Is it him? Is he foolish enough to come back home? The thought felt intriguing. He watched closer, straining to see if it was the freak and prepared himself for anything. Feeling rather surprised, he watched as the freak’s friend, the one that he saw in New York, step out of the car instead. He then watched him walk up the several steps and make it onto her porch. He watched as he knocked on the front door, and melted when he saw a glint of her face as she opened the door to him.
God, does she look so beautiful? God, did he love seeing her. Every time he saw her, it felt like watching the sun peer out on a long and cloudy day. She’s so much like her. He could barely believe it, each, and every time he saw her.
He continued to watch as the freak’s friend disappeared through the now open front door and watched the door close again behind him. Sitting there, he realized that he came to the right place. He now felt like he was back on the hunt. He could feel it. He could almost taste it. Now all he had to do was wait for their next move. He couldn’t wait. He felt impatient, but he knew that he had to do it. He had no other choice. It was only a matter of time before they made a mistake and led him right back to him again.
10
After studying what Richard Ross gave her for several hours, Rachel couldn’t contain the excitement for what she found out about it. The solution did exactly what he told her it would. She had to use her last sample of Jimmy‘s blood, but now it seemed worth it. The compounds forced the changed cells to reverse back into human. It reversed the change, but also like he said, it didn’t last long. It seems that the wolf’s cells were very resistant. They fall back, but soon figured out how to take the human cells back quickly. That made her feel disappointed, but at least it did something. She knew that if she studied it long enough, she might be able to make the change permanent.
She left Knight Labs with a strong stride beneath her, and headed off home. Jimmy was going to be calling her soon. He always did after ten o‘clock. The last time she talked to him, he said something about heading up north. He didn’t tell her where he was going, a part of her wished that he was there with her again, but after hearing that he was heading north of the city, up her way, her imagination helped her realize that he was near her. It made him feel closer to her. It gave her hope that one day he would be exactly where she wanted him to be—by her side. Until then, she couldn’t wait to hear his voice again. She couldn’t wait to talk with him, and see how he was. She felt almost like a schoolgirl with a crush. He made her feel kitty. He made her feel special. She had to be home when he called, so she rushed to get there. She couldn’t wait, and now, with everything she learned, she had so much more to tell him too.
Arriving home, she put some water on the stove, and with it turned on, she felt almost at ease. It had been such a long day, and it made her mind flow with everything that happened almost like water rushing over a cliff. The doom she felt earlier now seemed to be completely gone. Excitement replaced it, but still, she had to prepare herself to hear his voice. She had to be ready for the rush of the feelings it would cause her when she did. She figured that a hot cup of tea would help her relax. It always did, and thankfully, the water heated fast.
With her tea in hand, and now waiting, almost out of breath, she sat down on her sofa with an explosive exhale. She tried to get comfortable, but found it rather hard to do it. She felt almost bubbly. She felt almost unfocused. She took the handheld telephone off the base on the table next to her sofa and placed it on her lap. She set the cup of tea to the coffee table in front of her. She sat there, stared at the cordless phone and waited for it to ring. As she did so, she thought about all she had to tell him first.
How is he going to handle what I’m going to tell him? Is he going to take it well? Is he going to like what I’m going to tell him about the drug? She didn’t know anything. The last time she saw him, he told her to continue looking for a way to stop the change. That told her that he still wanted her help. That alone gave her the strength to move on with trying to find it. Why would he lie to her about wanting her help, if he didn’t? Why would he let her continue on with something, if that‘s not what he wanted her to do? She could only hope he would let her help him as they already planned. Did she doubt it? No, but with him moving on his journey to talk with this wanderer guy, she now wasn’t so sure. An idea she had to push outside of her thoughts. Now’s not the time. He wants to stop what he is. I have to keep trying. I have to keep helping him, no matter what.
