Page 10 of A Light in the Dark

TEN

Long before moving to Stonecreek, I had seen a unicorn.

Not too long after dark, a green glow outside my kitchen window caught my attention, and I spotted the luna moth gliding down from the rooftops. Amused the shifter had come to check on me, I went to the door and opened it. “Come on in.”

He did, and he landed on my counter.

After closing the door, I dug a mango out of my refrigerator, cut it up, and kept half for myself and gave the rest to my guest. Once he had his meal, I nibbled on my treat and enjoyed the view.

While I liked butterflies and moths in equal measure, luna moths topped the chart for beauty. “Thank you for helping Gabriella and escorting her with the Hunters. I was worried about her.”

I worried for all the refugees, but I kept my concerns to myself. I already did what I could, and burdening the luna moth wouldn’t help anybody, including me. To amuse myself, I went to work cleaning my kitchen, attacking the neglected corners, giving my sink a scrub, and otherwise taking out my frustrations on inanimate objects. Once my luna moth guest had finished eating, I claimed the dish, thanked him for coming, and worked my hand underneath him, marveling at his size. I questioned how a human could go from over a hundred pounds to weighing maybe two or three ounces, but rather than ask, I opened my back door, thanked him again, and tossed him into the air so he could go back to his home.

He took flight, but rather than give me a clue on where he’d come from, he landed on my neighbor’s roof and settled in, fluttering his wings.

Tricky shapeshifter. Smiling over his subterfuge, I closed the door, turned off the kitchen light, and went into my living room to grab my book and settle into my bay window nook overlooking the street. As was typical not long after the floods, the streets remained dark, quiet, and devoid of life. They would remain dark for a few more weeks, as it took time for the city to repair the streetlamps.

In the deceptive peace of the evening, I could almost fool myself into believing there wasn’t anything wrong in my mountainous home. If I could ignore the high number of bodies the Hunters had recovered, if I could ignore the possibilities that those in charge of the city-state had opted to profit on refugees, I might have been able to just claim the dangling bits of happiness within my reach.

But I couldn’t.

I struggled to maintain my attention on my book, regretting having selected a survival story for my entertainment.

After experiencing the real deal, I struggled to suspend disbelief over the little things. I remembered, a little too well, the pressure on my wrist from the holds, the aches and pains I’d earned hauling Gabriella out of the water, and the bruising. Those had healed during the recovery time following the floods. The memories remained, memories I almost wished I could purge.

However, I refused to forget, and I doubted I could forgive those who would throw away human lives for profit.

The sort of resolve that had driven me to move to Stonecreek in the first place sprouted, and if it continued to grow at the rate it did, I would not be giving up until every last miserable fiend responsible rotted. Their graves, however, would be marked, their shame would be known, and every breath they took until their last would be burdened with the weight of guilt.

No one could raise the dead, but I would dance on the line separating justice and vengeance with the sort of fervor fanatics would envy.

The problem would be figuring out the how. How could I, just some simple paper pusher, accomplish that much? The Hunters would help—or I would help them. That would be one step towards my goal. Teaming up with the luna moth, despite our inability to communicate directly, would aid my cause. Keeping my eyes open and my wits sharp might win me insight on the filth polluting my home.

Rather than leave, I would become a force of change as strong as the yearly floods plaguing us. And, rather than believe in the necessity of the floods, I would do a little more digging to learn if there was more to Stonecreek than met the eye .

Once upon a time, I had been willing to believe everything I had been told.

Not anymore, and never again.

Not without proof.

Pleased with my decision, I settled in to read.

A green glow drew my attention from my reading, and when I glanced up the hill, hundreds of luna moths drifted above the street, gliding through Stonecreek. If someone, in that moment, had first told me magic existed, I would have believed. In some ways, I suspected I would have believed in magic a little easier had someone shown me the parade of glowing shapeshifters at an early age.

When they got closer, the presence of mouths confirmed their status as shapeshifters.

Something about knowing they wouldn’t just die in a few days calmed me.

If anything, I would become a mere memory to them long before they became old.

One by one, they passed me by. Some flitted towards the rooftops while others brushed their wings against the foundations. Where they went remained a mystery.

What could the luna moths be searching for? What might they be doing?

