The Dying Fate (The Umbra Chronicles Book 1)

by Willow Ravenheart

  I spy a dark, leather chair and loveseat shoved against the wall across from me. Denny's long, lanky body lays slumped in the chair. I attempt to sit up, but my entire body feels like I've been beaten within an inch of my life. It even hurts to take a shallow breath. The room looks familiar and it takes me a moment to realize that I'm still in Elliot's bed.

  "Denny?" I wheeze, my throat raw.

  A dark, fluffy head pops up from the foot of the bed. Its silver eyes glitter as it stares at me. The short, pointed ears atop its head lay flat as it stares at me. There's a fucking giant wolf in bed with me!

  A scream rips from me and I kick at it, knocking it off my legs and onto the ground with a heavy thump. Denny lurches out of the chair and runs to my side.

  "What the hell was that?" I croak as I cling to Denny, my eyes staring at the floor where the 'thing' had fallen.

  "Only you would kick a dog out of your bed," Denny chuckles as he wraps his warm arms around me.

  "If you call me a dog one more time," Elliot growls, "I will kill you. It's also my bed, thank you very much."

  My eyes widen as Elliot crawls to his feet. His long hair lays in tangled waves around his face and his pale eyes glitter in the moonlight. I stare at his broad chest, noticing the massive number of thick scars that mark his entire torso. My eyes follow the trail of scars down his chest and stomach until I notice that he's completely naked. I slap my hand over my eyes, a shriek flowing from my lips.

  "What the holy fucking hell is going on?" I cry, my cheeks burning with embarrassment.

  "I'll be right back...." Elliot mumbles. I wait for the door to close before opening my eyes.

  "Denny, what's going on?" I ask my friend, just he just smiles at me sheepishly.

  "Yeah, let's just wait for Elliot to come back. I don't have those kinds of answers," he says before reclining beside me on the monstrously large bed.

  Who the hell needs a bed this big? A moment later, Elliot walks back into the room. Thank God, he's clothed this time. Well, it's not like he's hideous or anything, but that was quite a shock.

  "Am I allowed to sit on the bed? Or are you going to kick me off again?" Elliot asks with a chuckle as he approaches me.

  "That, was you?" I ask, my eyes wide as I stare at the perfectly normal man standing before me. Well, as far as normal can go.... He's wearing a simple black long-sleeved shirt and a pair of matching pajama pants.

  "Yeah," he says with a shy smile, "I thought you'd be a little less freaked out with me sleeping in the bed like that. Plus, your friend wasn't too keen on me cuddling up to you commando, so...I merely shifted. Guess I was wrong about you not freaking out huh? I think you nearly broke one of my ribs! "

  "The friend has a name you know!" Denny whines from beside me.

  "I know," Elliot huffs, ignoring Denny's death glares that he's tossing in his direction.

  "Why are you even sleeping in the bed with me?" I snap, crossing my arms across my chest.

  "Well, like I told your friend...it is my bed," he replies smoothly before flopping onto the mattress beside me.

  A bark of laughter escapes Denny's mouth and I slam my elbow into his ribs. I'm not in the mood for jokes or laughter right now. I want some answers.

  "And why am I in your bed?" I ask, my finger poking his chest with every word.

  "Because you're in my house? What do you want me to say, Macy?" he chuckles.

  "What the hell am I doing here, in your house or in the middle of your obnoxiously large bed? How's that for a start?" I ask with a glare. It's something I was curious about earlier, but I was too freaked out to ask.

  "You're here because this is the center of our pack's territory. You're in my house because I've been made your Guardian and I have been ordered to take care of you. And... you’re in my perfectly normal bed because I have nowhere else in this house for you to sleep," he replies sarcastically, keeping count of his answers with his fingers.

  "And where is here?" I snap.

  "We are exactly fifty miles from your home. Our territory spans over the entire Gulf Coast," he answers, his hands brushing through his long hair.

  "Well, aren't you full of answers," I snap.

  "I try," he sighs before resting his head on one of the dozen pillows surrounding me.

