by J. K. Snow
Mamma Sable got up out of her chair and walked over to the sink. She placed her mug under the faucet and rinsed it out and placed in the sink. Turning around, she almost lost her balance and fell. Sonja jumped out of her chair and ran to the old woman and helped her to the chair. Sonja watched Mamma Sable catch her breath and what looked like the life completely drained from the old woman’s face.
“What is it Mamma?” Sonja asked looking concerned. “What aren’t you telling us?” Sonja placed her fingers under Sable’s chin and raised the woman’s chin so she could see her face. She watched a sole tear fall from the woman’s eye and roll down her cheek.
“I’m so sorry Sonja. It’s not time yet. I have told your sister what she needs to know for the time being. That is all I am entitled to say. Trust me honey. Please.” The old woman asked laying a hand on Sonja’s arm.
Sonja took a step closer and wrapped her arms around Mamma Sable. “I do trust you, we both trust you with our lives. You have taken care of us all these years and the last thing I would think is that you would let any harm come to us.”
She released the elderly woman but still hung on to her shoulders. “Are you ok?”
“I’ll be fine. I just need to rest.”
“I’m going to talk to Jordan. I’m sure you can understand why she is so upset.”
“Of course I do. I only learned of Jude coming home yesterday. I wasn’t prepared for either of your questions and got flustered. I didn’t mean to use my powers. Please tell her I’m sorry.”
Sonja laid a gentle kiss on the woman’s forehead and said, “I will. Now go rest.” Sonja released her arms and left the kitchen and headed for Jordan’s bedroom.
*****
Sonja knocked gently on Jordan’s door. Hearing nothing she opened the door and peeked her head in to see her sister slipping on a pair of jeans that rested on her hips.
“What are you doing?” Sonja asked stepping in and shutting the door behind her. She walked over to the bed and sat down as Jordan slipped on a pink tank top. “I’m going to Lennox’s house. If Mamma Sable doesn’t want to tell me anything than I will get it from the horse’s mouth.”
“Jesus Jordan. Why can’t you just let things be! She is holding back for a good reason. Mamma Sable would never hurt us. She loves us.”
Jordan whipped around, her long blonde hair flying in her face. She grabbed it with both hands and pulled it back off her face and began tying it into a tight ponytail. “Then why the hell did she do that in the kitchen? Hmmm. Explain that!” Jordan barked as she walked over to the armoire in the corner of her room.
“Jordan!” Sonja raised her voice.
“What?”
Sonja patted the spot beside her on the bed. “Come and sit for a minute. Please.”
Jordan’s eye’s narrowed as she looked at her sister. She was tired of being angry all the time. She sat next to her sister and took a deep breath.
“Look I get that you’re upset. You loved Noah with every ounce and he was supposed to be your mate for life but he’s gone. You need to accept things for what they are.” Sonja searched her sister’s face and watched the anger wash away as the pain and hurt consumed her. Jordan’s eyes filled with tears and it was as though the faucet was instantly turned on. The tears rolled down her face in streams. “It’s ok to cry Jordan. Jesus.” She said in a whisper pulling her sister into a bear hug.
Sonja could only imagine what her older sister was going through. It had only been a two months since the accident. They were all living with the Warren pack in Willow, Alaska. They had their own quarters with Mamma Sable and lived there for over 14 years. Jordan was to mate with Noah on the first full moon of her 21st birthday allowing her animal side to emerge. However two weeks prior to Jordan’s birthday they were both walking to work and took a shortcut through the woods when they found Noah’s body ripped to shreds. There was two very large panthers hovering over Noah’s body, there muzzles covered in blood.
They both ran...ran for their lives.
Chapter 4
Jordan had sat in her sister’s arms and cried for a long time. When Sonja finally left, she agreed that she would not go to Alpha Lennox to get answers. They would quietly wait and let things fall into place as time went by. Mamma Sable had always told them as young children to have patience, that it would pay off in the most important times of their lives. She hoped that the old woman was right as she curled up on her bed and drifted off into a restless sleep.
