by Joe Fowler
“I could see it there toward the end. You finally took a good look at Josh and liked what you saw. You were protecting yourself up until then. I could understand why you kept your distance all those years. I can’t do anything to make your afterlife better but I am glad you aren’t suffering.”
“Thank you, Gabriel. Not just for the sentiment. Thank you for making Josh into the man he is and for keeping him safe from Adramelech.” Mom said.
“It was my job, but also my pleasure.” Gabriel smiled at Mom. She seemed happier to have said all of that.
“So what are you two ghosts talking about? You looked knee deep in a discussion when you walked up.” I asked.
“She was describing what hell is like. I am still surprised I wasn’t sent there. I did kill a man and was directly responsible for his wife being killed by Rosalyn. If I had been strong enough that night, they might still be alive.” Austin said sadly.
“When was this?” Seth asked.
“The first night I woke as a vampire. Rosalyn told me what to expect but I couldn’t stop feeding until the man was dead. That was why I wanted you guys there ready to pull me away when I first found out I needed living blood.”
“The shame is in the vampire genetics, not you Austin. When you look back and realize how few good vampires there are, you should realize how lucky you were to keep your humanity when you changed.” Gabriel reminded him. “The feeding urges are almost uncontrollable in even the stronger willed.”
“The person you were is what mattered. You couldn’t help what was done to you. Hell, I can’t even be mad at Rosalyn about it. Without the two of you, we wouldn’t have found out about the vampires until they went public.” I said.
“Thanks for the words but no matter how you say it, it was my inability to stop that killed those two people.”
“We need a happier subject matter.” Alicia muttered. I looked and she was on the verge of tears.
“Alicia’s right. Today is about family and friends. Let’s try to be happier.” Seth declared. I agreed.
We spent a lot of time talking about Alabama football. We all hoped Keith would win the Heisman Trophy. He was one of the preseason favorites. It doesn’t hurt to be playing for the best team in the country and have the best coach to boot.
When the sun finally set, Rosalyn joined us. She seemed happy to see Gabriel again once she knew he wasn’t warning us of another danger. Walt and Austin both got much happier when the beautiful Rosalyn joined us.
“Looks like y’all pigged out today.” Rosalyn said as she looked around at the mess. She didn’t mean to but she started another round of eating.
“Speaking of food…” I said as I rose to get more to eat. Seth and Gabriel joined me. There wasn’t much left but we scraped together a pretty good size helping for each of us. We took our food back to our seats.
“How can you eat so much? Where does it all go? Josh, you can’t weigh more than one eighty or one ninety.” Rosalyn asked puzzled.
“The wolf metabolism. It’s both a blessing and a curse.” I said. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Seth nodding in agreement.
We finished eating again and concentrated on the alcohol. We were well on our way to being drunk when Gabriel rose to his feet.
“This is where I have to say goodbye.” Gabriel fought back tears. “I’ve stayed longer than I should but it was worth it.”
“I hate to see you go.” Seth said. He and I both stood to say our goodbyes.
“You can tell those angels that don’t think we should be friends, to bite me.” I said. That got a good laugh from Gabriel.
“I will.” Gabriel turned to face Seth and held out his hand. “You take care of this group. I don’t think there will ever be a better group of people than this one.”
“I will, Gabriel.” Seth said as he shook hands.
“Come here you big dope.” Gabriel told me with a smile. We hugged and on separating he said, “You take care of that kid. He is going to be really special.”
“I will, Gabriel.” I said through tears.
Gabriel stood for a moment with his eyes closed. Then he snapped his fingers and looked around. I followed his gaze to see most everyone shaking their head like they were waking up from a dream. Then Gabriel looked at Austin and smiled.
“You coming?” Gabriel asked.
“Where we going?” Austin asked as he stood.
“To heaven. You’re in.” Gabriel winked. “Now say goodbye to Rosalyn.”
Austin turned his shocked face to Rosalyn with his pain and joy both clear on his face. Rosalyn rose with tears in her eyes.
“Nothing else needs to be said, Austin. I love you, I always will. Now go be at peace.” Rosalyn managed to say it, though you could see how hard it was on her.
“I love you.” Austin said and moved to stand beside Gabriel without taking his eyes off of Rosalyn.
Gabriel looked at me. He gave a slight nod and disappeared.
Chapter 24
The packing went smoothly the next day. We were on the road just after sundown when it would be safe for Rosalyn. The packs all divided among the vans. Seth and Anna rode with me and Alicia in my car. We still hadn’t told the packs about the upcoming move to Chattanooga for Seth’s group.
There were questions on where Austin had gone. We told them not to expect him anymore. He made it to heaven. Some of them were shocked at the thought of a vampire in heaven but all were happy for him.
Only Seth, Rosalyn, and I remembered Gabriel.
Home was as I left it. The yard was now almost waist deep. So great, I left on a day that started out with cutting grass and I get back with cutting grass on the top of my to do list. I guess it is just part of life.
