Chapter 14
Quoth
I’m flying back from the police station, where I’ve been perched on the tree outside Hayes’ office, trying to overhear if they were going to charge Mina, when I see something through the bathroom window…
something that looks suspiciously like a Mina-shaped shadow emerging from the room at the end of the hallway.
Oh no. Oh no no no.
Panic seizes me mid-flight, and I dip dangerously close to impaling myself on Mrs Ellis’ TV aerial. I dip my wing and execute a perfect aerobatic manoeuvre, scraping my talons along the bricks and bringing myself within an inch of becoming a lovely shish kebab.
Where are Heathcliff and Morrie? Why aren’t they watching her and making sure she doesn’t accidentally get herself trapped in another time—oh.
I swoop over the heads of Mrs Ellis and her hangers-on as I head for the rear of the bookshop, and through the window I clearly see Heathcliff and Morrie, nose to nose, Heathcliff’s hands balled into fists and Morrie’s eyebrow twitching as they indulge in one of their infamous battles.
Sometimes I wish those two would hurry up and shag. We’d all get a lot more peace.
I enter the narrow alley between the bookshop and Greta’s bakery, and pick up the warm scone-scented air current from the bakery’s extractor fan, which carries me back up to the roofline.
I’m so worried about Mina that I miss the corner of the roof and get pummeled by the through-draft, sending me half swooping, half toppling through my open bedroom window.
I drop onto the bed. My heart pounds against my ribs. I have to get out there and make sure Mina’s okay, that she hasn’t gone back to one of the dangerous eras, but I can’t do that as a bird.
But my natural form, especially when I’m agitated or afraid, is as a bird. Now that my whole body hums with unease, I’m struggling to force my shift.
C’mon, change back. Change back—
Someone pounds on my door.
“Quoth?”
I flap my wings frantically, as if generating lift will somehow help me to change faster.
My knees crack as they bend and reshape themselves.
My bones shatter and rebuild. Slowly, slowly, I start to become Quoth the human.
I grit my teeth so I don’t cry out from the pain and alert Mina that I am in here.
“Quoth, are you in there? Come on, this isn’t funny—”
“Don’t come in,” I croak out, my lips clacking together as my beak starts to retract into my face and my voice box reshapes itself.
The door flings open.
No no no no.
Mina takes a cautious step inside, squinting into the gloomy space.
My skin itches where my feathers retract through it.
My spine has almost become human, my legs dangling over the edge of the bed, the talons fusing into toes.
I’m almost there. I’m also naked, but being naked in one’s own bedroom is much easier to explain than being a bird.
Mina moves slowly through my paintings. I wish I’d stacked them twice as high. I wish I’d barred the door with them.
Almost there… I rake my fingers over my face. The bird features are still prominent. The feathers are pulling back through my cheeks. My lips are almost normal again…
Almost…
My heart stops the moment she sees me, and I know she’s truly seen me, seen what I am. I can’t pretend it’s a trick of the light or a costume I put on for kinky reasons.
She screams.
The sound is my heart tearing in two.
We both freeze, staring at each other. A wordless conversation plays out in the heated air between us. Accusal, denial, disbelief, indignation, horror, acceptance.
“I can explain,” I say.
Mina backs away, clinging to the doorframe. “I’d appreciate it.”
“Can I put some pants on first?”
“I’d appreciate that, too.”
Mina’s eyes follow me as I move across the room to my chest of drawers and pull out some clothes.
My shoulders tremble, and it takes everything I have to hold my human form around her.
I pull on boxers and black jeans. I don’t bother with a shirt.
Mina’s already seen everything, and my skin is still crawling from my feathers.
I don’t like to wear fabric against it when I first shift if I can help it.
I pick up my phone and type a quick message to Morrie.
GET UP HERE NOW, YOU BASTARDS.
“What are you doing?” Mina demands.
“Texting Morrie.” In case he didn’t hear you cry out over his raging hard-on for Heathcliff. “The others have to know what you know.”
Her voice trembles. “Why?”
I can tell she’s frightened, and I’m desperate to run to her and gather her in my arms and tell her it’s going to be okay, but I can’t even look at her or I will sprout feathers again and probably frighten her away for good.
I’m useless. “We assumed it was only a matter of time until you figured it out. We discussed it. We figured we could trust you. But we thought we had more time. And not even Morrie could predict this bloody murder messing everything up.”
Footsteps clatter up the stairs. A moment later, I hear Morrie’s voice. “Well done, gorgeous. You deduced our secret.”
“It was hardly a deduction. I walked in and Quoth was all feathery.”
I watch out of the corner of my eye as Morrie offers her his hand. She takes it and he leads her downstairs. I follow behind at a good distance, because if I saw her fall apart, I’d be lost forever.
Morrie helps her into the seat opposite Heathcliff by the fire. Heathcliff is already in his seat, Grimalkin curled on his lap. She regards me with narrowed eyes, no doubt smelling the bird on me.
“You’re a right nuisance, you know that?” Heathcliff growls at Mina, but there’s a hint of panic in his gravelly voice. “You’re nosier than Morrie’s last boyfriend, and he was a detective of sorts. Quoth, fetch the tea!”
“Three days,” I mutter as I head to the kitchen. “I couldn’t even get three days.”