“That would be me.” He smiled.
Sam might have been getting a kick out of the situation, but I was not. My blood positively boiled at the thoughts of people spying on me. My private life was not, nor would it ever be, any business of theirs!
“Don’t you have anything better to do?” I sneered nastily.
“What do you mean?” she stammered.
“I mean, does no one in this town have enough of a life to interest them even slightly more than who I might be sleeping with?”
“Well, you don’t have to get mean about it. If you don’t want to answer, just say so,” she sounded brave, but Lola was beginning to cringe behind her computer.
“I’m not being mean, Lola. Mean is spying on your neighbors and running your mouth about things that you don’t understand. What you’re witnessing right now is not me being mean. This is how someone reacts when confronted with idiocy in motion.” The more I spoke the more soft and deadly my voice became.
Normally, I don’t have such a short fuse, but Lola had pushed the right button on the wrong day. In spite of my reaction, I could still see the question in her eyes. She still wanted to know if any of it was true.
“Rumors will fly as long as idiots give them wings,” I snarled as I picked up the movies and made my way to the door.
Sam walked quickly to catch up enough to open the door for me. As I stepped out onto the sidewalk he glanced back at Lola and added, “For the record, I’m staying in the guest room.”
When I tried to open the door, my hand was shaking so much I nearly scratched the paint with the key.
“Give it up.” Sam stretched his open hand toward me.
Fortunately, we’d parked around the side of the building away from Lola and her prying eyes.
“What?” I asked.
“You are way too upset to drive.”
He was right. I handed over the keys and climbed into the passenger seat. Once we were out of the parking lot Sam asked, “You want to explain to me what the hell that was all about?”
“It just pisses me off,” I snapped.
“Well, no shit, but do you realize you’re shaking?”
“You would be too if people had talked about you behind your back your whole life.”
I launched into an explanation about how ever since I was in school people kept deliberately starting things with me. I had never understood why. I didn’t sleep around. I didn’t start fights. For the most part I was really easy going until someone finally pushed my buttons one time too many.
“The shit they say has never been true,” I panted.
“Let me guess, these rumors are spread mostly by women.” It wasn’t a question.
“Yeah, so?”
“So, they’re jealous.”
“Of what? Being the center of ridicule? They want everyone watching every move they make, hmm?”
“I take it these rumors have never prevented you from getting a date?”
“What are you implying? I might not be a saint, but I’m nothing compared to some of the whores in this town. That bitch back there’s seen more wang than the Hong Kong phone book.”
Sam laughed out loud and swerved a little.
“I’m not implying anything. I’m just saying that anyone who takes the time to actually know you will see right through all that crap. You’re not like them, and that’s a good thing. Take this Elijah character for instance. Apparently he’s a hot item around these parts.”
“You picked up on that, huh?”
“Yeah.” He smiled. “The thing is they can’t compete with you fairly for someone intelligent enough to see the real you.
So pettiness like that is their only means of competition.”
I shook my head and sighed. “I just don’t understand it.”
“Jealousy?”
“I guess. Apparently I don’t see what it is everybody else does when they look at me. Like today, my hair isn’t even fixed. I don’t understand why they’re so threatened.”
“And that’s part of your appeal.” He winked.
“My lack of self confidence? Oh yeah, that’s real attractive.”
Sam sighed as he reached over and took hold of one my hands to prevent me from cracking my knuckles any more.
“Men love a beautiful woman who has no idea that she’s beautiful.”
His kind smile quenched the fire that memories of past wrongs had only helped to fuel. We decided to go through the drive through for Chinese on the way home. It was a relief to go some place where they didn’t give a damn who I was in the car with.
The small Chinese restaurant in town was run by a family from China who stuck out about as much as I did. Not only did they not join in the local gossip, they really didn’t seem to care. With most of the locals, they pretended not to speak English just to avoid nosy and ignorant questions. But with me, they would talk freely and were always pleasant. It was nice to know they didn’t put me in the same category with everyone else.
Once we were back home, Sam carried in the take-out and I grabbed the movies.
“Where do you want to eat?”
“Take it in the sitting room. We’ll just eat in front of the TV.”
The entertainment center and television sat sort of in the corner of the sitting room. It was on the wall opposite the fireplace and just to the left of the open entrance past the stairs. I brought in two large glasses of tea and propped my dinner on a pillow across my lap while Sam started the first movie. I couldn’t help admiring how good he looked in those faded old jeans. Marco still had him beat, but Sam was worth a second look. Maybe there was something about werewolves that just made them more noticeable. That was a possibility, but something told me Sam had always had a way with jeans.
“So how come you have a sitting room and everybody else has a living room?” he grinned.
“Because this house was built before everyone lived around the television. So therefore, in a house this old, it’s a sitting room.”
We ate dinner while making occasional comments about the movies, but we were mostly quiet. No matter how hard I tried to pay attention to our little movie marathon, I was nervous and kept fidgeting.
