The Skin,We Shed

Chapter Five: The Drop

​Gravity took over before Leo could second-guess himself. As the shape-shifter lunged forward with a sharp, guttural shriek, Leo launched himself backward off the edge of the rocky embankment.

​Wind whistled past his ears as he plummeted into the darkness. The world spun in a blur of gray stone and dark brush. He hit the slope of the dry creek bed hard, his momentum converting into a desperate, uncontrolled tumble down the steep, pebble-strewn incline. Sharp rocks bit into his arms and legs through his jeans and hoodie, but pain was secondary to survival.

​He crashed violently into a thick patch of prickly briars at the bottom, the thorny branches snapping and wrapping around his jacket like barbed wire.

​For a terrifying second, everything went black. The wind was knocked completely out of his lungs, and a metallic taste filled his mouth. He lay motionless among the jagged boulders, staring up at the sliver of starless night sky visible far above.

​Thud. Thud.

​Heavy footsteps echoed from the rim of the ravine. A dark silhouette leaned over the edge, peering down into the creek bed. The creature let out a low, vibrating click of frustration, its form rippling under the moonlight like smoke before it turned and melted back into the dense pines.

​Leo forced air back into his lungs with a sharp, agonizing gasp. He couldn't stay here. If it decided to find a safer way down into the creek bed, he was trapped.

​Gritting his teeth against the searing pain in his left shoulder, Leo wriggled free from the briars. He scrambled to his feet, leaning heavily against a mossy boulder. His left arm throbbed, and his palms were raw and bleeding, but he was alive.

​The creek bed stretched out like a dark, stone-paved tunnel winding deeper into the heart of the Blackwood Ridge. It was the only way to move without returning to the open trails where the things hunted.

​He pulled his hood up over his head, took a steadying breath, and began to walk.