by Laura Del
“Wow, it’s exactly the way I remember it.”
“Yeah,” Bobby breathed, “Cindy was in here trying to get the place ready for you. She’s a nice woman, actually.” I glared at him. “I’ll get the bags now.”
“You think?”
Without another word, he left to get my bags from downstairs. I took off my boots, with only two grimaces of pain, and lay down in bed. This was going to be one of the longest weeks of my life.
Before I could even take a moment to close my eyes, Bobby walked back into the room, placing all the bags on the floor next to the door, including my handbag. “I thought you might be needing it,” he said, pointing to my purse.
I sat up a little, biting my lower lip in pain. “Yeah, thanks.”
He turned to leave and then stopped abruptly. “When that boyfriend of yours called, he said that you were badly injured in a car accident.” I figured it had to be something like that. “Can I see?” He looked over his shoulder at me. That was Bob. He just couldn’t keep his nose in his own business.
I shrugged the one shoulder that didn’t kill me. “Sure. Why not?”
“Should I close the door?”
“No,” I blurted. I did not want to be alone in my old bedroom with him. That kind of intimacy wasn’t needed. “I mean, no. It can stay open.”
“Okay,” he said, turning fully around. That was my cue to sit all the way up and take off my shirt. I watched as his eye widened with both excitement and shock. “Holy crap. All that is for one wound?” he asked, pointing to the bandage around my abdomen.
I nodded. “Sure is. Could you help me with it? It needs to be changed anyway.”
“Yeah, no problem,” he said, walking over to me. Then he gently unwrapped the bandages. When the gauze was nearly a third of the way off, he backed away from me. “Oh my God! What the hell?”
“Pretty gnarly, huh?” I tried to play my pain off. “Could you get the small bag? I think there are more bandages in there.”
He stood looking at the top of my stomach in horror. The wound was still bleeding a little, and as I glanced down, I could see that it looked a lot angrier than it did before. When Mike in his werewolf form was on top of me, he had clawed the shit out of my stomach, and the marks went from high on my right ribcage down to just above my left hip.
“That doesn’t look like you were in any kinda car accident, Pat,” Bobby responded after a moment of observing the wounds. “That looks like—” he stopped himself, and I could see some sort of emotion pass over his eyes.
“Looks like, what?” I asked, suddenly very intrigued. Sleep could wait, especially when someone acted the way Bobby had. As long as I live, the investigative journalist would always win over sleeping.
Picking the small bag up off the floor, Bobby handed it to me in silence. As I took it from him, he wouldn’t look me in the eyes. And when I opened it, I saw that Samuel had indeed packed the bandages very neatly inside. I silently thanked whatever god would listen. Finally, I managed to get the gauze wrap out of the bag. I was having a hell of a time putting on the ointment and trying to wrap myself up like a mummy at the same time. “Don’t just stand there,” I huffed, grimacing. I was very out of breath. “Help me.”
Bobby shook himself out of his stupor. “Right. Sorry.” He moved quickly and began to bandage my wound expertly.
“Have you done this before?”
Bob nodded solemnly. “Yeah, a couple of times,” he paused. “Damn, Pat. It looks like you were mauled by some kinda animal.” I laughed awkwardly with a stitch in my side, but he went on without noticing. “It looks as though you were attacked by a…” his voice faded away, and he busied himself with getting some medical tape from the bag.
Something inside told me that he knew exactly what had attacked me, so I decided to test him a little. Not too much so he would think I was crazy, but just enough that if he knew what I was talking about it would be obvious to him. “As though I was attacked by what?” I asked, trying to sound innocent. “As if I was attacked by, oh say, a wolf or maybe even a werewolf?” I laughed, but when he looked up, he blanched.
“Werewolves don’t exist,” he said, voice cracking. And as he taped me up, he wouldn’t keep eye contact.
I nodded. “Right. I mean, that would be insane.”
“Right,” he agreed, “insane.” He patted my side gently. “Well, you’re done. I’ll see you later, okay?”
Bobby began to leave, but I needed to know what he knew about it all. I wouldn’t be able to rest if I didn’t. “Bob?” I called after him, and he turned around again. “What if there were such things as werewolves? Hypothetically, of course.”
“Hypothetically?” he repeated, and I nodded. “Then I’d say you were lucky to get away alive.”
I closed my eyes, realizing that he actually did know all about it. “Bobby,” I sighed, sitting back down and leaning against the headboard, “how do you—”
“I saw a lot of things overseas,” he interrupted me. “Some things just couldn’t be explained.”
“What happened?” I asked, and he looked at his feet. “That bad, huh?”
