Riley rolled his eyes when he opened his phone and saw the long paragraph of a response. Before he could read it all Bridgette turned around in the seat, her lips pursed.
“What are you two doing back there? I’m not blind I can see and hear you typing away like crazy.” She scolded. She raised an eyebrow at the silence which was the children’s response, “Well?”
“Nothing mom…” Alex responded shoving her phone into her pocket.
Bridgette made a dissatisfied face, but she turned away. She turned her attention back to Colin’s less-than-perfect driving and Riley looked over at Alex. She smirked and he sighed, looking out the window. Colin turned onto the main road and Riley turned in his seat to look towards Samantha’s street. A green Ford F1 was turning down it, heading towards her house and he frowned; he knew exactly whose car that was. He turned away from the window and Alex patted his shoulder, knowing full well what his frown was for.
The rest of the ride was silent. Nobody said a word as Colin pulled onto Pinewood Manor Drive. The head’s mansion stood ominously at the end of the street. A thick tension filled the car and Alex glanced towards the back seat, looking at Kyle and Maia. Maia was staring down at her lap and Kyle was rubbing her back. Alex could tell that they were nervous and felt as though they had every right to be. The tension built until finally Colin was pulling into the Head’s driveway. They all quietly exited the car and went up the walkway. Malcolm’s wife, Jean, opened the door before Colin could ring the doorbell.
“He’s in his office…waiting. Do Riley and Alexandria wish to sit in on the meeting?” She asked Colin, never acknowledging the children’s presence.
“I would like them to seeing as one of them will be taking over the pack one day.” Colin responded.
“Alright…” Jean replied as she eyed Kyle and Maia, “Go on then. He won’t wait all day.”
Silently the group ascended the stairs, going up to the head’s office. The door was already open and Malcolm sat patiently at his desk. He silently waved them into the room and Riley hung back, closing the door behind everyone.
“Good morning, Malcolm,” Colin started, holding out his hand.
“This meeting is not about you, Colin, so sit. I want to speak to the rogues.” Malcolm practically snapped. Colin sat instantaneously, as did Bridgette, Riley and Alex. They could all sense that Malcolm was not in the most agreeable mood, and that did not bode well for Kyle and Maia.
Kyle stepped forward and took a deep breath, instinctually puffing himself up, “Sir, I mean no disrespect, but we are not rogue wolves. Your view of us is distorted, biased even.”
Malcolm snarled, “I will be the judge of that young man. Now. Explain yourself.”
Kyle half turned to glance at Alex who smiled softly. He took a deep breath and turned back to Malcolm, “Well, sir, you see my sister Maia and I are from a very small pack. We had a vampire problem back home; a particularly large brood had settled in our town and our alpha tried to run them out. At first, it worked just fine. However, after a few months they returned. They killed our alphas, betas and our parents upon their return. We tried to run them out but once they had whittled our pack down to basically nothing, they just up and left. We’ve been tracking them down ever since, following a path of random and mysterious homicides across the country. We’ve reason to believe they’ve settled in Goldenborough with your local brood.”
“That brood hasn’t stirred any trouble since I was just a boy, youngling. It’s hardly likely that they are still dwelling within this vicinity. I wager they moved on to a more accessible feeding ground,” Malcom countered, clearly unimpressed.
Kyle turned to Maia, who stepped forward and pulled a newspaper article from her purse. She placed it on the Head’s desk and stepped back. The Head put his glasses on and picked up the paper, scrutinizing it with narrowed eyes.
“What’s this?” He huffed.
“Kathrine Hendrix went missing twenty-five years ago according to that article sir, am I correct?” Maia’s voice was soft as she spoke, but it had no infliction, her question came from her mouth sounding more like a statement that she had the upmost confidence in.
Malcolm was silent for a moment, then he sighed, still unamused, “Yes. The Goldenborough brood turned her shortly before they vanished. If I remember correctly she became the brood master’s mate. Why are you showing me a twenty-five-year-old newspaper article?” Malcolm demanded, his patience growing outwardly thin.
