Raving Moon, Lords of the Night Book One

Chapter 19: Sky

A bad sign. We wanted her to stay as calm as possible for as long as possible. We were there to ask questions, not start a brawl. I looked at her massive hands. Her animal form would be a colossus.

"May I sit, Mrs. Yazzie?"

At her slight nod, I sat on the loveseat.

"Just answer our questions honestly and you should have nothing to worry about." It was a half-truth. If she were guilty and she incriminated herself, I would have her detained. And because of the severity and magnitude of her crime a summary execution could be ordered.

Part of me hoped this lead was a dead-end.

"Tell us about Sheila," Ariane said, her words sounding more like an order than an invitation.

Sky glanced over my shoulder at the woman behind me. Reading the cues, I mentally stepped back to let Ariane take the lead.

"Me and Sheila grew up together. We went to the same middle school and the same high school. We even went to the same college until I dropped out."

"So you were close?"

"We used to be..."

"Until?" I prodded.

"Until Johnny." Sky twisted her head slightly to the side, cracking her neck and releasing pent-up tension. "We met him in college. Sheila couldn't get enough of him. I couldn't stand the piece of shit."

She jumped to her feet and my hand went to the hilt of my blade. Sky paced back and forth, fireplace to television and back. I relaxed, but I didn't move my hand.

"She chased behind him like a junkie, shit, both of them eventually became dope fiends. He fucked her life good." Sky shook her head. "Fucking Johnny."

"So Johnny broke up your friendship." I wrote a note on my phone.

"No, it was Marty."

"The baby?" My thoughts went back to the crime scene and my mind recoiled.

"Yes! No!" Sky shook her head, a quiet growl escaping her lips.

The heat in the room rose swiftly.

"Mrs. Yazzie, relax," Ariane said as she stepped past me, her voice was friendly, soothing. "Relax. Calm your spirit, quiet the bear within." She put her hand on Sky's shoulder.

"I'm fine, bitch!" Sky growled, shoving Ariane towards the fireplace.

It was my turn to jump to my feet.

Sky's eyes yellowed, but only for a moment before changing back. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

Her file said she'd been a shifter since her early teens, nearly thirty years. She'd been a lycanthrope too long to have such little control of her inner-beast. Sky Yazzie was dangerous, but we needed answers. So I pressed on while she was off balanced.

"How did Marty change things?"

Ariane gave me a warning look and I nodded. I knew what I was doing.

"Sheila got clean when she realized she was knocked-up. Cleaned up her life and tossed Johnny to the curb. She wanted to get a place and, stupid me, I lent her the money. We even looked at places together."

Sky plopped down in the recliner, running her hand back through her hair.

"Then Marty came along and Johnny came back. He claimed to have gotten his shit together... and she took it, hook, line, and sinker." The words came from deep in her chest. "No more house, nope. Johnny's family was from Rat City and he wanted to stay there. I asked for my money back. If she wasn't going to get a house for Marty, I wasn't going to leave her with the temptation to smoke it all away."