Phase (10 page)

“That’s why you came all the way out here?” Ezra asked, his voice harsh.

I flinched.

“Don’t yell at her,” Meredith told him. “She’d been through enough.”

“Mom, she knows!”

I’d never heard Ezra shout before. It registered strange in my brain. He sounded scared.

“We’ll deal with that,” Mr. Varden said, his eyes meeting mine. He looked even more annoyed with me than he normally did, but left the room.

Dr. Reade started to wrap my hands in gauze. “Your hands will be a lot better by Monday, but you need to be very careful and have your parents change the bandages a few times, OK?” He wore a very sympathetic, doctorly expression.

I nodded, letting him know I was listening.

“Should we wait for the others?” Meredith asked, rubbing my back. “Micah’s Alpha.”

“Not yet,” Ezra growled.

I eyed him, but he glared at me so I looked away.

“Sophie? What did you see?”

I looked at Meredith, then at Ezra whose glare hadn’t softened a bit. I swallowed. “I don’t know.” I closed my eyes, seeing the morphing body in my brain. “It kinda looked like Jules, but then it was a white wolf. I don’t know.” I wanted to wipe my eyes again. Meredith did it for me. “Thank you.”

Dr. Reade finished bandaging my hands. Ezra and his mother stared at each other.

“Where’s Jules?” I asked.

“She doesn’t get it,” Ezra snapped.

“Would you?” Meredith replied with force. “Jules will be back,” she told me. “She’s just—”

“I think we should discuss this with the others,” Ezra said. “It’s not your decision to tell her, Mom.”

Meredith looked at her son with a long-suffering expression.

Dr. Reade surveyed his work. “Don’t get them wet for the next day or two. Have your parents call me so I can take a look at them next week.” He patted my shoulder before standing.

Mr. Varden came back in. We all looked at him expectantly. Expectant of what, I wasn’t sure.

“I called your parents. I explained that you hurt yourself, and they seemed to think you’d still be safe to spend the night.” But Mr. Varden didn’t seem to think I was safe.

Like I wasn’t nervous enough now anyway.

I dared to look at Ezra again. His arms were crossed over his chest, and his scowl seemed permanent. I heard the thundering of many feet, and I jolted.

“It’s OK,” he told me. “It’s the others coming back.”

“Others?” I looked at Meredith. “There was a wolf…wolves here.”

She nodded.

“Mom.” Ezra’s tone warned.

“Sophie is a smart girl. And she loves Juliet.” Meredith’s eyes softened as she smoothed my hair.

“It’s not your place,” Mr. Varden echoed Ezra’s earlier statement.

The whole conversation didn’t make any sense to me, and I realized how tired I was. I set my hands on my thighs and groaned. Every movement hurt.

“I think some painkillers are necessary,” Dr. Reade said. “Don’t suppose you have any in the house?”

“I have some leftover Vicodin from getting Ezzie’s wisdom teeth pulled,” Mr. Varden said. I smiled slightly at “Ezzie.”

“That will work.”

Mr. Varden and Dr. Reade left the room.

Meredith remained, still smiling at me. And still watching me. “We can trust you, can’t we?”

I nodded, not really sure what she was talking about.

“Her dad’s a lawyer, for god’s sake,” Ezra said. “Only thing worse than that would be a reporter.”

I glared at him. “My dad is awesome, Ezra Varden. Don’t you dare think he’s some jerk when you’ve never even met him!” I liked Ezra, but nobody, nobody talked bad about my parents.

Ezra and I glowered at each other. Meredith chuckled.

The thump of running feet preceded the door opening. Gil burst into the room, in only jeans and a T-shirt. No shoes, though the night was cool enough for a sweatshirt.

“She’s amazing! She’s faster than Micah, and she looks like a ghost when—” He stopped immediately when he saw me. His eyes darted to the broken glass then back to my bandaged hands. “What’s she doing here?”

“Long effing story,” Ezra replied. “Has she phased back?”

“No. They’re in the garage. Micah’s dealing with her.” Gil’s eyes never left me. “Does she know?”

Ezra glared at him, and Meredith stood. “Do you want to borrow some of Juliet’s pajamas?” she asked.

“Doubt I’ll fit into them,” I mumbled, my brain tired of trying to understand the riddles they were all speaking around me. “I’m fine.” I reached down and realized I couldn’t take off my shoes. I blushed.

