“I am Tobias Monstre.” His eyebrows raised and he grinned and waited like he was expecting her to say something. She frowned, and his expression grew angry. “Your mother never spoke of me?”
I’m so confused. Chessa squinted at the looney old man. What kind of crazy people have I ended up with? They must be drugged-up throwback hippies or something. That would almost be cool if they weren’t kidnappers.
“No,” Chessa said.
Tobias frowned. “I thought about leaving you down there, one more moon, to see how strong you are. You were bitten on a full moon and survived another, and yet you’re alive and unchanged. A record, someday you’ll understand just how special you are.”
“I just want to go home to my mom, please.”
The old guy flinched. “You didn’t know your grandmother, did you? Your mother looks so much like her, as do you.”
What does that have to do with anything? “No.”
His jaw ticked as if he was gritting his teeth.
“Your mother’s name is Bianca Archer. Has your mother spoken of her parents to you?” asked the creepy old man.
“Why do you want to know?” Chessa didn’t like the way his eyes narrowed when he said her mom’s name.
His face relaxed. “I’m not going to hurt your mother. I only have a few questions about what you know of your family.” He put his hand on Chessa’s shoulder. “If you ever want to see your mother again, you need, to be honest.”
Chessa wasn’t convinced. “If I tell you, can I go home?”
“You love your mother, very much, don’t you?”
“My mom’s the best.” Chessa wasn’t worried about giving him that information. Talking about her mom was making her homesickness worse. “Why can’t I go home?”
“You’re here to protect your mom and to keep her safe,” he said in a kind, almost sympathetic tone. “You’ve been sick since you were bitten, right?” She nodded. There was no use in lying Joy had seen her suffering. “You don’t want your mother to be hurt—sick right?”
Chessa nodded again. “Am I contagious?”
Someone in earshot snickered, and the old man shot him an angry glare. Chessa could have sworn Tobias growled. He looked back at her, and his features softened. “Yes, you could make your mother sick.”
Tobias reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny picture. She recognized it right away. One of the monsters who’d torn her father to pieces had ripped the silver chain of her locket from her neck as he bit her shoulder.
“That locket belonged to this woman, a long time ago,” said Tobias.
“I know, that’s my grandmother.”
“Yes, and how old is your mother?” Tobias held her gaze with so much intensity that Chessa looked away. “How old is she? Chessa, you must talk.”
“Why does it matter? I don’t know. She’s mom-aged.”
The old man gripped Chessa’s shoulders and gave her a shake. She gasped, and her teeth snapped together. Chessa growled at the old man as her uncontrolled anger surged up. She could feel the hair on the back of her neck, head, and arms standing up. Her fingers ached and curled as she fought not to lash out. What’s wrong with me?
The men watching in silence stepped closer, and the big guy who’d hauled her out of the dungeon yanked her back so hard she slipped in the grass. He caught her before she fell, but he didn’t let go, and she hung in a half-falling half-standing position.
Tobias raised his hand and came closer to Chessa again. “How old is your mother?”
“What day is it?” Chessa asked.
“September eighth.”
Her mother’s birthday passed in August. “Last month. We were going to go on a trip, Dad was even going to drive us,” Chessa said. Bitter sorrow made her throat tight. “We were going to see Mt. Rushmore for the first time because it was a big birthday for Mom. She’s thirty-five.” The memories of the last conversation they’d had before the trip came crashing back. Her parents sat with her around the fire pit in the back yard. They roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. Her mom was flirting with her dad. Her dad had slept on the pull out couch and the next morning they’d gone on the camping trip from hell. Chessa blinked back her tears. A real family, they’d been a real family for one night.
“August.” He shook his head. “Thirty-five. I know why you didn’t die from that bite, Chessa,” Tobias said in a sad and somewhat grim tone.
Chessa let go of the breath she’d been unconsciously holding. “What’s wrong with me? Did I catch something like rabies? I’m so sick.” I just want to see my mom again.
