《The Horse Doctor》


 Chapter 1 - A Surprising Discovery

    Had we not gone into town that day, it might have never happened. We might not have become aware, my roommate Sarah and I, of the wondrous being in our midst. And it was someone we knew, too; that was the odd part. The part that made the story harder to believe, even knowing what we came to understand, was that the world was not as we had always imagined it to be. But I am being vague, and that is not my goal, which is to tell you the story of how I met Sam, and how we came to be together. The facts of his later disappearance are well-known and well-documented, so I won¡¯t go into them here, at least not now.


    Sarah and I were living in the town of Andover, MA at the time when we first met Dr. Sam Winston. His veterinarian offices were on Elm St near the old location of the Andover Townsman newspaper where he was easy to find and convenient for the people who lived near the center of town. He was extremely good with animals, and when I took our aging tabby in for her shots, Sam looked at me sideways and blinked his large brown eyes at me contemplatively.


    ¡°Miss Laura, this is one of the happiest cats I have had the pleasure to meet in a long time,¡± he said in a long drawl that was not Texan but not Southern either. ¡°You and your roommate must take real good care of her.¡±


    ¡°Sarah and I have had her since college,¡± I said, smiling. ¡°Sorna is a great cat.¡±


    ¡°I am glad to hear it,¡± smiled the vet, ¡°I will be right back with her shots. Sit tight a minute.¡±


    When he had left the room, I let my glance run over the diplomas on the walls and noted that the vast majority were from the University of Montana. That explained the drawl, if not why he had come all the way out here. He returned then, gave Sorna the shots, and we left after thanking him.


    Sarah and I saw him around town often enough, and he always made it a point to stop and ask me about Sorna. He was polite to Sarah, but I thought he took on a special twinkle whenever we spoke. I even managed to catch him at the local coffee shop one day when we were both on lunch break, and he invited me to sit to chat for a while. It was one of the more pleasant experiences I had had in a while, and when we parted, I felt like I really wanted to get to know him more.


    At that time, we were having a regular social night every Monday at our apartment, and one day, I got up the nerve to ask Sam (we had gotten to first name basis by that time) if he would like to come over to the house for our weekly coffee night. He accepted, much to my delight, and became one of the regulars, bringing chips or pizza when he came. Other friends brought beer, or wine, but Sam never drank, preferring to stick to his spring water.


    We had known him about three years when it happened, the incident to change everything. It was an early June, and Sarah and I were both off for the day. We heard a loud commotion outside of the caf¨¦ where we were having Friday lunch. Both of us rushed outside just in time to see a bright chestnut horse go rushing past, its hooves clattering on the pavement, its ruddy coat shining in the sun. I gasped at the beauty of the animal and watched as it turned the corner, almost slipping on the slick concrete pavers, then righted itself again to disappear around the corner. A group of policemen also rushed past, taking the corner much better than the animal had.


    ¡°Sarah, go get Sam!¡± I yelled, and dashed off in the opposite direction, having a good idea of where the horse might be heading. I got to the corner by the town park, and paused for a few minutes, which gave Sarah a chance to catch up with me.


    ¡°He wasn¡¯t in the office,¡± she said, breathing hard. ¡°His receptionist said he had gone out to lunch.¡±


    ¡°It figures,¡± I sighed, and then caught a flash of copper pass between two buildings up ahead, close to the bowling alley. ¡°Sarah, I saw the horse! Come on!¡±


    We ran down the block to where the horse had been and found that we were alone in the alleyway behind the bowling alley. There was no real way out; the alley wove around behind the buildings and eventually came to a blind dead end behind the old laundry. Sarah and I walked carefully down the alley, ready to leap out of the way if we had to in order to get out of the way if the horse returned at speed. There was no sign of the animal, and we crept around corners until we came to the cul-de-sac at the end of the alley system. We peered around to see the copper colored horse standing with its head down, breathing hard. Neither of us moved, but as I continued to watch, I took in the details.


    The horse was a stallion, about fifteen hands high or almost five feet at the shoulder, not huge, but not small either. It had a matching flaxen mane and tail and had a small stripe on its face, with no other white markings. Its hooves were tan colored, and solidly built. To my semi-trained eye, it looked a lot like a Morgan, but seemed to have a little something else that gave its hind quarters some real power, maybe a Quarter Horse somewhere a few generations before. Its coat was glossy, and the animal seemed in good health¡­


    I stopped in mid thought as the horse began to blur before my eyes, and the shape began to change. The blur became a man, and before I knew it, there, standing before us in the nude, was Dr. Sam Winston. He began to look under an overturned lid and brought out a bundle of clothes that he began to don.


    Sarah and I stood for about a half second with our mouths hanging open and looking stupid before I had the presence of mind to drag her back down the alleyway as quietly as we could go. We got back out by the bowling alley and secreted ourselves somewhere we could watch the alley. Sure enough, Sam came out, fully dressed, and walked swiftly past our hiding place, apparently heading back towards his office. Sarah and I sat down on a bench nearby and looked at each other.


    ¡°Well,¡± I said finally, ¡°that clears up the mystery of where our good doctor gets his empathy with animals.¡±


    ¡°To put it mildly,¡± said Sarah, ¡°What do we do now?¡±


    ¡°Well, we don¡¯t say anything right now,¡± I said, ¡°But I will go see him after work tonight, and talk to him.¡±


    ¡°Are you so sure that that is a good idea?¡±


    ¡°Sarah, he is a were-horse, not a werewolf. Besides, this is Sam we are talking about, you know? Do you really think that Sam, of all people, would hurt anyone?¡±


    ¡°No, ¡°she sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll go too.¡±


    That evening, we waited patiently in the reception area as closing time came. The receptionist, Sally, knew us well and shooed us back to Sam¡¯s office to wait for him while he finished up with the animals. We sat nervously and waited, listening to the closing noises. Sam poked his head in to tell us he would be a few more minutes, and then we waited again, both of us anxious and unsure how best to approach the subject. We knew that we were not crazy and had seen what we had seen, but how to ask our friend such a pointed question escaped both of us.


    A few minutes later, we heard Sally call out a good night as she left, and Sam himself entered the room. I looked up at my friend and found myself thinking not for the first time that day that our friendship was about to change forever.


    ¡°So, guys, what is up with you two today? You look serious¡± Sam sat down behind his desk, and leaned back, obviously at ease in our company. I sighed, looked at Sarah, and plunged in.A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.


    ¡°We saw a pretty unusual thing today, Sam,¡± I said. ¡°There was a horse loose in the middle of town today.¡±


    Sam sat up slowly in his chair, no longer looking so at ease.


    ¡°Yes,¡± he said carefully, ¡°I heard about it from a number of people.¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± I said, and swallowed nervously, ¡°we, um, followed it down in back of the bowling alley.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± said Sam, quietly. ¡°And you saw¡­¡±


    ¡°We saw you,¡± said Sarah, ¡°Or rather, we saw the horse become you.¡±


    Sam said nothing, and simply stared at us, becoming white under his usual tan.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± he said in a strained voice, ¡°Do you want money? Or do you plan to turn me in for public display?¡±


    ¡°Oh, Sam!¡± I said in dismay. ¡°I would think that you know us better than that! We just wanted to know what was going on. I mean, I can understand why you never told us and all, but now that we know, can¡¯t you tell us?¡±


    Sam blinked, looking warily from one of us to the other.


    ¡°I have never had to share this secret before, not with outsiders,¡± he said slowly. ¡°Not in this situation anyway.¡±


    He paused, looking at us earnestly, emotions warring across his face. Finally, he sighed and nodded to himself.


    ¡°My family comes from Montana, as you know, but it is more than that. We are a herd, several family groups banded together. We run a big ranch, raise cattle, the usual, and with that much open space, no one questions horses running all over the property. I didn¡¯t want to stay, though. I felt the need to see more, so I went to the college, got my vet degree there, and decided to see what the East Coast had to offer. My people warned me that someday it might happen, that the shift might come on me mostly unawares, so I did take the precautions of hiding clothes in a couple of secluded areas in case. Then this happened, blessedly in private. You see, if you don¡¯t shift often enough, the horse nature will get loose, and then you have to deal with it. I forgot that, I guess.¡±


    ¡°So you are a were-horse?¡± Sarah asked, trying not to giggle.


    ¡°Something like that, yes,¡± said Sam, relaxing marginally. ¡°We are not tied to the moon, so much as the seasons. Certain times, certain tides affect us and we get the need to run. If we deny that part of ourselves, well, today was the result.¡±


    ¡°And you haven¡¯t told anyone outside your clan?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I tried to tell my girlfriend in college. She didn¡¯t believe me, and I could not bring myself to show her. We broke up, and I have not had anyone to share it with since. I have wanted to tell you, Laura, and you too, Sarah, but I just could not bring myself to. My clan stressed that secrecy is necessary for survival. I am grateful, however, that you two were the ones to find out, and not someone else.¡±


    ¡°So now what?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Now, I take a look at my life here, and try to figure out how I can make sure that this doesn¡¯t happen again. I mean, I can¡¯t not change, but it is harder here than I thought to find time alone, and horses really don¡¯t wander around on their own in Andover, do they?¡±


    ¡°What if we could help you?¡± I asked, suddenly. ¡°One of us could be with you when you go for walks or runs, act as your rider, I guess. Or something,¡± I finished lamely.


    ¡°Do you retain your human mind when you¡­transform?¡± asked Sarah shyly.


    ¡°Yes, I am fully aware of who I am,¡± said Sam, peering at us. ¡°You ladies would do that for me?¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t we friends?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°Neither of us can ride, though,¡± said Sarah. ¡°And I hate to admit it, but I have always been a little bit afraid of horses, Sam. No offense, but they are so big.¡±


    ¡°Well, I think we could manage not to have to have you actually ride me, Sarah,¡± said Sam. ¡°To be honest, I am not sure how I feel about that myself. I have never borne a rider on my back before. I mean, I carried my cousin Tim when he was four and had broken his arm, but that is different.¡±


    Sarah nodded and glanced at her watch.


    ¡°I have to run for now to get dinner started,¡± she said hurriedly. ¡°Why don¡¯t you come over tonight, and we can talk more then?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Sam, ¡°Laura, do you have to go too?¡±


    ¡°I could stay a few minutes more and then walk over with you, I guess,¡± I said. ¡°Sarah, do you mind if I hang out here a few more.¡±


    ¡°Not at all,¡± said Sarah. ¡°I will make enough for three then. We may have a long night ahead of us.¡±


    She got up and let herself out of the office, leaving Sam and I alone.


    ¡°Well,¡± I said, ¡°this is awkward.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Sam, and looked at me oddly for a few minutes


    ¡°What?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Do you think that this is going to change things horribly between us?¡± he blurted, and I suddenly saw past Sam¡¯s calm exterior for the first time. There was some real fear there, that much I could sense from him, and he wasn¡¯t sure if he had made the right choice in being so open with us.


    ¡°Why do you think it will do that?¡± I asked, ¡°You are still Sam, right? Same guy I beat at poker almost every coffee night?¡±


    ¡°True,¡± he said, ¡°but I am not exactly the same species, really. That doesn¡¯t bother you?¡±


    ¡°No, Sam, it doesn¡¯t. You are my friend, remember?¡±


    ¡°But I am¡­not human,¡± said Sam, hesitantly.


    ¡°And¡­?¡±


    Sam looked at me, and sighed.


    ¡°Ok, so it doesn¡¯t matter to you that I can become a horse at will, or that that blood running through my veins is genetically different from yours in some very odd ways?¡± he said.


    ¡°No, not really,¡± I said. ¡°Should it?¡±


    ¡°In a sane world, no,¡± he said, turning to put away a few last files and standing. He turned back to me and said hesitantly, ¡°Is there anything you want to ask me?¡¯


    ¡°Actually, I would like to see you as a horse close up,¡± I said truthfully, ¡°but I can wait on that until you are comfortable with the idea.¡±


    Sam shifted uneasily, and gave me another odd look.


    ¡°I want to trust you, Laura, I really do,¡± he said, staring at his desk, ¡°and that also scares me, because if I show you, and it damages our friendship, I will never forgive myself. I like you too much to lose what we do have. And, well¡­I¡¯d like to get to know you in more than as just a friend. That is, if this hasn¡¯t ruined my chances.¡±


    Sam had turned a shade of bright red as he began this last, and he looked up at me hesitantly. I felt myself blushing and stepped back to cover my confusion, knocking over the mug on his desk that held his pens and pencils in the process. Sam jumped around me to catch it and set it gently back on the desk. The pens had fallen out onto the floor, and busied ourselves for a few minutes picking them up. We found ourselves in an awkward silence then, and I sighed.


    ¡°No, I hasn¡¯t, and I can¡¯t say that I haven¡¯t wondered that as well,¡± I said. ¡°At least I already know the biggest obstacle we¡¯d have stumbled over eventually, so that makes it easier, right?¡±


    Sam sat in his chair and just looked at me for a moment.


    ¡°You are taking this awfully well,¡± he said finally.


    ¡°Would you rather I screamed and flipped out on you?¡±


    ¡°No, no. You just seem so¡­calm.¡±


    ¡°Is that wrong?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    Another awkward silence descended, and this time he sighed.


    ¡°We should go see if Sarah has dinner going,¡± he said. ¡°And then we have some talking to do.¡±


    ¡°Right,¡± I said, moving towards the office door.


    ¡°Laura?¡±


    I turned and saw that Sam was struggling to say something. I waited for him to gather himself, trying to project a calm that I was not feeling.


    ¡°I want to show you,¡± he said finally. ¡°After dinner, maybe? I am not sure about Sarah just yet, but you¡­well, I want there to be truth between us. If we can handle that, then maybe I am not so crazy to think we might¡­well, we¡¯ll see.¡±


    He turned off the light over the desk, and we left his office, walking in thoughtful silence all the way to the apartment I shared with Sarah. I let my thoughts do their own rambling as we walked, and I kept stealing glances at Sam as we went along. He was very handsome, and I had wanted something to happen that might bring these feelings I had been having out in the open for a long time. Trouble was, this was not the way I had thought it might happen. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sam sneaking worried glances in my direction as well, and I could only imagine the thoughts going through his head at that moment.

 Chapter 2 - Dinner and a Movie

    We arrived at the apartment building before the silence became too awkward and climbed the stairs to the second floor. Sarah had water on for pasta, and the radio was playing loudly in the background, blaring Madonna¡¯s Like a Prayer.  Sarah was singing along at the top of her voice and briskly stirring a pot of Alfredo sauce that she was semi-famous for among our friends. She looked up when we came in, and stopped singing but continued to mix the sauce. Nothing was going to daunt her from her cooking, and since she was one of us who could cook, I was not going to spoil a good meal.


    The lack of discussion continued as Sam and I got the dishware and set the table while the music continued in the background. We didn¡¯t look at each other.


    Dinner was also a fairly quiet affair, with polite discussion and long pauses in between. Towards the end of the meal, Sarah got up, went into the kitchen, and returned with three glasses and a large carafe of White Zinfandel. This she set down with a thud of finality. She looked pointedly at both of us, and poured us each a generous amount of wine.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know about you,¡± she said, ¡°but I need to get a little more relaxed at this point. I don¡¯t think we have ever been so quiet around each other.¡±


    ¡°Sarah, you know I don¡¯t drink,¡± said Sam.


    ¡°Why? Are you afraid you are going to let something slip?¡± Sarah shook her head, ¡°At this point, I think you need to unwind a little. I was thinking about what you said, about how you never told anyone. This is a bigger deal for you than maybe we can know. So drink. What¡¯s the worst thing that can happen?¡±


    ¡°You have a point, but the fact is I am not sure what might happen to my control. I still haven¡¯t spent enough time in my other form to¡­satisfy the horse, I guess you might say.¡± Sam looked at me, and I shrugged.


    ¡°If it happens, it happens,¡± I said. ¡°There is no reason to fear you in that form, is there?¡±


    ¡°No. I am still myself at all times. I worry more about your furniture.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll deal,¡± I said.


    Sarah picked up her glass and the carafe, filling her glass. We did the same and retired to the living room. Sarah took the big, overstuffed chair, and Sam and I book-ended the couch. I took my first sip of Zin and tried not to think too hard on everything. Sam also took a sip, a small, tentative one and grimaced.


    ¡°Wine is not my usual preference,¡± he said. ¡°We tend to drink very good beer that one of the family members makes during our gatherings.¡±


    ¡°Do your family members ever lose their control over changing?¡± I asked, taking another sip.


    ¡°It happens once in a while,¡± he said, and chuckled. ¡°My uncle Ted went on a business trip to Chicago for a few months, and when he returned, it happened to correspond to one of our parties¡­no one is around for miles to hear, so they tend to get pretty loud. Anyway, he got rip-roaring drunk and lost control. Everyone thought it was hilarious, and they still kid him about it at reunions. Funny thing is, no one cared. That is what is great about the clan. They are supportive, but can laugh at each other. Now, if they knew about my plight, they would be horrified. No amount of arguing would convince them that I didn¡¯t need to come home, and the fact that this is a small town wouldn¡¯t matter. We are sticklers for our freedom, but very close knit. Only the men seem to have the urge to roam¡­we are rather horse-like in that way. The women head up the clan meets, but the men tend to keep the peace. A lot of the younger men go off for a while, but they always return home. I think they are expecting me to do so as well.¡±


    ¡°Sam, do men ever find wives outside of the clan? What happens if they find someone?¡± Sarah looked at him hard, and glanced at me.


    ¡°It¡­ah¡­usually doesn¡¯t work. We have a lot of confirmed bachelors in our clan. Sometimes, someone does come in, but it takes a really special person to live with the clans. Oh, we all date and have romances, but usually, when it comes to telling this part of it¡­well, it fails.¡± Sam took a large drink before continuing. ¡°Usually it comes out after the relationship starts. I mean, really, how do you tell someone ¡®Gee, by the way, before we start dating, you might want to know that I can change into a horse.¡¯ That would be the kiss of death to most potential relationships. They think you are kidding or crazy, and then if they do find out¡­well, it is better not to go there. So, usually, the bachelor herd stays single. None of us want to interbreed too closely, and the rare outsider who does accept us is how we get outside blood.¡±


    He peered at his now-empty wine glass, and held it out to Sarah.


    ¡°Tomorrow is Saturday. I am not going in until noon and the techs can feed the cats we have boarding. Fill it up.¡±


    Sarah complied and we all sat and sipped momentarily.Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°So how do you normally deal with your needs?¡± I asked, and blushed, stammering with the realization of how that could be taken, ¡°I mean, about changing here in town.¡±


    ¡°Normally, I drive out to the state park and take one of the less-used trails. We have been so busy at the clinic lately that I have not had time, and it is hard for me to hide if I get seen. Hunting season provides another problem, since there are poachers. I found that the rec park down by Pomp¡¯s Pond is another avenue of escape, but I have to dodge more people. The Girl Scout camp nearby is better ¨C less traveled. It would definitely help to have a human with me. Riding is a little too intimate, I¡¯m afraid. I am not comfortable with the idea of wearing a saddle and a bridle, and neither of you are good enough to ride bareback. If this works out, I might think about teaching you in the future, but¡­¡±


    ¡°¡­But the only one of us who you¡¯d let ride you would be Laura, right?¡± chuckled Sarah.


