"Well, if it isn't the ghost girl." Fredericka's smartass tone hit Kylie the wrong way.
"She's got meanness on you hands down. You don't want to tangle with her." Derek's words rang in Kylie's head.
Okay, so Derek was right. She didn't want to tangle with Fredericka, but Kylie wasn't sure she had an option now considering the werewolf stood less than six feet away. Kylie had no way out. Too late to run and hide under the bed.
Kylie stood, staring at the girl's dark eyes and hoping the she-wolf wouldn't see Kylie's streak of insecurity.
Yesterday with Selynn, Kylie hadn't felt fear. Nope. She'd been acting on instinct to protect her mother. Now the only one needing protection was Kylie herself; the kick-ass instinct had a taken mini-vacation. "Gosh, I didn't hear you knock." Kylie tried to imitate Fredericka's curt tone and defensive posture, hoping to bluff her way through this. The glimmer of a smile danced over Fredericka's lips as if Kylie's bluff had fallen short.
"I thought it best if we got this little talk over with." Fredericka glanced around the cabin as if taking in the furnishings. Not that it was much to look at or different from the other cabins. The overstuffed brown sofa was paired with an overstuffed gold chair that almost matched. Kylie's mom had brought her a few throw pillows that added splashes of color to the room. The end tables had utilitarian lamps with plain white shades, and Miranda had added a few crystals around the room. Behind Fredericka, Kylie saw Socks freeze in a panic at seeing a stranger in the cabin, and the skunk unfroze long enough to bury himself under a red and gold sofa pillow.
Kylie didn't blame him, either.
"What talk is that?" she asked. "The one where I explain it's rude to walk into someone's home without knocking?" Her snarky comment might set Fredericka off, but Kylie sensed this was a test, and to show fear felt more dangerous than provoking the she-wolf.
Fredericka released a low growl, and her eyes brightened. When her uninvited guest's gaze shifted up and down Kylie's stance, it took everything Kylie had not to crawl under the pillow with Socks.
Fredericka's brows twitched. Kylie, never prouder of her new talent, twitched back. The she-wolf's pattern looked much like those of the other weres she'd noted at the river yesterday, but the darkened edges appeared ominous. Did that mean anything? Kylie really needed to sign up for Brain Pattern Reading 101.
"I hear you might be one of my own kind." Fredericka's eyes tightened.
The idea of sharing a bloodline with this bully made Kylie feel sick. Her gaze went back to the trembling pillow on the sofa. She recalled what Holiday had said about her not being were because felines had an abhorrence of werewolves. Kylie hoped Holiday was right about that. Even drinking blood for the rest of her life felt like a better option than bring a were.
Kylie held her defensive stance. "I wouldn't believe everything you hear."
"And if I were you, I wouldn't forget that if you do turn, we'll likely meet. And on full moons the emotions are always generally out of control, resulting in high casualty rates."
"Then I'm sure you will be watching your back," Kylie said, really bluffing now.
Fredericka's brows pinched. "Especially when a female feels another is making advances toward her mate."
"So, you still having a hard time holding on to your man?" Kylie fought back her fear.
The gold in Fredericka's eyes grew brighter. "What's that smell?"
Fredericka held her nose up in the air.
Kylie didn't dare glance at the pillow hiding Socks. "Wouldn't know, but if it's offensive, the door is right behind you."
"It smells sort of like ... I don't know, lion, maybe?" Fredericka's left eyebrow arched.
Kylie didn't blink. "I knew you did it."
"Did what?" Fredericka's smile turned into more of a smirk. Then she shifted back a couple of steps and dropped down on the sofa with an exaggerated plop, as if she planned on hanging around a while.
The sound of the sofa giving up air was quickly followed by a half-hiss and half-meow. The pillow fell away and a black and white tail sprang up into the air. Fredericka turned just in time to take the full spray directly in the face.
Twenty feet away, the stench had Kylie covering her nose, but she couldn't stop smiling.
