Free Only Witness, The by Shannon Flagg Page A

not tonight, not like this. The moon, and my birthday, are in two days. That is when we should be wed, as in the old days.”
                  The Old Man considered her words. Finally he nodded. “We will embrace the ways of the old, show our respect as we move forward. In two days time, Josiah will take Adelaide as his bride and we will celebrate. We will all celebrate.”
                  “That we will,” Josiah spoke softly, reached out and cupped the side of Adelaide's face in a surprisingly intimate touch. Deacon didn't know what shocked him more, the way that Josiah was looking at Adelaide or the fact that she leaned into his touch. There was no objection when his head moved close to hers, leaned in to whisper something in her ear.
                  White hot rage rolled through Deacon. None of this was acceptable. It was not going to happen, not while there was still breath in his body.
                  “It is decided!” The Old Man bellowed the words as he pulled himself to his full height.
    The air shimmered, and in an instant The Old man was transformed from a withered human to a vibrant wolf with a flowing white coat. The beast threw its head back, howled in a clear invitation to whoever wanted to join him before taking off for the tree line.
                  There was no way that Deacon was changing. No, he needed to stay just as he was to get answers. Answers that better be really compelling or he might just lose his mind. He waited for Adelaide to move away from Josiah, but she didn't. Instead she moved closer; they embraced. Deacon felt his stomach churn sickly. He'd never actually seen anything so vomit-inducing before, and he'd seen some shit in his time.
                  Deacon waited out the embrace, the whispered conversation before Josiah began to undress, handing his folded clothes to her before he changed to take off after The Old Man. Adelaide held the clothes to her chest, he saw her sniff them and was quite certain that she'd lost her mind.
                  Finally she moved away from the crowd, sat down with a drink. Deacon made his approach quickly, ignoring several people who called his name. He only had his mind set on one conversation, finding out what the hell his sister was doing.
                  “Don't Deke, I don't want to hear it,” Adelaide looked up as he walked over to where she sat. “It's the best solution to the problem. We both know Piper would have died to keep from having to marry him. She wouldn't be the only one.”
                  “He's dangerous, Adelaide,” Deacon held his hands stiffly at his side in an attempt to keep from grabbing her and literally shaking some sense into her.
                  “You might not believe me, but I can handle whatever trouble he is. I know what you see when you look at him, but there's more to him than what meets the eye. We're not going to agree, so why don't you just tell me what happened with Vera?”
    “Nothing. Why would you ask that?” Deacon knew that the lie would be obvious to Adelaide; part of her gift was the way that she could read people. “And don't try to change the subject. We're not talking about me, we're talking about you.”
    “I can smell her all over you, rosemary and mint. It's more than just her shampoo. It's her, and it is all over you. Might as well tell me, I'm just asking to be polite.”
    “You saw?” Deacon knew he looked as horrified as he felt, the idea that Adelaide had one of her flashes while he was with Vera just made him uncomfortable beyond explanation.
                  “I've learned to tune it out for the most part, still it's an eyeful. Anyway, cut the bullshit. Tell me how it felt.”
                  “You need a description of my orgasm? Really?”
                  “No,” she rolled her eyes. “Be serious. You know who she