Back to You (Don't Forget Me Book 2)

by Sia Wales

  He slams his fist on the counter.

  “It’s out of the question,” interrupts Tyler, as he keeps working behind the counter.

  “For what reason?” asks Locke, exasperated. He wants to be part of the group, even though he’s just a college boy.

  “Please understand. It’s too dangerous,” Tyler explains patiently. “When you become one of us, a Siberian Ranger, you’ll become part of every expedition. But until then…”

  “What is at the border?” I ask quickly with curiosity, moving toward them.

  Tyler stares at me, surprised. He was too engrossed in the conversation and distracted by work to hear me coming. Locke, closer to the door, had noticed me. I wait for the answer.

  “Hey Stella. You got here early today,” Tyler says feigning indifference. “I was just talking to Locke about conducting a survey at the border. We have to make sure that wolves don’t cross over.”

  “Why?”

  “We want to insure safety in the reservation.” He speaks in the plural, I notice. The same plural of the pack that Vuk uses.

  “To preserve the balance among the creatures of the different mountains,” Tyler adds, changing the subject. He breathes in and becomes still, while a bit gloomy.

  “What else is there?” I ask, as anxiety takes over.

  His face grows serious and it takes me a moment to understand why.

  “More troubles with the cougars?”

  Tyler shakes his head and frowns.

  “I wouldn’t say that.” I can read hesitation on his face as he continues speaking. “Another hiker has gone missing a short distance from the border.”

  “Has there been another attack?” I turn pale.

  “Well, yes. Not too far from our cabin, by the lakes.” Tyler continues. “We’re not suspecting the wolves, but that doesn’t mean that they can leave their territory and cross the border. We’ll take care of it.”

  I shiver and stand still. Vuk. His name echoes in my brain.

  “The rangers found the hiker’s campsite early this morning’” says Tyler. “But there is no trace of him. He has disappeared.”

  “How can you say it’s not the cougars who got him?” I spurt out, panicking. “Maybe it was the pack of them.”

  My observation is completely irrational and cliché.

  “There are no traces of animals on site. Just a little blood, just like last time.” Tyler notes. “But this time we have traces that are not compatible with those of cougars. They lead to and get lost a few yards from the interstate in the direction of Massachusetts.”

  I see the anger in his face, a dark side, but well hidden. Immediately his glance regains the same cheery and friendly look of Myco’s eyes.

  “Anyway,” he continues calmly. “We’re headed to the border to make sure that it is not crossed. We’re preparing traps.”

  Sounds like he’s expecting me to relay the news to someone else.

  “Ah.” I’m shocked. I’m not listening anymore. I’m upset by the thought of Vuk being in danger if he crosses the border again with Drake and the cousins. I have to warn him. Time keeps passing by too fast.

  Tonight I’m not dreaming. I toss and turn restlessly in my bed and fall asleep only at dawn. I open my eyes and I find myself staring at the day of my date with Donn. To think of where he’s going to take me is scary. To remember what day it is––the day he died––sends shivers through me. But I am too mad at him to feel any compassion. Mad for what he’s putting my best friend through.

  Poor Vuk.

  When I go down to breakfast, Jeff is already out of the driveway and about to leave on his way home. I look out at the road. I hear him say goodbye and the Corvette takes off.

  I have breakfast while I look as the thick fog floats in the air, illuminated by the light that filters through the window. I leave the house and despite the gray and swollen clouds, it isn’t raining.

  When I arrive at school, I recognize that mass of tousled bronze hair from yards away. Sitting inside the red pickup, there is Vuk Wolf.

  His presence in the parking lot gives me a sense of relief that quickly fades. Nothing has changed. He’s actually standoffish and feels even more distant. He doesn’t seem to notice my presence.

  I stay at the wheel, waiting for his eyes to meet mine, and for him to come out of whatever deep thought he’s in. I want to look at his face to see if he has returned to be the same warm and friendly person I have known for the past year. Or, if unfortunately, what transpired yesterday afternoon is true.