  "Do you mind telling me what happened?" I ask.

  "We brought you here because you were attacked. It's a good thing we did since you decided to prematurely enter the first stage of the change. Which was a dangerous and dumb thing if you ask me. Do you notice anything different about yourself?" he asks, a curious look on his face.

  I close my eyes and concentrate on my body, trying to find something out of place. But, no matter how much I feel around, not a single thing feels different. I'm still human, I have my two arms, two legs, ten fingers and toes. What's supposed to be different? Am I supposed to have a tail or something?

  Wait....

  I look down and a scream rips itself from my throat. Where my arm had once ended in a mangled stump is...my hand! My own hand! I jump from the bed, but my feet tangle in the sheets, causing me to crumple to the ground. Elliot's hands shoot out to catch me before I can hit the floor. He holds me close to his side and I cradle my hand close to my face. How is this possible? Hands don't just grow back overnight....

  "You survived, thank God," Elliot whispers, his fingers caressing the digits of my new right hand.

  "Come with me, Macy. I need you to see something," Denny chuckles.

  Denny stands and takes me by the hand. He leads me down a hall, opening a door that leads to a large, baby blue and white bathroom. He turns me to face him and places his hands on my shoulders.

  "Look in the mirror," he tells me, his eyes glittering as he stares at me, "and please don't freak out."

  "What do you mean by that?" I ask, my stomach stuck somewhere between my tongue and esophagus. I honestly don't know how much more of this craziness that I can take.

  "Just look in the mirror, dammit!" Denny snaps excitedly before gripping my shoulders and spinning me around.

  I stare at my reflection for what seems like hours. My hands grip the counter top as I lean in close to the mirror. The woman staring back at me does the same, eliciting a shriek from my lips. What the holy hell is going on?

  My hair is longer and fuller, nearly falling to my waist. That's a far cry from the pixie style cut which it was when I was conscious last. Ringlet curls, now the color of roasted coffee sway with my every movement as I turn my face. My skin is free of blemishes and has a healthy, sun kissed glow. Even my eyes are brighter as if a light is shining from within, the colors swirling in their depths more vivid.

  "Macy," Denny whispers from behind me, making me jump. I can't take my eyes off reflection though as I try to find some semblance of myself in this warped image.

  I trace the shape of my face and notice that my cheeks and jaw are even a bit narrower. I look like a photo that's been retouched too many times.

  "Say something," Denny says before wrapping his arms around my waist.

  He draws my attention to my height. Before, the top of my head barely reached his chest, but now I'm just a few inches shorter than him. My clothes are tight, causing me to look down and notice that my breasts are fuller as well as my hips and bottom. My stomach is flatter than it's ever been in my life and as I run my hands over it, I can feel lean muscles underneath my fingertips. It is everything I've ever wanted...and I fucking hate it.

  Where's my frizzy, unmanageable hair or my baby fat that I've shared a love-hate relationship with for my entire life? How far do the changes go? Am I going to wake up tomorrow as a completely different person? Will, I know who I am or who my family is?

  "Elliot!" I scream, "Get your ass in here!"

  "Are you okay?" Elliot asks as he runs into the room, his long hair whipping around his face as he looks me over.

  A puzzled look crosses his face and he glances at Denny, who simply shrugs his shoulders. My teeth grind together as I sta
re at the man before me. I know none of this is his fault, but it was one of his kind that did this to me.... Well, my kind now...I guess.

  "Teach me how to change back!" I order him with a stomp of my foot.

  He looks at me for a moment, his icy gaze focused on my face. Suddenly, a loud boisterous laugh pushes past his lips and he holds his sides. I cross my arms over my chest, abruptly conscious of the fact that the only thing covering my now, more than ample bosom, is the material of a thin, white camisole. Goosebumps travel across my body as I find his eyes staring on my crossed arms.

  "What's so funny?" I snap, my fingers digging into my arms to keep myself from smacking him across his smug face.

