Lone Wolf Rising (Paranormal Romantic Thriller) (The Winters Series)

by Jami Brumfield

  "Of course." Celestia waved Rebecca forward. "You called this meeting. Please tell me what you are here for."

  As Rebecca moved forward, Lucky matched her steps. "I wanted to talk to you about my parents’ death."

  "That is something that happened many years ago. Something I paid dearly for, so you could imagine how that is not a subject I enjoy remembering." She flipped her red curls behind her shoulders.

  "No, I’m sure you don't." Rebecca approached slowly. What most people don't know is that vampires have a terrible smell to werewolves. With each step she took towards her, Rebecca could smell her rotting flesh, despite the glamour that made her beautiful; the truth of her existence was detected by Rebecca’s senses. She knew the red hair styled like Marilyn Monroe and flawless pale skin were simply an illusion because inside she was dead. Rebecca also knew the only way they could keep the illusion was to feed from human blood. "While I am sure you paid dearly..."

  "I lost my crown!" Celestia snarled.

  "As I said, you paid dearly, but so did I. My entire family has paid dearly for the loss."

  She waved her hand in the air, dismissing Rebecca’s statement. "As I am sure you know, little wolf, death is a fact of life. You will see many more members of your family and friends die with your newly extended life."

  "A vampire lecturing me on the idea of death is laughable." Rebecca bit her tongue. She had to stop antagonizing the vampire. They continued to walk forward. The room was massive. The closer they got the more uneasy the wolf became. She was getting very difficult to control.

  "I have loved and lost. And the one thing I have learned in my three hundred years is that grief has little to do with the lost love one and almost all to do with the pain you feel from losing them. You silly humans cannot seem to grasp that concept. Perhaps if you had more time things would be easier to understand."

  "Look, all I’m asking for is some information." Dismissing Celestia’s lecture the same way the vampire dismissed Rebecca.

  "Information does not come cheap in our world." Celestia snipped

  That was no surprise. "What will it cost me?"

  "A truce between your pack and my vampire faction."

  This time Rebecca did laugh. She honestly assumed the female vamp was making a joke. But the look on her face told Rebecca her assumption was wrong. There was no humor returned from her, simply an ice cold stare. "The vampires are suspected of killing off my entire pack. So you answer this suspicion by asking for a truce?"

  "Tomas needed to go, I will not dispute it. I am sure your alpha has already told you tales of the terror he raged on other supernatural species in Arizona. But I can promise you, my vampire clan had nothing to do with your pack's demise." Her blood-red tipped fingernails walked the length of the chaise as she spoke, showing more interest in their journey than the conversation.

  "Somehow, I doubt that." Did Celestia really think she believed that?

  She turned, head tilted, examining Rebecca from a different angle. "Dear, sweet child, vampires cannot lie when asked a direct question. Put your mind at ease and ask me."

  "So you had nothing to do with the attempted genocide?"

  She shook her head, "no, but I cannot say if the queen was involved. She has cast me out of the organization, left me in exile; fearful I will take my crown back."

  "You seem to be doing fairly good for yourself here in exile."

  "And I will do better with a truce between your pack and my faction. I may not be able to call myself queen yet, but I will take my crown back, and you on my side will make that easier."

  "You haven't given me anything in exchange for this truce. Tell me something to make me believe you have information worthy of such a deal." Rebecca had to stop her approach. Her senses couldn’t handle the assault anymore. It was like Celestia was decomposing in front of her. It was obvious the vamp needed to eat.

  "You would not be here unless you knew I had information. I tire of this back and forth. Think about my offer and when you are ready to make a deal, contact me again." And with that she dismissed both Rebecca and Lucky. She and her half naked men simply left the room.

  In the next moment, the gangly man entered from the hall and ushered them out of the mansion. "Well, that was a complete waste of time." Rebecca told Lucky when they were alone.

  He didn't answer. He simply laced his fingers with hers and led them back to the Escalade. It wasn't until they were in the vehicle that he actually spoke. "That visit told me two things. Celestia is planning a move on Violet, and she plans to use you to get what she wants. That makes her dangerous."

