The mist snaked through the trees, stretching out like greedy fingers, winding in and out of the trees, closeting the forest in a thick veil of gray. He needed to go—now. He only had five days before the full moon, that gave him two days to find a safe place to ride out the threat to him. The three days before the full moon, the full moon, and the three days after were the most dangerous for him. Yet he didn’t move from the bar stool, not even when self-preservation screamed at him. Every hair on his body was raised, both in alarm and extended as antenna to catch the smallest of details.

He smeared cold beads of sweat on the glass, his gaze drawn to the mirror once again. He did not have the full range of the color spectrum, but the dimmer the light, the more shades of gray he could see. He couldn’t tell the difference between yellow, green or orange; they all looked the same to him—a dull yellowish color. Red looked brownish-gray or black, but he could detect blue. What he lacked in his abilities to distinguish color, he more than made up for with his acute hearing, his sense of smell and his long-range eyesight.

Her scent reached him as she opened the door. The woman. The woman. Was she bait to catch him? If so, he was hooked. That scent of hers, fresh earth, the forest, of dark secret places and the night itself, drew him as no expensive perfume ever could. She’d been coming on and off to the tavern for the last week. Three visits, and yet he was already under her spell.

She’d captured him effortlessly, without doing anything but walking through the door. He’d never seen a woman so beautiful or alluring. She literally stopped all conversation the moment she entered, but she never seemed to notice. And that was the trouble. She was far too young and naïve, far too innocent looking to come unescorted to a place like this one.

He’d heard the whispers of some of the men and he knew she wasn’t safe. The two barmaids glared at her, aware that the moment she came in, they no longer had the attention of the men. Again, the woman seemed completely unaware. She walked with confidence, but she seemed to pay no attention to the predators surrounding her—and they were predators. The only reason she hadn’t been attacked so far was because he’d made it very clear she should be left alone. When one of the men had started to make his move on her, Fen had stood up. That was all. He just stood up.