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She let her eyes fall closed with a sigh. The weak winter sun absorbed into her dark coat. The flat rock under was still warm from being in the direct sun all day. Even in the full light of day, she felt safe. Safe enough. Even if she was spotted, there were no hunters out here.

Napping in a beam of light was a luxury. One she didn’t allow herself to enjoy nearly enough.

This was something she had only recently learned to indulge in. Timing was crucial. She could never do this in warmer months when the region was crawling with outdoor enthusiasts. The winter months brought more than enough tourists to the region to make this a calculated risk. However, it was worth it.

The psst and sharp snap of something hitting a nearby rock shocked her to being fully awake. It wasn’t a something that had struck the rock, it had been a bullet.

Every muscle in her body reacted with a triggered spring action. One second she was asleep on the rock, the next, she was gone.

Yards away, she shivered in the shadows of an outcropping. The space was small, dark, and cold, the meager winter sun having never reached the tight space to melt the thin snow cover.

The pupils of her eyes went wide and her ears pricked. She couldn’t see anything. Forcing herself closer against the rocks, her heart pounded away like terrified prey, and not the predator she was. Where had that shot come from? Hunting was not allowed in the local park system. It was one of the reasons she stayed, at least that’s what she told herself.

Her ears pivoted in an attempt at identifying any and all sounds in her vicinity. Nothing. Maybe she could ease out and make a run for it?

The sudden sharp ricochet of a bullet against rock, followed by the thunderous boom of the shot bouncing off surrounding rock walls had her trying to merge her body against the rocks, trying to become one with the shadows.

It took a few heart beats before she realized the shot hit somewhere further away from her, not closer. Maybe the original shot hadn’t been aimed at her.

Lowering down as flat as she could, she slowly creeped out of the shadows she had sought refuge in. Once in the light, a quick scan of the area identified areas she could hide in. She needed darkness, shadows. She moved swiftly from one outcropping of rocks to another. Slinking from refuge to refuge.

A third shot rang out. Her nerves coiled tight, unable to relax even though she knew that last shot was even farther away than the last one. Whoever was out there, they were not hunting her.

The sense of safety and security the location had afforded her was completely gone, evaporated on the wind with any warmth the late afternoon sun could no longer give.

The light had shifted, and dusk elongated the shadows. Unfortunately, it was still bright in the unsheltered areas of flat dirt and rock. The edges of town were clearly located in the desert with no irrigated landscaping and trees that could bring shade.

She spotted her goal, safety, refuge. To get there she would have to run. With her belly against the ground, she eased out from the shadows.

The rumble of a car engine sent her right back against the rocks and into hiding. She panted, her heart pounded. It was just a car, not another shot. But cars brought other problems into her life.

As the sun progressed toward the horizon, cold seeped into her muscles, and a chill set around her bones. Just as it seemed she would never feel warmth again, she noticed city lights in the far distance. If she could see those lights, it was dark. Dark enough.

Huffing a deep breath, she tensed her frozen muscles and shot forward. She moved as if she were a bullet launched from a barrel. She was nothing more than a shadow skittering across the dirt and rocks.

Her paws made no sound as they landed against the deck to her small bungalow. It really was nothing much more than a mud brick shack on the edges where civilization met high desert.

She hit the plastic cover to the doggie door, and slid across the floor once inside, bunching up the cheap area rug underneath her body. She stayed in place, paws and limbs splayed. Her breathing came hard and heavy, loud in her ears, masking out any other sounds she was trying to listen for. Had anyone seen her? Followed her?

She stayed frozen like a statue for far too long. She let the change roll over her, shifting her dark fur for smooth dark skin. Immediately she pushed to her feet. With a bang, she slid the metal doggie door cover into place and locked it. Even in her human skin she felt hunted.

“They weren’t shooting at you,” she muttered under her breath.

She rubbed her hands over her upper arms, but it was no help in fighting off the cold — that was deep in her soul at this point. Shivering, she crawled into her bed and piled the covers on. A long hot bath was what she really wanted, but the hot water heater had never worked and she didn’t have a tub. Hot showers were almost as much a luxury as sunning herself on a rock. Luxuries were few and far between in her life. Maybe this curse was why she didn’t deserve them.

©2026 Lulu M. Sylvian