Chapter 9 #3
They crossed the room to the door that led to our living quarters. I held my breath as Darryl reached for the doorknob. The handle turned, but the door wouldn’t budge. Camazotz must have locked it before leaving for the night.
“Now what do we do?” asked Darryl.
“Come back tomorrow,” said the one with the deep voice, the boss, if I had to guess. “I want to take a closer look at this place during the day. We didn’t even know it was up here.”
“Up until yesterday, the only person who lived here was a hermit. He just calls in a shipment of food every few months, pays over the phone, and I lug it up the mountain and leave it in his kitchen.”
The Boss Man marched to the door and knocked loudly. No answer, since I was a crow and Camazotz was missing. He turned back to Darryl. “How far is the kitchen from here?”
“I don’t know, maybe thirty feet?”
“If someone’s here, they should hear us.”
He banged again, louder this time. I was reasonably certain he wasn’t strong enough to kick down the door, but my feathers stood on edge.
He had some nerve barging into his home like this.
Finally, they gave up. Their actions made me so uneasy that I squirmed back through the ceiling and flew from tree to tree until they made their way down the driveway and a distant set of headlights made the turn onto the main road.
When they disappeared from my sight and the soft peal signaled they were off the mountain, I headed back, too worn out from worry to do any more flying.
I turned human again before I fell back into bed.
Again, the peal alerting us to an intruder woke me from a deep sleep. Confused, I looked around. I was naked and in my bed. Light slanted through my windows onto the stone floor. Here I thought I had escaped civilization, and instead, it was like Grand Central Station.
I felt my Monster chuckle deep down in my belly.
I couldn’t hear him with my ears, and a quick glance showed I was alone in my room.
Great, he was listening to my thoughts again.
Can’t a girl get any privacy? An actual knock sounded on my door, and I jumped out of bed, throwing on yesterday’s clothes in a flash.
I shook off my mental fog, complete with remnants of flying in the dark of the night.
It must have been a dream. Too bad, I adored being able to fly.
I cracked open the door. “Who is it now?” I asked.
He turned, heading toward the front of the house, but his reply was disconcerting. “I have no idea. I wasn’t expecting anyone.”
“I had a dream that the delivery guy was here in the middle of the night with some police officers,” I said to his back.
He stopped and looked over his shoulder, neck not even tilting under the heavy weight of his horns. “A dream? Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. I turned into a crow.”
His eyes narrowed, and then, before my eyes, his form melted.
Gone was the magnificent beast I had made a commitment to, and in his place stood a man.
He was a big man, but at least two feet smaller than his original form.
Instead of the usual kilt-type skirt he preferred, he wore actual modern-day clothes.
Pants, a worn flannel shirt, and boots. He looked to be in his fifties, his skin worn by the sun.
The lower half of his face was hidden by a thick beard.
His eyes were the same though, piercing and stormy.
Still my Monster, only in a different form.
“See, you still know me.”
“Always.”
“Wait, your eyes.” He waved his hand over my face, and a trickling sensation washed over my face.
“Better.” He nodded and turned back. I followed him through the house to the front door, doing my best to keep my thoughts quiet for a change.
When I spotted Darryl and the two officers, my heart raced.
Up until this moment, I was convinced my midnight transformation and flight had been a dream.
But now they were here again, and based on last night’s trespassing, up to no good.
Should I go hide my identification? I wore the same thing Darryl saw me in yesterday. Was that suspicious?
Quiet, Corvus. This is not a problem.
I took a deep breath, watching Darryl’s face as he spotted us. His brow furrowed, but he wasn’t intimidated by Camazotz. He should’ve been.
In the light of day, the older officer looked nothing like his attention-grabbing voice made him out in my mind, and yet it was the same man from my dream. “Excuse me, sir. We are looking for Freya Rook.” The same deep voice. His eyes found me. “Are you Freya Rook?”
“No, I am not.” It popped out of my mouth before I could reflect on what I was doing.
And yet, it felt right to hide my identity from them.
Did they have any photos? A missing person flyer?
I didn’t think Matthew had any pictures of me on hand; I hadn’t climbed high enough on the corporate ladder to warrant one on the website.