Maia pulled another article from her purse and handed it to Malcolm. He pushed his glasses further up on his nose and held the paper up.
The bodies of Katherine Hendrix and Louis VanBuren were discovered on October 16th, in an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of Goldenborough. Hendrix, who has been missing for twenty-five years would have been fifty-three years old upon the discovery of her body. More mysterious that the discovery of Hendrix’s body is the discovery of VanBuren’s. VanBuren went missing from Westbrook eighty-four years ago and would have been one-hundred and fourteen years old. Both bodies were identified by dental records.
Malcom put the paper down before he could finish reading the article and he took his glasses off setting them aside. He slowly ran his hand down his face, letting out a long sigh. Colin took the newspaper clipping off of his desk cautiously, and turned progressively paler as he read the contents.
“So, you’re telling me that the brood from Goldenborough has come back?” Malcolm demanded after a moment.
“No, sir,” Kyle began, “I’m telling you they haven’t gone anywhere and the brood we’ve been following found them and took out their brood master and his mistress.”
“The brood that we have been tracking has a particularly cruel brood mistress. She mutilated her mate for reasons that we are unaware of. She was an…uh…courtesan when she was turned in the early seventeen-hundreds. I’ve done extensive research on her, as much as I could anyway. Her name is Anastasia Cortaux. At the time of her reported “disappearance” she was twenty-two and she had a five-year-old daughter, who went missing the same time as she did. The accepted story behind her disappearance was that Anastasia’s lover, and the father of her child, killed Anastasia in a jealous rage and went back to Italy with the child. However, my brother and I believe that Anastasia raised her daughter, whose name is Bianca, and may have turned her,” Maia said, expanding on Kyle’s statement.
Malcolm sighed after a few moments of silence, “I must make some calls…” He mumbled. He then looked at Kyle and Maia, “In regards to you two…” He paused, “You can take refuge in our territory. For now. Colin,” He continued, turning in his seat to face him, “You are to house them until we can figure this mess out.”
Colon nodded, clearly unhappy with the result of the meeting, “As you wish, sir.”
Malcolm turned back to Kyle, “Young man, do you believe this brood is dangerous and poses and immediate threat to this region?”
“I do, sir. I believe that they’re extremely dangerous,” was Kyle’s response.
Malcolm sighed, “Very well. You’re all dismissed.”
CHAPTER 8
Samantha carried a tray with chips and soda on it up the stairs to her bedroom. Kedar sat on her bed, staring out her window at her back yard. She placed the tray down on the bed beside him and she sat down. She opened the bag of chips and held it out to him. He took it from her and popped a chip into his mouth, still staring out the window.
“So,” He turned towards her, “I’m glad that I could see you again,” He said with a soft smile on his face.
Samantha smiled back at him, “Me too, me too.” She responded, equally as soft.
Kedar popped another chip into his mouth, “What do you do in your free time?” He asked, sounding genuinely interested.
Samantha reached over and took a chip out of the bag, “I like to draw and paint and listen to music,” She responded, continuing to smile at him.
“You paint? That’s really cool. Do you have any of your wor
k? You know, that you would be able to show me, anyway?”
Samantha nodded quickly, enthused that someone was showing an interest in her hobby, “Yeah, I do. In my basement. My aunt made me a little art studio down there.”
“Would you be willing to bring me down there and letting me see some of it?” Kedar asked, raising his eyebrow.
“Of course! Follow me…” Samantha grabbed Kedar’s hand and led him downstairs to the basement. Adjacent from the stairs was an alcove with hanging lights and tarps on the ground, an easel in the middle of the room.
“My art studio is right there…” Samantha said, pointing. She pulled Kedar forward and around the corner with her, “And there’s where I keep all of my finished work,” Samantha continued, pointing to a separate room.
“Well, lead the way, Madame,” Kedar instructed, squeezing Samantha’s hand gently.
