer our guests. The rules of hospitality apply. I won’t tell them where you’ve gone.” He bowed before me. “Your sacrifice will be remembered. You are dlúthchara to me and mine.”

I ran the Irish Gaelic word through my memory and came up with close friend.

“You do me an honor.” I returned the gesture. “We part as friends.”

Contorting his lithe body, the púca vanished into the safety of the burrow.

Rook hopped toward the tunnel’s opening, dug his talons into the soft dirt and leapt for the sky. Decaying leaves, wood smoke and cloves hit my nose. We were back in Autumn. The rabbit skin dampened the rest. Until I reached the outside or I shed this form, I was stuck receiving sensory information through a filter, which sucked. This was a lesson in putting my other senses to work. I was too dependent on my nose.

After a while, the rook popped its head back into the hole and then flapped its wings. Message received. I exited the burrow, cautious of those first steps into sunlight.

Magic brushed against my shoulder, and Rook stood beside me. After some false starts, I got the rabbit skin removed and shifted back to good old two-legged me. That first lungful of fresh air made me giddy, and stretching felt divine. Pops shuddered down my spine as I reached my arms over my head.

“We can’t risk being out in the open.” He sounded sorry to interrupt.

“I know.” I scooped the pelt off the ground, dusting it before I rolled it up and shoved it into a pouch in the armor covering my thigh. “Ready.”

He set off down a narrow trail marked by clumps of iridescent mushrooms reflecting the sunlight, and I followed a few steps behind. The path smelled familiar, but I sniffed, certain we had never gone this way.

My slower pace gave me a prime view of his backside, not that I was complaining, but it raised some questions I ought to ask. Like why the fabric of his cloak and armor were torn but his skin was smooth underneath. Did he heal fast like me? Was it a byproduct of shifting? Was that how his broken arm reset?

Even better—where did our clothes go when we changed shape? Did they always return the same way? If I scuffed my shoes, shifted, then shifted back, would the shoes still be scuffed? I pulled a weary hand down my face. The answer was an obvious yes because Rook’s leather armor resembled a rawhide chew toy, allowing me glimpses of flexing muscle in his back as he walked.

Pale skin I shouldn’t be admiring.

That kiss... It changed things, and I wasn’t sure what came next. Out here, I wasn’t safe and warm or fed and comfortable. Out here, I was exposed and afraid. That kiss, no matter how nice it had been, wasn’t as important as exploring my slim survival options.

“According to the information I gleaned in court, Black Dog’s