Free Awake at Dawn by C. C. Hunter

shape-shifter’s emotions, especially not one as powerful as he is. I’m telling you, the fact that Perry didn’t turn himself into a wild boar and gore your ass the night you bobbed his ear is a miracle. It was the first thing Chan explained about the supernatural world to me. Beware of shape-shifters, they are one badass species.”
    Della tilted her head to the side as if listening. “Oh, shit. Make that sooner.”
    “What?” Kylie asked, not that Della answered.
    Della had disappeared. Kylie didn’t understand until she heard Miranda scream and some serious animal roaring punctuated the morning air.

    65/375
    Running with everything she had, which was amazingly fast compared to the speed she could run a month ago, Kylie got to the V in the trail just in time to see two huge black bears swinging claws at one another.
    Della was holding Miranda, who fought to get away, as if she wanted to break up the fighting animals. It took Kylie about half a second to realize that these weren’t your average giant bears. Nope. They had to be Perry and Kevin.
    When the larger bear raked its claw across the other bear’s shoulder and blood squirted onto the dirt path, Kylie screamed out, “Stop it!” She would have gotten more attention from a brick wall. The two angry animals continued to swing at each other. Suddenly, a few sparkles filled the air, and one bear transformed into a lion, a lion about the size of a minivan. Its roar rang so loud, it hurt Kylie’s ears. Within a few more seconds, the other bear transformed into a lion—only larger. The sound of clashing teeth could be heard between the piercing roars, and more blood moistened the dry earth beneath their paws.
    Kylie didn’t know if the damage the two shape-shifters did to each other was permanent or if when they transformed they came back in one piece. When one lion grabbed the other by the throat, Kylie realized she couldn’t just stand by and watch these two possibly kill each other. Not thinking about the consequences, she flung herself into the mix, grabbed the larger lion by its mane, and yanked as hard as she could.
    “Don’t do that,” Della yelled out, and while Kylie couldn’t see her, she suspected Della was talking to her. And just when Kylie actually considered listening to Della’s advice, the huge cat stood up on his back paws, bringing Kylie up with him. With her two fists knotted in the orange hair of the lion’s mane, Kylie’s feet swung in the air. The beast opened its mouth, blood dripped from his teeth, and it roared with fury unlike anything Kylie had ever heard. The feline’s angry eyes cut back at Kylie. She saw the eyes turn from a deep gold to purple. And somehow she knew this was Perry.

    66/375
    “Put me down and stop fighting!” she yelled.
    Right then the other lion rammed Perry in the side. The hit jolted Perry back and Kylie almost lost her hold on the mane. She looked to the ground a good six feet below. The fall would no doubt hurt, might break a bone, but she would survive. However, the fall would also put her right in the path of Kevin’s angry swipes and snapping jaws. Surviving that might be a little harder, so she tightened her hold on the mane and hung on for dear life.
    Perry started shaking his head as if to rid himself of her presence. She swung from the right to the left like a not-so-loved stuffed animal in the hands of an angry child. Kylie’s fingers started to slip. She glanced back down, trying to figure out an escape route, but her thoughts shifted when she saw Kevin’s jaws sink into Perry’s soft lion underbelly. Tightening her hold on the thick mane, she raised her foot and kicked the attacking lion right in the eye to stop him from killing Perry. Kevin let go, but when he retreated, Kylie saw blood dripping from his mouth.
    Perry roared, from pain or fury Kylie wasn’t sure. Maybe both.
    Kylie heard Della yelling something. Next, Kylie felt her friend flying past as if in an attempt to rescue