Wren

December brought a cold front with it. We’d moved further south to avoid the worst of the winter, and along the way, we’d encountered another group of demons and Wilders. I knew their leader, Elton, a little, but Randy had more dealings with him than I did. Elton had been leading his group of Wilders for ten years, so he had to be doing something right. Elton’s group wasn’t supposed to have been in this area, but a rockslide blocked their path and redirected their travel.

We were only a couple hundred miles away from the southernmost section of the wall, but it was still cold enough here to require blankets though fires for heat weren’t permitted. Any large fire was a good way to bring death down on us all.

Cooking fires were kept as small as possible and lit deeply in the caves we mostly lived in now. It was easier to hide a fire and the scent of cooking food when we were underground. We often spent days hunting, fishing, and preserving what we could before moving on.

We’d start moving further inland soon, but we’d decided to rest here for at least a week. It had been a tiring journey to this area; we all needed a break. Next week, Elton and his group would continue on their way, and we would go deeper into the Wilds. We were on the border of an area I’d never traversed before. I didn’t know how to feel about that.

I was ready to move on, to do more to hunt our enemies down, but I was afraid of what we would find. Elton had said they’d heard some of the strangest sounds when they backtracked away from the rockslide. Some of his followers were standing behind him as he’d revealed this. Pale and trembling, they’d gazed at us with haunted eyes.

I could only imagine what they’d heard. We’d probably encounter it on our journey, but it didn’t matter; we had to push on. If Astaroth and the others had gone somewhere in this country to hide, it was deeper inland. The idea of what lay ahead for us made me uneasy, but I would see the end of the horsemen. I also intended to find Randy, or at least discover what had become of him. I had no idea how I would do that, but I’d find a way.

I pulled my blanket over my knees and drew them against my chest as I surveyed the woods. Sitting on a rock outside the cave we’d spent the past few days living in, I caught the faint scent of fire from deep within the cavern . Before Corson’s blood entered me, I wouldn’t have smelled the burning wood from this distance. It didn’t float far past the entrance, but the acrid scent was there.

I’d constantly searched myself for changes from Corson’s blood; I’d detected more than a few of them already. The first had been my vision. It had been such a gradual thing that even while looking for differences, I hadn’t noticed it until three days ago when I spotted a sparrow perched in a tree a hundred feet away.

No one else had seen the bird, not even Corson until it took flight. He hadn’t been able to keep the smile from his face as he’d looked from me to the bird and back again. But I’d also seen the apprehension in his eyes.

The change wasn’t complete yet; there was still a chance I would die. That chance lessened every day, but the possibility had the sharp edge of a guillotine hanging over our heads.

A shadow fell over me, and I glanced up to see Raphael soaring low through the trees. The spread of his white wings revealed his golden sunburst of feathers. He’d found us again last week and returned with the skelleins to us. They’d located Kobal on the southern end of the wall, but further east of us, more toward Florida.

Kobal had sent more troops from the wall to join us, and we would be entering the mountains with a force of nearly seventy-five. The king had said he would send more troops, and come himself if Corson and Bale believed it necessary.

Corson had sent a scowling Raphael—who muttered something about not being a carrier pigeon—back to tell Kobal his presence wasn’t necessary, they preferred the smaller numbers right now, and Greed was already dead. They would take care of the other horsemen, and Astaroth, but if it became necessary for Kobal and River to become involved, Corson would let them know.

Yesterday, Raphael returned carrying a demon who could telecommunicate. He’d dropped the infuriated demon in front of Corson from fifty feet above. The demon fell on his ass before shooting back to his feet, but he was wise enough not to go after the angel when Raphael landed beside him.

“Kobal says if you must communicate with him in the future, to use this demon, but only if it is necessary,” Raphael stated.

“Kobal hates telecommunicating with anyone,” Corson told me.

“He also said he would understand if you decided to return to the wall with your Chosen after what occurred with Greed.” Raphael hadn’t waited for a reply before taking to the sky.

“Guess he doesn’t like being the messenger,” I said as I’d watched Raphael fly higher.

“But he’s so damn good at it,” Corson replied with a smile and looked at the demon before him. “Welcome.”

