“You don’t have to explain, Dawn. To be
honest, I am relieved it was you and not my brother…or Tyson.”
Dawn laughed and Jack even offered one of
his infrequent chuckles before turning somber once more. “You might
be relieved to know I was the one who prepared your room at the
house then,” Dawn said.
“That
is
good to know. You speak as
if it was my room before I ever arrived there.”
“It was,” Jack said, speaking in a gravelly
tone as he kept an eye trained out the window. “Tyson is always
prepared for whichever scenario might play out.”
“We sometimes felt he would
overly
prepare,” Dawn agreed, “even if our lives are unpredictable. In
this instance we were wrong, weren’t we Jack?”
“We were, but it did seem crazy. His
foresight is almost prophetic at times.”
“You mean like how he knew Koty would not
come back?” she asked.
“Sort of,” Jack responded with a shrug.
“None of us were very surprised. Her feelings could not be masked
from us when we were in our wolf forms. Sadly, it was only a matter
of time really.”
Dawn nodded in agreement. “She’s a very
confused young woman.”
“How old is she?” Clara asked. “I thought
she was about my age.”
“No, she was only seventeen when she was
bitten. She has since had another birthday, so I suppose she’s
technically eighteen now.”
Clara chewed thoughtfully, allowing herself
time to process the things churning in her mind. “Do you think
being so young is why she struggles to contain herself?”
“Perhaps it had
something
to do with
it, but Jack was younger. Beth was even younger than Jack when she
was turned,” Dawn answered.
“Aunt Dawn!” Jack exclaimed in nearly a
whisper. Although he was quiet, traces of a growl rumbled through
the room. He paled and Dawn looked pained as well. She took a deep
breath to steady her nerves.
“It’s alright to talk about her, honey,” she
said gently. Jack turned away quickly, but not before his eyes gave
away his anger. He went to the window and pressed his forehead
against the glass, his entire body tensing. In the end, he whipped
around with a wild expression, his eyes lit by rage.
“I can’t…I CAN’T!” he roared and his voice
boomed over the room, causing it to shake. Clara jumped in shock
and dropped her meal which landed with a splat on the floor.
“Jack!” Dawn snarled, her sweet demeanor
instantly falling away to reveal a fearsome side of her. “Don’t let
anger get the better of you!”
He was trembling, much the same as Tyson had
when fighting the lure of the full moon. Beads of perspiration
broke out over his forehead. His eyes blazed yellow and he became
someone Clara didn’t know. “I’m sorry,” he managed to pant before
hastily leaving the room. The door slammed and Clara found she had
pressed herself against the headboard in fear.
“Forgive him,” Dawn said, her eyes on the
door as if she wanted to go after her nephew. “He hasn’t lost his
temper like that in a long time.”
“It’s fine,” Clara replied in a squeak, but
she didn’t move from her spot just then. “Dare I ask who Beth
is?”
Dawn sighed and tears gathered in her eyes
as she went to sit on the bed. “I shouldn’t have brought her up. I
so want to see him smile again…to see him move on.”
“She hurt him?” Clara asked.
“No, dear, nothing like that. She was killed
by Parker and his men.”
“No!” she gasped in a whisper and covered
her mouth with both hands. “I had no idea!”
“It was nearly ten years ago and he has
never stopped mourning her,” Dawn said solemnly. “I don’t want him
to forget her, none of us could, but he will remain in this
depressed state forever unless he can find a way to move beyond the
pain.”
Jack had always seemed rather serious, but
Clara had never stopped to ponder the reason. Her heart shuddered
and tears came unbidden to her eyes. Dawn’s eyes misted over as
well, as if she could see nothing but memories of Beth and
Jack.
“Of course, Beth was special…Tyson never
fully emerged from his grief either. He and Beth were close.”
A little confused, Clara tried to swallow
the lump in her throat. “H-how long was she in the pack?”
“Hm?” Dawn asked as she emerged from the
depths of her thoughts. “Oh, yes. She had been a pack member before
Jack and I arrived. It was only the two of them then. She found
us…rescued us from ourselves and Parker. She and Jack didn’t get
along at first until after Tyson interfered and threatened to throw
us out if Jack’s advances toward her didn’t stop. That was all it
took for her to realize how much she cared for Jack.”
