Turn Darkly (9 page)

Now I have to go in. She’s probably already seen me.
Taking a deep breath, Regan pulled the door open, a blast of cool air rushing over her.

Waiting a few seconds for her eyes to adjust to the dim interior, Regan scanned the room. To her dismay, Lily was nowhere to be found.

A young blonde woman Regan didn’t recognize stood behind the counter. “Just grab a seat anywhere.”

Stepping up to the counter, Regan cleared her throat. “Actually, I was wondering if Lily was working today.”

The blonde shook her head. “Nope. She’s off on Tuesdays now.”

Regan nodded. “Thanks.” Resigned that the proverbial planets were perpetually aligned against them, Regan stepped back from the counter, and walked toward the door.

“But I saw her over at Hobb’s about ten minutes ago.” The blonde said casually.

Regan couldn’t squelch the grin that spread over her lips. “Thanks.”

Jogging across the street, Regan stopped short of the market’s entrance when she saw Lily walk out with a paper sack in her arms. Directly behind her was Trent.

“Shit.” Regan muttered. Things were strained enough without Trent being involved.

Before Regan could beat a hasty retreat back to her van, Lily’s eyes met hers, and a broad smile found the dark haired woman’s full lips. Independent of her will, and no longer concerned with Trent, Regan walked toward the woman.

“Regan, you’re back.” Lily beamed as she stepped down onto the sidewalk.

“Passing through. I’m done at Addison, and thought I would say hello.” Shoving her hands into her front pockets, Regan suddenly felt nervous. “And, I guess, goodbye.”

Trent stepped out from behind his sister. “Long time no see, Regan.” The man looked Regan up and down. “You’re looking good.”

Lily handed her brother the bag of groceries. “Take these to the truck, please.”

Trent took the bag, but didn’t leave. “And miss the chance to catch up with Regan? Never.”

“Trent.” Lily glared at her brother. After a second, he conceded, and retreated to Lily’s blue Ford truck.

Suddenly alone with Lily, Regan was at a loss as to what to say to the woman. Their parting had been difficult and cluttered with a slew of strange occurrences, but Regan had missed Lily.

“I’ve been thinking about you.” Lily’s voice broke as she managed to barely whisper the words.

“Me too.” Regan smiled. “Look, I’m in no hurry. Do you want to do something?”

Lily frowned, and looked toward where Trent stood leaning against the side of the truck. “I can’t.”

“It’s kind of now or never, Lily.” Regan worked to keep the irritation out of her voice.

“I know. It’s just -” She stepped closer to Regan. “It was my birthday last week.”

Regan smiled. “Well, happy belated.”

Shaking her head, Lily’s eyes darted over to Trent again as she lowered her voice. “I’m twenty five now, and -”

Seeing the anguish in the woman’s eyes, Regan reached for her hand. “What’s happened?”

“I can’t tell you here. Meet me at the Cathedral Peak trail head in an hour.” Not waiting for Regan’s response, the woman quickly walked toward her truck.

Regan was left standing in the middle of the sidewalk, alone and confused. Watching Lily drive off, a quote from one of Regan’s favorite books,
The Great Gatsby
, popped into her head, and she knew she would be in Howell for at least another hour.
I wasn't actually in love, but I felt a sort of tender curiosity
.

It was almost seven, and Regan had been waiting in her van near Cathedral Peak for close to an hour and a half. Looking at her watch for the ninth time in the past half hour, the woman sighed, resigned that she had been stood up.

Just as she was about to start the van, Lily’s blue truck appeared in the parking lot next to her. The woman looked over at Regan and mouthed “I’m sorry.”

Regan pushed her irritation aside to make room for the genuine pleasure she took in seeing Lily. Hopping out of the van, she walked around to greet the dark haired woman.

“I’m so sorry to be late. I got held up.” Lily pulled Regan to her in a tight embrace.

Surprised by the sudden display of affection, Regan felt her breath leave her as the woman’s lean frame pressed to her. “I was beginning to worry.”

