by C Zinnia
“Let’s go,” Bruce said. He looked at Mel. “I’ll speak with you tomorrow.” Bruce didn’t like the fact that Mel was here in the village.
I don’t trust her, Bruce’s thought slipped into Mel’s mind.
Hearing Bruce’s voice in her head made Mel snapped. She was so worn out that she no longer had a filter, so she allowed her power of clairvoyance to show. Mel was tired of the way he was acting towards her. She felt she didn’t deserve his blatant distrust. She said flatly; “Yeah, well I don’t trust you either and I don’t like the fact that I’m here either.”
Chapter 20
Everyone stilled. They couldn’t believe Mel spoke like that to their Alpha.
“Mel,” Dana said. Dana was embarrassed by how Mel was acting. “Manners.”
“Sorry, but I’m tired and frustrated. I still can barely hear. My body hurts. I’m covered in cuts and bruises, which you two were able to heal from in a matter of minutes. So not fair. My guitar my grandmother gave me has been blown up by a hunter trying to kill werewolves. My reality has been completely warped. I wasn’t able to get away because my car got smashed and I’m somehow supposed to explain that to my insurance company.
“On top of that, I have been brought to a place where I’m immediately treated like a disease that needs to be contained. And it’s not fun knowing that I get to stay at a place I’m not wanted. I get to stress out for the rest of the day while Bruce decides if I’m going to die tomorrow or not,” Mel said. “So, forgive me for being a little less than well-mannered. I think I’m handling everything pretty well all things considered.”
Everyone was shocked except for Nana, Papa, and Silvia. They were grinning.
“Looks like you brought over a girl with some spunk,” Silvia said to Dana and Lee.
“I’ll say,” Nana agreed.
“We wouldn’t kill you,” Bruce said to Mel. “Why would you think that?”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Mel countered. “I saw a woman turn into a wolf before being killed by a guy who hunts werewolves. And this guy probably wants me dead as well. I’m pretty sure you all don’t want humans to know you exist. Besides, you have made it obvious that you don’t like me. You’ve been hostile towards me from the moment you saw me. You don’t trust me. How could you let me live?”
Bruce was stunned. He felt guilty when he realized he was the main cause of her discomfort. “You’re not going to be killed, okay? I promise. And I’m sorry for my . . . hostility. I know you didn’t ask to be put in this situation. I don’t trust you. For all I know, you’re a hunter too working with Bill. Hunters normally work in pairs. I have to be leery because my entire pack relies on my decisions. If I were to trust you from the get and you turned out to be a hunter, my pack is in danger due to my carelessness. But I hope by tomorrow you will be able to show me that I can trust you. It’s not your fault you saw what you saw. You were at the wrong place at the wrong time,” Bruce said.
Mel stared at him for a long time. She could feel the sincerity of his words. “Okay. I can respect where you’re coming from. I didn’t think of me being a hunter aspect, so I apologize for my abruptness,” she said.
“How could you think of the hunter part if you aren’t one?” Silvia quipped.
“Is anyone else curious as to how Mel knew exactly what Bruce was thinking?” Papa asked innocently.
“It wasn’t exactly hidden, dear,” Nana said. Bruce cringed at Nana’s statement.
“Hmm . . . I don’t think that’s the entire answer. The hunter didn’t mind killing in front of Mel. That means there’s something about her that makes her different in his eyes from other humans,” Papa said.
“Well, I broke his nose with my knee last night,” Mel said. “I’m pretty sure that puts me on a different list from other humans.”
“Wait, you broke his nose?” Lee said. “Daren only mentioned Bill being verbally inappropriate.”
Dana was stunned. “When did that happen? Why didn’t you tell us?” she said.
“I asked Daren not to mention the physical part. I didn’t want to worry you all with it,” Mel said quickly. “Bill was trying to be forceful and I wanted to show him that I wasn’t the type to intimidate.”
“That would make sense then, right love?” Nana said to Papa.
“That would,” Papa agreed. He glanced at Mel. “But I still think there’s more to it.”
