Moon Rise (Twilight Shifters Book 2) by Kate Danley Read Free Book Online Page A

the transformation was complete, he let out a heaving sigh.
    "I know, Lars," said Aein, coming over to him to wrap her arms around his neck.  She held his muzzle in her hands.  "I promise we shall get a harvest so bountiful that you shall never have to transform again.  I promise."  He gave her a gentle lick on the cheek and she laughed.  She stood, walked to her horse, and mounted.  Finn joined her on the horse which Lars had been riding.
    They clicked their heels and the horses were off, taking advantage of the last of the light before the twilight swallowed the road and made travel impossible.  Aein tried to spot any sign of something flying above.  About an hour later, Lars gave a low growl and a bark.  Both Aein and Finn stopped their horses. 
    "Do we have a new friend?" asked Aein.
    Lars barked again.  It seemed so silly to ask him a question when he could not answer her back.
    "Lars," said Finn, leaning forward in his saddle.  "Bark twice if it is another shifter."
    Lars barked twice.
    "You're brilliant," Aein said to Finn.
    Finn shrugged.  "I kept hoping you would figure out there were ways of asking me 'yes' and 'no' questions."
    "I can't believe we didn't think of it before."
    Finn dismounted.  "Well, we have a new companion.  Owl, perhaps?" he wondered.  "We'll move out at first light when it flies away.  Besides," he yawned, "I'm exhausted.  Aren't you?"
    Aein could not argue.  Their stay at the inn seemed like years ago instead of just a week.  They still had another two weeks before they would arrive at the edge of the swamp.  Finn began pulling the bedrolls off the horses as Aein gathered firewood.  They found a flat area with a spot for the horses to graze.  Lars dug the fire pit with his paws while Aein and Finn stomped the grass around it flat.  It would make a nice cushion when they slept.
    "We should hunt for game if we have the chance," observed Finn.  "I don't know what chance we'll have in the swamp."
    Unsaid was that they probably would not want to eat anything they caught in the swamp anyways.  After the mushrooms, Aein was terrified what other magic they might stumble across.
    "I wonder how owl tastes..." Aein commented.  Their feathered spy did not reveal himself.
    "Stringy," said Finn. 
    Lars got up for first watch.  As Aein and Finn climbed into their bedrolls, Lars reluctantly left to do his patrol, dragging his feet as he went.  It had been another long day, but Lars's gloom seemed more pronounced.  Aein wondered if she should go after him.
    "We should be able to tell if we are getting closer or further from whomever is spying on us based upon the length of time it takes for the birds to come back," observed Finn. 
    "I am hoping we are getting farther away," said Aein ruefully.
    "You and me both."  Finn glanced at where Lars disappeared.  "Is he okay?" he asked.
    Finn was relaxed, leaning on his bedroll on one elbow, tearing off a piece from the dried jerky in his hand.  He was so casual, Aein knew that his question was anything but.
    "I don't know," she replied.  The light of the fire pitched everything beyond it into a dark haze, and Aein didn't know if Lars was sitting within earshot or far away.  "It has been difficult for him.  I know he will be grateful when this is done."
    Finn nodded.  "He's had it rougher than any of us.  I hate that he's going back into the swamp again so soon."
    It dawned on Aein that in addition to Finn's argument that she needed wolves around the clock to protect her in the swamp, perhaps he was also so insistent because he was scared of what Lars might do once he faced the fog again.
    "He'll be fine," Aein replied, not convinced of her own words, but feeling like she needed to stand up for her friend.
    Finn gave her a soft smile.  "It is not weakness to fear the swamp," said Finn.  "I want to make sure he knows we are here to help him, that he doesn't have to put on a strong face if he's falling apart.  I'd rather know the