Now sitting there, waiting for the ring, she couldn’t stand it. She turned her thoughts over, and over again within her mind. She loved him. She knew that. She wanted him, and that also seemed simple, but did he want her? He seemed so distant the last time he saw her. He seemed so hesitant to be with her, and she knew why. He felt afraid of what he was. He felt afraid of the wolf living inside him with hurting her. She understood that fear, but she didn’t share it. The wolf had all the time in the world to hurt her back at the labs. It had every chance to take her life, but it didn’t even try to do it. In fact, it saved her that night in the labs. It came to get her, and rescued her from Gary’s men. Knowing that, she knew he wouldn’t harm her. He even seemed to protect her. She knew she could trust him fully, but as for Jimmy, she knew that he wasn’t all that sure. As long as that doubt existed, he would never let himself get close to her. That made sense. He didn’t remember being the wolf. That’s why he wanted her help. That’s why he wanted her to find the cure. It was for him to be with her. It was only for him, and not for her.
She was about to take her cup of tea again, and take a drink, but the sound of someone knocking on her front door caused her to have to stop. Who could that be at this time of night? The thought that it was Jimmy came rushing into her mind. Could he be here? Was it him? A part of her could only hope that it was. The other part of her knew better than that. He would have told her that he was coming. He wouldn’t surprise her like this. Knowing that it was probably not him, it made her stand up with a soft caution in her legs. It was too late for a casual visit, and knowing that, it could only be something bad. She walked to the front door with that same frame of thought. She opened the door with that same feeling as she looked outside. “Brandon?” She couldn’t believe it. Why is he here? “What are you doing here?”
Brandon smelled her come to the door. He couldn’t believe that he did it, and with it, he could even hear her feet scuffle as she stood up from her sofa. He could even hear the sound of the floor creaking when she walked to the door. He could almost hear the floorboards move under her feet as she reached for the door, and opened it to him. This is getting weird. This is getting fucking stranger. I need to find Jimmy, and now. “Hi.” He tried to smile but couldn’t. He felt winded. He felt his eyes starting to burn. He had to blink continually to keep them from feeling like they were going to catch on fire.
Rachel looked at his face, and could see that his eyes looked low and looked somewhat sunken back in on his face. He looked pale. He looked exhausted. He didn’t look like himself. “Brandon, are you all right?” The phone, with her hand, went down to her side.
The blinking of his eyes picked up pace. His mouth began to water. His heart felt like it raced hard behind his chest, and it felt like at any moment it was going to explode from it. “I’m fine.” He met her eyes, but had trouble seeing her clearly. For some reason she looked different. She looked odd. He couldn’t figure out why. “Can I come in?” His body shuddered some.
She noticed the shudder. “Come in.” She stepped back and allowed him room to come inside, and join her.
He nodded. The shaking continued some, but as soon as he made it through the doorway, it stopped. Instantly he calmed. Instantly he breathed again.
She closed the door and turned around towards him. “Are you sure that you’re all right? You look,” she began but when she turned, all of the paleness of his face looked gone. His eyes now sparkled. His face had color. The shaking looked like it stopped too. She saw it all, and instantly fe
lt even more worried, and even more confused about what she saw. “What’s going on Brandon?”
He could hear the concern in her voice. With himself feeling normal again, he breathed, and listened to it bend, almost like it was on the wind itself. He liked the sound of it. He liked the fact that she felt concerned for him. “Nothing.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I was wondering if you’ve heard from Jimmy lately.” He breathed again, making it almost sound like a wince.
Rachel sighed hearing his voice crack some. For whatever reason, she didn’t seem to believe what he told her. He seemed distant. He seemed almost aloof. When he spoke, and changed the subject, she could have sworn that it was Jimmy asking the question. He sounded just like him when they first met. It was only a feeling, but that feeling seemed to want to hang on and not let go of her heart. “I was just waiting for him to call me.” She smiled, but the feeling didn’t feel right on her face. None of this felt right at all.
“Good.” He nodded fast up and down. He shrugged his shoulders again as well. “Would you mind if I stay until he does?” He smiled.
She didn’t like the look. “Are you sure that you’re all right?”