“And Tyson gave her up just like that?”
Clara asked with a frown.
“What ever do you…oh, darling, no!” Dawn
said with a burst of laughter. “It wasn’t like that! Beth was
Tyson’s cousin. Mark turned her by accident. When I say
accident
, I mean he
accidentally
left her alive. He
meant to kill her…all because he knew how much Tyson loved
her.”
“He is a horribly sick and twisted
individual!” Clara said with a shake of her head, sickening black
dread clamping down on her stomach. “I don’t know how he could be
so evil without my seeing.”
“He is also very conniving. His mind had
been brilliant once, before it was turned to revenge.” Dawn’s
attention was suddenly drawn to the fallen burrito. “Why, Clara,
you’ve scarcely eaten a bite! Don’t worry a bit about Jack, he will
return when he has cooled off. There’s another burrito in the bag
there.”
“Thank you, Dawn, you are always so mindful
of me,” Clara said with a small smile. She scooped up the mess and
tossed it in the wastebasket before trying to eat again. She forced
her mouth to swallow as she ate, but it might have been sawdust for
all she tasted. Her mind was troubled over the evil of Parker and
Mark as she showered and changed into the things Dawn had set out
for her. She left the bathroom after combing her hair and readying.
She jumped in surprise for the second time that day when she nearly
careened into Tyson. He stood just outside the door, his icy eyes
immediately penetrating hers. “Tyson!” she gasped and placed a hand
over her heart. “You scared me!”
“I heard what happened with Jack,” he said.
“Are you alright?”
“I’m fine,” she said and reached up to run
her fingers through her wet hair. “Is he alright?”
“Dawn and Callan went to find him.”
“Oh.”
“They told you about Beth?”
“Yes,” she said with a nod. “I have never
heard of something so tragic. I’m sorry, Tyson.”
“I should have killed him then,” Tyson said
and finally released her from his gaze to turn toward the window.
“I should have killed both of them when they took Beth.”
“It seems you easily could,” she observed.
“Why didn’t you?”
Tyson glanced at her then looked to the
floor. “Parker keeps himself well guarded by employing other
werewolves to protect him. It would take the entire pack, as well
as others, to kill him and I couldn’t risk more lives. Mark…I
should have killed him many times over. I suppose guilt keeps me
from actually carrying the deed out.”
“There are others like you that work for
Parker?” she asked in utter disbelief.
“Yes, a great number of them. That’s what
took us so long to find you at the lake, we were battling other
werewolves.”
“How did they know where we were?”
“Koty gave them a fresh trail to follow and
they managed to track us down.”
“I…I don’t understand. I know she hated me,
but why would she jeopardize the rest of the pack that way?”
“The same reason other werewolves so
willingly work for Parker.” His eye met hers again and they were
smoldering with a deep, unsettled anger. “He promised them
something, can you guess what that something is?”
Afraid of the answer, Clara could only shake
her head.
“He promised them a taste of your
blood.”
The familiar, icy, gripping fear coursed
through her like venom and her heart began to pound. “Koty
wants…she wants my blood?”
“They all do,” he said, his voice softening.
“I’m sorry, I don’t tell you this because I want to hurt or scare
you. I hope this knowledge will help you to help us avoid Parker
and his crew.”
She moved to sit on the bed, suddenly
feeling overly tired. “I just wish I understood how he came to the
conclusion I am the one they want.”
“I told you before why I believe he’s
right,” Tyson said quietly. “To add to it, you can hear us when you
should not be able. Mesha was drawn to you, a mortal and you have
bonded with her. You aren’t infected, yet you share some of our
traits. You are fearless among us and have become a true member of
the pack. Fate has drawn you into this world.”
“Fate?” she asked skeptically. “You were
there when Mark dragged me into this world and I have yet to fully
understand why! The only reason I’m even alive right now is because
you and the rest of the pack have endangered yourselves. I can’t go
anywhere without someone babysitting me and have nothing to
contribute to the pack.”
