Silent Heroes: Wildcat

Chapter 28: Questions and Answers

I spent the rest of the meeting in a highly distracted, unfocused state. I felt removed from what was going on around me, like I was viewing it all through a glass wall or a set of binoculars.

I stood back and watched as everyone else paired off to practice with the clay disks. It was easy to tell which members were new and which ones had been attending the meetings for a while.  The new members were awkward and clumsy, closing their eyes and flinching whenever a projectile approached their face.

The experienced members were much quicker, their faces calm, movements sharp and confident, but even they did not come close to the speed and accuracy I had displayed on my very first attempt.

I should have been happy about this. I tried to feel happy about it.  But, in the end, I just felt anxious. Lost.

There was something different about me.  There had to be.  It was the only rational explanation.  The only problem was, I didn't want to be different.  I wanted to be normal—or at least as normal as a girl that can turn into a huge wildcat could possibly be.  I was tired of fighting with the animal for control.  I was tired of being stared at.  I just wanted to blend in and be like everyone else.

When every disk in the room lay in a broken heap on the floor, we finally called it a night.  The other students packed up their things and headed for the exit.  Jewel gave me a friendly pound on the shoulder as she went by.  Reza smiled and waved at me and his girlfriend shot me another glare.  Then, I was left standing alone in the room with Isaac.

 He was already approaching me.  His eerily intense gaze seemed concentrated a hundred times when it was focused in my direction.

"All right, Evelyn, if you'll just come with me."

"Am I in trouble?" I blurted.

"No, of course not, there's just something I'd like to discuss with you."

Seeing no alternative, I followed him out into the hallway.  The sun had long since disappeared over the horizon.  The night air felt warm and heavy.  I could only imagine what my stupid hair looked like right now.  All tangled from hiking through the woods.  Covered in dust from the clay disks and frizzing out from all the humidity.  I probably looked like a mess.

We arrived at a small office on the third floor.  The door was left wide open and Deanna was inside, grading papers or something.

"Oh, hello Isaac.  Eve," she said, looking up as we entered the room.  "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Good evening, Deanna," Isaac said politely.  "Sorry for the interruption.  How did the preliminary hearing go?"

Deanna waved him off, completely unruffled by the mention of her trial.  "Oh, you know what these things are like.  Everyone managed to talk for more than two hours without saying a thing," she gestured us forward. "Come on in, have a seat."

I sat down in the chair across from her, but Isaac chose to remain standing. 

"So, what can I do for you?" Deanna asked.  "I'm guessing you didn't just come here to ask about the trial."

"No, actually I wanted to speak with you about Evelyn."

"Of course.  Is something wrong?"

Isaac didn't answer, but launched into his own set of questioning.  "This girl did shift for the first time less than a week ago, correct?"

Deanna frowned.  Her expression had become more serious.  "Yes."

"You're sure about that?"

"Yes, I was there when it happened."