by TJ Klune
“Joe?” Dad asked.
But Joe never looked away from the window.
Soon the kid from the diner would show up in the yard, my brother tugging on his hand, telling us of candy canes and pinecones. Of epic and awesome.
But that was later.
My father said, “Let’s go home.”
We drove on.
I saw it before we left the street. My father did too. I know he did.
The sign.
GORDO’S.
He didn’t say anything.
I didn’t either.
GREEN CREEK HADN’T CHANGED in the year I’d been gone. It looked as it always did. Oh, some of the stores looked as if they’d gotten a fresh coat of paint, and the awnings were new, but it was still the same town I’d left behind. Lights had been hung up on lampposts and garland placed along benches and signs.
And the people.
All of the people.
They heard us coming.
They appeared in the doorways.
On the salted sidewalks, the melting snow shoveled off the curbs.
They filled the streets.
Kelly slowed the truck to a halt before turning it off.
“Why are we stopping?” I whispered.
I felt him looking at me. “You know why. They’ve been waiting for you.”
“I don’t know if I can do this.”
He said, “You can. I know you can. After everything, you deserve this. They’ll want to see you.” And then, remarkably, he laughed. “Mr. Mayor.”
I groaned. “Holy shit. I forgot about that. How the hell did that happen?”
“I have no idea,” Kelly said. “Everyone is going to yell at you.”
I looked at him. “They know?”
He nodded. “They do. They… they aren’t pack. But most understand what it means. Or at least the idea of it. They know you’re important to us. To this place.” His smile trembled. “To me.”
I reached over and wrapped my hand around his neck, pulling him close. He pressed his forehead against mine. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Never giving up on me.”
He breathed me in. “You’re my brother. I would never let you go. And you made me a promise once.”
“That I’d always come back to you.”
“And you did.” He laughed again. “You did.”
He climbed out of the truck. People swarmed him, all talking excitedly. They waved at us through the windshield, standing on their tiptoes, trying to see me. To see us.
I looked at Gavin. “All right?”
He shook his head. “Loud. All the noise. I don’t…. They don’t know me.”
“Not as you are now. But they remember the wolf always following me around.”
He scowled at me. “You die easy. Fall in hole or something and die.”
Because that was something that often happened. “We’re going to have to talk about everything. And it’s not going to be a one-sided conversation.”
He looked away.
“But not yet. Let’s get through this first, okay?”
He nodded stiffly.
And then I heard a howl.
My chest hitched. I knew that song. I knew it very well.
It echoed through the street. The people fell silent. They bowed their heads as if in reverence.
I looked out the door Kelly had left open.
The crowd parted.
There, standing in the middle of the street, was an Alpha.
He was as big as I remembered him, bigger than almost anything in the entire world. He wore a work shirt, his name stitched in two red letters on his chest. He told me once when he’d first been given a shirt like it that it made him feel like he had a place to belong. That he’d found his home.
Oil stained the tips of his fingers.
His dark hair was a little longer, ruffling in the quiet breeze.
He smiled, slow and sure.
I almost fell out of the truck trying to get to him, needing to feel him, needing to know he was real and to let him know that I had never forgotten him, had never forgotten any of them, and please, please, please let me still be in your pack, please let me still be your Beta, please let me stay.
The townspeople spoke in hushed whispers, reaching out to touch me on the arm, the shoulders. They didn’t touch my neck because they knew it wasn’t their place. But I only had eyes for him.
I moved as if in a dream, the colors around me muted and hazy.
And if it was a dream, if I woke and found none of this was real, I would never recover.
I stopped in front of him.
He watched me, the power emanating from him all-encompassing.
I fell to my knees, grabbing his hand and holding on as tightly as I could.
And with the last of my strength, I tilted my head to the side, baring my throat to him.
His smile broke. He took in a great, shuddering breath, closing his eyes. He pulled his hand away from me, and I felt cold. But then he cupped my face, his thumbs brushing my cheeks.
