Hunter's Moon

by Rose Marie Wolf

  She was alone now. She stared down at the pregnancy test in her hand. Her palm had become wet and dirty beads of sweat dripped along the box. She wiped it on her skirt.

  It was now or never.

  She went into the downstairs bathroom and shut the door behind her. The fluorescent light was bright, burning her eyes. She slipped off her jacket and draped it over the towel rack. Even though she had already read the package, she reread it again and again to understand the directions.

  Then she opened the box and followed them.

  “Three minutes,” she said to herself as she checked her wrist watch. The test sat on the edge of the sink, waiting. Three minutes seemed too long.

  She sat on the edge of the bathtub, rubbing her bare arms. Now that the whole ordeal with Simon was over, Rose thought life should have returned to normal. She should’ve known things would never be the same again. Things had changed. Jason had changed, she had changed and now, she might be pregnant with Simon’s child. In a way, Simon’s will had been done. He had succeeded in destroying them after all.

  She placed her hands on her stomach, feeling the flatness of it. She couldn’t imagine having a pooched out belly and a baby growing in it. She couldn’t imagine that baby being Simon’s.

  What am I going to do? She asked herself, suddenly feeling panicked. I can’t have this baby. I can’t. I can’t!

  She checked her watch. Three minutes had passed.

  “Okay,” she breathed, standing up. She paced the bathroom for a moment or two. “Okay, plus sign means yes. Please don’t let it be a plus sign.” She shakily grabbed the test and turned it over. She closed her eyes tightly together for a long moment, then opened them. She held her breath.

  Two blue lines in the shape of a “t”. A plus sign.

  Her shaking hands could no longer hold it any longer and it clattered to the floor.

  “Oh no,” she whispered. “Oh no.”

  It wasn’t over yet. Simon still had his hold on her. Rose felt her knees grow weak and she grabbed the sink basin, making her way to the toilet. She sank to the edge of it. Suddenly, all the tears she hadn’t cried at the memorial came flooding out of her.

  She sobbed for what seemed like hours until there were no more tears to shed. She washed her face and reviewed her reflection. Her eyes looked puffy and red and she looked exhausted.

  “I have to tell him,” she said out loud. “I have to tell him about the baby, but not that it could be Simon’s. I can’t.” She took a deep breath, dried her face and looked down. The pregnancy test still lay on the floor where she dropped it. Slowly, she bent to retrieve it. For a long while she stared at the plus sign until it became a blur. Then she threw it in the trash and grabbed her jacket.

  The sun was beginning to set outside and the temperature had considerably dropped. Rose locked the door behind her and began to walk to her car. She felt the weight of her cell phone in her jacket pocket and thought of calling Cheyenne, or Glen with the news, but she thought better of it. She wanted to at least have one more night without scrutiny, without judgment.

  As she made her way down the street to her car, a familiar vehicle pulled onto the street and Rose stopped in her tracks. Her breath caught in her throat. Jason’s Camaro stopped on the curb near her and the engine rattled into silence.

  He stepped out of the car, a vision in dark slacks and black pressed shirt. His eyes were clear and he was clean shaven. He crossed the front of the car and stood on the sidewalk a few feet from her.

  “Jason,” she said softly.

  “I guess I’m late,” he said.

  “It was a beautiful service.” Rose looked up at him. She could smell his aftershave and his were-scent and she wanted nothing more than to be enfolded in his arms and inhale that comforting odor. But Jason seemed like a statue carved from marble. He crossed his arms over his chest, looking at her with stone-cold seriousness.

  “So how are you?” he asked, as if they were acquaintances from long ago, just now finding each other, not mates, not spouses. The formalness of it hurt.

  “I’m—” She paused. She couldn’t say I’m pregnant with what might be Simon’s child, but I’m doing great. Instead, she said, “—good. I’m good.”

  Jason nodded. There was an awkward silence. They stared at each other, then Rose spoke.

