Taken at Dusk (Shadow Falls #3)(33)

"Oh, I was really young, too young. Five years younger than most shifters. Like barely two years old. Try handling a terrible two tantrum with a shape-shifter. Blew my parents' minds. And their marriage."

Kylie heard the tiniest bit of hurt in his voice. "They split up?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry."

"Hey ... it wasn't my problem."

Oh, yeah, it was. Even his eyes had grown a lonely shade of muted brown. "Who did you live with, your mom or your dad?"

He didn't answer for a minute. "Neither."

She hesitated to ask, but somehow she almost sensed he wanted her to. "Why?"

"Supposedly, I was that hard to handle."

"Where did you go?"

"The FRU has a foster care program. You know, for unwanted strays. I stayed here for a while, and then there for a while."

Kylie felt she understood Perry better than she ever had. And she almost forgave him for being the smartass that he was sometimes.

"Was it terrible?" she asked, and suddenly she knew that she'd lost all her whining rights about how bad her own life had been.

"Nah," he said. "I'm a shape-shifter, I learned to fit in ... at most places. Of course, I wasn't invited back to some of them." He laughed, but as Kylie had already suspected, Perry hid a lot of pain behind his humor.

She also got a feeling there was a lot he wasn't saying. Not that she blamed him. But damn, she couldn't imagine how it must have been being passed from home to home.

"You know," he said as if he suddenly wanted to change the subject, "some shifters don't start until they're in their teens. Maybe you're one of them."

"Maybe," she said. "But I'd only be half. Do half-breed shifters ever have different gifts? Like healing and stuff?"

"Not that I've heard. I have some cousins who are half-breeds and they're limited on what they can shift into. One can only shift into a bird. I used to turn into a cat and chase him around, and one time-"

"Please don't tell me you ate him," Kylie said.

"I just tortured him a little," he said with a grin. "Hey, when he shifted back, he was fine." He inhaled and almost seemed to get lost in a memory. "You know, I should probably try to find some of my cousins."

Kylie wondered if he ever thought about finding his parents, but not wanting to pry too much, she didn't ask. "Oh yeah," she said, grinning, trying to keep it light. "I'll bet they would love to see you coming."

A few minutes later, they'd reached the end of the path where the cabins that housed the office and the dining hall were located. She glanced around to see if she could spot Helen, the shy half-fae who had checked Kylie for a brain tumor, but Kylie didn't see her.

Because Helen was also a healer, Kylie figured she would be the person to ask about the gift. Questions like "Have you ever brought something back to life?" But Helen wasn't one of the teens hanging out front of the dining hall. However, Kylie did see Burnett walk into the office and she remembered she had things to talk to him about, too.

She turned to Perry. "I need to chat with Burnett for a bit. I'll see you in few-"

"No, you won't," Perry said. "Where you go, I go. It's questionable if you can pee today." He grinned. "And I've got Burnett's permission to morph into a giant anteater and kick ass and ask questions later if anyone tries to take over my job."

Kylie rolled her eyes, knowing Burnett had been talking about Lucas. And thinking of Lucas, she looked around a second time, but he wasn't in the crowd either.

Looking back at Perry, she added, "Yeah, but I'm going to see Burnett. I don't think you have to be there then."

He tightened his shoulders. "Where you go, I go. Until Burnett dismisses me."

"Oh, hell. Come on."

* * *

Breakfast started out awkward. As had walking into Holiday's office, Perry in tow, and seeing Burnett sitting at Holiday's desk for the second time. Thankfully, Burnett dismissed Perry for their chat. Kylie asked for any update on the elderly couple who had pretended to be her grandparents and was told that nothing had come through yet.

She almost told Burnett about the dream with Red but at the last moment decided she wanted to be able to handle one thing on her own. And this was it. If it happened again, she'd talk to Holiday, but for now, she was flying solo on this mission. As crazy as it sounded, it felt kind of good, too. She wanted to believe she could take care of herself.

When she'd told Burnett about Holiday's aunt passing away, he'd looked shocked and ... something else. It took her a second, but she'd recognized the emotion in his eyes. Hurt.

"Why would she not tell me this?" he had asked.

"I'm sure she's just dealing with it in her own way," Kylie had tried to assure him, but she could tell her efforts were futile. And as she'd turned to leave, she didn't know what compelled her to do it, but she'd looked back over her shoulder and said, "Be patient with her. She's worth it."

Now, in the dining hall, Perry still in tow, Kylie stared at her breakfast of bacon, eggs, and toast. For a change, the eggs weren't runny and the bacon wasn't raw or burned. But she'd eaten only a few bites, and after being painfully aware that everyone was staring at her forehead again, she decided she must have left her appetite at the cabin.