  ‘He’s right.’ The wolf added.

  “I know.” She answered them both.

  “I also think I need to pay the human police a visit. Maybe they have more information on your parents’ case.” Lucky spoke softly. “I’ll pay them a visit tonight while you work with Gabriel.”

  “You would do that for me?” And like that Rebecca was confused again. Both men were amazing and infuriating all at once.

  "Of course. We’re friends, and I don't think you’re going to let this go unless you get the answers you’re looking for."

  Guilt filled her. “I need to tell you..." Rebecca suddenly found it very hard to speak her next words. "Gabriel kissed me..."

  "I know. I was there remember?"

  "No, last night. He kissed me and... I ... I kissed him back."

  "Oh." He put the vehicle in drive and stared straight ahead.

  The silence was painful. After a few exaggerated minutes of quiet Rebecca decided she needed to explain. "I’m confused, Lucky. I desire you both. I don’t want to give into the lifelong commitment that Gabriel is looking for and I don’t want to be a home wrecker between you and Felicity." She fought back the tears. “If I was smart, I would simply stop seeing you both until I got my head straight, but I need you, both of you.”

  The tick in his cheek started pounding and Rebecca could tell he was grinding his teeth.

  "You’re acting like someone who’s jealous about my admission." Rebecca told him. She half hoped he would make things easy on her and tell her he was going to stay away.

  "I have no right to be jealous." His voice lacked any inflection.

  "But you’re so sweet, and caring, and sexy that I can’t seem to resist you. I want to see if there could be more between us, but I can’t be the one to break up your engagement. I meant what I said yesterday, we can find a way to work through the issues, even if it just means we can only be friends."

  He cleared his throat. “You already know my engagement was arranged since I was a child. I have no attachments to Felicity. We’ve both agreed to see other people until we turn twenty-seven. That relationship is of no consequence.” He turned amber-gold eyes on her. “But how do we work through your feelings for Gabriel?”

  Chapter Twenty

  ~"When adults say, "Teenagers think they are invincible" with that sly, stupid smile on their faces, they don't know how right they are. We need never be hopeless, because we can never be irreparably broken. We think that we are invincible because we are. We cannot be born, and we cannot die. Like all energy, we can only change shapes and sizes and manifestations. They forget that when they get old. They get scared of losing and failing. But that part of us greater than the sum of our parts cannot begin and cannot end, and so it cannot fail.”

  ~John Green, Looking for Alaska

  Rebecca

  Lucky did not say another word as they rode back to the school in complete and uncomfortable silence. Rebecca wanted to reach across the seat and shake him, make him look at her, talk to her, but knew it would do no good. Instead she stared out the window and held back her emotions. She couldn't understand why she was so messed up regarding these two men, but she knew that something had to give. They always say honesty is the best policy and somewhere hidden underneath all the open wounds and flood gates of pain in the form of obvious rejection she felt a little better about what happened last night.


  He was right about one thing. How could they overcome her feelings for another man? A man who was his friend. It was a horrible position to be in. Romantic triangles are not what the Hollywood industry would like you to believe. They are messy, painful, and rarely work out well.

  Rebecca and Lucky made it back to campus just in time for the final bell. She had no idea where all the time went, but she knew word of her missing classes today would get back to her grandmother, yet another thing to feel bad about.

  Rebecca sat there for a moment, and when the silence and uncomfortable feelings became impossible to bear, she reached for the door. Lucky took her opposite hand so she couldn't move. She was always amazed at the strength he had. He was made of slender muscle, there was nothing about his outward appearance that said body builder at all, but the strength in him was more than a normal body builder could posses. Long and lean, he was like an Olympic athlete that was constantly training and in top physical shape.

  Rebecca tried to blink back the tears that stung her eyes when she looked at him, but she knew he saw right through her. It was like angel ex-ray vision, creepy and comforting at the same time. "Let go of me! You’re right. How can we even think there could be more between us with everything else happening?"

