Just then Uncle Arnold pulled up beside of her in his old clunker Chevrolet truck and he grinned at her. “You gonna get in or do you want to go back in there and gawk at him a bit more?”
If her face was red before, it was probably an entirely different color at this point. She glared at him and pursed her lips. “Shut up,” she hurried around to get in on the other side, putting on her seatbelt as she waited for him to put the truck into gear. When he didn’t, she frowned. “What are you waiting for?”
Arnold grinned again as he lifted a brow, turning his head to gaze at her. “I never knew you had a thing for Baby Bamey.”
“I don’t!” She insisted quickly, becoming flustered as she sank down in her seat.
“Are you sure?” He asked with a playful nudge of his elbow to her side. “Because I think you’ve got some drool right there.” He lifted his hand to wipe a finger against her chin and she swatted his hand away.
“I’m sure!” She replied as an uncontrollable smile slid across her lips. “He just looks different. That’s all it is.”
“Uh huh,” Arnold nodded as he put the truck into drive. “I don’t believe you one bit.”
Two
He hadn’t been expecting to see Presley Goult again. Her uncle had been so sure that she was gone for good and for the last three years, Lorcan had forced himself to accept it. Of course it sucked. In a lot of ways, it bit the big one. From the first moment he’d laid eyes upon her on the school bus many years before, an invisible thread connected his soul to hers and he thought they would end up together. But as his father always said, “you don’t get paid for thinking”.
He’d had moments in the past where he wished he’d gone with her. He wished that he could’ve accompanied her to wherever she wanted to go. He envied that she got a ticket to freedom while he was left behind. A normal man would have chased after her, but Lorcan was never defined as normal.
There were certain laws that he upheld and one of them involved allowing a woman to make her choice willingly. No ursithrope shall force his self upon a female, for it will be her choice of whom she will mate. Uphold and respect the women of our kind, for they are sacred. Through her body and guidance, our purity flourishes into the next generation. Protect her, cherish her, and value her life above your own.
It was a rule that his father drilled into his head at an early age, but Lorcan had the feeling it was instilled in his blood before he even left the womb. His love and respect for his mother was far greater than most human males would ever show for their own. Even though ursithropes looked exactly like humans physically, that’s as far as the similarities went.
Even as a child, before his first transformation, Lorcan knew he was different from the other kids in Kadenburg. It had nothing to do with being placed in AP classes at a young age due to his higher IQ level. It wasn’t even about being extremely athletic and having the ability to outrun almost every kid he ever met. His determination of being different came from his heightened sense of hearing, smelling, and his insatiable craving for fish. No one ate that much fish.
Keeping his family’s secret had been genetically imbedded in his system since birth. He knew the importance of keeping their true nature in the dark. He would never put his family in danger like that. Humans really thought they had issues with the government? They weren’t the ones that would be strapped down to tables and sliced open for experimentation. Revealing his secret to a human was punishable by death.
No ursithrope will endanger his brethren or children by exposing the existence of our kind to humans. Any ursithrope who violates the Clandestine Code will be put to death without a trial, along with any humans who have witnessed the transformation take place. Our secrecy keeps us safe.
Every law of their kind was burned into his memory. It was his duty as a man to abide by those laws, but sometimes it was hard; especially when it came to letting the woman have control over choosing who she wanted to be with. How could he ever convince Presley he was good enough for her? Human males had it lucky. They could easily walk up to a woman and ask her out on a date, or they could propose and hope that she would say yes. It didn’t work that way for ursithrope men. He could admire her from afar, but she would have to make the first move. And if she didn’t express interest in him, well..tough luck.
As his father’s son, Lorcan was feeling the pressures since his brother’s death. The continuation of their family lineage now rested on his shoulders and Lorcan was crumbling from the weight. How was he supposed to attract a female who had only ever viewed him as a friend? It was the dreaded “friend zone” that many socially inadequate humans spoke of. He couldn’t win over a female who only saw him as a childhood play mate.
Oh, but what a play mate I could be now, Lorcan thought to himself. He crouched down to pluck up a single leaf from the thousands that had fallen from the trees to signal the winter’s approach. He wasn’t the biggest fan of the snow, but then again, he didn’t know an ursithrope alive who did; aside from their distant relatives in the arctic.
He lifted the leaf to be level with his chin, nostrils flaring as he inhaled the scent. His senses immediately kicked into overdrive as his brain began to decipher various smells, separating the deer from raccoons and the foxes from the squirrels. He caught a whiff of something that made his nose crinkle and he frowned. Why was Mrs. Waterbaker’s old dog wandering so far out here? He’d have to remind her to keep him indoors again.
His lungs began to burn from the scent of something else and a growl sounded low in his throat. He finally found the scent he had been looking for as it became more distinct and caused his eyes to darken from recognition. Lycanthrope. The pressure in his temples throbbed as he felt his incisors sharpening behind his tight lips.
He groaned and dropped the leaf to the ground once more. Ursithropes were very good at controlling their shifting urges-but that was before the damn lycanthrope had decided to invade their territory. It was before they murdered his brother.