I thought about getting up to follow them, but I stayed in my nook. I did slide my bookmark into place and put aside my book, aware there’d be no concentration left for reading with the memory of their passage so fresh.

In a way, it bemused me that the humble luna moth had, in their way, become as magical and ethereal as any unicorn.

Long before moving to Stonecreek, I had seen a unicorn.

Some days, I regretted the brief moment I’d beheld the stallion, knowing it would be unlikely I would find another—or at least find another willing to let me stare at him in awe and wonder. Considering how secretive my neighbor up the hill was, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if he were a unicorn, hiding in plain sight and masking his last name. What sort of last name did unicorns have? Did Joel’s last name betray some sort of secret?

In a way, the luna moths would drive me to the end of my rope and yank because they could. Before them, I’d been content to ignore my questions. In a way, the shifter had opened a rather dangerous floodgate, one that might sweep me away. That there were more of the luna moths—well over a hundred, if my eyes didn’t deceive me—would also cause me trouble.

I couldn’t tell any of them apart.

Curiosity got the better of me, and I checked the roof of my neighbor’s home to discover the luna moth had gone about his business, likely joining the other ones flying down the hill and outside of the city.

Part of me wanted to follow, but I reined in the urge, instead settling in to enjoy the show. One by one, the luna moths fluttered away, their glow fading until darkness once again consumed the street. Long after their departure, I stared down the hill and wondered about the mysteries of the world and Stonecreek’s many secrets.

Fortunately for my sanity, the rest of the week slid by without incident. One of the evenings, I went and helped my boss’s neighbor rebuild her steps, warning her to walk with care for the first twelve hours so the mortar could set properly. Madeline needed little coaxing to take ownership of her role, and outside of nudging her here and there to be more assertive, she understood the general point of our work, which made my life a great deal easier. While I doubted we’d ever fully conquer the piles of paperwork that funneled through us, I liked to think we did some serious damage to the backlog.

After work, I evaluated my budget, determined I earned enough I could turn my basement into a habitable space, and began the tedious planning process. When Saturday morning rolled around, I headed up the hill to Joel’s house armed with a shopping list of my own, determined to turn my yard into a garden, set up some indoor plants for myself, and otherwise compete with my handsome neighbor for who could have the most comfortable home on our row.

Joel had me beat on size, but when I was done, he’d feel a need to step up his game to match me.

I knocked on his door, and when Joel answered, wearing rumpled clothes and appearing to have tumbled out of bed, I giggled at his haphazard appearance. “Should I let you go back to bed?”

“This is my morning look,” he confessed before stifling a yawn and running his hands through his hair, which did nothing to help his cause. “I hope you don’t mind being stuck with this for another hour or two.”

I laughed, marveling over how Joel, of all people, was incapable of functioning at eight in the morning. “This week, while taking leave of my general senses and taking your advice on additional shoring of my home, I decided I need to compete with you for the best garden.”

“Courtyard garden or front garden?”

“Unless you plan on inviting me into your courtyard, I’ll be starting with your front garden.”

“Starting?” Joel asked, raising a brow.

“I might be a little competitive in nature at times.” Until him, I hadn’t had anyone to compete with. “Competing to have a beautiful and useful garden seems like a war I can only win. Even if yours is more beautiful and useful, mine has improved from its current state.”

He chuckled. “Do you want to come in or are you ready to conquer the store immediately?”

“I am ready to conquer immediately.”

“I’ll bring my SUV around the block, then. I will spare you the flight of steps and dealing with entering my garage, which is currently a cavernous space consumed by darkness.”

I read between the lines: he hadn’t installed lighting in a space he was worried might flood out on him yearly. “I shall wait patiently where it is easiest for you to pick me up.”

Joel pointed at the curb. “I go down the hill and come around the block, which spares my sanity. I’m just glad our street has been mostly cleaned. We’re just down to mud. My SUV can handle a little mud.”

“It would be truly tragic if it couldn’t. ”

“I would be crying if it couldn’t, honestly. It wouldn’t be much of a utility vehicle if it couldn’t handle getting some dirt on the tires.” Joel shot me a salute, closed the door, and locked it. I scampered down his short flight of steps to wait at the curb, wondering what sort of SUV the man drove.

