"Don't give up yet, they didn't say no."
"I'm not giving up, I'll never give up until
there isn't a breath in me," he said with conviction.
"Well then, don't do anything stupid
either."
He went back to his room and tried to sleep
to pass the time, but he kept having nightmares. His mind was
overactive and he was feeling a deep loss from their separation. He
tossed and turned until dinnertime. The same staid butler arrived
to notify him dinner would be ready in thirty minutes and
appropriate attire was in his wardrobe. He padded over to the
wardrobe and opened it to find a black tuxedo in his size. He
didn't want to know how or why they knew what size he wore. He was
dressed within fifteen minutes; he then paced around like a caged
animal until the butler returned.
He and John followed the butler to the formal
dining room. The elders were already seated, so the dominance in
the room was oppressive once again. This time John didn't kneel, he
followed the butler to his chair and sat down, as the butler
presented a napkin with a flourish. Garrett followed suit.
The dinner proceeded slowly, with six
courses. Having eleven alphas in the room (including John) was
almost too much for Garrett's wolf to handle. The elders would
speak now and again, but didn't bring him into the conversation.
Garrett pictured Riley's face and focused on the one date they were
able to have, trying to gain the fortitude to make it through
dinner. Nonetheless, by the time dessert was finished, he was ready
to get down on his knees and beg for their blessing; anything to
alleviate the pain and sorrow he was feeling.
It was 9:30 when dinner was over. Jeremiah
finally addressed him. "Garrett, I can smell your sorrow and
frustration from here. I'm beginning to believe you are telling the
truth about your connection. However, that does not mean we will
allow you to divulge our secret. We will speak with you in the
morning."
With that, they were dismissed into the hands
of the butler once again. He wanted to sprint ahead of the butler
as he slowly plodded to their rooms. He was feeling more and more
desolate without being able to talk with his Kismet. John kept
looking over at him with concern, obviously scenting the pain he
was feeling. As he entered his room, he was already dialing her
number. It rang five times and then went to voicemail. He wanted to
scream. His eyes were glowing and his nails were starting to emerge
when his phone rang.
He saw Riley on caller ID and his wolf
immediately calmed. "Hey, I thought I had missed you." He exhaled
to calm himself further.
"I was just grabbing a sandwich before I had
to leave for shelter duty. How did the meeting go?"
"It could have gone better, but I'm not
giving up hope yet." He'd never give up on her.
"I'm so sorry. It sounds really
important."
This was infuriating; she couldn't even know
the weight of this meeting. "It's extremely important, but like I
said, I won't give up. I'll never give up."
"Good. You shouldn't if there is something
you really want."
He scented John and there was a knock on his
door. He wanted to yell at him to leave, but John was his
Alpha.
"I have to go Riley. I won't be coming back
tonight, but hopefully tomorrow. I'll be in touch once I know.
Please take care, my Kismet."
"OK, I will and you too. Talk with you
tomorrow."
He opened the door for John, inviting him
inside.
"How are you? You looked on the verge of
losing it. I'm not sure I've ever seen a wolf that unhinged unless
they were going feral," he said with true worry and concern in his
eyes.
"I'm better. I spoke with Riley and it calmed
me." He saw John's eyes go wide with shock.
"What? You mean just talking on the phone
calmed your wolf?"
He was confused; he thought it was normal and
proof of their connection. "Yes, doesn't it work that way for you
and Cherise?"
"No. Of course, our situation is different
because I was able to claim her and she's marked as mine, we have a
telepathic connection, but we don't get relief from a telephone
conversation. In fact, with the way you looked earlier, I thought
we'd have to fly home tonight and come back tomorrow. I was
seriously concerned you were going to wolf out on the butler," he
chuckled.
"Why do you think we're different? Is it
because she's human? I hate not knowing how things are affecting
her. I feel helpless and I want to shield her from all of this
chaos."
"I'm not sure why you're different. It could
be because you're unable to claim her and has nothing to do with
her being human. But I do know, you can't shield her from
everything. She's meant to be your mate, and as such, she will back
you up as much as you'll back her up. Don't treat her like
something breakable, she won't like it."
"But Riley's human. It's different."