“We better get going,” Bruce said to Lee and Samuel. “It’s going to be a long day and I have to call and warn the other adjacent packs there’s a hunter on the loose. They won’t be pleased he hasn’t been caught.”
Lee hugged Dana close and kissed her.
Bruce, Lee, and Samuel left.
“I wish I had been there to see you in action,” Dana said to Mel.
“I also elbowed him hard in the gut,” Mel said.
“You did?” Dana said. She laughed. Mel was ecstatic to see Dana smile. Mel hadn’t realized how much she had missed Dana’s smile. “That’s great. I want to give him one or two hits when they catch him.” Dana’s face darkened. She buried her face in her hands. “I just wish Daren’s baby pictures hadn’t been destroyed.”
“I know, honey. We do have pictures of all of you through the years that you are welcome to have,” Silvia said. She wrapped an arm around Dana to soothe her. “I’m sorry your paintings were destroyed.”
“I can paint them again,” Dana said. “I can’t replace Daren’s baby things. Nor Lee and my wedding pictures. Nor Mom’s last quilt she made before she passed away.” She cried harder.
Mel stood and moved so she sat beside Dana. Mel felt like an ass. She was too busy wallowing in self-pity to notice Dana and Lee were suffering too. She hadn’t taken a moment to feel a bit of sympathy for Dana and Lee. Mel patted Dana’s knee. “I’m sorry, Dana,” she said. “I wish I had known Bill was going to bomb the house. I would have told you.”
Dana laughed as she took Mel’s hand. “I wish I had known too, dear,” she said. “But, we’re not psychics. Otherwise, I’d have won the lottery decades ago.”
“Or dodged dating a guy like Rascal,” Silvia teased.
“Ugh! Rascal! Even the name shows what kind of a moron he was!” Dana said. “All because he was Dad’s friend’s son. As though being the son of a beta somehow made him a good person!”
“Rascal,” Mel repeated.
“You should have seen Lee when Dana was dating Rascal. It lasted for only two dates, but Lee was about to go out of his mind,” Silvia said. “I’m pretty sure Lee wanted to throttle Rascal during the Dana and Rascal saga. Bruce had to talk Lee out of it every time Lee got the urge.”
“Then I got over my stupidity,” Dana said. “And Lee was there waiting for me.” She wiped away the last of her tears and smiled. “Thank God I still have Lee and Daren. I’d keep my men over a stack of things any day.”
“I agree. You can’t replace people. I’m sure both of you would like a nice shower and some clean clothes,” Silvia said to Mel and Dana.
Dana laughed. “I’ll say. I’m sure everyone is tired of suffering through the stench. A shower sounds wonderful,” she said. “God knows I look like a mess.”
“Me too,” Mel said.
Silvia led them upstairs. She gave Dana and Mel some clothes and pointed Dana to a bathroom.
“I’ll show you to another bathroom so you can take a shower,” Silvia said to Mel. Mel disappointedly looked at the jeans she was given.
“I don’t mean to be picky, but do you have a pair of sweatpants I could wear?” Mel asked before she could stop herself.
Silvia wasn’t bothered by the question. “I don’t have a pair that would fit you, they’re all maternity size, but I know someone who does.” She led Mel to another part of the house. Silvia opened a door that led to a clean and organized bedroom filled with martial arts posters and weapons. Silvia rummaged through drawers while Mel stood by the bed.
“Here’s a pair! Come on and I’ll show you where the bathroom is,”
Silvia said. When Silvia realized Mel wasn’t following her, she asked; “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t want to leave this room,” Mel said.
“Oh, honey, no one here is going to hurt you. And you’re going to have your own bedroom, okay?” Silvia said as she walked over to Mel and patted her arm.
“It’s not that,” Mel said.
“What is it?” Silvia asked.
Mel starred at the comforter. She felt foolish but she couldn’t deny her feelings. Instead of telling Silvia everything she was feeling, she gave her a watered-down version. “I want to stay in this room because I like how I feel in here. I feel safe in here. Like nothing can hurt me.”
Silvia was surprised. “You feel safe in here,” she repeated. “Hm . . . among other more potent emotions?”
Mel blushed at the question. How does Silvia know? she thought.