“Worse,” he replied with a frown.
“Tell me.”
And he did.
chapter
THREE
“It was about a year and a half ago now,” Bobby began after I made him shut the door so no one would hear the unusual conversation. He sat next to me on the bed, looking down at his lap. “I was in Iraq on a mission—” I opened my mouth, but he shook his head. “And no, I can’t tell you what I was doing.” I frowned, but he went on. “It was late at night, and we were driving on a dark road when the driver, Jeff, started screaming. The next thing we all knew he’d hit something, and we all jumped a mile. We thought it was an IED, but nothing exploded. So, of course, we all got out to investigate. Human nature, right? To be curious?” he asked, looking for some support, and I nodded in agreement. I knew about that type of curiosity all too well, and I understood that it could bite people in the ass if they weren’t careful. “But when we walked to the front of the Humvee, we saw this thing. It looked like some sort of animal, and when Jeff moved closer to it, it jumped up and bit him. We shot at it, but it just took every bullet we had. The beast was indestructible. It tore the shit outta the Humvee, leaving almost the same marks you have on your torso. It was nuts.” He stopped talking for a moment, but I knew what was coming next.
“The next full moon, Jeff felt sick. He said it was like something was trying to crawl out of his skin. Then he changed in front of my eyes. It was the most sickening thing I’d ever seen. He ran away from our camp, and the next morning…” he paused, shaking his head, “he came back with blood on him. Apparently, he killed a rabbit or something because we found the bones by the camp.” He laughed. “After that, he was the best tracker we had in the unit. The only person who knew about his condition was me, and I made sure to find someplace to lock him up every full moon. Jeff has a nice comfy desk job now, and no one messes with him. He gets a little scary when he’s mad.”
I laughed at that. I knew all too well the yellow eyes and sharpened teeth of a werewolf when they grew angry. “Yeah, they sure do.”
“So…” he paused, looking up at me, “Mike is—”
“Yes, he is,” I interrupted him before he could say the word.
“And he did that to you?”
“Yes, he did.”
He shook his head. “I’m going to fuckin’ kill him.”
“This is not half as bad as when you threw me into the rocks.” I remembered the time we had gone hiking when we were on spring break from our first year of college, and instead of helping me over the rocks, he picked me up and dropped me. I broke my right leg, and it left me bruised for months.
He chuckled, shaking his head again. “Hey, that was an accident.”
“Sure, it was.
” I nudged him, and he laughed a little louder.
“So, what happened?” he asked, growing very serious.
I cocked a brow at him. “Do you really want to know?”
He nodded. “I sure do.”
“Okay,” I sighed and began the very long story from the beginning. I told him about Samuel being the vampire and Mike being the werewolf, and everything in between.
He just sat there, asked a few questions, and when I was done, he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Holy shit,” he said on the exhale. “You’ve been busy.”
I placed my head in my hands in frustration and embarrassment. “I know, right?”
He hugged me sideways. “Well, it’s good you’re taking a break from him and all that. You need some time, Patty Melt.”
“Yes, I do,” I agreed, taking my hands away from my face, hugging him back.
“Do you want me to stay with you tonight?” he asked, and I shook my head. “Okay, well, I think I should let you sleep.”
“Good idea.”
Bobby broke the hug, getting off the bed. Then he leaned down and kissed me on the forehead. “Night, Pat.”
“Night,” I replied, trying to smile, and with that, he was gone.
I wiggled out of my bra, putting my shirt back on. Then I sighed to myself, figuring it was time to take my pants off. I couldn’t believe that I just had an entire conversation about the things I was getting away from in my bra and bandages. And that wasn’t even the worst part. Bobby knew about, and was friends with, a werewolf. He also now knew about vampires thanks to me and, to his credit, he had taken it all in stride. Probably due to the fact that Bobby always had a bit of a crush on me since we were kids. Actually, he was my second after James, but those kind of thoughts were for a different time. After all, I’d had enough flashbacks for one day, and I wasn’t certain my brain could handle much more. So I made up my mind to get ready for bed. It took me no time at all to get into my pajamas. And after I passed on brushing my teeth, I curled up under the soft covers, closed my eyes, and fell into a dreamless sleep.
What seemed like minutes later, my cell rang, waking me out of my bliss. I fumbled for my handbag that I had put on the floor by the bed before I had fallen asleep, and I answered it. “Hello,” I rasped, rolling over onto my back.
“Hey,” Mike’s deep, southern voice came from the other end, and my body stiffened in response. “Sorry, I didn’t realize how late it was. But I gotta tell ya somethin’, Pat.” He was silent for a second and I yawned, waiting for him to continue. “Is someone there with ya?”