"If she's your Kismet, she's meant to be with
a shifter. Therefore, she's tougher than you realize. I'm going to
call Cherise and then hit the hay. See you in the morning."
"Thanks again, John. All of this dominance is
uncomfortable for my wolf; I can only imagine how an alpha would
feel."
"Anything for my pack," he hesitated in the
doorway. "I wish I had answers about how your connection is
working, but I don't. This whole scenario is unprecedented." John
patted him on the shoulder and walked out.
Garrett decided to try and sleep, but he
ended up tossing and turning. For some reason he felt like he
needed to speak with Riley again. He couldn't take the isolation
any longer, so he dialed her.
She answered on the second ring. "Hey
sweetheart, how are you feeling?"
"Actually, I think I might be coming down
with something. Hey, isn't it midnight there? What are you doing
awake?
Dang, she was feeling the negative impact of
their connection. He was pleased to know she felt the loss because
it clarified she felt the connection as a human, but he felt bad
she was suffering. "You're not coming down with anything. You miss
me, and I miss you, and that's why I'm awake."
She laughed, "Ya, because I can't live
without a guy I met a few days ago."
Were they back to this again? Was she denying
the connection, even with the preponderance of proof?
"Sorry, that was rude, but it does seem a bit
farfetched."
"Remember the special connection we talked
about last night?" Was it only last night? It felt like eons.
"Nothing is farfetched when you share something special. I'm
feeling better just talking with you on the phone, how about you?"
He heard her hesitate for a moment.
"I'm feeling better, maybe I'm just tired and
now that I'm home I can rest. I will say I'll be happy to see you
again."
"I'll be happy to see you too. Please pick up
the phone if you start to feel poorly, whether you believe me or
not, you'll feel better for it. Good night, my little Kismet. Sleep
well and have good dreams."
"You too."
He wanted to rail at her. She was back to
sweeping their connection under the rug, as if it wasn't anything
special and real. It broke his heart, and because she couldn't fit
it into her scientific mind. She'd really freak when he told her he
was a wolf. He flopped back onto the bed and did his best to sleep,
but was plagued by nightmares of Riley being taken away from
him.
By the time he woke up, he was in a cold
sweat and his wolf was growling and snapping his jaws. It was too
early her time to call, but he was at his wits end. He decided to
do some sit-ups, push-ups, and pull-ups while he waited for her to
wake up. Maybe it'd wear his wolf out a bit.
After working himself into a sweat for three
hours, he made the call. "My Kismet, please tell me you're alright.
I had nightmares all night. I waited as long as I could this
morning to call - hoping I wouldn't wake you."
"I'm feeling better now, thank you. Garrett,
what is going on? I don't understand how a phone call can help me
feel better. I'm so confused."
He could tell she was frustrated. At least
she was coming around to the idea that something was different
about them, but she didn't understand what her body was doing and
it wasn't fair to her. He wanted to kick himself for kissing her
and causing this to happen. "Sweetheart, please hang in there. I'm
hoping to be able to explain more when I get home. If my meeting
goes well today I'll be home tonight and I'll come straight to
wherever you are and explain. I promise. I'll try to call you again
in a few hours. Take care and try not to worry about what you don't
understand."
"Fine, but I don't see that happening. I'll
talk with you later."
That last comment sounded like she was
ticked, and he couldn't blame her. He headed down to the dining
room for breakfast, since they told him it would be a casual brunch
style. He loaded up his plate with eggs, bacon, hash browns, and
chicken fried steak with gravy. He was famished, and figured since
they had enough food for an entire pack, that he'd help them eat
it.
He was the only one there, which suited him
perfectly. There weren't any dominant alphas to submit to or
questioning glances from John to deal with. The dining room was as
opulent as the rest of the house. He was so busy looking at his
plate last night he didn't have a chance to notice. He found it
weird that wolves had headquarters this fancy. His pack was more
rustic, living in the mountains and forest. He would never want the
"honor" of living in this museum.
After finishing, he headed back to his room.
John was walking down the hall as he approached. He looked deep in
thought with a furrow between his brows. Maybe he needed a run
too.
"Hey John, breakfast was great, but I sure
could use a good run."
"Me too. Let's go on one now. I know they
have the forest treed in a way that prying eyes can't see in. We
only need to stay within the compound's fence."