    ¡°Sarah!¡± I said, blushing furiously.


    ¡°She¡¯s right,¡± said Sam, draining his glass again, and refilling it from the quickly emptying carafe. ¡°It would have to be someone I trust, and who I am close to. Sarah, no offense, but being afraid of horses kind of lets you out of the picture. While I do retain my sense of self, I do react more like a horse in stressful situations. Horses really don¡¯t like things on their backs. It is instinct, and your fear of horses would enhance that instinct. Sorry.¡±


    ¡°No problems, Sam. I am not going to take offense to something that makes perfect sense to me!¡±


    Sarah rose and went into the kitchen, returning with some tortilla chips and a small bowl of salsa. She also took a look at the carafe, and left again, returning with another, full one. She caught our looks at her, and said,


    ¡°I think we are going to need this.¡±


    ¡°So, how can we best help you?¡± I said, trying to steer things back on course. I felt my brain starting to fog and found that I really didn¡¯t care. Somehow, everything seemed less traumatic after a couple of drinks. I thought briefly of how little it was going to take to put me under the table that night since I normally had little more than one beer or a glass of wine. I found that I was almost relieved.


    ¡°Well, I¡¯m thinkin¡¯ that a couple of explorations a week would be best,¡± he said, his accent more pronounced than ever as the drink took effect. ¡°Sundays, when the office is closed, I wouldn¡¯t mind a long trip through the woods down by the pond. It is really quiet there and havin¡¯ one of you with me would definitely make it easier. No one would be trying t¡¯catch the loose horse in the woods, y¡¯know?¡±


    ¡°They might look at you funny if you weren¡¯t wearing at least a halter and lead,¡± said Sarah. ¡°Most people don¡¯t walk their horses loose.¡±


    ¡°I could prob¡¯ly handle that,¡± said Sam. ¡°I can pick one up tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°What I want to know is why you didn¡¯t just buy a farm or something?¡± I asked, leaning my head against my hand and propping my elbow on the couch. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that have been easier?¡±


    ¡°Vet school costs money, and Andover is not cheap,¡± smiled Sam. ¡°My little house does not have much in the way of land.¡±


    ¡°So why here?¡± asked Sarah. ¡°I mean, if it is so expensive¡­¡±


    ¡°A colleague of mine was selling his practice, and he agreed to take part down and part over time,¡± smiled Sam. ¡°He is, well, family. He decided to go home.¡±


    ¡°That makes sense,¡± I nodded, ¡°Do many of your family members go into veterinary medicine?¡±


    ¡°Quite a few, yes,¡± said Sam, leaning back into the couch, ¡°We figure that it does not hurt to have people who understand animals working with them. Makes us feel like we are contributing something back, you know?¡±


    We sat in amiable silence for a few minutes, each of us thinking our own thoughts.


    ¡°So, who is going to go on Sunday,¡± said Sam, hesitantly, looking at Sarah and I in turn.


    ¡°I have to go to my grandmother¡¯s seventy-fifth birthday down in Quincy,¡± said Sarah, ¡°otherwise, I might volunteer.¡±


    ¡°How convenient,¡± I said with a touch of sarcasm, ¡°If I didn¡¯t know better, I¡¯d say you were setting me up!¡±


    ¡°Who, me?¡± giggled Sarah. ¡°Not that it didn¡¯t cross my mind¡­¡±


    ¡°Sarah!¡±


    ¡°Laura!¡±


    I stuck my tongue out at her, and took another sip of wine. My knees had no feeling left in them and a warm lassitude had stolen over my body. I snagged a couple of chips with clumsy-feeling fingers and crunched merrily. Nothing seemed so serious anymore.


    Sam put down the glass and sank back with a sigh. He looked from one of us to the other.


    ¡°Can I really trust you two with my secret? I mean, you have no idea what kinds of things could fall out from this, not just for me, but for my whole clan?¡±


    ¡°Sam, do you really think either of us would say anything to anyone?¡± said Sarah. ¡°I mean, Laura likes you, and I¡¯m her roommate¡­¡±


    ¡°Sarah!¡± I sputtered.


    ¡°Like he couldn¡¯t tell!¡± shot back Sarah.


    ¡°I think we already clarified that earlier,¡± said Sam, shooting me a meaningful glance, ¡°however, let¡¯s get back to the pos¡¯ble problems that face us. If this all goes well, this will alleviate most of my problem. But I do have that small worry, ladies. It isn¡¯t that I think either of you would do it on purpose, but a slip up could cost me a lot.¡±


    ¡°Sam,¡± said Sarah, ¡°who would believe us?¡±


    ¡°Believe it or not, there are people who look for such things, and not just conspiracy nuts. Animal human magic crossings have been a huge part of hist¡¯ry. You¡¯d be amazed.¡±


    Sarah and I looked at each other, and then turned to Sam.


    ¡°Sam,¡± said Sarah, ¡°we won¡¯t even refer to you by name in that context between ourselves, if that helps.¡±


    Sam finished off the rest of his wine, and put the glass on the coffee table.


    ¡°Ladies, I don¡¯t know about you, but I am not going anywhere tonight. I am not sure that I can walk, and I am not in the mood to be by myself. Is it ok if I crash on the couch?¡±


    ¡°Sam, I would be very annoyed if you tried to drive home, and I doubt that either of us could walk even back to your office tonight,¡± I said, rising and wobbling over to the entertainment center. ¡°How about a movie?¡±


    ¡°Certainly,¡± he said, ¡°just not a werewolf flick, ok?¡±


    ¡°A little too familiar?¡± Sarah jibbed.


    ¡°No, a little too real,¡± said Sam, ¡°My clan isn¡¯t the only type of shape shifter in Montana. We have had run-ins with wolf and bear clans before, and it brings back bad memories. Remember when I said the men keep the peace? That is what we have to keep the peace with.¡±


    ¡°Gotcha. No Wolf. How about The Mummy?¡±

 Chapter 3 - The View of the Horse

    The night passed mostly uneventfully. The worst thing that happened was that we got even drunker and rather silly, ate a ton of chips, and stayed up all night talking. Sam relaxed more than either Sarah or I had ever seen him, and he laughed at everything. I began to wonder if his normally reserved manner was just a front to keep him from letting anyone in.


    Towards dawn, Sarah crawled into her own bed, and Sam and I sat on the couch, watching cartoons. We weren¡¯t really watching them, however; we were more slouching into each other and trying to stay awake. We had talked about everything ¨C family, childhood, first crushes - and as the sky grew lighter, I felt that I had really seen Sam for the first time that night.


    ¡°Sam, do you need to go home at all?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Some fresh clothing and a shower might be nice,¡± said Sam with a smile, ¡°I rather smell like a winery right now. The cats won¡¯t care, but the vet techs might look at me askew, and the clients certainly will.¡±


    ¡°Should I walk you back to your car, then?¡± I said, reluctant to let him go away for fear that he would disappear.


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Sam, ¡°and, if you want, you can come back to the house for some breakfast.¡±


    The invitation was unexpected and caught me off-guard. I blinked at Sam uncertainly, and let the moment register in my brain.


    ¡°For real?¡± I asked.


    ¡°For real,¡± he said, ¡°and after breakfast, I will uphold my agreement to you about meeting my alter self.¡±


    Stunned, it was all I could do to nod, and we left after tacking a note for Sarah on the fridge. The walk back to the office was uneventful, and the sun just rising over the horizon backlit the morning dew on every blade of grass. The air was cool and damp, and it was somewhat of a relief to get to Sam¡¯s car and drive though town with the fresh air on our faces.


    Sam lived only a little way outside of town, but still far enough to drive to. I had driven myself out there plenty of times and was always impressed at the long, tall hill that we had to climb to get there, and the grace of the Phillips Academy lands that we had to drive through, past the bell tower where carillons played on summer evenings, and down into the cool swing of the woods behind the school.


    As we pulled into the side street behind the Academy¡¯s hidden gem, the Moncrieff Cochran Bird Sanctuary, it occurred to me that it was an obvious place for Sam to go running, and I was amazed that I hadn¡¯t thought of it previously. We could go there, and not be disturbed for a great deal of the time, and the sanctuary itself was amazing. Sixty-six fenced acres of once-cultivated grounds now left to run wild. The size of the azalea and rhododendron bushes was staggering, and some reached taller than fifteen feet in height.


    ¡°Sam, have you tried the bird sanctuary?¡±


    ¡°The what?¡± he asked.


    ¡°The bird sanctuary at Phillips?¡± I explained, ¡°Have you gone running there?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know that there was one,¡± he said. ¡°Is that what all that fencing is for?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said, ¡°It used to be very well kept. Now, it¡¯s run wild. We should check it out tomorrow.¡±


    He nodded as we pulled onto his street, and into the driveway of a relatively smallish house for the neighborhood. The garage door opened, and he drove the little roadster inside, pressing the switch on his visor again to lower the garage door behind us. We got out of the car and went inside.


    The interior of his house was furnished in rustic western, and reflected the culture he came from with its rather sparse d¨¦cor. Sam slipped into the bathroom to get a quick shower and a change while I sat dozily in the living room, and then he tried to sneak past me into the kitchen, rummaging through the fridge for some eggs and bacon. I got up to join him and watched him cook in relative silence, and when we sat down to eat, I remained in the same tired, contemplative state.


    ¡°So why do you eat meat?¡± I asked, trying to drag myself into more awareness.


    ¡°Why do we eat meat if we become horses, you mean?¡± he said. ¡°I think it has to do with the shape. I can eat meat since I am human in most respects. So when I am human, I eat like one. When I am a horse, I graze. Both are parts of the same whole. We had a couple of people try to figure it out anatomically, but with the changes to all of the major systems, it just makes it more difficult. Our DNA registers as mostly human, though there are a few markers that would confuse a good geneticist, and we can have type O blood transfusions in a pinch. For obvious reasons, we try very hard not to get sick. None of us wants to get that close to anyone¡¯s microscope.¡±


    ¡°Has anyone ever been caught?¡±


    ¡°A few times, but they managed to get away,¡± said Sam, digging into his eggs. ¡°We had some narrow escapes before the family settled onto the ranch. Now, aside from some rare close calls, no one has been even suspected for years, which is why we need to remain even more vigilant. The family stresses secrecy. We don¡¯t want the humans or the other tribes to get wind of us. ¡°


    I took my plate to the sink and rinsed off the specks of egg that still clung to it before placing it in the dishwasher. Sam did the same, then looked at me and heaved a deep sigh as if preparing himself for the inevitable.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°Ok, I promised you that I would show you,¡± he said. ¡°I am still a little bit uncomfortable with the idea, but I trust you, Laura. Are you up to this?¡±


    I nodded, suddenly unable to speak, and followed Sam out to the backyard of his house. The yard itself was fenced in with a tall privacy fence, and the house beyond it was screened from the yard with a tall stand of trees. The house on the other side was far enough away to ensure privacy and there were some scrubby pines adding some levels of obscurity. It was still very early, only six o¡¯clock on a Saturday morning, but it didn¡¯t hurt to have some extra security.


    Sam pulled off his boots, and as he began to remove his clothes, he suddenly flushed, and I took the hint to turn my back. I had already witnessed him changing once, and if he desired a modicum of modesty now, I was not going to deny him that. I listened to him shed his clothes and set them aside, then heard what sounded remotely like waves rippling faintly in the wind. It wasn¡¯t until I felt a gentle nudge at my shoulder that I cautiously turned to find myself face to face with the horse I had seen the day before.


    Nothing was different from my previous memory of the animal, and yet everything had changed. I looked at the horse now with the knowledge that this was indeed my friend, Sam. I had a moment of shivering eeriness at the thought that this was actually him and that it was all real. I took a deep breath and looked more closely at the animal in front of me.


    The first thing I noticed was his eyes. Sam had brown eyes normally, and in this form, they were almost the same shade. The forelock of his mane draped across them and the white stripe on his nose artistically, and his long, untrimmed mane fell along the left side of his neck, adding to the earlier impression that I had of a Morgan. His coat was a coppery chestnut color, like the color of a bright penny, and his tail and mane were a much lighter contrasting yellow.


    I stepped back and around to get a better look at him overall, and he turned his head to watch me, keeping one eye trained on me at all times. As horses went, he was a very nice-looking specimen; again seeming like a cross between a Morgan and a Quarter Horse, and well-muscled. I reflected that Sam in his human guise didn¡¯t look that bad either, and wondered if the fitness of the man translated over to the horse. It seemed to be so, from what I could see.


    I averted my eyes from certain areas of anatomy that I wouldn¡¯t have thought twice about on a normal horse, though I could not miss them completely, and finished my tour around to the other side of my friend while he stood and watched me intently. Every now and again I saw a tiny shiver ripple across his shoulder and down his side, and I realized how nervous he must be. I, on the other hand wasn¡¯t just nervous; I was terrified. What if, after all of this, he fled? I couldn¡¯t bear the thought of not seeing him again, so I schooled my expression as neutral as possible,


    I came back to stand in front of him and cleared my throat.


    ¡°Is it ok if I¡­um, touch you?¡± My voice squeaked on the last two words, and at Sam¡¯s tentative nod, I put out a timid hand, and touched the long line of his face. He shuddered at the touch, and I saw him tense almost as if he were going to bolt. I froze, he relaxed, and I moved to the side and touched his neck, stroking the coarse hair gently. He was still tense but relaxing by degrees, and I also began to feel more comfortable around him.


    We stood that way for about five minutes when the phone rang suddenly in the house, and Sam looked at me expectantly. I went to answer it, and by the time I had scribbled down the message, he was reentering the house as the man I knew, clothed but for his shoes, which dangled from one hand.


    ¡°That was the office,¡± I said. ¡°There is an emergency with one of the cats. I told them you¡¯d be right there.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I figured,¡± said Sam, putting on his shoes. ¡°No one calls me here this early without a good reason. Were there any awkward questions?¡±


    ¡°No, not really,¡± I said, ¡°Sally paused for just a beat, and then relayed the message like she had suspected this all along. She even sounded cheerful.¡±


    ¡°That is because Sally has been trying to hook us up for the last year,¡± he chuckled, standing up and grabbing his keys off of the table. ¡°She never says anything, but she has a keen eye for subtle clues.¡±


    ¡°Huh,¡± I said, not knowing what else to say. ¡°I take it you aren¡¯t going to get much sleep today.¡±


    ¡°No, not likely till later, but I don¡¯t need a whole lot. Would it be imposing of me to ask to see you after I get done today? We still need to talk, and I need to go over to pick up some supplies at the tack shop if we are going to pull this ruse off effectively. I would like your company if you have no other plans.¡± Sam sighed and looked at me. ¡°It gets hard not being able to talk to anyone, you know?¡±


    He led the way back to the car, and we headed back towards Andover center. He fell silent for a moment and then glanced at me.


    ¡°Are you ok with this?¡± he asked. ¡°Are you ok with me being what I am? I haven¡¯t had time to ask you what you thought of your ¡®closer look¡¯ yet. You seemed all right with it all¡­¡±


    ¡°I am mostly fine, Sam. I need a little adjustment time, I think, to let it all sink in, but it will be ok. How about you?¡±


    ¡°Relieved. Really very relieved,¡± he said. ¡°In all honesty, I thought one of us was going to run away for a few minutes when you first asked to touch¡­me.¡±


    ¡°I think this too shall pass,¡± I said, ¡°Things might not be exactly the same for us, but I suspect they will be a reasonable facsimile of it.¡±


    He looked at me again as we eased up to the traffic light by the bell tower, and said seriously, ¡°I hope that they are not the same.¡±


    I took in the implications of what he said and looked back at him. He bit his lip and said,


    ¡°I might be sounding abrupt, but a lot of what I have done over the last twenty-four hours is out of character for me, and I realized this when I showed you what I showed you. Laura, a deep part of me likes you, and that other part of me that I keep hidden pretty far away, that part has been doing what any stallion does to win a mate: show off like crazy and hope that the other party is interested in what she sees. I¡­am not myself today, and I was trying to puzzle this out all night, back at your apartment, exactly why this is.¡±


    ¡°Sam, it¡¯s okay. If it makes you feel better, I have been thinking about it too. I have noticed that you have been more open with me in the past twelve hours than you have been for the past three years. And your trust is evident, believe me. As for the feelings, well, they are mutual, Sam. I had wanted to talk to you about how I felt a while ago, but you were not seemingly open to the idea. So I didn¡¯t push.¡± I smiled at him, and said what I hoped would solidify things for him, ¡°The fact of your alter ego does not change how I feel.¡±


    We pulled up in front of his office and got out of the car.


    ¡°I hope that you don¡¯t mind walking home,¡± he said, ¡°I have to get in there and figure out what happened. I will call you when I get through for the day, probably around four. Will you come with me later?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± I said. ¡°I will see you then.¡±


    He gave a little half wave, and strode into the vet¡¯s office. I turned and started walking home, noticing that Andover was just beginning to wake up for the day. I was exhausted, and could at least have the luxury of sleeping for a while, yet. Sleep sounded wonderful, actually, and as I made my way into the apartment and caught the sound of Sarah¡¯s peaceful snores, I kicked off my shoes, threw myself on the couch, and gratefully passed out.

 Chapter 4 - Shopping and a Late Night Discussion

    ¡°Laura. Laura, wake up. Sam¡¯s on the phone.¡±


    I woke to feel Sarah shaking me, and glanced at the clock, noticing that it was 4:30 in the afternoon. Sarah handed me the phone as I sat up and walked into the kitchen, from where I could hear sounds of coffee brewing.


    ¡°Hello?¡± I managed, sounding less awake than I felt.


    ¡°Still up to going with me?¡± asked Sam.


    ¡°Sure, give me about ten minutes to not look like a rumpled mess, and I will be presentable.¡±


    ¡°No problem, I have a bit more work to do here, and then I am done. No real crises since this morning when Igo the demon cat ripped out his stitches. I¡¯ll be over in a few.¡±


    ¡°Ok, see you then.¡±


    I wandered out to the kitchen, and Sarah wordlessly handed me a cup of coffee with all the fixings. I took it and took a deep drink, burning my tongue in the process.


    ¡°What time did you get back?¡± she asked, yawning.


    ¡°About eight o clock,¡± I said. ¡°He wants me to go to the tack shop with him. Do you want to come?¡±


    ¡°Only if I am not in the way,¡± said Sarah. ¡°What happened at his house, if you don¡¯t mind me being nosy?¡±


    ¡°Breakfast, followed by a glimpse of something large.¡±


    ¡°Oooh!¡±


    ¡°Sarah, is your brain always there?¡±


    ¡°With Tim on a business trip, yes.¡±


    ¡°When is that man going to ask you to move in with him?¡±


    ¡°He has. Last week, in fact. I said that I felt crummy abandoning you, but I would think about it.¡±


    ¡°Sarah, you are a love, but don¡¯t put your happiness on hold for me. I can get by¡±


    ¡°Well, if the good doctor is as serious as he seems to be, I may not have to.¡±


    ¡°We aren¡¯t going to jump to any conclusions, are we?" I said firmly, with a warning tone.


    ¡°Laura, he¡¯s smitten. I¡¯m not jumping, I¡¯m leaping!¡±


    ¡°Thanks,¡± I said sarcastically.