  “Jason—”

  “Don’t say anything,” he said suddenly, his voice sounding as cold as his stare. “I didn’t just come here for the service. We need to talk.”

  “Okay.” She felt chilled suddenly, but it wasn’t the evening air.

  “I’ve been doing some thinking—a lot of thinking actually. Things have happened.” He paused and shook his head. “Things have happened that we didn’t expect and things have changed.”

  “I know—”

  “Please, Rose, let me finish.”

  “Okay.” She knew what was coming. Tears began to burn her eyes.

  “I’ve discovered things about myself, about my family. And I need to work out these things. I need to work out myself.”

  “I understand…”

  “And there’s something I need to do in order to reach that goal.”

  “You’re leaving me,” Rose said, her voice breaking. “Really leaving me.” Jason’s face changed and his eyes softened.

  “I don’t want to hurt you any more while I’m doing this. We’ve been hurt enough in the past—”

  “But you’re hurting me now.”

  “Rose,” he stepped forward, cupping her face. His hands were warm and Rose closed her eyes at his touch. “I’m sorry I have to do this. You were going to leave before, to save yourself from me.”

  “But that was different.”

  “It’s not different. I’m doing this to protect you. It’s the same thing. I'm going away…” Suddenly, she was in his arms and he was holding her. He breathed against her hair. She used all her control not to sob against his shoulder.

  “I will miss you, Rose,” he whispered as he withdrew. She clung to him.

  “Where will you go?”

  Jason loosed her hands from his shirt, holding them down to her sides. “I don’t know,” he said without looking into her eyes. “I’ll find someplace I’m sure.”

  “Jason, I have to tell you something,” she said softly.

  His brilliant blue eyes turned to her. “Nothing you can say can keep me here. I’ve made up my mind.” He stopped. “No matter what happens, I will love you, Rose.”

  He stepped back from her and turned toward the Camaro. His keys jingled as he climbed inside. The engine roared and he pulled it away from the curb. She watched as the Camaro reached the end of the street, then turned out of sight.

  “I’m pregnant,” she whispered and her voice carried away into silence, unheard.

  About the Author

  From a very young age, Rose Marie Wolf was interested in things that weren't quite normal, so it was no surprise when she grabbed her crayon and started scribbling out short stories about vampires, werewolves, ghosts, fairies, elves and all manner of paranormal creatures.

  Her combined love of writing and the supernatural grew and, in 2002, she began writing on her first serious work, a short story about werewolves she called "Sweet Moon Dreams". A few years later, with the help of her fiancé, she developed the story into a novel-sized manuscript.

  Rose Marie lives in Indiana, with a menagerie of pets, not including her fiancé and his mother. She is currently working on her next supernatural adventure and she encourages readers and fans to join her discussion group on Yahoo! to chat about books, writing, publishing and her upcoming releases.

  Website: www.rosemariewolf.com

  Yahoo Group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rosemariewolf

  Look for these titles

  Now Available

  The Moon Series:

  Sweet Moon Dreams, book 1

  Blood Moon, book 2

  They only wanted a normal life, but never realized normal for their kin
d meant murder, deception, kidnapping…and hunters.

  Sweet Moon Dreams

  Book One of the Moon Series

  ©2007 Rose Marie Wolf

  A werewolf from birth, Rose Sullivan has had to deal with her share of secretive living in order to preserve her own life, but things have gone too far. She is wrongly accused of homicide, and a hunter by the name of Marcus Brown has found her out. When cornered, she has no choice but to kill him.

  It was self-defense, but Rose has endangered all of her kind. Now she is on the run, desperately trying to reach the home of her fiancé and fellow werewolf, Jason Barnett. Being the supportive mate he is, Jason vows to do anything to keep Rose safe, even if it means dealing with the rest of the hunters face-to-face…

  Warning, this title contains the following: graphic language, graphic violence, including murder, and sex explained in contemporary language.

