But the guilt, it wouldn’t leave.
Luckily, sticks were passed around, and she soon had distraction in the form of something called marshmallows. They were white and sweet and safe to eat on their own, yet was Myrna instructed to spear them with the stick and roast them upon the fire. Then did Ola sandwich the now gooey confection between bars of chocolate and a sort of sweet light brown cracker.
Myrna delighted in the taste, and despite her forlornness, found her mood lifting as Olafr and FJ instructed everyone to mute their biosystems and comm rings, so that they might give their full attention to the telling of stories as they would have in the old time.
Fensa went first with the crowd’s encouragement, telling the tale of how she’d came to the time of early man to find herself fated to a dragon. It was a beautiful story, and Myrna clapped heartily when it was through.
Next came Olafr’s and FJ’s turn. And did Myrna assume she’d be delighted and riveted by their story as well.
She was only right about one of those assumptions. She was riveted by the story. But then came the dark part of the tale, when their wary mate ran away, not believing the three of them could make a life together.
“Did FJ seek to punish our mate for her actions. For she had gravely wounded his pride,” Olafr told their small audience. “Our love for her was so intense, could it easily burn inside his heart the same as hate. But Brother, I advised. It is not hate. It is love still. And your pride is but a small sacrifice for what we would gain if we did forgive her and teach her to love us the same. We must fight for our love. Fight her for our love, fight even ourselves for her love. If that was as our love requires, that is what we must do.”
The story went on from there, but Myrna could not hear it, his words did echo so fiercely inside her mind. And thoughts of Rafesson burned inside her chest as she wondered if pride, her ever stubborn pride was more to blame than his lack of true want.
For the gates had delivered her father and her brothers and their daughter Fensa to their mates for a reason. Had delivered her to Rafesson for a reason.
She’d known that from the start. Had loved him from the moment their eyes did meet right here in this land of North Dakota.
But had she fought for their love? Like her brother’s had fought for their Tiara, and as her parents had fought for each other when time had torn them asunder.
No, she had not. It was exactly as Rafesson had said. She had run away. She could face down his feral wolf with nothing but a broken stick of wood. But his human? The man, who’d been harboring a secret so long he could see no other way to live his life? From him, she’d run, from him she’d hidden. She hadn’t fought him or the scared princess of sixteen winters that she still carried inside of her for their love. She hadn’t even tried.
And hot tears stung her eyes as she realized her grave mistake.
“OH MY FUCKING GOD!”
Ola’s dramatic exclamation cut off both Myrna’s thoughts and Olafr’s story. “You’re not even going to believe what’s all over WolfNet!”
“Ola, we said to turn off all the biosystems,” Tiara chastised, shaking her head at their outspoken daughter.
But Ola waved her mother off as if she were the one being incredibly rude. “No, everybody turn back on your biosystems! And here, Myrna, watch with me on my comm rings…”
FJ averted his eyes right to turn on his own bio-system, even as he shook his head at his obstinate daughter, “Daughter, what could possibly be as important as our last night with—by the Fenrir wolf, Myrna, is that you?”
Myrna could hardly believe what she was seeing herself. For there she was on the screen between Ola’s elled fingers, hoisting Savage Gualla in the air and throwing him out of the ring above a floating headline that read: VIKING PRINCESS TURNS PRO WRESTLER!
“You perform quite well,” Olafr said out loud in English, letting out a guffaw of laughter as the scene switched to footage from her first official fight with Sana.
But Myrna could only stare at the screen aghast. “I promised him! I promised him this footage would not air until after his election. But somehow it has gotten out!”
Panic seizing her stomach, she started to stand. She had to comm Sana. Figure out how to mend this…
“Yes, that is my mate!”
Myrna’s eyes widened, and she plopped back down when the scene on Ola’s screen suddenly switched from her wrestling match to Rafes speaking before a large audience waving RE-ELECT NIGHTWOLF signs.