    I went into my room, changed from the clothes I wore yesterday into a robe, and dove into a quick shower. Ten minutes later, I was drying my hair and heard the knock at the door. Sarah went to answer it, and I heard her ask him if he minded if she tagged along with us. He laughed in reply and graciously invited her along. I finished dressing, tossed my hair into a ponytail, and went into the kitchen where they were drinking coffee and chatting amiably. There was no weirdness between them at all, I noted, and I made myself a second cup of coffee in a travel mug as we prepared to go out to the tack shop.


    The Equestrian Shop was not too far away, located in North Andover on the road into Middleton, or so I thought. When we arrived, however, we found a sign saying that they had moved to Ipswich, about a half an hour away. A quick consensus confirmed the trip via GoogleMaps, and off we went. The air was much warmer now than it had been that morning, and we made our way down to Rt. 133 with the windows open and the radio on. Sam seemed to still be relaxed, and I sipped my coffee and listened to Peter Gabriel singing about shocking the monkey. The day was good. The monkey had already had enough shocks.


    We pulled into the parking lot of the Ipswich store a little while later and followed Sam into the dim interior of the sharply laid out shop. Inside there was anything one might need for a horse or rider, from saddles to brushes, and every other horse-related activity. Sam looked around the store grimly and walked up back towards a display of leather headgear. Sarah and I noted the mood change in our companion and followed closely. Sam stopped at the display of leather and rope halters, and gingerly touched the leather straps. He looked at me and I smiled, shrugging. He smiled back in a rather wobbly manner, and we found ourselves accosted by a sales associate asking politely if there was anything she could do to help us.


    ¡°We¡¯d like to buy a halter and lead for a horse,¡± I said.


    ¡°Certainly. How big is it and what type?¡±


    ¡°A Morgan cross,¡± said Sam, neutrally, ¡°about fifteen hands high.¡±


    ¡°Ok, well, we have a nice selection of halters that will fit your horse. Is he high strung or fairly calm?¡±


    ¡°Fairly calm,¡± said Sam, ¡°but a little nervous about things around his head. I don¡¯t suppose you have something he could get out of quickly if he got himself hung up about it?¡±


    The clerk looked at him oddly, but she smiled, and said,


    ¡°Well, yes. We have a breakaway halter that comes with a matching lead for about forty dollars. If he got it caught, it will break loose fairly easily, and comes on and off fast, too.¡±


    ¡°Can we see that one?¡± I asked, glancing at Sam. He continued to maintain his calm demeanor though I could see him tensing when he glanced at the saddles and bits.


    ¡°Sure, here it is. Comes in several colors, too. What color is he?¡±


    ¡°Chestnut,¡± said Sam.


    ¡°Well, in that case, the royal blue would look very handsome on him.¡±


    She handed the halter to Sam and he looked it over, noting the leather strap that would go up behind the ears, and the blue nylon cheek and nose straps. He unrolled the lead, frowning at the chain at the end of it, and glanced at me. I shrugged again, as if to say, ¡®up to you¡¯ and he nodded.


    ¡°We¡¯ll take it,¡± I said. ¡°Sam, is there anything else you need?¡±


    ¡°Not that I can think of,¡± said Sam.


    ¡°Take your time and look around,¡± smiled the clerk, ¡°I¡¯ll be around when you are ready to check out.¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    She walked off and I turned to Sam, who was looking around himself nervously.


    ¡°Sam, why is this making you so nervous?¡± I asked quietly. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you have horses on the ranch, real ones, and that you all ride?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but that is different,¡± he said. ¡°We have horses, they do wear tack, though often as little as we can get away with, but never anything like those curb bits, or the check reins which are meant to dominate the horse¡¯s spirit and control him. We have partnerships, and they are not slaves. Not to mention the fact that I am here shopping for myself is a little surreal.¡±


    ¡°I guess we are all having some surreal moments the last couple of days,¡± said Sarah. ¡°I guess I didn¡¯t realize that some of this might be surreal for you, too.¡±


    ¡°Only a lot,¡± smiled Sam.


    ¡°So, do we have anything else we need to get? Maybe a hoof pick, or curry comb? Something like that?¡± I asked.


    Sam nodded.


    ¡°Actually, both might be a good idea, and a dandy brush, too. Might as well get some supplies. I haven¡¯t had anyone do a full body brushing on me in years, and if we are going to do this right, we may need all of those supplies on our hikes.¡±


    A short walk around the store yielded a dandy brush, two hoof picks, and a rubber currycomb to add to the purchases. When everything was totaled and bagged, we walked out with under sixty dollars of supplies, and we all breathed a sigh of relief.


    ¡°Sam, what are you doing for dinner tonight?¡± asked Sarah.


    ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t have any plans as of yet. I was going to see what you both were doing, although I am not sure my head could handle a repeat of last night, at least the drinking part. I also need to get some sleep tonight.¡±


    ¡°We could have a better planned dinner, and pick one movie to watch,¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°And you could still crash if you wanted to,¡± I said.


    ¡°Laura!¡±


    ¡°What? I¡¯m always yelling at you, so fair¡¯s fair!¡± I laughed.


    ¡°Truthfully, I would like that,¡± said Sam. ¡°It places me closer to Igo in case he pulls out his stitches again when the sedative wears off, and Sally has my cell number. Honestly, I don¡¯t want to be alone. The Clan has a herd mentality, and we are never alone by choice if we can help it. I have dealt with it for a couple of years, but now that you know, I am loathe to be alone all the time. Unless you mind, that is.¡±


    ¡°What and miss the chance to get to know the mysterious Sam Winston?¡± laughed Sarah, ¡°Not in a million years!¡±


    ¡°If it gets to be too much, tell me,¡± said Sam. ¡°I don¡¯t want to become a problem for you.¡±


    ¡°No fear of that,¡± I muttered, and caught Sam¡¯s quick glance at my comment. I blushed and turned to look out the window. This whole turn of events had happened very fast, and my emotions were in turmoil. I wasn¡¯t even going to deal the fact that Sam was a were-horse. The whole potential relationship was sudden enough.


    I awoke at three o clock in the morning to find myself in dire need of a trip to the bathroom, and tip toed out of my room to make my way across the apartment. On my way back, I glanced at the couch to where Sam was sleeping and found my breath caught out as I looked on him. A wisp of moonlight shone down across his face, and I observed the openness of his expression as he slept. Easing onto the floor by the head of the couch, I sat watching him sleep, listening to the sound of his breathing, and letting the feeling of peace steal over me.


    The evening had been relatively uneventful. Sarah had created a wonderful fish concoction with steamed rice and julienned vegetables with a garlic butter sauce. We had all eaten well, and settled back to watch an Indiana Jones flick. We drank lightly, and the mood was peaceful. I sat close to Sam, but neither of us made any overt moves in the other¡¯s direction, except for glances back and forth, and a sense of mutual admiration. Sarah had rolled her eyes and declared that we were both hopeless. All of us turned in around midnight; Sam had rolled himself up in a light blanket despite the warm evening temperature and had fallen instantly asleep on the couch.


    He hadn¡¯t really moved since I had seen him last, and he seemed very peaceful as I sat and watched him. I had to wonder what the universe had in mind by setting the events of the last two days in motion. How many other people could have handled this? I wasn¡¯t sure how I was handling it, to be honest. I just knew that Sam was worth more than the weirdness he presented.


    I was quietly standing back up when Sam¡¯s eyes cracked open, and he saw me. He slowly levered himself up onto his elbow, and blinked at the clock.


    ¡°Sorry,¡± I said, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to wake you,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s ok,¡± he said, softly, ¡°What were you doing up anyway?¡±


    ¡°Urgent call of nature,¡± I said, ¡°then you just looked so peaceful that I had to stop for a moment.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± he said. And then, ¡°Do you mind if I ask you something?¡±


    ¡°Go ahead¡±


    ¡°Why are you so calm about all of this?¡±


    I sat back down by the couch, and leaned against the frame.


    ¡°I have no idea,¡± I said, finally. ¡°I guess it just doesn¡¯t seem as important as you do to me. Does that make sense?¡±


    Sam gently reached out and touched my hair. I turned and caught his hand in mine.


    ¡°You are not like other women I have been attracted to,¡± he said.


    ¡°Hopefully,¡± I said softly, ¡°that is a good thing.¡±


    The kiss was spontaneous, and both of us leaned into the other hungrily. When we parted, we looked at each other and smiled in the darkness.


    ¡°This is going to surprise a few people at coffee night,¡± I said, softly.


    He chuckled.


    ¡°You could be right,¡± he said, ¡°though not Sarah.¡±


    ¡°No, not Sarah.¡±


    ¡°So what do we do now?¡±


    ¡°We wait to see what comes,¡± he said, ¡°and see where this relationship takes us, though I already like the direction it is going in very much. If things go well, might you fancy a little vacation?¡±


    ¡°Vacation?¡± I said, curious and now wide-awake, ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°Home with me to Montana. Big sky country, and all that,¡± he said.


    ¡°Are you sure that you want me to visit there with you?¡± I said, not even trying to conceal my surprise.


    ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be right away, Laura. Probably not until next fall for the annual family reunion. That should give us enough time to see what is between us. I wouldn¡¯t have mentioned it, though, unless I felt that it might be a possibility.¡±


    ¡°You know what is bugging me a little is how different you have been acting the past couple of days,¡± I said, ¡°Is the reserve that we have seen all because of keeping the secret?¡±


    ¡°Mostly. I am fairly reserved usually, but I feel comfortable around you and Sarah, so I have let it slip a bit¡­well, a lot, actually.¡± Sam smiled at me. ¡°You should go back and get some sleep. It¡¯s half past three, and you didn¡¯t sleep much the other night either.¡±


    ¡°I suppose,¡± I said, rising reluctantly.


    ¡° Come on, we have a big day tomorrow!¡± he said. ¡°You get to take me for a walk through the woods, and I get to have a nervous breakdown when I try on the halter.¡±


    ¡°Is it really going to be that bad?¡± I asked.


    ¡°It is going to be weird,¡± he said. ¡°None of us wear tack as a rule. Oh, I mean there have been some occasions, like we had one couple who got into show jumping, and another who were into calf roping, but they are considered to be a bit odd.¡±


    ¡°Were they both members of your clan? The rider and the, um, ridee?¡±


    ¡°No, they were both mixed couples. As I said, it happens, but the human partner tends to be a bit odd.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like the clan partner is as well,¡± I mused.


    ¡°Well, don¡¯t get any ideas,¡± said Sam, with a touch of humor, ¡°I am not cut out for show jumping or rodeo.¡±


    ¡°What about dressage?¡± I joked. ¡°You would make a very handsome sight¡­¡±


    Sam fell silent for a few moments, and I almost thought that I had gone too far in my teasing.


    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for the tack,¡± he said, ¡°I might consider it¡­¡±


    I looked at him, and he looked thoughtfully at the wall for a moment.


    ¡°I loved watching dressage as a kid,¡± he said. ¡°My family thought I was nuts, said that I should at least pick a horse sport closer to the region I was from. There is such grace to the movements, though.¡±


    He was silent for a moment and heaved a huge sigh.


    ¡°I will have to think on that for a while,¡± he said. ¡°My family is going to think me weird enough for what has happened recently.¡±


    ¡°Your family?¡± I chuckled, ¡°I don¡¯t think I can turn to my mother and say, ¡®Hi Mom, my boyfriend is a horse.¡¯ ¡±


    Sam grinned and shook his head.


    ¡°I think both of our families are in for a bit of a surprise,¡± he said.


    I stood up and looked pointedly towards my room.


    ¡°I need sleep,¡± I said, tiredly. ¡°I¡¯m going to go to bed.¡±


    Starting away, I turned and looked back, steeled myself, and said,


    ¡°You can come too, if you like. Just to keep company.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like that,¡± said Sam, rising from the couch, ¡°Just for sleeping, though.¡±


    I led the way shyly to my room, grateful for my choice of a double bed and was soon curled up with Sam at my back, and his arm protectively around me. We lay awake talking quietly for a long time, and finally fell back asleep.

 Chapter 5 - A Walk in the Woods

    We were awoken the next morning by Sarah sticking her head into my room, and saying rather loudly,


    ¡°Laura, wake up, I can¡¯t find S¡­oh.¡±


    ¡°Morning, Sarah,¡± I said.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you two look cozy?¡± laughed Sarah. ¡°Get up and help me with breakfast, will you?¡±


    She glided back out of the room, and Sam and I exchanged amused glances before slipping out from under the sheet that was all I would put on my bed in the summertime. Sam was still clothed in the sweats and tee shirt he had gotten from his house before coming back over for the evening, and I had my tee shirt and pajama pants on, so neither of us was undressed. We stumbled out into the kitchen where Sarah was just putting the coffee pot on, and she looked at us with a bemused expression.


    ¡°Let me guess, middle of the night cuddle urges?¡±


    I nodded sheepishly, and Sam ran his hand through his hair to cover his embarrassment. Sarah just grinned and went back to mixing the pancake mix that she made from scratch and which was almost as famous as her Alfredo sauce. Sam busied himself setting the table, and I cracked a half a dozen eggs and whisked them together with some milk to make scrambled eggs. Sarah deftly took the bowl when I was done with it and poured it onto a clean pan while she flipped another pancake onto a plate. I was out of my league and knew it, so retreated to the sink to do some dishes.


    After breakfast, Sarah took her leave of us, heading down to Quincy for her grandmother¡¯s birthday, and Sam and I quickly did the breakfast dishes and got dressed in some more outside clothing. I donned a pair of jean cut-offs and clean blouse, and came out to find Sam in jeans and a tee shirt that said, ¡°I¡¯d Rather Play with Ponies¡± with a picture of racehorses below it.


    ¡°Joke gift from my little brother,¡± he said. ¡°I thought that you might find it amusing.¡±


    ¡°Your family has a weird sense of humor,¡± I said.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know the half of it,¡± he groaned, ¡°We have gotten and given some very off-color gifts in the past. Some of the videos make me blush!¡±


    ¡°Videos? Don¡¯t tell me that its women having¡­.no!¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± he said, looking embarrassed. ¡°Imagine putting that in the DVD player with a bunch of the family watching to see what kind of family film Dances with Horses might be. You know, you think maybe it is a clan-related video, a knock off of Dances with Wolves. Then it starts rolling and soon everyone is laughing or sending the children out of the room in a hurry and a lot of yelling at the offending party occurs.¡±


    ¡°I can only imagine,¡± I grinned.


    ¡°And before you ask, such things have been known to happen, but the clan¡¯s view is that they are very kinky and somewhat perverted, and it is never talked about openly.¡±


    Sam blushed furiously when he said that, and I wondered what went through his mind at that point. Admittedly, a brief run of thoughts went through my mind right then as well, purely out of a sense of the perverse, and I quashed them as soon as I registered their presence. The last thing that I needed was to be thought of as odd by anyone in Sam¡¯s clan. Dealing with my own relatives was going to be difficult enough.


    With little further discussion, we gathered up our things and went out to Sam¡¯s car, leaving mine in the relative shade of the covering oak tree. Sam followed my directions and we soon found ourselves at the gate to the bird sanctuary, peering into the deep shade of the overgrown woodlands beyond the gate. The gate was flanked by two stone gatehouses, and the open gate itself was a wide wooden affair with wrought iron railing on the top and carved wooden birds decorating the woodwork. Sam got out of his car and grabbed his backpack from the backseat. I snagged my water bottle, and the two of us walked in a nervous silence through the ornate gate that led inside.


    Once inside the shade of the woods, we relaxed minutely, and I led the way up the curving trail towards the inner gate. This gate was about eight feet tall and was of imposing wire chain link. Only the smaller footpath gate was open today, and the larger gate was closed and padlocked against vehicular intruders. We slipped through the small gate without comment and followed the path up to the crossroads. There, we took a sharp right into a seemingly impassible rhododendron bush, and eased up the narrow trail that led to a little-known clearing.


    As a child, I had spent a lot of time in the sanctuary, wandering around the woods and through the brush. There were a number of little benches and clearings tucked into out-of-the-way places, and these last remnants of the cultivated woodlands were all that left as the others crumbled away. The old birdcages that had once housed pheasants and quail had fallen down or burned, and the water sluice from the upper dam had filled with silt except for where the water still flowed. In the twenty some-odd years that I had been walking the trails, the area around the water had changed the most, and the shores of the two man-made ponds had been piled up with stones more than once to thwart the insistent flow of water.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    The clearing that we entered now was surrounded by mammoth bushes and trees, including the rhododendrons themselves that reached a good fifteen feet into the air. The hemlocks were even taller. In the center was a small, cemented ring of stones, and to one side of the clearing was a cement and stone bench that curved in an arch about the length of my Pontiac. A space in the cement was all that was left of the bronze plaque, long ago pried from the place by vandals, but the bench itself was relatively undisturbed. I thought of the long history of this glade, from the two Buddha statues that had appeared and been subsequently destroyed to the yearly appearance of six pansies around the center pool. This clearing was obviously regarded as both a place of magical portent and a hangout for the smoker kids in town, as was evidenced by the prolific cigarette butts littering the ground.


    ¡°Well,¡± said Sam, ¡°let¡¯s do this.¡±


    His lightness of tone betrayed his nervousness, and he stripped quickly while I averted my eyes. I wondered how long it might be before neither of us cared about modesty anymore. The slight sound of wind on waves came again, a bare susurrus of sound, and I turned to see the horse nosing the pack for the halter and lead.


    I reached the pack and pulled out the halter, dropping the lead to the ground as I untangled them from each other. Sam watched cautiously while I straightened out the halter, and then held it out towards him hesitantly. His eyes showed white around the edges, but he held still as I gingerly placed the noseband over his muzzle and then reached up to secure the head strap around behind his ears. I felt him tense as I eased the strap through the buckle, and I stopped for a moment so as to let him calm himself. When he relaxed again, I tightened the strap and slid the tongue of the buckle into a rather loose but firm hole. When I was done, I backed off and let Sam get used to the halter.


    He shook his head almost at once, and then shook it again, harder. His ears went back against his head, and he snapped at the air before finally heaving a huge sigh and looking at me steadily. His ears were still back, but he managed to look resigned at the necessity of the halter.


    ¡°Are you ok?¡± I asked.


    He nodded his head once, and then pawed at the lead rope where it lay on the ground. I picked it up, clipped the end onto the loop of the halter, and let it dangle loosely from one hand. Sam shook his head again and led me back through the brush to the main path.


    ¡°Who¡¯s leading who?¡± I laughed.


    Sam snorted and stopped once we got to the main path. I passed him and led the way down the hill, directly away from that gate. Sam followed, matching his pace to my own, and the sound of his hooves on the dirt path made me start again as I grappled with the reality of my situation.


    But after a while, it began to seem normal. Sam walked docilely beside me, never taking up the slack in the rope between us, and the warm buzz of the insects was lulling; it was too early for deerflies, and only the mosquitoes were attacking. I made a mental note to bring a can of Deep Woods Off with me next time we went on a walk like this, and fell into a dozy walk beside my friend. After a while, I laid one hand on his shoulder, and we went on like that as the trail wove down past the little pond and headed back up into the woods among the bright orange and fuchsia colored azalea blooms.


