by Terra Wolf
"A little." I'd never been invited into his office before. I felt out of place. This was a side of him I'd never known. There were plaques on the wall detailing his many accomplishments. Sports memorabilia sat on shelves. Family photos hung nearby.
He followed my gaze. We sat in uncomfortable silence for a moment while I wrestled with my instinct to ask him why I never mattered, why my mother and I couldn't have shared those kind of memories with him, but that's not what I was here for, so I finally had to force myself not to react.
"Don't read too much into that. I've already explained why things had to be the way they are."
If he thought that would resolve all of our issues, it didn't, but there was no use in trying to deal with that now. He'd summoned me here for a reason and I just wanted to get it over with and go home. My mother should have been flying back to Florida today, but with all that had happened, although I tried to convince her, she refused to leave yet.
"So, I'm here. You wanted to talk to me?" I could feel the strain in my voice. Why was I having this reaction to him?
He opened his mouth to speak, then, sighed. This wasn't easy for him either. I hoped what I was witnessing was him feeling guilty about everything he’d done and everything he’d failed to do in life.
"Close the door, son."
"Son?" He'd never called me 'son' to my face before.
"Yeah, just close the door, please. I don't need the whole department up in arms over this. I already have enough to worry about," he complained.
I shut the door, noticing the other family photos on the wall behind the door. His family looked like any other family. There were holiday photos and vacations photos and what looked like someone's graduation photos.
I couldn't help myself. I had to ask."How do you sleep at night, knowing you abandoned us? Why would you go off and create a new family when you already had one?" Years of emotions welled up in my throat.
He stood up to face me. "I didn't abandon you. I did what I had to do to protect you and your mother."
"Marnie." He looked at me quizzically. "Say her name. It's Marnie. Your wife, remember?"
I'd hit a nerve. A small muscle just under his right eye twitched. I didn't back down. I wanted him to acknowledge what he'd done. I needed to hear him say the words.
After a moment's hesitation, he exhaled slowly. His muscles relaxed. I knew the stance. He refused to engage. "I know what her name is and, yes, she was my wife. Look, son... Gabriel, all of that was a long time ago. I know, you were hurt. I know that I hurt her, but this isn't the time or the place to discuss it. I didn't call you here for this," he explained.
"Then, why don't you tell me why I'm here?"
I'd frustrated him. I could see it. I'd lived my whole life dreaming about this exact moment, but somehow it didn't feel like I thought it would. I don't know what I expected, but this wasn't it.
He sat down and motioned for me to do the same. "I've come up with a plan for now. I'm not sure how well it will work, but we need to do something. First, you have to get your mother... um, Marnie," he corrected himself before continuing, "out of here. She doesn't need to be involved and things may get ugly. Then, we'll have to--"
I interrupted him, "What do you mean get rid of her? I can't just get rid of her. I tried to get her to go home, but she refused. What am I supposed to do with her? Maybe if you'd been around long enough, you would know that she doesn't let people tell her what to do."
He slammed his fists on his desk and yelled, "Okay, look, if this is how you want to play this out, then, let's do it, so you can stop whining and feeling sorry for yourself and move on. What you're doing right now isn't going to help anyone, and considering its you they want, you might want to listen to how you can save your ass."
I didn't know how to react. No man had ever spoken to me like that before and I didn't like it, but I knew I'd provoked him.
We sat in silence for a few moments. I could feel the tension in his body. Things had gone too far and, if I didn't stop it, I'd have no hope of resolving any of my issues.
"I'm sorry. You're right. This isn't the time for this. Go ahead. What's your plan?" I sat back in my chair, careful to keep my posture relaxed. This man, after all, was my father and he was offering to help me, so I'd be a fool not to at least listen to what he had to say, even though the wounded child in me wanted answers.
A hint of a smile flashed across his face before he answered. "I don't yet know why they chose you, but like I've explained before, they need you. We don't have to worry about how Janelle came to find you or anything. What we need to worry about is how to get rid of her and keep you from getting trapped by them. Quite frankly, if I wouldn't have shown up there, you wouldn't be sitting here right now." He shook his head.
He was right. I wasn't thinking and I could have ruined more than just my own life.
The look of triumph on my father's face was enough for me to keep my mouth shut. I'd messed up and, like it or not, I was going to have to let him help me. He had the experience. He knew the rules. My inheriting his bloodline didn't make me an expert. It made me a pawn in a game I'd never fully understand.
"Janelle is the key to ending this. As far as I know, she is the only female lurking right now. She needs to breed and my guess is she needs to do it soon, so she's desperate. We need to act quickly and be smart about it," he said.
"What do I have to do?" I was nervous to hear his answer.
"She'll need you in wolf form. You're useless to her as a human. We have to make sure she doesn't make you change. That will be up to you."
"How am I supposed to do that?"
His solution was to leave it up to me?
"Look, things aren't that different. Seduction is a means to an end. The end game here is that she needs to breed. You are her chosen breeder. It's not about her caring about you or wanting to spend her life with you as Gabriel. It's about how her clan can go on," he explained, but I wasn't following.