  Enjoy the following excerpt for Sweet Moon Dreams:

  Taking a deep breath and collecting her resolve, Rose set out at a quick pace. She wasn’t quite running, but not quite walking either. Her destination was the tree line, praying Jason was no farther than that. The menacing shadows haunted her, cold chills had already begun upon her arms, and she wasn’t even near it yet.

  The path was old, and overgrown so it was hardly a walkway at all. The tall weeds clung to the legs of her jeans, and Rose had to give a definite pull of her leg to shake loose the briars. She continually searched the ground, looking for any signs that he had passed. The earth was hard packed, but moist from the dew that was now making her shoes and pants wet, and she hoped to find at least a half a footprint there.

  Or a paw print.

  There was a distinct increase in the odors of the forest, but just Jason’s scent held her attention. Even when combined with the scent of the fresh earth and the woodsy smell the trees brought forth, a werewolf’s sense of smell was greatly accurate in honing in on one particular odor, especially if that odor belonged to one of their own.

  Rose had reached the edge of the forest, but to her dismay, Jason was nowhere in sight and the faint scent had become stronger. She could definitely tell he was somewhere close.

  Panic still clung to her every fiber, and her heart pounded within her throat. She swallowed it back down. The darkness clouded around her, and she had to admit for the first time ever in her life, she was afraid of the dark.

  Never before had she encountered darkness so cold and unfriendly. It had an evil air about it and made Rose uneasy. But her mate was somewhere within that cold lightless place. And she wasn’t going to get to him by just standing here, and certainly not as a human. This would require a wolf’s prowess.

  Rose leaned down, her breathing increasing as she unlaced her shoes and slipped out of them. The socks came off too and soon her bare feet were resting upon the cold earth. Its chill went all through her body.

  Goosebumps had long since started on her arms as she slipped off her jacket and lifted off her shirt. She took in a ragged breath as the air bit at her exposed skin. For a moment, she thought about not forgoing the risk and putting her clothes back on, but she was soon reminded that her wolfen fur would be more than adequate for warmth.

  Her fingers trembled as she undid the button to her jeans and finally slid them down her legs. Lastly, her underwear met the pile of clothes resting at the forest’s edge, and she was ready.

  Thankful she was far enough away from prying eyes to parade around in the nude, Rose plunged headlong into the dense thickness of trees. Her breath came out in gasps of fog. The branches threatened her with menacing claws and scratched at her bare skin, but she gave it no mind. Any wounds inflicted here would heal quickly.

  Her pace increased the deeper she moved into the impenetrable darkness. Soon, Rose was running fast. Her night vision was excellent, but she did not have the advantage just yet. The cold wind rushed past her and tangled her hair. It burned arctic against her flesh.

  And then it began. The shift was happening before Rose even realized it. Her body was bending, conforming to a new shape. Bones popped and twisted with a disgusting sound, and a pain unlike any other consumed her. It slowed her down.

  But Rose did not stop the shift. Instead, she held onto it. She closed her eyes tightly as even her skull became more wolfen than human. Blood began to drip from her nostrils as the bones elongated and lengthened her face into a muzzle. Beyond just the half shift now, she was becoming completely and totally wolf.

  The hard part was over. Rose bent to all fours, stopping her quest long enough for this. A cry of pain erupted from her as her leg and arm bones popped and re-grew. Her body took on the shape and form of a wolf’s. Her back curved, and a tail sprouted from the base of her spine. A dark pelt of the deepest silver covered her entire body, lighter on her underbelly and legs.

  She was wolf. When the pain had subsided, and she had licked the blood from her nose and muzzle, she was ready. Now she had the advantage.

  Her long canine legs stretched out as she bounded through the trees. The thick underbrush barely met with her paws as her determination increased. Her speed was ten times what it had been in her human form, and all her senses took on a new level of acuteness.

  Jason’s scent was mingled with the scent of earth and decaying leaves, but it was the driving force that pushed her onward. The previously freezing wind was now a gentle caress against her fur. She kept following the trail.

  Her mind was no longer dominated with thoughts. Instead, her way of thinking was punctuated with wordless images and emotions. They pulsed through her, and the familiar twinge she had called panic before presented itself to her wolfen form.