Lorcan could feel the rage boiling up from deep in his belly. His grief mixed in with the fury as heat flooded his large frame. He could feel his body trying to swell in anticipation of the change, fur sprouting from every hair follicle available upon his skin. He panted heavily as he slammed his fists against the earth.
Get it together. You can’t lose it right now. Concentrate. You have to find those responsible for taking Liam away.
He shut his eyes tightly as he opened his mouth, allowing the incisors to lower to their full length as the bones in his fingers began to break. The pain was always brief-no more intense than stubbing a toe against the bed post at night time. His chest ached as he sucked in more oxygen, sending it straight to his overstimulated brain as his back began to curve.
Think of Liam! His mind screamed as he watched his hands transform into monstrous brown paws; the curved white claws protruding from the thick brown fur as he cried out. The stretching of his body was always the most uncomfortable. Bones cracked, broke, and lengthened as his vision began to blur. No, no! Stop it! Liam. Think of your brother, damn it!
As his eyes closed, one image became more vivid than he expected. He could see her heart shaped face, the fullness of her red lips. The sunlight reflected beautifully against her golden curls as the spirals rested upon her shoulders. Her eyes sparkled like dew covered grass. Her sweet scent fogged his brain, calming the beast within. He felt his body shrinking back to size, claws retracting into his fingertips as fur faded to flesh. His animalistic growls became groans as he collapsed against the moist earth beneath himself. He panted quietly as he took a few minutes to regain his composure. Tiny tremors ran through his frame as he finally opened his eyes to gaze up towards the treetops.
“Presley,” he whispered.
Shortly after his near-transformation, Lorcan had ventured further into the woods. He was deep enough that he could hear the gentle rush of the small falls located dead center in the Kadenburg Woodlands. Not many humans cared to hike that far, mostly
because it was an extremely dangerous thing to do. There were ravines everywhere and more than one fatality had resulted because of tourists who had ignored the warning signs in the past.
Lorcan wasn’t afraid to travel through the woods because it was in his nature to do so. He could scout through the mass of trees without difficulty, even at night time. The soles of his boots sank into the soft earth as he reached out to grab a branch, pushing it away from his face before he continued forward. The ache in his chest returned, but not because he felt the need to change. No, it was because he was nearing the spot where his brother’s body had been found.
Lorcan wasn’t sure if he’d ever be able to get the image out of his mind. Liam had gone out early in the evening with the promise of returning before midnight. He and Lorcan had gotten their own small house a few years before hand, and for some reason, despite the fact he was the older brother, Liam felt the need to let Lorcan know when to expect him home.
Lorcan had gone to bed without any intention of waiting up to see if his brother would be home on time, but an odd sensation overcame him during his deep slumber. He bolted straight up in bed with cold sweat dripping down his temple. His heart had been beating so fast…
When he checked Liam’s bed at 2:47 and found that he still wasn’t home, he did worry. Liam was a big guy and could take care of himself, but there was a certain fear that crushed Lorcan’s soul and he just knew something was wrong. He knew.
He called his father to tell him that Liam wasn’t home yet and his worries were confirmed when his father claimed that he felt it, too. They both sensed that Liam was in peril, and they were too late. As father and son hiked out into the deep center of the woods, they came across Liam’s body. The look in his eyes was what bothered Lorcan the most. They were wide with fear and so damn empty, lifeless.
The lower half of Liam’s body was mutilated beyond recognition. His organs had been pulled from his stomach and were spilled against the bloodied leaves surrounding him. The deep gash across his throat told Lorcan he’d died from choking on his own blood. Lorcan emptied the contents of his stomach right then and there, unable to handle the sight of his brother’s mangled body.
The sheriff’s department ruled it as a mountain lion attack, but Lorcan and his father knew better. The scent that lingered around where Liam was found didn’t smell like any animal they’d come across before. It was a stench that Lorcan forced himself to remember. If he ever came across it again…
Mid-step, Lorcan froze. It was a combination of hearing shoes crushing against leaves and the familiar scent invading his nostrils again. It was one of them, nearby. His jawline clenched as his eyes darkened. He balled his hands into fists. Don’t change, he told himself. Attacking one of them will make things worse.
It was sound advice. His conscience was trying to keep him calm, but there was another voice in Lorcan’s head that spoke on a louder volume. The voice fueled by the rage and anguish of losing his only brother. Kill it, the voice hissed. It deserves to die for what happened to Liam.
Lorcan snarled as his blunt nails began to dig into his palms. He was conflicted. His father had warned him about this.
“Don’t go out there without me,” Mr. Bamey had said. “We don’t know how many of them are here.”
I can take them, Lorcan thought to himself as his dark eyes scanned the area around him. The scent was getting stronger. That vile scent of mangy dog-even though he’d never come in contact with a dog that stunk as badly as lycanthrope-became stronger. Domestic dogs, he could handle-but this..this was a smell that made Lorcan’s inner animal wild with the need to kill.
Lorcan had never killed anything other than deer before. Sometimes it was nice to let his claws out and give chase to a mature buck; it kept him in practice, but for what? His kind had never been challenged like this. There were so few ursithropes and they were peaceful creatures. He’d learned quickly that bears and wolves did not get along-especially those who walked among mankind.
