by Laura Ryles
“Yeah, Cindy is Terra’s daughter. She named the restaurant after her. Now Cindy is with Orin. So, they don’t talk much. Terra is the youngest elder. She was pretty close to your dad at one time, I think,” Lark said as she started walking towards the diner.
“So, the running theme of all the elders we’ve met today, is that they supported my dad. Is that on purpose? Cause it kind of feels like you’re taking me around to all the people that you know want to see me take over.”
“These aren’t just people Tala; these are our elders. There are a few who have turned their loyalty over to Orin, but most of our oldest and wisest, my Pops included, think that you should be our Alpha. And after what he told me this morning before you guys woke up, I sort of believe that, too.”
“What did he tell you?” Tala asked
“Nothing much more than what you’ve been hearing from everyone all day. I never knew the real reason your dad left until today, and I also never thought to question Orin’s motives either, but after what you said earlier about your dad never seeming to have gotten any money, I started thinking. Orin bought a huge house last year. I never thought much of it since he is the Sheriff, and we all know that he works and earns a salary. I just figured he had gotten a raise or something. But it wasn’t just the house, even though the house itself is huge. You should see it. He also bought a car and a boat and who knows what else we don’t know of. What if he was somehow responsible for the land being sold? What if he reaped the benefits from it? The pack would have his head for that. If we could prove it.” Lark stood looking at Tala in a very grave manner for a moment before opening the door to the diner and motioning for Tala and Drew to go ahead.
Lark pointed for them to sit at the bar, instead of at a table. There was a stone-faced woman standing behind the counter taking orders. When she saw them sit down, she held up a finger to the customer she was talking to, meaning that she would be right back and walked over to the three newcomers. Tala noticed that the woman didn’t take her eyes off her the whole way over.
“Hello, Lark. Good to see you. How’s your dad?” the woman behind the bar spoke with an earthy voice, never taking her eyes off Tala.
“He’s good. He said he would call and let you know we would be stopping by for lunch today. Did he?”
“Yeah, he did. Would I be correct in assuming that this girl is the late, great, Clay Woods’ progeny?” Her eyes were still fixed on Tala. Tala fixed her chin firmly.
“I’m his daughter. My name is Tala though. I don’t particularly like to be referred to as just Clay Woods’ daughter. I’m my own person, and though I’ve only shifted once, I would guess that I’m my own wolf, too.” Tala remarked a little louder than was necessary.
“Shhh. Keep your voice down.” The woman hissed at Tala. “We have non-wolf customers here too, girl. We try to keep the whole Canis Lupus thing quiet.”
“The whole what?” Drew asked. The woman looked at Drew for a moment before looking at Lark curiously.
“It’s okay. He’s cool. They’re best friends so he already knows about us.” Lark answered the question behind the woman’s look.
“Well, I’m not sure how I feel about that, but I guess it’s your business who you tell. I said ‘Canis Lupus,’ boy. Canis Lupus is the scientific name for a wolf.” She rolled her eyes and then looked back at Tala. “Your friend seems a little slow. I’m Terra. It’s surreal to meet you, Tala.” She put extra emphasis on Tala when she said it. “I hadn’t expected to ever meet you. Your mother and I didn’t get on well. I guess you could write that off to the fact that I was the one that the pack wanted your father to marry, and he, of course, wanted to be single. Until he met her.”
This new information made Tala uncomfortable. She squirmed a little in her seat. “Oh, no worries though, I got over it. I got mated and had children. I just thought you should know why it seems strange to me that I’m one of the people you chose to meet on your first day here. I’m going to bring you guys three lunch specials. I’ll be back.” Terra walked off, and the three of them exchanged looks from their barstools. Lark shrugged in a way that made Tala believe that this uncongenial behavior from Terra was perfectly normal.
After a few minutes, she came back with their drinks and three trays of food. She stood watching them for a while before saying, “I’m not going to help you.” Tala stopped chewing and looked up to find that Terra was staring at her again.