  He turns around slowly, reluctantly. I do the same. I don’t want to let myself get carried away by the feelings that will overtake me as I admire his face, so intense and tormented. When I look at him, I see he’s worried about something; his emerald eyes seem dull, unreadable. He doesn’t say anything.

  I get out of the car as he gets out of the truck and comes toward me, taking my hand. But his greeting confirms that he is still upset. I try to act casual, but I have something else on my mind and my conversation sounds horribly forced and fake.

  While we walk silently together to the economics lecture, he slows his pace to stay by my side. I try several times to start a conversation, but he isn’t going for it. He walks very close to me, rigid and gloomy, and absent. His arm hangs around my shoulders, but his head is somewhere else. It is obvious that spending time with me is not helping him. I turn pale and shrink. The same person who was my best friend yesterday barely speaks to me today and practically doesn’t look at me anymore.

  We sit down at the usual row of desks already full of our friends, who greet us from the other side of the invisible barrier between us. Jamie gives me a distracted wave with his hand, then goes back to talking with Amber.

  Fortunately, Tess is sitting next to me. I smile and nod, while Seth, a bench away, goes on about professors and lectures, as well as rock climbing and the matter of the cougars. I don’t even try to follow his story. I try to be polite, but for the most part I lie. I can only think about Vuk and I feel myself collapse into the void––alone, without the feeling of security I know when he is really next to me.

  While conversing distractedly with Seth and Tess, my eyes dart back to Vuk. He is sitting tensely in the chair, and his eyes seem to drift off into nothingness, looking like a beautiful statue by Michelangelo.

  He is staring out at the classroom, far from the desk, from the other students, from me, from everything. I stare at him because his beautiful face is the only relief from the pain. But that’s not the reason why I can’t look away. I can see the torture in his eyes, more golden than usual, as I feel it also in mine.

  For the rest of the first hour of the class, I cannot help but throw quick painstaking looks at Vuk. He keeps watching the wall, thoughtfully, without listening. I try to catch his gaze, but it does not meet mine. I hang my head down over my notes and I try to downplay his behavior, but I’m not believable. I can’t even lie to myself.

  Suddenly, however, Tess giggles embarrassingly and looks at me.

  “Hey, Stella,” she whispers, with a smirk. “He’s staring at you.”

  From her tone I sense who she talking about and look up. Vuk is looking at me. Then he looks at Tess for no more than a fraction of a second. And I find Vuk again staring at me, curious, his topaz eyes veiled from the usual hint of frustration. I, too, look at him, surprised, sure he will turn away his gaze. Instead he continues to inspect me, ever more intensely.

  The nothingness that appears in his eyes is as deep as a crater, creating a black hole inside me. But I’m not willing to surrender.

  My hands tremble. I can’t believe the wave of feelings that have overcome me only because, for the first time in nearly two hours, he has given me more than a glance. In this swift exchange of meaningful glances, I give in and shyly lower my gaze, overwhelmed by a thousand emotions grinding and tearing away at me.

  I feel my cheeks burn and my ears ring. The next several minutes drag on in the same tense and frustrating way. I t
ry to focus on economics, but not even game theory manages to capture my attention. Professor Keynes is forced to repeat the question about the Prisoner’s Dilemma twice before I realize that he is addressing me. He asks students randomly from the beginning of the lesson in preparation for the upcoming final. Vuk tells me the right answer under his breath and then acts as if I do not exist. I thank him with a whisper. He answers with a look, sweet, I think. But I’m not sure. Sometimes, out of the corner of my eye, I catch him watching me, yet he keeps his distance. And I go back to my notes. Moments later, Tess comes up beside me. I decided to play dumb.

  “Need help for the notes from class?” she giggles. “Vuk is staring at you again.”

  I turn without thinking and Vuk’s eyes flash bright in mine, clearer than ever. Immediately, he averts his gaze and rubs his eyelids to maintain control. I lower mine, instantly. I am frozen next to Tess, in total embarrassment. I try to seem indifferent.

  “Who knows what’s wrong with him today?” I whisper, to give her the benefit of the doubt.