“That is my mate,” he confirmed a second time. “After keeping her training a secret, she recently made her debut as a wrestler with the IWF. I support her in this decision, and furthermore, I’m impressed with her moves. In the ring and out.”
The audience tittered nervously at the uncharacteristic joke from the leader they called President Robot.
“I wanted to keep this footage secret. Wanted to cover her light, so that you would elect me, so that you would believe over the next four years, that I’m a perfect president without any flaws. But the thing is, I do have flaws. And with apologies to my campaign team and everyone else who’s worked so hard to help me get re-elected, I’ve decided against hiding those flaws any longer. You see, I also have a secret….”
Myrna covered her mouth, mute with shock as she watched Rafesson confess to the rally…to everyone in the world with access to WolfNet that he had a feral wolf, one who often came out when he was sleeping and who he had to work incredibly hard to control when he felt heightened emotions.
By the time he was finished, most of the RE-ELECT NIGHTWOLF signs had been lowered. And Rafesson concluded with, “There are other ways to protect this country. Other ways to serve. And I will continue to fight for the North American Territories, for our nation, until my dying breath. But no more secrets, from you or anyone else.” He then let out an emotional breath and said, “Thank you.”
No clapping came from the audience. There was barely a drop of sound, and then almost immediately the screen switched to two pundits, debating whether the president had suffered some sort of mental breakdown, or had been hiding his severe mental illness all along.
“That would certainly explain breaking off his engagement to the Arizona princess to get with…I guess…she’s like some kind of wrestler for the humans now?” a laughing pundit supposed, right before Ola closed her fingers to disappear the screen.
Much like the rally audience, their party had gone silent, too. Everyone, save Fensa’s children, who’d fallen asleep during their grandfathers’ story, now sat with stunned looks upon their faces.
“Why didn’t he ever tell us?” Ola asked, the first person to break the silence. “I would’ve been, like, you know, a smidge nicer.”
But Myrna’s question was way more sincere. “Why would he do that? Ruin all chance he had of re-election?”
“Because I love you.”
The voice was clear, and speaking Old Norse, though her brothers’ lips did not move. So, it had to be coming from inside her head. But how? She wondered, standing up to look around the dark yard.
Her question was soon answered when her eyes caught on the shadow of a wolf, standing just outside the French Doors of the breakfast nook, where she and Ola had eaten earlier this morning.
“Rafesson,” she said out loud, his name coming out a surprised sigh.
“Yes, Myrna, it’s me.”
He closed the distance between them in what seemed to Myrna a very few steps. And then he was standing right in front of her, his eyes burning with emotion.
“I love you,” he said again. This time out loud so that everybody at the party could hear. “And I want you, Myrna. In fact, there is no other she-wolf of your worth for me. No other she-wolf in space in time that I want to be with. Only you. And…I’m sorry. I’m sorry I tried to change you. I’m sorry that you had to go even a few days believing that I didn’t love and appreciate who you really are. But baby, I love you. I love the real you more than being the most powerful wolf in North
America. So please tell me what I have to do to win you back. I’ll do anything. Even beg, just please…”
She cut him off right there, unable to bear his pain, which she could feel across their mate bond as if it were her own. Or maybe it was her own.
For this wolf…this wolf standing in front of her now felt like the opposite side of her soul. And that is why she had to interrupt, had to tell him, “Fenrir, mine, the only thing you needed to do to get me back was show up. And I am sorry as well, for not fighting harder for you. For us. Because, I love you, too. I have loved you from the moment the gates delivered me to you, and I give you my vow…From now on I will always decide to love you forevermore.”
He looked down at her. And she smiled up at him. Love shining in both their eyes. Then he swept her up in his arms and kissed her like…like a wolf who hadn’t eaten in days.
Like a wolf who hungered for no one but her.
And as she kissed her fated wolf back, she could feel their tale of mismatched lovers transforming into a story, much like her parents’. One of true love that would be told around the fire for many winters to come.
39
Wilma
Wilma finally made it to the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum for a wrestling match. But she never would have guessed how she’d end up here.