Tobias laughed and slowly—fearfully—the crowd around him erupted in nervous laughter. She’d been so focused on the bizarre conversation she’d almost forgotten they had a big audience. When he stopped laughing, he glared at the others. They silenced immediately. A chill ran up her spine.
“The bite healed you.”
“Healed me? I’m still sick.” He’s nuts.
“You weren’t whole. Chessa, I’m your grandfather. The reason you didn’t die is you are part werewolf.”
He’s really nuts. Chessa rolled her eyes before glaring at the old man. “Werewolf! That’s crazy. I don’t have any grandparents. My grandpa died before I was born. I’m not some stupid little kid. There are no such thing as werewolves.”
He gave her a half-smile. “I don’t think your mother knows the truth. Joslyn Archer was good at keeping a secret. I didn’t know until you were bitten, but now I’m one hundred percent certain I’m your grandpa. The blood in your veins, my blood, saved your life. You’ll be reborn when the moon rises. When the moonlight touches your skin, your body won’t resist another moonrise.” His face changed, and he became some grotesque man-monster.
Chessa squeezed her eyes shut tight; her breathing grew fast and shallow. She turned her head to the side and hoped when she looked back he’d be normal. Drawing from a deep well of courage she didn’t know she had, Ches looked at him. He stayed something inhuman. The old guy was totally for real. She couldn’t deny something terrible going on inside of her body. She wasn’t normal.
When mom helped me out with that family tree, I think she forgot a branch.
Nine
Kort’s teeth lodged in Law’s shoulder. He yelped but managed to swipe his claws deep into his nemesis’s belly until Kort let go. Law pressed his advantage sinking his teeth deep into Kort’s throat, and he shook his head.
What small piece of Law remaining human registered Mari Anna’s scream. A child wailed.
Not like this. Man. Human. Not. Like. This. Law released. Kort collapsed, but his body didn’t become human.
Law groaned as transformation weakened him. Every injury hurt worse as he became human again.
“Lock him up—help him,” Law called out, horse, but stronger. His mother and Nik were by his side. “Bianca?”
“I sent her home and told her to lay low until one of us shows up,” his mom said. “She’ll need time just like we will. I hope she’s not as stupid as most humans.”
Law groaned.
“I think she’s more stubborn than most. I’d put my bet on her going after Tobias,” Nik said, and his tone was only half-sarcastic. “It’s damn lucky for Kort he was able to hold the wolf.”
Law groaned again. I want to save her daughter, but I’m worthless like this. Pain wracked his body.
Reylin ran in and handed Janna the medical kit. If they stitched him, Kort might not bleed out.
“Mom, you need to hurry.” Law communicated with his mother using the private bond of telepathy they’d had since he was old enough to think.
She snorted, shaking her head. “Yes, but I don’t have to want to help him. It’ll be better if the little ass doesn’t make it.”
“You don’t mean that. You know you don’t.”
She rolled her eyes, then gazed on Law’s face with the same love and affection he’d seen as a sick little boy. “I love you. Run off the pain and aggression while I fix the shitty bastard up
.”
Janna stood, and Reylin left with her.
“Get your ass up,” Nik told Law. “Damn. Your mother is impressive. You should have seen her kick your nosy human out. I think she might let Kort bleed to death. If I were a few years older or she was a few years younger—”
“You’re going to be the next one with my teeth in your throat,” Law said drily.
Nik laughed, but then his eyes widened. “You okay?”
Law tried to stand. Pain radiated through his body, and he shuddered, screaming. Blood gushed down an open wound in his calf. At least two of his ribs were broken. “Come on, move. Two fights in one day, you’re going to get yourself killed this way.”
Law glared at Nik’s manic smile. “Fuck you.” Law stumbled, moaning as he took another step. “Son of a bitch!” Nik’s strength was the only thing keeping him standing.
“You remember this pain the next time you think about going up against Tobias.” Nik scolded. “Why the hell did you do it? Bianca?”