*****
The scent of flames and smoke hung heavy in the air, causing Jordan and Sonja to drop the firewood they were told to collect. They could hear the distant screams and shouting. What was happening? Panic filled the young pup's hearts as they turned and rushed back to the pack den.
"Mama! Papa!" Jordan called out, ignoring the cold of the snow that crunched through her human feet. She could feel her little sister holding on to her tightly.
The screams and shouting had stopped. It was too silent. Far too silent, and Jordan couldn't reach her parents' minds; it was as if everything was an empty void when she reached out to them. She should have shifted to make it home faster. She should have listened to her other self's instincts that told her something was wrong. She should have never left in the first place.
"Alpha Papa! Mama Alpha!" She brushed through the trees, her heart pounding in her head as she suddenly stopped, her eyes full of pure devastation and horror at the sight that lay before her. Her sister clung to her waist. The den, the manor that sheltered the entire pack, it wasn't just burnt down to ashes and charred wood. Her friends, her family, everyone laid dead in the snow, their blood staining the white snow a blanket of red. She covered her sensitive nose as she moved closer warily with her little sister in tow, fighting a battle within herself not to retch and not to cry.
What caused this...?
Who would do this...?
A familiar smell wandered into her covered nostrils, making her snap her head toward it and take off into a sprint, "Mama?! Papa?!"
“Jordan! Wait!” Sonja ran crying as she tried to keep up with her big sister.
Jordan finally stopped, seeing their bodies that replicated the others in their lifeless state. The tears that were fighting against her will finally won as Jordan fell to her knees at their limp bodies and screamed, "NO! Mama...papa..." She reached out with shaky hands toward their bodies, scared to touch them in fear and denial that -that was them, "No...No...No!"
Sonja, only 6 sat beside her sister in the snow, crying uncontrollably as Jordan touched their heated fur and she wiped the ash of her parents' pelts and her 7-year-old form shook violently against them before she leaned back and cried in agony.
"Why?!?" Her cries echoed into the night sky as they soon turned into howls.
Jordan felt a hand on her shoulder and she whipped around and looked into the eyes of an older woman that hovered over them. Her eyes scanned the elderly woman’s blood soaked clothing and then heard her whisper, “Everything will be ok child.”
Her body violently shook when Jordan sat up in bed and she screamed at the vision. She could feel the sheen coat of sweat that covered her forehead and body as she blinked her eyes open. She gulped at the air trying to breathe. She closed her eyes in an effort to try and calm herself. She chanted the mantra, “It was just a dream...it was just a dream.”
Jordan’s eyes whipped to her door when it flew open and her vision took in the sight of Sonja and Mamma Sable.
Both women went to her bedside. “Are you ok Jordan?” Sonja asked.
Mamma Sable grabbed her and held her in a tight hug. “Everything’s going to be ok child. It was just a nightmare.”
Jordan tried to catch her breath as she pulled away from Sable. “What did you just say?” She asked pausing for a second. “That is exactly what you said to us when you found us.”
“So. I say that to you both all the time.” Mamma Sable raised an eyebrow confused.
“Why were you covered in blood when you found us? I remember
that now. You were covered from head to toe in bright red blood.” Jordan said jerking her body away from the woman.
“Jordan! It was just a dream. A memory. I still have them too.” Sonja whispered trying to calm her sister.
“No! I have had the same nightmare for 14 years. There was more to this one. Why Mamma Sable?” Jordan demanded.
“Honey, I was covered in blood but not head to toe. The majority of the pack was slaughtered. I was trying to help and see who was still alive and who was dead. I probably transferred blood onto my clothes when I was going through the bodies.”
“But I don’t remember us ever having a main manor in Palmer, Alaska. There was the den and a main manor in my dream.”
“Honey, your mind is playing tricks on you. It was just a dream.” The woman tried to convince her.