Did he drive one of the ones that was just an oversized car, useless for anything other than hauling people? Did he have a proper SUV, which was larger, could haul people and stuff, and belonged on dirt roads? Did he have an SUV that was actually just a truck with a covered cab and an attitude problem?

The mystery amused me for the ten minutes it took Joel to free his vehicle from the cavernous depths of his garage and come around the block, revealing he dabbled in the second category, favoring common sense and functionality over status, although I noticed he’d picked a luxury brand for himself. Once he pulled up, I opened the passenger door and bounced inside, buckling in the instant my butt hit the leather seat before reaching out to grab the handle and close the door.

Once, as a teen, I’d failed to buckle in first, missed the door of my father’s truck, and had tumbled out. Ever since, I’d learned to rely on the seat belt in case my balance failed me again.

“I see you have fallen out of a tall vehicle before.”

I grinned. “Guilty as charged. My daddy likes big trucks.”

“I wanted a big truck, but big trucks in Stonecreek aren’t practical. This is the largest I could go without costing me my sanity, and I had to have a custom garage door made to handle the clearance issues as it is.”

Ouch. I bet that door, especially when it needed to be shored, cost as much as my house had. “You better treat that door like it’s worth its weight in gold.”

“I really do.”

After shoving my purse onto the floor between my feet, I relaxed, staring out the window to enjoy a different view of the city I called home. Sometimes, I took one of the busses, but more often than not, I walked. Everything I needed was within a two mile radius, something I could handle with relative ease. Some days, I considered getting a bicycle, but while riding down the hill seemed like a good time, the thought of pedaling up did an excellent job of deterring me. “What made you want a house this far down the hill?”

“Price,” he admitted. “I don’t understand why people like a quarter of the size for five times the amount. When I was shopping for my home, I wanted enough space to do things—or have a family. With my place? I can easily do both. I have a little over twenty-five hundred square feet of living space.”

Huh. My house had more living space than his, and that excluded my basement. “I really thought my place was smaller than yours!”

“It’s the courtyard. I don’t have a yard in the back like most places do on our street; my property ends at the walls of my neighbors. I also installed a three foot buffer made of solid concrete, which I had shored, just in case there’s a fire down the hill. I also installed fire protection on the roof, so chances are, my place will still be standing after any natural disaster.”

My eyes widened. “You can get fire protections for your roof?”

“Talk to your contact at the shoring company. They can hook you up. Most don’t ask for it because it’s rare that it’s needed. It’s not usually the roof catching on fire first. Honestly, the coverage isn’t even that expensive, especially compared to the actual shoring work.”

“I will do that once I get home. I know my yard is unusually large, too.”

“You have one of the best properties in our area. If your place had been up for sale when I had purchased, I would have bought it over my place in a heartbeat. Having that corner lot is a nightmare at times because of the flooding.” Two streets up the hill, Joel gestured at a smaller townhouse. “I almost bought that one, but when I had it inspected, there were a lot of problems I would have needed to repair before I could shore it. That’s why I have so many protections on my home. One of these days, unless the new owners do something about it, the foundation is going to give out. Maybe in the next two or three floods. I wouldn’t be surprised if it takes out the house below it, too.”

I winced at the thought of one or two properties up the hill from us collapsing. While my shoring was rated for that sort of punishment, our neighbors’ homes weren’t. “I’m just going to thank you now for the advice about the extra shoring.”

“You’re welcome. I trust you got a good deal on the work?”

“I really did, but the Hunters may be stealing my bill. They claim they did some damage to my roof when they brought the helicopter in.” I made a show of shrugging and holding my arms up in surrender. “I got yelled at a little over my independent tendencies.”

Joel snickered. “The Hunters have a budget for helping refugees, and they offer incentives for people who help. Your shoring probably fits within the compensation guidelines they have. Just let them run away with the bill. You put your life on the line to help Gabriella, and they want to repay that debt. I’ve been in your shoes before, and the Hunters are good people. Just let them repay the debt.”

“You have?”