“Help me with what?” Tala said, trying to swallow down her mouth full of sandwich.
“I’m not going to help you unseat Orin. He is with my daughter. It doesn’t matter what I think of him.”
“Oh, for goodness sake!” Tala answered. Slamming what was left of her sandwich down onto her plate. “Did I ask you for anything? Did I say anything that leads you to believe that I want to take Orin’s place? I’m just eating lunch. Why has everyone jumped to the conclusion that I’m here to take back my father’s title? You wanna know the truth? I just wanted to know where I came from. I wanted to meet my pack, but now I’m starting to wish I hadn’t even come. Maybe I should have just gone to Canada with Ander. At least I know the Tundra’s want me there.”
“The Tundras? Why do the Tundras want you in their pack?” Terra asked, with a hint of skepticism underlying the question.
“Ha. They don’t want me in their pack. I’m the Alpha of their pack.” Tala was just about to get up and storm out of yet another awkward moment when Terra reached over and grabbed her by the arm before she could stand up.
“You’re already an Alpha? Of a pack that you weren’t born into?” She searched Tala’s eyes for the answer.
“Yes,” Tala replied.
“How?”
“I challenged Dag, and I won. He was about to kill my mate, and I couldn’t think of anything else besides challenging him for authority, so that’s what I did.”
“You’re mated already? To whom?”
“No, it’s not like you think,” Lark said from the seat left of Tala. “She’s not mated like married. She’s mated like for real. They share a real mate bond, is what Pops said.”
“Really?” Terra looked even more surprised by this news than the fact that Tala had beaten Dag. “So, who is it? Who shares this bond with you?”
“Ander, Dag’s son,” Tala said. She couldn’t help but smile bashfully at the sound of his name.
“I see,” Terra said. “Maybe you’re stronger than I thought. Maybe you can win.”
“You just said you weren’t going to help her anyway. So, what do you care how strong she is?” Drew countered.
“It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, but I wasn’t about to help set the wrath of Orin loose on an eighteen-year-old girl-child, who’s just barely turned and who would have no idea what was coming for her. If she’s already bested Dag though, that means she must be a pretty tough wolf. And she’s part of a mated pair which I’ve heard makes the two wolves involved a lot stronger than other wolves. Maybe she does stand a chance. Maybe she is exactly what the elders have been waiting for. Someone has to help the pack. Every day, more and more of us are leaving the pack to find our own way as lone wolves. That’s dangerous for a wolf, to be alone. We can’t stay separated like this, with no land and no one to help us but Orin, who doesn’t seem to mind that the land is gone. Our numbers are dwindling. What’s a pack with no members? I’m not saying that I will openly go against Orin, but I wouldn’t stand against you either.” Tala thought about what Terra was saying as she finished her lunch. Afterward Lark tried to pay the bill but Terra said it was on the house, so Lark put her money away. They walked back out to the truck and climbed into their seats.
“I think that there’s something that needs to be done before I let myself even think about getting involved in this coup that you guys are trying to cook up,” Tala said.
“What’s that?” Lark asked.
“We need to find the proof. Proof that it wasn’t my dad, or proof that it was Orin, who sold that land. I won’t chall
enge Orin if the only thing he’s guilty of is buying things he can’t really afford. He wouldn’t be the first person to do that, you know. Maybe he just got a bunch of loans from the bank. You never know. I think maybe I should talk to him again.”
“I don’t know if I like that idea,” Drew said.
“Yeah, me either,” said Lark. “Why don’t we ask my dad what he thinks when we get home this afternoon? In the meantime, we have one more stop to make before we head home for the day.”
“Oh, that’s right, the land.” Tala sat up, noticeably excited.
“Well, what’s left of it,” Lark said.
“How far is it?” Drew asked.
“The part I’m going to show you is about an hour from here, so you might as well get comfortable.”
“Can I turn on the radio?” Drew asked.
“Sure,” Lark said. “Or if you want, I have a few CDs in the glove box. Drew reached over and popped the glove box open and pulled out the small stack of CDs.