He nodded emphatically. “I’m fine.” He looked from her and dropped his head to the floor. “What time were you expecting him to call you?”
She shook her head some. Again, he seemed almost like Jimmy acted, after he was bitten, and that stuck out in her thoughts. He acted too aloof. He also seemed to change some. Brandon was never normal, as far as she’s ever known him, but there seemed to be more to it than that now. She couldn’t get the thought off her mind. “Any time now.” She left the front door and passed him back towards her sofa, and stopped right in front of the coffee table. “He calls me every so often after ten or so, to let me know how he’s doing.” She turned from it and looked back.
He now stood directly behind her. In fact, he was now so close to her, that she almost couldn’t believe it. She never heard him move. She never heard him come that close to her. “You’re starting to worry me Brandon. You’re acting almost like Jimmy did after he was bitten.”
Brandon laughed. It sounded hardy and strong.
Again, to her, it didn’t sound right. It didn’t sound like him.
“That’s crazy. I’m fine; I’m just—tired that’s all.” He smiled again.
She took a deep breath. The phone began ringing just as she exhaled it. Hearing it, her thoughts turned back to Jimmy. Whatever was wrong with his friend, she would find that out after she talked with the love of her life. “Hello?”
“Rachel, it’s me.” Jimmy’s voice sounded crisp. He sounded calm. He sounded well—happy.
She loved the sound. “Hi.” She couldn’t contain the excitement that she felt right at that moment. He sounded too wonderful for her to bear it. “How are you?”
“I’m fine. We’re up north. We’re with a friend of mine—um—of the wolf.”
Her heart skipped a beat. His voice sounded almost like a purring in her ears. She nodded to the room. “I’m glad.” She smiled to the bottom of the phone.
“He’s going to help me, Rachel. I think he can help me with everything.”
“I hope he can.” Her smile grew larger. “Jimmy? Where are you now?”
“I’m up in the Adirondacks. It’s a small place about a mile outside of the little town of Old Forge.”
She looked up to Brandon. He had his arms crossed over his chest. He looked nervous to her. He looked almost like a drug addict that was waiting for his next fix. She didn’t like the look. She didn’t like her thought, and it made her feel even more worried. “Jimmy, Brandon’s here with me.” Her eyes met his stare. His eyes looked so wide that they almost looked like silver dollar coins. They looked so bright that they almost sparkled from that silver brightness.
“Tell him that I said hi.” His voice lit up some.
“Jimmy says hi.” She smiled.
Brandon smiled and nodded. “Hi.” His voice cracked some.
She winced. She didn’t do it because of Brandon, but for what she had to say next. “Jimmy, there’s something that I have to tell you.”
The other end of the line went silent some. Jimmy was obviously thinking. When he came back again, the light in his voice turned serious all too fast. “What is it that you have to tell me?”
She looked down to the sofa behind her. She felt the undying need to sit, so she did. She still had no idea of how he was going to take the news she had to tell him. She had to prepare herself for anything, so she took a deep breath before she started. “Richard Ross gave me something that he’s had for some time now,” she paused, looking to the coffee table at her knees. She looked to the cup of tea, and tried to concentrate on it as she tried to find the right words to say to him. When she felt sure that she found them, she began again, “It’s not a cure but it’s close to it. It’s a drug that inhibits the change Jimmy. It stops it even.” There, she said it. Now she had to wait for his reaction to it. If he took it well, then she knew that he wanted her to continue with it and help him. If he didn’t, his life, and hers, would stay this way forever. They would never be able to be together. He would never allow himself to be with her as long as he had the wolf inside him. She knew him well enough to know that much.
He paused again, trying to think. He looked back over to where Kenny stood, over with Sasha in the living room, and with her help, they were getting ready for what they planned to do next. He watched her move a television over towards the bookcases across from the sofa. He watched Kenny direct her as to where to put it. He looked back to the counter where he stood, talking on the phone, and for an instant, he didn’t know what to say. He had no idea what to think. He had no idea what to do. Listening to her voice, and hearing what she said, it brought everything out to the forefront of his thoughts like a flash of light makes the eyes blink. Am I ready to end all of what he is? Am I ready to end Kalima? Am I ready to go back to the life I had? He knew none of this. He didn’t know how to respond to anything, if not more than that.