    We walked like this in contented silence for a long time. In the distance, a dog barked causing Sam to flick an ear towards the sound, but otherwise, all was peaceful. We walked on for a long while, making the circular loop around the sanctuary, past the clearing with the log cabin used for special events, and back into the woods. It was a long while later when we found ourselves back at the crossroads and made our way back into the little glade. I slipped the halter off of Sam¡¯s head and politely turned my back once more. A few short minutes later, we were on our way back down the path towards the car.


    ¡°Not too bad,¡± said Sam as we walked. ¡°I managed not to lose my mind while wearing a halter, and you lived to tell the tale.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m assuming that was not a real worry,¡± I said, looking over to see him grinning at me.


    ¡°It was not. Worst that would have happened is I would have broken away for a quick jog to settle my nerves and come back once I¡¯d done so. I¡¯m not used to wearing anything, so it is unnerving. I won¡¯t attack anyone unless I am really being threatened. If I pull away, though, let me go. There will be a good reason.¡±


    We walked amiably back to the entrance and got into the car. Sam seemed more relaxed than he had been in days, and I could only surmise that it was because he had been able to totally be himself.


    It was close enough to lunchtime that we decided to go into town and grab some early lunch at the Lantern Brunch, a nice little restaurant in the center of town. It was crowded ¨C always was on a Sunday ¨C and we waited patiently for a table of elderly ladies to finish their breakfast before being seated. The waitress was one of Sam¡¯s clients and they chatted about her Scottish terrier and his allergies for a few minutes before she disappeared to put in our order. Sam smiled at me lazily. It was a lovely feeling to be in on his secret and eating with him.


    ¡°So,¡± he said. ¡°Back to work tomorrow, right?¡±


    ¡°Sadly,¡± I said. I had been having such a great time with him that I had not even thought of work all weekend.


    ¡°Me as well,¡± he said. ¡°Will you be free tomorrow night?¡±


    ¡°Probably,¡± I said. ¡°We don¡¯t have any rush jobs and all of the other ads are on schedule. I suspect we¡¯ll have a fairly normal work load this week.¡±


    ¡°Me as well,¡± said Sam.


    There was silence for a few minutes as we absorbed the return to our normal routine.


    ¡°I think it is safe to say,¡± I said finally, ¡°that we both are thinking along the same lines. We want to see each other a lot but are afraid of monopolizing each other¡¯s time?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Sam. ¡°That is pretty much the case. I do want to spend as much time with you as I can, but I don¡¯t want you to feel smothered.¡±


    ¡°How about we each tell each other when we need time for other things and not worry too much about it after that?¡± I said.


    ¡°Fair enough,¡± said Sam.


    The eggs, when they came, were delicious.

 Chapter 6 - An Unwanted Visitor and a Journey

    Several weeks passed in this manner, and everything seemed to go just fine. Our relationship was slowly evolving, though still in its early stages without a ton of physical intimacy. That is not to say that it was strictly platonic by any means, but neither of us was in a huge hurry. Sam and I went for our walks, sometimes accompanied by Sarah, and everything seemed to be fine. Several times, when we got to the meadow by the log cabin in the sanctuary, I took off the lead rope when no one was around, and Sam went galloping across the grassy expanse with his tail held high flowing like a flag out behind him. Several times, we played tag in the field, and more than once, he got down after his run and rolled on the grass, looking at me comically from his upside-down position before rolling back over.


    It was finally July, and one warm, Sunday afternoon, we were lazing around the meadow. After rolling, he didn¡¯t get up right away, so I went over to sit by him on the sun-warmed grass. The cabin was not being used for an event, as it often was, so no one was around. Feeling well enough at ease with Sam by now, I leaned back against his coppery side and squinted up at the sun. He snorted but made no move to get up or dislodge me, so I stayed resting against his side. It was peaceful there with the buzz of insects in the background, and the hazy blue sky above hinting at rain later in the evening.


    We had been sitting there for a while when suddenly Sam turned to look at the path, and I saw a figure trudging across the grass towards us. I sat up and clipped the lead rope back onto the halter as Sam lunged to his feet. The man stopped about twenty feet from us and gazed at us with pure curiosity.


    ¡°Not often one sees a more comfortable pair,¡± he said congenially. ¡°Didn¡¯t mean to disturb you.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± I said, brushing off my jeans with one hand. Sam stood very still, eyeing the man uncomfortably.


    The man moved a few feet closer within easy speaking range.


    ¡°Name¡¯s Jarrett,¡± he said. ¡°I live nearby. You come here often?¡±


    ¡°Often enough,¡± I said warily. ¡°It¡¯s quiet here.¡±


    ¡°It is that,¡± he acknowledged. ¡°He¡¯s pretty tame, your boy there. Had him long?¡±


    ¡°A few years,¡± I said. ¡°Got him from a friend of mine who couldn¡¯t get him the exercise he needed.¡±


    ¡°You aren¡¯t riding him?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said. ¡°We just started to come here to walk mostly. Too many people around a lot of the time. I¡¯m worried they might spook him, so we¡¯re just getting used to the trails first.¡±


    ¡°But you let him off the lead to run free?¡± asked Jarrett. ¡°You must trust him a lot.¡±


    ¡°How long have you been watching us?¡± I asked, feeling suddenly very suspicious.


    ¡°A little while. I was walking up the trail, and I saw him running. At first, I thought he¡¯d gotten away from you, but then I saw that you two were playing. I waited until he had calmed down, as I didn¡¯t want to spook him. He¡¯s very good off the lead.¡±


    ¡°When we are alone, yes,¡± I said tersely.


    ¡°Ah,¡± replied Jarrett. ¡°Well, I will just leave you to your exercise, then. Maybe I¡¯ll see you again?¡±


    He turned, and walked back up the grass towards the path he had just left. Sam and I watched him go, and then took the path in the other direction back towards the gate. We jogged quickly, knowing that the direction that Jarrett had taken went back around and would meet up at the gate as well. Our part of the path was shorter, however, and we went as fast as I could go. I could sense Sam¡¯s growing nervousness as he trotted beside me, and as we reached one of the cross trails, he stopped next to a fallen tree trunk, and looked at it pointedly, then back at me. He shook his head impatiently at me when I hesitated, and then the light went on in my head as I realized what he wanted me to do.


    Giving myself no time to think, I climbed up onto the tree and slid a leg over his back, holding on to the lead and a chunk of his mane. His back was slippery, but I gripped as hard as I could with my legs as Sam began to move at a very swift trot up the hill that led back to the gate. He shook his head and broke into a slow canter as I clung onto him for dear life. It would have been exhilarating if not for the fact it was so terrifying as well.


    In a few short minutes, we were back at the crossroads. I slid off Sam¡¯s back, and we slipped into the rhododendrons to the little glade hidden in the woods. Sam changed back and dressed quickly, and then we hid among the trees where we could see the trail to wait. Not long after we got settled, Jarrett came along the trail to the crossroads. He stopped and looked down the way we had come, checked his watch, and then slipped half into the bushes, watching the trail for about ten more minutes. Neither Sam nor I dared even breathe hard. Finally, Jarrett shook his head and went down the trail towards where we had come from. Had we been walking, we would surely have met him again.


    We waited until he was well out of sight, then left to quickly go to our car. We said nothing as we drove, heading by silent consent to my apartment. We parked and went inside swiftly. Sarah was sitting on the couch reading something on her laptop when we got there, and looked up to see our strained faces.


    ¡°What happened?¡± she asked, putting the computer down and standing.


    ¡°Who was that?¡± I asked Sam.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure,¡± said Sam. ¡°I am hoping he is just a curious local, but I am going to make a phone call. Excuse me.¡±


    He took out his cell phone and dialed a number. He turned and walked away into the kitchen, closing the door behind him.


    Sarah looked at me, eyebrows raised and a stunned expression on her face.


    ¡°We met someone in the sanctuary. We had been playing by the cabin, and Sam had lain down on the grass. I was leaning on him and this man appeared from nowhere, asking about Sam. We left and headed back to the gate as fast as we could. I mean, it was crazy; Sam even made me ride him part of the way.¡±


    Sarah sat straight up and looked at me tightly.


    ¡°He made you ride him?¡± she asked. ¡°I thought that was a strict no go.¡±


    ¡°Apparently he felt strongly enough that he broke that rule,¡± I said. ¡°It was terrifying. Are all horses that slippery?¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know,¡± said Sarah. ¡°How¡¯d you stay on?¡±


    ¡°Clung to his mane and clutched him as tightly as I could,¡± I said. ¡°The creepy thing is that the guy, he said his name was Jarrett, he got up to where we usually stop for Sam to change, and he waited there. I mean, it is the only path out, but it was just odd. He stayed there a while too, and then headed down our back trail. It was like he wanted to find us again.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°Could he just be a horse nut?¡± asked Sarah.


    ¡°Maybe, but if it was just a random encounter, why wait for us there? And he must have hurried because that trail is the longer path back. If we hadn¡¯t run, he would have been waiting for us. He was sort of hiding too. Like he was going to wait to see what we did and follow us.¡±


    Sam came out of the kitchen, his face tight and his expression serious.


    ¡°I just got off the phone with my Uncle Joe who is in charge of looking into reports of people looking for clans like ours. He has no record of this Jarrett, but there are reports of a new group that has been in the Boston area, asking questions and checking out local towns. He¡¯s going to get in touch with some contacts out here and see what he can uncover. We¡¯ll need to lay low for a little while and see what information he can dig up.¡±


    ¡°Geez,¡± said Sarah. ¡°What¡¯s this guy look like?¡±


    ¡°Average. Brown hair. The type impossible to pick out in a crowd,¡± said Sam.


    ¡°There are other places we can go,¡± I said. ¡°There are plenty of parks around that we could go to. Riding trails, too.¡±


    ¡°Except I don¡¯t generally carry riders,¡± said Sam.  ¡°Today was a complete exception.¡±


    ¡°Well, could you?¡± asked Sarah.


    ¡°Could I?¡± asked Sam and paused, looking thoughtful. ¡°You know, Joe said the same thing, that it might be good for camouflage. We don¡¯t usually, except those teams who go in for sports. These hunters know that we hate tack and won¡¯t wear it. The idea of wearing tack is¡­odd and unnatural to us. And it¡¯s expensive¡­¡±


    He trailed off and looked at me thoughtfully, then at Sarah.


    ¡°Are you two up for a short road trip to Connecticut?¡± he asked.


    Sarah and I exchanged glances, then looked back at Sam.


    ¡°What do you have in mind?¡± I asked.


    ¡°I have an aunt,¡± he said. ¡°She¡¯s clan but human. Not all children are born with the ability to change. Some move, some stay. Really, they are fully accepted, but many feel like they don¡¯t fully belong. Her name is Meredith, and she runs a riding school outside of Bristol. What do you say I give her a call, and we go take a visit if she¡¯s free?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m game,¡± said Sarah. ¡°Tim is out of town for the weekend, and I am at odds tomorrow anyway. Let me feed Princess Sorna her Fancy Feast, and then we can go. Her dry food will hold up over night.¡±


    Sam got on the phone again, but this time stayed in the room. He beamed at the voice that echoed over the phone and made a few short comments as he listened to his aunt. When he mentioned coming for a visit, there was an audible exclamation that even I could hear but when he told her that he¡¯d have company, there was just as noticeable a silence. He listened to the earpiece for a long moment, and then said softly, ¡°They already do.¡± There seemed to be another pause, and then Sam launched into a very short version of the last few weeks made up of five sentences. ¡°I got caught out. They followed. Yes, I trust them. We think someone knows. Riding.¡±


    Sam grinned suddenly and exchanged glances with me.


    ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll be down tonight,¡± he said. ¡°See you soon.¡±


    He hung up his phone and looked at me with mock seriousness.


    ¡°Be prepared,¡± he said. ¡°You are going to be grilled tonight within an inch of your life.¡±


    ¡°That bad?¡± I asked.


    ¡°You have no idea,¡± he said impishly. ¡°My mother is visiting.¡±


    The ride to Connecticut took about two hours, and we had a fun ride down alternately singing and asking Sam about his mother. He would only say that she was very nice, very loving, and totally intimidating. He did tell us not to worry, however, as it would do none of us any good. If I wanted to be accepted by his family, his mother would probably be the hardest to win over. She was the matriarch of the family, something akin to the lead mare in the herd, and her word was law. She was also very fair-minded, and as long as she understood that we had what was best in mind for Sam, she would back us completely.


    This did not stop either Sarah or me from worrying, however, and we tried very hard to put the upcoming visit from out minds. The day was too lovely to be worried about anyway, and before long, we were in Bristol. Sam drove confidently, apparently having gone this way many times before, and when we reached the ranch, we found ourselves immediately engulfed by children, dogs, and several adults all at once.


    Sam took it all in stride, introducing us to all of his teenaged cousins, his Aunt Meredith, Uncle Peter, and finally, his mother, Susan. She was last to join the group, choosing to make a delayed entrance rather than to embrace the chaos when we first arrived. I was so overwhelmed by that point that when she came up and shook my hand, it was all I could do to say hi. She must have seen the expression on my face, for she grinned, looking very much like her son in that moment, and we basically accepted each other then and there.


    ¡°So you are Laura,¡± she said. ¡°Sam hasn¡¯t told us much, just that he met a girl and that you found out in the craziest way possible. And this must be Sarah. Thank you for being such a good friend to my son. We¡¯ve worried about him being so far away. It is good that he has friends like you. Come inside, dinner will be ready soon.¡±


    We went into the kitchen of an old-style farmhouse and settled in to talk with Sam¡¯s family. The younger cousins soon evaporated, and we answered a ton of questions seemingly at random, though I had a shrewd notion that they were anything but. Sarah and I talked about our jobs, our friends, our families, and our friendship with Sam. During the conversation, Sam grabbed my hand and held it tightly, giving me little squeezes of reassurance whenever I seemed to tense up over a question. His mother noticed, I think, and seemed to ease back a little bit, bringing the line of inquiry around to the man we had met that morning.


    We gave her every little detail, and Sam mentioned something I had not noticed. The man had not walked up the path very far. He had only come onto the path when Sam first noticed him. He had apparently been hidden there, watching us and possibly anticipating our arrival. Sam¡¯s hearing was much better than mine, and he said he would have heard him coming long before then if he had been on the path the whole time.


    Susan and Meredith exchanged worried glances.


    ¡°If he knew where to find you,¡± said Susan, ¡°then he has been watching you for longer than you know. Was there a newspaper story about your uncontrolled transformation?¡±


    Sarah, Sam, and I looked at each other with growing alarm.


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Sarah. ¡°It was in the Andover Townsman and the Lawrence Eagle Tribune.¡±


    ¡°This is the sort of article these groups look out for,¡± said Meredith, exchanging glances with Peter. ¡°They scan the news daily for horse-related articles. They are very patient and very persistent.¡±


    ¡°What do we do?¡± asked Sarah.


    ¡°Lay low for now,¡± said Susan. ¡°You mentioned riding, yes?¡±


    At Sam¡¯s shrug, she frowned a little, but nodded.


    ¡°It is one solution, that is true,¡± she said. ¡°Sarah, you can¡¯t ride, correct? How are you going to learn?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure?¡± I said. ¡°I figured I might watch some videos¡­¡±


    Meredith sighed exasperatedly.


    ¡°Videos do not a good rider make,¡± she stated firmly. ¡°And while I¡¯m sure neither you nor my nephew can afford to take a few weeks off to learn here, I can and will go there, however. If you can put me up and feed me, Sam, I will come up and teach all three if you, if that is what you want. My friend Jo lives at an old farm up that way in Wilmington. She has a back pasture we could probably use without raising too many questions, and it has a private road running behind it. I¡¯ll just tell her you are riding over for the practice. Think that might do?¡±


    ¡°Without a doubt,¡± said Sam. ¡°That will be perfect.¡±


    ¡°I am not sure about riding,¡± said Sarah shaking her head. ¡°Regular horses make me nervous.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re okay with Sam?¡± smiled Meredith. ¡°Fair enough, though I would still like to include you as much as possible. Maybe we can get you over that fear in time. I¡¯ll bring one of my mares along. She¡¯s pretty calm. Jo¡¯s got a barn with a few useable stalls. F¨¢ilte is a pretty easy horse to deal with. She¡¯s a Connemara pony, big for her breed, but as gentle and easy a horse as you¡¯ll ever see. You might find her to be an easy riding horse. They are gentle enough that little children can ride them.¡±


    Sarah nodded, but said nothing, still looking somewhat unconvinced. Meredith turned to Sam.


    ¡°You we will have to find tack for. I¡¯m sure you are not thrilled by that notion, but it is better that we fit you now and bring back something a trifle broken in. I have a nice lightweight English saddle that will probably do the trick, as well as a bridle with a very gentle snaffle. I know how you feel about the idea of a bit, but trust me, you won¡¯t fool anyone without one.¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s right, Sam,¡± said Susan. ¡°If you are going to follow this plan, you¡¯ll have to deal with a bit. Meredith will teach Laura the right way to use it. Personally, I think you¡¯d do better coming home, but I also know you. You need to keep your freedom, and I think you of all your siblings can pull this off.¡±


    Sam sighed in resignation and nodded. ¡°I have no wish to leave Andover right now,¡± he said. ¡°If this will trick them and make them look elsewhere, so be it.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± said Meredith. ¡°After dinner, we¡¯ll go out to the barn and try out my ideas. It¡¯ll be light for a good four hours still.¡±

 Chapter 7 - Planning Deception

    After dinner, we all trouped out the barn to have Sam try things on. He looked very nervous, but apparently, having his mother and aunt there was enough to keep him from running. He transformed in one of the unused stalls and stepped out into the light of barn¡¯s central path. He shook his head at Meredith who simply walked over to him with a saddle pad in one hand and his halter, which we had thoughtfully grabbed, in the other.


    ¡°Okay, mister,¡± she said. ¡°Let¡¯s try this out, shall we?¡±


    Slipping the halter over Sam¡¯s ears, she buckled it loosely, then gently placed the soft pad on his back just behind his withers. His ears flickered back, but this did not seem to alarm him overly much, and Meredith let the pad sit there for a few long minutes before taking the lead of his halter and walking him slowly in a circle. Sam followed her without question, the tension leaking out of his stride as he got used to feeling the pad shift on his back.


    Halting again, Meredith let go and looked him squarely in the eye.


    ¡°Good. Now, I¡¯m going to lay just the saddle across your back, okay? No girth or stirrups just yet. Try not to embarrass yourself.¡±


    Sam laid his ears back, but Meredith ignored him and picked up the saddle she had brought with her from the tack room. It was a fairly standard English style saddle, brown with brown suede knee rolls and a low cantle that rose behind the small seat for the rider. Sam snorted at it and edged slightly away, but a quiet word from Susan made him settle and allow Meredith to place it over the saddle pad. Sam shook and the skin on his neck shivered, but he again stood still, though trembling. Meredith led him around once again and walked him until his shaking subsided.


    Sam¡¯s uncle stepped over to where Sarah and I stood out of potential explosion range, and whispered, ¡°He¡¯s doing very well. I¡¯ve seen a few clan members come through this training, both from Meredith¡¯s clan and others. Believe me, I¡¯ve seen saddles go straight out that barn door, and Meredith standing and confronting an angry or frightened stallion or mare over the wearing of it. He¡¯s going to be fine.¡±


    I nodded, but kept my eye on Sam the whole while. Meredith then picked up the girth and led all of us out into the yard.


