Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance (30 page)

bewildered by their urgent need to reach the Mayan ruins, but

253

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

had shrugged it off when Justin handed over a handful of

bills.

After they had settled in the jeep, Justin looked over at

Kenny. "Has he said how long it will take to get to
Coba
' from

here?"

Kenny and the guide exchanged a few, seemingly

unintelligible words before he answered Justin. "He predicts

that it will take no more than an hour."

Swatting at the ever-present insects, Justin reclined in his

seat. His patience was already stretched to its limits, though

he knew there was no other way to make it to the ruins any

faster. He itched to be there already and wondered if it might

not have been wiser to make the journey through
Outerlands

to
Coba
. He brushed the thought aside, no doubt the journey

would have taken longer, and there would have been many

more perils to overcome.

Justin was positive these Jaguars were the long ago exiles

of
Coyopa
'. They were his relatives in a way. But even the

wonder of this discovery could not douse his fears for Laura.

They were convinced that Laura was to play a part in their

prophecy and would stop at nothing to see it through. The

Jaguars sorely underestimated the
Sungmanitu
and

Justin.

His fury grew. If she had so much as a scratch on her,

they would pay dearly!

It had probably been no longer than the estimated hour,

but to Justin the trip had seemed to stretch to eternity. From

where they stood, an ancient temple was visible and beyond

that—a large and ancient building that appeared to be some

254

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

sort of palace. Most of the city's structures looked as if they

were in danger of being choked out by the jungle.

Justin stared at the ruins in dismay. This could not be

Coba
'! Even if the population were beyond the veil of

Outerlands
, there should be some sign of life or settlement of

the Jaguars. There was nothing, the ruins appeared to have

lain undisturbed for centuries.

"This can't be the city I'm looking for," Justin growled.

Kenny conveyed his words to their guide.

"Si, Senor." The thin man pointed to the ruins. "
Coba
'!"

Justin was not exactly sure what he had expected to find

here, but it wasn't what he was looking upon at the moment.

Maybe the Jaguars dwelled in some hidden village within the

city, but there were no signs of life. The only living things

they had come upon since leaving the village were jungle

creatures.

Justin cautiously climbed the steps of the temple. The two

men followed him as he made his way to the center of the

ancient city and then finally to the palace. Walking through

the crumbling halls of the huge palace structure, Justine

sensed that it was not deserted after all. True, it appeared

that only the jungle creatures claimed this as home, but there

was an underlying current that suggested not only the

presence of the
Baalam
, but of Laura too.

Ducking through a half fallen doorway and into a large

chamber, Justin felt her presence more strongly than ever.

Now he knew—she was here, but at the same time—she was

not. The city of
Coyopa
' would appear to be an empty valley,

unless one entered it through the springs. This must be the

255

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

same. It made sense that these distant relations would use

their portal in the same way.

There must be a gateway into the city! Justin reached up

to feel for the crystal that hung from his neck. His father had

given him the carved wolf image long before his conscious

memory began. Without the crystal, one could not enter the

Outerlands
.

Would his crystal take him into the city of the
Baalam
?

Kenny and the guide watched Justin curiously as they

followed him through the ruins.

"Kenny ... ask him if he knows where the temples are, and

what is their significance?"

After a flurry of words with the guide, Kenny hurried to

walk next to Justin. "He says the most important temple of

Coba
' was the Temple of Prophecy."

Kenny pointed to a large temple north of the palace. It

stood alone and had been all but swallowed up by the

surrounding jungle. Justin's eyes rested on the dark entrances

of the temple.

"I'll have to do this alone," he told Kenny.

Kenny shook his head. "She's as much a part of me as she

is you." He glared at Justin.

"It's too dangerous, and you will need one of these to get

through." Justin lifted the crystal so that Kenny could see the

wolf.

Kenny appeared to be baffled.

"It's not something that I have time to explain to you right

now, just take the guide and look around the rest of the

256

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

ruins." Justin started to walk toward the temple, but looked

back at Kenny.

"I'm not even sure I'm right about this, but if I am—to be

within a hundred miles of here could be very dangerous."

The dark temple smelled of mold. The years of rot crowded

in on him as he pushed through the shadows. Justin cursed

himself for not thinking of bringing a flashlight, but soon his

wolf's eyes would open ... cutting through the darkness.

Stone stairs led him into the bowels of the earth. He

followed the tunnel until far off he could see glowing white

light. Out of curiosity, Justin removed his crystal and placed it

on a protruding stone in the wall. As he suspected, the light

completely blinked out.

As soon as he picked up the crystal, the light began to

glow bright once again. Justin continued on toward the light.

It became so bright, as to be blinding. Far off sounds began

to drift within his hearing. Laughter and words spoke in an

unfamiliar language.

The blinding light faded, retreating behind him. Another

stairway brought him to the upper level of the temple. Here

the jungle no longer encroached upon the structure and

sunlight streamed into arched windows.