Leaning back, Lily cupped Regan’s cheek with her hand. “Thank you for waiting.” She pressed her lips to Regan’s. The fullness and warmth of Lily’s mouth flooded Regan’s senses as she struggled to maintain her balance.

A quiet moan escaped Regan as the tip of Lily’s tongue ran across her lower lip. “Clearly I made the right choice not to leave.”

The two women stood, their foreheads pressed together and their arms around each other’s waists. Lily took a tentative step back. “Can we walk?”

Regan hoped her legs would carry her. The adrenaline and desire coursing through her made the phrase “weak in the knees” all too real. “It’s getting dark.” Regan looked up at the sky. The sun had set behind the mountains, and the quarter moon was just above the eastern horizon.

“It’ll be fine.” Lily took Regan’s hand, and pulled her toward the trail.

Regan stopped. “Wait. What about -” She looked over at the moon.

Lily’s eyes widened. “That’s one of the things I want to talk to you about.”

Regan’s eyes narrowed. She didn’t want to be suspicious of Lily, but there were too many unknowns. “Why don’t you start by explaining why you’re not currently furry and on all fours?”

Lily snapped her fingers, a mischievous grin on her face. “Right. That.” She stepped around Regan, and focused her attention on the moon. “I can control the turning during every phase except full.” She looked at Regan. “That’s why you found me in that cage.”

Regan nodded as if she understood. The reality was she had no point of reference, and her scientific mind was telling her none of this was possible. The moon was simply a massive rock orbiting the Earth, and had nothing to do with turning people into wolves. Then again, Regan knew the very notion of a person transforming into an animal was ludicrous, regardless of the moon’s involvement.

“Are you -” Regan wasn’t sure how to ask the question without offending Lily, but she needed to know. “Are you able to reason? Are you still you?”

Lily turned toward Regan. Her face was cast in shadows, and Regan couldn’t see her eyes clearly as she spoke. “Less and less as the full moon approaches, and then not at all.”

Regan’s breath caught. The idea of losing herself, of forgetting who she was and the people that mattered to her was terrifying. “It was you that night - by the road.”

Lily hesitated before responding. “Yes. Trent and his
boys
were out hunting, and thought they would have some fun.” She shook her head. “I couldn’t have forgiven him if they had hurt you.” She gently rubbed Regan’s forearm.

Regan was trying desperately to pace the barrage of questions that flooded her mind. But in spite of her best efforts, every one of Lily’s answers spurred more inquiries. “Can a human be turned? Ah, like in the movies?”

Lily chuckled. “No. It runs in the family, so to speak.”

“What does it feel like?” The idea of a human being folding, shaping, and transforming into a wolf was beyond Regan’s understanding. Every fiber of her being told her it was impossible, but she had seen enough to know there was clearly more to the world than even science could fathom, much less explain.

Cocking her head to the side, Lily looked up out of the corner of her eye. “Hmm, it’s like when you wake up in the morning, and you have your first
really
great stretch. Your breath gets caught, and all the blood pushes into your muscles.” She looked back at Regan. “Like that, I guess.”

Regan was relieved the change wasn’t painful for the woman. She assumed her life was made complicated enough without the added burden of pain. Looking at Lily, Regan caught a worried expression cross her beautiful face. She sensed there was something the woman wasn’t telling her. She suspected, though, that any attempt to rush Lily’s disclosures would only agitate her. Taking Lily’s hand, Regan walked toward the trail.

“How’s your night vision?” Regan teased.

“Pretty bad, actually. I wear contacts, and without them I’m legally blind in my left eye.”

Regan stopped, sending Lily careening into the back of her. “Are you kidding?”

Shaking her head, Lily shrugged. “No. When I’m human, I’m just as frail as anyone. Even in wolf form, I’m no more or less tough than any other wolf.”