“Blue October? Muse? Eve 6? Guns and Roses? I think we could be soulmates.” Drew smiled as he read the titles. “What’s your favorite Blue song?”
“Umm, probably Calling You, or 18th Floor Balcony, or Sound of Pulling Heaven Down. You?”
“Same,” Drew replied with a goofy grin on his face. He popped the cd in and turned the volume up as loud as the old speakers would allow. Tala smiled. She could tell Drew really liked Lark, and it was true, they did have a lot of the same mannerisms and the same taste in humor and music obviously. She started to wonder why there was ever a stupid rule about wolves not dating humans in the first place. When the music came on, and they were finally on the open highway, all three of them zoned out to the sound of Justin Furstenfield’s voice in their ears.
With the windows rolled down and the wind whipping their faces, Tala could almost imagine herself running through the forest. Green trees all around her and green grass under her. She could feel the warm earth beneath her paws and could hear it spraying up behind her as she ran faster and faster until she came to a clearing. There, in front of her was a line of about a hundred gray wolves spread across the open field. They were just sitting there, staring at her as she emerged from the edge of the forest. The wolf in the middle, closest to where she stood, started growling and snapping it’s teeth at her. She wasn’t sure what to do. At first, she backed up, but where the forest had just been, a brick wall stood in its place. She couldn’t back up. She thought about running down the length of the wall, but she knew that the wolf would outrun her almost immediately. This is it, she thought. Guess I should go out with a bang. She stood up straight, and just as the large gray wolf in front of her started charging towards her, she charged right for it, too. They were just about to collide when all of a sudden, the big gray wolf turned into a gray fog and she ran right through it. On the other side of the fog, the line of wolves raised their heads and howled in unison. To her surprise, she howled back. She didn’t have any control over it, it just came out.
“Hey! Tala! We’re here,” Drew’s voice intruded.
Tala opened her eyes. She looked around the cab of the truck. Just a dream, she thought. She breathed in deeply, relieved that she wasn’t really in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of wolves she didn’t know. “You were sleeping pretty good. I almost hated to wake you up. You were making the cutest little howling noises.” Drew laughed hysterically. Tala punched him in the arm, but then smiled at him anyway.
“I was having another dream,” she told him as she sat up and looked around. Lark was already out in front of the truck, waiting for them.
“The same one you used to have?” Drew asked.
“No, this one was a little different. It was still about wolves, just different ones, and a completely different place.” She climbed out of the passenger side while Drew climbed out the driver’s side.
“Do you think it means anything?” He asked as they came back together in front of the truck.
“Who knows?” she answered honestly.
“Okay, guys, you ready? Follow me,” Lark said as they came to where she was standing. Walking forward into the trees, they followed Lark just a few short feet between the tree trunks, before they came to the edge of a substantial drop off. Tala looked up from her feet and out at the picturesque scene before them. They were standing on the edge of a valley. Down below in the middle of the valley was a clear blue, pristine lake. The sides of the valley were full of tall pines and firs and vibrant greenery. Out past the valley, beyond the lake, was a mountain range that looked bluish-gray in the distance. Tala’s breath caught as she took it all in. This is the kind of thing you see on a postcard, not in real life, she thought. The magnificence of it was so oppressive that she was almost in tears. She felt so small, but then again, she felt like the luckiest person alive. She breathed in the smell of pine and something else, something more pure. In the back of her mind, she knew it was the earth. She could smell and almost taste its richness in this valley.
“Wow!” Tala shivered as the word formed on her lips. “I have goosebumps.”
“Yeah.” Drew echoed her sentiment. They all stood quietly, taking it all in for a few minutes.
Chapter 8
Finally, Lark broke the silence, “What’d I tell you? Isn’t it amazing?”