“You wish to go back to your old life?” he
asked, and she was sure she saw hurt enter his eye.
“I never said that. I just don’t believe
fate drew me here. If fate were involved wouldn’t it have led me to
this
Jothram
person instead of my brother?”
“I suppose…”
“I have yet to even lay eyes on the man.
Just when I thought we were close enough to reach him, he vanished.
Don’t you think if fate were involved, he would be drawn to me as
well?”
“Maybe he is, maybe that’s why he did what
he did,” Tyson answered.
“What do you mean?”
“He feels his life is a curse…and,
truthfully, it is. His love is a curse. How could he bring himself
to face you when he knows he will love you to the moon and back,
but that very love is a curse?”
“Love is not a curse,” she whispered.
“His love is!” Tyson countered immediately.
“He knows it…he has
always
known it!”
“I don’t believe he loves me,” she said with
a shake of her head. “Nor will I believe
any
love is a
curse. I will not be at ease until after we meet and everyone
understands that everything is a big mistake.”
Making a sound of sheer frustration, Tyson
put his hands to his head and turned away, going to pace briskly
about the room. She bit her cheek and feigned a great interest in
the pattern on the bedcover, using her finger to trace a line in
and out of the tiny blue and red jewel tone dots.
“You seem to know a lot about him,” she said
without looking up. From the corner of her eye, she saw him stop.
“I gather you’ve met him?”
“Of course I have. After becoming infected,
I spent the first few years tracking him down.”
“That is a long time to track someone down,”
she said, daring to look up at last.
“What else did I have to do? I was swallowed
up with anger, rightfully so I might add. I was sure confronting
him would somehow rid me of the infection.”
“You went to kill him, didn’t you?”
Tyson sighed and nodded, obviously not very
thrilled at having to admit such a thing. “When I found him, all I
felt was pity. He was in hiding even then and was half wild. After
he’d told me his story, I left. We’ve been in contact a few times
after. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m the only one he has
dared trust since the curse stole his life.”
“To hear you describe him, he doesn’t sound
very scary.”
Her heart was suddenly in her throat when
she didn’t see him move and he appeared directly in front of her,
his eyes tinged gold. He placed a hand on the side of her face and
leaned in. “We are, all of us,
very
scary
. I don’t
know what I can say to convince you of how entirely
scary
we
are. Every moment is a struggle not to lose control and kill. Every
emotion must be checked and buried to decrease the risk of finding
the wild wolf escaping. You should fear him, Clara. You should fear
me and every single monster you come across.”
Every bit of her insides trembled and her
heart was a mess of nerves in response to his nearness and his
stern words. She tried to lean back, but he only moved closer. Her
fiery green eyes glittered in response to his statement and she won
the internal battle of nerves and fear when she dared lean closer
to him, pressing her cheek into his hand. She looked into his eyes,
sure she had his full attention before saying, “I’ve said it
before, and I’ll say it again. You are no monster.”
The shock that resonated behind his eyes
made him straighten and step back. He inhaled sharply as if to
speak, but nothing came out. His eyes shifted to the door and he
shook his head. A few moments later, the rest of the pack broke
through their privacy in a flurry of noise. To Clara’s relief, Jack
had been found and seemed alright. His eyes were on the floor when
he approached Tyson.
“Ty…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to lose my
cool.”
Knowing Tyson to be the strict leader he
was, Clara stood quickly, ready to speak in Jack’s defense. She was
surprised when Tyson smiled and nodded encouragingly, placing a
hand on his shoulder. “You didn’t completely lose your cool and you
managed to leave before…before innocents were affected.” His
attention turned to Dawn. “Perhaps we should avoid mentioning my
cousin for awhile, and never in the presence of…innocents.”
“Of course,” Dawn agreed and fidgeted with
her blouse. “I’m sorry.”
Callan went to Clara’s side and touched her
hand. “How are you feeling, sis?”
“I’m okay,” she said.
“Are you sure?” Jack asked and moved to
touch her forehead. “You’re flushed, but you don’t seem to have a
fever.”
“I’m okay,” she said again. “Really I
am.”