“Do me a favor? Smell the pillows,” Silvia said.
“What?” Mel asked. She glanced at the pillows. “Why? I’ll get the pillows dirty. I’m covered in debris.”
“Humor me, please,” Silvia said. “Pillowcases can be washed.” Her energy was whirling as her thoughts raced. Mel couldn’t figure out what Silvia was thinking.
Mel placated her by grabbing a pillow and smelling it. It smelled wonderful and it was all hers . She buried her face in the pillow and sighed. She wrapped her arms around the pillow. She realized she was smelling a person. She had to meet whoever this was. This was the person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. She felt like nothing bad could touch her. She felt safe. She closed her eyes and wanted to pretend the traumatic experience from earlier today never happened.
“This just keeps getting more interesting,” Silvia observed.
Silvia’s voice broke Mel’s trance. Mel pulled her face away from the pillow to find Silvia confused. “What? What happened?” Mel said.
“I have a question,” Silvia said. “Where were you late last night?”
Mel’s eyes widened and her heart sped up. She immediately looked away. “At the B&B,” she said.
“Where else?” Mel didn’t hear her, so Silvia lightly touched her arm to get her attention. When Mel looked back at her, Silvia pressed; “Where else? You won’t be in trouble, I promise. I just need to know where you were.”
Mel looked down at the floor. “I was at the fight,” she said.
“That’s what I thought,” Silvia said. She lightly cupped Mel’s chin and tilted it up so Mel could see her. “You can stay here tonight, okay? Now, let’s get you washed up. You smell like smoke.”
Mel reflexively sniffed her shirt. It reeked of smoke. “A shower sounds like a great idea,” she said.
Silvia led her down the hall to a bathroom. She gave Mel clean clothes and a towel. “When you’re done, join us in the kitchen so we can take care of your burns, cuts, and bruises. We need to make sure you don’t get any infections. Okay?” she said.
“Okay. Silvia?” Mel said.
“Hmm?”
“Whose bedroom does that belong to?” Mel asked.
Silvia smiled. “I have a feeling you know who,” she said. “Did any fighter in particular capture your interest?”
Mel blushed. “It’s Viola’s room, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” Silvia said.
“So, what does that mean?” Mel asked. “Why does Viola’s scent have such a huge effect on me? I know I liked her energy a lot when I saw her, but smell? That’s weird.”
Silvia decided not to ask for clarification on the energy remark. Mel looked like she was only minutes away from collapsing. Silvia agreed with Papa’s opinion on Mel. There was more to Mel than they assumed. Silvia patted Mel’s left shoulder. “I think you’ve had enough life-changing events for the day, don’t you?”
Mel thought about it. “I guess,” she muttered.
Silvia left Mel alone to shower.
Mel looked in the mirror and grimaced. She looked terrible. Beneath the grime on her face, she could tell her skin was slightly red and swollen. Her forearms had cuts on them. She turned around and saw the scrapes on the back of her arms. There were tears in her clothes from skidding in the gravel. There was a large rip in her pants on the back of her thigh. The skin exposed was bleeding and had pieces of debris in it. She guessed the thigh wound occurred when pieces of the house were striking her. Bruises were already forming along her body as well.
“At least I’m alive,” Mel said out loud. “I could have ended up like my car.” At the moment, she wasn’t so sure she would have been upset if she was crushed instead of her car.
Mel triple checked that the door was locked before slowly stepping into the shower. She wanted to enjoy the hot water, but it burned her skin as much as it soothed. She hissed when the water hit her face.
She didn’t want to be alone or at least not alone outside of Viola’s room. It wasn’t rational, but she was terrified that at any moment Bill would appear with a gun or another bomb.
The scene of Trixie turning into a wolf and being murdered replayed constantly in her mind.
Mel tried to clear the image out of her head by shaking it. She quickly learned shaking her head was a bad idea. Vertigo struck her and she had to sit down in the tub until the sensation passed. The images continued to play in her head and feed her paranoia. Mel tried to mentally clean her energy of the experience, but the memories made it impossible. She didn’t like this newfound instability. She didn’t know if she was coming or going.
