by Dawn Kirby
He knocked on May’s door and left the room. As soon as the door opened, I was quickly pulled inside. The door was promptly shut and locked. May silently led me down the hallway and into her living room. The feel was as warm and cozy in here as it was in the kitchen.
She sat me down on a pretty floral Victorian era style couch and smiled at me. She opened the box of makeup she’d bought and started putting it on me.
“You really don’t need it, but I thought it might make you feel better,” she said.
I looked in the mirror she handed me and smiled. Not only did the makeup look good, my color was finally coming back. That made me very happy. At least I could go outside looking like a normal person and not a ghost.
“Thank you so much, May,” I said gratefully. My bubble burst the second she picked up my wrist and ran her finger over the bandage.
“Honey, have you seen him since he took your blood?” she asked.
“Not yet. Declan thinks I should stay away from him.”
“He’s right. Stay as far away from him as you possibly can.”
“May, what are y’all so worried about?”
“Sweetie, your blood made him stronger. Not the way it’s supposed to though.” She patted my knee gently. “Blood is meant to sustain a vampire. It feeds them the same way food feeds us. Your blood has not only fed him, it has changed him. ”
“How?”
“You’ll soon see. Just keep your distance, baby. At least until the effects wears off,” she said, patting my hand. “When I saw him last, he was in a daze.”
“Do you think he’s a threat?” I asked, holding my breath.
“As long as he can’t smell your blood, I’m sure everything will be fine.”
Okay, don’t bleed. That was easier said than done these days. I’d bled more in the past month than I have in my entire life. Seeing as how there was still a vampire hunting me, I didn’t see that changing anytime soon.
“I’ll do my best,” I promised.
“That’s all you can do, sugar.” She got up and slid on a pink pair of flats. “Are you ready for all this?”
May was as dressed up as the rest of us were. She had on a pretty pink dress that had frilly short sleeves and hung down to her knees. Her silver hair never seemed to change. Like always, she had it pulled up in a tight bun. She’d even gone as far as to put on some light pink nail polish.
“I don’t really know,” I admitted. “It feels like we’re going to a fancy dinner or something.” Jeans and a t-shirt would have been more comfortable to watch two men rip each other apart in. What do I know?
“We do this out of respect for both the pack and the two men fighting,” she explained.
“You’re not worried are you?” I asked smiling at her.
“As long as Kale uses his head, there’s nothing to worry about.” In her eyes, Kale had already won. At least she wouldn’t have to live in fear of Dane anymore. That fact alone was liberating enough. “Kara would be so proud of both of them. Kale for doing what’s right and Raine for becoming the man he has.”
“What was she like?” I asked her. The one and only time Raine and I had talked about her hadn’t been good.
“She was one of the sweetest women I’ve ever known,” she said smiling. “The boys were her life. Every time I look at one of them, I see her. Raine has her hair color. Kale has her sense of humor. They both have her spirit. Though Raine tends to have a little of his father in him too. I’m sure you’ve seen it.”
“He definitely has a temper,” I agreed.
“I’m glad he’s got you to help him control it.”
“So where does Kale get his happy-go-lucky attitude? I know for a fact it’s not from Dane.”
“Kara. She used to be exactly like him,” she said sadly. “Dane changed her.”
Our conversation abruptly came to an end when we heard a soft knock on the door. Declan was waiting patiently to escort us both to the fight. Unfortunately, he looked more worried than he had before. There’s a struggle brewing inside him and it’s tearing him up.
With a vampire on one side and a werewolf on the other I left the confines of the house. I felt fairly safe as we made our way toward what sounded like a hundred other voices. We walked past the pool and out a back gate. Following an overgrown footpath, May led Declan and I through the heavy brush.
Everyone who passed us was dressed to the nines. It was strange to see so many people wearing their best, walking through the woods. Some took the time to stop and greet May or Declan for a minute before they went on ahead. Some simply waved and continued on their way. Though my presence among them did earn several curious glances, none spoke to me.
The site where the challenge was to be held turned out to be about a half a mile away from the house. Several boulders dotted the grassy clearing where a large crowd was gathering. The landscape looked wild and rugged compared to the finely manicured grounds back at Serenity.
The charge in the atmosphere gave the impression of a party in full swing. I took in my surroundings, wanting to remember everything. An open bar was set up on one side of the clearing. Beside it was a table full of all kinds of food. It was the amount May usually cooks times a thousand. Music boomed from the opposite end.
“I can’t see Raine,” I said to May.
“Don’t worry, love,” Donovan’s silky, smooth voice said. “He’ll be out in a little while.”
I’d been so busy craning my head, trying to find Raine, I never saw him take Declan’s place beside me. I inadvertently froze when I saw him. Declan shook his head sadly when Donovan motioned him away. Unable to say no, Declan removed my hand from the crook of his arm, kissed my cheek softly and turned to escort May the rest of the way.
Donovan looked fantastic. His pale skin had been replaced by a perfectly bronzed tan. Instead of the light ocean blue eyes I’m used to, his were shining electric blue. They flashed as if tiny pulses of electricity were short-circuiting through them. His hair was jet black instead of its normal shimmering silver color and it was gorgeous.