    ¡°This part is harder,¡± she said. ¡°We need to put the girth on the saddle or else Laura will fall off when you move. If you feel the need to do anything, try to wait until I tighten the girth enough.¡±


    Sam nodded and then stiffened as Meredith buckled one side of the girth and brought it under to attach to the other side. He trembled and stomped his feet as she tightened and checked the buckles. Then she backed up a little to give Sam room.


    The explosion, when it came, was frightening in its violence. Sam leapt into the air, whirling, bucking, and squealing, biting at the saddle as he tried in vain to get it off. We all stood back, except for Susan who let her son vent for a few moments, then walked calmly over and caught his halter. When he saw who had him, he calmed down, but he still shook hard. Meredith came back over to him, took the halter from Susan and walked him around until the shaking stopped. Sam finally breathed a huge breath out, and Meredith tightened the girth a little more so that it was snug. Sam looked at her sheepishly, and then followed her docilely as she walked him around in circles again.


    Stirrups were next, but were tied up out of the way after Sam had a chance to feel them touch his sides as he walked. Then came the bridle. Meredith first held out the bit for Sam to smell, and he recoiled a little but sniffed it just the same. Meredith then asked him to open his mouth, and she gently put the snaffle between the gaps of Sam¡¯s teeth. The face Sam made me giggle, and he turned to look at me reproachfully as if to say, ¡°Hey, you come try this.¡± This only made me giggle more. Sam just shook his head and proceeded to mouth the bit, testing it with his tongue and playing with it without really pushing it out of his mouth. Meredith slipped the headstall over Sam¡¯s ears and attached the clips to the bit gently on either side, leaving the straps loose. Sam shook his head and the bit stayed in place, though there was still room him to move it if he so chose.


    ¡°Well,¡± said Meredith. ¡°How does that feel?¡±


    Sam made a face and pushed the bit out from the gap in his teeth. It couldn¡¯t fall out, so he let it fall back down into the gap. Meredith held up the reins, when Sam gave a tentative nod, clipped them on and handed them to me.


    ¡°Obviously, you¡¯d use the full bridle eventually and tighten the straps for the bit. Otherwise, it would be easy to notice that the bit was not really held in place by anything. This is an easy beginning for him. Normally, they just do not wear tack.¡±


    ¡°We do recognize the necessity for wearing it, though, in certain circumstances,¡± said Susan. ¡°I¡¯ve had to work with some others who have been going through the same thing of late. We have a couple of other mixed pairs living outside of the clan lands, and you can bet that they have been very careful. The internet has made life that much more complicated for us.¡±


    One of Sam¡¯s teenaged cousins, Ted by name, came out into the barn and looked at Sam. He gave a half laugh, and turned to Meredith with a grin.


    ¡°You¡¯re letting Sam wear my tack?¡±


    Sam looked at Meredith and then at Ted, his expression puzzled.


    ¡°Oh yeah, you haven¡¯t heard, have you?¡± said Meredith. ¡°About a year ago, Ted¡¯s gift decided to show up. A bit later than normal, but he adjusted pretty well. He and his brother Matt do local shows together. Jumping mostly.¡±


    Susan looked at her sister in amusement, ¡°And you encourage it?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Meredith, her eyes twinkling in amusement. ¡°Lets me live vicariously through my kids and all since I never got the genes right. You know, come to think of it, Ted looks a lot like Sam when he¡¯s in horse form. I wonder¡­¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Ted, how¡¯d you like to come with me to Massachusetts for a few weeks? Give your cousin a hand with a problem or two. It¡¯s summer vacation, and Dad could probably spare you, if that¡¯s okay with the two of you.¡±


    Uncle Peter nodded.


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Ted, ¡°What can I do?


    ¡°Pretend to be Sam in horse form so we can fool this chaser,¡± said Meredith. ¡°If he sees Laura with you and Sam leading F¨¢ilte, it¡¯ll take the heat off him as the suspect at least.¡±


    ¡°True,¡± said Susan. ¡°That could work pretty well. Plus Ted is used to carrying a rider, so he¡¯ll be steadier if he has to carry you. I think it will work. In fact, I think I may tag along for a few days. I had been planning a surprise visit to see my offspring before I headed back anyway.¡±


    Sam snorted and pawed the ground shaking his head irritably. Meredith smiled and undid the tack, brushing Sam lightly with a dandy brush before letting him go off to change and dress himself. Moments later, he reappeared, still buttoning his shirt.


    ¡°Can¡¯t say no, can I?¡± he asked with a rueful smile.


    His mother smiled angelically at him.


    ¡°Not with a bit in your mouth, you can¡¯t,¡± she said. ¡°Do you have room for all of us?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll manage,¡± said Sam. ¡°Besides, I¡¯ll get to catch up with Teddy and hear all about his show jumping. Maybe I will take up dressage, now that the whole family has lost their minds.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t try it, mister,¡± said Susan in a mock-threatening tone. ¡°Just because my sister¡¯s kids have lost their minds does not mean that my son is going to lose his too.¡±


    Sam snorted but he shot me a look that seemed to say, ¡°Challenge accepted?¡± I gave a brief nod and trouped back inside with everyone else for what turned out to be a very homey evening and later, a comfortable bed to share with Sam.


    ¡°Guess what?¡± he said. ¡°Welcome to the family.¡±


    ¡°How do you know that I¡¯m okay by them?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Meredith has plenty of guest rooms. If she didn¡¯t approve, we wouldn¡¯t be staying in the same room.¡±


    ¡°Ah, I see,¡± I mused. ¡°I mean, we¡¯ve spent plenty of nights together before, so I guess I didn¡¯t give the room assignments a thought. This has been a very strange turn of events for one day.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± said Sam, turning out the light. ¡°And a bit overwhelming to boot. It¡¯s going to take me a while to get used to the idea of tack. I¡¯m not thrilled, but I can see the advantages.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just worried that I¡¯m going to end up hurting you,¡± I said, curling up in the crook of his arm.


    ¡°Well, you are kind of bossy, and I am handing you the reins, literally. You¡¯ll get used to it.¡±


    ¡°Bossy!¡± I exclaimed. ¡°I¡¯ll show you who¡¯s bossy!¡±


    I leaned in and kissed him hard. He responded by flipping me over and suddenly his lean body was on top of mine. We both froze and looked at each other in the dim light of the room, unsure of what to do or if we were about to push a boundary that the other one wasn¡¯t ready for. Sam raised a hand and stroked my cheek, gently pushing back my hair from my face.  I looked up at him, willing him to see that I was fully accepting him for who and what he was.


    ¡°Is it okay?¡± he murmured. ¡°You¡¯re not just reacting to this afternoon, are you?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said back. ¡°No, it¡¯s time.¡±


    He rolled to the side and divested of the last of his clothing. I did the same. The rest of the night was a long, slow exploration that left neither of us with any doubts about our compatibility as partners.


    We got back to Andover about 1:00 the next day to an enthusiastic cat and a couple of missed calls on the landline. Sam had gone back to his house with his mother while Meredith and Ted had gone over to Meredith¡¯s friend¡¯s house to get the little mare settled in. They¡¯d return later that night to Sam¡¯s house where we¡¯d all be meeting to have a solid supper and a planning session. Sarah went to take a shower and when she was done, we settled in to some well-needed housekeeping chores. Dishes needed doing, clothes needed washing, and the small dust bunnies of cat fur had doubled in size over the last few days. It didn¡¯t take much cat to make dust bunnies breed like crazy.


    Finally about five o¡¯clock, we got in the car and went over to Sam¡¯s. The house seemed way too busy, what with his aunt, cousin, and mother there. His cousin was in the kitchen, cooking. This apparently was Teddy¡¯s other new skill. His was a purely gustatory infatuation, but he was all about experimenting with different spices and flavors. By the time we got there, there was some sort of pasta going with a home made sauce that was a reduction of this or a roux of that¡­I was honestly so lost after the first sentence that I just contented myself with smelling, and later eating, the wonderful food.


    After dinner, we sat down to try to figure out what Jarrett¡¯s, if that was his real name, plan was. He had obviously been watching us for a few days at least. The field by the cabin had a gate near it that was usually locked, but it gave a clear view of the meadow for anyone who drove by. Our best guess was that Jarrett had driven by one day, assuming he lived in the area as he claimed, and had stumbled upon us playing in the field. It would have been easy to find us again as we had kept close to the same time ¨C foolishly on our part ¨C and then just wait for the right day to come speak to us.


    Our best guesses as to who he was were varied. He was, at worst, a member of the Boston group of Mystery Seekers, as it turned out they called themselves. At best, he was an overly nosey neighbor who had noticed something odd about the chestnut stallion he had seen playing in the field and had decided to investigate.  Either way, he had tried to gain more information about us. Susan surmised that he might have seen me with the horse in the field and driven around to see me come out with a man. That might have been enough to spark his curiosity into spying on us.


    ¡°We¡¯ve only been going on Wednesday evenings and on weekend afternoons,¡± said Sam thoughtfully. ¡°We could go other times, but he might miss us. Also, how can we get F¨¢ilte in without parking a horse trailer in the circle?¡±


    ¡°We could park it on Judson Street,¡± said Sarah. ¡°It¡¯s a dead end, and there is a trail that leads around Rabbit¡¯s Pond and right to the Sanctuary. That should be no problem. He could even follow us back there to see the horse trailer, and there would be the evidence.¡±


    ¡°Brilliant,¡± said Meredith and looked pointedly at Teddy. ¡°You think you can handle riding in the trailer?¡±


    ¡°I think I can manage, yes,¡± he said, and grinned. ¡°We¡¯ll give him something to see.¡±


    ¡°Remember,¡± said Susan. ¡°We are not out to hurt him, just trick him into thinking Sam is a normal human being. Run in the field, play with Laura, and come to her when called. Otherwise, act like a horse. No heroics.¡±


    ¡°I got it,¡± said Teddy. ¡°Same as I do with Matt. Horse. Big like rock, hard like rock, dumb like rock.¡±


    ¡°Not too dumb, please,¡± I said. ¡°I get enough of that at work.¡±


    ¡°Speaking of which,¡± said Sarah, ¡°we all have work in the morning. I think we need to head home if we are going to have any chance of being coherent tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Agreed. Do we want to try tomorrow evening?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s stick to the schedule and go Wednesday,¡± said Sam.


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Meredith with an evil cackle. ¡°And tomorrow, we can practice riding lessons.¡±


    ¡°Oh, joy,¡± said Sam.


    Teddy poked him with an elbow.


    ¡°If I can do it, you can, Coz,¡± he said.


    Sam grimaced and walked us to the door.


    ¡°See you then,¡± he said, kissing me goodnight.

 Chapter 8 - Chess Pieces

    After dinner, we all trouped out the barn to have Sam try things on. He looked very nervous, but apparently, having his mother and aunt there was enough to keep him from running. He transformed in one of the unused stalls and stepped out into the light of barn¡¯s central path. He shook his head at Meredith who simply walked over to him with a saddle pad in one hand and his halter, which we had thoughtfully grabbed, in the other.


    ¡°Okay, mister,¡± she said. ¡°Let¡¯s try this out, shall we?¡±


    Slipping the halter over Sam¡¯s ears, she buckled it loosely, then gently placed the soft pad on his back just behind his withers. His ears flickered back, but this did not seem to alarm him overly much, and Meredith let the pad sit there for a few long minutes before taking the lead of his halter and walking him slowly in a circle. Sam followed her without question, the tension leaking out of his stride as he got used to feeling the pad shift on his back.


    Halting again, Meredith let go and looked him squarely in the eye.


    ¡°Good. Now, I¡¯m going to lay just the saddle across your back, okay? No girth or stirrups just yet. Try not to embarrass yourself.¡±


    Sam laid his ears back, but Meredith ignored him and picked up the saddle she had brought with her from the tack room. It was a fairly standard English style saddle, brown with brown suede knee rolls and a low cantle that rose behind the small seat for the rider. Sam snorted at it and edged slightly away, but a quiet word from Susan made him settle and allow Meredith to place it over the saddle pad. Sam shook and the skin on his neck shivered, but he again stood still, though trembling. Meredith led him around once again and walked him until his shaking subsided.


    Sam¡¯s uncle stepped over to where Sarah and I stood out of potential explosion range, and whispered, ¡°He¡¯s doing very well. I¡¯ve seen a few clan members come through this training, both from Meredith¡¯s clan and others. Believe me, I¡¯ve seen saddles go straight out that barn door, and Meredith standing and confronting an angry or frightened stallion or mare over the wearing of it. He¡¯s going to be fine.¡±


    I nodded, but kept my eye on Sam the whole while. Meredith then picked up the girth and led all of us out into the yard.


    ¡°This part is harder,¡± she said. ¡°We need to put the girth on the saddle or else Laura will fall off when you move. If you feel the need to do anything, try to wait until I tighten the girth enough.¡±


    Sam nodded and then stiffened as Meredith buckled one side of the girth and brought it under to attach to the other side. He trembled and stomped his feet as she tightened and checked the buckles. Then she backed up a little to give Sam room.


    The explosion, when it came, was frightening in its violence. Sam leapt into the air, whirling, bucking, and squealing, biting at the saddle as he tried in vain to get it off. We all stood back, except for Susan who let her son vent for a few moments, then walked calmly over and caught his halter. When he saw who had him, he calmed down, but he still shook hard. Meredith came back over to him, took the halter from Susan and walked him around until the shaking stopped. Sam finally breathed a huge breath out, and Meredith tightened the girth a little more so that it was snug. Sam looked at her sheepishly, and then followed her docilely as she walked him around in circles again.


    Stirrups were next, but were tied up out of the way after Sam had a chance to feel them touch his sides as he walked. Then came the bridle. Meredith first held out the bit for Sam to smell, and he recoiled a little but sniffed it just the same. Meredith then asked him to open his mouth, and she gently put the snaffle between the gaps of Sam¡¯s teeth. The face Sam made me giggle, and he turned to look at me reproachfully as if to say, ¡°Hey, you come try this.¡± This only made me giggle more. Sam just shook his head and proceeded to mouth the bit, testing it with his tongue and playing with it without really pushing it out of his mouth. Meredith slipped the headstall over Sam¡¯s ears and attached the clips to the bit gently on either side, leaving the straps loose. Sam shook his head and the bit stayed in place, though there was still room him to move it if he so chose.


    ¡°Well,¡± said Meredith. ¡°How does that feel?¡±


    Sam made a face and pushed the bit out from the gap in his teeth. It couldn¡¯t fall out, so he let it fall back down into the gap. Meredith held up the reins, when Sam gave a tentative nod, clipped them on and handed them to me.


    ¡°Obviously, you¡¯d use the full bridle eventually and tighten the straps for the bit. Otherwise, it would be easy to notice that the bit was not really held in place by anything. This is an easy beginning for him. Normally, they just do not wear tack.¡±


    ¡°We do recognize the necessity for wearing it, though, in certain circumstances,¡± said Susan. ¡°I¡¯ve had to work with some others who have been going through the same thing of late. We have a couple of other mixed pairs living outside of the clan lands, and you can bet that they have been very careful. The internet has made life that much more complicated for us.¡±


    One of Sam¡¯s teenaged cousins, Ted by name, came out into the barn and looked at Sam. He gave a half laugh, and turned to Meredith with a grin.


    ¡°You¡¯re letting Sam wear my tack?¡±


    Sam looked at Meredith and then at Ted, his expression puzzled.


    ¡°Oh yeah, you haven¡¯t heard, have you?¡± said Meredith. ¡°About a year ago, Ted¡¯s gift decided to show up. A bit later than normal, but he adjusted pretty well. He and his brother Matt do local shows together. Jumping mostly.¡±


    Susan looked at her sister in amusement, ¡°And you encourage it?¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Meredith, her eyes twinkling in amusement. ¡°Lets me live vicariously through my kids and all since I never got the genes right. You know, come to think of it, Ted looks a lot like Sam when he¡¯s in horse form. I wonder¡­¡±If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    ¡°Hmm?¡±


    ¡°Ted, how¡¯d you like to come with me to Massachusetts for a few weeks? Give your cousin a hand with a problem or two. It¡¯s summer vacation, and Dad could probably spare you, if that¡¯s okay with the two of you.¡±


    Uncle Peter nodded.


    ¡°Sure,¡± said Ted, ¡°What can I do?


    ¡°Pretend to be Sam in horse form so we can fool this chaser,¡± said Meredith. ¡°If he sees Laura with you and Sam leading F¨¢ilte, it¡¯ll take the heat off him as the suspect at least.¡±


    ¡°True,¡± said Susan. ¡°That could work pretty well. Plus Ted is used to carrying a rider, so he¡¯ll be steadier if he has to carry you. I think it will work. In fact, I think I may tag along for a few days. I had been planning a surprise visit to see my offspring before I headed back anyway.¡±


    Sam snorted and pawed the ground shaking his head irritably. Meredith smiled and undid the tack, brushing Sam lightly with a dandy brush before letting him go off to change and dress himself. Moments later, he reappeared, still buttoning his shirt.


    ¡°Can¡¯t say no, can I?¡± he asked with a rueful smile.


    His mother smiled angelically at him.


    ¡°Not with a bit in your mouth, you can¡¯t,¡± she said. ¡°Do you have room for all of us?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll manage,¡± said Sam. ¡°Besides, I¡¯ll get to catch up with Teddy and hear all about his show jumping. Maybe I will take up dressage, now that the whole family has lost their minds.¡±


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t try it, mister,¡± said Susan in a mock-threatening tone. ¡°Just because my sister¡¯s kids have lost their minds does not mean that my son is going to lose his too.¡±


    Sam snorted but he shot me a look that seemed to say, ¡°Challenge accepted?¡± I gave a brief nod and trouped back inside with everyone else for what turned out to be a very homey evening and later, a comfortable bed to share with Sam.


    ¡°Guess what?¡± he said. ¡°Welcome to the family.¡±


    ¡°How do you know that I¡¯m okay by them?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Meredith has plenty of guest rooms. If she didn¡¯t approve, we wouldn¡¯t be staying in the same room.¡±


    ¡°Ah, I see,¡± I mused. ¡°I mean, we¡¯ve spent plenty of nights together before, so I guess I didn¡¯t give the room assignments a thought. This has been a very strange turn of events for one day.¡±


    ¡°Exactly,¡± said Sam, turning out the light. ¡°And a bit overwhelming to boot. It¡¯s going to take me a while to get used to the idea of tack. I¡¯m not thrilled, but I can see the advantages.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m just worried that I¡¯m going to end up hurting you,¡± I said, curling up in the crook of his arm.


    ¡°Well, you are kind of bossy, and I am handing you the reins, literally. You¡¯ll get used to it.¡±


    ¡°Bossy!¡± I exclaimed. ¡°I¡¯ll show you who¡¯s bossy!¡±


    I leaned in and kissed him hard. He responded by flipping me over and suddenly his lean body was on top of mine. We both froze and looked at each other in the dim light of the room, unsure of what to do or if we were about to push a boundary that the other one wasn¡¯t ready for. Sam raised a hand and stroked my cheek, gently pushing back my hair from my face.  I looked up at him, willing him to see that I was fully accepting him for who and what he was.


