“No one knew. Just my aunt.” I peered up at him through my fingers. “There’ve been people like me here all along?”
“We were here before the town was settled by non-paranormals. Back then, this area was just known as The Crossing. The man who bought up all the land tacked his name on to appease his ego, and it became Lowery’s Crossing. Our people decided to protect themselves by assimilating into the community, but we didn’t lose our roots.”
“How is that possible? How have you stayed hidden this long?” My mind was reeling and I was likely going to have a major freakout when I finally made it home. Right now, I just focused on one thing at a time, trying to process what Ori was telling me.
“Wehave stayed hidden by just making ourselves part of the town.” I didn’t miss how the pointed look they gave me when they said ‘we’. I just chose to ignore it. “It’s easy, in a town like this. Those of us that can blend in do. Those that are more obviously different have settled deeper into the mountains, where they have more room to be themselves.”
“Wait, so those ghost stories I heard as a kid are real? About that cult that lives out in the woods?” The story went that they caught and ate kids who found them, but I stopped before repeating that bit.
“They’re not a cult. They’re shifters,” Ori said, shaking their head, and they spoke so calmly that it took a solid ten seconds for me to actually realize what they’d said.
“Shifters?” Donovan repeated. “Like werewolves?” His voice was impressively even, without a hint of judgment. I wasn’t sure I’d have been able to manage that equilibrium right now.
“Shifters and werewolves are not the same thing and do not ever imply that in the presence of either one,” Ori warned. “And no, I’m not kidding.”
“They both shapeshift, right? How are they not the same thing?” I’d officially cracked. This had to be a fever dream. I’d fallen asleep while meditating and now I was in some weird, upside down world where everything I’d ever known was now turned on its head.
“Shifters can choose when to assume their other forms and they are in full control when they do. They appear fully human in that form and fully animal when they shift. Werewolves look human, but they’re ruled by the moon and for the three nights it’s full, they are forced to turn. They have no control over the beast they become and no one would ever mistake that form for any sort of natural creature. Implying that a shifter is a werewolf is an insult that will likely end in a fight, at best.”
“So, not only is there a hidden community in the town I’ve spent half my life in, but that community has its own politics and prejudices. Awesome.” Even to myself, I sounded slightly hysterical.
“Every group of people, no matter what abilities they have, is going to have some internal conflict, but in the end, we take care of each other. We look out for each other and we keep each other’s secrets, which includes dealing with our own issues and problems, without outside intervention.”
“Intervention like the local authorities?” I guessed, and they nodded.
“Exactly. I mean no offense, Detective Parker.”
“You can call me Donovan, and no offense taken,” he said. “I understand. Historically, those in authority haven’t been exactly fair to anyone they considered to be different.”
“People are afraid of what they don’t understand,” Ori said, softer than I’d ever heard them before. “There are those of us who could never walk down a street in a normal human town. Keeping our existence secret is how we’ve survived this long.”
“You don’t think it would help to have at least one or two people in town that know and could help when situations arise that can’t be handled internally?” Donovan asked. “Or something too big to keep hidden happens?”
Ori raised a single, perfectly shaped brow. “Do you think we haven’t already considered that?”
“Does that mean there are people who do know?”
I could almost see the thoughts running through Donovan’s mind as he tried to figure out which of his coworkers might know about this secret other community.
“I’m telling you both this only because, Alex, you are one of us. It is entirely up to you what you do with that knowledge. If you want to revealyoursecrets, I can’t stop you and I won’t try. That’s not my business. All I can do is ask you to show the same respect to the others.”
With just a few words, Ori had me neatly trapped. “Well played,” I grumbled. “Alright, but I can’t promise not to revisit this with you down the road.”
“I wait with bated breath,” they drawled, but with a smile.
“I still think telling at least the chief of police would be a good idea, if only to help protect everyone in both communities, but you’re right. It’s not my job to out people against their will,” Donovan agreed.
The tension in the room eased and the distrust in Ori’s eyes gave way to a begrudging respect with Donovan’s words.
“Very well. Let’s table the discussion for another day and get back to your visitor.”
“Right, the not-dead one.” Honestly, I’d completely forgotten about him for a minute there, too caught up in the mess of new information Ori had thrown at me. “You said he was alive, but lost. Care to clarify?”
“What did he say to you, exactly?”
“He asked who I was, so I told him, then I think I asked him if he needed help. He got annoyed and said I was one ofthose. Do I want to know what he was referring to?”
Ori snorted. “Knowing him, probably not. Anything else?”
