I screamed, quickly covering up as much as possible.
Will laughed harder. “Naked and tangled up. It must’ve been some party last night.”
“I—no.” I felt my whole body blush, from the tips of my toes to the top of my head.
“Miss Cavanaugh.” Isaac found me next.
Where Will was just standing there staring, Isaac quickly took off his jacket and threw it over me. “Thank you, Isaac.” I tried to cover myself but I was still mostly tangled.
Adam burst through the two men and bent beside me. “What the hell?” He ripped at the stupid lounge chair until I was free. Then he picked me up, making sure I was covered and practically ran toward the house.
“Wait for me,” Will called.
“Isaac, will you make sure Will leaves?” I asked, my gaze catching the butler’s.
“Of course. If you would,” I heard Isaac say.
Adam mumbled something under his breath.
“What?” I asked, mortified but trying not to be.
“I don’t like that kid.”
“Who, Will?” I shrugged, which made Isaac’s jacket fall off my shoulder and slide down my chest so I was exposed. I gasped.
Adam kept his eyes forward. “Don’t talk. Don’t move until I say so.”
I glanced up at his face. He was clenching his teeth, his jaw flexing and un-flexing. “You’re kind of bossy,” I said, surprised.
At my words his bright eyes found mine. He made a point of focusing only on my face. “Shhhhh.” Then he faced forward, opening the back door, walking through the living room, down the hall, and up the stairs. When he reached my room, he kicked open the door and basically tossed me on the bed. My limbs went flying, the jacket all but coming off. My face burned, embarrassed. The door slammed shut and I was alone.
“Rude.”
I thought I heard a bark of laughter from the other side of the door. “When you’re decent come find me.”
“Fine.” I jumped off the bed and ran into the bathroom, desperate to see my face. I was dirty, but still me. There were no sharp teeth. There wasn’t any fur. No claws or paws. I sighed. “Sleepwalking?” I thought aloud.
“More like shifting,” Fizban said from my cell phone.
I yelped. “How did you get in here?” I was asking my phone, which hadn’t been in the bathroom moments ago.
Fizban answered. “I can be anything. Why would you think I couldn’t move your phone?”
I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart.
Fizban popped out of my cell phone and was suddenly sitting on my toilet seat. The ends of her long red hair rested in her lap. She was dressed in fingerless gloves, a dress that’d seen better days and shoes with holes in the toes.
“Why are you dressed like Raggedy Ann?”
“Why are you not dressed at all?” She smirked when I suddenly reached for a towel and wrapped it around myself.
“I’m in the bathroom, where I should have privacy,” I sputtered.
“Uh-huh. Well get in.” The water in the shower turned on.
“Not with you in here.” The shower was a snail cove, which meant I went inside the shower and had privacy, but knowing her, she’d climb in too.
“I solemnly swear not to peek.” As she spoke, she raised her right hand.
“Fine.” The faster I finished, the faster I could find Adam. I walked into the shower, hung my towel on a hook nearby and stepped into the water.
“So, tell me how you’ve been?”
I snorted. “You probably know more than I do.”
“Perhaps, but I want to hear you tell it.”
She sounded suspiciously close. “I was shopping yesterday when I was overwhelmed by all of these emotions. I fell from the second story. Luckily Adam caught me.” I smiled at the thought of him. It was weird that I already cared for him. Cared. Yep that was the right word. I cared. For him and Isaac and Mrs. Dotts.
“I see. And what have you learned about the Vaktare?”
“Nothing,” I huffed, rinsing out my hair.
“That’s not true.”
I glanced around the corner. She stood right next to the opening.
“Get back,” I hissed.
She laughed. “Tell me what you’ve learned.”
I thought about it. “I can tell you what I think I’ve learned.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“Last night I thought I was dreaming and a big black cat tried to kill me. Then a large wolf saved me. And I—I saw my reflection.
“And?”
“There was a cat or a Vaktare staring back, which means I’m a Vaktare.” I ran a razor over my soapy armpits. “The evil Vaktare, the one who tried to kill me, he called the wolf ‘Locanis’ but I don’t know if it’s the wolf’s name or his species.”
“Wow. See. You have learned a lot.” She stuck her head around the corner.
I screamed, cutting myself with the razor. Blood immediately formed. “Ouch. Dammit. You said you wouldn’t peek.”
“I say a lot of things.” She moved her head back around the corner, out of sight.
I rinsed the blood and waited for more. But none came. “So a Vaktare is a big hairy cat-beast. And I’m one of them?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Okay. And how did this happen? Did you turn me into one of these Vaktare when you cursed me?”
She peeked around the corner again, but this time I was prepared and splashed water in her face. She let out a yelp and moved back. “The curse isn’t really a curse. It’s more of a reverse curse.”
“What? You’re not making any sense?” I turned off the water and grabbed a clean towel.
She zipped her lips and then locked them with an invisible key.
“You aren’t going to tell me?”
She unzipped her lips. “Part of breaking the curse, or reversing the curse, is that you need to be the one to figure out what’s going on. If I help you, then you’ve really learned nothing. You need to experience what your life is truly about.”
“Oh, great. Like last night?” I opened the bathroom door and went into my closet. I wondered if she would follow or if she were somehow attached to my phone.
She followed.
“Can I get a little privacy? Please?” I asked with extra sincerity, batting my lashes.
Fizban laughed. “You’ve already changed, Beatrice. I hope it’s enough to save everyone.” She skipped out of the closet.
“Save? Who? My mom and dad?” I pulled on a lilac bra and undies.
“Sure, them and more. A lot has happened in eighteen years.”
I pulled on a pair of dark jeans and a lilac peasant top. “I don’t understand.” Looking back, the last eighteen years didn’t seem real now I could actually feel. “Are you talking about my ability to experience emotions now? Why couldn’t I before?” I quickly buckled on a pair of wedge heel sandals. Coming out of the closet, I went on, “My emotions are wonky. I cry constantly.”
Fizban was sitting on my bed flipping through a magazine. “Last night you shifted. It means your true nature is returning much faster than we—I expected. You need to be careful.”
“No kidding.” I opened my bedroom door. “Celeste,” I called out of habit before I remembered she was gone. Adam had replaced her. I glanced down the hall. It was empty. Isaac opened the bedroom door across from mine.
“Isaac,” I said, surprised.
“Miss Cavanaugh. I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of helping Adam move into this bedroom. I think it might be wise if he were closer to you.”
I turned my head, trying to figure out if he were being honest. That he’d done something so huge without my consent would’ve been grounds for dismissal in the past. He never would’ve tried it with my mom and dad around. Isaac grabbed the ends of his vest. “I’m sorry if I’ve overstepped, Miss Cavanaugh. I’m just worried.”
I let out a breath. “It’s okay, Isaac. I appreciate your concern.” Adam appeared behind Isaac.