  "But there is. Gods help me, there is, and I don't know what to do about it. I have commitments, Becca. Rules that must be followed. I can't put you in the middle of those problems, but the idea of not having you..." He let go of her arm and then there was silence between them again. “By all that is holy, I can’t even offer you a simple commitment. The best I can do is we will see how it goes. I hate being that guy!”

  It was back to the arranged marriage topic. He may not have feelings for his future wife, but his family commitments would make breaking that engagement off very difficult. She wanted to yell at him, to force him to tell her what else he was hiding in those eyes. But she knew the ball was in his court at the moment. She was honest with him and now she had to wait for his next move. If she were him, she would keep everything professional. It was safer; a more logical choice. But Lucky wasn’t always led by logic. Sometimes he factored in emotions and instinct. He was well-rounded that way, unlike her, which was why she was in this mess in the first place. If she just went with logic, she would have walked away from both of them, romantically. But she was dealing with a bossy alpha, and emotional feelings she’s never felt before. All the while she was trying to grow up and make it to her eighteenth birthday without getting killed along the way.

  "When you said you kissed him back, all I could think of on the way back to school was that I was going to rip his head from his shoulders, so I think there is more here than I want to admit. Do you know what it is like to want to kill your best friend? And how selfish I’m being because I know what it means to a wolf to find his mate. He’s been waiting for you for so long." Lucky shook his head and pressed his fingers to the space between his eyes and forehead.

  It was something Rebecca did to push off a headache. Great, now she was giving him a headache!

  ‘Have mercy on the poor boy and set him free.’ The wolf offered her advice. Rebecca refused to give her a response. She felt frozen in place, frozen in time; hanging on her last breath, and waiting for his next word. There was only silence.

  His confession was scary and exciting all at once. That single statement opened the flood gates to a flow of emotions and questions. Maybe there was a chance for them to see where this would lead, but what did that mean for Gabriel? He was in her pack now. Worse, he believed she was his mate, and if she was being completely honest she had feelings for both of them. In fact, she couldn't decipher where one ended and the other picked up. Rebecca wanted to ask more, but instead he reached his hand over and pulled her into a sweet, deep kiss. As the kiss deepened she somehow moved from her seat to his lap. The world simply crumbled away. Her worried thoughts were whisked away on the breeze and she felt exposed, yet safe.

  "We’ll figure it out. The three of us will have to figure out what’s happening." He placed a soft kiss on Rebecca’s forehead and caressed her cheek. “But until you figure out your feelings we need to keep the romance level on low.” In that moment she realized that she wanted to find out more of what could be between them. But, the voice in her head reminded her, 'you felt the same way last night when Gabriel kissed you.'

  'Shut up.' Rebecca responded to the she wolf in her mind.

  They sat there in silence for a few minutes while they waited for Savvy and Hunter. They just enjoyed touching each other; no kisses, just simple caresses to cheeks, hands and necks. They just stared into each others eyes, recognizing the connection between their souls. When her siblings came, Hunter asked if they could give Natalia a ride home, and Lucky was back to his jovial self when he nodded his agreement. Rebecca slid back into the passenger seat while their three passengers climbed into the back seat.

  "Grandmother gave me money and told us to stop by the dress shop after school to pick out our clothes for the dance. Can you drop us off, Lucky?" Savannah asked with a smile. Rebecca knew something was wrong. Savvy wasn't excited about the prospect of buying a dress like she would normally be.

  "I can do better than that, I can come with. I need to get my tux as well." He put the car in drive once everyone was in their seats. "So I’ll drop Natalia and Hunter..."

  "I can come along." Natalia smiled as she pushed her black cat glasses up on her nose. Rebecca was beginning to like those glasses.

  "I should get a tux, too." Hunter grumbled quietly in the back seat.

  It was all Savannah needed. "Are you going? Who’s the lucky lady?"

  "I am." Natalia beamed.

  Savvy hugged Natalia and ruffled Hunter's hair. "It’s about time."