The she-wolf screamed and dove at the animal. While Socks had gotten in touch with his skunk side, he obviously hadn't forgotten his feline roots. He flew off the sofa in full frightened-cat mode. His ascent into midair sent the lamp on the end table crashing to the floor.
Wiping her eyes with her palms and howling, Fredericka shot off the sofa after Socks. Socks, now perched on top of the overstuffed chair, reacted accordingly and flew in midair, bouncing off the walls as he ran for his life.
The thought of what the she-wolf would do to her kitten had Kylie giving chase. Wooden chairs cracked against the floor, the microwave flew across the room, the computer desk nearly fell over, and a few dishes left on the counter shattered beside the chairs. Everything spun in circles with one kitten-turned-skunk, one she-wolf, and one unidentifiable supernatural chasing each other around the living room/kitchen, each with their own agenda.
Socks to live.
Fredericka to kill.
Kylie to protect.
Unfortunately, Socks was no match for the angry she-wolf, and in seconds Fredericka had Socks cornered by the refrigerator. A loud roar filled the cabin. A wash of adrenaline shot through Kylie as Fredericka dove for the poor animal.
Just before Fredericka latched her paws on to Socks, Kylie latched on to the girl's forearms. Picking her up in the air, she hauled the struggling Fredericka over to the front door and tossed her out.
She landed about eight feet from the porch with a loud thud. Her eyes, now a bright gold, stared up in horror at Kylie. The she-wolf rose off the ground on all fours, her knees bent, shifting back and forth, as if revving up to pounce again.
Kylie didn't flinch.
She breathed in.
She breathed out.
She welcomed another round.
"You bitch!" Fredericka growled, and tossed her head back.
"You hurt my cat and you'll see how big of a bitch I can be!" Kylie voice sounded as animal-like as the she-wolf's. Then, suddenly frightened, not of Fredericka, but at what Kylie would do if the girl came at her again, she stepped back and slammed the front door. The whole cabin shook from the impact. And right then a cold presence filled the room.
Company.
Great. The cabin smelled of skunk, she had a majorly pissed-off shewolf outside, and now the spirit wanted to drop by.
Five minutes later, Kylie still stood with her back to the refrigerator, breathing through her mouth so she wouldn't gag at the pungent odor, and trying to calm herself and a very scared skunk-kitten. Socks, seconds after Kylie had come inside, had climbed up her leg, cuddled into her arms, and buried its little pointed nose in her armpit. Kylie wondered if the nose in the armpit wasn't so much his need to escape the smell as it was to hide.
The ghost paced the tiny living room as though she was trying to think. Kylie watched the spirit walk in circles before realizing the ghost's wardrobe.
"Why are you wearing a hospital gown?" Kylie asked, but the spirit didn't answer. And when the ghost faded, relief flowed over Kylie. She closed her eyes and tried to recall the calm she'd gathered at the falls about the whole "Someone you love is dying" situation.
Then the door to the cabin swung open. Thinking it could be Fredericka again, Kylie tensed and then un-tensed when she saw Holiday and Miranda.
"Are you okay?" Holiday asked.
Kylie nodded and Socks, hearing more commotion, snuggled tighter into Kylie's armpit. Miranda and Holiday both covered their noses and their wide-eyed gazes moved around the ransacked cabin.
"What happened?" Holiday asked.
Fredericka happened, Kylie almost answered, but then bit back the words. She'd never been much of a tattler and didn't want to start now.
"Socks got startled." It wasn't altogether a lie.
Holiday, her hand still plastered over her nose, squinted at Kylie. "I know Fredericka was here." Her voice came out muffled behind her palm.
"She told you?" Kylie asked.
"Didn't have to," Miranda piped in. "We smelled her when she walked past the office."
"What happened?" Holiday repeated her question from behind her fingers.
Miranda took a step closer. "She was spitting mad," Miranda broke in again, humor in her voice. "Seriously spitting. Did Socks get her in the face?" The witch laughed and wrinkled her nose at the smell again and waved her hands around the air as if to perform a bit of magic.