Ain’t this some nonsense! she thought as she sat in the front row of the VIP section surrounded not only by Nago and Halle, but Knud, all three of her daughters. Most of her grandbabies, her nephew, her niece, and those damn Viking brothers who’d arrived on her Alaska kingdom mountain all those decades ago, and then decided to drag her entire Detroit family into their time-traveling mess.
Now a year and a half after their sister Myrna’s arrival, the crazy times just seemed to want to keep on rolling. Which was how Wilma and pretty much every family member she had except for Fensa and Rafes, came to be currently taking up the first three rows of the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum. The rest of the coliseum was also packed with shifters. So many, Wilma doubted she’d be able to tell who was human and who was lupine, unless she got up close. And all of them were hooting and howling like they’d collectively decided today was the day humans were gonna find out about the existence of werewolves.
And guess who was to blame for the packed house? Yep, those damn time-traveling Vikings.
When FJ and Olafr learned that Myrna would be joining the IWF tour for a special show in Detroit, they’d bought out nearly every dang seat in the coliseum and invited family, friends, and pretty much anybody who got itchy during a full moon, to come out and see their sister do her thing. Even after Myrna told those two fools, that she wouldn’t even be physically fighting tonight, on account of her being eight months pregnant and all.
Her brothers didn’t care and neither did all these loud and raucous wolves who’d come out to the coliseum. Two matches in, and the wolves were already chanting Myrna’s name like the IWF was holding her hostage.
Too bad Rafes wasn’t here, Wilma thought, with an agitated shake of her head.
Eight months ago, media sites across North America had erupted with the news that President Robot had obviously short-circuited. And the wolf media had a field day, child, yes they did. Openly mocking him for having a pro-wrestler mate and for not having a “potty trained” wolf. With only a week left to the big Tuesday, they’d said with certainty that Rafesson would no longer win the election by 55% of the vote as previously predicted.
Well, they were right about that, Wilma thought to herself, remembering the election night with a smirk.
Her grandbaby won with 77% of the vote.
As it turned out Viking Myrna didn’t poll well with most sensible wolves. But as Wilma could attest, wasn’t nobody sensible when it came to wrestling. And Myrna Warrior Princess, to everybody’s surprise, was a big old hit.
And as for all those pundits mocking her president grandbaby’s issues with his wolf? A lot of them got backlashed like a muthafucka when thousands of other thought to be overly uptight male wolves, started coming out with their own stories about having the same condition as President Nightwolf, including Rafes own brother Nago, who’d thought he’d been alone all this time.
And did somebody say righteous non-profit? Well, you know, Rafes’s mama and aunts were all over that. Alisha, Tu, and their Janelle, their older sister, switched from anti-black boxers to pro-wolves with what they labeled “Nightwolf Syndrome” on a dime, throwing all sorts of money into research and campaigning hard for Rafes to get re-elected.
With all that unexpected support, both Rafes’s and Myrna’s approval numbers soared. And Rafes had to revisit his personal security policy, because now they were nearly getting mobbed when the real him and the real Myrna appeared at political events.
But unfortunately, that unexpected win, meant that Rafes was busier than ever these days. When Rafes returned with Myrna to The Wolf House, eight months ago they’d excitedly told Wilma of their plans to settle down in Colorado. Take some time off even and just be together for a while. Even Alisha had been excited, because now one of the three grandchildren she was expecting would actually be living with her and Rafe Sr. in the Colorado kingdom house.
But Rafes winning a second term in office ruined all those plans. He’d gone and got too busy again. Like his flight out to North Dakota to reclaim his she-wolf had never happened.
He no longer came down to eat breakfast with her and Myrna anymore, even in hologram form. And then during Myrna’s second trimester, Bohdan decided to hand over the IWF reins to his daughter, Sana, who’d immediately turned around and invited Myrna back to the promotion to take part in the storyline until she popped out her kid and could come back to the ring to fight for real pretend. Wilma couldn’t help but wonder if Myrna’s decision to start touring with the IWF again, during her second trimester, had been more about having some company other the her Most Honored, but also grumpy and boring grandmother.