  They arrived at the mall within a few minutes. The mall locations in Phoenix were located strategically, making finding a mall very easy. Lucky and Hunter headed to the tuxedo store while the three girls went to the dress store only a few doors down. Savannah made a beeline to a beautiful pale blue dress on the left side of the shop. Natalia headed towards an orange dress which was perfectly suited for her coloring. Rebecca stood in the center of the place looking for anything she would consider wearing. Before she became a werewolf and immersed herself in a dangerous world, she wasn’t the type of girl who wore dresses, and picking one out today seemed like a ridiculous notion. There was no guarantee that she would be safe at the dance. If she was under attack a pair of pants and tennis shoes would be far more practical than a skirt and heels.

  Rebecca stood watching Savannah pick a princess dress that if it was white would’ve made a fantastic wedding gown. She quickly found rhinestone hair clips and a darker blue satin hand purse. Then she found a pair of heels that shined under the light. Rebecca found herself envious of how simple and happy Savvy’s life was. She had created the perfect teen life regardless of the turmoil they had faced in the past. Briefly it made Rebecca wonder how Savvy was so fortunate to have such a wonderful life when the mirror image of her was so messed up. When Savvy was finished she turned her eyes on Rebecca and frowned. She hung her dress and accessories on the rack by the dressing rooms and headed towards Rebecca.

  "What’s wrong, sis?" Concern laced Savvy’s voice.

  "I don't think a dress is my best option. Are there any pant suits?" Rebecca asked seriously.

  "No, you’re going to wear a dress." Savvy pulled Rebecca towards a deep purple dress that looked like something a Disney character would wear.

  "Oh, no." Rebecca shook her head. The wolf chuckled in her mind.

  "Oh, yes! Just try it on and then you can turn it down if you like." Savvy pulled Rebecca’s size off the rack and shoved Becks towards the dressing room. In moments; all three of them were in the dressing rooms. Savannah managed to get in Rebecca’s stall. It wasn't like they hadn't been changing in the same room since they were little children, but now Rebecca actually had to put the dress on.

  The dress really wasn't that bad. It had
a heart shaped bodice with shiny rhinestones embroidered in the top and the skirt flared out like a bell. It would have been horrible if it had stopped there but the soft purple sheer material that covered the bottom of the dress made it more modern and a little bit dreamy. The skirt hid Rebecca’s feet which gave her an idea. She could put a pair of jean leggings under the skirt and wear her tennis shoes without anyone being the wiser. Rebecca suddenly felt a little bit better about attending the dance.

  Savvy zipped Rebecca up and took a step beside her sister. They stood side by side, Savvy in her form fitting light blue satin dress and Rebecca in the princess purple one. They shared the same face but both of them looked uniquely beautiful. It was one of those moments when Rebecca realized how lucky she was to have Savvy in her life. Savvy’s smile was infectious and soon they were both giggling.

  "Danny is going to find you breathtaking in that dress." Rebecca told Savvy with a smile.

  "And Lucky will be speechless when he sees his beautiful princess. Are you still going with Lucky?"

  "Yes. And I told him what happened with Gabriel. I want you to know that. It actually helped us work through the block we were hitting. We promised to focus on figuring this out with all three of us."

  Savvy hugged Rebecca so tightly she lost her breath. "I’m so happy you worked through it." Then Savvy spun Rebecca around. "We’re going to have so much fun Friday."

  They quickly changed out of the dresses and put on their regular clothes. For the moment the princess effect created from the amazing dresses was lost. Rebecca felt normal; until her wolf started hearing the sounds around her. The cash register, the excited voices of other girls, Sundae among them. Now she understood why her wolf was becoming alert. It served as a bittersweet reminder that she would never be a princess, but she was special.

  They exited the dressing rooms and found Natalia in her dress. Orange would have never been a color Rebecca could pull off but Natalia’s auburn hair, blue eyes and pale skin made the dress look amazing on her. She was much prettier than Rebecca ever noticed. She had always been the quiet mousy girl in the corner that watched but never really participated. The wolf added ‘she is far more dangerous than you ever could imagine. Guardians hold the key to the spirit world.’