Mel’s heart ached. She could only imagine how Dana and Lee were feeling. And what about Daren when he finds out? Mel thought. She felt bad that she was so high-strung right now that she forgot to be considerate of others. Instead, she had gone into self-preservation mode. She finally stood to finish her shower.
Mel scrubbed and rinsed multiple times to try to take off the funk.
How is being a werewolf beneficial? Mel wondered. From her understanding of evolution and the body, the body changes in order to survive and to conserve energy. After watching Trixie’s transformation, Mel highly doubted the process somehow helped them conserve energy. Mel knew random mutations occurred in DNA that were by chance, but she had no clue how many mutations would have had to happen before the person would become a werewolf. She also didn’t know how the first person, when that number of mutations did occur, would have suddenly known they can transform into a wolf.
Government experiment makes the most sense, but they would be locked away in compounds, not out here running a B&B. If it’s for survival, who are they trying to fight off? A chilling thought hit Mel. Vampires. All of the books and movies seemed to link werewolves and vampires together. Oh God, what have I gotten into? she thought. She felt a wave of dizziness as panic built up in her again. She was going to hyperventilate.
“I see a bathtub, a shower curtain, a curtain rod, running water, and tiles. I hear water hitting my skin, my voice, and water going down the drain. I smell the steam from the water and roses from the soap.” She took a deep breath and felt somewhat calmer than she had since this all began.
She slowly got out of the shower. She looked in the mirror. Her face was still red, but at least it was clean. The high-pitched ringing had stopped in her left ear, but was still going on strong in her right. She snapped her finger beside her right ear, but could barely hear it. “Maybe a burst eardrum?” she thought aloud. She took into account her various injuries as she got dressed. The wound on the back of her thigh was the only one that looked like it required attention.
Although the sweatpants were loose on her and the shirt was tight around her abdomen, Mel was pleased to be wearing Viola’s clothes.
Mel grabbed her unsalvageable clothes and the towel. She went in the hallway. She bit her lip as she contemplated her next move. She wanted to sleep, but she was anxious because she needed to know more about her connection with Viola. She also needed to get her injuries taken care of by Silvia. She needed to apologize to Dana again.
Mel went to the kitche
n. She paused outside of the door when she heard Dana and Silvia talking. She turned her head so her left ear was pressed against the door. She was grateful she could hear them.
“Are you sure?” Dana asked.
“Pretty sure,” Silvia said. “It explains why Viola smelled her mate but couldn’t find her. Mel must have left right after Viola’s fight.”
“But how did Mel get there to begin with?” Dana asked. “She wouldn’t be in the woods by herself. She’s barely able to go in the woods during the daylight because she was worried about bears.” Dana had a feeling that it was her son, but she didn’t want to mention it.
“Why don’t we ask her?” Silvia said. “Come in, Mel.”
Chapter 21
Mel sheepishly entered the kitchen to find only Silvia and Dana present. They were sitting at the table. Silvia was drinking tea while Dana had a glass of wine. “I guess you heard me, huh?” she asked.
“We have pretty good hearing,” Silvia said. “Now, sit down and let us take care of your injuries while we talk.”
“The worst is a cut on the back of my leg,” Mel said.
“Let’s take care of that one first,” Silvia said. “Pull down your pants.”
Mel was stunned by Silvia’s blunt approach. She didn’t feel comfortable exposing herself in the middle of the kitchen.
“Don’t worry, Mel,” Silvia reassured her. “We’ll be able to cover you up before anyone comes in. And you have underwear on. Now is not the time to be modest.”
Mel hesitantly complied. She felt awkward having Dana and Silvia peer at the gash on the back of her thigh while she was exposed.
“At least it doesn’t need stitches. Otherwise, we’d have to take you to the infirmary. So, who took you to the fight?” Silvia asked innocently as she and Dana cleaned and bandaged Mel’s thigh.
Mel was quiet. She didn’t want to rat on Daren. She didn’t know what they would do to him. Her silence confirmed Dana’s suspicion.
“I already know who took her there,” Dana said. “My question is why?”