Free The Twisting by Laurel Wanrow

Didn’t you believe them?”
    Daeryn shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his work trousers and shrugged, all in one smooth motion. “The wards will hold. I just wanted to.”
    “But why?”
    “I like you,” he whispered just loud enough for her to hear and averted his gaze.
    Mr. Shearing had said the same thing, yet his direct manner had been completely different. She pushed down the trembling in her stomach and asked, “How can you? We hardly know each other.”
    Daeryn rolled his head around and stared at the ceiling. “There is a reason.” He stayed there, and just when she thought he wouldn’t say any more, he muttered, “Daft probably, but…” He sucked in a breath. “You smell right.”
    “I smell right?”
    He nodded, still gazing upward. “Yes. To a human, it probably doesn’t mean much. But to me… It’s important.” He turned and walked away.
    He was walking away. Away, into a night filled with nasty, biting wild animals and people shooting some weird sleeping concoction. She followed a few steps, but he was nearly at the back door. “Daeryn?”
    He stopped.
    “You smell good, too.”
    He shot a look over his shoulder. She smiled and shrugged.
    He smiled back.
    “See you at dawn?”
    His smile broadened. “Right. See you at dawn.”
     

 
    chapter EIGHT
    Daeryn whirled and bound to another black body. See you at dawn. Annmar had talked to him. He sniffed the gobbler, grabbed the non-fungus end and snapped its neck.
    But what did it mean? Riv had already bet him he wouldn’t get back into Annmar’s room anytime soon, no matter what she said.
    Daeryn dropped the limp animal and trotted on. He didn’t care, just so they could start talking again. He’d move at her speed, apologize again for embarrassing her—no, best not bring that up. But he could act more human, less ’cambire, so his behavior met her city standards. Nothing fake, though…he did have a human side.
    He blinked, realizing he’d run through the flattened squash vines without seeing a downed pest. Where was Terrent? The boy tracked his stunner to the far left, and the town fox training with them pounced in that direction. Daeryn spotted someone new running up the road…Riv, wearing a Luci-viewer. What the hell was he doing?
    “Famil,” Rivley yelled. Across the field from Daeryn, the day team leader turned. She gave a nod, then winced and jumped. She swung her stunner sharply down and fired. Whoosh. The whitish fluid shot from the muzzle toward the ground. Rivley stopped. Two gobblers, riled by the commotion, started for him, their teeth bared.
    Dammit, was he trying to be gobbler bait? Daeryn leaped toward him. Famil moved faster, and within steps she fired again—but missed. Rivley stumbled backward. Feathers crested the crown of his head and knocked the goggles askew.
    Daeryn rushed past him and clamped on to the running gobbler. Its neck snapped. He tossed it aside, realized the thing was still snarling and grabbed it again at the second neck. Snap! He dropped it, rose onto two feet, shifted and shoved Rivley in the chest. “What the hell do you think you’re doing out here as human? You want to get torn up?”
    “The others are out here,” Rivley yelled back. “Leander made two trips out and didn’t have a problem.”
    “As a forest cat . He ran with the goggles in his mouth, delivered them to a grower and lit out of here within seconds.” Daeryn shoved Rivley toward the road.
    “I get it, I’m going.” He forced the goggles onto his head. “I saw it. Two heads, just like you said. One to chew and the second to stand guard. Damn. It’s sure not from the Basin, but the animal is perfect. It couldn’t be better designed for what it’s doing.”
    Daeryn snorted. “Designed? I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”
    “Great Creator.” Rivley slapped his forehead, knocking aside the goggles again. He wrestled them into place as they walked. “Master Brightwell always says, ‘Explore the