Page 1 of Violet

Chapter 1

Violet

“Ready to open the library, Stacks?”

“Meo-uff!” The fluffy, gray tabby takes off and starts running circles around me.

“You could at least pretend to be a cat,” I tell him.

He pulls to a stop and starts wagging his tail happily in response.

“I can find you a book on how to be a cat,” I suggest.

Stacks starts panting. Like a dog.

“Oh, never mind. It’s not like you’ve got any reason to hide who you are.” I lean on my walker and start to slowly make my way across Spell Library.

My eighty-year-old body disapproves. My hip protests, my joints ache, and I briefly daydream about shifting into someone else: a vampire? A dragon? A chupacabra? I wouldn’t even need to fully shift—just my lower body should do.

Unlike my sister, I can control my chameleon powers—most of the time, anyway. That, and I’ve got old lady clothes on—baggy dress pants paired with an oversized, buttoned up cardigan. I could hide an entire set of angel wings underneath this getup. I could even half-shift into that hairy, scarlet-skinned demon I’ve seen at Jewels Cafe, and no one would ever notice! Well, except maybe for the height difference. Which is why I could just go with the safe choice and half-shift into my twenty-year-old self. Would anyone find out?

I look around the silent, empty library. “Nole’s going to be late again, isn’t he, Stacks?”

The moment I utter those words, I feel butterflies in my stomach. My cheeks flush, and my heart starts to race. Not because I’m thinking of Nolan Barrett, my twenty-year-old bear shifter library assistant. No way, no how. It’s probably just over-exertion from crossing the library.

“I swear the door seems farther and farther away every day,” I mutter, though I’m not sure who I’m trying to convince: myself? Or Stacks?

“Meo-uff!” The cat—who’d gone back to running circles around me—pulls to a stop, sits on his haunches, and wags his tail in agreement.

Should I just shift?

For a split second, I almost convince myself to do it.

The library’s still closed. Nole isn’t here. And it’s not like there’s some Peeping Tom outside one of the floor-to-ceiling windows, watching old lady Violet shuffle across the faded carpet.

There are a few seniors gathered outside, but they’re either lost in thought or chatting away happily while they wait for the library to open. Betty—the only one who might be paying me any attention, has her back to me. And even if she were to turn around, she always complains her eyesight isn’t what it used to be.

“That only leaves you, doesn’t it, Stacks?” I glance down at the tabby.

Stacks wags his tail happily. I almost expect him to bark. Instead, he lets out another happy “Meo-uff!”

“You’re not secretly a shifter, are you? Our last library cat was, you know. But now he’s happily mated to a snarky vampire now.”

Stacks wags his tail some more.

“I know you’re not like Handkerchief, Stacks.” If you were, I’d be able to shift into you. “When I bought you, Calluna assured me you were a cat, or a dog cursed to look like a cat. Which one are you, Stacks?”

“Meo-uff!”

“That doesn’t really help.” I chuckle. Whatever he is, he’s definitely a pet. Which means he won’t be able to talk... or tell anyone if I shift. Especially not them.

Even the thought of them makes my eighty-year-old heart nearly explode out of my chest.

Shit! The last thing I need is to have a heart attack and die in this body... or be forced to fully shift and get discovered.

I tighten my grip on my walker and try to take deep, steady breaths.

Focus, Violet. You’re just being paranoid, always thinking someone’s watching you. I bet they’re nowhere near Silver Springs. And they definitely don’t know you’re posing as Old Lady Violet. Now, put one foot in front of the other. Open the library. Let the patrons in.