She now shook her head, but for all of a different reason behind it. “He won’t harm me, Jimmy. I know that. You know that too.”
He shook his head again. “I don’t know that. You don’t either.” He looked to the opposite side of the bed in front of him, and stared to the floor beside it.
Now she scoffed. “I do know that.” She left the front door and made her way towards him, but stopped at the foot of the first bed and there she stayed. “He had every chance to kill me twice. He rescued me from the labs. He saved me from Samuel. If he wanted to hurt me, he’s not doing a very good job at it.” She chuckled some, trying to prove her point. As far as she felt concerned about it, it was a damned good one at that.
He listened, taking in everything she said, deep inside his heart. She made sense, but at the same time, he began to hate her some for trying to do it. After all, he did see the wolf for himself. It looked so gentle. It acted so pure. He didn’t harm Kenny, and somehow, he knew it wouldn’t harm her either. Knowing that wasn’t his problem. “And what about the others? What about them?”
Hearing that, she cringed some. She knew what he was saying. “I can handle myself Jimmy.”
He shook his head. “They’re everywhere Rachel. With them, there will be dangerous times. I don’t know if I can protect you from all of them.”
She took one-step closer to him, but that was all she could manage to take. “I know what they are Jimmy. You have to trust me. I trust you.”
“I don’t know Rachel.” He stared at her with moistness in his eyes. He took a deep breath. “I don’t know if I can trust anything. I’m not sure if I ever will.”
She shook her head with what he said. She now knew she would never be able to convince him of what she tried to tell him. If he wouldn’t, then, in the end, it gave her no other choice. She also knew there was more behind his eyes than what he was telling her. There was more to what he wasn’t saying, and that was, he liked the wolf. He liked what he was. If he was going to keep Kalima within him, than he had to make the choice. He had to choose between them, and if she heard him right, and she felt sure she did, he chose the wolf. Now feeling that from him, and understanding what he said, made her heart skip several beats. She wanted him to choose her, and the fact that he wasn’t, gave her pause. It made her worried even more. “Then, you’re going to have to choose, Jimmy. You’re going to have to decide which one you want to be with. Me? Or the wolf?”
Hearing that, he blinked. He also nodded. That’s my dilemma. That’s why I’ve been questioning everything from the very beginning. I don’t know. I just don’t know who, or what, to choose. “That’s my problem.” He spoke what rolled around inside his mind. “I’m starting to like this. I’m starting to like him.” He swallowed.
Rachel nodded. She already understood that to be the case. She didn’t like it, but she did respect it. “I know.”
Jimmy looked to her beautiful face. “But,” he swallowed, hollowly, “I also love you. I know that now.”
It was her turn to swallow. “I can’t live without you. I can’t bring myself to do that.” She walked to his side, and retook his hand into hers. “You are special to me too Jimmy.” She bowed her eyes. “I know I love you too.”
That brought him to turn and face her. “You do?” He almost couldn’t believe what she said. It all sounded too far-fetched to him somehow. How could this beautiful woman love him? How could she, with him being what he was, love him?
“Yes. I’m sure of it.”
He could feel her heart melt some within her. It made his melt as well. He reached out with his free left hand and took both of her hands into his. He turned her so that she now faced him. “That’s why I can’t let you do this.” He swallowed.
That brought her eyes up to his. “It’s not my choice. I can’t choose whom to love. I’m helpless without you. I need you in my life.”
A single tear flowed out from his right eye and streaked down the side of his face. He now knew what he had to do. She’s right. I have to choose whom to be with. He had to make the decision, one way or the other. In the end, the choice seemed simple. It came down to only two options. Was he going to be what he was, or was he going to be with her? With everything said by both of them, he now knew that choice. He loved her far too much to want to let her go. With her at his side, he now felt locked in place. He felt locked to her side. He needed her there. He needed to be with her. “You have to give me the drug then.”
“You know what that means?” she needed to ask. She knew that the block of the wolf was only temporary, but she also knew that it would hinder what was inside him. With feeling the freedom that could result from it, it could make everything else fade away. He might learn to live without needing the wolf. She had to make sure he understood that, one way or the other, before he took it.
He looked to her beautiful eyes. He did understand what she tried to tell him. Without the fear of the wolf being there, he might come to being himself again. It made sense. It made him at least have to try it. He couldn’t resist her. She was his life. He needed to know for sure. “Yes.” He bowed his eyes. “I do know what that means.”
She looked at him with wide eyes. With it, she had something else pop up into her thoughts. “How will he handle this?” she felt she needed to ask, so she did.
Again, he knew what, or more importantly, whom she was referring. “I think he’ll understand.” He smiled and brought his eyes back up to hers. Kalima was a part of him, and being that way, he knew how he felt. He would have to understand what he now tried to do. Kalima loved a woman once. Collins did as well. Knowing that, he knew they would both understand it—understand him.
“Are you sure that he will?” again, she felt like she needed to ask him.
He nodded. “I’m not killing him. He doesn’t fear it.” He nodded after saying it.