He also had a heartbeat. It wasn’t as loud as the rest of the people surrounding us, but it was there. The rhythm was slow and steady. No normal person would be able to function with it, but he wasn’t normal. I’d been able to hear a slight thump in David when he’d held me to him after I found Deana in the backyard, but my ear had been lying against his chest at the time.
Donovan laughed deeply at my stunned reaction and put my hand in the crook of his arm. The second his hand came to rest on mine, I noticed the warmth. It should have been cold. The tug on my arm was the only thing that made me start walking again.
“Your blood did this, love,” Donovan whispered in my ear. “I can hear it running through you even now. Is this how you hear all the time?”
“I can’t hear blood flowing,” I said shortly. Now I knew why the others were so worried, frankly I was too.
“My sight is ten times better. My sense of smell is amazing. I could actually smell the paint on the walls of my office. Do you know how long it’s been since a new coat was applied?” I didn’t answer. His obvious excitement scared me. “I must apologize for getting carried away, but you are simply intoxicating.”
Everything about him made me feel uneasy. He held me as close to him as possible. I felt more like I a possession than a person. Donovan has always been self-confident, but now he carried himself with an air of extreme superiority. The effects of my blood couldn’t wear off fast enough as far as I was concerned.
Relief washed over me when he led me up the steps of a large platform. May was already there, watching Donovan like a hawk. Obviously, she didn’t trust him as far as I could throw him.
“Please excuse me, love,” he said, gently kissing my left hand. “I must now turn my attention elsewhere.”
“Thank you, Donovan,” I said politely as I took my hand from his.
I quickly took the seat next to May. Thankfully, Donovan had already disappeared into the crowd
. May took my right hand firmly in hers. I could feel her body temperature slowly rising. Without the aid of a haze, it was hard to figure out how she really felt. I didn’t know if she was excited by the number of werewolves around her or if she was scared of them.
As we sat there, I looked into the crowd. Below the tension I could feel the slightest air of happiness. Events like these, however dire they may seem, allowed these people to truly be themselves. It occurred to me then that they were all leading two separate lives. Only among each other could they let their guards down and relax. Seeing that made me see how closed-minded most of society actually was. What would people say if they knew?
The truth had certainly turned my world upside down. Not all of it was bad. I’d lost both my parents, but I also gained an entire family. Pretty soon I would be married to the most wonderful man on the face of the earth.
As he crossed my mind, Raine walked up behind me. His big, warm hands rested gently on my shoulders. I put my left hand on his and leaned my head on his arm, enjoying his stormy smell.
“Hey, man!” a man yelled from the platform steps. I turned to see a smiling man waving like a lunatic. “It has been way too long!”
Raine met him halfway and they vigorously shook hands. They were so happy to see one another, they ended up trying to crack the others ribs with a violent bear hug. I could smell the new man from my seat. He smelled like vanilla. The scent rolling off him was as strong as Kale’s when he was excited about something.
“How have you been?” Raine asked, returning to his position behind me. “I hope business has been good.”
“I’ve been good. Business has been great. How about you?” the man asked, smiling uncontrollably. “Kale’s got this crazy idea in his head that you’re getting married.”
Apparently, the very idea sounded absurd to him. He was so wrapped up in his conversation with Raine he must not have seen me sitting in front of him. Raine’s smell became more intense.
“I am,” Raine told him. “Brody, I’d like you to meet Leah.”
Brody’s eyes followed Raine’s arms and finally settled on me. With a look of pure shock, he kissed my hand and introduced himself. He was as big as Kale, but not quite as tall. His bright hazel eyes popped against his short, strawberry blond hair.
“It’s nice to meet you, Brody,” I said smiling up at him.
“I can honestly say, the pleasure is all mine,” he said smiling broadly. The scent of vanilla overpowered Raine’s ever-present stormy scent. “Where’d you find this little pixie?”
May couldn’t stand it anymore and stood up to give him one of her bone-crushing hugs. “Would you believe she just fell in his lap?” she asked him. “She is absolutely wonderful.”
“Well, Leah,” he said, looking me over, “you are definitely beautiful. Since you managed to snag Raine, you must be pretty special, too. There have been many girls who have tried and failed to win his heart.” He winked at me and gave Raine a slap on the back.
“I can’t begin to tell you how special she is,” Raine said to him. “Are you here for Kale or Mark?”
“Kale; most of us are. I personally don’t want Mark anywhere near the pack,” Brody said crossing his arms over his chest. His stance changed and his scent seemed to dissipate. “There’s been talk about him and Dane being involved in some kidnapping. Supposedly, the girl they took wasn’t even a werewolf. Has Kale told you?”
Raine’s hands had not only started squeezing my shoulders, but they were starting to sweat. His smell was overpowering even for me. Thankfully May saw his growing anger and stepped in.
“Honey, we know all about it.” She quickly pulled Brody over to the chair beside her. “I’d be honored if you’d come sit beside me.”
He winked at her and smiled. “How can I say no to an old woman? Especially one that can still kick my ass.”
