Shifting (Swans Landing) Read Online Free PDF Page A

with the back of his hand, then licked it off.
    I bent over my bowl, eating slowly. Whenever I brought my hand near my face for another spoonful, I could smell the faint scent of Elizabeth’s perfume on my skin. I breathed it in, remembering how soft and warm she had been.
    “It’s cool, you know,” Reed said. “I mean, if you do have a girlfriend hiding out in your room. I won’t tell Mom and Dad.” He looked hopeful, like maybe he wanted me to tell him about my secret love life so he could live vicariously through me.
    But what would I tell? I didn’t even know what all of this was.
    “No,” I said in a flat tone. “No girlfriends. Sorry, kid.”
     
     
    * * *
     
     
    “Miss Gale?” I opened the door slowly, dropping my keys back into my pocket. Sailor had given me a key to her house long ago, as a backup in case she ever lost hers. That had never happened, and so my key hadn’t been used until now.
    I didn’t normally walk into other people’s houses uninvited, but I’d been knocking for ten minutes and Miss Gale still hadn’t come to the door. I couldn’t stop the gnawing feeling in my stomach, like something was trying to eat its way out. Miss Gale hadn’t shown up for work at Moody’s that day. When I’d asked Mr. Moody about it, he had shrugged and said she wasn’t feeling well.
    Miss Gale didn’t get sick. She’d never taken a day off in all the years I’d known her.
    The house was dark, the curtains pulled shut over the windows. The only light came from the skylights overhead, where dozens of crystal prisms hung from fishing line. Sailor and I had helped Miss Gale put those up one summer when we were seven. I still liked the way the rainbow light flashed along the blue walls. Being in Miss Gale’s house almost felt like being underwater.
    My footsteps echoed through the silent house. The air conditioner was running high, and my skin prickled in the cold air. “Miss Gale? It’s Dylan. Are you home?”
    Like most other people on the island, Miss Gale didn’t own a car, so I couldn’t check the driveway for indication of whether she was home or not. But I didn’t think she’d be anywhere else, since Mara had said Miss Gale was spending a lot of time at home lately.
    The floorboards creaked as I walked down the hall. “Miss Gale?” I knocked softly on her door. “Can I come in?”
    I thought I heard a noise inside, though I couldn’t make out a word. I pushed the door open carefully, peering in at the big bed across the room.
    The only times I had ever been in Miss Gale’s room were when I was a kid and Sailor would convince me to go along with one of her plans, which usually involved getting into something of Miss Gale’s that she didn’t want us to touch—her expensive face cream or old letters—and always ended with the two of us getting into trouble. I couldn’t even remember how many times Miss Gale had threatened to whip my behind, though she never actually did it.
    The room hadn’t changed much from what I remembered. I took in a quick glance at the old wooden furniture, the dresser filled with dozens of framed photographs, and a plush blue chair in front of the tall window, then I walked over to the bed, where I could see Miss Gale’s shape under the covers.
    Her eyes were opened halfway, but she looked pale and her gaze unfocused. Her lips were a light pink, her long white hair loosened from its usual braid and her breathing slow and ragged.
    “Miss Gale.” I sat down on the edge of the bed, reaching over to smooth back a lock of hair from her cheek. She felt cold, and if it weren’t for the steady sound of her breathing, I would have almost thought she was... I gulped, pushing away the thought.
    “Are you okay?” I asked. “Are you sick?”
    Miss Gale’s eyes fluttered open the rest of the way and she looked at me, searching my face for a moment. “Dylan,” she rasped. “Is Sailor...” Her voice trailed off, even though her lips moved.
    “Sailor isn’t