“I took them for roof protections already,” Joel informed me, and while he kept his eyes on the road, he flashed me a rather lopsided grin. “What I did was far less risky than what you did. And unlike you, I actually have formal training in search and rescue. I won’t lie; even if I had been on my step, I doubt I could have done what you did. I don’t have your rig. I will be changing that. We do some pretty dangerous stuff during rescue operations, but we don’t take impossible gambles that will claim our lives without accomplishing anything. And that’s what it would have been. At best, I would have been able to throw her a rope tied to a piece of furniture. That would have been dangerous enough.”

“That’s an understatement.”

“Yeah, the flood waters are treacherous at best. She got lucky that she fell in so late into the flood. If there had been more debris, she wouldn’t have stood a chance.”

“That luna moth saved her life. Without him, I wouldn’t have spotted her in the water at all. The glow caught my attention.”

Joel shook his head and he gestured at a building across the street. “The luna moth probably stood watch up the hill.”

“Do the other luna moths do the same? I saw a bunch of them earlier this week.”

Joel chuckled at my question. “A lot of flyers end up working in some sort of emergency response. We can go places others can’t. Winged shapeshifters don’t exactly take up a lot of helicopter space. The real issue for them is shifting while naked. Only a quarter of Stonecreek shifters shift with their gear. All search and rescue personnel go through training in case clothing is somehow lost during a mission.”

I spent a rather inappropriate length of time imagining Joel naked. I liked the idea enough I spent a few moments contemplating how I might be in need of rescue in some fashion or another. “Do all search and rescue people help others without any clothes?”

Joel laughed. “Much to my dismay, we really are trained to handle rescue operations if naked. The Hunters have the same issue, and it’s just easier if all search and rescue people are trained to handle nudity during an op. Their percentage of clothed shifters is less than ten the last time I checked.”

Since Joel seemed in the mood to answer questions, I asked, “Do you know how long luna moths live for?”

“A week if you aren’t the shifter variety. If you’re the shifter variety, you’ll live a long time. Honestly, I don’t know of any luna moths who died from old age. They do get into accidents and die from disease, though. But old age? That’s not a problem they deal with.”

Damn. “The Fountain of Youth is actually being a luna moth?”

Snickering, Joel shrugged. “I never thought about it that way before, but I guess so. There are other long-lived species out there, though.”

“Unicorns?”

“Surprisingly not; they tend to live to be a hundred and fifty, give or take. So, longer than regular humans, but not that much longer. Horses live a little shorter than unicorns. Wolves live longer than unicorns but not as long as luna moths. I don’t know about the other species, but shifters do all outlive non-shifting humans by at least twenty to thirty years. The current theory is that the shifting process revitalizes our cells, and as the degradation of our DNA and cell health is slowed, shifters live longer. Shifters also don’t get as many illnesses as non-shifting humans.”

“Lucky.”

“Those who become shifters through engaging in relationships with a shifter enjoy the same benefits,” Joel informed me in an amused tone. “They really are a version of the Fountain of Youth.”

“I wonder what that sort of immortality feels like.”

“From my understanding of the situation, pretty damned good, because shifters skip the aches and pains in the forties compared to non-shifters. And in the fifties? They’re laughing while the rest of humanity is popping back painkillers.”

At thirty-five, I considered myself to be fortunate to have found sufficient fiscal success to buy a good home in Stonecreek. In retrospect, I’d gotten more than a little lucky on top of working hard. I’d grabbed every well-paying job from the day I’d turned sixteen until I’d moved into Stonecreek, and then I’d gotten lucky again with my current employer. “I’m thirty-five,” I confessed. “And I think I’m ahead of most my age in my general situation. That honestly disturbs me. I am pleased to report that, as a general rule, I’m not popping painkillers yet. I thought about it after installing the steps, though. ”

“I wish I could say everyone could afford to get by in Stonecreek, but we’re way behind the curve compared to Moonriver.”

“We don’t have their faction system, though,” I replied, shrugging. I’d wondered how life would be with a faction system like Moonriver used, but the idea of being limited to a faction and having to stick within one set field irritated me on a good day. “Every time I think about their system, I get mad because I’m a free spirit. I want to have the ability to roam however I see fit. Sure, I tend to stay in one place for long periods of time, but I want the option to go do something else if I want.”

“We aren’t culturally brought up for that sort of system, although in reality, we quietly have it. Most people just don’t step outside of their set course once they pick it as an adult. How long have you been with your current company?”