“Come here,” Sam said and stretched out his arm toward me.
I hesitated for a minute and he added, “I won’t bite.”
I scooted closer and let Sam put his arm around me. It wasn’t quite the comfort I got from Marco, but it helped.
—
At four o’clock Sam woke me.
“You alright?”
“Yeah,” I mumbled. “What did I miss?”
“Darlin’ you missed it all.” He smiled.
He asked if I wanted to go to bed or stay there while he watched some show about Egyptian pyramids. Both of us knew we would most likely be up all night anyway, so I decided to stay with Sam. If I went upstairs my mind would start working overtime again. Besides, falling asleep next to him was the first rest I’d gotten in a week that hadn’t required serious meditation. I tried not to wonder why I was so comforted by the presence of an alpha werewolf.
—
Early the next morning I woke up with my head on a pillow in Sam’s lap. I looked up and found him watching me.
“It’s over,” he said.
“How do you know?”
He pointed to the clock. “It’s time for him to be back.”
Before I could sit up straight the phone rang and I ran for it. Screw pride, I needed to know that Marco was safe.
“That was quick, Red,” Marco’s deep voice rumbled through the phone.
“I hate you,” I panted.
“Yeah, I know. That’s why you sound like you ran to the phone, so you could go on hating me, right?”
“Exactly.”
Both of us knew the real reason I’d ran to the phone, but neither one of us spoke up. We talked briefly and he told me the hearing seemed to have gone well. I could hear the relief in his voice, and it did me good. I felt a tension I had not previousl
y noticed begin to loosen within me as he spoke.
Even if the council didn’t go along with his ideas, they hadn’t killed him. It would be several weeks at least before I would find out if that was still my job.
“Aldan Medwin in particular seemed to be interested in what I had to say.”
Aldan Medwin was the wizard who had taken the council seat vacated by Mathias, after Alek Ambrose had refused the appointment.
“Really?”
“Yes, he seemed quite sympathetic.”
After a few minutes my heart began to beat normally again and I passed the phone to Sam as he sauntered up behind me. Relief was not an accurate word for what I felt. The sound of Marco’s voice never failed to thrill me and that day was no exception. When Sam hung up he turned to me and said, “Now all we have to do is wait for their decision.”
“God knows how long that might take.”
“Yeah, and I’m in no position to ask Him.” He smiled.
Sam stayed through the rest of the week. I stood on the front porch Monday morning and watched as he disappeared down my drive way.
Elijah called a few days later to apologize for having been so busy. I didn’t bother to tell him that was alright, because everyone in town thought he’d been busy with me. We made plans for the weekend. I genuinely liked Elijah, but I mostly wanted to go out with him to dare people to say something else. He said there was somewhere he wanted to take me. I didn’t feel much like going out, but once Elijah smiled at me with those big blue eyes, I’d agree to go most anywhere.
Being by myself again wasn’t as bad as I’d expected.
Besides, with Mathias lodged somewhere in the back of my mind, I was never completely alone. Of course, no one knew that except me. How would you go about explaining that to someone? “Oh yeah, my great, great, grandfather’s consciousness still exists in the back of my mind and we chat sometimes when I meditate.” If I was ever looking for a room in the local nut house, that was a sure way to get there.
—
Elijah called again on Thursday and informed me I needed to bring my swimsuit. He said I was going to the beach if he had to drag me kicking and screaming. I don’t know why people got the impression that I never went outside. I’m just naturally pale. The best I get is a honeyed sort of cream color which is not exactly tan.
Since it had been at least a few years since I’d been swimming, I called Kat and informed her we were going shopping. We went to a local mall since shopping on the beach was a good way to get ripped off. Once we were inside the store, Kat immediately started looking at some suits that could only be described as vaguely obscene.
“No way in hell,” I said, before she could even suggest it.
“Not for you, for me.” She chuckled, but I could see through her lie.
“Oh, sure. Like you could fit any more than I could into that top.”
Kat and I were both very well endowed, so selecting a swimsuit that didn’t look like an old lady or flash parts you wanted to keep private always proved a challenge.
“It’s a conspiracy,” she announced finally.
“What’s that?”
“I think all the women in the world who have small breasts get together and design clothes the rest of us can’t fit into.”
“Most likely. I guess that’s their revenge.” I laughed.
“It has to be! How else would you explain this?”
After narrowing down my search to a few pieces, I decided to try them on. From the changing booth beside me I kept hearing Kat make comments like, “You’ve got to be kidding me!” and “No fucking way!”
Every time I squeezed into another unflattering suit, I just laughed and agreed with her. I finally decided on a sort of faded green and blue one piece. The top began as an earthy green and faded gradually into a blue. It went well with my hair.
Before we left, I also bought a large white mesh tunic to wear over the suit. I wasn’t embarrassed or ashamed of my figure. On the contrary, I had worked hard for my shape and was quite proud of it. I just didn’t want to feel so ... naked around Elijah all day. Not that a see-through tunic would do much good at hiding anything, but it made me feel better.
