Page 47 of The Heart of Moonlight Falls

“What’s going on?” Sebastian asked.

“We’re watching the shade destruction.” Parker turned to face them as Eli surged forward. He wrapped his arms around Parker, and Parker kissed the top of his head.

Princeton pressed a hand over his heart. “I’ve never seen anything like this. They’re vicious, to say nothing of them being out on a bright day.”

Sebastian shifted closer to James. Out the window, the shades had abandoned the park and the smashed car for the stone in the center. They darted around it but couldn’t seem to get within a couple of feet of it.

“We need a good flamethrower to get rid of them,” Parker mused, sounding like he was only half joking.

“Don’t have one though, do we?” Luna responded, fully serious. “What are we going to do? I can’t just sit in here watching. My daughter is at school just down the road. What if they fly off there next?”

“I’ll call the school and warn them.” Princeton pulled out his phone.

“Not to add to the issue, but one out back just disappeared like it could teleport,” James said.

Parker turned to face him. “So these shades can withstand the sun and have more magical abilities than the ones we’re used to. Great.”

A shade appeared out of thin air on the other side of the glass, right in front of Luna. She gasped, taking a step back.

“Should I go out and set it on fire?” Parker asked the room at large.

“There’s not many.” James turned to Sebastian, thinking aloud. “If we can get rid of these ones, maybe we’ll be good for a while.”

“Or more will come, and we’ll be caught in a fight out of our control,” Sebastian countered.

Parker scowled out the window. “What else can we do, go home and hide?”

Eli looked up at Parker, who still held him close. “To be honest, that doesn’t sound terrible.” He seemed worried, and after how badly Parker drained himself last time, James wasn’t surprised.

James pushed his own worries away. He couldn’t let them cloud his judgment. He’d do anything to keep Sebastian, his brother, and his friends safe, but he couldn’t let his fear affect his decision-making. He couldn’t let it make him reckless.

Luna pulled a purse from behind the counter. “I’m going to head out. I don’t feel comfortable so close to shades I can’t fend off.” She glanced at Parker, who nodded his acknowledgment.

“The school is calling parents,” Princeton said, rejoining the conversation now that his phone call had ended. “They’ll keep everyone inside until the end of the school day, but if people want to collect their kids early, they can.”

“Good, that’s exactly what I was planning to do.” Luna took off her apron and stuffed it in her bag. “I don’t know what’s going on with Moonlight Falls. First that darkness, then this.”

“Don’t worry about your shifts if you want to get out of town,” Parker assured her. “In fact, I’d recommend leaving for a while.”

Luna looked relieved. “Thanks, I might just do that.”

Parker walked her out to make sure there wasn’t anything lurking in the parking lot.

The shade on the other side of the front window seemed to be inspecting the building. It studied the glass, swooping around to all corners, but didn’t seem to be looking inside the diner. The shades by the stone continued to dart around, their movements giving off an increasing air of agitation.

James and Sebastian exchanged a weary look.

Parker returned, slipping an arm around Eli. “I think I’ll close up.” He turned to the diner’s sole customer. “Sorry, Princeton, but getting out of town might be best. Unless you want to risk a confrontation with one of these beasts.”

“No, I don’t want to risk that.” Princeton frowned. “But I’m parked out by the post office. Hell, I never thought I’d be nervous walking across the street in broad daylight.”

The shade at the window turned abruptly and flew toward the ones circling the stone. Instead of joining in the frantic flying, it hovered above them. In response, the three stopped circling and drifted up to the newcomer.

“It’s like they’re communicating,” Princeton muttered, transfixed by the shades. “Only it doesn’t look like their mouths are moving at all. Could they be telepathic? I’d always thought their chattering and shrieking was how they talked to one another.”

James remembered how the humanoid shade had spoken and the way its voice seemed to fill his mind rather than the air around him. It very well could have been some sort of telepathic ability.

Suddenly, all four shades disappeared, not leaving so much as a whisp of shadow behind.

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