Jordan got off the bed and placed a hand on her forehead. It didn’t make sense to her. Nothing did anymore. The visions and dreams were coming to her more frequently now and she had no idea why. When she tried to piece everything together, they just didn’t fit with the story they were always told. Turning around she looked at Mamma Sable and Sonja and smiled. “I think I’m losing it. Meeting Jude last night was a shock and my dreams are playing tricks on me. I just need some air I think.”
Chapter 5
It was Friday night and the Coyote was jammed packed. Jordan had a full staff on and she was still running the floor with the other waitresses like a mad woman. Sonja was behind the bar with four of her top bartenders. They had an hour to go before they closed and it just couldn’t come soon enough.
Jordan was bent over a table, washing down the top when she felt someone grab the cheek of her ass through her jeans. She stood and barrelled around with all her weight and backhanded a slimy looking man in the face. She watched as he tumbled back, but that wasn’t good enough for her. She ran towards him, grabbing him by his neck and pushed him to the wall so hard she almost cracked the panel. Jordan could feel the heat rise to a dangerous level in her face and her body tingled everywhere when she suddenly felt like she was on fire. Her nails dug into the man’s throat like a death grip and she watched as the blood started to slide down his neck.
She looked at the man that she had pinned. His face had a look of terror on it. “Your eyes. Your one of them aren’t you.” The man said in a trembling voice.
Jordan tilted her head, not looking at him but through him, feeling strange and then a minute later she finally released him. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath and looked at him dead on. “Don’t fucking touch me again, or I’ll rip you into pieces.”
She watched as the man ran for the exit and left. She went to turn around to head outside when she ran right into his chest. Taking a step back, her eyes roamed the thick thighs that were hidden by blue denim jeans and then trailed to his wide rippling chest that was covered in a tight white t-shirt. Her eyes landed on the thick of his neck, up to his strong jaw and landed on his crystal blue eyes. Noah’s eyes. His jet black hair was tousled into a mess just like Noah’s had been when he worked outside. He was gorgeous and she just stood there taking in the sight unable to rip her eyes away.
“Jordan?”
“Hmmm.” She said not taking her eyes off him.
“Jordan. Are you ok?” Jude asked in a deep low gravelly tone.
Giving her head a light shake she said, “Yes, I’m fine. I just need some air.” She pushed past him and headed to the back.
She walked to the back of the bar and went outside through the private exit. Jordan could feel her pulse race and she had a hard time breathing. She took in mouth fulls of the night’s fresh air and finally began to relax. “WTF is going on?” She said to herself.
*****
Jude followed Jordan outside. He had seen her eyes change when she was holding the man up against the wall by his neck. A bright white glow encased the rim of her chocolate brown eyes and the power she exhibited when she threw the man into the wall it was almost impossible for her 5’6 - 130 pound frame.
As it stood both girls; Jordan and Sonja were still human and hadn’t even come into their animal side as of yet, therefore neither of them should be exhibiting any signs of power at all. Jude was puzzled.
The door shut behind him as he walked outside and leaned up against the brick wall beside her. Not saying a word he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. Jude took a long drag as he took in her stunning vision.
Her long blonde locks where a wavy tangled mess that fell over her shoulders. She wore a black tank top that revealed the medium size mounds of her breasts that spilled out above the U shape of the top. She had a small black mole that sat just above her right breast. A small amount of her stomach was revealed due to her wearing a pair of worn light blue jeans that sat low on her hips. Her stomach was tight and her curves just right and her legs went for miles. Jude could feel his cock twitch in his pants at the sight. He then took a second looks at her stomach. Something had caught his eye.
“Stop looking at me like that!”
Jude smiled and turned towards her leaning his right shoulder up against the brick wall. “Like what?”
“Like you want to drag me in the alley way and fuck me.” She retorted.
He touched the area of skin on her stomach that looked like a scar or a brand. It looked like four very small claw marks and was raised above the skin like a scar and they were bright pink. “What is that?”
Jaz looked down at it and trace her own fingers over it. “It’s nothing.” She said quickly.
He reached over and moved a large strand of blonde hair behind her ear to see her beautiful face more clearly. She had the most captivating chocolate brown eyes that were a doe shape. High cheek bones and light pink full lips that he wanted to lick and suck.