When I had showed Kat the suit she said, “Ooo, nice. I think he’ll like that.”
“And what makes you think I care what he likes?”
“Because if you didn’t you’d just go in a pair of cut off shorts and a tank top.”
“Bitch.”
“Slut.”
About this time a little gray haired old lady had been passing by where we stood and gave us the strangest look.
Kat and I both burst out laughing which, judging by the woman’s facial expression, only proved we were insane.
—
My father called early Friday morning. I heard my communicator beeping on the table beside the bed and pressed the call button. Immediately my father’s very disgruntled image appeared before me.
“Good morning, Daddy.”
He grunted.
“Is it that bad?”
“I’m not really sure. I suppose you’ve been wondering what I found out this week?”
I nodded and pretended I hadn’t heard anything about the hearing before then. It wouldn’t do to let him know I’d already heard how things went from Marco. But then again, it wouldn’t do for the council to realize that my father had had a bug in the building.
“From what I was able to hear, things look very good for the lycans.”
“Really? How much did you hear?”
He shrugged, “Everything, of course. Jacob Mercury doesn’t do half assed spying.”
“Get over yourself and tell me what you heard,” I teased.
“Well the thing is ... he had a good point.”
“What?” I hadn’t expected to hear that.
My father ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily.
“What he said made a lot of sense.” He paused before continuing, “At one point he said that what happened to him could have happened to any of the Hunters. Men and women who had served their purpose well only to have their government turn its collective back on them when something went wrong.”
My dad looked positively horror struck. “He’s right. I was there when Marco Barak was attacked ... and it could have been me ... it could have been anybody.”
I was quiet for a few minutes while he seemed to be lost in a terrible memory.
“You never told me that. What happened?”
“Alfred and I were called in to help take down a real sicko.
This guy had contracted the virus a few years earlier and seemed to get a sick thrill out of spreading it to the most beautiful women he could find.”
“I take it he didn’t attack them?”
“No, he would bite or scratch them during sex. Sometimes the mark would be so slight that the poor women would have no idea what had happened until they grew fur. If you ask me that’s a hell of a wake up call.”
I watched as my father’s hologram walked over to the cabinet and took out what looked like a bottle of whiskey. He poured himself two shots before continuing with his story.
“I had to kill some of them,” he said in a quiet, haunted voice. “They were raving mad. They hadn’t had the slightest idea that something was wrong with them until they started to turn.... Some committed suicide.”
“Why was he let go for so long?” I asked.
“Because we could never quite get our hands on the bastard.” He sighed. “So this time, they called in two units.
One was Barak and his partner, the other was Alfred and me.
When we got there, Alfred and George, that was Marco’s partner, went to the front. Since they both wanted to go in guns blazing, we figured the front door would be the best place for that.”
He sat back down at the table and stared into space for a minute or two.
“Daddy?”
“Yeah?” he answered absently.
“You don’t have to talk about this if
you don’t want to.”
“It’s alright,” he said. “It’s just been a long time since I’ve thought about any of this.”
After another minute he continued, “So, we heard them bust in the front and we knocked down the back door. Neither one of us was prepared for what this guy had in his kitchen.
One of the women he’d turned was on a leash attached to the floor with a silver chain. See, we also didn’t know that he was an alpha male and because of this was able to force those weaker than him to maintain their animal forms.”
“That’s horrible. So, she was in wolf form chained to the kitchen floor?”
“She had been forced to hold a form somewhere in between. So, when we broke into the kitchen, there was a shewolf chained to the floor that was not only frightened and angry, but she had been starved for weeks.”
I was afraid to ask what happened. Part of me wanted to know, but I almost told him to stop.
“Once Alfred and George were halfway through the house, a stray bullet hit the chain and she lunged at us. Marco had been standing slightly in front of me and she just happened to take him down first. George came running in and stabbed her in the back several times before she let go, but the damage was done. Marco’s chest was torn to shreds and the flesh hung back from one of his forearms.”
“What happened to George?”
“She turned on him next ... and tore his throat out. Alfred was out of bullets and I was pinned beneath Barak. Marco had a blade in his right boot, the kind that extended from beneath the toes when you hit the heel.” He looked stricken and kept running his fingers absently through his hair.
“When she was done with George and turned back for us, he stabbed her underneath the chin. He held his injured arm to his chest, got to his feet, and with his good arm took the silver machete from his belt.”
I knew what was coming next, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell him to stop talking. It was sort of like driving by a car accident. You don’t really want to see something terrible, but you can’t stop yourself from looking.
“I got to my feet, but couldn’t seem to go further. I can’t say how long Alfred and I stood there while he chopped that werewolf to pieces ... screaming.... It was the most awful sound I’d ever heard. He sounded like his soul had been violated. It was terrible.”
Object of My Affection Page 4