    ¡°Is it okay?¡± he murmured. ¡°You¡¯re not just reacting to this afternoon, are you?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said back. ¡°No, it¡¯s time.¡±


    He rolled to the side and divested of the last of his clothing. I did the same. The rest of the night was a long, slow exploration that left neither of us with any doubts about our compatibility as partners.


    We got back to Andover about 1:00 the next day to an enthusiastic cat and a couple of missed calls on the landline. Sam had gone back to his house with his mother while Meredith and Ted had gone over to Meredith¡¯s friend¡¯s house to get the little mare settled in. They¡¯d return later that night to Sam¡¯s house where we¡¯d all be meeting to have a solid supper and a planning session. Sarah went to take a shower and when she was done, we settled in to some well-needed housekeeping chores. Dishes needed doing, clothes needed washing, and the small dust bunnies of cat fur had doubled in size over the last few days. It didn¡¯t take much cat to make dust bunnies breed like crazy.


    Finally about five o¡¯clock, we got in the car and went over to Sam¡¯s. The house seemed way too busy, what with his aunt, cousin, and mother there. His cousin was in the kitchen, cooking. This apparently was Teddy¡¯s other new skill. His was a purely gustatory infatuation, but he was all about experimenting with different spices and flavors. By the time we got there, there was some sort of pasta going with a home made sauce that was a reduction of this or a roux of that¡­I was honestly so lost after the first sentence that I just contented myself with smelling, and later eating, the wonderful food.


    After dinner, we sat down to try to figure out what Jarrett¡¯s, if that was his real name, plan was. He had obviously been watching us for a few days at least. The field by the cabin had a gate near it that was usually locked, but it gave a clear view of the meadow for anyone who drove by. Our best guess was that Jarrett had driven by one day, assuming he lived in the area as he claimed, and had stumbled upon us playing in the field. It would have been easy to find us again as we had kept close to the same time ¨C foolishly on our part ¨C and then just wait for the right day to come speak to us.


    Our best guesses as to who he was were varied. He was, at worst, a member of the Boston group of Mystery Seekers, as it turned out they called themselves. At best, he was an overly nosey neighbor who had noticed something odd about the chestnut stallion he had seen playing in the field and had decided to investigate.  Either way, he had tried to gain more information about us. Susan surmised that he might have seen me with the horse in the field and driven around to see me come out with a man. That might have been enough to spark his curiosity into spying on us.


    ¡°We¡¯ve only been going on Wednesday evenings and on weekend afternoons,¡± said Sam thoughtfully. ¡°We could go other times, but he might miss us. Also, how can we get F¨¢ilte in without parking a horse trailer in the circle?¡±


    ¡°We could park it on Judson Street,¡± said Sarah. ¡°It¡¯s a dead end, and there is a trail that leads around Rabbit¡¯s Pond and right to the Sanctuary. That should be no problem. He could even follow us back there to see the horse trailer, and there would be the evidence.¡±


    ¡°Brilliant,¡± said Meredith and looked pointedly at Teddy. ¡°You think you can handle riding in the trailer?¡±


    ¡°I think I can manage, yes,¡± he said, and grinned. ¡°We¡¯ll give him something to see.¡±


    ¡°Remember,¡± said Susan. ¡°We are not out to hurt him, just trick him into thinking Sam is a normal human being. Run in the field, play with Laura, and come to her when called. Otherwise, act like a horse. No heroics.¡±


    ¡°I got it,¡± said Teddy. ¡°Same as I do with Matt. Horse. Big like rock, hard like rock, dumb like rock.¡±


    ¡°Not too dumb, please,¡± I said. ¡°I get enough of that at work.¡±


    ¡°Speaking of which,¡± said Sarah, ¡°we all have work in the morning. I think we need to head home if we are going to have any chance of being coherent tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Agreed. Do we want to try tomorrow evening?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Let¡¯s stick to the schedule and go Wednesday,¡± said Sam.


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Meredith with an evil cackle. ¡°And tomorrow, we can practice riding lessons.¡±


    ¡°Oh, joy,¡± said Sam.


    Teddy poked him with an elbow.


    ¡°If I can do it, you can, Coz,¡± he said.


    Sam grimaced and walked us to the door.


    ¡°See you then,¡± he said, kissing me goodnight.

 Chapter 9 - Montana

    Nothing happened for the first few days of our plan, and although I enjoyed my walks with Sam through the sanctuary and playing with Teddy in the field while Sam practiced some fancy maneuvers with F¨¢ilte under saddle, we saw no signs of Jarrett. It wasn¡¯t until the following Saturday, over a week later, that the strange man made another appearance.


    Teddy and I were really getting into a good game of tag in the big field, the first we¡¯d been able to have as there had been events at the cabin the previous few times we¡¯d been through. He was in a very silly mood that day, and he bounced from right to left as fast as he could go, dodging my outstretched hand by inches, and darting back in, teasingly just out of reach. Sam stood back a-ways with F¨¢ilte, stroking her neck and laughing at the two of us. Teddy suddenly thudded his feet down solidly in front of me, snorting and tossing his head, eyes focused behind me towards the trail. I grabbed his halter, clipping the lead onto the ring, and turned to see Jarrett walking down towards us.


    ¡°And here you are again,¡± he said, smiling.


    Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sam start to walk over to join me, leading the mare gently by the reins.  Jarrett nodded in Sam¡¯s direction, and stopped.


    ¡°I came down hoping to get to see you playing with your horse again, and here you are,¡± he said. ¡°How are you this fair day?¡±


    ¡°Well,¡± I said shortly. ¡°Except that you¡¯ve once again disturbed our fun.¡±


    ¡°Well, yes, I suppose I have,¡± he said, not sounding too contrite. ¡°It isn¡¯t often though that you get to see such a pretty sight as a horse at liberty.¡±


    He turned to Sam and smiled.


    ¡°I take it your horse is not so calm off the lead?¡± he asked.


    ¡°Not usually, no,¡± said Sam. ¡°She¡¯s pretty good, but I need to practice with her more than play.¡±


    ¡°I see,¡± said Jarrett. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll come to the point. I¡¯m looking for someone who has a good relationship with horses to help me track down something. Have you seen any other unusual horses around? I heard a rumor that one got loose in town and was seen by many people before disappearing. People said it was reddish, like yours, but that they have no idea where it went. Has yours ever escaped?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± I said, truthfully, as I patted Teddy on the neck. ¡°He¡¯s never taken off or been loose in town while I¡¯ve had him. I did hear about this one you mention, though.¡±


    ¡°Hmm,¡± Jarrett said. ¡°I assume you would know. Is there a vet in town who works with horses closely?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m one of the town vets. I don¡¯t,¡± said Sam, ¡°but I think that Dr. Schaffer out at River Road Veterinary does, though.¡±


    ¡°Ah,¡± smiled Jarrett. ¡°You must be Dr. Winston. Glad to meet you. Dr. Schaffer, you say? I¡¯ll have to check him out. I¡¯m looking to get a horse, you see, and need a vet who understands the unique needs of horses.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s the one I¡¯d recommend. We go to a specialist down towards Boston; a Dr. Francois Jules. He¡¯s very good, but a bit of a trip. Still, we¡¯ve known him for years, and he makes house calls. We went to school together.¡±


    I looked at Sam like he¡¯d lost his mind, but he just smiled as if there was nothing at all weird about his commentary. Jarrett, too, looked puzzled, but nodded.


    ¡°I¡¯ll have to keep him in mind,¡± he said. ¡°Well, I won¡¯t keep you any longer.¡±


    With that, Jarrett turned and wandered away towards the path that curved out the long way. We watched him go, and then I turned to Sam to see him grinning ear to ear.


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Oh, nothing,¡± he said. ¡°I called Francois a few days ago in preparation for this. He looks after some of the city¡¯s horses, as well as some of those in some of the more glamorous suburbs. He was more than happy to do me a good turn as he knows how much I value my privacy and he values his. He also told me that he has gotten a number of odd calls down his way as of late. His family is from the Beacon Hill district¡­nice people, old money¡­ anyway, they are not big believers in spreading rumors or entertaining fools. He said he¡¯s shut down a few requests for comments on odd sightings, not that any of our folk live in the city. He basically tells them to go read the tabloids and hangs up on them. He said they stopped calling about a month ago.¡±


    ¡°That might be why Jarrett walked away so fast,¡± I said. ¡°If they¡¯d ruled him out, then they¡¯d have no reason to suspect him.¡±


    We began to walk back towards the front gate, taking our time and ambling down the path to the lower dam, and then wending our way back up the hill. Teddy tried to move a little faster, but I reminded him that we had to give Jarrett time to get into place to follow us. He heaved a sigh and fell back into a slow walk with impatience.


    When we reached the crossroads, there was no sign of Jarrett, but then again, we didn¡¯t look too hard. We headed out the main gate and then swung up onto the little trail beside the pond. The way was narrow and full of tree roots jutting out of the soil, but we made fairly good time, getting back to where we parked the truck and trailer for the last few days after asking the neighbors of they would mind. No one had a problem with it, and some of the neighborhood kids always seemed to be on hand when we got back to come and say hi to the horses. One of them, a pretty girl of about sixteen, always came over with sugar cubes, and it was all we could do to keep Teddy from shape shifting on the spot to talk to her. He swore that he would get a chance to meet her eventually.


    Sure enough, there were several kids hanging around when we got back, and they came over to talk to us. The sixteen-year-old was not among them, but the other kids had brought carrots and were happily feeding the horses as we had taught them to from flat palms. F¨¢ilte was very delicate with the offerings, and Teddy made sure not to take more than his share.


    Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted movement up in the woods. I couldn¡¯t be sure, but I thought it was Jarrett, spying on us to the last. We put F¨¢ilte and Teddy in the trailer and drove back to Jo¡¯s. No one followed us.


    What followed were several months of relative calm. Meredith and Teddy eventually left to go back home, and Sarah and I completed our separate moves. Our Monday night gatherings continued, however, at Sam¡¯s house usually, though Tim and Sarah hosted a few good-naturedly as a trade-off. I was still adjusting to living with Sam, and we had found that, finances permitting, we might be able to find a larger place if things continued to work out between us. In the meantime, we both saved what we weren¡¯t spending with that eventual goal in mind and made plans for a trip to Montana in mid-September.


    We also still made occasional trips to the Bird Sanctuary, though we had taken to driving over to Jo¡¯s back field as we had her blessing to use it for riding practice whenever we liked. On one occasion when Jo wasn¡¯t home, we played tag in the field for a while and then settled down in the late afternoon sun, resting comfortably together as we had that interrupted day when Jarrett had first found us. The peace in that field was so calming and so lulling that I fell asleep on Sam¡¯s silken side, and it wasn¡¯t until almost dark that he roused me so we could head home.


    There had been no other rumors of the Mystery Seekers hunting in our area, but we kept our wits about us anyway. Because we didn¡¯t have a horse trailer for Sam, we managed to find out-of-the-way places to change in Andover by being very, very circumspect. Other times, we drove up north, primarily on visits to my folks who had by now had met and decided they adored Sam, but also to go to some of the remote parks I knew in upper New Hampshire. In the meantime, we kept an eye out for a small farm or other secluded property that we could look into eventually purchasing. There was nothing in Andover within a price range we felt we could afford, so we began to expand the search out further.


    September finally rolled around and with it came the preparation for our trip to Montana. We were only going for a week, but there was so much to do to prep for it. Sarah would be coming over to check on Sam¡¯s cat Micha, there was the vet who would be taking Sam¡¯s emergency cases for him to make arrangements with, and there were also plenty of things I had to finish up at work before I left. It wasn¡¯t until the night before we the trip that I finally admitted how nervous I was to be going to visit his family.


    ¡°Wow,¡± he said. ¡°I never thought about it. I mean, we¡¯ve been to visit your family and that was a bit unnerving for me, but I figured that as you¡¯ve met my mother, it wouldn¡¯t be so bad.¡±


    ¡°Remember again how many people you said live there?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Only about ten at the main ranch,¡± he said. ¡°Then about twenty or so more scattered around the region¡­Yeah, okay, I see what you might mean. I¡¯ll try to get the word to them not to all mob you at the same time.¡±


    I snuggled up against him, and he stroked my hair as we lay in the dark.


    ¡°Do you think Jarrett and his group have given up?¡± I said.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    ¡°No,¡± he sighed. ¡°I think we¡¯ve been granted a reprieve for a time, is all. If we¡¯re lucky, they¡¯re convinced enough to leave us be while they look elsewhere. If not, they are planning to try to catch us somehow. We just haven¡¯t been consistent enough for them.¡±


    ¡°Still want to do dressage?¡± I teased. ¡°That would certainly throw them off.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about that,¡± he said. ¡°I think it could be a lot of work, but potentially really fun too. I figure we¡¯ll talk to a few people while we¡¯re on our trip home. See what they think.¡±


    ¡°Your mom will have a field day,¡± I said.


    ¡°She might at that,¡± he laughed. ¡°We¡¯ll just have to see.¡±


    The flight to Montana was uneventful, thankfully, and we picked up our rental car once we arrived to begin the long three-hour drive to the ranch. Sam drove while I gawked at the scenery. The land was a lot of open space once we were outside of the city of Billings, and the longer we drove, the more sparsely populated the land became. The further north we went, the more mountainous it became, but the more sky also became visible.


    We passed through a few small towns and even these became less evident the further we went. Big ranches began to take over the scenery, and we eventually got to a point where it was mostly wildlife and road signs. I saw at least one pronghorn antelope on a far hill looking down at us, and eagles and other birds of prey were everywhere. Sam seemed to relax the further we drove, and I felt like I could breathe without looking over my shoulder for the first time in a long while. The land out there was different than anything I had ever known. It was not so much sparse as untouched. There just weren¡¯t that many people. We didn¡¯t even pass that many cars after the first hour, and once we edged onto a secondary road two hours into the drive, I don¡¯t think we saw anyone for the rest way.


    I was dozing when Sam stopped the car outside of a big iron gate that was set into a very long fence. He got out, opened the padlock with a key, and swung the gate wide. Once through the gate, he stopped again to relock it, then drove on down a long, winding dirt road through what appeared to be miles and miles of pasturelands. Groups of horses grazed on the hills or dozed in the shade under irregular stands of trees that spotted the landscape.


    ¡°Are they horses or your people?¡± I asked Sam.


    Sam smiled.


    ¡°They are horses,¡± he said. ¡°We raise roping stock, mostly quarter horses, so that when we do go out for a run, we tend to blend in. I am guessing that most of my people are up at the ranch proper, getting ready for our visit. I don¡¯t get home often, so you may get a bit inundated today. The word is that there will be a big supper tonight with pretty much the whole clan. It¡¯ll be smaller groups the rest of the time, never fear. I told Mom that it might be a little much for you, but she said that one big gathering had to happen for everyone to meet you.¡±


    The car rounded a hill, and we suddenly were faced with a long, low ranch house that seemed to go on endlessly. Nestled as it was just below the rise, it nevertheless offered a great view of the surrounding landscape and would have a clear line of sight almost all the way to the gate. Out in front of this house stood a fairly large crowd of people. I recognized Susan right off and was also pleased to see Meredith and her husband, along with Teddy and the other children as well. The sight of familiar faces cheered me immeasurably as I had not been sure if I would know anyone else aside from Susan. Meredith and I had hit it off well, and I found I had missed Teddy too.


    ¡°It is a family reunion,¡± said Sam with a smile. ¡°They don¡¯t come every year, but this year, they wanted to see how you got on with the rest of the family.¡±


    He pulled the car to a stop behind a late model pick-up with Wyoming plates and got out of the car. I climbed out into the bright, somewhat chilly afternoon sun a little stiffly, and found myself swarmed with people and children of all ages. Then Meredith was at my elbow, and she introduced me around, seeing that Sam was in no way going to disentangle himself from the crazy hoard of young people surrounding him any time soon.


    ¡°Is it always like this?¡± I asked Meredith in an undertone.


    She laughed and nodded, then introduced me to more people. I turned at one point and found the whole group that had surrounded Sam had disappeared along with my boyfriend. I looked at Meredith who pointed over across from the ranch at a group of horses running across the grassy expanse. I could see two distinct copper horses running in the midst of the group and thought I could tell Teddy from Sam, but only just.


    ¡°It¡¯s a cousin thing,¡± she said. ¡°Kind of like hazing. When a newly changed family member arrives, they strip him down and everyone races off together. This is Teddy¡¯s first year of being here able to change. They waited for Sam, though, so it would be more fun or some such rationale.¡±


    I could hear a slight wistfulness in Meredith¡¯s voice along with a sense of pride in her son¡¯s change. Her younger children looked somewhat crestfallen at being excluded from the fun, but hopeful that they too might one day join in. Susan put a hand on Meredith¡¯s shoulder, and they all watched the horses gallop across the hilltops, bucking and charging playfully at each other.


    ¡°Come on,¡± said Susan, looking at her sister and the others who had either not elected to or been able to join in the fun. ¡°Let¡¯s go on inside. Laura, grab your bags and we¡¯ll get you settled into the room you and Sam will share. You¡¯ll get to rest a few while he¡¯s off playing. Once you¡¯re all set, come down for coffee with us. There is always a pot of coffee on here. That¡¯s one of the rules of the reunion. Never let the coffee run out.¡±


    I grabbed my bags and followed Susan into the ranch house. It was very rustic with a lot of split wood beams and elk rugs on the floor and walls. The main room was a sunken living room with a huge circle of couches in the center. A massive fireplace took up one whole wall and a large fire crackled brightly in it, throwing off some welcome warmth. Susan led me around the rim of the room, up a set of stairs, and half way round a balcony to a door which she opened to reveal a large bedroom with a walk-in closet and queen sized bed.


    ¡°Make yourself at home,¡± she said, turning to go. ¡°We¡¯ll be down in the dining room ¨C it¡¯s just off the living room.¡±


    I unpacked quickly and went downstairs to grab a cup of the coffee I could smell all the way upstairs. The dining room was another open concept room, and there was a huge carafe of coffee standing on a side table filled with cups, spoons, and various fixings. I put together a large cup and went to sit down with Meredith, her husband, and about seven other people I didn¡¯t know. I was quickly introduced around to the others, all of them married to or in relationships with family members, and was very quickly drawn in to their group as they were recounting the same problems we had been having with the branches of the Mystery Seekers in their areas.


    ¡°So our solution has been to find a house with a barn in our area,¡± said one woman from California by the name of Sherri. ¡°I can¡¯t think of anything else that will work. We¡¯re currently saving for a nice little ranch near Ojai. Everything around there is gated anyway, so no one will think the need for privacy is odd.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re looking into a similar solution down in Jersey,¡± said a man by the name of Paul. ¡°It¡¯s just that everything there is so expensive and anything we can afford seems to be right on top of someone else¡¯s land. No privacy in that.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s our problem as well,¡± I said. ¡°Sam would love to stay in Andover, but it costs so much to live there.¡±


    Meredith smiled sadly.


