My Wolf’s Bane(26)

Jasmine and rose bushes lined the fence around our home. In the middle of the yard stood a giant oak tree. With little light from a sliver of moon, the yard was nearly black. Nobody would see me if I did something impossible.

I scanned the area to make sure no one was around and sprung straight up as high as I could. I soared and, oh my God, my head was level with the top of the tree! Gravity took over and I groped for a limb, but missed. As I began to descend, I remembered how much it had hurt when the glass had sliced through my hand. Regardless of my ability to heal, I bled and felt pain just like everyone else.

Oh, crap.

I crashed into the ground and bit my bottom lip to muffle my scream. It was as if a bomb had exploded in my back. My eyes clouded over in a sea of agony. And then a moment later, I couldn’t feel anything at all. Panic tore through me as lay there, my legs bent in an unnatural position.





CHAPTER NINE

What had I been thinking?

Even as I prayed that I wouldn’t live the rest of my life in a wheelchair, my spine snapped into place. Gradually, the feeling came back into my limbs and I slowly got back on my feet. Moments later, I couldn’t wait to run.

How freaking cool.

My parents always lived in rural areas. So long as I’d had my own room, I never cared… until now. In the foothills of Los Angeles County, there were a variety of neighborhoods — from exclusive gated communities to ramshackle little houses. We lived on a quiet cul-de-sac with newer homes and manicured lawns. At the end of the street, a chain link fence formed a barrier between the houses and a field. A little farther, walnut trees beckoned, dwarfed next to giant pine trees stretching as far as the eye could see. Beyond that, a meadow.

I headed out.

Under the cover of dense forest, I inhaled the scent of earth and pine. With my improved vision, I could see the individual leaves at the top of the trees and the tiny yellow eyes of an animal staring at me from a lower branch.

I sprinted, weaving around the raised roots, wayward branches and occasional rock. My legs wanted to carry me faster, but I didn’t feel confident yet with the uneven terrain, so I held back. Taking a moment to inhale the smell of the woods, I sensed… a deer?

Scanning the woods, I cautiously moved toward a clearing that was several times the size of our back yard. A deer stood at the far side where the woods began again. He would surely bolt as soon as he saw me, but could I outrun him? I focused on a point on the other side and ran as fast as my legs could go. In an instant, I was there and touching the deer’s flank before he scampered off.

My mind reeled from the sheer speed. I wasn’t even winded.

Directly in front of me lay a fallen tree. The trunk was probably wider than Zack’s delicious shoulders and likely extremely heavy. Bending down, I clamped both hands around a branch and heaved. The tree rose above the ground, but banged into my shins and I dropped it. But I’d lifted it, which meant I could probably bench-press a bear.

I stifled hysterical laughter.

This was just crazy. People didn’t suddenly get superpowers. Well, apparently I did, but why? What changed? As I replayed the last few days in my head, I scaled the tallest tree at the edge of the clearing, careful to avoid the sap. Every day for the last week, extreme stress had hit me in one way or another. Perhaps the heightened emotions brought on the physical changes.

No, that couldn’t be it. Everyone had stress. Compared to other people’s problems, mine were minor. I hadn’t been exposed to DNA-altering chemicals and I hadn’t been experimented on by some mad scientist. So what was happening to me?

At the very top of the tree, I distributed my weight between two branches, but the tree still swayed beneath me. I gazed at the lights of the city, cars driving in the streets, logs burning in a fireplace through a window of a house.

The world had never been this breathtaking.

Holding very still, I listened. Somewhere behind me a twig snapped and a cricket chirped. Beyond the trees a horn honked and about a half-mile away, a jogger pattered softly along the road.

After inhaling the forest air one more time, I descended. When I landed on solid ground, leaves crunching beneath my feet, I stiffened and sniffed the air. It wasn’t a dog… but similar. Coyote?

A moment later, a large black wolf entered the clearing. I could smell him. Male. Somehow I knew that scent was definitely male.

He skirted the edges, but stayed close to the trees, his dark green eyes watching me. A coyote probably wouldn’t have fazed me, not with what I could do. But this thing — he was enormous. If he caught me, would I be able to fight him off? Either way, I didn’t want to get hurt if I could avoid it.

My body tensed for flight mode, but the wolf stopped several yards away and sat on his haunches, his tongue lolling. Keeping me in his line of vision, the beast yawned and lowered until his belly touched the ground. He didn’t look threatening. He was still a wild animal though and it would be foolish to let my guard down. Which took the thrill out of being in the woods. Time to go.