Phoenix Reborn (Woodland Creek)(20)

“How can I tell,” she began, “Who’s my enemy, and who’s an ally?”

“You can’t, not always. There is good and bad in everything. But you will find that you learn to better trust your instincts. Listen to them and heed them, because they’re your greatest ally. If you meet someone who makes you feel comfortable and comforted, chances are good that they’re a friend. Likewise for the reverse.”

“There was a man, the other night. Outside the bar. He said some very strange things…”

“Yes, and there will be more. You have the power to defend yourself, Ashling; to be all but invincible against threat. But you need to learn to trust in it, and in yourself. Be kind to yourself. This is not an easy life.”

Ashling felt tears well up in her eyes; whether from sadness or joy was difficult to tell.

“Will it ever get easy?” she asked.

“Something tells me that it will get easier,” he replied with a warm smile. “And that it already has. Remember to accept people into your life. Stop pushing them away.”

“I’ll try,” she said. “You’re talking about Hawke, aren’t you?”

“Perhaps. Don’t reject the young man because you feel that you and he are too different.”

“What do you mean? Because I’m a shifter, or because he’s a movie star?”

“Either one is the result of prejudice, isn’t it? Judging him for not being enough like you is unfair. And so is the assumption that he’ll reject you for being who you are. Remember that. Be open to the possibilities.”

Ranach was right. She’d been doing exactly that — finding reasons to push Hawke away: that she wasn’t good enough, that he didn’t know what she was really like. But for once, there was someone in her life who seemed to like her as she was, and she should learn to embrace that gift.

But this wasn’t a simple matter. Hawke had a life, a reputation to uphold. If she was a shifter, as Ranach said, it would have all sorts of implications for her life. She would have to keep her true nature hidden in order to protect those around her. And for someone like Hawke, constantly in the public eye, it was a simple impossibility.

She forced herself to put a halt to the series of thoughts. She’d been on one pseudo-date with the guy, after all; it wasn’t as though they were engaged to be married. Maybe she could put a stop to things before they became any more serious.

Maybe she had to.





9





Ashling’s phone rang again that afternoon. But this time, it wasn’t Hawke. The number was one that she didn’t recognize; no doubt another cell phone.

“Hello?” she said, her voice hesitant.

“Ashling,” said the confident voice on the other end. “It’s Wayne. We met last night.”

“Oh, right. You’re the location scout.”

“That’s right. Listen, Hawke is busy today but he told me I might get you to show me the wooded area outside of town. He said it might work very well for one of our scenes.”

“Um, sure. I mean, I’m supposed to run some errands, but maybe around four I could meet you there? There’s a stream not too far from the east end of the parking lot at...”

“I know just what you mean. That sounds great. Four it is, then.”

“Sure. I’ll see you there.”

The truth was that she’d hardly gotten any work done all day; her mind had been filled with thoughts about the previous night — her too-brief time spent with Hawke — and with what Ranach had said earlier.

Hawke, like Ranach, had hinted that she was special, and that he knew something. But he didn’t know what her mentor did. How could he? The old wizard had said that humans were out of the inner circle of shifters, unaware of her kind.

But then, Hawke had been on the verge of kissing her when he’d said those things. Maybe he was just paying her a compliment when he’d spoken of her specialness.

Ranach, on the other hand, had told her of her legacy, of a fate that seemed to be tied to her very genes. A life ahead that was unlike what she’d ever imagined she could face. She was an even bigger freak than she’d ever thought — but at least now she had some answers; an explanation for her strange abilities. And to think that there were others like her, to know that she wasn’t alone. It was all reassuring, if shocking. She was part of something greater than herself. Something magical, even.

But as for Hawke — if he learned the truth, he would run a thousand miles. That she was one of these mysterious shape-shifters who lurked in shadows, who congregated in Woodland Creek and hid themselves in broad daylight. And if she got involved with him, how could she possibly hide it from him? It seemed, from what Ranach had said, that her life was on a path of change. She was no longer weird little Ashling Jones. She was something remarkable, and would continue to develop.

Well, at least she was potentially remarkable. The fact remained that she’d never changed into anything at all. She was a shifter who didn’t shift; all she did was burn things.

But in the end, she had to accept it: for the first time in her life she felt genuinely excited about the future. She had something to look forward to, even if it was a little frightening. She had a purpose, and her life was beginning to make sense. Maybe the fact was that she belonged right here in Woodland Creek. Maybe it was the “normal” people that she’d once envied so much who didn’t belong. This place was threaded with magic, and she would learn to manipulate it as she manipulated molten silver, shaping the powers to fit into this new world — a world of her own making.