“As long as I’ve been in Stonecreek. Like, I’m not disagreeing with you. I just want to feel I have the option should I wish to make drastic changes in my life. Right now, though, I’m pretty happy with what I do. I do my hours, I’m paid really well for my education level, and I spend the rest of the day handling my business, reading books, and working on my house. And I like that. Sometimes, I think I should be a little more social, but then I realize I’d have to interact with people if I were to do that.” I made a show of shuddering. “And after dealing with the drama on our street most of the time? I don’t want to interact with people. I have sufficient exposure to people as it is.”

“The drama on our street is truly impressive. Honestly, is there anything I can get you as a thank you present for making the stair replacement drama-free? It’s the first time since I’ve moved in that everyone kept the peace. I don’t know what sort of miracle you worked on them, but it had to be magic. The year I moved in, it came to literal blows.”

“But everyone is responsible for their own steps,” I blurted.

“But the stairs didn’t match , Valerie. And the stairs not matching may as well be a sin to most of that lot.”

When I thought about it, I realized Joel’s steps were, generally, a match for ours. “Wait. I didn’t do your steps.”

“I hired someone, pointed at the steps you’d finished, and asked for something similar to keep the banshees from screaming,” he confessed. “And then to discover you had picked a solid, low-cost option for step installation? You are a sneaky woman, and I’m genuinely impressed. The construction company actually thanked me. While the stones are heavy, they’re easy to get, the job took them three whole hours, and everyone was happy. They know they’ll be back next year to replace my steps, and I can get done near the front of the line because I want a three hour job that is cost-efficient for me, profitable for them, and suitable for all weather conditions except our floods.”

“And here I just made up a design I knew I could physically handle.” I giggled over how my country upbringing had come to the rescue. “I grew up in a tiny town, and we made steps like this all the time when we needed something that would withstand a punishment. Wood is when you want a pretty porch and are willing to spend extra money to have it. You can get rocks anywhere.”

“I’ve always wondered what it might be like to live in a tiny town. I grew up in a small town with big town aspirations. ”

“It’s boring. There is even worse drama than on our street, and when you aren’t working in your garden or doing whatever job you might have in town, you’re bickering with your neighbors or fixing your house because that’s all there is to do. That’s why I left. I was going out of my right mind with all the pettiness. Don’t get me wrong. I love my parents, but their favorite hobby involves gossiping over who did what in town.”

“The boredom element had not occurred to me.”

“If it hadn’t involved driving an hour to get to the nearest bookstore, I might not have been as bored, and my tiny town didn’t even have the internet until recently. The internet makes it tolerable to visit, but it’s slow . It’s painfully slow. But digital books are now an option there. It hadn’t been when I left.”

“I would have fled. I would not have merely left, I would have fled.”

“You’re a reader?”

“I am. And when I’m not reading, I’m gaming. Currently, I’m preparing for a gaming tournament, and my intent is to absolutely crush a pack of wolves from Moonriver. We have a betting pool going on. Unfortunately, there is a rule. We have to play with someone who is a novice to the game. This evens the battlefield in the game. I have not yet found my partner.”

“Wait. You are competing in some form of gaming contest with a bunch of wolves, probably Hunters?”

“They are Hunters,” he replied. “And I am the only non-wolf stepping up to the plate this year. Nobody else qualified.”

If everything I knew about the Hunters of Moonriver was true, Joel would be absolutely destroyed at the game—and then they would come calling to Stonecreek to visit their victim. “Is it true the wolves will let you pet them?”

“Rarely. Calden is participating this year. His new wife is a novice, and he convinced her to give the game a shot.”

“Calden, as in Moonriver’s heir?” I blurted.

“Yes, him. His father is participating, too, but he hasn’t found a novice to join him yet. If you happen to know any single women who could be talked into gaming…”

“We could try Madeline. That would give the Hunters a reason to visit, too.”

“You, Valerie, are absolutely brilliant. And Allasandro wouldn’t have a problem with providing Madeline with a computer to play. She’s probably a little out of his age range, though.”

As I had no idea how old Madeline was, I shrugged. “I didn’t pay attention to her age. I mean, she’s very clearly an adult. But is anyone going to bother her with a wolf sniffing around her turf and teaching her how to game?”