Kylie's next intake of air didn't include the skunk stench. "Thanks," she said to Miranda, surprised that her roommate had removed the smell without any goofs.
"Welcome," Miranda said with a sense of pride. "Odor removal is a piece of cake. Learned in the potty-training stage."
Holiday dropped her hand. "Miranda, can I have a minute alone with Kylie?"
Miranda rolled her eyes. "Why is it that everyone is always sending me away?" She stomped off into her bedroom, but flashed Kylie a smile before shutting the door.
Holiday met Kylie's gaze. "Now, what happened?"
Fredericka just stopped by to remind me that she tried to kill me once by putting a lion in my room and once might not be enough for her.
When Kylie didn't answer, Holiday studied Kylie suspiciously. "My job here is to show everyone that we can all get along without incident."
She sighed. "I agreed to her coming back because ... I know she doesn't have anywhere else to go. I'm afraid she'd be pulled into a gang, but if she's starting trouble, Kylie, I'll show her the gate."
Kylie knew Holiday meant what she said and she appreciated her loyalty to no end. While the temptation to tell the truth bubbled up inside Kylie, her own sense of loyalty bit down. She knew how important it was to Holiday to save every one of her campers from the dark side of the supernatural world. Even Fredericka.
Kylie wasn't sure the she-wolf was worth saving or even if she was salvageable.
But Kylie didn't want to be the one to make that call. Besides, she didn't want Holiday having to solve Kylie's problems. She got a mental image of how she'd managed to toss Fredericka out the door. Maybe, just maybe she was capable of taking care of herself.
Giving the still-scared Socks a good scratch behind his ears, Kylie said, "It's not a big deal. Socks didn't like Fredericka and Fredericka didn't like Socks. No one was hurt." Yet, a little voice echoed inside Kylie, but she ignored it. "I'm sure we can work it out."
When Kylie looked up, she spotted Della standing behind the camp leader in the doorway mouthing the word "Liar."
Holiday looked at Della and then faced Kylie again. "You're sure?"
Kylie nodded. It felt less like a lie.
Holiday gave Kylie a hug and then took off. Miranda came out of her room, and Kylie dropped Socks to the floor and started picking up the mess. Miranda and Della did the same.
"You don't have to help," Kylie said.
"Please," Miranda said, and they continued to straighten chairs. Della lifted the microwave back on the counter. She plugged it back in and when the light came on, she said, "Good as new."
When the room was put back together, they all sat down at the kitchen table. "Okay," Miranda said. "Give us the details and don't leave out the good parts. And by good parts, I mean when little Miss She-wolf got sprayed in the face. Something tells me that that is going to be my favorite
part. Heck, I'll bet you're even glad I turned Socks into a skunk now, right?"
Kylie leaned back in her chair and told them the whole story, including the part about Fredericka telling Derek about Lucas's letters and even the part about Fredericka halfway admitting she'd been the one to put the lion in Kylie's bedroom.
"Why the crap didn't you tell Holiday?" Miranda asked.
When Kylie didn't answer right away, Della piped up. "Because she's too damn nice."
"It's not that," Kylie said. She bit down on her lip. "Okay, maybe that's part of it, but it's Holiday I'm worried about-not Fredericka. Plus, I want to deal with this myself."
"Now, that part of it I can respect." Della crossed her arms over her chest. "Then there's the saying about how you should keep your friends close, and your enemies closer."
Miranda frowned. "Fredericka's meaner than a rattlesnake. Are you sure you can handle her?"
"If she can't, I'm always up for kicking a little werewolf ass," Della said.
Emotion swelled in Kylie's throat and she barely managed to swallow it. "Is Lucas here, too?" Kylie recalled the hurt in Derek's eyes. The emotion in her throat doubled.
"Not yet," Della said. "I heard Fredericka say he was showing up tomorrow."
Kylie blinked, hoping to contain her tears. Then she recalled the dreams and how hard facing Lucas would be.