And as happy as Wilma was for Myrna’s return to wrestling, Wilma worried about what leading such wildly different and time-consuming lifestyles would mean for Myrna's relationship with Rafes.
They still hadn’t gotten married in the human way, claiming it was too much on either of their schedules to plan. But Rafes hadn’t even put a ring on it, yet. And while Wilma had gone to every match Myrna had participated in since returning to the IWF in an actor role only, Rafes hadn’t been to a single one.
“…get Bohdan to come to the wedding!”
The mention of Bohdan’s name jogged Wilma from her anxious thoughts.
“What did you say?” she asked her grandson, Nago, who’d brought his nine-month-old out to the match. To all of the humans in attendance, his little girl looked like a puppy in Halle’s arms.
Nago was talking to Knud who sat on the other side of Wilma without his wife or six-month old, since Layla was too famous to easily attend a human wrestling match, even one with mostly wolves in the audience.
Knud leaned in to answer her question. “You know how Halle’s planning this triple wedding…?”
Wilma rolled her eyes, blatantly lest any of these young fools thought she approved of that triple wedding mess. The thing was, Nago and Knud had already gotten married in separate ceremonies. Knud’s and Layla’s had even been featured on all the human media sites. But some ancestor or other of Halle’s had a vision three hundred years ago about three brothers getting married to three she-wolves under some doggone magnolia tree in the recently refurbished Mississippi kingdom house’s backyard. So now instead of inviting everybody out to see their fully remodeled house like a normal she-wolf would, Halle was insisting everybody haul their asses down to her hot-as-East-Jesus-desert state to attend a triple wedding in three months.
But… “What does the wedding have to do with Bohdan?” she asked Knud, yelling to be heard over the crowd.
“I just thought since the IWF unfired Myrna maybe he’d be willing to come to the wedding,” Nago yelled back.
�
��Because President Robot’s really going to be like yeah, sure, Nago, let’s invite a human to the wedding just because he’s your hero,” Knud said, throwing his younger triplet a skeptical look.
“You don’t know,” Nago insisted. “Rafes has changed a lot lately.”
“Not that much,” Knud answered with a snort.
A sick feeling curdled Wilma’s stomach, because she knew Bohdan would never come to the wedding, even if Rafes let them invite him.
She still hadn’t told a soul about her visit to Bohdan’s office. And though Myrna asked her about it at the first breakfast they ate without her mate, a couple of days after Rafes’s re-election, she’d back off when Wilma said, “Your Most Honored Grandmother doesn’t want to talk about it.”
“Maybe what I should do is go up and ask him at the after party tonight,” Nago shouted across her to Knud. “Worry about President Robot later.”
“There’s an after party?” Wilma asked.
“Yeah, the Vikings are throwing a huge one at the Detroit kingdom house for Myrna and all the humans. But don’t worry grandma, we’ve already got a drone arranged for you to go stay in the Upper Peninsula house tonight.”
“What?” she asked them. “How are you just going to decide all of that without me?”
Nago and Knud exchanged a confused look.
“Because we always decide all of that without you,” Nago answered carefully. “You know, ever since you told us to decide all of that without you because you were just waiting to die.”
Yeah, I did say that, didn’t I? Wilma thought with a grumble. And that was still her whole life plan. But something about them making this particular decision for her grated on her nerves.
“Ladies and Gentlemen,” a voice boomed before she could formulate her thoughts into any kind of response. “We have a very special surprise for you all tonight. Look to your left, won’t you, because entering the ring for the first time in over twenty years, it’s BOHDAN… BOHDAN THE TERRIBLE is BACK where he first started…right here in the Coliseum."
The Brothers Nightwolf Complete Trilogy: A Sci-Fi Shifter Paranormal Romance Box Set Page 71