Bit by bit, the pieces of the past few days came swimming back to her, and she sat up, confusion almost stifling her.
What have I become? How could my body do that?
She distinctly recalled the way she had jumped on Tav, trying to bite at him until he had…
Oh my God! He turned into a…a dragon?!
She sat up, feeling the flutter of her heart against her chest, but the more she tried to make sense of what was happening, the less she did.
How did we turn into those creatures? Was that a dream?
Yet she knew that it was no dream, that it had all happened exactly how she recalled.
I need to get off this mountain. I need to get into town.
Lora wondered if that was truly a good idea considering what she had just endured, but the alternative was just as terrifying. How could she return to Tav knowing that he wasn’t human?
I’m not human either.
A low, muffled cry escaped her lips as she ambled to her feet and fought her way out of the woods as if guided by some unseen hand. She didn’t begin to understand what was happening to her, but she suspected that whatever it was, Tav was to blame.
That’s why he’s been trying to keep me from Oliver. He’s a monster who wants me for himself.
The notion filled her with bile and regret, the memory of his passion and concern still fresh in her mind, but that did not stop Lora from fighting her way forward. By some primal instinct, some sense for direction she had no business knowing, she eventually made her way back toward the mountain road.
Up ahead, she heard the whoosh of wings and dread overtook her as she scoured for safety.
He’s up there, looking for me, Lora thought, fear overtaking her. What will he do to me when he finds me?
She vowed that she would not give herself the opportunity to find out.
The flapping seemed to go on for hours, and it took Lora some time to realize that there was more than one dragon flying overhead.
They’re brazen, so out there. How can they be like that? Aren’t they worried about being caught?
Her mind raced to what she could recall about the Kur family, and her blood ran cold.
Are they immortal? Have they been around that long?
Cold and miserable, she hunched in the dark until finally, blissfully, the sound of the hovering dragons disappeared, leaving Lora to navigate the night on her own.
Ensuring that the danger had passed, she raced out toward the washed-out roads and cautiously headed down the pathway.
That wolf body would come in handy right now, she thought, grinding her teeth as she tried not to slip. Suddenly, her body morphed, and she fell forward, paws taking over her hands. Alarm and excitement twined in her veins as she realized that she was shifting again, but this time, her head was much clearer.
Her night vision made the landscape clear as day, and in minutes, she had ventured into the shadows and away from the main road but headed toward the highway as she intended.
As she walked, she became distinctly aware of how her body moved, the newfound curves and muscles both daunting and exhilarating. She thought of how much pain she’d been in over the past day and realized that it had been her body preparing for the changes she was enduring in those moments.
Changes that Tav instilled upon me…
But as she thought about it, she didn’t understand it. Why would he go through so much trouble to if he had been her attacker all along?
Unless he got caught before he could finish what he started, and Oliver was really the one trying to help me all along.
Lora was getting a headache attempting to straighten out the mess that her life had become.
I’ve been too sheltered for too long. I need to find a police station and maybe a hospital—
Abruptly, she stopped walking, her jaw slacking slightly to permit her tongue to loll out.
Police station? Hospital? What will they do to someone like me? I’ll be arrested or thrown in a lab somewhere where they’ll do experiments on me…
She shuddered at the idea, but the lights of Alamosa appeared through the darkness, and Lora knew that she had to become human again.
How? How do I do that?
She froze and thought about how she had shifted into her wolf form. Without warning, her body again morphed, and she became the same woman she had always been.
Incredible. Unbelievable but incredible all the same.
Lora wondered if she would ever make sense of it all.
A set of headlights fell on her on Santa Fe Avenue, almost blinding Lora as she turned her head away. When she did, she saw the bright sign of the Best Western to her right, and Lora’s heart leapt into her windpipe.
Is Oliver still here? What are the chances?
She picked up the pace, barely aware of how many hours she had been walking in the dark. In the parking lot, she saw the car that her brother had invited her to get into, and she almost wept for joy.
He’s still here! He’s still looking for me!
Lora sprinted toward the lobby, not noticing the strange look of the clerk as she made her way to the elevators.
“Can I help you, Miss?” the receptionist called out. Lora hesitated, half-wanting to ignore her, but she also did not want to cause a scene.
“I’m looking for my brother,” she explained. “He checked in yesterday.”
Lora peered at the worker and realized that she wasn’t the same woman who had checked them in.
“What room is he in?”
Lora wracked her brain to remember, but she drew a blank and looked at the clerk helplessly.
“His car is still here, and his name is Oliver Church. Do you think you could call him and let him know I’m here?”
Her nametag read “Heather”, and she scoffed.
“Miss, do you have any idea what time it is?” she demanded, nodding toward the wall clock hanging over the entranceway. Lora cringed and then caught sight of herself in the oval accent mirror.
No wonder she’s not letting me in the hotel. I look like death warmed over.
“Please,” Lora said urgently. “It’s really important, and he won’t mind, I’m sure.”
She gave Heather her most winning smile, but given the circumstances, it was little more than a grimace.
“Miss, I’m not in the habit of waking guests up at— “
“Lady,” Lora interjected, advancing on the counter. “Either call him or I’ll have no choice but to go floor to floor yelling for him.”
Heather looked taken aback, and she eyed Lora uneasily.
“I’ll call him,” she finally agreed. “But if he doesn’t answer or doesn’t want to see you, you’ll have to leave.”
“I will,” Lora assured her, exhaling. She drummed her filthy fingernails on the marble countertop as Heather dialed out.
“Yes, Mr. Church? I’m sorry to wake you, sir, but there’s a woman down here who claims to be your sister. I can send her—” Heather stopped midsentence, her eyes widening. “Oh. I see. Yes, sir, I’ll send her up right away.”
She hung up the phone and offered Lora a waxen smile.
“Well,” she said huffily. “He’s in room 808.”
Lora resisted the urge to snap, “I told you so.” Instead, she thanked Heather and hurried back toward the elevator.
A moment later, she was on the eighth floor, rushing toward the open door of Oliver’s room.