“Yeah,” Tala said, still breathless. “I can understand why so many of the pack are mad about it. I would be too if this was once my home, and now I lived in some run-down apartment or house because of someone else's actions. Guys, we’ve got to figure out what happened. I need to know if my dad did this to them. I need to know if it was him. If he really took all of this from the pack.”
“I agree. But let’s take a few minutes to enjoy the view, while it’s still here for us to enjoy,” said Lark, as she walked over and sat down, hanging her legs over the ledge. Drew followed immediately, sitting as close to Lark as he could. Tala walked over as well, but she kept a little distance between herself and the conspicuous pair, as she sat down. They stayed there until the sun started to go down.
“I guess we better start heading back,” Lark said as she stood up. Her foot slipped and she almost lost her balance, but Drew reached out and grabbed her arm.
“Whoa,” Drew said. Then he sang, “I got you, babe!”.
“Thanks, Sonny!” Lark laughed.
“Anytime, Cher!” Drew took a bow and let Lark walk ahead of him. Tala scoffed. The two of you should just kiss and get it over with, she thought.
On the way back to the Green’s house, Tala listened and laughed as Drew and Lark argued over which kind of ice cream they should pick up for dessert. They ended up driving right past the grocery store anyway, so it didn’t really matter. When they finally pulled up at the small house, Oakley was outside in the yard, standing in front of a smoking grill. Before they even opened the doors, the aroma filled the cab of the truck, and the three of them filed out and headed towards the grill like zombies heading toward their next victim.
“Hey, hon, how was the trip?” Oakley asked, looking at Lark.
“Oh, it was great. It’s still just as beautiful as ever up there. I can’t believe it will be gone in a few weeks.”
“I know, baby girl. Me either. So, how did all the introductions go?”
“They went fine, I guess. What did you think, Tala?” Lark looked over at her.
“I guess they went okay. Better than last night anyway. Everyone seemed to like me today, at least.” Tala said. “Well, almost everybody.” She thought of Terra’s unpleasant attitude towards her.
“Come on, don’t be modest, Tala.” Drew started as he walked in between Tala and Oakley. “They all want her to squish Orin. Like a bug.” Drew said with an almost evil looking grin.
“Ah. I’m not quite sure that’s the way I would have put it, but I’m glad to hear that they are all on our side.” Oakley gave Drew a look of empathy and turned back towards the grill.
“Speaking of sides,” Tala, deciding to take this
chance to pose a couple of questions to Oakley before the subject was changed. “How do we know that there should even be any? I told Lark earlier that I was going to need to have some kind of proof that Orin has done what you guys think he has done, or at the very least, some kind of proof that my dad didn’t do what everybody thinks he did. I have to know before I will agree to even think about forming some kind of design on becoming Alpha of this pack.”
“I think you are wise to not rush into any kind of fight. You’re already proving that our faith in you is not misplaced. I’ll do whatever I can to help. What do you need from me?” Oakley said as he turned the chickens over on the grill.
“I think the best place to start would be to find out everything we can about the sale of the land. Where would those records be?”
“I think the Tax Commissioner’s Office in town would have a record. Or at least it should. Lark can take you over in the morning. You don’t have to work, do you, Lark?”
“No, sir. I can take them. I don’t go in until two o’clock tomorrow.”
“Good, that’s settled then.”
“Not quite,” Tala interjected. “I also think it might be a good idea to have another chat with Orin. Maybe he can tell me more about what happened when he went to see my dad.” She looked over at Lark and Drew, “These guys don’t think it’s a good idea, but I don’t think it could hurt. I told them I’d ask you first.”
“If you want to go and talk to him again, I say go. Just take one or both of them with you. I wouldn’t go by myself. Hopefully, Orin isn’t stupid enough to try anything anyway, but it’s much less likely if he knows there are witnesses.”
“I’m in,” said Lark.
“You know I’ve got your back,” Drew said.
“All right. Any other questions?”
“No, I think that covers it.” Tala said, smiling at Oakley. She loved his gentle nature. She had missed having that kind of paternal presence in her life.
“Good. Now let’s eat,” Oakley said.