He opened his eyes. They swirled with a mixture of red and violet.
Oxnard Matheson said, “Hello, Carter.”
“Alpha,” I whispered.
The smile returned full force. He held me in his big hands, and I turned my face to kiss his palm. Somewhere deep inside my head, I heard his voice for the first time in a long time. It was faint, but I knew it would grow stronger.
It said, BrotherPackLove i hear you i see you you are here you are home.
“Did you find what you were looking for?” he asked.
I nodded in his hands. “I’m sorry.”
“For?”
“Everything.”
“That’s… appropriately vague.”
I said, “Please. Please let me stay. Please let me come home. Please don’t let me leave again. Ox, Ox, Ox, I can’t do this on my own anymore. I’m tired. I’m so tired, Alpha. And I can’t, I can’t, I can’t—”
He pulled me up before I knew what was happening. And then he enveloped me, wrapping his arms around me, holding me against him. I clutched at his back, and for a moment I was reminded how it felt to hug my father. How safe it always made me feel. How it always felt like everything would be all right in the end. I didn’t know what I’d had when I left. I didn’t understand, not fully. I did now.
Ox whispered in my ear, quiet words of love and peace, a song that only exists between brothers. Even when my knees buckled, he held me up. I tried to take it in, tried to take it all in, but it was too much. It was too big. Too grand. I felt so small.
He pulled away, but only just. His breath was warm on my face.
He said, “My Beta. You’ve been gone from me for a long time. From all of us.”
“I’m sorry, I’m so goddamn sorry.”
He shook his head slowly. “There’s time for all of that later. Let me look at you. Let me see you.”
I did. His gaze crawled over me, and then his fingers brushed against my throat, and there it was in my chest. A bright light. A bond between an Alpha and his wolf. It wasn’t like it was with Joe. Joe’s was ingrained with me because our blood was the same. Ox’s was different but no less important. He leaned forward and kissed my forehead. I knew everyone was watching us, but I didn’t care. All that mattered was that my Alpha was accepting me back, even in the face of all I’d done.
He said, “He’s here. You found him.”
I nodded. “He’s scared, Ox. He’s—”
“Motherfucker!”
I barely had time to react before my breath was knocked from my chest. I went down hard, rolling on the ground, heavy bodies falling on top of me.
“You stupid asshole,” Rico growled, orange eyes bright.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Chris snapped.
“You’re the dumbest wolf in the history of any wolf ever,” Tanner snarled.
“Can’t… breathe….”
“Yeah, well, you deserve it
,” Rico said, sitting on my legs. He was dressed like Ox, in his work shirt and pants. He’d apparently decided a goatee was the right thing to do for his face. I wondered how much shit Bambi gave him for it. I hoped it was a lot. “What the fuck were you thinking? I always knew you were an idiot, but I didn’t think you were that big of an idiot.”
“It’s the mystical moon magic,” Tanner said. He was behind me, near my head, leaning over me and studying my face. “Makes you do dumb things like killing deer and running away to chase after a piece of ass.” He frowned. “Do you even know what do to with a dick? I mean, good on you for realizing what everyone else knew for a long time, but man, you’ve gotta change your whole outlook on things. I know what to do with my dick, but someone else’s?” He shook his head. “That’s a lot of work.”
“Would you stop talking about dicks?” Chris hissed at him. He was crouched at my side, my hand in his. “Everyone can hear you!”
Tanner rolled his eyes. “Oh, like they don’t know.” He looked down at me again. “I’m being serious. Everyone knows.”
“Jesus Christ,” I muttered. I glared at Rico. “Would you get off me?”
“Nope,” he said easily. “You’re lucky I’m not tearing out your intestines.” He lifted his right hand, holding it above my stomach. Claws popped out from the tips of his fingers. “I’m pretty much the best werewolf that ever existed. I got that shit locked down like you wouldn’t believe.”