  It was all instinct.

  The trees were become sparser, and new scents mingled in the air. Other animals that lived within this forest and its trees did well to stay hidden. They knew what she was, but she was not here for them tonight. Nevertheless, they shied back into their homes until she had long passed.

  Tonight, she was on a search mission, not a hunt. The scent of water became very strong suddenly, and the wolf stopped where she was and sniffed at the air. The water also followed the direction Jason’s scent had taken.

  Her tongue lolled from the side of her jaws and the animal eyes searched. There was a creek, and the water washed in its own fashion, slow with Mother Earth’s bearing. Her paws stepped lightly, silently, and she bent until her nose nearly touched the wet earth. She sniffed in the scent of Jason. This was the right path.

  But stranger smells combined with his. It was the smell of an unwashed human male. Sweat and natural body odors filled the air. The wolf snorted, and she refrained from growling at the new scent. It definitely was a cause for alarm.

  Edging closer to the water, she lifted her head. The earth was very moist and cool where she stood, at the creek’s edge. Her claws sank into the mud and the water licked at her paws. It moistened the lighter colored fur of her legs. The scents had reached this point.

  They were gone.

  Her heart fell. All the hope she had gained seemed to wash away with the current of the river. But she couldn’t stop here. She had to go on. She would not let the hurting win.

  She crossed the water and relished the cool feel of it against the pads of her paws. Once on the other side, she sniffed the ground and tried desperately to find his scent upon the earth.

  Pacing along the river bank, nose pressed to the cold earth, she soon found it. Her heart leapt once more, then immediately fell when she made a harsh discovery.

  His scent was no longer as strong. Another scent had overpowered it. It wasn’t the unwashed human scent. That scent had grown weaker until it had finally faded away. No, it was something much worse.

  It was blood.

  Werewolf hunter Simon Conner is so close to achieving his goal—or so he thinks. Little does he know that the werewolf he left for dead has awakened to avenge himself and the disappearance of his mate.

  Blood Moon

  Book Two of the Mo
on Series

  © 2007 Rose Marie Wolf

  Werewolf hunter, Simon Conner, thinks he has finally won. After a successful raid upon a safe haven for psychics, vampires and werewolves, he has come closer to his final goal than ever before. Rose Sullivan, a werewolf, is the key to unleashing his terrible plot and she is finally within his grasp.

  Having witnessed Simon’s terrible anger upon her mate in the raid, Rose believes him dead and has lost all hope. At the mercy of her captors, Rose learns the secret of Simon’s plans. Horrified, she realizes her only chance of freedom is to put her trust into human hands.

  Jason Barnett, a half-blood werewolf, awakens to find his mate gone, in the clutches of the very man that left him for dead. Enraged, he vows to find Rose and destroy Simon once and for all. On his journey of revenge, he encounters fellow werewolves, banded together in their fight for survival and together they uncover more about Simon than they ever wanted to know.

  Warning, this title contains the following: graphic language, explicit violence, including murder and sex explained in contemporary language.

  Enjoy the following excerpt for Blood Moon:

  They arrived at the storefront well after sunrise. Jason carried her inside while Davis lent a helping hand to Claire. Glen held the door open for them.

  “I can walk fine, Jason,” Rose told him once he had carried her inside the door. He set her down reluctantly and she turned to face the room. Four unfamiliar faces peered at her.

  “Who are these people?”

  “Friends, fellow weres,” Glen answered as he walked past her. “They’ve helped us, and in some ways, we’ve helped them.”

  The blonde woman stood from the couch, her face wide with a smile. Rose watched her apprehensively.

  “I’m glad you found her, Jason,” she said as she strolled over. She hit Jason on the back in congratulations. She looked to Rose. “Don’t be threatened by me. My name is Cheyenne and I helped Jason procure that sweet set of wheels out there. It’s nice to meet you, finally. I’m glad you’re safe.”