Kadenburg was the perfect location for an ursithrope family. It was small, secluded, and the span of the Cumberland Gap nearby provided more than enough roaming ground for a man’s need to give in to his true bear nature.
He heard the rustling of leaves again, the pressure of a boot stomping against them as his unseen enemy approached. His head quickly turned to the North as his eyes fell upon the tall, red haired male who stopped short when his gaze connected with Lorcan’s. They stared at one another for what seemed to be an eternity, one sizing up the other as tension blanketed the air around them.
He’s not human, Lorcan thought as the corner of his mouth began to twitch. He tightened his fist once again as his eyes darkened in warning. He expected the other male to at least challenge him, and he was a little caught off guard when he spoke.
“You’re Liam’s brother, aren’t you?” The male asked, leaning against the tree as he stared at him. He didn’t attempt to step forward. He stayed firmly put as he shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. “You look just like him.”
Lorcan was hesitant as his brows furrowed. Why was this damn mutt trying to talk to him after what had happened? Lorcan wasn’t stupid. He’d memorized the scent for a reason. This was one of the bastards responsible for his brother’s death.
Lorcan didn’t speak as he observed the other male. He was possibly taller than Lorcan, but size didn’t matter. Lorcan was confident he could take him in either form, though he’d prefer to do it with his bare hands. His upper lip began to curl as that same low, threatening growl began to rise in his throat.
“He spoke of you often,” the male continued with a nod. “He thought the world of you.”
Lorcan’s vision was starting to blur as he felt the first shudder of the oncoming change. Not yet, he warned. Wait a few minutes….
The man lifted his hand to run his fingers through short, dark red hair as he kept his hazel hues on Lorcan’s face. He still made no effort to move closer. Good. That would be a bad decision on his part.
Lorcan’s eyes darted to look around the man. He didn’t smell anyone else. Why would one of them come back alone? He was either brave or stupid.
Do not start a fight, the wiser voice in his mind spoke. Do not stoop to his level. Ursithropes are peaceful beings.
Lorcan mentally rolled his eyes as the other man finally took a step forward. The beast within began to stir with fury as Lorcan released another low growl.
“Don’t take another step,” Lorcan warned.
The man ignored his warning as he stepped forward again, his heavy boot crushing a twig in its path as he moved towards where Liam’s body had been found.
Perfect, he’s stupid and deaf, Lorcan muttered in his mind as he felt his incisors beginning to lower once more. He kept his eyes on the man as he crouched down near the place where Liam undoubtedly took his last breath. Pain and anger began to soar through Lorcan’s body as he clenched his teeth, trying to keep his incisors out of view.
He watched as the man reached down to pick up a leaf, twirling it between his fingertips as he frowned. I hope you feel guilty as hell for what you did, Lorcan thought as he shifted his weight, evenly distributing it between his feet as he felt his bones trying to stretch. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could fight the beast that pleaded to be released. Every fiber of his being begged to rip the man from limb to limb.
“He was the most beautiful soul I’ve ever met,” the man confessed quietly. His voice was so low that it would have gone unheard by a human, but Lorcan heard it clear as a bell and it made him hesitate.
He frowned as he watched the man’s head bow and he was sure he could see his shoulders shaking. Was he weeping?
“When my alpha found out I was intending to be with someone not of our kind, he didn’t take it very well,” he whispered. He didn’t look at Lorcan as he curled his fingers around the leaf resting in his palm. His eyes remained focused on the ground. Why was this mutt telling Lorcan his personal problems? He didn’
t want to hear them. He wanted to rip him to shreds. One of them had to pay for what they did to Liam.
“I told Liam that it was too dangerous,” he continued in an emotional voice. “I was scared of what would happen to him. I told him…” his voice trailed off then as his head bowed lower and he lifted his hand to wipe at his eyes.
Lorcan’s body relaxed a little at a time as his mind attempted to work the puzzle pieces together. The devastation that radiated from the other male’s body was genuine and for some unfathomable reason, Lorcan was allowing his self to be strung along. It had to be a trick. This was some sort of ploy to distract him from the reality of the situation. A lycanthrope would never mourn the death of an ursithrope. Lorcan had quickly learned they were natural enemies, no matter what form they were in.
The man lifted his head then, gazing straight at Lorcan as the sunlight caught the glistening of a tear against his cheek. He swallowed hard as he sighed, standing once again as he kept his eyes on Lorcan.
“I imagined meeting you for the first time to be very different,” he spoke as his voice broke. Lorcan could see he was fighting to keep his composure as he extended his hand towards him.
Did he expect Lorcan to shake it? He’s crazy, Lorcan sneered mentally. “Who are you?” Lorcan demanded, not obliging the handshake.
The other male lowered his hand then as he licked his lips. “I…Liam never told you about me?”
He almost seemed distraught that Liam hadn’t mentioned him. But why the hell would his brother talk about a damn lycan?
Lorcan gave a firm shake of his head as he frowned. “No. I don’t have any idea who you are, Wolf, but you don’t have any right to be here.”
“I have every right to be here,” the man responded defensively. “You really don’t know who I am?”
The Truth About Kadenburg Page 2