Miranda leaned in. "Do you think Derek's serious about breaking up?"
"He didn't break up with her," Della corrected in a harsh tone. "They weren't going out."
But he might as well have, Kylie thought, and that's when a couple of tears slipped out. Standing up, she said. "Thanks guys, but I'm ... I just want to-"
"You still feeling pissy?" Della asked.
"Yeah," Kylie answered. Her gaze shifted to the computer showing her grandparents' phone number. She was even too distraught to deal with that right now. Tomorrow. Kylie got to her bedroom, shut the door, and dropped facedown on the blue-and-white bedspread. She had just closed her eyes when she heard Miranda sigh. A sigh Kylie shouldn't have been able to hear through her closed bedroom door.
"Do you think she's werewolf ?" Miranda asked.
Kylie grabbed a pillow and covered her head, but it didn't stop Della's answer from filtering through the foam to reach Kylie's supercharged hearing.
"Probably," Della answered. "But I'm not going to hold it against her. She'll be the nicest werewolf that ever existed."
"Me, either," Miranda said. "Not all weres are bad. Not that I've ever been close to any of them."
Great, Kylie thought. Her friends seemed certain she was doomed to a life of nasty moods and howling at the moon. Kylie tried to imagine what it would be like to morph into a wolf. Then she remembered that Fredericka was going to be waiting with bated wolf breath for a chance to get even with her when-okay, if-she did turn.
And then she recalled Derek saying that he didn't want her to be a werewolf because she'd have that in common with Lucas. Was that why he'd pulled away? Gawd, why did life have to be so damn hard? Kylie stayed in her room the next few hours. Feeling an emotional storm rage inside her, she tried to think of anything that could take the edge off.
She'd napped, actually fallen asleep, but had awoken when the temperature dropped in the room. She looked around for the ghost, but the spirit didn't materialize. Remembering the ghost's appearance after Fredericka left, Kylie asked, "Do you have something to say?"
Her question vibrated in the still coldness of the room. Kylie hadn't expected an answer, but asking was her job, right? Staring at the ceiling, she jumped when something crashed to the floor. Turning around, she saw her phone had fallen from the nightstand. When she picked it up, she heard someone on the line.
"Hello?" Kylie recognized Sara's voice.
"Hey," Kylie said.
"What's up?" Sara asked.
Kylie huddled under the covers to ward off the cold. "Nothing. Did you call me?"
"No. You called me," Sara answered.
"Oh." Kylie glanced at her cell. "My phone fell off the nightstand. It must have dialed you accidentally."
"Oh." The awkwardness rang louder than Sara's voice.
"Where are you?" Kylie asked, just to chase away the uncomfortable silence because just hanging up felt too rude. It wasn't as if Kylie could say what's on her mind like, Hey guess what? I just tossed a werewolf out of my cabin for trying to kill my kitten that's now a skunk, and tonight, I might turn into a wolf myself. Right then Kylie realized she'd been blaming Sara for the distance in their relationship, claiming Sara had changed. Well, hell, now look who had undergone the most change.
"At the mall with Tina," Sara answered, her voice sounding strangely tight.
"Tina?" Kylie asked, hoping to show interest in Sara's life.
"Tina Dalton. She just moved here."
"Is she nice?" Was Tina Sara's new best friend?
Sarah chuckled. "Not really, but her brother is hot."
"Hmm," Kylie teased. "Good thing I didn't have a brother or I'd think you were just interested in him all these years."
Sara laughed and Kylie joined in. A little of the awkwardness faded.
"It was strange that you called," Sara said. "I was just thinking about you. Do you remember when we were thirteen and you did that backward flip and knocked both of us off the trampoline? Our moms took us to the emergency clinic by our neighborhood because they thought you had broken an arm and I had a goose egg on my head."
"Yeah," Kylie said. "What made you think about that?"
"Who knows," Sara answered with the same tight voice.
Kylie leaned back on her pillow. "You thought the doctor was cute."
