Piper LeVine, A Gypsy's Truth

by Eris Kelli

  Chapter Seven

  Grandma Sidney invited Tony, Johnny, and Nicholas to eat dinner with us. Of course, Nicholas asked Grandma Sidney for permission to date me, and she agreed heartily. I ate my dinner red-faced and silent.

  “Where is your dog? Deception. Where is he?” She asked me as we began to clear the table together.

  “He’s… in my room.”

  “No, he isn’t I was in there looking for you right before dinner. I didn’t see him.”

  I glanced at Nicholas, who was grinning and no help. “He was in the bathroom.”

  “I haven’t seen him all day. You should exercise him, Piper. That is no way to treat an animal. One his size, he’ll need twice the exercise.” She took the plates from me, and Tony took them away from her. “Go on. See to that dog.” My face was burning again, but this time it was because she looked disappointed in me, and that was the last way I’d want her to feel about me.

  Nicholas stepped forward at last. “Well, I’d better go. Thank you, Miss LeVine.”

  “You’re welcome.” My grandma chuckled and waved at me to get going. “Piper will be expecting you around six tomorrow evening.”

  “Then that’s when I’ll be here.” He gave her a big heart melting smile and went out the front door. I let him in my window that was missing its screen. This was how he was getting in and out. I hit him with a pillow from my bed when he came in.

  “Do not make my grandma like you.”

  “I can’t force anyone to like me.” He pulled the pillow out of my hands. “Excuse me.” He hit me with it and went into the bathroom. When he came out he was Deception again. It was just in time because my grandma Sidney came in right then and she was looking for him.

  “Walk that dog.” Grandma pointed at me in her no-nonsense way. I put the collar on Deception and connected the leash.

  Deception took the lead and I called Nina on my cell, so he would know I didn’t want to talk to him. “Hey, Nina.”

  “Daniel called in sick and we’re going biking.” Nina’s voice was ecstatic. “He got a new tattoo of my eye.”

  “Gross.”

  Where did Nina find guys like this?

  I could hear a male voice that probably belonged to Daniel in the background. “He has two other eyes too.”

  “Yuck.”

  She laughed, “I know.” I knew she knew about Rick, but she didn’t ask and I was glad. “I’ll call you when we get back.”

  I groaned into the mouthpiece. “Just be careful.”

  “No way, you’re the careful one.” She was laughing when she hung up. Nina was every parent’s worst nightmare.

  Deception stopped and dug up a pair of shorts. I let go of the leash, and he dashed off with the shorts in his mouth. When he came back, he was wearing them. They were red basketball shorts. “So… you buried clothes last night?”

  “You get uncomfortable when I’m naked.” It was strange to me that he cared how I felt when he was blackmailing me.

  Duh, he didn’t. If he’s nice to me, his hiding place is safe.

  “Are you going to go to hunt or something? I don’t think there is any fresh meat in the fridge.” My tone gave away my change in mood, but that was for the best. I would be a fool to make friends with a big bad wolf like Nicholas.

  “I want to know why you’re hiding. Who are you hiding from?” The yellow in his eyes was brighter. It made him seem wild. He was walking toward me, and his eyes were challenging me to back up or look away. I could not let myself.

  “What if I made that up because the first time I saw you I forgot how to breathe. What if when I saw you, I knew I was looking at the most beautiful woman I would ever see, and I just could not bear to walk away? What then?” My insides were on fire, but I did my best not to let this show.

  “Then I’d say you were a liar.” I crossed my arms and stood my ground. “What if you save your flattery for someone else, and we stick to the truth?”

  “I’m going to go hunt.” His easy smile was gone. “You stay here.” He jogged away, and I told myself I did not care if I had made him mad. I felt eyes on me, and did not want Nicholas to think I was sitting there thinking of him, so I started playing a game on my phone. It was a maze slash strategy kind of game, and I kept losing.

  All I could think about was how I felt when Nicholas had played his ‘what if’ game and said I was beautiful. No, the most beautiful. That sounded like bull, besides Rick had told me a dozen plus times that I was beautiful. Why was this any different?

  The screen lit up catching my attention. I did not recognize the number, but I answered it anyway. After all, I was just sitting here waiting.

  “Piper?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I’m really sorry.” It was Rick. “I had no idea things were going to get this blown out of proportion.”

  Something moved in the bushes, probably a rabbit. “Rick, don’t call me. I’ve said all I have to say.”