Plus, Comazotz hadn’t changed me back to my old self.
The officer looked at Darryl, a single look asked the obvious question. “She said her name was Freya. It’s an unusual name.”
I shook my head and looked confusedly between them.
“What can we help you with, gentlemen?” asked Camazotz, his voice quiet yet commanding.
All eyes turned to him. “Can we come inside and discuss this matter?” The older officer made a step toward the door, but my Monster moved in front of him, blocking his path.
“No. I’d prefer you state your intent here.”
The two men eyed each other, neither one backing down.
Camazotz had at least a foot on the officer, but the shorter man didn’t seem intimidated.
Clearly, he wasn’t used to people ignoring his suggestions.
I almost hoped the human would make a wrong move.
Camazotz glanced at me with a raised eyebrow.
I apologized silently but could sense his amusement.
“We have a report on file for a missing woman, Freya Mason Rook. She went missing a few weeks ago. Her car broke down not far from your property.”
“I’m sorry, but I haven’t seen her. Don’t you think she would have made her way down the mountain if she were stranded instead of scaling it?” He pointed to his driveway, which these men had just climbed.
“Is this your property, Mister…”
“Benjamin. No, I am just the keeper. This is hallowed ground and is protected. It is my job to make sure no one desecrates it.”
The officer didn’t bother to keep his thoughts hidden, disgust written all over his face. Darryl’s frown degenerated into a scowl. Only the younger officer looked composed. I wondered what the problem was. Why were they so intent on seeing inside the house?
“I’d like to speak with your lady friend, Mister Benjamin. What’s your name?” the older officer asked me.
“What’s your name?” I retorted instead of answering his question.
“Deputy Thompson, ma’am, and I’m curious why you’d tell Darryl here your name is Freya if that’s not the case.”
“No, Deputy Thompson, I didn’t tell him my name is Freya. Maybe he heard what he wanted to hear. But I only arrived a few days ago, and I wasn’t stranded on my way to somewhere else.”
“And how did you get here? What’s your name?”
“It’s Morrigan, and a friend dropped me off. She spent the first night here and then left the next day.”
He looked as if he didn’t believe me, but that was his problem.
“Do you have a card? In case we find something belonging to the missing girl?” Camazotz asked.
They didn’t like it, that much was clear, each man fighting his own frustration, but Deputy Thompson handed Camazotz a business card. They left reluctantly.
“Did you turn me into a crow last night?” I asked him as soon as they were out of earshot.
“No. You did that yourself. That is why you woke up with crow's eyes; you forgot to turn all the way back.”
I stared at him in amazement as the meaning of his words settled into my comprehension, but he walked away after shutting and locking the front door, leaving me to my new reality.
I changed myself? How great was that! Had he given me the ability as soon as I agreed to help him?
I held my arm out, looking in wonder at the olive-toned skin.
Not only had I changed myself into a crow, but then I turned back into my new shape, not into the one I’d inhabited my entire twenty-nine years.
I caught up to him in the den. The soft peal letting us know they left hadn’t sounded yet, and we were both on edge.
But I was still digesting what he revealed to me. I could change myself. I thought I was dreaming, so it came easily. Now that I was wide awake, I hadn’t the foggiest idea how to do it.
“Would you like to spy on them?” he asked me, disrupting my musing.
“Sure.”
He opened the door leading from the den out to the left-wing hallway.
Then, without any warning, he turned into a large crow.
He looked at me expectantly, as much as it was possible for a crow.
Oh. I was supposed to change too. How did I do it last night?
I tried to replicate what I was thinking and feeling, but nothing happened.
It was more than a thought or a want. It had been a deep desire.
The yearning in my bones to be able to fly.
Wishing for feathers and wings, for a light body, and the ability to navigate thermals, I beat the drum of my desire until it was so strong I couldn’t help but change.
The pull started again in my toes, rushing through me.
The world grew giant until my clothing covered my head.
I shook free of my t-shirt, but my Monster didn’t wait for me to adjust. With two flaps, he flew up to one of the open window slits in the wall.
Another flap and he was gone. This time I followed.