“I’ve noticed your brother always smells of licorice and whiskey. Is that because he’s -”

Lily laughed. “That’s because he’s been hooked on black licorice since he was ten, and drinks like a fish.”

Regan felt embarrassed as heat rushed to her face. “I guess I’ve seen too many movies and read too many books.”

“It’s not sexy, and if managed right, it isn’t particularly scary either.”

A question had been biting at the back of Regan’s mind, and she finally felt the courage to ask it push to the forefront. “Were your parents killed when they were - wolves?” Regan watched the woman’s expression closely. Tears springing to her eyes.

“Yes.” An errant tear ran down the woman’s cheek, and Regan gently wiped at it with her thumb.

“What happened?” Regan continued walking, her and Lily’s hands entwined.

“It was a full moon. They were hunted and shot.” The sorrow in the woman’s voice brought tears to Regan’s eyes as she remembered the stabbing ache of loss when her parents were killed.

The two women walked up the trail in a comfortable silence. Reaching one of the first scenic overlooks, they stopped. The daylight was all but gone, and the night had cast the mountains in faint blues and grays. Looking out over the sky, Regan shuddered at its enormity.

“Are you okay?” Lily wrapped her arm around Regan’s waist.

“What were your parents’ names?”

Her eyes still fixed on the distant horizon, Lily smiled. “Eric and Joan.”

“Not scary at all.” Regan said matter-of-factly.

Lily laid her head on Regan’s shoulder. “They were wonderful.”

It was almost completely dark as Regan and Lily made their way back down the trail. “I’m sorry I missed your birthday.”

Lily shrugged. “It’s not a big deal.”

Remembering the woman’s cryptic comment early regarding her birthday, Regan thought she had been patient enough in waiting for an explanation. “What did you mean earlier when you said you couldn’t because you were twenty five now?”

They had just reached the parking lot, and Lily released Regan’s hand. “I had hoped you had forgotten that.”

“Mind like a steel trap.” Regan tapped her temple with her index finger.

Stepping toward her, Lily wrapped her arms around Regan’s shoulders. “It hardly matters now.”

Sensing the woman was hesitating more out of fear than truly believing the topic was moot, Regan eyed her suspiciously. “Nice try.”

Stepping back, Lilly shoved her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. “You asked why I can’t leave.” She was either unable or unwilling to look at Regan, and her sudden evasiveness was making Regan nervous.

“Yes.”

“There are very few of us left. Over the centuries bloodlines have been weakened when we have had children with humans.” She glanced up at Regan, and then quickly back down at the ground. “To ensure survival, a woman is expected -”

Regan failed to catch the gasp before it exited her mouth. “You’re not saying -”

Lily turned and began walking toward her truck. “I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s none of your business, anyways.”

Realizing she had let her shock get the better of her, Regan went after Lily. “Hold up. I’m sorry, but I wasn’t expecting you to tell me you were being made to breed for the sake of perpetuating the species.” Regan looked up at the night sky. “Shit, that sounded even worse out loud.”

“Forget I said anything.” Pulling her keys from the front pocket of her jeans, Lily unlocked the driver side door.

Regan put her hand on the window to stop the woman from opening the door, and presumably driving away forever. “Who?”

Lily looked at Regan, her expression unreadable. “Robert or Caleb.”

Regan shook her head. “Who?”

“The two men you’ve seen with my brother.”

“Do you even know them?” Regan couldn’t believe she was having this conversation with any woman in a first world country in the twenty-first century, much less a lesbian.

“I’ve known them my entire life.” Lily looked at Regan’s hand. “Excuse me.”

Regan didn’t move. “Why would you agree to this?”

“We’re near extinction.” Lily stood with her hand on the truck’s door handle, her head lowered.

“Then let Robert and - ah, Caleb go find themselves a nice
willing
and straight woman to copulate with.” Regan’s heart was pounding in her ears, and she was struggling not to berate Lily with a full on rant about the importance of being true to who she was, regardless of what her family wanted.