Samantha led him into the room and pulled a stool out from the corner. She showed him numerous paintings; a few landscapes, several paintings of wolves, one of her mother, and another of Riley and Alex. She smiled proudly as she showed them off enthusiastically.
“Wow…these are all so good…” Kedar murmured softly.
Samantha beamed, feeling heat rushing to her cheeks, “Thank you…” She bit her lip and looked away, stuffing her hands in her pockets, feeling flustered all of a sudden. When she looked back up at Kedar he was flexing and making a face at her, and she couldn’t help smiling at him.
“Maybe you can paint me one day…” He smirked and raised one of his eyebrows.
“I definitely will. You’d make a wonderful model…” Samantha replied, reaching out to turn Kedar around. She lightly guided him as he turned around in a small circle and lightly rested her fingertips on his chest.
Kedar smirked more and stepped close to her, “You know, you’d make a great model too…” He put his hands carefully on her waist and pulled her closer to him, “you’re very beautiful…” He leaned in, their noses almost touching and she blushed, taking a step back.
“I have a boyfriend, Kit…” She whispered, wishing that she didn’t.
Kedar sighed and stuffed his hands into his pockets, backing away from her, “I know…” He muttered.
Samantha looked down at her feet and shifted awkwardly. She heard a car pull up and a few seconds later the doorbell rang. She looked up at Kedar and he nodded slowly, sitting down on the stool. Samantha ran up the stairs and peaked out the window. Riley’s car was parked behind hers in the driveway and she sighed. She went to the door and opened it. Riley stood there with a bouquet of flowers in his arms with two small boxes tied together with a red ribbon. She raised an eyebrow at him and he cleared his throat.
“What’s up?” She asked before he had a chance to speak. She leaned in the doorway and crossed her arms across her chest.
“I know that you’ve been…out of sorts lately. I was hoping that these would cheer you up…” Riley replied as he thrusted the flowers and boxes at her, “Can I come in? We need to talk…”
Samantha sighed and took the presents as she stepped to the side, “Yeah…sure. Come in.”
Riley stepped inside and looked around, “Where’s that Kedar kid?” He grumbled.
“Downstairs in my studio. I’m going to be painting him, so make this quick,” Samantha replied, aggravation clear in her voice. She turned to look at Riley who had visibly tensed.
“I see,” He huffed.
Samantha rolled her eyes and led Riley into the kitchen, “What do we ‘need’ to talk about?” She asked while she searched the cabinets for a vase.
“You’re not going to open your gifts?” Riley implored.
Samantha turned around, pressing her lips together in a thin line. She could only imagine how much like Melody she looked as she put her hands on her hips defiantly. Riley stared at her with pleading eyes and she groaned in discontent.
“If we need to talk so damn bad my gifts can wait, Riley,” She retorted. Riley frowned and Samantha turned back to the cabinet, carefully getting one of her aunt’s finest vases. She put the flowers in the vase, filled it with water and set it on the center of the table, all while Riley sat in silence. She turned to him and folded her arms over her chest again.
Riley sighed, “We visited the Head today…” He began, shifting in his seat.
“I know. Just tell me what his decision was.” Samantha said firmly, her patience wearing thin.
“Malcolm said that we have to house them. They presented proof to back up their statements,” Riley continued.
Samantha heard footsteps and she held up her hand to signal Riley to stop talking. She turned to see Kedar standing in the doorway.
“Should I go so you two can talk?” He asked quietly.
“No, you can stay. This effects all of the wolves in the immediate area,” Samantha said, still sounding aggravated.
Riley grumbled, “He’s not a member of the pack, he isn’t privy to this information.”
“It effects everyone, Riley. Therefore, everyone is privy to this information. So just keep talking.”
