We moved like shadows to the tavern next door, each step heightening the sense of wrongness that permeated the village. Val pushed the door open, his hand still on his sword as he stepped inside first.
The tavern told the same unsettling story. Meals were abandoned mid-bite, mugs of ale half-empty, and chairs overturned as if patrons had stood suddenly. But nothing indicated why.
We backed out into the moonlight, gathering in a tight circle in the middle of the empty street. The moon was lower in the sky now, signaling that night was upon us. Although the moon never truly set, its position helped us gauge the passage of time.
Samara’s face had gone pale, her eyes wide as they darted from building to building. “This place is freaking me out.” Her voice trembled slightly as she scanned and re-scanned the road and buildings, as if expecting the missing villagers to materialize from thin air.
She looked down at me, and before I could move away, her hand descended to stroke my head. Her fingers sank into the fur between my ears, scratching gently along my skull.The sensation sent a ripple of pleasure down my spine, and I leaned into her touch before I could stop myself. My panther all but purred, shameless and greedy for her attention.
I was half tempted to roll onto my back right there in the dirt road. The impulse was so strong, so undignified, that it shocked me. What the hell was wrong with me? She might not like me in my demon form, but apparently, she couldn’t resist me as a panther.
I bet she gave the best belly rubs if the soft strokes on my head were any indication.
Val watched her pet me, his eyebrows rising as he noticed my response. His lips twitched into a knowing smirk that made me want to bite him. Hard.
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Where could they have gone?”
Don’t ask me a question.
“Did anything smell amiss to you, Amari?”
Fuck.I’d avoided speaking like this because I liked the distance that being a silent observer provided. Not all shifters could speak while shifted, but the curse at least gave me the benefit.
Val stared at me expectantly, waiting for an answer only I could provide. I sighed internally, resigning myself to the inevitable.
“Smelled normal to me.” My voice emerged rougher and deeper than my human tone, like gravel being crushed underfoot. “I couldn’t really catch any smells besides the rotting food.” I flicked my tail toward Nico. “And a squirrel.”
Nico’s eyes widened comically. “You can talk in this form?”
I stared at him, contempt rippling through me at the idiotic question. “Well, I’m talking, aren’t I?” I shifted my weight, uncomfortable with the attention.
The squirrel looked genuinely confused, his head tilted like a curious pup.
I growled, and Samara snatched her hand away from my head, ending the delicious scratching. Damn it. I’d been enjoying that.
Irritation prickled beneath my fur. I broke away from the group, trotting down the main street with my tail lashing behind me.
CHAPTER TEN
AMARI
Iwatched the glowing embers of our small campfire die to nothing as the forest swallowed the last traces of light. At least where we’d set up camp in the Black Forest was a little less haunted.
The others had retreated to their tents after a meal of dried meat and hard cheese, conversation minimal as the weight of the abandoned village pressed down on our thoughts. Val disappeared into our shared tent first, his shoulders tight with unspoken tension. Samara and Nico followed shortly after, retreating to their own canvas shelter.
Those two were a puzzle I couldn’t quite piece together. He looked at her as if she were his world, but also like his heart was utterly broken. They were abnormally close for a male and female who weren’t fucking. So why weren’t they together?
I shifted into my panther and positioned myself in front of our tent, my body hardening to stone. The transformation was familiar now after centuries of practice, as my senses sharpened and my skin and fur calcified into living stone.
The forest unfurled before me in layers of sound andscent impossible for other creatures to perceive. I heard Val’s breathing slow and deepen inside our tent. The squirrel snored lightly, a soft purring sound that irritated me.
I really didn’t want to protect the squirrel, but Val had requested that I stop being such a dick. I was still going to be one, but maybe I would treat him with a little more respect.
Until he brought out his nuts, then I could make no promises.
My awareness expanded outward in concentric circles. The forest breathed around us with the minute sounds of insects, the distant rustle of nocturnal creatures. I could hear the faint skittering of a spider traversing bark twenty feet away.
A storm approached from the east, the electric charge tingling against my stone skin. In fifteen minutes, it would reach us. I didn’t fear it, since even direct strikes couldn’t harm my gargoyle.