Jordan lowered her head a little to look at the ground below. “I don’t know what happened in there. I lost it. That has never happened before.”
Jude took another drag from his smoke. “Hey, it happens. I would have done the same thing if I was a girl that had some disgusting guy’s hands all over me.”
He watched as she ran a hand through her her golden locks. Her eyes locked with his and she said, “I have been through hell and back most of my life...tell me the truth Jude; why weren’t you at your brother’s funeral?”
Jude looked at her with an intense stare and contemplated his answer. He knew Jordan was hurting and it was true, both sisters had been through hell and back; the least he could do is be honest with her. “I had no choice. I had to listen to my father, he is the Alpha and I am next in line for his title. There is no way I could jeopardize that even if it meant not going to my brother’s funeral.”
“That’s not good enough.” She said frowning. “Make me understand.”
Jude took a long breath and said, “When our packs were slaughtered by the Kodiak’s there were only a few hundred of us left. They are the most powerful shifters that exist; they're able to wipe out any species if that is what they chose to do. My mother and father had to make the decision to save one of their lineage by shipping one of us off and being the oldest son was the most logical thing to do. They took a chance by keeping Noah in Willow with the rest of the family and when Noah was attacked and killed we knew the Kodiaks did it; they were just waiting and watching for the right moment.” Jude threw his smoke on the ground and squished it with his shoe. “The Kodiak pack is part of a very old and rare bloodline; their forbearing, calculated and very dangerous.”
“Then why did you come back now? It’s only been two months since they killed Noah. Aren’t you afraid they will go after you?”
Jude chuckled and said, “Destiny Jordan. You were to be mated with Noah. Yes?”
Jordan nodded.
“And he was killed a few weeks prior to your 21st birthday. Right before you were to mate with him. Don’t you find that strange?” Jude asked arching an eyebrow.
“I don’t know. I haven’t really looked at it from that perspective. I only know of the
stories that Mamma Sable told us, which is really not much.”
“The Kodiaks don’t want Alpha Warren’s sons to mate...to carry on our bloodline. They want to wipe us all out so they have complete control of Alaska. We are a dying breed Jordan. Most of the females in our pack were killed and the ones we have left are infertile. The few that can have children are having miscarriages and if they're lucky have only one child.”
“Jesus...I had no idea. I just assumed over the years that the Warren pack was building back up. When we lived in Willow it was vibrant and there is an entire community still there.”
“Yes, maybe two hundred or so, but most are strays that have sought protection from the Kodiaks, not our specific bloodline.”
“So you’re back now to take Noah’s place?” She asked feeling her heart rate starting to race.
“Yes Jordan. I am.” He said.
Chapter 6
It was Sunday afternoon and a handful of people were requested to have lunch at Alpha Lennox’s house. Jordan was in her room slipping into a white pink floral sundress when Sonja stepped in.
“Hey. That’s pretty.” She said curling up in the middle of her sister’s bed and crossing her legs together.
“Thanks. It’s hot out. Are you going to go for a dip in the pool while you’re there?” Jordan asked looking at her sister.
“I wore it underneath my tank and shorts but I highly doubt we’ll be swimming. When was the last time Alpha Lennox wanted to have lunch with us and his second in command?” Sonja said raising an eyebrow.
Jordan eyed her sister and grabbed her long golden hair that fell past her shoulders. She faced the armoire again and tied it into a ponytail so it was out of her face. Taking a breath, she walked over to the bed and sat at the edge. “I get it, but it would be nice to just enjoy the day.”
“I’m the one that normally brushes things off and just leaves things alone but I can’t stop thinking about what you told me. What Jude said. What if Lennox wants you to mate with Jude?” Sonja whispered.
Jordan picked at the duvet she was sitting on. “It’s the only thing that has been going through my head. What choice do I have? We’re supposed to mate with a chosen wolf once we become of age. My time has come and is even past now by a few months. I feel like I’m caged in my own body. I can actually feel the animal inside of me trying to break free.”