by Morse, Jody
“Colby Jack, wait!” Steve called after him. “You’re not mad at us, are you?”
He glanced over his shoulder at him. “Of course I’m mad at you. That was a really screwed up thing for you to do.”
“Will you forgive us, though?” Chris questioned.
Colby sighed. “Yeah, eventually. I can’t stay mad at you guys forever. It would only hurt the pack. You guys should consider yourself fortunate, though. Other Alphas would be far meaner to you than I ever will be. But I would never sink to your level.”
*
Now, as he closed the diary, Colby chuckled to himself. That was the day his hatred for Emma had first began, even though he’d always still secretly crushed on her. She seemed to make fun of him even more after that day, which he later discovered was because she, too, had a secret crush on him but was too afraid to admit it to herself. They didn’t really stop hating each other until after they were mated.
It would be one hell of a story for their future grandkids.
Chapter 16: Emma
The next day, Davenport seemed slightly more energetic than he had lately. It was a bright, sunny day outside, so Colby and Emma took him to the park.
Emma sat down on one of the swings and began to swing back and forth with Daven in her lap. Colby reached out his arms and pretended to pick him up every time the swing moved forward, which, to his surprise, made Daven giggle.
“So, I saw my stepdad last night,” Emma told him quietly. “And the day before.”
“You did?” Colby asked with raised eyebrows. “Where?”
“Two days ago, I came across him in the woods. Then, yesterday, we met up at my mom’s house,” she explained. “We asked my mom if she wanted to become a werewolf.”
“I see,” he mumbled.
She glanced over at him. “You’re not mad, right? I know that we don’t usually ask people if they want to become wolves and that it’s usually something we save for life or death situations only, but . . . this is my mom.”
“I understand why you’d want her to become a wolf,” Colby agreed. “And given the fact that your stepdad’s a werewolf, too, I can’t imagine anyone telling you that you can’t do it. But . . . did she agree to it already? I thought she considered us to be ‘monsters’.”
“She does—or she did, at least,” Emma admitted. With a sigh, she added, “But she actually didn’t agree to it yet. She’s mad at my stepdad for leaving, and who can blame her? I would be mad at you, too.”
“I would never leave you,” Colby reassured her.
Even if I’m pregnant and you’re not ready for kids? Emma wondered to herself, careful to make sure that he couldn’t hear her thoughts.
“And if your mom does agree to become a wolf, I think it’s great,” Colby went on. “I know how hard it is to lose a parent.”
She swallowed hard, feeling the sadness that swarmed through his body. The level of pain that he felt these days when talking about his father was nothing in comparison to the way he’d felt right after he found out Darren had betrayed him and his mother, and when Darren died. But the pain was still there, hidden beneath the surface.
Emma hoped that, one day, Colby would be able to move past it. She knew that it wouldn’t be for a long time, though. His father would always be a part of him.
An awkward silence settled beneath them for a few minutes. Finally, Colby sat down on the swing next to her and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. He laughed. “Steve and Chris tried to pick up a jelly fish thinking it couldn’t hurt them, and they both got stung pretty bad. “See?” He waved the picture of their red, blistered skin in front of her face.
She laughed. “They would do something that dumb.”
Colby began tapping away on his cell phone in response to them, just as Davenport sneezed loudly.
“Bless you,” Emma told Davenport. Her eyes widened when she saw the smoke that spilled from his lips. She turned to her mate. “Please tell me you saw that just now.”
“Actually, I didn’t,” Colby admitted, not even bothering to glance up at her because he was so glued to his phone. “What happened?”
“He just sneezed. And there was smoke. Again,” she replied, annoyed that he’d somehow missed it again, even though his back hadn’t been turned to them this time.
“Oh, come on, Em. Smoke?” Colby stared back at her in disbelief.
Emma huffed and, clutching the baby against her chest, rose to her feet. She began to walk across the grassy field, off in the direction of their house.
Colby followed after her, and she could feel his confusion run through her own veins. She wasn’t sure what was so confusing, though. She was annoyed that he didn’t believe her.
Would he believe her when it came to their pup’s health?
She was about halfway across the field when she noticed a gray wolf walking towards them. Even though wolves all looked the same, she somehow knew, even from over a hundred feet away, who it was.
Troy.
Emma bit down on her lower lip nervously. She hadn’t come face to face with the guy who’d turned her in years. She wasn’t sure how they managed to live in the same area without bumping into each other at the grocery store or even in the woods while they were in their wolf forms, but somehow, they’d never crossed paths.
And even though Emma was incredibly grateful for the fact that she was a wolf now that everything in her life was as close to perfect as she could imagine, there was still a part of her that would always hold a grudge against Troy. He had no right to change her into a wolf against her will. Even worse was that he’d done it for quite possibly the stupidest reason ever. It was all over Joe McKinley’s stupid legendary talisman, which had caused them so many problems over the years.
Emma was glad that Joe was in charge of the talisman now. It meant that he was the only one anyone else could try to take it away from and, truthfully, any wolf who tried was just a moron with a death wish.
Troy took a few steps forward and glanced around to make sure that no one was watching. When he saw that no one was, he morphed into his human form. The silvery blue cloud of smoke danced around him.