"Sounds great." He followed John outside and
they stripped down, fluidly changing into their shifts and took off
for the woods. They ran for a couple of hours, wearing their wolves
out before heading back. As they approached the patio where they
left their clothes, the butler was waiting with a look of agitation
on his face. He held their clothes in his hand as if they were
diseased.
"The elders are unable to meet with you
today; they have asked the driver to take you to the airport."
"What!" Garrett exclaimed. Looking at John he
said, "Are they not giving their answer? What am I to do? Do
something!"
"I can't do anything other than what I've
already done. We can only hope they get back to us with their
decision. Until then, we need to stay as calm as possible," warned
John in his alpha tone.
"John, we have to have an answer. I can't go
back, not knowing if I can tell her anything. My wolf is going
crazy. Do you have any idea how painful this is?"
John took an alpha stance and tone with a low
growl, "Go to your room and pack. I'll meet you at the front door."
John turned around and walked off.
The alpha vibes were the strongest he'd felt
from him. His wolf grudgingly submitted and he gathered himself
enough to follow orders. However, he had a feeling that if he
didn't respect John as a friend he would have challenged him. Ten
minutes later, they were climbing into the limo. On the way to the
airport, John was searching flights with his phone when Garrett's
rang showing his Kismet on caller ID.
"Are you alright?" He was immediately
panicked something was wrong.
"Yes, I only wanted to find out if you were
coming back today."
He already felt lighter by talking to her and
he couldn't help but chuckle at her "reason" for calling. "Yes.
We're working to get our tickets right now."
"We? I didn't know you went with anyone."
She sounded irritated and maybe a little
jealous. Had he failed to say he traveled here with someone? "Yes,
I'm here with John, a mentor of mine. Are you feeling better now?"
He could tell she was scattered and having a rough time.
"Sweetheart, I'll be home as soon as I can. I promise."
"I'll see you soon. You better be ready to
tell me what's going on when you get here, because I can't handle
this feeling anymore."
He heard her frustration and pain as she hung
up, and he wasn't sure if he could handle any more stress today. He
wanted to destroy anything in his path. He fisted his hands and
willed his wolf to calm. This was going to be a long flight. He
could see John looking at him out of the corner of his eye,
probably planning on how to restrain him.
John was able to find a flight that left in
an hour; it was a direct flight, landing in PDX by 5:30 that
evening. As they headed to their gate, John made a pit stop at a
bar and ordered a shot for Garrett to take the edge off. He slammed
it back and kept walking, fearing he'd be late to the plane. As
soon as he sat down, his vision started blurring and he felt dizzy.
He looked over at John who was eyeing him with a look of
apprehension.
"Did you drug me?"
"Yes."
"Thank you," he slurred. It seemed like a
strange thing to say, but he wasn't sure if he could control his
wolf for the next few hours. Being knocked out would be a blessing,
and he could trust John to take care of him. He leaned back in the
seat to get comfortable. Right as the darkness claimed him, he
received a jolt of adrenaline and it wasn't his fear he was
feeling, it was Riley's. His wolf made a lunge to stand, but all
went black.
Riley
awoke slowly. Her head was pounding and her mouth felt like it was
full of cotton. Even though she was opening her eyes, she couldn't
see anything. Memory of what happened started to trickle back and
adrenaline flowed through her system. Her breathing became erratic
as it sawed in and out of her chest, sucking the fabric covering
her head into her mouth. She was terrified, but she tried to tamp
down the panic; she didn't want her captors to know she was awake.
It was either very thick fabric covering her head or it was dark
where she was, because there wasn't an ounce of light coming
through the edges. She started to assess her situation; she could
tell she was sitting on a hard floor, most likely wood. They had
her propped up in the corner with her arms still tied behind her
back and her feet bound in front of her. Her hands and arms were
numb, but her shoulders screamed from the pain from being pulled
behind her back for so long. She couldn't feel her feet either and
hoped the thugs hadn't cut off her circulation with the bindings.
She had no idea how long she'd been out, there wasn't anything to
get a frame of reference. The air smelled musty and it was
extremely cold. She was thankful for Garrett's jacket and the
thermal underwear under her scrubs. She held her breath as she
heard a muffled voice on the other side of a wall.