"He was cute." Sara sounded normal again. "Any hot guys at the camp?"
"Yeah." Kylie took in a deep breath and when she released it, it came out as a fog. Strange. She'd thought the spirit had left but she was moving closer.
"You hooked up with any of them?" Sara asked.
Kylie's heart tugged. "Kind of, but ... we sort of ... called it quits." Or he called it quits. A shiver ran down Kylie's back and she looked around again for the ghost. She still hadn't materialized, but her chill filled the room.
"That sucks," Sara said, and in the background Kylie heard someone call out Sara's name. "Hold on a sec."
The line went silent as if Sara had covered the receiver. But Kylie's ears picked up Sara's intake of air. Whether Sara had moved her hand, or if it was Kylie's hearing abilities, she wasn't sure. She still didn't grasp how this whole gifted hearing thing worked. It came and went. Just like her strength.
"No, I'm not using my insurance." Sara's voice filled the line. "I'm paying cash. Of course my mom knows. Look, is the doctor going to see me or not?"
Kylie frowned when she realized that Sara had lied about being at the mall. The reasons for the lie filled Kylie's head. Had she run out of birth control pills? Or did she think she was pregnant again? Tightening her grip on the phone, Kylie was reminded of how different they were. How sad was it that they couldn't share things-neither werewolves or sex? "Kylie," Sara said. "I need to go."
"Okay. Bye." Kylie put her phone back on the nightstand. When she looked up, the ghost sat at the foot of her bed, appearing incredibly sad. Kylie started to speak but the spirit faded.
"Great," Kylie muttered. "Communicating with spirits is almost as bad as communicating with old friends."
At eleven thirty that night, Kylie walked with Della and Miranda to the campfire. Her heart swelled with the fear of what would or wouldn't happen to her tonight, but she refused to show it. Of course, Della pretty much knew what she was feeling because she kept studying Kylie with an enormous amount of sympathy.
The moment the three of them cut through the clearing, Kylie spotted Derek standing in a group of four other fairies. He glanced at her. The full moon offered enough light for her to see the soft concern in his eyes. No doubt he could read her fear. Stopping, she muttered to Della and Miranda to go ahead and let her talk to Derek. Her two roommates walked off.
Kylie waited for Derek to come and offer her his comforting touch-just a touch to ebb the fear from her heart. She could really use a little of his calm right now, not to mention his touch. His gaze met hers, but instead of moving over, he glanced back at his circle of friends. That's when Kylie got the first hint of how things would be between them from now on.
Obviously, being just friends meant no more kisses and touches. Kylie's first impulse was to beg him to stop this nonsense. Her second impulse didn't involve begging. Anger crowded out some of her fear.
Even though she knew Derek was partially right-in the beginning, there was some truth to her confusion with Lucas stopping her from going out with him-didn't Derek trust her enough to know she wouldn't cheat on him?
His lack of faith in her just plain ol' made her mad. Really, really mad. Sure, it might be her uncontrollable werewolf-related aggression bringing on the fury, but she felt it all the same. And once again, being mad felt better than being hurt, even better than being frightened, so she clung to the anger and hoped Derek would read it. She even stepped closer, giving him ample opportunity.
She knew it worked when he turned back around and his green eyes met hers. She didn't blink, didn't attempt to look away, wanting to make sure he read every bit of her anger. A frown tightened his brows and he walked away, probably wanting to get out of emotion-reading range. While tempted to follow him and cloak him in her emotional state, she didn't.
Just go. Her chest tightened as the hurt crowded out the anger. Just remember, I wasn't the one who called it quits.
Taking a deep breath, she looked around until she spotted another lone soul who looked almost as miserable as she felt. Perry stood by himself, leaning against a tree and watching Miranda chatting cheerfully with a group of guys-one of whom was Kevin. Knowing misery loved company, Kylie went to join Perry.
Perry snarled at her when she walked up. "What? Are you going to tell me how much she likes me again?"