  Denny excuses himself quietly before basically running from the room. Knowing him, he thinks that I'm close to a near nuclear meltdown.... I'm so much past that right now. I don't think a single thing about this is funny and Elliot's having to clutch at his fucking stomach?

  "I don't know why you're in such a rush to change back," he grumbles, his hand reaching out to trace my right arm, "I would have thought you'd be happy to have this back."

  "But I don't even look like myself anymore!" I cry, flinging my arms to my side, my fists clenched tight.

  "You're still you, Macy," he whispers, his fingers playing with the long hair that cascades down my shoulders. My breath catches in my throat, realizing that his knuckles are only a hairsbreadth away from my breasts.

  "How?" I scoff, pulling away from his touch, "I don't even recognize myself...."

  He takes my hand and pulls me to the mirror, making me face the reflection that makes my stomach churn. Sure, I can see the faint resemblance...but it's more like looking at a distant cousin than my own image. His chest presses against my back as he holds my head still, making me take a good long look in the mirror.

  "Your hair is the same shade as before," he whispers into my ear as his fingers slide through the dark, silky strands, his fingers massaging my skull, "Except it's longer, fuller and healthier now...just a small change. That's not too bad, is it?"

  "What about everything else?" I mumble, my teeth trapping my bottom lip as I stare at our reflections. I didn't truly realize how huge he was before. But now, even with the added height, my head barely comes above his chest. Someone ate their Wheaties as a child....

  "Your eyes, they're exactly the same. Their gorgeous depths hold the same colors of emerald and mahogany as before, except your animal spirit is looking out through them as well. That little glint is her only portal into the world while you're in control," he whispers, his fingers rubbing the edges of my temples, "The shade of your skin is healthier, giving you a sun-kissed glow. The small differences to your face are so insignificant that I can barely tell a difference. Your body... has filled out, which shouldn't be something to complain about. I think it's very appealing...."

  "What was wrong with me before, since this form is so much more appealing?" I snap, my hackles bristling with his comment.

  "There wasn't anything wrong with you before. Don't try turning my words around on me," he chuckles from behind me, a deep, gravely hint to his deep voice, "You are just as beautiful now as you were before, just in a different way."

  "You're only saying that to make me feel better," I huff, closing my eyes before tears can spill down my cheeks. I just want my old body back...with or without my fucking arm. It's not worth all of this....

  "I will never lie to you!" he snaps, spinning me in his arms until my breasts press against his rock-hard stomach, "Before, you were a petite beauty. Your strength was visible, more from the inside than the out. There was an innocence that floated around your whole body. You were, and are, the most beautiful creature that I've laid my eyes on...."

  I melt into his touch, a small hum of approval passing my lips as his hands travel up and down the sides of my face. The strong, almost electrical pulses that travel through my body when his hands touch me... they journey right to the apex between my thighs. I pull away from him, too consumed with the feelings that are flowing through my body and mind at the moment.

  "Macy, are you alright?" Denny asks, his feet carrying him to my side as he walks back into the room. I'm glad he wasn't here to witness my moment of weakness, I'd never hear the end of it....

  I take a deep breath and give him a small nod. He backs away and I walk out of the room, to the hallway we traveled through earlier. My feet pad across the hardwood floors, barely making a sound as I walk through the doorway of Elliot's bedroom. All I need are a few moments to myself, just some time to grasp onto everything that's suddenly changed in my life.

  I glance around, yanking a blanket off the couch before sitting on the bench just beneath the window. The curtains flutter with the breeze flowing in from the open window and I pull them aside.

  The breath catches in my chest as my eyes take in the beautiful scenery before me. There's a lake, just a few dozen yards away, the water reflecting shades of midnight black and a startling silver, from the full moon above. The waves gently lap against the pebbled shore, creating a beautiful harmony that makes my eyes grow heavy. I didn't know there were sights like this around here.... I sit for a few minutes, simply basking in the serenity and silence of the moment of peace.

  "It's beautiful, isn't it?" Elliot asks from the doorway. I turn my face, spying him leaned against the door frame with his large, muscular arms crossed over his chest.