“Are you… threatening me?”
He squinted down at me. “Yeah. Is that not clear?” He looked at Tanner and Chris. “I thought that was pretty clear.”
Chris shrugged. “I got it. But Joe said that Carter was a little nuts, so maybe he forgot what it felt like to be threatened.” He looked down at me again. He leaned forward until his face was a few inches from my own. “He still looks like Carter. Too thin, but otherwise, yeah. Are you still a little nuts?”
Tanner shoved him. “Don’t joke about stuff like that. It’s mean.”
“I’m trying to see if he’s Omega Carter or Regular Carter.”
“Oh,” Tanner said. “Huh. Right. Well, then. Keep going. I want to know now too.”
I couldn’t help it. I laughed.
They looked down at me, startled.
I couldn’t stop. I clutched my stomach, the sound bellowing out of me.
“Uh-oh,” Rico said. “I think we broke him.” He stood up, his feet on either side of my legs. He held his hand out for me. Still laughing, I took it. He pulled me up with ease, stronger than he’d ever been as a human. He squawked when I hugged him. “Yeah, yeah,” he muttered into my throat as he patted my back. “Good to see you too. Pendejo.”
Chris and Tanner apparently didn’t want to be left out, and I wondered wildly what an outsider would think if they came into Green Creek at that moment. They’d see the streets filled with people who were watching four grown men clutching each other like it was the last thing they’d ever do.
“All right?” Chris asked as they pulled away.
I nodded, wiping my eyes. “I am now.”
Tanner looked over my shoulder. “I see you got your boy.”
“He’s not my—”
“Nope,” Rico said. “Not even going to listen to that. You want to tell that shit to yourself? Fine. Knock yourself out. But don’t you try and say that to us. Not after what you did to find him. I will fucking lay you out. Don’t think I won’t.”
“Oof,” Chris said. “That’s right. You haven’t met Daddy Rico yet.”
“Do it,” Tanner whispered to me. “Call him Daddy Rico. See what he does.”
“Daddy Rico,” I said promptly because I was helpless to do anything but.
And oh, how Rico smiled. He pulled his wallet from his back pocket. He flipped it open, and an entire sleeve of photographs in plastic fell out. There were at least ten of them, and in all of them was a baby with a shocking amount of dark hair. “He looks just like me,” Rico said proudly. “Well, that’s what I think. Bambi says he looks like her grandfather, which, I mean, don’t tell her I said this, but that’s just ridiculous. Why would my child—excuse me, our child—look like an old man?” He shook his head. “She doesn’t know what she’s talking about. Again, don’t tell her I said that.”
I reached out and touched the pictures. “Is he pack?”
Rico puffed out his chest. “Damn right he is. Future Team Human right here. I’m going to give him my guns when he’s old enough.”
Oh dear god. “How does Bambi feel about that?”
Rico shrugged. “It was her idea. She’s pretty much the best.”
“Joshua,” I said. “Joshua Thomas Espinoza.”
He nodded. “I didn’t know your dad, not well at least. Met him a couple of times. But it seemed like the right thing to do. Bambi thought so too. We asked your mom, and she said it was okay.” He looked nervous. “You’re okay with it too, right?”
I hugged him again. “Yeah.”
He laughed in my ear, patting my back. “Trust us,” he said quietly. “From here on out, okay? Just… don’t do anything like that again. You scared us, Carter.”
I pulled away. “I’ll do my best.”
He wasn’t pleased to hear that, but he didn’t argue. “Come on. Let’s get to the house. I know there are some people who want to see you.”
I looked around. “They’re not in town?”
Tanner shook his head. “It’s Sunday, papi. Tradition. They’re at the house waiting for us. We only came into the shop today to get ahead on work so we can close for a couple of days. Give you a proper welcome back. Probably yell at you a little too.”
Chris grabbed me by the arm, pulling me back toward the truck. “By proper welcome, he means lying on top of you. You know how it is.”