  I see her still looking toward that desk. I turn my head to follow Tess’ gaze until Vuk is staring at me and, under his mustache, he smiles. His expression is neutral, as if he had looked up involuntarily when she said his name, but had already decided not to respond. Beside me, Tess does not stop smiling. She tickles my ear.

  “He wants your attention,” she whispers amusedly, in a friendly tone.

  Vuk meets my gaze with his crooked smile. I look at Tess.

  “He doesn’t seem angry, right?” I can’t help but ask softly. While I’m talking to her I sense his probing eyes on me. I take a quick look at Vuk but he has already turned to look out at the classroom.

  “I wouldn’t say so, at least not with you,” Tess says softly. She pauses, and I turn back to her. Then she continues on enthusiastically.

  “Should he be? More than anything it seems like he wants to tell you something…”

  Tess’s perception, as usual, is the most insightful. I keep my eyes on the ground.

  “Stop watching him,” I whisper awkwardly, and she turns away begrudgingly.

  Curious, I cannot hold back for long. I peek at him out of the corner of my eye, and see that he has resumed staring at me, but without scrutinizing me. His expression is slightly frustrated; I lower my gaze again, and he turns to look elsewhere. Tess realizes it.

  “I’ve never seen him behave so strange,” she says. “I’m sorry, but has he walked into a light post, or gotten hit in the head with a brick or something?”

  So I was not the only one noticing it. It is clear, this is not Vuk’s usual behavior. I bite my lip to keep from laughing, sure that he’s heard everything. His eyes have turned back to the classroom, but his cheeks are raised as if he was smiling too. Suddenly he turns and his gaze meets mine, and this time his expression is daring. I seem to notice that it is strangely somber, almost melancholy, and yet pleasant.

  The sound of footsteps approaching calls my attention away. I look up in surprise to see that while Professor Keynes is lecturing, he’s walking between the rows and stops in front of us.

  “Wolf?” He asks, looking for the answer to a question that I didn’t hear.

  “The Nash equilibrium,” Vuk answers. “Neither of the two competitors can improve his position by adopting a different strategy,” he explains, and shoots me a look. He is referring to something else. I keep staring at him.

  “Is there anything that you would like to share with us, Mr. Wolf?”

  Vuk looks back innocently.

  “Certainly. The theory put into practice,” he responds and hands over a worksheet, before having had a chance to practice in class.

  Professor Keynes examines the exercise on a crumpled piece of paper. It’s a precise and perfect transcription of his lecture in the most imperfect of notes. He walks away, frowning. My Vuk is a genius rebel.

  Free from the weight of his eyes, I turn back to my notes and try to collect my wits. I cannot allow him to influence me in this crazy way. It’s unhealthy.

  I work off Vuk’s strange behavior by the end of the lecture, but then the excitement flares up again. While I steal a glance at him, he jumps up quickly just as the bell starts to ring. I pop up from my chair and drop all my notes on the floor. By the time I bend down to collect them, he is already at my side and has already stacked them. He hands me the papers. He is serious, and frowns.

  “Thanks,” I say timidly.

  I reach out to get them, and put them on the desk. He responds with a slight nod of the head, his eyes narrow into two slits. He steps back from his place in a smooth movement giving me an curious look. He turns away slowly. Before anyone else has had a chance to leave their seats he is already out of the room without looking back.

  The door swings open, and the cold wind that instantly fills the room from an open window in the hallway blows the sheets on the desk and ruffles my hair. I rush to the door and run to catch up to him. I figure there must be some other reason he’s acting this way; something must have happened before I was in the parking lot this morning. It’s hard to believe that Vuk could give me the cold shoulder in such a sudden and intense way. His strange behavior must due to a totally different reason. It must surely be related to the meeting with Donn yesterday in the library. I slow down and stop behind him.

  “Vuk?” I call out.

  “Yes?” His voice is melodious. He turns to me and slows his fast stride gracefully. Again that smirk, the color of his eyes flaming.

  “So you’ve decided to start talking to me again…” I murmur, showing my emotions.