Riley sighed again, “Anyway, they’ve proven that the brood in Goldenborough has either been dormant for years or has recently returned. They also brought us information on the brood they’ve been following. From what they showed us the other brood leader, a vampire by the name of Anastasia Cortaux, has taken over the Goldenborough brood. According to them she is unusually cruel and particularly vindictive,” Riley sighed and shifted in his seat. It was clear that he was uncomfortable talking about pack business in front of Kedar, “Anyway, Father is concerned because our knowledge of vampires is particularly limited. Since the Goldenborough brood was never much of a threat, the last people who were well versed in vampires were his grandparents. Even Malcolm has limited knowledge on them. The lines between truth and myth are blurred. Or that’s what my father said anyway.”
Samantha was quiet for a moment, then she sighed, “Well, if that’s all…” She started.
Riley stood, “Yeah…that’s all…” He sighed, “I’ll see you later babe…” He mumbled as he pulled her into a hug. He glared at Kedar over her shoulder before releasing her and walking out of the house and to his truck. It roared to life and not seconds after he started it, Riley sped away from the house.
Kedar looked at Samantha, “The brood in Goldenborough never left,” He said as he stood, “My grandfather…well let’s just say he kept them in line. Better than the Head did anyway. I have his old records on vampires, if you need them.”
Samantha shook her head, “Honestly, I’m not sure if I believe what these wolves have to say. But if Malcolm does, then there isn’t anything I can do. We will just have to see. Well…let’s go. You did say that you were going to model for me.” She said as she grabbed Kedar’s hand.
He smiled and squeezed her hand lightly, “Of course, let’s go…”
CHAPTER 9
A couple of weeks passed. Samantha spent her afternoons and weekends with Kedar, much to Riley’s discontent. She was still banned from pack activities, but with her newfound friendship it was not as lonely as she had anticipated. She spent every moment that she got with Kedar, and although she hadn’t been happier in a long time, she was starting to drift away from the pack.
***
On the day of the full moon, Samantha woke unusually early. Riley had spent the night at her house to make up for the time that they had missed together and his breath on her neck disturbed her sleep. He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her neck. He took a deep breath, sighed and squeezed her tight, pressing light kisses onto her skin.
He nipped at her shoulder and she shrugged him away a bit, “Did you ever open your presents?” He whispered.
Samantha shook her head. It had been only almost two weeks but she had forgotten all about them, “No…I haven’t. Not yet…” She confessed.
When Riley spoke she could hear the hurt in his voice, “Will you open them now…?” He asked as he sat
up.
Samantha sat up and leaned off the edge of the bed to grab a sweater. She pulled it on over her head and got off of the bed stretching. Riley watched her every movement intently, his eyes following even her slightest move. She made her way to her dresser and grabbed the two little black boxes. She sat down on the edge of her bed and slowly opened the first box as Riley moved over to her. Inside was a beautiful pair of 14karot white gold, hanging prong earrings, with solid sapphire gems. She gasped as she stared at them and she looked over her shoulder at Riley, astounded that he had spent so much money on her.
“These are beautiful!” She exclaimed, “Thank you so much…” She continued in a much quieter tone as she touched the deep blue stones.
Riley wrapped his arms around her waist, feeling pangs of guilt knowing that she thought he had gotten the gifts for her specifically, instead of re-gifting things that had previously belonged to his sister. He kissed her cheek gently, “I’m glad that you like them. Open the other one now…” He crooned, moving the sweater so that he could kiss down her neck and shoulder.
Samantha smiled warmly and she started to open the other box while Riley slowly rubbed her sides. She froze, her breath catching in her throat and stomach dropping. The box almost slipped out of her hands, but she regained her grip quickly, before it could fall to the floor. Inside the box was a beautiful engagement ring. It was 18karot white gold, with an antique European cut diamond and elaborate scroll engraving almost all the way around the band. She was silent in shock, at a loss for words. Even Riley didn’t know what to say, as he stared wide eyed at the ring. Had he known a ring was in that box, he would have held onto it for a more appropriate occasion.
Blood Moon (Moons of the Wolf Series Book 1) Page 7