    ¡°That is the one worry I didn¡¯t used to have,¡± she said, ¡°though now with Teddy, that is not the case any more. We¡¯ve got enough space, but there are enough regulars who show up at the barn that if we suddenly had an extra horse one day, they might question it. As it is, Teddy and Matt only practice in the evening, but often it is too dark. We¡¯re discussing putting up an indoor riding arena, but that costs a lot too.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the choice between college and an arena at this point,¡± said Peter, looking at his wife. ¡°The boys will tell you that the arena is more important, but I would tend to disagree. Although having an indoor arena would mean we could do late classes a few times a week and bring in more money. We could also hold classes during inclement weather, so the trade off might be worth it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s getting worse out here too,¡± said another woman who had introduced herself as Nef. ¡°John and I went riding trails over in Lewis and Clark a few weeks ago, and there was a truck parked near the entrance that followed our car for a while, then veered off. I didn¡¯t think much of it until later when we had parked in a nice secluded spot and headed up onto the trails. We came out near the top of some of those bluffs where you can see everything and looked down to see that same car parked on an overlook and a guy with binoculars scanning everything. He spotted our car and sat watching it for at least forty minutes while we watched him. John had transformed back so we could get under cover easier if need be ¨C we were only using a bareback pad and a hackamore, so easy enough to just stick them into the back pack, you know? This guy then drove down to where we had parked and started snooping around, looking at the ground. Eventually, he got back in his car and drove away, at which point we got back down to the car as fast as we could. I¡¯m just thankful that Jon waited to transform until we were a good mile down the trail from the car. We managed not to run into him again when we left, but it was pretty tense.¡±


    Susan had come in halfway through the discussion and sat with her hands steepled in front of her, saying nothing as she listened. Finally she nodded.


    ¡°We are not alone in these problems,¡± she said finally. ¡°We are going to have a meeting tonight to talk about this further, and I¡¯ve invited a couple of other leaders here to join the discussion. I¡¯ve been in touch with some of the other shapeshifting groups in the area. We¡¯ve agreed we need to meet.¡±


    Meredith looked at her sister in surprise.


    ¡°Which ones?¡± she asked.


    ¡°All of them,¡± said Susan. ¡°The wolves, bison, puma, elk, bear¡­all of them.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that a little bit rash?¡± asked Nef. ¡°We know they consider us just one step shy of invaders here.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Susan. ¡°But we need to consult with them too. They are in as much danger as we are¡­more, really. We can at least pretend to be something innocuous.¡±


    A commotion at the door caught everyone¡¯s attention, and a rowdy group of the recently transformed, men and women alike, came through the door cheering and shouting. Their exuberance was contagious, and everyone joined in their conversation and their joy. Eventually things settled back down, and we all moved into the living room where Susan caught everyone else up to the upcoming meeting. The mood became sober at once and several of the older men looked ill-at-ease.


    ¡°Remember two years ago when I had a run in with that puma shifter?¡± asked one of the men, pointing at the scar that ran across his nose. ¡°Not saying we¡¯re tame or nothing, but this was not a picnic.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m aware,¡± said Susan calmly. ¡°They want to meet as much as we do. None of them are feral animals. They¡¯ve had to tighten their own security and create new rules too. None of us are alone in this.¡±


    ¡°When are they due to show up?¡± asked one of the other men whom I did not know.


    ¡°At seven tonight,¡± Susan replied. ¡°I thought we should all be here, human and horse alike. They need to know that we do have human allies.¡±


    A lot of muttering ensued, but no one really seemed to question the necessity of the gathering. Sam came over to sit with me, and we quietly watched the others. Meredith and Peter moved to join us, and eventually everyone¡¯s spirits came back up. Teddy and Matt went out to go riding, and Sam and I found ourselves immersed in a conversation with Nef and her husband about rodeo roping. They were tickled when we mentioned dressage, and we were given a lot of pointers on how to manage being around crowds and not giving away that Sam was human. I saw Susan listening on the edge of our group, and she simply winked at me before moving out into the kitchen to help with preparing the evening meal.

 Chapter 10 - The Other Clans

    It was much later, almost seven, when several cars pulled up into the driveway. Sam and I had been out on the porch watching the evening roll slowly in as the cars had arrived. The last car belonged to the ranch and contained several family members who had let the others in at the gate. Sam and I rose and watched the other shapeshifters getting out of their cars. There seemed to be some established order in who came out first, and there was a great deal of tension between the first two groups to reach the doors. One of them looked at me and snarled like an angry cat.


    ¡°Humans?¡± he spat. ¡°Here?¡±


    Susan appeared at the doorway, and the speaker subsided, glancing at her and then away in deferred challenge.


    ¡°Our people have often taken human partners to keep the bloodline from becoming too staid,¡± said Susan firmly. ¡°They have as much at stake with their mates in danger as you do, Natrix.¡±


    The shapeshifter glowered, then entered the house under Susan¡¯s glare. The next group consisted of three heavily built, shaggy men who gave the impression of having horns even without showing their forms. Susan greeted them cordially, and then followed several others who I guessed were bears, wolves, and eagles from the way Susan addressed them. The eagles looked around keenly, and their movements were decidedly more birdlike. The wolves moved with an economy of power, and the bears lumbered. Last were several graceful men and women who Sam whispered were the cervid clans ¨C elks, moose, and deer.


    When they were all inside, Susan ushered us to the living room. All of the adults were in the room, but the children had been taken to the big family room on the other end of the house. Teddy was probably the youngest member in the living room, and he seemed nervous to be there.


    ¡°Welcome,¡± said Susan. ¡°I realize this is sudden, but the problem has been growing as of late, and I felt that this meeting was well overdue. We are not here to talk about you changing anything in regards to your sovereignty. Your lands and beliefs remain your own. We want to share what we know about these Mystery Seekers as they are after all of us. Percival, could you please recount to us what happened to you last week that prompted your call to me?¡±


    One of the bearlike men stood and looked around at the others.


    ¡°I found a man stalking me,¡± he said. ¡°He was armed with a tranquilizer gun and seemed to know our trails with ridiculous ease. I managed to get behind him and knock him out; took a look at his belongings. He had maps, photos of us as animals and men, names¡­We have not been careful enough, my friends.¡±


    ¡°Did you kill him?¡± asked one of the wolf clan, calmly but with a touch of steel under his breath.


    ¡°No,¡± said Percival. ¡°I left him without his possessions but alive. Here.¡±


    The big man put a backpack and a gun onto the table in front of everyone and proceeded to pull out photos from the bag, spreading them out around the table. Several people apparently recognized themselves or family members in the photos as there were a number of grumbles and outraged noises.


    ¡°Well,¡± rumbled one of the other cat clan members, ¡°this is unexpected. How do we deal with this? None of us have seen them, but they have obviously seen us.¡±


    ¡°We can move,¡± muttered one of the buffalo clan. ¡°Herds are always on the move. The rest of you, though, may not be so lucky.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said another of the wolf clan. ¡°We have homes nearby here.¡±


    ¡°We thought you might like to know,¡± said Susan. ¡°We are facing the same problems you are. Our only saving grace is that we can pretend to be regular horses, and we live on this ranch. Other than that, we are in the same position. Not all of our members live here. Those who live on the East Coast are having problems finding a place to change, and there has already been one incident where my son lost control and changed in the center of town. We were lucky that it was his mate who found him, but it could have been worse and reports of a loose horse got back to this group causing a number of problems.¡±


    The other shapeshifters looked around at each other in surprise.


    ¡°This is more serious than we imagined,¡± said one of the eaglemen, looking sharply at Susan. ¡°What can we do?¡±


    ¡°The only solution is to look out for each other,¡± said Susan. ¡°Until this is over, put aside petty differences and work together to keep them from finding any of us.¡±


    ¡°We can ask the corbies to help,¡± said one of the wolf clan. ¡°They are often our eyes and ears while hunting. They would benefit from this as well.¡±


    ¡°We can agree to this,¡± said one of the cat clan, ¡°until the clans are safe again. A truce?¡±


    ¡°Truce,¡± agreed the others one at a time. ¡°Truce.¡±


    Susan nodded her agreement as well.


    ¡°We¡¯ll need a plan to tell the others,¡± said one of the eagles, a young man light of build, but muscled like an acrobat. ¡°The corbies are the most urban of our groups. They can get the word out most effectively, I think, to others in the cities. Not all of my people live up here, Susan. Some do live close to or in the cities, especially around the Great Lakes area. We can put out the word that we will be helping the other clans, get the message to the various loners.¡±


    ¡°I think we might also alert our brothers in other countries,¡± said one of the wolves, a woman with a hungry look to her. ¡°After all, this might be a coordinated effort.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    The others nodded in agreement, and they broke into their various clans to make lists of who to contact of their kin. Several members of the groups cast uneasy glances at me and the other human family members. Susan and Sam exchanged a look, and Sam signaled to me to follow him to the dining room. The seven other human partners joined us, barring Meredith and those born into the clan. Sam gave me a hug and returned to the living room. The rest of us looked around at each other with worried eyes.


    ¡°This affects us too,¡± said one of the men who I had met briefly earlier whose name I couldn¡¯t recall. ¡°We have almost as much at stake as they do. We all love our partners, and I can¡¯t help but think that we would not fare well if they are caught either.¡±


    ¡°Well, what can we do?¡± asked Sherri, getting herself a cup of coffee and sitting down at the big table.  I also grabbed a cup as the rest of the human partners took their seats.


    ¡°For one, we need to find allies,¡± said Paul, whose name I did remember. ¡°We need to have people we know will back us. Those we can trust who are in a position to do the most good.¡±


    ¡°Still, that means we have to figure out who to trust,¡± said the first man. ¡°I am not sure I know too many who I would trust with Mary¡¯s safety.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the problem,¡± I said. ¡°We all have one or two friends who we can trust, but mostly we can¡¯t be sure. My friend Sarah was with me when I found out about Sam, but as for telling anyone else? I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    ¡°There you are,¡± said Sherri.


    We all looked around at each other for a few long minutes before one of the other women spoke up.


    ¡°Suppose we can get someone into one of the groups?¡± she said. ¡°You know, get a spy into the midst of these Mystery Seekers and find out what they really know or don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a possibility,¡± said another man; Bob, I recalled suddenly, was his name. He steepled his fingers in front of his face and looked thoughtful. ¡°It can¡¯t be one of us, though. Too risky.¡±


    ¡°I have a friend,¡± said Paul slowly, ¡°who would be perfect for this. He¡¯s a conspiracy nut to begin with, and he absolutely adores Sarah. I think we could get him to do it.¡±


    ¡°We might also consider having a private Facebook page where we could discuss this,¡± Sherri said. ¡°Obviously not list anyone of ours by name, per se, but something where we could pass on information to each other.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll have to wait until we¡¯ve talked to everyone else after the meeting,¡± said the woman who had spoken about getting into the group. ¡°It¡¯s not a bad idea though. We can establish a group list now, and pass the info on to the others though our partners.¡±


    She pulled out a notebook from the satchel she had with her, and everyone wrote his or her Facebook name down. We all read the names to familiarize ourselves with who was who, and then she put the notebook away and we sat listening to the murmuring of voices from the other room for a few minutes in silence.


    ¡°What do you think about them?¡± I asked finally. ¡°You know, the other shapeshifters?¡±


    ¡°They make me uneasy,¡± said Barb, the woman who had started the list. ¡°They are distinctly more alien than our folk.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t let them fool you about the no humans thing,¡± said Paul. ¡°Sarah is friends with one of the corbies near Chicago. That boy, Greg by name, has women and men around all the time, and they are all human. Crow shapeshifters are pretty gregarious, but because there aren¡¯t many of them, they hang out with humans a lot. Greg has mentioned that quite a few of the Osprey and Eagles that he knows also take human partners. I think because the cats are so solitary, they just don¡¯t get into meeting many other people, though it happens. The wolves and deer folk do, though, and some of them also have human mates. A lot more of them live in the cities than they let on.¡±


    ¡°Our mates are much more with keeping us informed, though,¡± said Sherri. ¡°I have a friend who is with a bear shifter. A lot of them don¡¯t tell their mates ever. Those that do tend to keep them from meeting the other members of their clan. It¡¯s both protection and politics.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s so strange,¡± said Barb. ¡°I mean, I¡¯m used to the horse politics, I guess, but not those of the other clans.¡±


    ¡°I know what you mean,¡± said Tom, the first man who had spoken. ¡° Fran and I have been together ten years. I get what goes on around here now so well that I think I understand the herd better than my own family sometimes. The other clans are so alien.¡±


    ¡°Can you imagine what lion shapeshifters would be like? Or hyenas?¡± laughed Sherri.


    ¡°Eww,¡± said Barb. ¡°No, I think I¡¯ll pass on dating a hyena.¡±


    ¡°Vulture?¡± laughed Dean.


    ¡°Are you being speciesist?¡± asked Paul with a twinkle in his eye.


    Bob groaned, ¡°Oh, not that. Anything but that.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked curiously.


    ¡°We have friends who are vegan,¡± Paul explained. ¡°And they constantly lecture us about eating other animals and treating animals inhumanely. One of them met us in the park while I was riding Sarah one day and proceeded to harangue me about how ill-treated my poor mare was and how it as animal slavery. When we got back to where Sarah could become human again, she was torn between laughing and calling her friend to rip her a new one. We settled on just ignoring the outburst, but Sarah is still irritated with her.¡±


    ¡°But still,¡± said Nef, ¡°when I do rodeo with John, I still end up getting lectures from some animal lovers about how ill-treated my poor gelding is. They never bother to check to see that he¡¯s actually a stallion, by the way; they just assume that he¡¯s been gelded. John has occasionally threatened to piss on their shoes for me.¡±


    We all laughed at that, and looked around at each other in something akin to wonder.


    ¡°Sometimes,¡± said Dean, ¡°I have a hard time believing my luck. I mean, I¡¯m an odd duck to begin with, not only being a gay man, but being partnered with one of the few gay stallions out there. Then I think about how very lucky I am to know about this part of reality to begin with, and I¡¯m awestruck, ya know?¡±


    Everyone nodded and we sat silently for a few moments, absorbing it all.


    ¡°Paul,¡± said Nef, breaking the silence finally. Do you really think your friend can pull it off? And is he trustworthy?¡±


    Paul sat up straighter and nodded.


    ¡°I believe so,¡± he said. ¡°Steve has known us for years, and he is solid. He also could charm birds from the trees, so I think that if we approached him the right way, he could get us some pretty good information.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s worth a shot,¡± said Sherri.


    At that moment, Susan, Sam, and the mates of the others entered the dining room. Behind them, the sounds of starting engines could be heard as the other clans left.


    ¡°They are going,¡± Susan said. ¡°They want to get back and begin getting the word out to their people as soon as possible. I¡¯m sorry we asked you to leave, but a lot of them really don¡¯t trust humans.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s okay,¡± said Paul, glancing at his wife. ¡°We have been making some of our own plans.¡±


    He explained his ideas to the newcomers, and there was a lot of nodding at the ideas. Susan didn¡¯t look completely convinced but looked willing to consider them.


    ¡°Paul is right,¡± said Sarah. ¡°Steve is the perfect spy. I trust him more than any human I know, present company excluded, and he will not do us wrong.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± said Susan finally. ¡°We¡¯ll put this together. I do think that it is good that you have more of a network of information than we do, and if you folks want to run it, then do so. Keep us posted what you find out, and we can plan from there.

 Chapter 11 - Revelation

    It was several days later when we left the ranch and began the trip home. The drive to the airport was long, but once on the plane, I fell asleep and didn¡¯t wake until we had landed safely back at Logan. Sarah met us at the terminal, and the three of us rode back to Andover with Sam and I giving an account of the last few days. Sarah listened and when we were through, cleared her throat hesitantly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t think we should tell Tim,¡± she said quietly.


    ¡°What?¡± I asked. ¡°What brought this on?¡±


    ¡°I dunno,¡± she said. ¡°I mean, the last few weeks, he¡¯s seemed a little off, but I attributed that to having to work overtime. The other night when he came home, I was doing a load of wash, and I pulled a brochure out of his pocket. It was for Mystery Seekers and when I asked him what it was about, he said that the same guy from before had come in, and they had fallen to talking. Turns out that it was our friend Jarrett. It¡¯s like he knew that Tim was somehow connected to us, and was staking him out for some reason. Anyway, he invited Tim to go to a meeting, and Tim seems kind of interested.¡±


    We sat and digested the information for a few minutes, trying to understand how to dissuade Tim from following the path he had seemingly chosen for himself. Sarah seemed crushed. The person she loved the most had now become one of the people we had the most to worry about.


    ¡°Are we still all having dinner tonight?¡± I asked.


    ¡°That was our plan, yes,¡± said Sarah.


    ¡°Well, maybe we can talk some sense into him,¡± I said cheerfully.


    ¡°I hope so,¡± said Sarah glumly as she pulled onto I-93 North. ¡°Otherwise, I don¡¯t know what I¡¯ll do.¡±


    Sam and I arrived at Tim and Sarah¡¯s at 7:00 that night, pretty much right on time. We had gotten home and unpacked fairly quickly. Sam had called his mother to let her know the latest development, and then we had driven over to Jo¡¯s field to do some riding practice.  Sam had been unusually jumpy on the ride to Jo¡¯s and had made several turns and detours before finally pulling into the back field. When we got there, we ended up not even taking the tack out of the back of the car, but instead just walked around the field talking for a while. Several times, Sam had looked over towards the road, but I saw no one and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Finally, an hour later, we packed ourselves back into the car and went home.


    At Sarah and Tim¡¯s, we went into the living room and sat chatting for a while, trying to act as normal as possible. Dinner was to be a roast, and Sarah went out several times to check on it and the other dishes that were cooking. Tim seemed normal and talked about interesting customers at his bank for a while before asking us about our trip. Sam enthusiastically told him about the fun he and his cousins had had, and how much he had enjoyed torturing me with his large family for several days. Tim almost snorted his soda at one point when Sam fictionalized some of the hazing they had done to Teddy, making it sound more like older cousins tormenting younger ones than herd members celebrating the changing of one of the younger members.


    Dinner seemed almost normal and it wasn¡¯t until dessert that Tim brought up the new group that he was looking into joining.


    ¡°So they seem very serious,¡± said Tim, playing with his coffee spoon. ¡°From what Jarrett has told me, their founder, Mark, was out hunting with his brother when one of them shot what they thought was bear. The hit wasn¡¯t fatal, and the bear turned on them and charged. The other brother took a shot, hitting it squarely in the chest, and dropping the animal down out of sight behind a dead tree. When the brothers reached the animal, they found instead a dead, naked man lying in the snow. Mark¡¯s brother panicked, and called the police before either of them could think about what had happened. The brother took the blame for the kill ¨C he was very distraught over what had happened ¨C and Mark was left with a mystery on his hands. He became pretty focused on proving that it had been a bear that they had seen, not a man when they shot it, and eventually he formed Mystery Seekers to try to winnow out the truth. He has gathered some pretty interesting evidence, but his main goal is to find another one of these creatures to bring in as proof that his brother, who is still in jail and will be for about five more years, was not guilty for intentionally shooting a man.¡±


    ¡°Where would that leave the person he brought in?¡± I asked. ¡°Isn¡¯t it kind of hard on them? After all, they have rights too.¡±


    ¡°Well, Jarrett says that they don¡¯t. He said that they are just beasts with human intelligence, but lacking morals,¡± Tim said. ¡°Else why would the bear attack him?¡±


    Sam stared at Tim incredulously.