“Humph,” the demon grunted, straightened his shirt, and walked away.

Corson grinned after him before looking up to Raphael. “I almost kind of like Raphael more for dropping him. It’s so very un-golden boy of him.”

“Maybe Earth is already changing him.”

“Let’s hope it’s for the better.”

I’d chuckled as Corson slid his arm through mine and led me into the cave. I’d considered asking Corson again what River was, but decided against it. Because of our relationship now, he would tell me, but I knew it was something he’d prefer to come from Kobal or River. I resolved to speak with one of them the next time I got the chance, and hopefully, they would come to like and trust me enough to tell me themselves. Even if they didn’t, I wouldn’t put Corson in the position of feeling like he had to reveal it to me.

My attention was drawn back to the day when Raphael landed next to my rock, nodded at me, tucked his wings against his back, and strode into the cave to join the others. I turned away from him and drew my backpack closer to me. Reaching in, I pulled out a piece of venison and bit into it. The chewiness of the meat made me cringe. I swallowed more from habit than any real hunger before returning it to my bag. I’d give it to Jolie later.

Digging through the bag, I removed the meager supply of food I’d stored inside and slid it into the front pocket. I’d give it over to be divided between the others later. My lack of hunger for human food meant I would probably have to start feeding from wraiths soon, but I was surprisingly okay with that, given how much they’d unnerved me before. If Corson was there to show me what to do, I knew I would be able to get through it, and like every other change in my life, I would adapt to it.

I stuck my hand in the backpack to push aside two shirts, an extra pair of pants, and a bra well on its way to falling apart. At the bottom of the bag, I felt something that caused me to pull my hand back. Peering into the bag, I gazed in disbelief at the small box I’d removed from the locker. I’d stuffed it inside my backpack after that night with Corson and forgotten about it. Pulling the box free, I wiped the dust off to reveal a yellow cover with chipped and fading red flowers.

When I opened the lid, the hinges creaked, and a wave of musty air wafted out to tickle my nose. I pushed aside the multicolored plastic bracelets within before uncovering a small ring. I removed the ring and cleaned it on my shirt to reveal the large, dark blue stone set on a thin silver band.

Slipping the ring on, I wiggled my fingers and frowned when the gem shifted from deep blue to a sky color before turning purple and staying there. A distant memory tugged at me and words drifted through my mind.

Here, put this on! It will tell you your mood! A young girl gushed excitedly.

I struggled to recall who had belonged to the excited voice. Some friend of mine from school most likely. Some friend who probably hadn’t survived the gateway opening, and if she had, I hadn’t run into her again. Perhaps she’d been taken to the wall when the evacuation started; maybe she still lived with her family, and maybe she’d outgrown those buck teeth.

Kristi! I recalled as a face burst into my memory. Despite those teeth and her knobby knees, Kristi had been a pretty girl with a brown ponytail, broad smile, and blue eyes. She’d been my best friend. We’d run and played and giggled over boys who were mostly still gross to us at the time, but some had started to become cute instead of cringeworthy.

Once, we’d each bought one of these rings from a machine at the grocery store. A mood ring, I remembered as I brought my hand closer to study the stone more intently.

Now it seemed silly; I knew my mood was normal, not excited, not bored, just here and still kicking. However, the first time I’d slipped one of these rings on, it had been a magical adventure, and I’d believed it could somehow tell me something I didn’t already know.

Kristi and I had eagerly consulted the color chart to learn how we were feeling. I couldn’t recall what each of the colors represented anymore, but I remembered our heads close together as we giggled and examined our rings like they were the most precious of diamonds.

“What do you have there?” Corson asked as he strolled out of the woods where he’d been on watch with Hawk, Vargas, and Lix. Their shift must have ended, I realized as he walked over to sit beside me.

Lifting my head, my heart swelled with love when my gaze landed on him. I’d loved him when I was a human, deeply, but my love had become more intense, and the possessive feeling I felt for him grew stronger with every passing day. He was my demon. Nothing would ever change that, and I’d kill anyone who tried to come between us.

I scratched absently at the back of my hand as the idea of someone knowing him as intimately as I did caused my teeth to grind. I knew there were other women out there that he’d also been with, I accepted that, but he would never be with another and survive it.