Law gritted his teeth as he kept moving. The sun blinded him for a second as they stepped out of the dim meeting hall. Storm clouds to the west didn’t diminish the brightness overhead. He was walking more naturally, but a limp remained.
“Don’t know. Just did,” Law said between his teeth as he fought not to scream. Nik let go of him and without the support, Law cried out with agony and faltered but didn’t collapse steps became jogging Nik kept up next to Law. Distant thunder rumbled, but no rain fell.
“You got stones my man, and that’s why I’ll follow you no matter what, but did she have to be a human?”
Law grunted, pushing himself harder. Don’t think about the pain. Don’t think… Bianca.
***
Darkness descended as Bianca parked her car in the usual place just ahead of her mailbox. In the distance, a dog barked. Moths fluttered around her neighbor’s yellow front door light. When she turned off the car’s ignition humidity immediately seeped inside to steal the chill away. She could see far-off headlights from cars turning onto the highway as pre-storm grayness ruled the sky. Lightening zig-zagged over the bluffs in a white-purple display of nature’s majesty. A crack of thunder announced the weatherman’s prediction was right.
Fear made her uncertain. The rain was coming any second. She should go in the house, but the dread of some unseen creature lying in wait kept her locked inside her vehicle. She peered into the shadows to see if any sign of the threat was there and finally decided the anxiety was self-induced. Grabbing her backpack she dragged it out of the backseat and slid out of the car. Her hand shook as she found the house key and pressed the car’s lock button on the key fob simultaneously.
Bianca’s steps were light and quick as she rushed to the door. Suffocating panic surfaced as she fumbled to get the key in the slot, turn it, and push inside. Managing the task, she slammed the heavy barrier shut. Lightning illuminated the room for a split second before darkness deepened and the sound of a deluge pitter-pattered against the roof and windows. She shivered from a cold deep inside her soul that had nothing to do with the temperature. Bianca flipped on the light. She let the cheery glow from the two lamps flanking the couch chase away the gloom.
Bianca dropped the pack with a heavy thud and sighed with an exaggerated effort before pushing away from where she leaned against the wall. She didn’t go into the kitchen or her bedroom but paced the confines of her living room in a state of uncertain energy. Law. Did he survive or should she consider running? No one believed Ches was alive, except the werewolves and her. Who will help Ches if I run? Dying won’t help her either. Bianca’s options were rock meet hard place, and she wasn’t the kind of woman who liked being trapped in a corner.
Bianca wrapped her arms around her waist and listened to the rain as she paced from wall to wall. Finally, when she could take it no longer, she gave up and exasperated cry and grabbed the remote. She flung her arm at the TV hitting the “on” button carelessly. The local station came on with a thunderstorm watch at the bottom of the screen and a news story about a man who’d beat his cancer to go on and dedicate his life to raising money for cancer research.
Blessed noise. Bianca closed her eyes and threw back her head to take in the warmth and safety of her little house. “I’m safe. Nothing is going to hurt me,” she said out loud to no one.
“If you want it to stay that way,” Law said, “you should get those French doors on your patio fixed. Did you know the lock is broken?”
She shrieked, backed up against the recliner and stumbled. Law walked in. A few strides brought him across the room, grabbing her elbow, and keeping her on her feet. “Sorry,” he muttered.
He looked battered. His swollen, blackened eye caused her wince of sympathy.
“Thank God you’re alive. You look awful. Shouldn’t you be resting?”
“I ran here.”
“You, ran here? Why?” Her brain couldn’t process running with such terrible wounds. His shirt lay open, torn and bloodstained. “You look like a murder victim…or a murderer. Is Kort alive? What about Mari Anna and their little boy?”
“His family is safe. I have no idea how Kort is doing, but I let him live—for the most part.”
