Crescent stood on the rooftop and stared down at the street. It wasn’t so far. One measly story. Shoot, people fell that far all the time and survived…mostly…and besides, she wasn’t a regular person. Probably.

If she was ever going to fly, now was the time.

She put her hands on the ledge and started to boost herself up when she felt a sharp tug on the back of her shorts and went flying backward. She hit the gravel rooftop, and all the breath whooshed out of her lungs. She laid there and gasped like a fish out of water, and when she was able, she rolled over on her knees.

The largest wolf she had ever seen was sitting three feet away. She was too startled to be frightened. And it wasn’t growling or baring his teeth, but just staring at her in the moonlight.

A dog she could almost understand, even here, in the middle of the city. But a wolf? Where had it come from? Did it escape from a zoo? And how did it get up on the roof? Could wolves climb fire escapes? Was there a fire escape?

If she spread her fingers as wide as she could, its paws were just about that size. And its head was almost twice as wide as hers, with deep, almost intelligent brown eyes. Its fur was a rich, chocolate brown shot with silver strands, and when the breeze ruffled its pelt, the wolf looked noble, almost kingly.

“What’d you do that for?” she asked it. “If I want an animal biting my butt, I’ll start dating again.”

It stared at her.

“All the better to see you with, my dear,” she muttered. “Now you stay here. I have to do something.” She got up, brushed the dust off her knees, and started for the ledge. She got about a step and a half when she heard a warning growl behind her. She threw up her hands and spun around. “Jeez, what are you? Why are you picking on me? And why do you care? Look, I won’t get hurt. I can fly. I mean, I’m pretty sure. And if I’m wrong—but I don’t think I am—it’s only one story.”

Nope. The wolf wasn’t buying it.

“Well, hell,” she said, and sat down cross-legged.

It had been a long day and a longer night. Almost before she knew it, she was tipping over sideways. The gravel was probably cutting her cheek, but it felt like the softest of down pillows.

She slept.

Chapter 4

She was stiff and freezing, and someone was shaking her by the shoulder. What the hell had happened to her cot?