“It’s a mood ring.” I told him about what it did, Kristi, and the rings we’d once purchased together. Slipping the ring off, I slid it onto his finger and watched as it turned black. “I don’t know what that means anymore,” I admitted.

“Only humans would need something to tell them how they feel,” he muttered as he wiggled his fingers. “I do like it though, and if it works, then this ring detects filthy minds.”

The suggestive smile he gave me made my mouth water.

“You do like your jewelry,” I replied. Jealousy speared like a hot poker through my chest at the reminder of him and his earrings from other women. I turned my head away from him as I struggled to get the volatile sway of my emotions under control. “I thought these rings were great when I was a kid,” I forced out. Hoping to keep my unraveling control hidden from him. He worried about me enough without me adding to it by revealing that I was becoming a complete basket case. “But that was a different girl.”

“No, it wasn’t,” Corson said and removed the ring to slide it back onto my finger. “I know you feel that way, but Bonnie and Wren are the same girl. They’re just divided by a horrific event.”

“I don’t know how to be Bonnie,” I admitted and chanced a glance at him when I had my emotions under control again. “She was so happy, so innocent.”

“You never stopped being her,” he said and squeezed my hand. “You had to be a tougher version of her to survive.”

“I guess.”

My eyes focused on a field mouse hopping through the leaves, and I smiled. I never would have seen the small, gray creature with his twitching nose last week. Like I had fourteen years ago, I was changing again, becoming someone else once more, but I welcomed these changes. I’d asked for them.

“She is me, and I am her,” I whispered.

I pondered those words as my fingers played with the band of the mood ring. Bonnie was a child, who’d been secure in her knowledge nothing bad could ever happen to her. Wren was a woman who knew something bad could be lurking around every corner. One had been naïve, the other callous, but they had both been me.

Something shifted and clicked into place inside me as I focused on that. I’d been thinking of my life as the past belonged to Bonnie, the present to Wren, and the future to no one. Now I had the possibility of an immortal future with Corson. I’d believed that remembering the past only brought sadness, but now I was smiling at this ring and the memory of a friend who had once been my most trusted companion.

Trying to forget Kristi and my parents was a disservice to them all. They deserved to be remembered and loved, not buried beneath misery and anger. For the first time, I loved Bonnie and all her memories, but…

“I don’t plan to try to forget the past anymore, but I’ve been Wren for more years than Bonnie. That’s who I am now.”

“Good, I don’t want to call you by the wrong name in bed should you decide to change it. I prefer my nuts attached to my body.”

A burst of loud laughter escaped me, shaking my stomach, and shocking me more than the ouro had. Corson’s eyes widened, and I slapped my hands over my mouth to muffle the sound.

“Don’t,” he said and tugged at my hands. “I’ve been trying to get you to laugh, to really laugh and not just chuckle, since I met you.” He succeeded in pulling my hands away from my mouth. “Your laugh is beautiful, don’t hide it.”

“It’s not that,” I whispered, unable to stop tears from filling my eyes. “I have my mom’s laugh. I… I didn’t realize it. I must have had it as a child too, and I’d forgotten over the years, or maybe it just came as I got older, but I’d stopped laughing by then. It’s her laugh though, and I always loved her laugh.”

Corson used his thumbs to wipe away the two tears that slid free to track down my cheeks. “Then I will make you use it more often.”

“Yes, you will.”

I leaned against his side and kissed his cheek. He leaned over to examine the contents of the box. I reached in to pull another piece of jewelry out by its hook. The dangling earring unfolded from between my thumb and index finger to reveal the silver bird twirling at the end of it. Corson wrapped his hand around it to stop it from spinning, and I released it to him.

“It seems that should belong to you,” I said.

“My earring-wearing days are over.”

“Even if I give it to you and want you to wear it?” I hadn’t liked seeing him in the earrings of others, but my mischievous adhene needed them back.

“I would proudly wear your earring every day for the rest of my life,” he stated.

“That bird could be a wren, and I’m giving it to you.”

He gazed at me before lifting it and pushing the hook through the tip of his right ear. I winced for him, but he didn’t react. When he gave his head a small shake, he made the bird fly back and forth.