"If it’s a clan, why can't she breed with one of her own?" I asked.
My father contemplated for a moment, then, told me everything I needed to know about how things worked. I'd heard stories. Jesse had plenty of them to tell, but because I never allowed myself to enter into that world, I never learned the inner workings of it.
The only time I'd ever changed was in anger and, luckily, I'd been alone on one occasion and with Jesse, my best friend since childhood, on the other. I knew what he was. I didn't believe him at first. Guys told stories. I figured it was some other tall tale that a guy told to impress people, until I found out about my father.
I used to watch him whenever I could get enough gas money together to make a trip out his way. I'd sit in my old truck and watch him work and behave normally.
When he moved in with his current wife, I remember how angry I was that he took in a lady that had kids my age and he raised them instead of me. I saw them at community events and wished that I was them.
One night at the county fair, I saw some guys roughing up his stepson. I watched and didn't intervene. I thought the kid deserved it for stealing my father. After my dad chased the kids away, I watched him follow the kids out to the parking lot and drive after them. Curiosity got the better of me. I had to know what he was up to, so I jumped in my truck and followed all of them. By the time they got to the other side of town, I thought I should just turn back because it was ridiculous to follow, but then I saw something amazing.
My father jumped out of the car and lunged right for them. He attacked like a wild animal. He pummeled them with punches, one right after another. The teenagers didn't know what had hit them. There was no time to react. Then, my father ran off toward the Wildcats, leaving his truck behind.
I sat, parked behind some trees and watched as they started going through my father's car, ripping out the radio and breaking the lights. Then, out of the timber line came this wolf, but not just any wolf. It was the largest wolf I'd ever seen. It howled like the devil himself and went after th
e kids, ripping pieces of their flesh, sending them running for their lives.
He didn't kill them, but he did enough damage that there was a countywide call to capture and kill the wolves. Of course, no one ever let it get that far, but people were scared. They kept their children indoors for months after that purported vicious attack by a crazed wolf. No one except me knew that the wolf was actually my father. No one believed the teenagers when they told their stories and nothing ever came of it, at least not for my father.
For me though, my world changed. Things started to come together for me. I had some explanation for the strange sensations I'd had over the years. I had validation for what I'd thought were dreams or visions of some sort. I could see the reasons behind my mother's obsession with casting out spirits from our home. He was the reason. His abilities were behind the strange nightmares. From that point forward, I did anything and everything to make sure I hid the part of myself that was closest to him. I didn't want to be him. I didn't want to be whatever it was that he was, so I hid it from everyone, including myself at times.
…
My headache should have been the first sign that this day would not go well, but as I'd done so many times before, I overlooked it. A couple of pain pills would zap the problem, I thought. Turned out, I was wrong.
My mother sat waiting for me in the kitchen. It looked like an ordinary day, except that tensions were high for everyone. My mother and I had still not spoken about my revelation and neither of us dared bring up the subject of my father. Something had definitely changed, but because we'd spent so many years as a duo, we reverted back to the same old routines, if just for show. I sat down after kissing the top of her head. She encouraged me to eat breakfast. We spoke about the weather until we'd run out of things to say. It was time. I had to fill her in on what I'd learned.
"Mom," I started, but she put her hand up, warning me to tread lightly.
"I don't want to do this now. We don't have to. I've been thinking and studying and there's something we should try, but we can't talk about it now." She was very matter-of-fact. There would be no discussion and I would not win a battle with her like this. I acquiesced, feeling that she needed to maintain some sense of control.
"Okay, whatever you want to do."
She looked me directly in the eyes and said, "I've asked Regina to come home."
"What?"
Her hands were in the air already. "No, this isn't a debate. She needs to come home for this to work."
I had plenty to say about the matter, but didn't have the energy to discuss more than was necessary with her. My father had been adamant that we don't get my mother involved. He made me promise to abide by whatever she said and not let her catch on that we had a much bigger, albeit more dangerous plan in place.
"Okay. When will she be here?" I asked.
"She's on her way." My mother stood up and walked out of the kitchen, leaving me to sit with the realization that I'd now have to ensure not only her safety, but Regina's too. That was not part of the plan.
…
I waited for the car's engine to shut down. I needed a moment to gather my thoughts. It never occurred to me that my mother would reach out to Regina. I had no idea how to handle this strange turn of events.
"What did you tell her?" I asked my mother.
"The truth," she answered as she walked to the window to look out.
I closed my eyes. The pain in my head had multiplied. Every joint in my body ached. Every muscle throbbed. A feeling of doom washed over me.
My mother's gasp took me by surprise. She stood with her hand over her mouth and her eyes wide.
"What's wrong?" I rushed to her side.
"I can't. I can't." My mother couldn't breathe.
"Mom?" I grabbed her before her head hit the floor. "Mom!"
I checked her pulse. It was racing. Her breathing was shallow. I couldn't think. She needed help. My heart leaped out of my chest.
