Shadow of the Moon Read online

  As I went up the stairs with the others, I thought it a little naïve to think any of us could sleep. I could feel Daniel’s gaze on my back.

  At the top of the stairs he said, “Hayden?”

  I looked back and he jerked his head to the side. Touching Brittany’s arm, I told her, “I’ll be in the room in a minute.”

  I went over to Daniel and waited until everyone had disappeared down the hallway. He touched my cheek. “I won’t let it have you.”

  I heard absolute conviction in his voice.

  “You might not have a choice. You know as well as I do that the first shift is not controlled by the person but rather by the moon—there’s no stopping it.” Standing on my toes, I pressed a quick kiss to his lips.

  Then I walked down the hallway. A jumble of emotions was going through me. And this time they were all mine.

  TWELVE

  After breakfast the next morning we all gathered in the council room. At a large round table sat the eight Dark Guardians—including Daniel—who remained at Wolford and the three elders. Elder Wilde was in the middle with Elder Thomas on one side of him and Elder Mitchell on the other. Normally before a Guardian experienced her first full moon, she was considered a novice and sat in a chair along the side of the room. But since this meeting came about because of me, I found myself sitting beside Elder Thomas, who held my hand with his gnarled one. After more than a hundred years of shifting, in spite of a Shifter’s healing abilities, his body had begun to show the price of shaping and reshaping bones and muscles.

  As leader of the Dark Guardians, Lucas stood. “As you know, the harvester threatened Hayden. It would not only reap her soul and her ability to shift, but her ability to sense others’ emotions. We’ve identified two other Shifters who will experience their first full moon at the same time as Hayden. They’re both males. We’ve sent four Guardians to keep watch over them while they face their full moon. We have faith they’ll be safe.”

  While many Shifters served as Dark Guardians, at any one time only twelve sat at the council table, planned strategies, and placed their lives on the line to protect us. Lucas looked over at me. “We believe more will be needed to protect Hayden.” He nodded toward his grandfather. “Elder Wilde will explain.”

  He sat down and Elder Wilde stood. “You were all here when the harvester took Justin. You know what it is capable of.”

  Elder Thomas’s hand tightened on mine, but because the Dark Guardians hadn’t heard anything that was not expected, I experienced no spikes in anyone’s emotions. As a matter of fact, I was surprised by the calm that pervaded the room. Determination, confidence, even eagerness to confront the enemy slapped at the weak wall I’d managed to somehow erect.

  Or perhaps the ferocity of my own emotions made everyone else’s pale in comparison.

  “So how do we kick its butt?” Brittany asked.

  “You must fight it without shifting,” Elder Wilde said. “And for that you need a special weapon. Come with us.”

  Everyone rose and followed as the elders led us out of the room, along a hallway, down some stairs, and along another hallway to the room where the ancient texts were stored. We were allowed in this room only by invitation. But they didn’t stop here. They wended their way among chairs and boxes that housed treasures. They led us around stacks of books and papers. They escorted us to a bookcase.

  Elder Thomas reached up and touched a statue of a wolf that rested on one of the shelves. The bookcase swung open.

  I could sense everyone’s awe. A secret revealed. A hidden place that we’d not known about. We followed the elders into a narrow stone passageway and down another set of stairs to a large wooden door with ornate carvings. Elder Wilde removed a key from his pocket, inserted it into the lock. A click echoed around us. He pushed the door open and led us into a darkened chamber.

  Someone flicked a switch and a light illuminated the room.

  “Our armory,” Elder Wilde said.

  I stared in wonder at all the weapons on the walls. Ancient tools of destruction. Swords, knives, axes, clubs—

  “Is that Excalibur?” Connor asked.

  “These are the weapons that concern you today, young warriors,” Elder Wilde said as he indicated a rack of rapiers, ignoring Connor’s question.

  The handles were gold, but the blades gleamed silver.

  “They are made of steel, coated in silver. Just as silver can kill us, it can kill a harvester,” Elder Wilde explained. “But this particular weapon has been tempered with magic. It must be embedded in the harvester’s heart.”

  “I can do that,” Brittany said, reaching for a sword.

  “All of you will need to begin practicing with the swords. Time is short. We will work outside.” He looked at me. “Except for you, Hayden. Your shift will occupy you—mind, body, spirit. The Dark Guardians who remain here will accompany you to your transformation, protect you as much as possible. The harvester will attack when your shift begins.”

  “And then they’ll attack it?”

  “Yes.”

  I glanced over at Daniel. If he was my mate, he wouldn’t be fighting either—he’d be distracted.

  “Still, I want to learn how to fight with a sword,” I said. “Anything could happen out there.”

  In the heat of battle we’d have to be careful not to slice into any Dark Guardians. Our healing properties didn’t apply to a wound made by silver.

  “So it shall be,” Elder Wilde said.

  The swords they gave us to practice with were not the ones we’d use during the actual confrontation. Silver was too risky. Wooden swords probably would have been better, only we didn’t have any. Besides, we needed to get used to the weight. So steel swords it was.

  We went outside, into the yard between the side of the manor and where the forest began some yards away. I didn’t think it was coincidence that I was paired with Daniel. I thought the elders were still doing some matchmaking. Everyone else was matched with their mate, except Seth, who had no mate. I felt for him. He was matched with Elder Thomas.

  “The most important thing,” Elder Wilde said, “is to become one with the battle, to follow it, to immerse yourself in it. You cannot be distracted. You must concentrate.”

  I felt everyone’s emotions peppering me. Anticipation, excitement, a little anxiety about the possibility of failure. Staying focused during practice was going to be a challenge. I couldn’t imagine how I would manage it in the heat of battle.

  “Too bad you can’t distract me from everyone’s feelings now like you did last night,” I said to Daniel.

  He grinned. “Well, I could but holding you so close doesn’t leave much room for wielding our training swords.”

  I returned his smile. “I don’t think you’re taking this seriously.”

  “If I’m your mate, I’ll be occupied.”

  I shook my head. “No, I’m not going to have a mate.”

  “You can’t go through it alone.”

  “And you’ve been ordered not to shift.”

  “You always want to have your weapon out and pointed at your opponent’s heart,” Elder Wilde said, interrupting my discussion with Daniel—which I considered a good thing.

  I knew I was going to have to go through my shift alone. The problem was going to be convincing Daniel. But right now we both needed to learn how to fight.

  Elder Wilde gave us a few more tips on stance and balance. Then the yard was echoing with the clash of swords.

  I was surprised by the way my arm reverberated with each blow that I parried. We must have practiced for a half hour before the elders told us to take a break. I wasn’t wearing a coat. It would hinder my movements. But I wasn’t cold. At least not until I stopped moving around.

  Daniel came over and put his arm around me, tucking me against his side. “You’re pretty good.”

  I shrugged. “But I won’t be the one with a sword. Don’t even know why I’m practicing. Just need to feel like I’m doing something.”