Hugging the wall, Justin peered out of one of the windows

onto the city of
Coba'
. In contrast to what he had just left,

the city below was teeming with festive life. The market in the

city center was full of bartering patrons. Most of the people

below resembled Mexicans, or maybe a shorter, stockier

version of his own people. Justin was astonished by how

257

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

many there were. For some reason he had been expecting

only a handful of the
Baalam
.

Looking to the south, his eyes rested on the palace, but

this time he looked upon it in the height of its grandeur. This

is where he would find his precious
tehila
, but not now. He

would have to wait for the cover of darkness—when the city

was sleeping.

Justin would never pass as one of them, and even if he

could—they would scent him out quickly. He retraced his

steps through the tunnel, returning to the reality that the rest

of the world lived in.

Justin's stealthy figure came up behind Kenny, giving the

younger man a start.

"Damn! Can't you make it a point to let us know when you

are coming up on us?"

"Sorry." Justin smiled.

Justin nodded with his head for Kenny to follow him so

they could talk out of earshot of their guide. The Mexican

claimed that he didn't understand English, but Justin was

taking no chances.

"I found a way in," he told Kenny.

"You found the Jaguars?"

Justin nodded. "But we will have to wait until dark and I

will have to go in alone."

"How many of them are there?" Kenny wanted to know.

"Thousands," Justin told him.

Kenny's mouth dropped open. "Where are they?"

"They are here, but at the same time, they are not." Justin

tried to explain.

258

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

Kenny shook his head. "I'm lost now."

"I guess you could say they are in a different dimension.

They are here, but on a different plane of existence. The

Jaguars and their city are as real as you standing here right

now. You might even feel their presence, but you must cross

the threshold of light to enter their world, and they must do

the same to enter this world. And that is something that they

do quite often."

"So you are saying that Laura and Grandpa Busby are

here, but we can't see them because right now they only exist

in a different dimension?" Kenny asked the question as if he

were talking to someone who had lost touch with reality. But

as soon as the words had left his mouth, he realized that he

was asking the question of a shape-shifter.

As if reading Kenny's mind, Justin smiled. "I have sensed

Laura's presence, but not her grandfather's, so I do not know

if he is here or not."

"What's the plan?" Kenny rubbed at his tired eyes.

"I will have to find a way to cover my scent. They are cats

and will catch my scent before I can get halfway to finding

her. Even from this side of the doorway, I'm sure many of

them can sense me."

"How will you do that?" Kenny raised a questioning brow.

"I must spend this night alone and pray. Laura is in the

palace, which tells me that they don't have any immediate

plans of harming her."

"How do you know that, and what's praying going to do?"

Kenny was impatient.

259

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

"I could feel her presence in the palace when we were

walking through it. And I must pray to the spirit of the Jaguar

to cover my scent with his," Justin told him.

"And why would the spirit of the Jaguar help you when it is

their spirit guide?"

"I don't know for sure if I will receive help, but if my hunch

is correct, when they were exiled they fell out of favor of all

the spirits, including their own spirit guides.

Justin made preparations to spend the rest of the day and

night in the room of the palace where he had felt Laura's

presence. To be in that room was not necessary, but a small

part of him hoped that she would feel his presence, as he did

hers.

For many hours Justin prayed to the spirit of the Jaguar

and the wolf—pleading with them to come together to devour

the scent of the other so that he might become invisible to

the keen senses of the
Baalam
.

The spirits had listened to his prayer. Justin entered the

heart of the city under the cover of darkness without the

notice of the Jaguars. The moon rose high in the sky as his

wolf's body moved soundlessly through the streets of
Coba
'.

He followed Laura's scent to the palace gardens. Crouched

behind the bushes he could hear voices, Laura's and someone

else's. His snout pushed through the thorny bushes until his

yellow eyes could see the two figures beneath the moonlight.

The jaguar held Laura in a lover's embrace. The wolf growled

in pain.

Its heart burning with anger, the wolf retreated to the

temple. His thoughts were a muddle of human emotion and

260

Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance

by Lorraine Kennedy

instinctual wolf. As his transformation became complete, he

was no longer sure if Laura had been in the other's arms

willingly or not.

Kenny waited for him at the Temple's entrance.

"Where is Laura?" he asked.

"I didn't bring her back," Justin voice contained a harsh

edge.

"What?" Kenny was confused.

"She appeared to be happy where she was," Justin told

him.

Kenny was startled by the hard glint in the
Sungmanitu's

eyes.

"I don't believe that is true."

"It's true." Justin handed Kenny his crystal necklace. "But

if you don't believe me, you are welcome to go see for

yourself. She's with her lover."

Kenny's eyes widened, and for the briefest moment he

considered telling Justin of Laura's pregnancy, but bit the

words back. If Laura wanted the brute to know, she would tell

him herself.

"Fine ... I will go in and get her then." Kenny held out his

hand for the crystal.

Justin pulled back the crystal. "I cannot let you go in there,

you would be committing suicide."

Justin ran his fingers through his long hair. The exhaustion

of the past few days was beginning to play havoc on his

judgment. "I will return when enough time has passed that

her lover is no longer with her." Justin's words were bitter

and confusing to the younger man.