She nodded again. She hoped he was right. She would have to trust him. She let go of his hands and made her way back to the other side of the first bed. She walked over to the dresser and stopped in front of it. She went for her bag on top of the dresser. “Then let’s start it then.” She turned from the bag, and faced him again.
He watched her turn from the dresser. He nodded. He had nothing else left to say, so he just waited for her to change his life, one way or the other.
27
“Who’s there?” Kenny asked, not being able to see anything outside his front door. The smell of mustiness reeked heavily in the air. The fact that he couldn’t see the wolf made him feel confused. Why won’t he let me see him? Why is he hiding from me? His senses felt alive. He felt full of life within them. He knew one had to be there, hiding, not allowing him to see where it was.
The cool breeze filtered around his face. The night air felt calming. It felt right. It carried the smell all around him, and with the breeze, it didn’t help him with being able to find out where it came from.
“I know you’re there.” He looked to his right and then to his left. Still, he couldn’t see anything there. I should see the tan hue around it. Why don’t I? Why can’t I see him? It must be close by. I can smell it. He should be able to see the hint of tan and brown around the beast. The fact that it wasn’t showing itself to him, started to worry his very tired mind. It didn’t feel natural. It didn’t feel right. “You can come out. I won’t hurt you. I don’t fear you.” He stepped down one-step, bringing himself down halfway to the ground. The smell of mustiness coursed through his face.
Still nothing moved. Everything remained black around him. Not a sound came to him either.
With it all, it didn’t seem right. Something felt very wrong with this. He could feel it, and the feeling grew every minute. This isn’t right. He tried to think of a reason behind the wolf not showing itself. There had to be a reason why it would do such a thing. Unless…It’s hunting me? The thought made his heart race hard inside his chest. The thought of it doing that, caused his mind to flash even harder inside him. His fear flared through both.
Why would it do such a thing? Why bother? Why try to do it?
“You can come out to me. I’m stronger than you are. You fear me; I can feel that you do. You can’t hurt me.” He stepped back up to the top step and brought himself back into the doorway behind him. He tried to feel safe, knowing that he was so close to the safety of his house.
However, it didn’t help with the fear that gripped him tighter. He still couldn’t see it. He still couldn’t hear it, but the smell of mustiness only grew stronger. Feeling it, he turned his voice lower. “I can make you show yourself,” he called out into the blackened night. “I can make you come out.” He looked back to his right. He turned back to his left. He turned back, and looked straight ahead. “Don’t make me hurt you.”
Nothing. It’s going to make me do it. It’s going to make me make it show itself.
He closed his eyes, and focused his thoughts. He groped with his mind out into the darkness. He had to feel for the beast. He had to find it. He had to read its thoughts.
Like the night around him. Like the darkness that he could only see, his mind came back blank. It came back dark. It came back with nothing.
Strange, that I can’t read it. How wrong it is not to be able to hear its mind?
He reached back for the knob of the door. He took it into his right hand. If he couldn’t read the creature, and if he couldn’t see it, there was only one way to get it to show itself. He didn’t want to do it, but he knew what he had to do. He had to strike it. He had to do it, at least, just to get its attention. The feeling felt strong in his chest. If the beast was hunting him, he had no other choice.
He looked up, and looked into the blackened sky. He let his thoughts go to it. He let his mind fly high, as high as the sky. He felt for what he needed. He felt for the moistness of air. He felt for the heat there, high with it.
“Lightning! Strike the smell!” he shouted up to the sky.
Although he couldn’t see it, a streak of brightness flashed through the star filled sky. Lightning flashed to the ground at the front of his home. It lit up the night. It flared the ground with a blast of heat. It burned the grass with a scorching flame.
He felt the heat. He felt the burning. He felt the fire. He heard the lightning crack the air. The sound burst through his ears. The bang echoed through the trees. The sound of a wolf yelping followed the crash.
Kenny turned towards the sound. He turned towards his right. He looked for the creature’s glow. He looked for the lightning’s strike.
Nothing was there. Just the smell of burning earth came back to him. That felt odd in itself. The lightning should have sparked the creature’s coat. It should have powered his aura. It should have lit its soul.
“Don’t make me strike you again!” he shouted to the side of his mobile home. He shouted for the creature to give up the hunt. Something, even without seeing it, he knew that it still didn’t intend to do.
Knowing that, he turned his eyes back to the sky.
“Strike it again! Lightning, hit the wolf!”
The star filled sky burst with brightness. A streak of white light flared out behind him, and struck the top of his home.
This time the blast forced him forwards, and he fell off the steps.
He fell to the ground beneath them as the heat from the blast of lightning, flared all around his body. It felt close. It felt strong. It charged his skin, causing the hairs on his arms to feel like they were almost singed. Thinking where the lightning struck gave him an idea of where it was. The wolf had to be on the roof. It had to be just behind him, over his head.
This time, not only did he hear the wolf yelp out again, but he also heard a loud thumping sound come from just up ahead of him and now behind him. He couldn’t tell for sure, but he could hear it. In fact, he still felt semi sure that he still faced the door. He knew he had to be, by how he landed to the ground on his belly. Knowing that the thumping came away from the house, he knew the lightning must have also blown the beast off from his roof and spilled it several yards from his front door, in front of him. It made sense with the sound. The thumping had to be it landing hard to the ground behind him.