“Meredith?” Mr. Varden called from downstairs. “We need you.”

“I’ll be back. Help her out, boys.” And she left. Just me and Gil and Ezra.

“It’s OK,” I said hurriedly, toeing off my shoes at the heels, embarrassed and certain my feet would probably smell terrible.

Gil sat next to me on the bed. “Your hands?”

“I fell,” I answered dumbly. “On broken glass.” I managed a watery smile for him. “Good to see you, Gil.”

He grinned back. “You too.”

I heard a noise from Ezra’s direction, but I didn’t look at him. I tried to not think about the burning in my hands.

“Vicodin!” The door opened on Aidan.

Like I could be surprised anymore. Aidan wasn’t wearing shoes either. And no shirt. I blushed. What was it with these guys?

“Did you get a glass of water?” Ezra snarled at him.

Aidan looked puzzled, then smiled. “Oh right, you’re just testy because you haven’t phased. Don’t take it out on me, man.”

Ezra rolled his eyes and stormed out.

Aidan offered me the bottle. “Your drugs, madam.”

“You’re here too?” I asked him.

He exchanged a look with Gil. “Party. Families are close.” He smiled charmingly at me. All I knew about Aidan was that he was a flirt. I’d never had it directed at me before.

“Oh. A party that doesn’t involve shirts or shoes?” Not sure why I asked because I didn’t really want to know.

Aidan laughed and winked at me. Gil touched my shoulder, one place that didn’t hurt.

“Gil, is Jules OK? No one will tell me where she is.” I hoped he’d answer me and not evade.

“She’s in the garage. She’s fine. More than fine,” Aidan said with a cocky smirk. Then he apparently realized I hadn’t taken the bottle because I couldn’t, because he opened it and took out one pill. “Or two?”

“She’s trying not to cry, I’d say two.” Little Gil was pretty observant. I
was
trying not to cry.

Aidan took out another when the door opened again. Ezra came in with a glass of water, sitting on the other side of me. I shivered with him that close.

“Give ’em here,” he ordered Aidan, who obeyed. “Open your mouth, Sophie,” Ezra said softly. I opened it, my cheeks hot from embarrassment. He placed the dry pills on my tongue and held the glass up to my lips. I took a drink, some of the water missing and falling down my chin. It was humiliating.

“You suck, man. You spilled.” Aidan laughed.

Ezra handed him the glass as I swallowed, feeling the pills make their way down my throat.

“You’re a dumbass.” Ezra grabbed the hem of his shirt, lifting it so I could see some of his stomach.

I was beyond hot now. Feverish.

“What the…?” Aidan began.

Ezra stretched his shirt to wipe my mouth and chin. Our eyes met, and my breath caught. He looked away and got up, wiping his hand.

“Do you need anything else?” he asked me. I could hear frustration in his voice. He hated helping me.

“Um.” I looked at the bed, trying to figure out how to situate myself.

“Here.” Gil helped me stand and then adjusted the covers. “Can you lie down?”

“Maybe.” I sat on the edge and tried to lie down without using my hands. It was tough.

“Just lie back.” Ezra took my arm.

Eventually we got me positioned, and Gil covered me with the sheets. “’Night, Sophie,” he said cheerfully. “Feels right that you know.”

“Know what?”

“Gil.” Ezra had the same warning note in his voice.

Gil shrugged. “She’s gonna figure out eventually.”

“Figure out what?” I tried again. The pain was doing a good job of keeping me from thinking about what I’d seen. But I hadn’t forgotten.

“Isn’t that Vicodin working yet?” Ezra muttered.

It was. I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I yawned and tried to keep them open, but, like trying to find out what was going on with this group of people, it was impossible.

* * *

When I woke up, I didn’t know where I was. After a few seconds, I recognized Juliet’s ceiling. I pressed my hands on the mattress to push myself up and inhaled quickly at the subsequent pain.

The pain brought everything back. The sneaking out, the wolf, the broken glass. I sat up and tried to slide out of bed. My foot stuck on something, and I looked down.

Jules was in the sleeping bag I used when I’d stayed over. She had a scratch on her cheek and a bruise on her jaw. Her hair was fanned out across the pillow. The white streak reminded me again of the wolf.

Just the night before, she’d looked like something out of a horror movie with the long muzzle, white fur, and rounded shoulders.

What had happened to her?

