Free Laura's Secret by Lucy Kelly

supernatural bone in his body,” her mother explained with a smile.
    “Okay, for the sake of argument, I’ll go along with this. So I’m a changeling. What does that mean for me, Laura Solange Donahue?” she asked.
    “It means you will have a long life and learn a great many things. Your power will grow, slowly at first, then become stronger and stronger over the next hundred years or so.”
    “So far so good, I get to live a long time with my Alpha shifter husband. I get immense powers and my own fountain of youth. So where’s the catch, the bad news to balance all this good stuff? There’s always a dark side,” she said, she’d learned that at a very young age.
    “You are aware of the war going on in the supernatural world? Well, if The Society or the Shayatin become aware of your existence, they’ll try very hard to kill you. You need to be here, in this realm, and you’ll be surrounded by danger all of your life. I’m sorry, Laura, but I know you’re strong enough to face it.”
    “Dad and the bros won’t let anyone hurt me. And if I really have a hot shifter husband, I don’t think he will either.” Wanting another slice of banana bread, she looked down. Once again the treat had changed. Instead of banana bread, there was a dish of flan. Picking up a spoon she dug in. All of her favorite treats all at once, this was the coolest dream.
    “So tell me more about all these powers I’m going to have. And if I’m so powerful, how come I’m allergic to the sun and sitting in a wheelchair?” she asked.
    “I don’t have all the answers. Your problems with sunlight are linked to your identity. That’s all I know. I wasn’t fully transformed, so I don’t have the knowledge you need. Another will come to be your teacher. And while you will be able to heal yourself, you can’t magically create tissue and muscle. So you’ll have to do the work. It’ll be good for you,” her mother said before she faded into mist. The kitchen also faded and Laura found herself sitting in the middle of a meadow on a blanket.
    Soon after she left the dream and drifted into a deep sleep.
    *****
    It was nearly ten thirty when Mara and Marshall had put Laura to bed. In a small town outside Berlin is was eight hours later. Frieda Schieber was dozing in her rocking chair, at six thirty in the morning, as her tea steeped in the teapot. She always liked to start her day with a pot of tea.
    From one moment to the next she went from sleepy to wide awake. She was not from the Earth realm and she felt the awakening power of one of her kinswomen. She had learned a great deal in the years of her life. Ignoring her tea, she hurried around her small house gathering the items she would need for a location spell. The next changeling had come into being and she would need Frieda’s help.
    Frieda was a sprightly old woman with long white hair she wore in braids wound about her head. As small and thin as she was, she could still be mistaken for a child until you saw her up close. Then the spiderweb of wrinkles in her soft skin and the faint age spots on her hands were evident. She flitted back and forth, opening cupboards and drawers a whirlwind of activity when only moments ago she was rocking in her chair.
     

Chapter Nine
     
    Laura sucked in a breath and in those seconds her dream flashed through her mind as she woke up on Wednesday morning. The last thing she remembered was going into the living room for coffee. The dream couldn’t be real! They must have drugged me? I didn’t drink any coffee though.
    “Maggie?” she said.
    “Good morning, Laura. I have informed your guests that you have awakened. Is there something you require?” the voice of her house asked her.
    “First off, which one of my guests is still in the house? And who took off my clothes!” she shouted, realizing she was naked.
    “The only guest remaining is guest, Mara. Guest, Mara, and guest, Marshall, removed your clothing and placed you in the bed. The other