Hunter Moon: A Grazi Kelly Novel #2 (2 page)

While the other Wolves reveled in the game. I
used the power bestowed on us by the full moon in a different way.
I watched the woods. I tuned out the sounds of my companions. I
focused my super sharp hearing on whatever else was out there.

I heard the soft wind and,
nothing
. I
came up empty. That was so not normal. I certainly felt something.
But there was nothing unusual that I could pick up by. Not by sound
anyway. But I knew, I just knew there was something out there. I
was sure, but no one else seemed to notice.

Our four guards were no longer
guarding
us. They were caught up in the thrill and
satisfaction of the hunt. Ronan, Uncle Sean, and Rolf seemed intent
on the game also.
Not Me
. No, I felt
exposed
.
Threatened. Something was definitely not right. The surrounding
woods should not be that quiet.

I scanned the tree line for something,
anything that could explain what I was feeling. Rolf yipped at me.
I made a move to join him, but stopped mid-step. I shook my head
and backed up. Away from him and his power.

Werewolves can communicate, but it wasn’t
like the way I had talked to Ronan before. It was more like images
and impressions. I could tell he was not pleased by my
behavior.

I felt Rolf trying to compel me. To bend me
to his will.
Hunt. Eat. Obey.
I wanted too, I really did,
but I forced myself to step back. Away from him and his commands.
Not without struggle, mind you. But I managed it.

He bared his fangs, flattened his ears, and
loosed a short growl.
No
. I would not challenge him. I
dropped my eyes and took another backwards step.

He turned his back on me then. His attention
back on his prey. A large brown rabbit.
Yum.
My Wolf wanted
some of the succulent, juicy meat, but
I
was in control.

The feeling that I was being watched hit me
stronger then. I sniffed the air. I smelled Wolf, rabbit blood, the
cold forest, and something else. Something a little off.

I looked around me. Waves of color surrounded
the Wolves. Mostly the same reds, oranges. They were stronger
around Rolf and Sean. My Wolf eyes watched the shimmering colors
for a moment.

I didn’t know what they meant. I looked at
the trees and they too had their own colors. Shimmering greens and
golds. It was strange and beautiful. Another advantage of my Wolf’s
eyes? I could only assume so.

I walked slowly in a circle surrounding the
others. The feeling was greater now. Someone or something was out
there. I continued to look among the bare branches and frost
covered bark of the surrounding trees. My body stopped moving the
second I saw them. A pair of glowing eyes. The same set I thought I
had imagined just last night from my bedroom window.

They held mine for a moment before
disappearing. I took off at full speed heading for what, I did not
know. Only Ronan seemed to notice. He yipped and followed me. I
could feel his disapproval. He wanted to stay and enjoy his
prize.

His Wolf belly grumbled loudly. Hungry again,
for sure. I loosed a short howl and charged ahead confident he’d
follow. I was glad to have him. I mean even after everything I had
seen, who knew what waited for me in the darkness?

I stopped short in a small clearing. Ronan
skidded to a stop directly behind me.

Someone’s here, Ronan.

What? Where?

Wait, is that you? Can you hear me like
this too?
It was like an open line of communication between my
mind and Ronan’s had opened up. His thoughts voiced clearly in my
mind and his impressions too. The foremost one was his desire to
protect me. Always.

Yeah, Maria, I think I can. This is crazy. We
should get back to the others.

Why? They won’t listen. Rolf won’t
listen.

You’re right. Where are we going then?

I sniffed the air. I smelled forest, the
cold, a faint whiff of a bear that must have passed within the last
day or so, and Ronan, his Wolf musk pleasant to my sensitive nose.
There was something else. It was mineral like. Iron or copper.

Do you smell that, Ronan? It’s blood.

Yes, I smell it. Let’s get back. Rolf is
angry and he’s calling us, can you not feel him?

I can, but it’s faint. I can shake it
off.

What do you mean shake it off? It’s
deafening.
]

No, it’s more like a whisper now that we
aren’t near him.

What are you, Maria Graziana?

I don’t understand.

