Changeling Dawn Read Online Free

the crest, where a row of spruce trees marched like giant soldiers. The other side of the hill fell steeply away and its foot was cleft by a deep ravine. Anya could hear the rushing, tumbling water at its rocky bottom despite the noise of her pursuers. Without a second thought, she was racing, falling, scrambling down the hill. She gained a clear stretch of ground and put the last of her strength into running full tilt for the edge of the ravine. Trusting her instinct, she leapt—
    And came down on four feet on the other side. The young wolf paused for only a moment, eyeing her pursuers gathered at the top of the ridge, committing their faces and their scents to memory.
    Thenshe raced away into the welcoming forest.

Chapter Two
     
    K enzie took a plane to Seattle from Edmonton, where it had taken nearly two hours to get all her supplies and equipment through U.S. Customs. It was worth the wait to her. She preferred to bring as many of her own things as possible, the tools she was familiar with and the supplies that had been proven useful in many previous camps. The customs officer eyed her as he picked up each of her worn tools, the grips that had gradually assumed the shape of her own hand over time and been polished by her sweat. He no doubt thought she was eccentric for bringing what surely must look like junk to him. Was she even old enough to be eccentric? Probably.
    The thick gray clouds gradually cleared away as her second flight headed up the coastline to Alaska. Blue sky greeted her as the plane touched down at the Ted Stevens International Airport in Anchorage. Kenzie had been in many airports all over the world, but she’d never seen one decorated with stuffed wildlife before. A glass case housed a taxidermic polar bear that towered over the bustling passengers, raising its paws toward the enormous Welcome to Alaska sign. She counted a half dozen bears of various types, a deer, a beaver, and several geese, and marveled at a huge salmon and a 400-pound halibut. Exquisite native art was everywhere and one piece in particular caught her eye. It was a reproduction of a historic piece, a carved wooden wolf mask, painted with the traditional coastal colors of turquoise, red, and black. The pelt of a large white wolf was attached to it and Kenzie found herself wondering if a shaman had once donned one like it. Had he been enacting a ritual, trying to ensure a successful hunt? Had he worn it in hopes of transforming himself? Or had he hoped to gain the skill that some members of the Tahltan tribe were rumored to have—the ability to detect a shapeshifter in human form?
    As an anthropologist and archaeologist, she was fascinated. As a Changeling, however, she was repelled—James was a white wolf in his lupine form, and she had a momentary flashback to her childhood. To the marketplace at Torridon and its stacks of pelts, both wolf and Changeling ...
    She walked quickly away but came upon a glass case with taxidermic wolves. They were positioned stiffly with artificial snarls and plastic fangs. Jeez, it’s definitely past time to leave this airport.
    At the rental counter she flashed a worn membership card, signed forms and picked up her keys. The company had provided her with exactly what she’d ordered—a full-size pickup truck with four-wheel drive and a canopy to protect her gear. They didn’t usually keep such vehicles at their airport lot, but had brought it over from another site. She hadn’t specified color but noted with approval that it was a nondescript taupe. Or was it tan? Whatever it was, it wouldn’t show all of the dirt and dust it was about to collect.
    Kenzie slid behind the wheel and closed the door, relishing the sudden quiet and relieved to be alone at last. She was itching to get on the road but it was far too late in the day for that. By the time she arrived in the area, she’d end up looking for her site in the dark, so she conceded to spend the night at a motel.
    Luckily, the sun rose