Sonya moaned and darted her hand down his sweatpants, stroking his aching hard on.
“Mama!” Forrest cried.
Diesel let out a frustrated sigh. Sonya giggled, kissed him on the cheek then got out of bed to attend to their baby boy. Diesel hopped in to a cold shower, his penis wilting under the onslaught of freezing water. It was a little frustrating; Sonya was exhausted at night and he was horny all the time. But Forrest was worth the blue balls. He guessed.
He’d been lonely before Sonya, before Shifter Grove. This place had opened its arms to the ex-Navy SEAL; a man who had no family and they had made him Sheriff. Sonya had completed the sense of emptiness and she had given him not only a son but reunited him with his father. Andrew Wake lived in Poughkeepsie with his second family; but had extended open arms to Diesel and Sonya.
“Bye, kiddo,” Diesel kissed Forrest’s bobbing head and Sonya’s puckered lips and headed to the office. It was a quick drive taking no more than fifteen minutes. All of Shifter Grove was a drive of fifteen minutes from cabin to cabin; it made it easier to live as a community; not too far that it would be a hassle getting in touch, yet not too close that Shifting could be dangerous for the non-Shifting populace.
Diesel took his job as Sheriff very seriously. Last winter a boy had gone on a Shift all alone and ended up in a ravine with his leg broken. It had been lucky that Diesel had found him before he died of hypothermia.
“What’s up Bill?”
Bill was Diesel’s deputy. Tall and gangling he didn’t have Diesel’s physical prowess but he was an intelligent boy and was useful.
“Morning, D,” Bill said waving at him from his desk, his head bent over a piece of paper. “I’ve got a ton load of requests here,” he said finally looking up. He lifted the sheaves of paper. “Some of the families are concerned about the Blood Moon ritual.”
“What about it?” Diesel asked.
“They are concerned about security.”
“As long as they stay indoors they’ll be fine,” D spread his hands as if it were obvious. “It’s like any other night, only all the Shifter’s will be out is all.”
“Yeah,” Bill said his lips tightening in a grimace, “these are from Shifters.”
“I don’t get you,” Diesel said.
“The Shifter’s are concerned about the kind of security there will be to avoid conflict and preventable slaughter,” Bill said then raised a hand when Diesel was about to interrupt. “There’s also a rumor about a hunt.”
“What hunt?” Diesel asked leaning forward on his desk.
“Ramsey’s spotted a man named Arthur Grim in Waterville,” Bill said. “Apparently Arthur Grim is a man of singular tastes; namely hunting of exotic animals. Ramsey’s certain he’s here to hunt Shifter’s during the Blood Moon.”
“That sounds a bit far-fetched to me,” Diesel said shaking his head. Ramsey had been known to be a bit soft in the head and had bombarded them with wild claims of alien invasions.
“He’s not the only one, D,” Bill said. “Courtney; the redhead bar girl down at the Pig Out,” Diesel looked confused. “The one with the big knockers.”
“Oh yeah,” Diesel said.
“She says she was at a party Grim threw and there was talk of hunting and Blood Moon and we ought to be careful.”
“I don’t know,” Diesel still didn’t look convinced.
“She saw David Meyer there.”
That made Diesel sit up straight and pay attention.
“David Meyer,” Diesel said. “The twat who stole the bikes from the Fulton yard and sold them back for a profit?”
“Yes,” Billy said.
“Better check it out then,” Diesel grabbed his car keys. The day had just gotten interesting.
Chapter Five
Lucy and the Beast
After a harrowing night I sit in my kitchen eating cereal wondering what to do now. The sun rays slant in to the living room through dirty windows that I haven’t had the time to clean. The inside of my cabin is murky and the stench of moldy earth is back.
After Stranger Danger left last night I went in search of a landline only to discover that my cabin doesn’t have one. I can’t say I’m surprised. This place is so old it must have been built long before the concept of telecommunication was even conceived. My cell phone hasn’t had a bar of network since I arrived in Shifter Grove.