Page 33 of Blood Moon
How about a Sunday brunch for old time’s sake?
I exhaled for what felt like the first time all week. It meant soon I’d get answers, and that was what I desperately needed.
Naomi came over around noon with an oversized bag in hand and bubbly sunglasses that framed her heart-shaped face. We’d made plans to get ready for the football game together.
She placed her tote on the table in the living area and pulled out bags of chips and candy, declaring I take one, an offer I couldn’t refuse. I decided on the sweet and sour gummy things.
The afternoon light dashed through the room as I pulled back the curtains, illuminating the cinder block walls and posters. Behind it, the ominous forest. Even with golden beams sifting through the leaves, it still seemed inundated with darkened shadows. My stomach folded in on itself as I remembered the strangeness of the hiker, those red orbing eyes, the piercing sound of their cries during the animal attack. And the fall … How long would Death remind me that I’d cheated? ‘Til the last breath left my body, perhaps.
I swallowed the ache to ditch everything to go for a run. I would have been better for it. So much better. Instead, I cleared my desk, drowned out the piercing screams that echoed within, and sat next to Naomi.
“My auntie was hesitant to let me stay over tonight,” Naomi said, toning her face with a cotton round.
I pulled a tweezer from my makeup bag and plucked at a hair on my brow. “Why? You go to school here.”
She paused to stare at me. “AndI’m an adult, you know.”
I snorted. “That part, too.”
“But she was all,‘wah, the animal attacks.’”
My chest tightened. “Didn’t you say she thought it was a person?” I probed, remembering the story Naomi had mentioned a few days back.
She lifted her brows as she slid on her headband and grabbed for her moisturizer. “Exactly. And I brought that up, too.”
“And…” I said with impatience, forcing myself to dig for the connections. I needed to relax. I reset myself, breathed easily through my nostrils. “What did she say?”
“Well, it didn’t help that she saw the email from the school, so it went how you’d expect it would go.”
“Whatemail?” I scrambled for my phone.
“Oh, you haven’t seen it yet?” She’d said it so casually as she pulled out her foundation; she was oblivious to my reaction.
The email sat in my inbox, highlighted in bold. Not only did it state that the trails were closed for the remainder of the fall semester, but it also detailed the attack that had occurred on the trail. Julian had reported it, just as he’d promised. I felt the panic in my bones, my jaw locking in fear. I leaned forward, a warmness trekking up my throat.
“I can’t believe someone was attacked here,” Naomi continued. “And it’s strange that no one really noticed or heard anything. I didn’t see a single police car or ambulance. You’d think the news would be here. My auntie believes it was a shapeshifter—that it’s someone who has the ability to disguise themselves as a human … a werewolf.”
I sighed deeply, returned to my seat. “Does shereallythink that?”
“Of course she does. It’s the area, you know. People are obsessed with the lore, and to an extent, I get it. Sometimes, when you’re afraid, you need a reason to believe in something—even if it isn’t real. It gives meaning to a terrible situation. That’s how the earth spins, right? Community, connection. All of it. I wouldn’t be surprised if my auntie’s friends casually brought it up while they were working out at the Y. They said the same thing happened a few years back.”
My voice trailed. “Yeah …” I said, remembering the group of protesters on the news.The End Is Near, one of the signs had said, and I couldn’t help but contemplate how true that might be.
But even then, I didn’t remember the townies being so adamant or outright the last time something like this had happened. Sure, I was aware of some of the comments I’d see on posts and whispers from people at school, but they weren’t as loud as they were now. They weren’t standing outside of crime scenes with signs, cautioning us tobe prepared. I wondered if they really did see something—otherwise, why the concern?
A smirk appeared on Naomi’s face. “But you don’t believe in that, right, Mira?”
My gaze flitted from her, and I picked up my sponge. I didn’t know what I believed anymore. Deep inside, I knew werewolves didn’t exist, but the recent incidents felt too concurrent. The people in the town wouldn’t be as riled up as they were now. Abba had said the reason the lore was so deep-seated here was because someone had seen it happen—they’d seen the werewolves—and they believed it enough to make sure the whole town knew. Was it possible that some of the townspeople were foolish to believe in tall tales, or could there be truth hidden in the cracks?
“No,” I said hesitantly, unsure if I’d told a lie, but Naomi shook her head and squinted her eyes.
“You Kansas Citians are something else.” She laughed, and I knew my own faltering caused her to poke fun at me. It was simply that the legends here felt like more than a kid’s bedtime story now, and I wasn’t sure how to reason with that.
Then it dawned on me.
Bobby had been tracking the cycles of the moon. Each phase lain out, a string threading them together. Was it possible he believed in the legends, too?
CHAPTER20