She looked normal now, peacefully sleeping, and I didn’t want to wake her. I tiptoed around her. The broken glass had been cleaned up, and some cardboard covered the broken window. I left the room, then started down the stairs.

Micah was asleep on the sofa, and Aidan slumbered on the floor nearby in the living room. Gil was curled up on the armchair, looking very much like his nickname, Puppy.

I tiptoed by them all, careful not to step on any appendages as I made my way to the outside deck. I took a deep breath of the crisp, woodsy morning air and felt a little less sick. I stared into the trees, the memories from last night coming back. The wolf, the blood. I took another deep breath.

I heard the door open and close.

Naomi approached. “Planning on running away?”

“No.”

She cocked her head to the side as if she didn’t believe me. “Not scared after what you saw last night?”

“You were there?”

She gazed at the woods. “Yeah. You probably didn’t recognize me. Didn’t look like myself.”

I watched her. “I saw Jules or something like her turn into a wolf last night.”

She smirked.

“And you aren’t surprised.”

“Nope.”

I heaved a huge sigh. “Can you tell me what’s going on?”

“I’m not supposed to.” She looked back at the house. “Besides, you’re just a human. Not like you could possibly understand.”

“I’m not stupid.” I couldn’t figure out why she seemed to dislike me.

She laughed joylessly. “Yeah, well, you can’t figure out what’s right in front of your face, so maybe you’re a little stupid.”

“Naomi.” A masculine voice.

We both spun around to see Micah at the open glass door, glowering with evident disapproval. She cowered and backed toward the stairs.

“I didn’t say anything.” She turned and ran off.

“She didn’t tell me anything,” I said to Micah. Why I was defending Naomi, I’ll never know.

He met my eyes. Fear made my heart beat faster. Micah, who I’d never been frightened of before, looked very threatening.

“What did you see? Exactly.” He leaned on the doorpost.

I recounted the morphing I’d seen. He seemed more and more concerned and frustrated as I continued.

“And I don’t know what to think. Because what I think is impossible.”

“What do you think?” he asked calmly, but the tension was betrayed in his shoulders and arms.

I saw Ezra behind Micah as I said, “I think Jules turned into a wolf.”

I waited for the laughter that was sure to follow.

Silence, except for the wind flowing through the trees. Their leaves clattered, almost like they were applauding me. Micah and Ezra walked onto the deck.

“This really doesn’t concern you,” Micah told Ezra.

“I have three classes with her. It’s going to be up to me to watch her,” he replied just as firmly. “It does concern me.”

I sounded like an unwanted homework assignment.

Micah nodded, then sat on one of the deck chairs.

Mr. Varden came out. “Now look, Micah, if you think—”

“It’s my decision, Jonas. I’m Alpha.”

“Not officially,” Mr. Varden said slowly. “Don’t be so eager.”

Micah stared at him. They locked gazes before Mr. Varden stepped back and looked at me. His eyes narrowed. He returned to the house, shoulders slumped, reminding me oddly of a scorned dog.

“I—”

“You know what werewolves are?” Micah asked.

My eyes widened. “What?”

“That’s how you explain it?” Ezra asked.

Micah shot him a look, and Ezra closed his mouth deliberately.

“Jules is not a werewolf, but the principle is similar.” He pressed his hands together like he was gathering his thoughts. “She is a shifter. Someone who can turn themselves into a wolf at any time.”

I waited for him to laugh. But knew, somewhere deep down, that everything he just said could be true. “Jules would have told me or…” Would she have?

“She didn’t know.”

“How could she not know?” I couldn’t believe I could even form questions.

“No one trained her.” Micah took a deep breath. “You know how the full moon affects people sometimes? Not like the movies or anything, but it’s a proven scientific fact that the full moon can mess with people’s mental and physical state. Because Juliet didn’t know what she was, she never changed into a wolf of her own accord. This built up in her until when the full moon would come she just turned. Completely forgot everything that happened and ended up far away from her home. We’re not sure how she got out of the house each time. Maybe she did sleepwalk out of the house as a human and then changed.”

“They thought she ran away,” I said, sitting on the table behind me. My brain was clicking slowly, putting things together. “Full moon last night.”

He nodded. “And she changed.”

“Wait, but there were other wolves last night. And how do you know all this?”

“Sophie, we’re shifters too.”

My head lightened, and I reached out to grab the railing, which really hurt my hands. “Say what?”