Page 53 of Hallows End
“That was no dog,” she counters. “It had human eyes.”
“It can’t be a skinwalker.” Xander scrubs his hand through his dark hair. “It just can’t be.”
“What in the ever-loving hell is askinwalker?” Giles demands.
“I don’t think we want to know,” Lorelei says. “It sounds creepy as hell.”
“Oh, it’s worse than that,” I reply.
ChapterTwelve
Lucy
“It literallycannotbe,” Xander insists, and Jonas shakes his head.
“Why?” I ask. “Why can’t it be?”
“Because based on everything I’ve ever read or have been told, skinwalkers are a Navajo legend. They’re witches who can take the form of an animal, not aperson, and they’re creepy as fuck. They don’t just take the shape of the dog or animal. They’re not a typical shifter. They’re malevolent, and they look as such.”
“That red dog I saw looked pretty damn malevolent,” I mutter and reach down to pet Nera, who hasn’t left my side all day. “And I think it’s safe to say that I can now consider myself an expert on such things.”
“Yeah, no one suggested this was a good thing,” Lorelei adds.
“That’s not what I meant. I’m just saying, there aren’t many Navajo in this area. At least, that I’m aware of.”
“Doesn’t mean they aren’t here,” Giles says. “Although why anyone would be here for a couple of hundred years just to kill one witch each year is beyond me.”
“Maybe they don’tlivehere,” I suggest. “Maybe they just come here from wherever and then leave once the job is done.”
“Like a hitman?” Breena asks with a frown. “That seems weird, even for us.”
“Generations of Navajo witches, making the journey to Salem just to kill one of us every year. That doesn’t seem plausible.” Giles looks over to Breena. “You’re right.”
“But itcouldbe any witch who can shift,” Lorelei points out, frowning at Xander. “Just because you choose things like cats and birds doesn’t mean that someone with a dark spirit couldn’t or wouldn’t do creepier things. Areyouconsidered a skinwalker? Isn’t it just another term for shifter?”
“I’m absolutely not a skinwalker,” Xander says, shaking his head emphatically. “What I do isn’t meant to hurt anyone or impact them in any way. It’s just a form of transmogrification. But what you suggest could happen. I think we’re quickly learning thatanythingcan happen.”
“You know what?” I decide right on the spot. “Screw waiting for tomorrow morning to call Miss Sophia. I’m calling now.”
I reach for my phone, open my contacts, page down to her name, and hit FaceTime.
After just a few moments of ringing on the other end, Sophia answers, and her sweet smile is a balm to my overstimulated nervous system.
“Well, Lucy. How lovely to see you.” But her eyes narrow on my face. “Oh, dear.”
“Yeah. It’s lovely to see you, too, but this isn’t just a leisurely phone call. We’ll do that soon.”
“I hope so. How can I help?”
“Well, first of all, I’m not here alone. I have a room full of people with me.”
I introduce the others one at a time, stopping when I get to Jonas.
“This is Jonas. And what I’m about to tell you is a story that you may not believe.”
“I’d like to hear this story.”
The others are quiet as Jonas and I tell Sophia about the curse of the blood moon. When we’re finished, Sophia blinks, takes a deep breath, and then blows it out slowly.