She didn’t ask for clarity on what “the most part” meant. For an extended moment of horrific awkwardness, they stood in silence. He gazed at her, hard, with unfathomable intensity. Bianca looked away, unwilling to meet his eyes and fall into the rabbit hole of whatever strange connection existed between them. She swallowed, reflexively, and licked her lips.
Bianca rubbed her cold arms. Looking down, she realized he dripped a puddle all over her hardwood floor.
“Oh, gosh, sorry,” she stammered before going around the corner to the bathroom grabbing him a towel. When she returned, he’d taken his shirt off. Fuck. His body was amazing and with his blond hair darkened with rainwater and his wet denim pasted to his body she wanted to…What am I thinking? For all I know, becoming a werewolf is some STD. Mind, get out of the gutter. Now. Tingling awareness made her pause as she handed him the towel. Her eyes took in his rugged features and beautiful gray eyes.
How did I never see what made him different before? What else haven’t I noticed? Bianca gasped. “Oh my God, everyone in Wild Rose Valley is a werewolf, aren’t they? I didn’t fully comprehend what you meant by this town belonging to your kind.”
Law scowled. “Those people, who you’ve known for years, are people, just as much as you’re a person.” He mopped water off his chest with the terry cloth, but his attention never left her face.
“I’m not some bull-headed racist or speciest. Whatever. I just want the truth.”
“Yes, there are wolves in town. The mayor happens to be the pack alpha.”
“Mayor Wolfe? I’ve always known there was something strange about that jerk. I couldn’t figure out how such a mean bastard kept getting re-elected.”
Law grinned, but then his smile melted, and his expression turned serious. “Don’t piss him off. Everyone around here knows you’ve had your share of conflicts with him over funding at the community center. He hasn’t touched you because people like you, and his wolves like you too, but popularity will only protect you for so long.”
“He hasn’t gone big bad wolf on me yet. As long as he doesn’t know, I know I’ll be okay.”
“Don’t be so sure,” Law said. “I came to make sure you don’t do anything foolish. Don’t go into the woods alone. I’ll help you with Tobias, but going alone will only get you and your daughter hurt.”
“You can’t run back. Let me drive you.”
Law cleared his throat. “Stay away from the compound until I have everyone calmed down.”
“It’s not like I plan to move in. Geez, at least let me drive you to the gates.”
“No. I want you staying home and inside. Do you know what tonight is?”
“Thursday?”
“It’s a full moon. That’s our sacred night when the change is the strongest. The call o
f the wolf is irresistible, and the violence inside a man mingles with the wolf’s primal needs. It’s the only night bittens become full wolf. Stay inside, stay in town, and keep your doors locked.” He took her trembling hand and kissed her knuckles. “I’ve given you my protection, but right now my world is the worst place for you and I can’t be here. You have to be smart.”
“I’ve been on my own a long time without protection. I’m fine.”
“You’ve stepped into a new world. Bianca, please don’t disregard what I’m offering you. Both you and your child have my vow.”
“I never asked for any creepy vow.” Her chin jutted out, and she pursed her lips. She looked away. “I don’t mean to sound ungrateful, but this is weird.”
“I know,” he said as he tilted her head so she’d look up at him. “I’ve never given my promise to anyone before. I’ve made you part of my pack, my life. That gives you a certain safety, but Tobias’s pack can’t be trusted to follow tradition.”
Lightning lit up her yard and thunder cracked so loud her house rattled. A startled cry flew from her lips as she took a step closer to Law. He reached out and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear.
“Giving you my vow was as natural as taking a breath.”
“The way you talk about this ‘vow’ stuff is like you donated your kidney to me. Explain what you’re giving up.”
“I never said I was giving up anything, but while you have my protection, you’re mine. Antiquated, I know, but the concept is very old.”
“Yours?” Bianca’s voice squeaked. Strange, but she didn’t hate being his as much as she should.
“I will guard what you value and what you love as if it were mine. Offering to protect another is not done lightly.” He stepped closer to her and put his hand on her shoulder.
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