  “I love you, Piper.” My throat started hurting again. “I don’t just want to say I’ve had you. I want you forever.” I should have hung up as soon as I had realized it was him. A large animal was in those bushes. I climbed the base of the tree to stand up. “I won’t disappear. I’m not just going away. You love me, Piper, and you know it.” The familiar snapping sounds of Nicholas’ transforming sounded, and I sighed. Why didn’t he let me know it was him? He scared me.

  The man who stood up from the bushes was not Nicholas. “Uh….” He looked a little older than Nicholas, and his gaze was much different.

  “Just hearing your voice….” I had forgotten I was still holding the phone.

  “Rick?” My voice was high-pitched and the stranger took my phone and closed it. “What do you want?”

  “Where is Nicholas?”

  “I don’t know any Nicholas.”

  He sniffed the air. “I must speak with him now.”

  “There is no Nicholas around here.” I repeated the obvious lie. I had just seen him change into a man from a wolf and hadn’t run away screaming. “What do you want?” He was making a wide circle around the tree I was leaning against.

  “You are as beautiful as your pictures.” The large circle he had been making was getting smaller. For the life of me, I could not read the intent on his face. Random people recognized me every now and then, but a werewolf?

  He stood next to me, smiling. I was not sure if I should cry or be flattered. When he looked up his smile melted into a more serious expression. “Here he comes.” I didn’t hear anything, but I prayed he was right.

  “You couldn’t find me?” Nicholas asked with a scowl on his face as he emerged from the woods. “Nudity makes her uncomfortable.” A dirt covered pair of khakis hit his chest, and he quickly stepped into them. “What is so important, Duncan?”

  “Seraph wants to know why she was with that boy at that motel. What of the Baobhan Sith?”

  I stepped toward them. “Who is Seraph?”

  “She doesn’t…?” Duncan looked at me once again. “Obviously, we will need to meet again in private.”

  “Hey, I want to know what’s going on.”

  Duncan smiled at me. “It was an honor to meet you, Piper.” He changed into a wolf and dashed away. I turned toward Nicholas.

  “Who is Seraph?”

  “Why did you call that scamp? I heard you say you were done with him. Was that a lie?”

  “Rick? What does he have to do with anything?” Nicholas took my hand and began to lead me down the mountain. “Why would this Seraph person care if I’m with Rick at a motel?”

  He made a sound that I didn’t understand. “Let’s just say Seraph is someone I care a lot about, and she doesn’t want our bait in so public a place.”

  I stopped walking. “Bait, did you say?”

  “It wasn’t a Sith. So you’re not bait. It was a hunter. That makes you no longer bait.”

  “How is that? A hunter? I’m not an animal.”

  “No, but I am.” He pulled
me again.

  “Then why was he at my window? Why did he run from you if he was hunting you?”

  Nicholas started laughing and shaking his head as he continued to lead the way. “You’ve got a point, but you saw the scout. It is the hunter who now walks your mountain.”

  He seemed to have an answer for everything. I wanted to believe that this incredibly hot guy holding my hand was still hanging around because he was secretly in love with me. But no, there was more to this story. He could just move on if this hunter was after him, couldn’t he?

  “What’s the matter? Run out of questions?”

  “Nope. I’ve just reached my capacity for swallowing bull.”

  “I guess you’ll want to plug your ears and close your mouth.” He pointed toward the sanctuary, but I could only see figures of people and no detail. “Rick has come to tell you what a catch he is.” Nicholas changed into Deception before I could argue with him. He buried the shorts and I bent to put on his leash and collar, but he avoided me and trotted back to the sanctuary.

  When I caught up to him, he was sitting at Sidney’s feet with his tongue hanging out as my grandma laid into Rick. “It’s up to her if she wants to talk to you,” she said as I approached.

  “No, he messed up, he’s out,” Johnny said.

  “It’s up to her,” my grandma repeated.

  “What did I miss?” I asked, not really wanting to know. “What are you doing here?” Rick took a step toward me, and Johnny grabbed his shoulder.

  “Hands to yourself.”

  Rick took a step back, and Johnny released him. “I was worried. You sounded like you were in trouble on the phone.” He looked toward Sidney. “When we spoke earlier today.”

  “I’m fine.” I folded my arms. “Thanks for stopping by.”

  “I wanted to apologize in person.” He looked at Johnny and then back to my grandma and Tony, who was at her side. I felt bad for him, not sure why, but I did.