“Absolutely not. And the timing works great. We get a week to teach our novices the game.”

“Let me see if I understand this. You’re taking players who haven’t played a certain game before, and might not even know how to use a computer, and you’re pitting them against players who are good enough they had to qualify to participate in the match?”

“Yep. And the experienced players have to keep their novices alive for as long as possible. Novices are worth a lot of points when alive. The experienced players will be working to knock them out as quickly as possible.”

“What sort of game is this? ”

“It’s a time traveling pirate game. It’s one part colony builder, one part player versus player, one part strategy game. The tournament will be done over two months, and we’ll play three nights a week for four hours a session. Each session has a different theme. The first week or so of game play will be focused on the colony building and preparation. Then there will be invasion scenarios, and so on. None of us will get to see the maps until we’re playing, which will make it fun. The last team standing wins.”

“Don’t you mean last player standing wins?”

Joel grinned. “I really do, because honestly, the novices will get knocked out early. We’re going to let the novices team up after they’re eliminated so they can continue to participate.”

“What about the experienced players?”

“We’ll get to do the same, but we can’t win. We can just help make certain others lose. And if we’re eliminated a second time, we have to play in the game’s peaceful mode and build supply towns and fortifications for the other players. It will be fun.”

“That’s what you do after work? You build colonies and attack pirates?”

“I am a swashbuckling king,” he informed me in a solemn tone. “In the single player game, I am a mighty king who builds wealth off the backs of corrupted governments. And then I give the excess to my thriving colonies and lure the poor away from destitution to join my empire.”

I laughed at the thought of the handsome man staying home after work and building himself an empire in single player mode. “And what are you in multiplayer mode?”

“Highly irritated that I can’t be the swashbuckling king over all other swashbucklers. Last time I was the top player, it lasted all of two days, which is a pretty good stint, truth be told. Most are unseated after about twelve hours. The first time the newly minted king sleeps, the others sweep in and steal his territory.”

“What about the queens?”

“There hasn’t been one yet,” he admitted. “There are women playing the game, and women do take the king’s crown for a while, but they’re playing male characters when they do it. The better to crush everyone with. Honestly, most women play male characters because the men have cooler clothing options. The females either get to dress in black and white pirate attire, ball gowns, or the equivalent of chainmail bikinis.”

If he was trying to discourage me, he did a poor job of it. “So, you’re telling me that I could run around as a pirate, kill men, take their plunder, and rise to become an evil queen in this game?”

“I am concerned for my fellow gamers right now.”

“Don’t fear. I don’t own a computer. I will admit to being curious, though.”

“Have you ever played a computer game?”

I shook my head.

At the next stop light, Joel stared at me. “Want to team up with me for the competition? If I win with the ultimate novice accompanying me, I will be the grand swashbuckling PVP king. All the other novices have played games before—or they started playing after getting the invitation. I want you to continue never touching a computer until it’s time to start playing, and then I will teach you everything as we go. ”

“That sounds like you’re giving yourself an epic handicap, Joel.”

“But if we win, our victory will be unmatched. We will go down as gaming legends in this competition.”

“There’s a small problem with this whole idea, though.”

“What problem?”

“I don’t have a gaming computer.”

He waved off my concern. “You’ll come and play at my house. It will be my problem to provide the gaming computer for your use. But since it’ll be my problem, you won’t have to fight to get the computer set up, the operating system installed, or the game running. I’ll take care of everything. You’ll just show up, and we’ll play during the competition windows.”

If he wanted to deal with the computer problems, I wasn’t going to tell him no. Doing something other than work on my house and read seemed like a fun and interesting time. I wouldn’t even take advantage of the opportunity to learn his last name.

If he wanted to tell me, he would.

“All right. I’ll do this, but don’t cry when we lose because I have no idea what I’m doing.”

“I’ll cry a little, but only because I hate to lose and Calden will never let this go if I don’t win.”

Men. When left alone for more than a few minutes at a time, they would posture and engage in competitions, resulting in the utter destruction of their prides. “I won’t cry. I’ll just join the losing novices and scheme to crush you all.”

“That’s the spirit. I will do my best to make sure you don’t regret joining my team.”