“Only mine though,” I said, unable to keep the anger from my voice as a fresh wave of jealousy hit me.

“It will never be another’s.”

I inhaled through my teeth, but it was difficult getting air into my lungs through the growing constriction in my chest. I knew how much he loved me, knew he would do anything in the world for me, yet jealousy tore at my insides, and I couldn’t do anything to stop it.

“Easy,” he said as he wrapped his hand around mine.

He didn’t need to look at the ring to know my emotions had taken an explosive swing. It had been happening more often over the past week. Maybe I really would have to leave everyone and go somewhere else until I could be sure I wouldn’t hurt someone.

“Breathe,” Corson coaxed.

I inhaled a tremulous breath and bowed my head as some of my hostility eased.

“Only yours,” he whispered as he smoothed a strand of hair back from my forehead before cupping my neck.

“Am I going to be so emotional all the time?”

“No, you will get used to it, and you will handle it better with time. Hawk experienced violent mood swings in the beginning too, but they’ve leveled out. Part of what you’re experiencing might be that you’ve become demon enough to want to claim me as your Chosen, but you’re still too human to do so. Until you can do that, this emotional sway may become more extreme.”

“You are mine.”

“Yes, I am yours,” he said, drawing me closer.

I rubbed at the back of my hand again before taking another deep breath. I didn’t feel as unstable when he had his arms around me, but walking around with Corson hugging me all the time wasn’t exactly the most practical way to go about life, and it wouldn’t bode well for our survival.

“I’m okay now,” I assured him.

I wasn’t, but I had to deal with this, and at least I didn’t want to kill something anymore. Digging into the box again, I discovered the other bird earring within. Pulling it free, I let it dangle from my fingers before sticking it through my left earlobe. The prick of pain vanished almost instantly, and I realized that no blood trickled free as my body worked to repair the hole with inhuman speed.

Shaking my head, I laughed at the feel of the bird dangling there. “I see why you like these things.”

“I especially like it on you,” he replied as his lips nuzzled my temple.

Three women emerged from the woods, and I realized they were part of Elton’s group. They stopped when they spotted Corson and me. One of them gave a friendly wave before hurrying toward the cave entrance. The other two stayed where they were, their gazes raking over Corson in a way that sent fury spiraling through me faster than I’d ever believed possible.

I snarled at them before I knew what I’d done. Corson’s hand pressed down on my shoulder when I tried to rise. If he hadn’t been there to restrain me, I would have torn into them like a dog on fresh meat. The two women took a frightened step back when three-inch-long spikes erupted from the backs of my hands. My rage was briefly forgotten as I gawked at the white spikes suddenly jutting out.

Corson rose and slid his arm around my waist when I lifted my head to the startled women. A haze of red shaded my vision. He lifted me off the ground and held me firmly against him.

“Get inside!” Corson commanded them.

They didn’t have to be told twice as they scurried past us and out of view. Their disappearance didn’t ease my longing to see them dead.

“Easy, lahala,” Corson murmured as he carried me into the woods. “Easy.”

“I should have gutted them.”

“Spoken like a true demon when someone is messing with their Chosen.”

“Hmm,” I grumbled, not at all pleased he might be finding this amusing. Then my eyes fell to my hands on his shoulders, and the white talons. “I have spikes in my hands!”

“Baby spikes,” he said, and I realized he did find this amusing when I heard the laughter in his voice. “But then, mine were once baby spikes too.”

“Baby spikes,” I muttered and lifted my hands to examine the backs of them. I poked the tip of one spike with my finger and watched a bead of blood form there. “Does this mean I’m done with the transition?”

“You still have some way to go,” he said as he set me on my feet and claimed my hands to study them. “But I think it means you’ll survive it now. This was one of the bigger changes your body had to endure. My bones are different than other demons, harder. My flesh is different too, at least on my hands. Does this hurt?” he asked as he prodded the skin on the back of my hand.

“No,” I said, amazed that I didn’t feel any discomfort from the talons poking out of my flesh.

Lifting his head, he peered at me from under the thick fringe of his black lashes. The bird spun in his ear as a breeze flowed through the trees. “My little adhene demon,” he murmured.