  “I’d like a moment to say goodbye to Rick.” Johnny looked at Deception. He was probably trying his best to telepathically tell him to stay. Good old Johnny, he was always looking out for me. Grandma had to give Tony a push to get him going. “Rick,” I said as Johnny was leaving. “Saying that you’re sorry again isn’t going to change anything.”

  “Did your grandma tell you that I want you to be my wife?” He looked awful, terrible, really. It didn’t make me feel good like I would have thought. His hair was a mess, and he looked pale. His eyes were bloodshot. “Doesn’t that change what I’ve done?” Deception was baring his teeth, and I forgot about answering his question. I wished I had gotten that leash on him. “I’m crazy about you.” A ferocious snarl ripped through the air.

  “That’s it, get out of here.” I had to give Nicholas a shove before he acknowledged me. “I said go!” He stopped growling, but did not move. “Leave right now or the deal is off.” Deception had white foam forming on the sides of his mouth, and his wild eyes were trained on Rick. “I mean it,” I yelled at him, and he turned and shot back up towards the mountain.

  “That is a really strange relationship you have with that dog.” Rick scratched the back of his neck.

  I readied myself, hating what I was about to say. “I would have said no if you had asked me to marry you.” I couldn’t believe how dry my mouth was all of a sudden. “I’m seventeen, way too young to be getting engaged. Even though I’ve known you since we were kids we’ve only been on a few dates.”

  “I know and that’s why I didn’t ask.” He ran his hand down my arm, and I took a step backward. He followed me. “I will wait until you’re ready. I told Sidney I’d wait and I will, but not without you, Piper.” He hugged me, pinning my arms against my sides and kissed me. I wanted to hate it and knee him right in his junk, but I didn’t. His mouth was urgent and eager it made my stomach swim with excitement and confusion. “See,” he said, drawing back. “You love me too.”

  “No, not like that.” He tried to kiss me again, but I bent my knees and wiggled from his grasp. “I’m not in love with you, Rick. I care about you. That’s not enough. That’s not a sufficient reason for you to put your life on hold waiting for me.”

  “Move on, Rick. I have.” I turned and gave him my back, but he was following me.

  “That’s not true. You kissed me back.”

  Did I?

  I swallowed. “It was a kiss goodbye.”

  “Not for me.”

  “I’m not worth the effort. Remember?” I jogged across the sanctuary and this time he did not follow. I was headed toward the mountain, and I realized the secret meeting was probably going on right then. Maybe I could find out about Seraph, or what in the heck a Baobhan Sith was. It didn’t sound like something I wanted to meet.

  I am good with animals. I’ve gone hiking and camping, but I would never claim to be a tracker or even good with direction. I still figured I could find the spot that Nicholas had led me to on two separate occasions. The next time I was there I would have to pay attention to the significant details of the area.

  Finding it in the dark was not my plan, but the sun was gone, and I was about halfway to the area I needed to find. Every step I took seemed to be a loud crashing announcement to every living thing within miles that I was coming, but I could not seem to move quietly no matter how hard I tried. Stealth was not one of my skills apparently.

  When I neared what I thought was the right area, I walked slower. I tried to breathe quieter, and I even made sure the wind was blowing against my face and not my back so that I would not be detected by my scent. They were there and there was more than just Duncan and Nicholas. There were six of them, and they were all looking in my direction.

  I held my breath.

  “She is not ready.” Duncan looked to the others. “We must keep her safe.” Nicholas sighed, and his shoulders relaxed. “Do not fear, Piper. You will have protection at all times.”

  It startled me that he had known I was there. It shouldn’t have. “From what? This hunter person? Isn’t it after you and your kind?”

  “You should go,” Nicholas said to the group of them. He looked back at me, his expression still dark. “The pack will find the hunter before he reaches his destination. If they fail, well, we’ll have a different problem to address. We will keep them away from here. You will be protected.”

  Duncan smiled at me and so did the others. “It was my honor to see you again.”

  “Thank you.” I didn’t want him thinking I wanted him showing up with the pack again so that was all I said. The men all raced off into the forest around us. Only Duncan, Nicholas and I remained. Nicholas took my hand gently so I didn’t pull away.

  “Until we meet again.” Duncan changed into a black wolf that looked much like Nicholas’ wolf. I watched him, wondering where he and the others would go.