But I know my little warrior. She needs to believe that she is in control of this situation. So I drop my gaze as though in submission, and allow her a head start before I chase after her.
Chapter 25
Zahara
My stomach turns in knots as I run through the vineyard. Even though I’ve just eaten two helpings of the fancy beef stew, my stomach feels empty. That’s why it’s grumbling and hissing as my paws strike the ground. That is the ache that needs to be filled.
The moon’s light shines down upon me. Its rays feel warm tonight, like the light of the sun. I shrug off the light for the shadows.
I don’t want to be anyone’s light. I want the darkness around me. If the prophecy can’t find me, if it can’t see me, then it won’t happen.
So what if the thought is childish? I’ve been treated like a child all my life. Every decision has been made for me by those who thought they knew better. Well, they’ll just have to deal with this tantrum because I am about to raise hell in the middle of the mall. Too bad I’m alone in a vineyard.
I scent the prey at the far edge of the vineyard. Deer are typically a nuisance for the foliage that grows on the vineyards. Too bad this deer decided to come in for a late-night snack when a pissed off panther was on the prowl.
I move silently towards it. The creature is yards away from me. It doesn’t scent me yet, but it does sense me.
Its ears twitch. Its mouth pauses in chewing the leaves it’s stolen. My leaves. This is my land.
As though my anger is a living, breathing thing, the deer appears to sense it. I stay in place, holding still. Unlike other predators like wolves, my kind doesn’t chase their prey until they tire. I wait until the deer is within range, and then I pounce.
I leap into the air, springing nearly fifteen feet to close in on the kill. My claws extend. My front paws grasp around the animal’s shoulders. I’m preparing to rip out its neck when I notice an unexpected scent. The sweet scent of mother’s milk.
I have a doe in my clutches. She has milk in her breasts. Somewhere nearby, there is likely a gangly-legged Bambi watching this murder go down.
I retract my claws and let the doe go. She hobbles off into the night. The trail of her blood might make it easy for another predator to track her down.
There’s nothing I can do about that. She had been set in my path. If it’s her destiny to die tonight, then I can’t stop it.
What I can do is stop the death of the man I love. Whether he likes it or not. There will be no Bambi for us. Despite what he thinks, despite what everyone thinks, there’s no need.
The prophecy has proven it doesn’t need to be followed to the letter. The land was restored to its rightful owners without any bloodshed.
Well, technically Viri did bite me. But I allowed it. Hell, I want him to sink his fangs into me again, and soon.
The berries will produce. That’s all thanks to science and not magic. Which has to mean that my loins don’t need to bear any fruit. Which has to mean that Virius doesn’t have to die.
At the entrance to the caves, I shift. I walk into the underground clearing on two human legs. On the walls hang robes in white and light blue—the colors of Guatemala, where many of these women are from. Those original descendants of the Tohono O’odham who went down south from our ancestral lands dress in jeans and blouses instead of the manatees and moccasins of the old days.
I pull a sheath over my head as I proceed deeper into the belly of the cave. The women are gathered in clusters. I note that the clusters don’t resemble the two factions of days ago. Itzel and Zuma have their heads bowed together as they speak in hushed voices.
When I look closer, I see that they are standing around a raised altar. A large, drab, gray stone decorates the dais. Four sets of chains and manacles hang from each corner.
“What the actual fuck?”
All gazes turn to me. Only a few of those pairs of eyes then cast downward in shame.
Itzel’s flash in exasperation. “Where is he?”
“Is that for him?” I demand, ignoring her question. “Is that for me too? Did you expect us to do it out in the open for all of you to watch? What the hell do you think this is? Some Eyes Wide Shut crap?”
Itzel stares at me mutely. I should have known she wouldn’t know the erotic film about rich white people. Itzel feels that all media is twisted history. Zuma, on the other hand, smirks at the reference.
“Where is the Night Son, Ixazaluoh?”
“He’s not coming.”
Itzel sighs. Once upon a time, her disappointment would snap my butt into action. Not tonight.
“I won’t let him die,” I say.
“You cannot escape destiny.”
“Destiny can go to the devil. I’ve already fixed everything.” I step up to the dais, making sure to avoid the chains so that everyone can see and hear me. “Viri signed over the land to me. It’s ours again. Marechal Durand figured out what’s wrong with the vines. The soil just needed the right fertilizer. So you see, everything has worked out. We got everything that we wanted.”
A low murmur goes through the gathered women. The hum sounds hesitant, uncertain. I don’t blame them. We’ve all been on this path for decades, but now it’s over. We can all stop this quest, and start to live our lives.
I can live my life. With Viri. While going to school and becoming… whatever I want to be.
“That does
