Lycan's Prey by Jessica Hall

Chapter 10

Granny’s eyes lock with mine, and there’s an unspoken understanding between us. She points at the linen cupboard and I nod, rushing towards it as she whispers urgently, “It has a false wall, and pass me the air freshener.”

I grab the canister next to the old box TV and hand it to her before diving into the cupboard. Behind me, the knocking grows more aggressive. I shut the door quietly, the darkness enveloping me like a cloak. My hands fumble along the wall until they find the outline of the concealed panel.

“Hold on, hold on! My knees aren’t what they used to be!” Granny’s voice carries through the door, tinged with a hint of exasperation. I hear the hiss of the air freshener as she sprays, perhaps to mask any scent of mine that lingers in the air.

“Ma’am, you need to open this door!”

I pull the panel shut behind me, enveloping myself in near- total darkness. My breath comes in shallow gasps, but I force calm upon myself. As my eyes adjust, shapes begin to form from the shadows, and I see the faint glow of light seeping through from Granny’s room.

My heart pounds against my ribcage, each beat a reminder of the danger just beyond these walls if they catch me.

Granny’s indignant voice pierces the tense silence, a sharp contrast to the muffled thuds of boots on her worn carpet. “Geez, waking an old lady up in the middle of the night, what is this about?” Her tone is layered with annoyance and the

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Chapter 10

kind of feisty spirit that not even age can diminish.

From my cramped hiding place, I can’t see, but I imagine her standing there, clad in her nightgown, wielding nothing but righteous anger against intruders. The footsteps grow louder, more purposeful, as they step into Granny’s living room.

and on whose authority?!” Granny’s demand for respect echoes

her words.

Rhett’s ma’am, his Luna has gone missing, and his mother–in–law said she never went home and that she probably came here,” comes Nathan’s reply, tinged with a patience that doesn’t quite

continues. Granny doesn’t falter, her voice steady as she challenges the intrusion. “Sir,

still, every shuffle and murmur from the other side of the wall reverberating through my bones. Silence hangs for a moment, then Nathan’s voice slices through it, brusque and accusing. “Aubrey, your granddaughter. She is a wanted fugitive for fraud; she

the words themselves have woven into a net ensnaring me. I can hear the disbelief in Granny’s voice, a note of confusion that she plays

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my mouth, scared that even the sound of my breathing might betray

barrier. “No mistake ma’am, she even attacked

My fingers curl into fists, the memory of that encounter flashing hot and vivid. It was self–defense, a necessary act to protect myself from a fate worse than any prison they could throw me into. It makes it sound like it was unprovoked,

through the stale air of my hidden refuge, and I press my back harder against the wall, as if I can melt into the wood and disappear. “Well, you must have deserved it. However, I haven’t seen her since she was a kid; her mother forbade it. My daughter and I are estranged; I doubt she even remembers I exist,” Granny asserts, her voice laced with a hint of defiance and a sadness I wish I

cramped space and I have

I press my ear against the cool wood of the false door, straining to hear the muffled voices outside. My

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silence like a knife. I barely manage to stifle the gasp that threatens to escape my lips. Nathan sighs

surge of emotions that threaten to overwhelm me. Guilt gnaws at me, sharp and insistent. I think of Granny, her face lined with the years and hardships. she’s endured, and my love for her swells alongside my regret. Why didn’t I come to see her before? Why didn’t I

on her protection, hiding away like a frightened animal while outside, Rhett’s men are scouring and

her voice a sharp crack in the tense night air. The fierceness in her tone shocks me but makes it clear she’s not one to be trifled with, even now, at her advanced age.