I know you don’t. Let’s go. We will report
what we have found.

The weight of my grandfather’s command was
there, I could feel it, but it was like when someone was speaking
to you while you’re underwater. Faint and unintelligible. Ronan’s
struggle was more obvious. He fought with his instinct to obey his
Alpha just to stay by my side. No one has ever done anything like
that for me before.

Frustrated by our search we went back. We
found nothing to explain our departure and disobedience. Only
scents and impressions that had led us in circles. On top of that I
was in pretty hot water with Rolf. Not just him, the rest of the
pack were unhappy as well. I had spoiled the hunt and Rolf was
angry. Werewolves get kind of touchy when you upset their Alpha. I
learned this the hard way.

The run home wasn’t nearly as thrilling as
when we set out. We made it back in a fragment of the time we took
to get there. I guess when we left we took the scenic route. When
we headed home, it was for a reason. Mostly so I could get yelled
at, I guess.

The other Wolves ran back in the same
positions. Careful to avoid me. I suppose I was to be ostracized
until Rolf could punish me.
Whatever.
I could deal with
that. Besides I had nowhere else to go.

There was no one else I could think of who
could tell me about what I am. If I had to face the music I would.
I mean it was never an issue with me before. I was hardly what you
would call a troublemaker. But still, I found myself dreading the
upcoming scene.

I waited for my grandfather in his study. I
had finished my change before everyone else. Just another thing I
did that was apparently weird. It usually took a Werewolf,
especially a new Werewolf, some matter of time to change from one
form to another. Typically twenty minutes or so. My change was
fast. Five minutes or less.

I wore the clothes I had brought over
earlier. Loose sweats and a cotton t-shirt. My skin was always very
sensitive after changing back. I’d have liked a shower, but it
would have taken a few more minutes before I could tolerate the
sharp spray of water. I felt anxious as I paced the room. I just
wanted to get this over with.

I walked around the large square study. There
was old fashioned wood paneling on the walls, a beige ceiling,
maroon carpet and rows of books stacked on polished shelves. I
would have liked to explore them, but now wasn’t the time.

A large desk sat in the middle of the room.
There were a variety of weather and crop reports for the United
States, as well as, a Farmer’s Almanac carefully piled on one side.
I skimmed over them. There was also a pretty cool looking laptop.
It was password encrypted, so I couldn’t log on. Apparently my
grandfather was an amateur meteorologist or something. Whatever
makes you happy, I guess.

I looked at the computer again. Maybe I could
guess the password? I shook my head and flung my long hair back
over my shoulders. I’d never be able to lie about it if asked. Just
another supernatural perk. Werewolves can tell when someone is
lying. It’s in the person’s scent, posture, and the very timbre of
his or her voice.

I had never been a good liar. I didn’t think
I should practice now. I exhaled and took a strand of my hair. It
was soft and long. I played with the strands then twirled them
around my finger. I did this sometimes when I was bored or
impatient.

I felt something, some presence and turned to
see Rolf enter the room. He was so quiet when he moved.
Like a
wolf stalking his prey.
He wasn’t exactly surprised to see me
there waiting, but I could tell he didn’t expect it. He raised one
perfectly arched eyebrow and nodded his greeting.

“Ah, it’s true then. The boy told me you
could change in just a few minutes.” His eyes narrowed as he looked
me over. I shrugged and let go of my hair. I had only been waiting
a short time, so he was pretty fast himself.

“You know, I’ve never been in this house
before today. Nonna always said Mrs. Kelly wasn’t related to
me.”

“Did she now? Hmm. Well that’s not entirely
true though your grandmother wouldn’t have known it. Mrs. Kelly is
my sister-in-law. She’s been watching you for signs of the change
for years. The minute we had proof of it, she hopped a plane back
home and reported her findings.” He sat down and looked directly at
me. It was a little disconcerting. That unwavering steel gaze, but
I managed to hold my own.

“So, you mean, she was my great aunt and
never said hello to me? She never even answered the door on
Halloween!” I was incredulous.