“Being a werewolf is so weird,” Rico said. “If I’m not randomly craving hunting down some raw meat, then I’m wanting to make sure everyone I know smells like me. But I can do backflips for whatever reason, so I guess it all evens out.”
“He does them even when there’s no reason to,” Tanner whispered to me, and I wanted to hear them talk forever. “Walking into a room, walking into the garage, just… walking anywhere, really. It got old real fast. You’ll see. Maybe you can convince him to cool it. He doesn’t listen to the rest of us.”
We were stopped almost immediately, people crowding around us, smiling widely as they shook my hand or squeezed my arm. They said they were happy to see me, that it was good I was back, that it wasn’t the same without me. A few of them told me they’d taken over some of my responsibilities to the town, even though the title of mayor was mostly for show, to keep Bennetts embedded into the fabric of Green Creek.
Will, the owner of the motel on the outskirts of town, was one of the last. He was carrying, his revolver strapped to his hip. He hugged me roughly. “Good to see you, Carter,” he said. “You tell me where to shoot, and I’ll kill whatever I need to. Been training some of the guys.” He stepped back. “And by guys, I mean men and women. Jessie made sure of that. Said that women are just as good a shot as men. I thought about arguing with her, but then a couple of the girls from the diner put me to shame during target practice, so I decided it was best I let Jessie do whatever she wants. Seemed safer, anyway. I’m all about female empowerment now.”
I grinned at him. “Jessie is scary when she wants to be.”
“Don’t I know it. Now, get on home, you hear me? Your mama is waiting. You’re probably in for an earful. I’d hate to be you right now, that’s for sure. Elizabeth Bennett is not to be trifled with.”
He turned around and started waving his hands. “That’s it!” he yelled. “That’s the show, folks! Get out of the damn road and let them through. Boy’s gotta get home so they can do werewolf stuff. Let ’em hear it!”
My skin prickled when the humans tilted their heads back and howled. All of them. They’d gotten better at it. They almost sounded like wolves.
I paused when I saw Ox standing at
the passenger side of the truck. He wasn’t speaking, though the window was rolled down. Gavin’s head was bowed.
“What’s going on?” I asked Kelly. I trusted Ox, but it still made me nervous.
Kelly shook his head. “Just… being near him, I guess. Letting him know that he’s welcome. That he was always supposed to be here.” He looked at me. “Does he know that, you think?”
“He’ll learn,” I muttered. “One way or another.”
“Go easy on him, Carter.”
I blinked. “What?”
Kelly bumped his shoulder against mine. “He’s not used to this. He’s been a wolf more than he’s been human, and for a long time. He’s got to learn how to be this way again. You’ve got your work cut out for you.”
“I can do it,” I said, hating how defensive I sounded.
“I know. And he’s lucky to have someone like you. Just be gentle about stuff.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Gentle? Gentle about what?”
He sighed. “Oh boy.”
“What stuff? Kelly? Kelly!”
But he ignored me as he walked around to the driver’s side.
Ox reached in and touched Gavin’s shoulder. Gavin didn’t pull away, but it looked like he wanted to. He was radiating so much discomfort a human could have sensed it. Ox withdrew his hand. “Whenever you’re ready,” Ox said. “I’ll be here.”
Gavin nodded tightly. He lifted his head and relaxed when he saw me.
THE DIRT ROAD WAS THE SAME.
The trees were the same.
Gavin was breathing heavily. Before I could ask him what was wrong, he reached over and grabbed my hand again and pulled it into his lap.
I said, “Thump, thump, thump.”
He nodded. “Loud. Always loud.” Then, “Ox. Oxnard.”
“What about him?”
“Said I was still Omega.”
“Yeah. I guess you are.”
“Said I didn’t have to be. That I needed to trust him. He would be my Alpha. Joe too.”
I needed to tread carefully. “They were once. Weren’t they?”