"Mom, breathe. Breathe. I'm right here. I'm here. It's okay. I'm here." I cradled her to me to console her.
The front door opened. From my vantage point on the ground, I could only make out a woman's shoe.
"Help. Mom collapsed. Call 911," I called out.
She didn't move. I waited to hear her make the call.
Nothing.
"Regina, call 911, please," I begged.
"Hello, Gabriel."
My heart leaped into my throat. This was not part of the plan.
Episode Four
My head started to spin. Why was she here? What did she want?
“I need help,” I cried out.
The second that passed as she stared into my eyes, felt like hours. My world was slipping away from me. My worst nightmare had only just begun.
“Help me, please,” I begged.
She looked to my mother, studying her limp frame. “Turn her on her side,” she ordered.
Feeling helpless, I did as she commanded. I had no other choice. With my mother lifeless in my arms, the last thing I could do was protest, although, every bone in my body begged me not to trust Janelle. She was the enemy. That's what my father told me. I knew it. More than anything, I knew better than to trust that she would help, but I had no other choice. She was the only one there.
“Move!” Janelle shoved me to the side with little effort. “Call 911.”
I froze, unable to believe that any of this was happening. My mother was fine only seconds earlier. Regina was supposed to be here. That's who we were expecting.
“Do it now!”
Her shrill scream woke me out of my frozen state and I grabbed my cell phone and dialed emergency services.
Just as the dispatcher answered, my mother opened her eyes, looked at Janelle and screamed, “Help!”
The operator started spouting questions at me, convinced that my mother was in grave danger. It took several minutes to convince her that that was not the case, but I didn't truly believe that we weren't in danger either based on her initial response.
We waited for volunteer firemen to arrive.
Janelle posed no threat that I could sense. She was helpful and seemingly concerned about my mother.
Adrenaline had taken over and my mother continued to urge me to get Janelle away from her, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Janelle remained by my side, offering words of support and tended to my mother like any caring person would. It didn't make sense. I thought I may have been wrong about her.
This wasn't the vile woman that my father warned me about. She seemed genuinely interested in our well-being. I had all but forgotten that Regina was expected to arrive until she pulled into the drive right after the volunteers did, then, my whole world collided.
The look in Janelle's eyes when she saw Regina emerge from the car and make her way to the front door spoke volumes about who she really was underneath the facade of a beautiful face and sensuous curves. She was out for blood.
“What is she doing here?” Janelle's words cut through the thick air as she moved past the firefighters and in Regina's direction.
I ignored her question. I owed her no explanation.
“What's going on?” Regina asked as I approached her.
“Something happened to Mom. I don't know yet.” Instinctively, I grabbed Regina's hand. The urge to shield her and protect her from Janelle was overwhelming.
Regina didn't protest or retreat. She squeezed my hand gently like she had countless times before. In my ear, she whispered, “Who is that?”
“Father Reynolds' niece.” I replied.
Janelle's eyes followed us as I stepped in between her and Regina and escorted Regina into the kitchen where the emergency workers were tending to my mother.
“We're going to take her down to Gering Regional. You can follow us in your own vehicle, if you like,” he advised me.
“Why? What happened to her? What is this?” I asked, looking at my mom. Her eyes were fixed on Janelle.
“Is your mother diabetic?”
; My mom snapped. “No. I already answered that question, Jed.”
The volunteer firefighter turned red. He remembered my mother from his childhood, but hadn't realized how good her memory was until she called him by name.
“Yeah, sorry. We're going to go ahead and let the doctor take a look at her. She's definitely alert and oriented now.” He smiled.
“Get her out of here,” my mother warned me.
“Mom, they are going to take you to the hospital,” I explained.
She didn't care. All she wanted was for Janelle to leave. I explained that we would all be leaving, but that wasn't enough for my mother. Her pleas were desperate, so much so that she tugged at Regina's shirt, begging her to get Janelle out of the house.
Regina's eyes were wide. She'd never heard my mother beg before and surely never expected my mother to look to her for support.
“Mom, we're all going to follow you. You won't be alone.” I grabbed my mother's hand to reassure her.
She squeezed mine back, crushing my fingers together. “Get her out of here! She's evil. Get her out,” my mother pleaded with me to listen.
The volunteers looked from me to my mother, then, back again. I'm sure they'd heard desperate cries from patient's before, but this had to have been a surprise. My mother was practically screaming at me. Janelle was seething mad, pacing back and forth from my kitchen to my living room and back.
Regina jumped into action, heading directly for Janelle to ask her to leave. She didn't know why, but at least had the presence of mind to heed my mother's warnings and make the first move. “They are taking Maria to the hospital. I'm going to have to ask you to leave.” Her tone was firm.
Janelle glared at her, not saying a word, but Regina didn't back down.
She waited.
I watched, waiting to see how this would play out while they took my mother outside to the ambulance. I was torn between wanting to see my mother off and wanting to protect Regina from Janelle.