Brody sat opposite of her and she again put my hand in hers. Tonight I was her security blanket, and it didn’t bother me in the least. Raine finally sat down on my other side. My hand planted firmly between his. For now, he was calm and collected.
Every now and then people would come over and say hello. Brody made it a point to tell the women who I was. The reactions went from surprised to jealous. No matter what, Raine never let go of my hand, a fact that wasn’t lost on Brody.
“I think you can ease up on her, man,” he joked leaning over May. “She doesn’t look like she’s going anywhere.”
It was my turn to step in. “I get so nervous around a lot of people,” I said, trying my best to sound needy. Maybe I could play off Raine’s closeness. It was obviously something Brody wasn’t used to seeing. “He’s just letting me know he’s here.”
Even I didn’t buy it. Brody gave me a narrow-eyed look before greeting another friend. Obviously, needy wasn’t the right approach.
“Nice try,” Raine whispered. “He knows I can’t stand weak women.”
“I hate to tell you this, but for the last two weeks, that’s all I’ve been. Maybe you would have been better off with one of these other women.”
He cocked his eyebrow and looked at me. “I’ve been in a relationship with only two other ladies before you. Neither of which were half as strong as you,” he told me. “You aren’t weak. Hurt, yes. But not weak.”
I gave him a teary smile and a kiss on the cheek. Apparently, we had two different definitions of weak. Personally, I liked his better. It made me sound like some kind of a superwoman.
A hush fell over the crowd when Donovan went to stand in the center of the clearing, the effects of my blood still clearly visible. The pink shirt he wore under his black silk suit exaggerated the deep tone of his newly bronzed skin. I heard several people comment on how alive he looked.
“Welcome to my home. I am most honored to host such an important event for this proud pack. Please accept my hospitality and do not hesitate to ask for more,” he said graciously. “As your current leader lies in a coma, the future of your pack has been in limbo. Tonight you will have a new leader.”
“Get ready,” Raine whispered quickly. His grip tightened.
“Unfortunately, I must share a bit of history with all of you. Some of what I have to say will come as a great surprise and some of it will not. Rest assured: none of what you will hear will be sugar coated.” He had everyone’s undivided attention. Heartbeats quickened. No one in the large crowd dared to move. All eyes anxiously rested on him. “You all know Dane Logan’s history. You all know that Mark is his son. What you all don’t know is that he has two other sons and that they are both here tonight.” Every head in the crowd turned, searching for the two men Donovan spoke of. “Mark, you know as Logan. The two eldest sons you all know as Thomas.”
Predicatively, all eyes shifted to Raine. May’s grip on my hand was even tighter than his. She had been anxiously waiting for their reactions all night and now she was bracing herself for a fight. At the moment though the only reaction I could see from any of them were shock and disbelief.
“I had no idea, man,” Brody said to Raine. “Why didn’t you guys say something?”
“Dane would have killed us,” Raine answered flatly. “Then he would have killed you just for knowing.”
Satisfied with the reason, he turned his attention back on Donovan. The crowd had gone silent again.
“Kale, Raine and May would have been killed if anyone in the pack knew who they were. There is one other piece of information I must share with you. This is the secret Dane was willing to kill his own sons to protect. I guarantee those of you that would have found out before now would have also met their deaths. In his defense, Mark was completely unaware that he had two half brothers until an unfortunate turn of events took place.”
Donovan took a long, agonizing pause while the crowd around us momentarily contemplated what their comatose leader’s secret was. Raine’s heart was beating so fast it threatened to pound right out of his chest. Both my hands were quickly losing circulation because he and May were grip
ping them so hard. Neither one of them knew how the pack would feel about this explosive revelation. It could very well be the death of both of them.
“My dear friends, for eighteen long years this proud pack has been led by nothing more than a shape shifter. Dane is not a wolf; he merely shifts into a one. No one knew, not even the former leader. He mistook his form upon seeing him during a change and offered him membership. The rest of his history you all know only too well.”
The crowd erupted in every emotion imaginable. None of it seemed to be directed at anyone but Dane. Some of the men began to comment on the differences in his animal form and theirs. The older women know knew why he chose to refrain from producing more heirs after the disappearance of Mark’s mother. It would have cost him dearly had one of them given birth to an offspring that happened to inherit his shifting ability rather than be a true werewolf, like the mother. Looking back on his leadership now, they could all see the obvious signs.
“I give you my word both Kale and Mark are true werewolves and both men want to lead you. If there are any of you that doubt my word, please feel free to challenge it. I’m sure my young protégée will be happy to lend her amazing sense of smell to your cause.” His eyes fell directly on me. For the first time since I’ve known him, his gaze gave me cold chills. “If not, we will soon welcome your new leader.” When no one came forward, he continued. By then, every one of them was ready for new blood. Some even began shouting out their support for one or the other. “Declan, will you please show Mark this way,” he said politely.
Mark stepped out into the empty center of the gathering, and was met with very little support. There were plenty of protests about his lack of respect for tradition, though I couldn’t figure out why. He was dressed as nice as everybody else, if not even better.
