Page 6 of The Bull's Head

The enormous animal padded closer, sniffing the air. Probably tasting Callum. He backed into the tiny barn as far as he could, hoping the bear would pass him by, but instead, it stopped at the gate and stared at him. Then it did the most incredible thing. It shifted into a man!

“Hi,” he said. “My name is Theodore, but everyone calls me Teddy. You’re Callum, right?”

There was a softness to the big man’s voice that was incongruous with his bulk. He ambled closer and put his hand on the fence.

“Is it okay if I come in there? I know you don’t much like others. I promise I won’t hurt you.”

They’d all said that, and every one of them lied.

“If you’d rather, I can stay out here,” Teddy said. “I don’t want to spook you.” He sat at the gate, smiling at Callum. “You’re a big boy, aren’t you?”

Compared to a bear? No. He’d never been as big as any member of his family, especially Cooper. His brother had been the biggest one in the house, dwarfing even their father. If he couldn’t stop them….

Callum lifted his head and bellowed. Teddy didn’t flinch.

Teddy stood and stared at Callum with big, soft, dark gray eyes. “I can feel your sadness, you know,” Teddy told him, reaching out and touching his snout.

Callum jerked away, unable to keep from recoiling.

“I’m sorry!” Teddy cried, pulling his hand back. “I forgot. I am so very sorry.”

He dropped down to his knees. Callum stared at him for the longest time, wondering when the pain would start.

“I’m one of the people who came here and helped rescue the shifters they held prisoner. My First’s mate? She killed Hyde. Ripped him to bloody, bite-sized chunks. My brother, his name is Ivan, and I hauled the body out, and though it pains me to say I took joy in his passing, I did so. He hurt so many people, including the mate of my new leader. I’ve known bad people in my life, but never true evil.”

Hyde was dead? Like, really and truly gone? If bulls could weep, Callum would be. He recalled every experiment Hyde and his people had forced on him. How they’d put drops in his eyes that burned as though they were on fire. How they seared his flesh with metal pokers. How they’d beat him with prods, forcing Callum to shift to his bull form, then locked him in a dark, dank room that smelled of piss and crap. They’d left him with no way to know how much time had passed, no sun, moon, sky. Just blackness. Callum had no choice but to add his own waste to the stench. Eventually, he couldn’t smell it anymore.

“I know you don’t have any reason to trust the people who are here. You could be trading one devil for another. Me and my brother? We did. So I get why you’re afraid.”

He couldn’t. No one could. Callum had lost it all, including his beloved brother.

Teddy leaned back against the gate and wrapped his arms around his knees. “I’m afraid too. I wake up at night, drenched in sweat. My brother says I need to get over it, but how can I?”

He sniffled, and that tugged at Callum’s heart. He’d witnessed many emotions since he’d been dragged into this hell: fear, anguish, despair. He’d never witnessed sadness like what Teddy was displaying. Callum stepped forward and pushed his nose through the bars of his pen, nuzzling Teddy’s cheek. He turned and gave Callum a smile.

“Hey, hi.” He reached up, then hesitated. “Is this okay?”

Was it? Had Callum known any kindness from the people here in all the time they’d held him? No, he hadn’t. Barely enough food to survive, access to the scantest bit of water, locking Callum in a dark room for days on end, only trimming his hooves when Callum toppled over, no longer able to walk on them. Injecting him with something that dragged him down into sleep, and he had no idea what they’d done to him after that. Yet this man—Teddy—was reaching out in, hopefully, friendship. Callum knew it was a risk, but Teddy seemed honest and, in truth, Callum needed a friend. He pushed his nose into Teddy’s hand.

Gentle fingers glided over Callum’s snout, tickling the hairs. Teddy’s smell wasn’t like the others Callum had dealt with. Theirs was harsh, chemical, death. Teddy’s was crisp and clean, like the time the family had gone to the mountains to celebrate Cooper’s good grades. Callum had complained bitterly, but it was for naught. Cooper wanted it, and their father would move heaven and earth to give him whatever he asked for. When they’d arrived, Callum had gotten the best, purest air he’d ever breathed in. It made him dizzy for a few moments with how delicious it was.

That was the smell Teddy had. Smooth, clean, rarefied air. Callum pushed his nose further into the palm.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Teddy asked with a giggle. Yes, he actually giggled! How could someone so big laugh like a kid? It made no sense, but it seemed to suit Teddy somehow. “Listen, I know this is going to be a dumb question, but can you shift?”

Why would he want to? As a human, Callum had known nothing but pain. As a bull, he’d had nothing but pain. At least a bull’s needs were simple. Water, grass, and sunshine, not that he’d gotten any of that for the longest time. That was all. No expectations of him, no disappointing anyone. He could never understand why humans didn’t take more joy in laying out in the sun, allowing it to warm your body, or try to dodge raindrops as they pelted the earth.

“I’m guessing not. It’s not surprising. Alp—he’s my First’s mate—couldn’t shift for weeks, and he’s a lot tinier than you.” Teddy’s eyes widened. “Hey, I have an idea. What do you say to taking a midnight run? You and me, romping around in the woods. I promise to protect you.”

Was he serious? Or was he another one of those so-called scientists, and this was one of their cruel experiments? Callum wasn’t sure if they had shifters working with them, but it wouldn’t surprise him at all.

Teddy stood and reached for the lock on the gate. Callum’s heart pounded. If Teddy would only open it, Callum could make a run for it and try to escape this hellish nightmare. With a sharp click, the lock popped, and Teddy opened the gate wide.

“If I shift, will it scare you?”

Scare him? Hell no, it wouldn’t. He had no intention of being anywhere around by the time Teddy shifted.

A hand stroked Callum’s neck. It was warm and gentle. Nails grazed the skin softly, reaching under the hair and scratching an itch that Callum could never reach. He peered up into Teddy’s gray eyes and was lost in them. His brain kept screaming for Callum to run, but his heart spoke different words. Trust. Friendship. Caring.

---