I pictured Mrs. Kelly, white hair in a severe
bun, tall and thin. She dressed as severely as her hair. A pair of
perfectly ironed slacks and a blouse and sweater every single day
of the week. No jeans or house dresses. Not even on Saturdays. She
used to peek at me from the curtains all the time. Nonna used to
joke about it. She’d say Mrs. Kelly was trying to steal all of her
best recipes.

It made sense now. She was spying. But not to
get her hands on my grandmother’s Sunday sauce recipe. She was
watching
me.

I wondered what tipped her off that I was
going to change. And why didn’t she ever talk to me? It stung a
little. She had watched me for twelve years and she never bothered
to introduce herself.

My grandfather’s pleasantly accented voice
brought me back to the present. He sounded more like Uncle Sean
than like Ronan. I guess the youngest member of our small pack,
next to me that is, was hanging out with too many Americans. His
accent wasn’t nearly as thick as the man sitting in front of
me.

“Let’s cut to the chase, shall we?” I nodded
and he continued.

“Grazi, I called you back to the clearing
tonight. Several times. How is it you were able to defy me?” He
leaned forward in his chair. He placed his hands on the huge
mahogany desk and rapped his fingers against it in time with his
last few words.
Yup, he is definitely angry.

“Defy you? I didn’t defy you.”

“You didn’t obey my command.”

“Yeah, but it wasn’t personal. There was
something I thought I saw.” I heard shuffling behind me, it was the
guards. Back in human form, they stood in the hallway. It didn’t
matter though. Werewolf hearing penetrated doors and I could smell
their discomfort.
Ooops, sorry grandpa, guess no one speaks to
you that way.

“And the smell of the game, did that not
entice your Wolf?”

“Sure it did.”

“Hmm.” He grunted and leaned back in his
chair.

“For a moment I thought you were challenging
me.”

“Challenging you? I don’t understand.”

“I realized that. That’s why I turned my back
on you. A Wolf doesn’t like to be challenged. But I am an old
Alpha. I have learned to control my more basic instincts. Another
would have seen your disobedience as a threat, Grazi. A
challenge
. You understand?” He spoke calmly to me. His skin
was unlined, only the gray in his hair hinted at his age. Which I
assumed to be sixty or so. Nonna was older and she looked it.
An
old Alpha, hmm.
Curiosity got the better of me.

“How old are you?” His laughter was like a
loud bark in the otherwise quiet room.

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you that was a rude
question?” I waited, I assumed he’d answer in his own time. I
wasn’t disappointed.

“I’m one hundred and seven years old.” My
mouth fell open. I searched his face and body language for any sign
he was lying to me. He wasn’t. He sat there an open book. To say I
was stunned is an understatement. My mind raced in a thousand
different directions. Questions, a geyser of them, poured into my
head.

“How old do Werewolves get? Are we
immortal?”

“We are not immortal. Werewolves die, as
every living thing should. We are simply harder to kill.”

“But how old do we get?”

“I believe there was a Werewolf on record who
lived to be five hundred and eight. Alas, he was killed in a battle
whose name has long been forgotten. But he was the exception,
rather than the rule.”

My mouth hung open. What was it Ronan had
said? Werewolves didn’t age like regular people. Like
normal
people. How old was he then, fifty?

“Our aging slows down the older you get.
There are no sixty year olds in the guise of a ten year old or
anything like that. We are genetically different from regular
humans and with scientific advances we have researched why we are
the way we are. The best I can explain it to you is we are able to
expel any matter of foulness from our bodies. Keeps us fit.” He
patted his stomach and I could hear the echo. Clearly he was
muscular and strong.

“So you mean things that make normal people
age, like food additives and pollution, they don’t affect us?”

“Precisely. But, to say they are normal and
we are not, isn’t accurate, Grazi. Consider us an evolutionary
success story. The Almighty designed us for a purpose, to fight His
wars and protect humankind. In doing so He made us strong. Able to
ward off any number of diseases and illness, and also some curses
and spells. You should know this already. I would have thought Sean
was a better teacher.”

“Uncle Sean does just fine.” I don’t know
why, but I didn’t like him putting down his son.