He brought himself up to his hands and knees. He looked towards the thumping sound, and there, he did see something. He just couldn’t believe what he saw.
A yard or so away from him, he could see a heavy blackness on the ground. It looked like it glowed some, but it still looked as black as night. He could only see the outline of the beast, nothing more but a heavy and deep shadow surrounding the outline of a wolf. It didn’t have a hue to it. It didn’t have a color. It looked just simply black.
“Who are you?” He picked himself up to his knees and tried desperately to pick himself back up to his feet. Thankfully, he did manage to do it. It took everything he had to stand.
He could see the wolf also stand. He could feel its heart racing.
He could smell its burnt scorched hair.
The wolf looked right at him. Its glowing shadow already began to fade. The sound of its breathing sounded hoarse, and snarling. When it stood, a growl followed the snarl.
“Who are you?” he shouted again, reaching with his right hand for the railing to his stairs. He took a step back, and then another, but felt nothing there. He must have flown a good distance from them during the lightning strike, and it made him feel worried. If he couldn’t find them, he didn’t know where he was. It made him feel helpless. It took away all hope he had of the safety of his home. “Who are you?”
The wolf roared.
He could feel it’s hot breath hit his face. It warmed it with a moist heat. “No!” He continued to reach backwards, but still felt nothing there.
Whoever this wolf was, he knew he never saw it before. He could still not read its thoughts. Now, he couldn’t see it yet again as the lightning blast faded so fast from around it.
He looked to the sky.
The wolf jumped him fast, flying through the air and tackled him to the ground.
He felt the wind in his lungs escape him all too fast. He saw nothing. He heard it fly through the stale night air. He felt the full weight of the wolf on his body as it pinned him down to his back. He could feel its heat press his lungs. He knew it would bite him next.
With all of his strength, he brought his free hands up to where he suspected its snout to be, and with them, he grabbed at it and squeezed.
He found its neck, and forced its snout up from his face.
“Wind!” he managed to shout. It took everything he had to get out the words, but he did manage to do it. How he did it, he could only thank God that he did.
The wind blew out from the trees. It came out powerfully towards the home. The trees cracked from its power. Some even broke from its strength, cracking within it.
The wind came at the wolf’s back. A gust that felt so strong it couldn’t fight it. Without wanting to, it felt itself flung off the man, with the wind hitting its left side. With it, it flew off to the right, coming down several yards from the light of the front door. With it all, it yelped with the disgust of the blowing and power of the mighty wind that spilled him to the ground.
With the weight gone off his chest, Kenny finally felt able to breathe. He lifted his back from the ground and rolled over to his right.
He picked himself back up to his hands and knees. As his hands came closer to his head, he felt something that felt like wood, just near the top of his head. Feeling that it was also flat and long at that, he knew what it was. It had to be a step to his stairs, and that meant they were right in front of him. Groping the wood, he pulled himself up and found the railing. He used it to get himself back up to his feet.
The wolf howled. It roared a deep and rasping bellow into the wind. The gust was gone. The wind had calmed. It picked itself up to its hind paws.
Kenny climbed the steps to his home. He used the railing to guide him to his front door. He ran into the home quickly. He was behind the door just as fast, as he slammed it shut. Outside, a h
owl echoed around the house. Hearing it, he locked the door.
Now what? He looked around. Who is it? None of this made any sense. He should have known who it was. He should have seen it, but he didn’t. That felt odd in itself. All wolves, all walkers, carry a colored hue. I should have seen it. It shouldn’t be black, unless…He turned and looked back to the door. He gasped with the thought. It’s evil. My God, it’s cold. It can’t be. What kind of evil is this creature? What can make one so angry? What could make something carry a blacked force? What in the hell could take away your soul! It didn’t make sense, and because of that, he knew he didn’t have a chance to live through this. He couldn’t fight something without a soul. He couldn’t kill something that didn’t fear death. He now felt more than just helpless. He now felt totally alone.
A roar came towards the front door.
Hearing it, he knew that he still had to fight it, but didn’t know how to do it. He wasn’t a match for its strength. He wasn’t a match in such a fight. He had to get an advantage. He had to find something to use against it, but he knew that he had nothing to do such a thing.
A strong bang came to his front door, and with it, a shattering sound followed it. Instantly, the nighttime breeze flowed throughout the room. It came at his face. The smell of mustiness came in strongly behind it.
It broke down the door. It’s inside my house.
The wolf came at him fast.
It jumped him and flew his body back to what felt like the sofa behind him. He could hear it crash. He could feel wood splinter under his shirt. The feeling of the beast’s heat coursed through his clothes as its weight came on top of him with everything it had. It felt so powerful. It felt so complete. After the sounds, a piercing sharpness of pain came to his right shoulder as a hot fluid swamped over his shirt. The feeling of its teeth came down through his flesh and he could feel it come down to his collarbone. The heat of its mouth burned his skin.
A Werewolf's Saga Books 1, 2, & 3 (A Werewolf's Saga Boxed Sets) Page 70