“Jimmy?” The pause became unbearable. It became almost deafening. In a way, he gave her the answer she hoped would never come. She knew that he was getting used to being what he was. She even knew that he started to like it some. He would never go back to what he was before this happened. Some of her didn’t blame him really. She didn’t know him all that well before all of this began, but what she did remember the most about him was his shyness. She knew of his awkwardness for being the person he was. After the wolf’s bite, he changed into someone else. He became strong. He became forceful. In a way, he became the person he always believed himself to be. With all of this, he was still the wolf. He was still an animal. He still believed that he was dangerous, even though she knew him better than that. Hearing his pause, she nodded. He’s choosing the wolf, and in doing it, he didn’t choose her. With that thought, fear gripped her heart like a vice. It tore at her soul. All she had left was to hear him say it. She had to know for sure, and no better than now, but from his own mouth.
Jimmy stared at the counter top. Just above it and level with his face, he saw a microwave built into the cupboards along the wall. In the glass of the black colored door of the oven, he saw his own face shining back to him. Seeing himself, for the first time in a while, he saw something else. He liked what he saw. He liked the way he felt. He started to like the wolf inside him. He started to like Kalima. In fact, he began feeling love for him. He began to respect him. Now, looking at his own eyes, he saw Kalima’s there as well. He couldn’t describe the feeling. He couldn’t place it, and with seeing it, he didn’t know what to think about anything he saw.
Rachel looked up from the coffee table and looked to her left hand that was resting on her lap. More and more, she now had her answer. “Jimmy?” She sat up straighter some, but it didn’t feel like she did it herself. Instead, her entire body seemed to tense up all by itself. “Do you still want this? Do you still want me to help you?” She swallowed a now v
ery dry mouth. Her whole life now seemed to be passing before her eyes. The life of them, together, which will never be, came rushing out and passed her soul with a flash of a bright light. It looked so bright. She felt the heat, and with it, her heart seemed to burn inside her chest.
“I’m not sure.” Jimmy looked from his reflection and back out to Sasha. He watched her set up a tripod and then set a small camcorder on top of it. She did it all right in front of the television that she just set up. Seeing her, the discussion they had at the motel came rushing back into his thoughts. What he said to her seemed so strongly there. He did love her, but as a daughter. He also wanted Rachel. He loved her; he didn’t, and wouldn’t doubt that. Would they be together if he stayed what he was? Could they be? Should they be? He wasn’t sure of anything anymore. If he stayed the wolf, he knew she would always be in danger. He trusted Kalima, but he knew there were more of them out there. He knew there were more of them than he would ever know about. He knew they would expose themselves to them from time to time. Knowing that, could he bring her along with him? Could he have a life with her, if he also had a life with Kalima? He couldn’t see it. He couldn’t risk it. Knowing that, and feeling it, he knew now that he had to make a choice. With it, his thoughts turned back over to seeing her again just before she left New York. He could see the way her black hair fluttered with the slight early morning breeze caressing her face. He could see her beautiful face sparkling with the sun. He loved the memory, and with it, he knew he could never live without her. He would do anything for her. He would give his life for hers, and if that were true, he knew that he had to choose her. He had no other choice. He had to do it.
“Rachel?” he paused, turning back towards the outside wall of the kitchen. He looked over to the large bay window at the front of the house and to the darkness that looked all-consuming outside it. With it, he only saw his own reflection shining back to him, and seeing it, he nodded. He looked human. He looked like he always did. Seeing it, he took a heavy breath and exhaled again as he let it out. He also looked strong. All he could see was Jimmy Walls. “Bring it with you. I’ll try it.” He made the choice.
A Werewolf's Saga Books 1, 2, & 3 (A Werewolf's Saga Boxed Sets) Page 62
