Shift

Chapter 22

TW: Violence, Blood, Guns, Shooting, and Death

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Marie caught sight of me. She moved back into the kitchen, our mother following her. Our mother stood at the base of the stairs, her eyes meeting mine just over the banister. She looked better than the last time that I saw her. Her hair was a little on the greasy side, but she didn't have that wild look in her eyes. There was only anger.

Her lips curled and she heaved a breath, no doubt to prepare to scream at me. I caught the scent of something that smelled earthy and spicy with a hint of floral sweetness just as a loud shot rang through the room. Everything went still and silent for a moment as something bright and red dripped down my mother's forehead then she collapsed to the floor.

I launched myself forward, tackling Marie to the floor. She grunted at the impact, but I was too busy dragging us out of the line of fire to care. Two more shots echoed through the house, and something sharp caught me in the shoulder. White hot pain tore through me as I dragged my sister's heavy weight behind the table before tipping over for cover.

Howls ripped through the air. I peeked over the table to see a man in his forties pointing his gun in my direction. Before he could pull the trigger, tattooed hands wrapped around his throat and twisted. The man crumbled to the floor in a heap. Standing behind him were Raven and Corey.

I turned to look down at Marie and froze. Her brown eyes were open and lifeless. Her neck was a bloody mess. Collapsing at her side, one of my hands went to her throat and the other went to her chest. When I couldn't feel her heartbeat, a sob escaped me. 

The air shifted behind me; I threw my body down over Marie's. I snarled at the hand that touched me even as tears poured down my face. The hand was unfazed, and I was lifted from my sister. Warm strong arms wrapped around me as words I couldn't understand whispered in my ear.

"Malen'kiy volk (Little wolf), I'm so sorry," Raven said quietly. Standing before us was Corey, he looked devastated as he looked at me. I couldn't stand to meet his eyes, so I looked elsewhere.

My eyes met my mother's unblinking ones. My heart thudded hard in my chest. In life, my mother had looked mean and imposing. One look from her could have me quivering in fear. In death, I'd never seen her look so fragile. She looked almost like she did before she got sick and started hating me.

"She didn't always hate me," I whispered. "I can remember being five or six and having tea parties with her. She was beautiful, and her laughter was contagious. She didn't hate me until later. When I turned eight, she and my father had a big argument. My mother didn't look or speak to me for a whole year. She only spoke to Marie who was just as confused as I was. Marie took her cues from her mother and decided that I was no good, so she also started to ignore me. My mother's anger and bitterness toward me kicked in shortly after that, but she didn't hate me until she was sick. The way she spoke to me, I could tell she hated me but I didn't understand why. I couldn't understand how she could go from being so loving and kind to ignoring me in the blink of an eye."

I scoffed. "I guess I have a better idea now. I don't think she knew about the Hunters or Shifters. She would have hinted at it just to drive the knife deeper."

I wiggled out of Raven's arms, dropping softly to my feet. I moved until I stood before the man that Raven killed. I sniffed lightly. It wasn't him that I had smelled earlier. Someone else had been in the house. On quick and silent feet, I shot up the stairs. I followed the scent into my old bedroom. My window was open. Stepping closer I caught sight of long black hair disappearing into the trees. I was half out the window before a hand wrapped around the back of my neck and dragged me back inside.