But not in this form.
I ran around to the far side of the planter, took a quick look around to make sure no one was watching, then shifted. I'd done it enough times now that the process was quick. I went from two legs to four in a matter of seconds. If anyone had been looking, they simply would have seen a flash of light as if someone had turned a flashlight on them.
As soon as I was fully shifted, I jumped up into the planter, wove my way toward the taller plants, then crouched down in the greenery and waited. Hopefully, they wouldn't look for me, but if they did, I hoped they wouldn't look long.
I didn't like being exposed like I was.
Discovering I was a shape-shifting ocelot had freaked me out more than anything I'd ever experienced. It just wasn't natural, but then, neither was I according to my parents. If they could see me now, they'd really flip out.
I knew I never should have touched that jungle juice.
I held my breath and crouched down as close to the dirt as I could get when the doors opened and those two muscular men walked inside. They headed directly toward the stairs.
"There's someone in here," Mr. Atkins shouted. "Find him."
The two men separated and started searching. They started with the lobby, but walked right past my hiding spot. It made sense. A human male couldn't hide in the planter, not even someone as short as me.
I waited until the men moved off, disappearing down the hallways leading away from the lobby before crawling to the edge of the planter. I glanced up toward the second floor landing, but I couldn't see anything, so I jumped down and raced over toward the double doors.
I made sure no one was coming then shifted, pushed open the doors, and just ran. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me. I knew heading home was a very bad idea, but there were a few things I needed to grab before I could go into hiding. I had no doubt my house would be searched if they figured out I had been inside the building.
I also had a few things I needed to do on the computer. Namely, making sure no one had recorded me shifting and then seeing if they had recorded Michael being killed. I couldn't believe they had killed Michael in cold blood. They had just shot him.
It was insane.
When I reached the street my brownstone was on, I slowed then stopped at the corner, hiding behind a tree. I checked up and down the street, looking for anything out of place. I didn't see anything, but that didn't mean someone wasn't there.
I couldn't shake the feeling someone was.
Instead of walking down the street, I headed to the brownstone at the beginning of the block. I walked into the alley way and headed for the large industrial dumpster. I glanced around again then shifted and jumped up onto the dumpster. From there, it was fairly easy to jump up onto the fire escape and climb my way to the roof.
Yes, I'd done this more than once. Ian had drummed it into my head that I always needed an escape route in case I got into trouble.
I had two.
Once at the top of the fire escape, I ran across the roof until I reached my brownstone. I squatted down next to the air ventilation exit and pressed my paw against the mesh opening until it gave way.
I climbed inside then proceeded to jump to each of the small wooden ledges I'd nailed into place until I reached the basement. On the way down, there were entrances to each floor of my brownstone, but what I wanted was in the basement.
Before opening the hatch, I scanned the basement to make sure no one was waiting for me. When I didn't smell anyone who shouldn't be there, I unlatched the hatch opening then jumped down onto the dryer.
I shifted then climbed to my knees so I could close the hatch. I didn't want anyone knowing about my little escape route.
I jumped off the dryer and walked over to the wooden bookshelf on the far wall. Granted, shelves lined that entire wall, but I only wanted the one in the middle. I pulled out a series of books and pushed in others. When I heard a distinctive click, I pressed my hands on the bookshelf until it moved out of the way.
Everyone knew I had a lab in the basement. It was in a small room just to the left of the stairs that led up to the first floor. Only a select few people knew that I had another lab hidden in a part of the neighboring basement.
When I bought my place, I'd also purchased the place next door, which I now used as a rental to supplement my income. A nice young married couple lived there while they attended the university. They had no children or pets due to their active education obligations, and they were hardly ever there.
I was fine with that.
I had retrofitted the basement in both places, making them just a bit smaller. No one would really know if they simply looked around. The walls were made of the same aged brick that had been there for nearly a hundred years.
I knew because I'd done all the work myself.
I quickly stepped into my hidden lab and pushed the bookshelf back into place. This time, I engaged the security locks I used when I was feeling the most panicked.
I was feeling panicked.