    ¡°Maybe because one of them shot him?¡± Sam said, heatedly. ¡°I know animals. A real bear will normally run away from gunfire, especially after being shot, but not always. Maybe it was simply outraged at being used for target practice and decided to go after his assailants.¡±


    Tim looked at Sam whose eyes had dilated and who was sitting forward to emphasize his point.


    ¡°Look, Sam, I¡¯m not trying to provoke a fight, but if they are real, they are not animals. They are worse than animals. Yes, a real bear would have probably run away, but the very aggressiveness of this attack proves that these beings are dangerous.¡±


    ¡°If they do exist, just because one attacked someone shooting at him doesn¡¯t prove that he was inherently dangerous,¡± I said, putting my fork down with a clatter. ¡°I mean, seriously, if someone shot you, wouldn¡¯t you retaliate?¡±


    Tim looked at me and sighed. ¡°This whole discussion is probably moot. If these beings have gotten wind of the organization looking for them, I¡¯m sure they have cleared out by now or made arrangements to hide from hunters. Jarrett will be hard-pressed to find hard evidence anyway. It just seems so unlikely that these creatures could even exist. Maybe he is making it up. I don¡¯t know.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    ¡°Tim,¡± said Sam, relaxing a little and sitting back, ¡°we aren¡¯t trying to attack you. We¡¯ve met Jarrett, and he seemed really sketchy. He asked us a lot of questions while we were out riding and even spied on us. He is seriously an obsessed man who will do anything to free his brother. I get what he¡¯s after, but I think he¡¯s going about it the wrong way. Chasing after mythical beings isn¡¯t the way to do it. His brother shot a man. Creating a fable about people who can turn into animals to save his brother seems like kind of a radical sort of thing to do, but from what I have seen, he isn¡¯t the sanest individual. Maybe he has other motives for doing this.¡±


    Tim nodded half to himself, and the dinner conversation turned to other topics. Sarah and I glanced at each other with frank relief, and the evening became a lot more bearable after that. Things seemed almost like normal and when Sam and I went home, we felt almost relaxed for the first time in days.


    Everything was quiet for the nest few weeks. Sarah reported that Tim seemed less interested in the group than he had been, and Sam and I were comfortable enough to get some riding in over at Jo¡¯s a couple of times. Sam seemed to be adjusting to the idea of wearing tack as well, and my rides became more pleasurable as time wore on. We also found a property that seemed promising in the neighboring town of Tewksbury that offered about ten acres of private trails in town land abutting the house and small barn. It was expensive, but also exactly what we needed.


    One Sunday afternoon, a few weeks after the fateful dinner party, the phone rang. It was Susan and she asked rather abruptly for Sam, dispersing with her usual courtesies. I handed him the phone and listened to the usual short responses he made when speaking to his mother. His face grew pale, and he listened silently for a few moments longer before exchanging farewells and setting the phone down.


    He turned to look at me and for the first time since we originally found out about him, he seemed truly frightened.


    ¡°One of them almost caught Matt,¡± said Sam. ¡°His change came upon him suddenly, and he had to make a run for it when they came after him. They had been following him, though we don¡¯t know why. He¡¯s a sharp kid. It was his first change, which freaks most of us out a little, and he had the presence of mind to try to get someplace safe. He realized that he was being pursued when two cars tried to block his path. He managed to swerve and get around them, but it took him a while to get to a hiding place long enough to shake them. Once they were truly gone, he booked it home and hid in the stable until Meredith found him. She talked him back into his human form, and then he told them about what had happened. It is only a matter of time before they show up at the stable. Meredith is taking the boys to the ranch for safe keeping until further notice.¡±


    ¡°What do we do?¡± I asked. ¡°If they know about Meredith, they will connect her to you, won¡¯t they?¡±


    Sam paced around the couch, looking at the floor while he walked, deep in thought.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know how much they know,¡± said Sam. ¡°But we need to. Call Sarah. Let¡¯s see if we can enlist Tim¡¯s help somehow.¡±


    ¡°You want to tell him?¡± I asked, aghast.


    ¡°Maybe. I don¡¯t know. My mother thinks I need to go home immediately, but I am not good with running away.¡± Sam sighed deeply and looked out of the window at the back yard. ¡°I want to trust Tim. We need someone who could get us warning. We¡¯ve known him for years, Laura. I want to trust him.¡±


    ¡°Let me call Sarah,¡± I said, ¡°and we¡¯ll see what she has to say.¡±


    A few minutes later, Sarah had been filled in and was on her way over. Tim was out for the afternoon, but she still felt better talking to us in person. Sam paced endlessly around the living room during the ten minutes it took for Sarah to drive over, and he seemed more horse-like than usual. By the time Sarah came through the door, he was even more agitated.


    ¡°I am not sure telling him is a good idea,¡± she said. ¡°He hasn¡¯t said much about the group, but I get the impression he hasn¡¯t dropped them either. However, this is Tim we¡¯re taking about. He is pretty rational. What do you want to do?¡±


    ¡°I think we need to tell him,¡± said Sam, quietly. He had stopped pacing but was still seeming on edge. ¡°Where is he today?¡±


    ¡°Baseball game. Work invite. He asked me to go, but I¡¯m not a huge baseball fan. If it had been basketball, it would have been a different story. The game will be over by 6:00. Do you want me to ask him to stop over on the way home?¡±


    ¡°This is a big step,¡± I said. ¡°Are we sure he is good for this?¡±


    We all looked at each other and slowly, one by one, nodded. Sarah sent Tim a text, and we discussed how best to plan our approach to the situation. Discussion followed by proof seemed to be the most logical way, and when Tim arrived, we were ready. Sitting him down on the couch, Sarah and I told him the whole story from beginning to end, leaving out only private things and the names of the other family members. When we were done, Tim looked at Sam with a stunned look.


    ¡°So this is all true?¡± he said. ¡°Why did you try to convince me that it wasn¡¯t real?¡±


    ¡°Because you were so dead set to believe that my people were not the same as humans. You seemed to have bought that old line about ¡®they aren¡¯t really people, so why give them the same rights¡¯ that every majority totes out about minorities. Of course we have morals and ethics. My family acts pretty much the same as any human family. So do the other clans. If this bear was wounded, I can understand why he¡¯d retaliate. You would too if you were shot at.¡±


    ¡°Well, I can¡¯t deny that,¡± said Tim, running his hand through his hair. ¡°So Jarrett isn¡¯t crazy, just desperate. And of course, none of you can step forth to help him without risking your families.¡±


    ¡°And although it was a mistake, he still killed someone,¡± I said. ¡°His brother did the right thing and will get out in a few years. Jarrett has just convinced himself otherwise and is going to hurt or destroy other people¡¯s lives.¡±


    Tim was silent for a long while, and Sam got up to resume his pacing, glancing at his friend repeatedly as if to gauge his reaction to the story. Tim sat, playing with the straw in his rum and coke, then finally looked up at Sam.


    ¡°We¡¯ve been friends for years, Sam. I trust that you, of all people, would tell me the truth. Swear that these beings are no more dangerous that any human might be, and I will believe you.¡±


    ¡°I swear,¡± said Sam. ¡°We retain our human minds when we change, just gain some other senses too. I would be careful not to make prolonged eye contact with some groups as that is seen as a challenge. Other than that, we are no different, aside from being able to become an animal at will. It isn¡¯t a curse. It is something we are born into. Some are good, some are bad, just like human beings.¡±


    ¡°All right,¡± said Tim. ¡°I believe you. What can I do to help?¡±


    ¡°How close are you with the group?¡± asked Sam.


    ¡°Not very,¡± said Tim. ¡°I have kind of been staying away, though Jarrett calls me now and again. I can maybe go to a meeting or at least take his calls.¡±


    ¡°Just be careful,¡± said Sam. ¡°Chances are, he knows about your connection to me. Don¡¯t suddenly appear overeager. Let him convince you over the next few weeks. We don¡¯t have a lot of time, but we should have that much.¡±


    ¡°Did you want Sam to show you?¡± Sarah asked, suddenly, but Tim shook his head.


    ¡°Plausible deniability,¡± he said. ¡°If I never see you become a horse, I won¡¯t have to lie. I¡¯m just going to have to go on faith.¡±


    Tim and Sarah stayed for supper and talk eventually drifted to other things. The baseball game had been a dud, apparently, and all his boss had talked about was how much he hated the pitcher. Sam nodded sympathetically, though he agreed on the pitcher¡¯s inability to throw a ball. Eventually, Sarah and Tim headed home, and we were able to get to sleep.

 Chapter 12 - Tensions Build

    Things again settled down, though a report came in from the Jersey family members that their friend Steve had infiltrated the Mystery Keepers in the New York area and was having a field day messing with their officers. He had found several videos in the IT area and corrupted them past usefulness with an accidental spill of rubbing alcohol while cleaning computer keyboards that had been trashed by sugar-shocked techs. Several other small malfunctions had occurred in machinery, but nothing so major that it couldn¡¯t be fixed eventually. His antics were comical and served to lighten the mood amid other bad news. Tim made it to several meetings but described them as relatively boring.


    Aside from the run in with Sam¡¯s cousin, nothing new had been even suspected of being connected in several weeks. Matt¡¯s connection to Meredith¡¯s riding school seemed to have gone by unnoticed, though Tim suspected that there was something not being talked about regarding why they did not seem to know who Matt connected with if they were following him. If it was a fluke, then Meredith might be able to return home, but at the very least, Matt would not be safe, and Teddy was refusing to leave his brother.


    Sam and I made an occasional trip to Jo¡¯s, but Sam kept feeling like we were being watched, so we did little else other than walk around the field. To get out and let his horse side run, we drove up into the White Mountains and went hiking for a day, choosing trails that would be good for riding. Everything else was stressful and tense, like waiting for the storm to break.


    Then, almost like a miracle, Sam and I happened on a run-down ten-acre farm that was for sale on the outskirts of Boxboro. The edge of the field backed up to private state land, and the house was set far enough back from the road that we could easily see any one coming before they got there. Because of its condition, the price was within what we could afford, even if the trip to Andover would now take twenty to thirty minutes. Sam and I went back and forth on buying it for a few days, but finally, put a bid on it, and within a week, accepted the formal agreement and put Sam¡¯s house up on the market.


    The house on the property was in fairly decent shape. The paint would need touching up before winter, but it was otherwise pretty good. The barn was another matter entirely. The roof had a distinctive swayback look to it, and the shingles on it were a mess. Nevertheless, we knew that what was wrong and needed fixing, so it would not take long to make useable again. Several of Sam¡¯s cousins around the area promised to come and set it to rights with us.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    It was then that Susan called late one evening while Sam and I were packing up some of the knick-knacks around the house that could be done without for a few weeks. Sam answered the phone and his expression went from expectant to shocked.


    ¡°They did what?¡± he asked, his tone one of shock and disbelief.


    He listened to whatever his mother was saying on the other end of the phone for a long while, then asked,


    ¡°How many did they get?¡±


    Her answer left him pale and shaking, and he finished the call and looked over at me.


    ¡°One of the other tribes betrayed the whole family. The bears are saying it was one of the cat clans, but Susan is not too sure. In any event, there was a group of the Mystery Seekers that came to the ranch, demanding to be let on the property. They had the local sheriff with them on some trumped-up charge, and it took all of my mother¡¯s diplomatic skills to convince him that the group was full of it. They took a load of photos of her and the other family members that were there, but eventually they left. The problem is that they are now looking at all of the family connections that the group has. We need to be ready to get to somewhere safe if they connect me to the clan. Because of birth records and sites like Ancestry.com, they¡¯ll find us sooner or later.¡±


    ¡°Where is safe?¡± I asked.


    ¡°We are working on that,¡± he said, and then hesitated before speaking. ¡°Laura, for your safety, you might want to leave for a while.¡±


    ¡°No!¡± I said, shaking my head emphatically. ¡°I am not letting these people drive us apart. Not happening, Sam.¡±


    He smiled wanly, and nodded.


    ¡°I figured you¡¯d feel that way,¡± he said. ¡°I wanted to give you the out, though. We¡¯ll go ahead with the house purchase and try to keep things as normal as possible. Meredith is working with some friends of hers to have a place for us to go that is not directly tied to the family. Other than that, we need to have someplace else safe as well. Somewhere no one else knows of.¡±


    We sat alone in our thoughts for a few long minutes before we got back into packing. Even the latest news couldn¡¯t dim my excitement of buying the house in Boxboro. In my mind¡¯s eye, I could picture how lovely it would be to have a place with some privacy, and I tried not to think of what might happen if things went south.

 Chapter 13 - The Dam Breaks

    It was three days later when the phone rang at my work. I picked it up, expecting it to be a client I had been waiting for. Instead, Meredith¡¯s voice responded to my greeting, her tone sounding worried and out of breath.


    ¡°Have you heard from Sam?¡± she said.


    ¡°Not since this morning, why?¡±


    ¡°Susan says he¡¯s not at work and he¡¯s not answering his cell phone. Apparently one of the other family members has turned up missing, so Susan started calling everyone. There¡¯s two others besides Sam who have not answered.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± I said, trying to stay calm. I tried to think, but my fevered brain would not cooperate. ¡°I¡¯ll run by the house. He was there when I left this morning¡­¡±


    ¡°Please let us know as soon as you find anything,¡± Meredith said. ¡°We are leaving for the safe spot Susan has, but I¡¯ll have my cell phone with me. There is apparently good reception there.¡±


    ¡°Okay, be safe,¡± I said, and hung up.


    My boss, Peter, took one look at me, and after the words ¡°Sam is missing¡± left my mouth, sent me home without another question. Peter was good like that, which is why no one who worked for him would ever lie to him about anything. He would always side with people in a crisis, so people only asked to leave when they really had one. I promised him I¡¯d update him as soon as I knew anything and raced for home.


    Sam¡¯s car was in the driveway, but there was no sign of him in the house. Nothing looked disturbed, though, and there was no sign of a break-in. I was even more confused and worried by the lack of information. I walked back out of the house, and looked around, checking the damp ground for any clues. In seconds, I spotted a hoofprint by the back fence and followed the trail of them across the lawn. Sam had spent time the previous weekend as his equine self, so he hadn¡¯t been caught out by the change. Something, however, had caused him to change and run away from the house in a hurry. I looked at the tracks and saw a faint impression of shoe prints following them, also at a run. I quickly locked up the house and followed the prints. I had a feeling I knew where they would lead.


    Sure enough, the prints led to the bird sanctuary. The gate by the lodge was only a quarter mile down the road and had been left open following an event on Sunday, and both sets of prints led off onto the trails, becoming harder to see as they crossed onto the packed earth. I paused to catch my breath and then went up the trail into the woods rather than down towards the ponds. The route I had chosen would get there eventually, but I figured that Sam would have been trying to fool his pursuer as much as possible. His pace had slowed a bit, maybe to make sure he was followed in his chosen direction, but he had stayed in horse form as far as I could tell.


    I jogged the path, listening carefully to the sounds around me, but not hearing anything. For all I knew, they were already out of the sanctuary, but I had a feeling that I should look a little further. There was another one of the little stone benches along this path, but it was harder to see because it was buried back behind the ubiquitous rhododendron bushes. The clearing was small, but it might just be where Sam had chosen to go to ground if he returned to human form.


    More by guesswork than by actual knowledge, I found the very overgrown path to the bench. If I hadn¡¯t been looking for it, I would never have known it was there. We had only gone to it once on one of our first outings to the sanctuary, and I was pretty sure that Jarrett or whoever was following Sam would not be able to find it. Now, as I wriggled down through the bushes, I was very happy we had not visited it again. Sam hunkered down by the bench, using the stone to block anyone¡¯s view of him. He had no clothes on, and looked completely miserable. He jumped when I made my way into the bushes and relaxed into my embrace as I knelt down by him. He was shaking, and not just from the chill in the air.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.


    ¡°Jarrett came to the door,¡± he said softly, ¡°and banged on it, demanding to be let in. He started yelling about how much he knew about the family, and how he was going to find us. I slipped out to the back yard and fled. It was probably the worst choice, but he would not stop, and I just wanted to get him away from the house. I figured I could claim I had Meredith¡¯s horse at the house for a day, to observe the animal because she was away, but I didn¡¯t give it much thought beyond that.¡±


    I nodded and held him as his shaking subsided. When he had calmed sufficiently, I asked him how long it had been since Jarrett had passed.


    ¡°About twenty minutes ago,¡± said Sam. ¡°He poked at the bushes, but kept going down the trail. I think he must have guessed I had become human again, but he didn¡¯t see the path.¡±


    I nodded and looked around the clearing. There was nothing that we could use to cover Sam up with, and I sighed as I weighed our options.


    ¡°I can either leave here and come back with clothes for you, or you can transform again and I can try to get you home.¡± I said. ¡°Either way has its risks.¡±


    ¡°I think I like option A better,¡± said Sam. ¡°Hurry, though; it¡¯s a bit chilly.¡±


    I hugged him and crept back out through the bushes again, looking for any sign of Jarrett. The coast seemed clear, so I crept out and ran back to the gate. A quick jog, and I was home again. This time, however, there was a car in the driveway, and as I approached, a familiar figure stepped out of it.


    ¡°What the hell are you doing here?¡± I asked. ¡°Sam called. You scared his aunt¡¯s horse half to death, and it bolted. Sam has been chasing it ever since.¡±


    ¡°Ms. Walker, don¡¯t try to play that game with me. It won¡¯t work. I know full well that Sam Winston is one of the abominations I have been seeking, as is his whole family. I am surprised that a well-educated woman like yourself couldn¡¯t come up with something more creative.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Hamler,¡± I said icily. ¡°If you choose not to believe me, suit yourself. However, as of right now, you are trespassing. Sam is well-liked in this community. I don¡¯t think that the police are going to be very understanding if they find you here.¡±


    He laughed, but remained on the other side of his car, still in the open door of his car.


    ¡°Ms. Walker ¨C Laura ¨C you know what he is, and yet you still choose to side with him. How is that possible? You are a full human woman according to my research, not even an outcast with no powers, yet you choose him. I fail to see how this could possibly benefit you in any way.¡±


    ¡°Benefit me?¡± I said, scornfully. ¡°I have absolutely no idea what you could mean. I certainly am not benefitting from anything right now, especially your company. Please leave.¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s in there, isn¡¯t he? The sanctuary? I followed his hoofprints too, but you likely knew where to look. I¡¯ll go for now, but believe me, I will be back, Ms. Walker, I will be back.¡±


    Jarrett got into his car and drove away, but I didn¡¯t believe for a second that he would go far. I ran to the door, unlocked it, and grabbed some clothes for Sam. Stuffing them in a backpack along with some apples, I went back to where I had left Sam as fast as I could.


    ¡°Here,¡± I said, handing to him. ¡°Get dressed and get out of here. I¡¯ll call Sarah and Tim. Meet them on Judson Street. We¡¯ll rendezvous at Denny¡¯s over in Lawrence.¡±


    ¡°That Denny¡¯s closed,¡± Sam said, pulling on the pair of jeans I had brought him. ¡°How about the Nines on the Tewksbury border?¡±


    ¡°Sounds good,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ll go back and pack a few more things, then head for North Andover first. If no one is following me, I¡¯ll hit 495 to the exit near the Nines and meet you there.¡±


    He pulled a black t-shirt over his head, and put on his shoes. Giving me a quick kiss, he was off, running through the woods. I called Sarah as I raced back to the house and began to create something like a plan.