"Nope," Kylie said. "I've come to the conclusion that anything to do with the opposite sex should be banned and considered illegal."
Perry studied her through his brown eyes. "Trouble in paradise?"
"Yup."
He sighed. "Maybe we should hook up and teach a few people some lessons."
"In your dreams," Kylie said.
"Not even there." He frowned. "The only girl appearing in my dreams lately is the girl who is too busy flirting with everyone to even say hello to me."
Kylie gaped at Perry. "I can't believe you." Where did he get off thinking Miranda should talk to him when he'd been the one to call it quits? Like Derek.
Before she voiced her opinion, Luis, the were in charge, called for everyone's attention. Kylie's anger with Perry and over Derek dissolved and she fell right into the lap of fear again.
Her heart thudded. She felt the moon's rays on her as if it were the sun. Her skin actually stung and it took everything she had not to stop and stare up at the huge orb in the sky and scream for it to stop. "It's not as scary as you think," Perry said.
Kylie met his gaze. "Does everyone know what's going on with me?"
"Pretty much." His eyes, now a bright blue, studied her. "It's not bad."
They moved closer to where the ceremony was taking place and she looked up at Perry and gave him credit for his sincere concern for her "I didn't think shape-shifters and werewolves were the same thing."
"We're not," he said. "But we both shift and I've spent a lot of time talking about it with others. They all say the same thing, 'It's not a big deal. Like a muscle cramp.'"
She bit the inside of her cheek and recalled Lucas describing it the same way. Unfortunately, she'd never been fond of muscle cramps. A thousand questions started stirring in her head. Why hadn't she found more answers? She felt her heart stop, start, then flutter like a trapped butterfly.
Swallowing fear, she searched the crowd for Fredericka. "Will I know who I am?" she asked Perry. Her lungs felt too tight to breathe even though she didn't spot the she-wolf.
"Sure you will." His gaze shot over Kylie's shoulder. Kylie feared he saw Fredericka behind her.
"You okay?" Holiday's comforting voice came to her ear. Kylie turned just as Holiday motioned for Perry to move on.
Kylie leaned in and her voice caught as she confessed the truth. "I'm scared out of my gourd. I'm not ready for this." Her eyes stung with the new urge to cry.
"You're going to be fine. I don't even think..." Holiday didn't finish her sentence. Instead, she placed a hand on Kylie's shoulder and the majority of her panic faded. "Come on, I'll stand beside you."
They walked to the crowd and formed another circle much like they had at the vampire ceremony. Luis stood in the middle and in his hands he carried a skull. Not a human skull, it looked to be a wolf. He held up the skull. It seemed to catch the moonlight and glow. He started recounting the story of the first werewolf, and then telling about his kind's many gifts, but Kylie couldn't listen. Nothing felt right. Her gaze shot to the moon, and she could swear she saw the man in the round silver circle wink at her.
Then Kylie noticed that many of the campers were walking off. The werewolves. Kylie glanced at Holiday with questions in her eyes.
"Most prefer not to transform in front of an audience," the camp leader explained.
Kylie didn't blame them. She didn't want to do it, either. Would her clothes fall off? Would they see the hair growing on her skin?
Her only thought was to run, but Luis stopped talking and the sound that came out of his mouth was one of sheer terror. In the background, Kylie could hear what sounded like the screams of the others as they, too, turned. Air caught in her throat again. Her feet felt nailed to the ground.
She didn't want to hear this, didn't want to see it, but like an accident on the side of the road, she couldn't look away.
Luis dropped to the ground, his back arched, and the sounds-half growl, half moan-continued. It was like something out of a horror movie. Kylie watched his body contort in ways no human body should ever twist. He arched his neck back so far it looked as if it would surely break. His jawbone grew, his cheeks became elongated, and where the face of a young man had once been the snout of a wolf appeared. And then came the hair.
Kylie's heart jolted. Her skin started to crawl. Her stomach knotted. Oh, God! Something was happening to her.