Page 62 of Winter’s Teeth

“Oh, we can shift into anything. Any animal, any form. Sometimes other people.”

My jaw loosened, mouth gaping.

“I’m not very good at shifting into another person. My cousin, Gavin... He’s the best at it.”

“That’s so creepy,” I whispered. “Who does he impersonate?”

Fox shrugged. “Anyone and everyone if he’s bored enough. He pretended to be one of the officers after Everly went missing.”

It explained a lot. It also made me want to punch someone. Preferably Gavin or Arthur. So much chaos and confusion had hindered us that night, and now I knew it wasn’t for a lack of effort. The people we thought we could trust to help had been working against us the whole time.

What evidence did Gavin erase? How many circles did he lead us in when we searched the woods?

My hand curled into a fist on the table.

Noting my rising fury, Fox pushed on to get the rest of his confession out. “Corbin’s preferred form is a crow. If you see one around the cabin, it’s just him keeping an eye on things. He’s best at small animals, but lately he could care less about shifting. He’s more interested in his girlfriend, which is why he’s been getting roped into some of the punishments.”

My anger stalled, and I leaned on my fist. “What’s your preferred form? Is it a f—”

“Don’t even say it,” he cut me off. “I’m never a fox for that exact reason.”

My eyebrows rose slightly, goading him to say more.

“My preferred form is a black eagle. It’s rare and not from around here, but I blend in better.”

A memory dawned on me as I sat up straighter. “Hang on... I think I saw you. The other day. I saw a huge black bird like that in the trees. That was you?”

His shoulders rose and fell nonchalantly. “Gotta keep an eye on you, don’t I? You have a knack for getting into trouble where my brother is concerned.”

An incredulous snort escaped me. “You could say that, I guess.”

“Anyway... If I’m not that, then I’m something normal. Like a bear or a deer.”

“Um...” I drummed my fingers on the table, ignoring the way he narrowed his eyes at me. “Not to be rude, Fox, but your bear form isn’t normal at all. You’re terrifying. You have fangs. Bears don’t have fangs.”

He shrugged again, like his own little variation of a black bear wasn’t that big of a deal. Like he hadn’t looked like something out of a violent comic book.

Spinning the straw around in my cup, stirring up ice, I asked, “Have you ever impersonated a human?”

He shook his head with a dry look. “No. I never liked the thought of it and didn’t practice. Animals are all I’m comfortable with. I want to be in tune with nature, not messing with people for my own entertainment.”

Fair enough. And noble.

It didn’t excuse everything though. All the secrecy. All the pain it caused me and my family.

Everly was still missing.

Getting back to what I could control and what needed to be done, I said, “We need to get back to the venue cabin to make sure my friends are okay.”

The risk that Arthur et al. could go after my ignorant friends just to teach me and Fox a lesson wasn’t lost on me. It had been sitting on my shoulders like an anvil all night, but we weren’t going anywhere without a ride.

“I know you don’t want me going to the police again, but I...” I splayed my hands out on the table, palms up. “I’m pretty useless on my own right now.”

He bit into his lower lip, eyes drifting to the flickering lights in the dark parking lot. “I know. I’ll get us back there, but you have to swear not to tell them everything I just told you.”

“What?” My brows pinched. “Why not? They deserve to know and—”

“I’m on thin ice, Rae,” he said brusquely, though I didn’t think his ire was directed at me. I hoped it wasn’t, at least. “You saw what he did to me before, and that wasn’t involving anyone else. He would definitely kill me now. You saw what happened to the officers they strung up in the woods. The more people who know, the more people have to die.”