  “Not really,” he admits. “You’ve started talking to me first. I have just answered” He holds a laugh that vibrates softly in his chest. I reorganize my thoughts.

  “Are you staying for lunch?” I ask cautiously.

  His chuckle stops.

  “Maybe another time,” he says with his raspy, velvety voice. He does not seem very convinced. “I’m sorry. But it’s better this way, really.”

  “Why not today?” I repeat. I’m not giving up. I wait for an answer, angry and anxious. Incredibly, it seems that Vuk is holding back another laugh.

  “I have to relieve Drake” he explains patiently. “Like yesterday. Remember? “

  “Sure, sure. But…” I hold my breath.

  “Please, Stella,” he interrupts.

  I have to go. Now.” I feel every moment we’re becoming more distant. “Forgive me,” he murmurs retreating inward. His hands sit tensely on the edge of the pockets of his Diesel jeans. As he is about to leave, Tyler’s warning surfaces from my lips.

  “Vuk, you have to be careful…” I suddenly blurt out. My voice sounds strange. He raises his eyebrows. He seems even more surprised.

  “Careful about who?” He is apparently confused by my question. Now it seems that he wants to mock me.

  “Of the rangers and traps they laid,” I say with my head down, the anxiety weighing me down like a weight around my neck. The words, and my voice, have caught him again by surprise.

  “Don’t worry,” he murmurs. He seems sincere. “We know how to look out for ourselves.”

  I raise my eyes a bit, just enough to observe him better.

  “Don’t worry?” I reply without letting my guard down, incredulous. “Vuk, they have laid traps!”

  “We already know everything,” he says, his low voice reassuring me. “Drake is keeping an eye on them. They’re just complicating things and in this way they run the risk of letting Adam escape.” He’s poised and restrained. “Did you want to tell me something else?”

  I close my eyes, inhaling deeply and I realize I am starting to grind my teeth.

  “No, not exactly” I lie, softly. “Never mind. I realize that today it is impossible to hold you back. Thanks anyway.” I close my eyes so it is easier to talk to him without losing my train of thought.

  “Okay, then.” He is ready to take off. Just one look at his face is enough to make me sink down in disa
ppointment. I rush to find something to say.

  “Can I come and see you in Wolfeboro?” I ask anxiously, with a smile. “We are leaving now and in less than two hours we’ll be there.” His back is turned. I can sense he’s torn and I keep staring at him.

  He stiffens and turns slowly with more conviction. At this very moment, Vuk’s eyes dart like flashes and meet mine. When he decides to respond, he seems to have given in to a madness that I think comes from pain.

  “You cannot come to see me,” he snarls sarcastically, like Drake the night before. I’ve already heard this. I close my eyes slowly.

  “Sorry,” he starts again softly, and frowns disheartened. “I am being very rude, I know.” For a moment I seem to catch a glimpse of the young werewolf , heir to the royal house of the Wolves. “See you tomorrow in class,” he concludes, coldly.

  I stare at him, full of indignation and bite my lip to keep from blurting out accusations, ready to flow out.

  “Vuk…” My mouth fills up with his name, in the hope that he will have second thoughts. “I know that…”

  “No,” he quickly says. “You know nothing!”

  “I mean that…”

  “But, you do not know what it means!” He interrupts me. He pronounces each word slowly, as if to make me understand and he seems to be speaking about something else. I think about it a moment.

  “But you know it,” I manage to say. “You know, so tell me. Go on, please.”

  He gives me a piercing look; full of torment, then controls his anger. He is on the defensive.

  “It’s better if we don’t go any further. Let’s stop here,” he says. “Trust me.”

  I shiver with fear and feel goose bumps down my arms.

  “You know, you’re right,” I say. “I don’t understand what you mean. Did I do something wrong?”

  “No.” He opens his eyes, surprised. “What could you have done wrong?” He seems only curious, and somewhat dissatisfied. “To tell the truth, I should only blame myself.”

  “Too bad you didn’t realize earlier that you didn’t want me to be a part of your new life.” I retort.

  “Do you think I regret bringing you to Wolfeboro, to my house, in the territory of the wolves?”