While everyone was gathered over breakfast, Seth decided to make the announcement that they were moving to Chattanooga.
“Can I have everyone’s attention?” Once all eyes were on Seth he began, “Since it seems Josh can’t stay out of trouble without us, I think we should move here to Chattanooga. What do you guys think?”
There were resounding cheers. Both packs loved the idea. It took a couple of weeks to get everything going. Seth found a house on the northeast side of Chattanooga. They would have plenty of nice woodlands to run in. They wouldn’t be too far away from us. We were more on the western side and a little north of town.
Seth’s house in Mobile was put up for sale. I still missed that house. It was where I made my first turn and where I met Alicia. It held only good memories for me.
Alicia got her job back and got Anna hired as well. Sarah was enrolled for the fall semester. She needed less than a year to graduate. She was already trying to get work as an L.P.N. until she could become an R.N. Crystal got a job in customer service, although I was still trying to get her to go to college. Jonathan found a job in a warehouse. Life resumed for us.
Walt started looking for a job but I made him wait. I told him to hold off until after he turned. He only had one more day to wait through. Tomorrow was the full moon. He still wasn’t sure what he would become.
Rosalyn asked if my basement was still available. I made sure she knew it would always be available to her for as long as she wanted. She was handling the Austin thing very well. It helped knowing he was in heaven now.
As the sun was getting lower in the sky, I grabbed a beer and headed to the porch. I kissed Alicia’s sleeping form on the way. She fell asleep watching one of her old movies. There was a fresh breeze blowing as I sat in my chair on the porch.
I heard Seth’s truck when it turned onto my road. He and Anna were coming over tonight. Tomorrow, his whole pack would be joining us for Walt’s big day. I went inside to wake Alicia and grabbed a beer for Seth.
Nothing important was said or done on this night, at least not that someone else might understand. For me this night was of extreme importance. Seth was always there when I needed him. If I needed advice or help with anything, Seth never hesitated. This was not one of those situations. Seth and Anna w
ere coming to spend time with friends. Nothing more, nothing less. I know it is simple but because of the events of my life up to this point, it was nice to know there were no ulterior motives. Seth and Anna were coming just to hang out with us.
As for Walt’s big day, another cookout seemed like a good idea. We didn’t need a huge reason to cook and eat good food. Both packs were laughing and eating. We were lucky the full moon would be on a weekend so nobody needed to miss out because of work.
Rosalyn had warmed to Walt over the last few days. He seemed to be flying instead of walking now. It did my heart good to know Rosalyn was giving Walt a chance at being with her. I only hoped Walt would remember how powerful Rosalyn is. If he screws this up, she will tear him a new one.
Walt could be seen wiping a tear from time to time. I wasn’t sure if it was from the sentiments he was unaccustomed to receiving or from Jimmy’s bad jokes. Either way, Walt looked happy until the effects of the coming transformation started to hit him.
Luckily, he wasn’t having the really bad reactions like I did. He became more and more anxious but never reached the kind of state I went through. Even up to the last moments before the change, he was still trying to laugh and joke with everyone.
“So what’s it gonna be? Lion, tiger, or giraffe?” Jimmy asked.
“You will know in a minute or two.” Walt said as he was getting undressed. “I just hope I don’t screw up and turn into a jackass.”
“You’ll be that no matter what animal you choose.” Jimmy replied.
As the time of change hit home in Walt, I held my breath. I would wait until after he was changed to turn into my wolf form. I watched and remembered my first time as Walt fell to his knees crying out in pain. I heard his bones breaking and watched and listened as they reformed into a monstrously huge golden maned lion.
Walt stared around at his friends who were in wolf form now. He let out a roar that might have been heard throughout the city of Chattanooga even though we were miles away. The wolves answered with howls. I smiled and turned into my wolf to join him on his first true run.
Chapter 25
Austin Carl Thorne was born in January. Alicia had him in our bedroom. Anna and Sarah helped her through the birth. I wanted to be there but Anna kicked me out. He was completely healthy, thank God. He was overly strong and alert for a newborn but with his heritage, some extra strength could be expected.
The only really abnormal thing about my son was the mouth full of teeth he was born with. I was holding him and showing him off to everyone. When Jimmy put his finger to Austin’s mouth, Austin bit him. Hard. Jimmy cried out in pain and Austin laughed.
Uh-oh. Maybe even a quarter demon had some meanness to him.
Afterward
This may be the last time I visit these characters. I hope you have enjoyed their journey. I apologize for this being a shorter book but I refuse to stretch a story beyond its limits or to add in painstaking details just to make my book longer. I will always prefer the reader’s imagination fill in the smaller details to their liking.
I have many other ideas for books that I want to write. I can’t swear there won’t be a fourth book to this series but as of now I am saying goodbye to Josh and Seth. For updates on my latest books, you can find me at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Joe-Fowler/1588655958039270?ref=bookmarks on Facebook or @JoeFowlerAuthor on twitter.
Thank you for reading and please leave a review if you enjoyed this book.