shifted yet. I hate to think of him having those feelings raging through his body and not being able to change. But the idea of him shifting…” Her voice trailed off as she thought of the possibilities.
“Well the mutation may not be as rare as we thought, but it’s still uncommon enough that he probably will shift. You won’t know until he’s older and his hormones start kicking in.” Marcus said.
Susan sighed. “Well, enough of my story,” she said, directing her attention towards me. “So, you’re Kristen, one of the missing counselors.”
“Yes, that’s me.” I replied. “You won’t turn us in, will you?”
“No, no, but you can’t stay here. It’s too risky.”
“Look,” Marcus said. “Can you just let us stay here for a few days until we get on our feet?”
Though I could see she was hesitant, Susan agreed. She gave us a few juicy apples for a snack and led us to a small room on the 2nd floor. It wasn’t anything fancy, with a worn print quilt on the bed and frayed curtains in the window. A small TV was on a dresser across from the bed, near a simple wooden desk and chair, and a chipped side table boasting an electric hot plate and coffee maker was positioned near the window. No, it wasn’t much, but it was clean, and the bed, worn as it was, looked so inviting. Rest—it was what we both needed right now. My body was drained. After Susan left, Markus and I fell on top of the mattress. We curled into one another, completely exhausted.
We slept for just a short time, our inner clock waking us as the sun set. I could see Markus was getting antsy and needed a run. I knew I was going to have to run too, but it was too risky to leave the house without changing my appearance. No one would recognize him, but they might recognize me.
“Just give me thirty minutes and I will run with you. I need to work on my disguise first,” I explained. Markus watched in amusement as I put a small pot of water on the hot plate and boiled it. Next, I mixed in the powdered grape drink mix I had bought at the convenience store.
I didn’t want to mess up one of the few things I had to wear with the purple liquid, so I pulled off my top, placing it on the dresser.
“Mmm,” Markus growled from his perch on the bed. “I’ve been dreaming about that beautiful body for weeks now.” His eyes traveled slowly down my body, and back up again, lingering on my breasts.
I giggled, relishing his attention. I could feel my nipples hardening under his gaze as a tingle of desire swept thru me. “Baby, I have to finish this so that I can be incognito! You’re such a horny wolf!” I added teasingly.
I put the pan on the desk and bent my head, dipping the ends of my hair into it. Markus was almost doubled over with laughter as he realized what I was doing.
“Hey,” I said. “Stop making fun. This is going to give me a totally different look.”
“Uh huh,” he laughed, sounding doubtful. He switched on the television and watched a nature show while I soaked my ends.
I pulled my hair out of the pot after about twenty minutes and was pleased to see my light brown locks were tinged with red. After adding the oversized sunglasses, I would look different than my normal appearance for sure.
I went into the bathroom to dry my hair. As I searched for a blow dryer, I got a glimpse of myself in the mirror. I barely recognized the girl that stared back at me. The past few weeks of running had helped firm up my body. I still had ample curves with my voluptuous breasts and generous hips, but my body looked more toned. My skin had a light bronze sheen from the time I’d spent outdoors in the sun, and my face glowed with vibrancy from eating foods that were grown from the earth, not manufactured in a factory. I grinned at myself. I liked how I looked. I found a blow dryer under the sink and started drying the ends of my hair. Over the hum of the dryer, I heard Marcus calling me from the bedroom. My hair was still a little
Jack Ketchum, Tim Waggoner, Harlan Ellison, Jeyn Roberts, Post Mortem Press, Gary Braunbeck, Michael Arnzen, Lawrence Connolly