Golden Garden

Chapter One

'No one understands the consequences of this race, Tom. White Grace has never lost a race before'

My ears flicked in the direction of where the words were coming from. My heart felt sunken, but I couldn't figure out what they were talking about. Me loosing? I've never lost a race. The weight on my back came back as I remembered the jockey. What was going on? I don't lose. I kicked the ground with my hoof, frustration coursing through me.

'A lot of people lost a lot of money today, Jack. Who would have thought this newcomer would have beaten her?'

I stilled. Newcomer? Beat me? Who beat me? I turned my whole head toward the building where the announcers were speaking. No one could beat me! I'm a shifter for damn's sake! The only thing that can beat me is another . . . . shifter.

Realization dawned on me. Another shifter beat me? I held my ears back up to the announcer's building. Who beat me? 

'This stallion is owned by . . .'

My eyes flew open. I was sitting up in my bed. My hands hit the mattress in frustration. Why would I dream about someone beating me? I always win my races! I screamed and threw a pillow across my face, flopping back onto the bed. A knock sounded on my door seconds later. I groaned, pulled the pillow from my face, and looked at the clock. 

9:42 AM.

"Ella? Are you okay there? You slept kind late. Sky Finisher is getting jumpy. You're usually up and in White Grace's stable by 6 so no one sees that she's gone."

I groaned again at the voice of my cousin, Zero, a shifter like myself, but only ever stuck with one animal, like it is customary for our kind to do. You find your spirit animal and then you take the life of an animal of that same species. It's a whole ceremony after killing the thing. A whole, painful ceremony that can only be done under the light of the full moon. It is why our laws made it so we had one - three at most - shift forms. I had 16. 

Zero has a red husky form with a green eye and a blue eye in both forms and dark russet hair in his human form. He's popular with the sled dog team he's joined up with, but when it comes down to it, prefers to accompany me to my races and watch with his sister as their brother races with me as my jockey in my stadium where the best horses from all around the world come to compete against my so called horse White Grace which is actually me.

"I'm good Zero. Tell Char that Sky Finisher will be racing tomorrow as well. She'll have to find her suit. Oh and let Phoenix know that if he wants, I might let another jockey ride. Give a newbie a chance to win something."

I could hear Zero's snort through the door, but I ignored it. I've never had anyone but Phoenix be my jockey. First of all, Phoenix knows what I am, secondly, he doesn't try to control me. I am a human after all, just in a very magnificent horse body. In my stables all the horses are taken care of and if any seem like they haven't, I buy them. Sky Finisher is my only other racing horse and she's very good at what she does, often following my lead and learning from the White Grace version of me.

"A different jockey?" Zero sounded in disbelief. "Uh, no. We will not do that. I do not want our carefully placed puzzle to break. Do you know what would happen if this human figured out what you were?"

"Go away." I didn't relax until I heard Zero's footsteps receding down the hall.

Before I could even get out of bed to change into my shifting leathers, there was another knock at the door. Who in the world could it be? I lived in a giant ass mansion with only three other people, Zero, Charlotte and Phoenix. The only shifters I've ever known besides the ones locked behind a government sealed community. A community where they could be who they were with very strict restrictions. Those who are living as a shifter in the real world have a much harder time at life. Being an unregistered and hidden shifter is the only real way to live life, but it also means you can't be who you are meant to be and everyone has to follow the council's rules or they will send you to the government.

"Um, Ella?" It was Charlotte. Green eyes, red haired, perfect body, Charlotte. "Sky Finisher's getting really jumpy without White Grace there. Do you think you could spend the next couple of days in your horse skin? I know it's a stretch, but we could say you're sick. You never take a break."

"A break?" I grumbled, stalked to the door and opened it. "A break? If I wanted a break I'd shift into my tabby cat skin and get adopted by a cute little girl, stay with her for a week or two and then come back. White Grace is a racehorse, Char, not a pet." The idea was appealing. Leave Zero in charge of the estate for awhile. Focus solely on racing, on being a horse.

"No offense, but you need one. You have sixteen different skins Ella. If the council figures out you broke the law, you know what they'll do to you. Shifters with too much power never get sick. They're already onto you." Charlotte fiddled with her fingers. "Please. I'm moving to Europe to join a hidden community of us in three days. Tomorrow's my last race with Sky Finisher. You need a normal life Ella, not some glamorized horse life pretending to be something you are not."

I growled, a predatory skin surging forward as I grabbed Charlotte's throat. She's never liked my racing. She's never liked hiding what she is. She never liked me getting away with all my skins. Jealousy killed the cat. In this case, the bird. Claws surged from my fingertips and plunged into Charlotte's neck. "Leave now. My family would never betray me like you have."

I dropped her and she ran off. Looks like I will need that new jockey after all, even if it's not for me. I did regret hurting her. Sometimes my skin gets the better of me. But why would she think it was okay to question me? I have over a hundred acres of property where she can run free. Where she can be a shifter without getting caught. What more could she need? Why would she doubt me? I've kept us safe for this long, and I will always keep us safe.

I slammed my door as I turned. I spotted my shifting leathers on the table opposite my bed. I snatched them up and changed, stripping myself of my night clothes and putting on the leathers. Why does everyone leave me?

'We will need that new jockey, Zero. Charlotte is leaving for Europe.' I left my room after sending the thought message to my cousin. I met him on the way to the stables where Sky Finisher was and over twenty empty stalls. Zero didn't meet my eyes and I walked into the stall labeled for White Grace and shifted, my body smoothly changing into a brilliant white horse with dark hooves. I was the perfect image for a horse. Sky Finisher seemed to calm down when she sensed that I was back to where she thought I belonged.

"I can have ten lined up in the next two hours. I'll get a good jockey for Sky Finisher, but after tomorrow, you're gonna have to cool it with the races. White Grace can't race forever. Horse's retire after a certain age. That is going to have to happen or the council will get flagged. I'll be back with the jockey's at noon."

Through horse eyes, I watched Zero leave. Sky Finisher seemed glad to have me back and after a few minutes, the stable boys were coming to take us out into the field as they cleaned the stalls. My mind went back to this morning when I woke up from that dream. My gut clenched. It had felt so real, everything had felt so real. I felt nervous for once and I knew, tomorrow's race was going to be unpredictable.