  "Yeah...." I mumble, looking back out the open window.

  Elliot doesn't say a word, but I can feel his eyes on me. I pull the blanket tighter around my shoulders, a small shiver running down my spine. What's wrong with me?

  "Aren't you supposed to be out of control?" I ask, my fingers tracing the curtains as I look up to the full moon above.

  "You mean the moon? That's just some urban legend. We have just as much control over ourselves this night as any other night in the year," he tells me.

  "Oh...." I whisper, my mind reeling over all the information that I've learned and the things I've yet to be taught. There's more to being a werewolf than I would have thought....

  I feel the cushion dip beside me and look at my feet where Elliot is perched. His frozen blue eyes stare at me, unnerving me to my soul. We sit like that for a while, merely staring at each other. It's almost like a game to see who looks away first. Of course, he wins once I feel our contest becoming too...intimate. I try to concentrate on the gentle waves lapping at the shore, but his eyes staring at me make it extremely hard.

  "I'm sorry if I was too forward with my comments earlier...." he tells me, drawing my attention back to his chiseled face.

  "It's not that," I sigh, looking back out the window, wishing that I was a bird that could fly away, "Compliments aren't the things that scare me. Hell, it's shocking that a man like you could ever find me beautiful the way I was before...."

  "What scares you, Sunshine?" he asks, his hands reaching out to rub my calf. It's odd, the way he completely ignored the rest of what I said.

  Slowly, he takes each of my feet, placing them across his lap. It takes all my strength to not moan out when his fingers begin massaging the arches of my feet. I trap my lip between my teeth, my eyes glued to the scenery outside the window. How do I tell him about what truly scares me? Should I go ahead and come clean with him? He did promise me the truth though...I should do the same.

  "Has Denny told you about how I lost my arm?" I ask, my eyes glancing to the giant man whose attention in solely on my feet in his warm, calloused hands.

  "I didn't ask," he tells me, his eyes only glancing up to me for a moment before focusing back on his task of turning me into a pile of quivering goo, "It didn't feel right to ask. I felt that you would tell me when you were ready."

  "Thank you," I sigh, closing my eyes as I attempt to find the words, "Though, I'm not sure that I'll ever be one hundred percent ready to talk about it."

  "There's no rush...." he says, but I pull my feet from his hands, crossing them underneath me.

  "
I want to tell you. I think it's time that I finally talk about it," I whisper, my fingers picking at a stray piece of string hanging from the blanket in my lap.

  "Would you like some coffee?" Denny asks from the doorway, a haunted look on his face. Shit, I forgot that he was here. I've never even told him about the accident. But, maybe it's time for him to know as well....

  "No thank you, Denny. It's late, but we should get some more sleep soon. You look like you could use some rest," I whisper, stretching my arms out for him. He walks to me, wrapping his arms around my waist as his face burrows into my hair.

  "Are you ready?" he whispers, just loud enough for only my ears to hear the words.

  "I am, but are you?" I ask, pulling my face away to gaze into his chocolate eyes framed by sinfully long lashes.

  "Yes."

  Denny takes my hand and leads me to the bed. I crawl among the satin sheets, getting comfortable among the dozen pillows before he and Elliot sit on each side of me. Elliot's thigh presses against mine and I try not to think of it as I attempt to find the words. How do I explain everything?

  "Denny, I want you to know that none of this was your fault," I start, looking my friend deeply in the eyes, "It was his time. There's nothing that could have changed that."

  "We will agree to disagree...." Denny grumbles, his eyes unfocused as he simply stares at the wall beyond me.

  "Well," I sigh, turning to Elliot, "I'll start from the beginning I guess."

  "That's always a good start," he chuckles gently, his hand reaching out for mine. I link my fingers with his, using his touch as an anchor as I prepare to tell him about the man I've not spoken about in some time.

  "Okay," I say, taking a deep breath before admitting everything, "His name was Henry...."

  I look to Elliot, noticing the dark look that crosses his face, but he quickly erases it and simply stares at me, ready to hear what I have to say.