“I see you got a new pack color,” Colby noted, as he stood protectively next to Emma.
“We merged with a few others packs from Delaware and New Jersey. We go by the Ariel now,” Troy replied with a cocky grin.
“Like the Little Mermaid?” Emma asked with an unimpressed smirk, to which Colby chuckled.
Troy scowled at him. “Laugh all you want, but my pack would rip yours to shreds. It happens to be a family name.” He met Emma’s gaze and smirked. “I see that you’re just as opinionated as ever. How have you been since the change?”
“Fine, but no thanks to you,” she snapped at him. She could see Colby tense up beside her; he was probably waiting for her to say something that would spark a fight between them and Troy, but that wasn’t her intention at all. She just didn’t see a reason why she had to be nice to him when he had intentionally and knowingly ruined her human life.
“So, uh, is Rocco still Alpha?” Colby questioned quietly, trying to make polite conversation.
Troy laughed. “No, he’s not, actually. As it turns out, my cousin is a lot weaker than anyone ever knew. When we formed our new pack, fate actually decided that I was the one who was most worthy of becoming Alpha.”
“Oh, god,” Emma muttered under her breath. Colby glanced over at her sharply.
You need to at least try to be nice, he told her through mind-speak. The last thing we need to do is get into a fight with the Ariel while the rest of our pack members are away from home. They must outnumber us by a lot.
I know you’re right, Emma replied with a sigh. But I can’t help it. She turned back to Troy and forced herself to say, “Congratulations on your new position. Even though your cousin lost his title, I’m sure he’s very proud of you.”
Troy shrugged. “I guess. So, who’s the little one?” he asked, motioning to Davenport. “Did the
two of you have a pup already?”
Emma laughed. “No, actually, this is Davenport. He’s Samara and Luke’s baby, but she’s raising him with Declan,” she explained, even though she wasn’t sure why she was rambling. It’s not like it was any of Troy’s business, but even if it was, chances were that Troy already knew.
Since Davenport came from the McKinley line, he was already a legend in the werewolf world.
The look that filled Troy’s eyes seemed to reflect that. “Wow . . . I didn’t realize that he was so big already. Is he growing quicker than babies his age normally grow?”
Emma shrugged. “He was born on the muscular side. It happens.”
“That’s going to be one strong kid one day,” Troy murmured for a moment before glancing back up at her and Colby. “I should probably get going. I need to get to work, or I’m going to be late. It was nice seeing you two.”
“It was nice to see you, too,” Colby said politely.
“Bye,” Emma mumbled. She wasn’t going to tell him it’d been nice to see him when it really hadn’t been.
Once Troy began to walk away from them and they started back in the direction of their house, Colby spoke to her through mind-speak. I wish you would try to be a little nicer to him sometimes, Em. He was always cooperative with us, for the most part.
Emma shot a glare in his direction. If you count turning me into a werewolf and then holding me as a hostage of his pack until Samara agreed to give him the talisman, then sure. He was real cooperative.
I know, Colby sighed, putting his arm around her as they walked back home in silence.
Chapter 17: Colby
Back at the house, Emma was putting Davenport down for yet another nap as Colby made them a late afternoon lunch.
“He’s out like a light,” Emma told him as she walked into the kitchen. “What are you making?”
“Chicken salad and tater tots,” Colby replied as he spooned the chicken salad onto bread.
She wrinkled her nose. “I think I might just have some decaf coffee. I feel exhausted.”
Colby studied her face; she didn’t look tired. That didn’t mean much, of course, but he couldn’t help but wonder if the bad mood she’d been in lately had something to do with why she was so tired. Maybe all he needed to do was cheer her up.
He knew just the thing that would pull her out of her bad mood—at least for a little while. “I have something I want to show you after lunch,” he told her.
“What is it?” Her eyes lit up a bit as she looked at him curiously. It seemed like his idea was working already.
“I can’t tell you. It’ll ruin it.” He picked up both their plates and carried them over to the table.
She gave him a pouty look.
He rolled his eyes. “Fine, I’ll give you one clue. It’s outside somewhere. And it’s sort of dark.”
“Oh,” she said disappointedly. “Maybe you can show me when Sam and Declan get back, then? I don’t want to leave Daven in the house by himself. And I don’t want to wake him up from his nap, either.”
Bennett the ghost said as he appeared in front of them. “Now’s the perfect time to test out my babysitting skills.” He beamed at them.
“Well . . .” Emma said, sharing a glance with Colby.
“He’s right, Em. We won’t be gone long. And we’ll be close-by if something happens.”
She nodded. “Okay,” she agreed with a nod. “Don’t make us regret it, though.”
“You can count on me,” Bennett said before disappearing again.
“You don’t have to eat, but will you sit with me?” Colby asked her.
“Actually, I am kind of hungry now,” Emma admitted.
Colby smiled. He was pretty sure now that he really was right; Emma just need something to cheer her up.
And the best part was, he was really excited that he could share this secret with her, too. It’s something that he’d known for a while now—ever since he’d accidentally found out about it.
Then, he was sworn to secrecy, which only made things worse. He struggled a lot with the idea of having to keep a secret from his Alpha. That’s not something that members of a pack are supposed to do.
There was a catch, though. He hadn’t promised to keep it a secret from Emma, and that was exactly why he was going to tell her about it. . . .
*
“Colby, do you remember when we had that talk about pre-approved places to do it? This is definitely not one of them,” Emma declared, wrinkling her nose as she glanced around the spider webs that were strung in every nook and cranny of the barn. She glanced above her, convinced that a spider was dangling over her head. “But thank you for at least making me change my shoes first, at least. I would’ve been so angry if I got chicken poo all over my new Coach heels.”
“Trust me, I’m not trying to mate with you in the barn,” Colby chuckled as he led her through it. “I just wanted to show you this.”
“You wanted to show me the chickens?” she questioned, deciding not to point out that she’d seen them so many times. They found the barn after they moved in, and eventually Colby decided that having fresh eggs would be fun. So, he’d bought some baby chicks, which were cute for a while. Until they grew into flesh-picking monsters. Emma learned that, on top of her fears of spiders, snakes, and heights, chickens were also terrifying.
He still brought her down to see them every day since, and they just weren’t all that interesting to her. She did learn her lesson, though: no more wearing flip flops around chickens.
“Oh, come on, Em. Blinky isn’t that bad. Your toe just got in the way when he was eating his breakfast. It’s not his fault he thought your toes looked appetizing,” he said with a grin. “And nope, it’s what’s under the chickens that’s so interesting,” Colby said with a toothy grin as he rocked back and forth on the heels of his sneakers in anticipation.
“Oh.” Her eyebrows lifted in confusion. “So, you brought me all the way out here just to show me their eggs? That really is, um . . . interesting.”
My mate can be really lame sometimes, Colby heard her think.
“Hey, I heard that,” he told her, his face falling at her lack of enthusiasm. “And you’re wrong, anyway. It’s not their eggs. The interesting thing is under the eggs, too,” he explained. “The thing is, this is top secret, so you can’t tell anyone what I’m about to show you. Pinkie swear.” He held out his pinkie.
Hesitantly, Emma wrapped her pinkie around his. “I promise.”
“Prepare to be amazed,” he told her, wagging his eyebrows up and down excitedly. He picked up the bundle of hay that had been put there on purpose. “See?” Colby asked, waving her over to where he was crouching down. He glanced up at her and grinned. “There’s a door here.”
Emma’s forehead scrunched up a little as she stared down at the half-moon shaped handle on the floor. “I never would have noticed this on my own,” she commented.
It had only been a coincidence that Colby had found it himself. He’d been sweeping out the barn when he dropped his cell phone. “I only found it by accident,” he explained as he pulled the door open.
She peeked down the newly uncovered stairs. The first steps were visible in the sunlight that streamed into the barn, but the rest of the stairs were in total darkness. “You’ve been down there before?” she asked, eyeing him curiosity.
Colby could feel the adrenaline coursing through his body. He knew that it was a side effect of Emma’s growing curiosity about what the passageway lead to. Even though there were a lot of people who got really freaked out by old abandoned buildings, they actually gave Emma a little bit of a thrill—which was one of the things that the two of them had in common.
“I shouldn’t tell you about it up here,” Colby whispered. He glanced around the room nervously, wondering if someone might be watching them. He didn’t want to get in trouble for letting her in on these secrets, but he had to tell someone.
He glanced over his shoulder at her. “But I can s
how you,” he said, stepping down the stairs, the flashlight guiding his way. He turned around and held his hand out to her. “Come on, grab my hand. We both know how clumsy you can be.”
“I’m not that clumsy,” Emma insisted, but she took his hand, anyway.
“Be careful. The stairs are a little steep,” Colby told her as he began to climb down the stairs. First, there were about ten steps down, and then there was a small landing that took them to more steps that led them in the opposite direction.
When they reached the bottom of those steps, Colby handed his flashlight off to her. She used it to look around. Paintings lined the walls of the hallway, and Emma took a moment to admire one.
Colby took the second painting off the wall, feeling around for something.
“What are you looking for?” Emma asked him with wide eyes.
“The light switch,” he told her, just as the hallway was flooded with light, which gave them a good view of the paintings on the wall. “All of these paintings were done by werewolves,” he explained, motioning to a painting of two wolves nuzzling against each other. “This one is from one of my favorite history books. It’s worth a fortune.”
“Whoever made this place went to an awful lot of trouble to keep it hidden,” Emma observed. “It was weird enough to find this old barn behind the fence and all of the pine trees, but for someone to have this secret passageway? It’s a little eerie.”
“Actually,” Colby replied excitedly, “It’s really brilliant. And we’re two of only a few werewolves who actually know about this place, except for Bennett, Nadia, and Dante. They know everything.” He rolled his eyes.
“So, what else is down here?” Emma questioned, examining the hallway for a door. Her eyes drifted down the hall to the book case. Colby heard her think about how it just seemed to stick out for some reason, as she turned to him. “That’s the door, isn’t it?” she asked, walking over to the book case, examining the shelves to see if any of the books were out of place.