“No,” I breathed, “I was just yawning. What did you want to tell me?”
“They made me Alpha,” he answered, and I could hear the pride in his voice.
I, on the other hand, was stunned into silence.
“Pat?” he breathed. “You still there?”
I nodded. “Yes, I’m here. That’s great. I’m so happy for you.” Mike was meant to be Alpha from the beginning, but he left to become a vampire’s lawyer. So I’m sure after they found out that Stag was dead, the pack just voted for Mike to take his rightful place.
“They just appointed me,” he said, excited. “I can’t believe I actually get a second chance to do this. But there’s somethin’ I gotta talk to you about, and I can’t do it over the phone. Can I come there?”
I could feel the blood drain from my face, and I was happy he wasn’t there to see it. “Not a good idea right now. Especially since we’re supposed to be taking a break. I don’t think I could handle what you have to say and this wedding all at once. Sorry.”
“Oh.” He sounded sad, and I had a feeling he was rubbing his tan neck. “You’re right. I’m so sorry, bébé. It’ll keep for now.” Someone called him. “Yeah, I’ll be right there,” he yelled back and then returned to our conversation. “I gotta go.”
“Okay,” I sighed, a little relieved.
“Oh, and before I forget, Sam called and asked me to tell you to call him as soon as possible. He said that you asked him to do a thing for you, and he wants to talk ya about it.” He paused for a minute. “What thing did ya ask ‘em to do?”
“It’s nothing,” I comforted him, but it was most certainly not nothing. “You should go.”
“Yeah,” he let out in a breath, “you’re right. You’re always right. I love you.”
“Me too,” I managed to say, but all I could think of was getting ahold of Samuel. “I’ll talk to you soon. Bye.”
“Bye,” he said, sounding despondent, and then he hung up.
I shook my head, exhausted, and looked at my phone’s clock. It was one-thirty in the morning. He would be up, but I really didn’t want to talk to him. “You have to,” I scolded myself. I then bit the bullet and called the house. Chloe, the cook and resident witch in the Hamptons house of dread and debauchery, was the one to answer.
“Hello,” she said in her French accent, “Mr. Satané’s residents. How may I help you?”
“Hi, Chloe, is he in?”
“Mrs. Satané?”
“Ms. Wyatt now,” I corrected.
“So sorry, Ms. Wyatt. Oui, he is in. Would you like to…” she paused for a second. “He wants to speak to you.”
“I figured he would.”
“Patricia,” Samuel’s deep voice sent shivers down my spine, “to what do I owe this honor?”
“Cut the crap, Samuel. What the hell happened to Tina?” I had entrusted him with one job, erasing my best friend’s, Christina Iglesias’, memory of all vampire and werewolf stuff. But it seemed as though he couldn’t even do that right.
“She persuaded me that you would be better off having a friend who understood what you were going through, and I agreed. After all,” he almost cooed, “I am always looking out for your best interest.”
“Bullshit,” I hissed. “You just didn’t want to do the job because our truce is over.”
“I assure you, I—”
“You know what, Samuel?” I interrupted him. “I don’t care what you have to say. You lie through your fangs anyway. Goodbye!” I hung up, throwing my phone back in my bag. So much for keeping my best friend safe. Now she was going to be pulled into this mess, and it was all my fault. I felt like crying.
Someone knocked. “Patricia,” Cindy said from the other side, “is everything okay in there?”
I got up, opening the door to see her in her silk robe and slippers. “I’m fine. Thanks for asking, Cindy.” I truly meant it. It had been a long time since another human being had asked me if I was okay, and it felt good.
“You’re welcome,” she responded with a slight smile. “If you need anything, anything at all, don’t hesitate to ask.”
I smiled back. “Thanks. Oh, and Cindy?” She had begun to walk away but turned back around when I called to her. “Thank you for keeping my room like this. It means so much to me.”
“You’re very welcome. And I hope one day that we can become friends.”
I looked at her for a second, seeing something I hadn’t seen before. She was not a bimbo after all, but a kind, gentle, and genuine person. Her eyes seemed to be so sincere that they shamed me. “Me too, Cindy,” I finally said. “Me too.” And I will remember the smile I’d brought to her face for the rest of my life.
chapter
FOUR
I tossed and turned the rest of the night. My body and mind just wouldn’t rest. All I kept thinking about was Tina being in danger, Mike being named Alpha, and what kind of dress Cindy was going to have me wear. So around five in the morning, I decided enough was enough, and I got up.
I pulled on a pair of gray sweats, which was the first thing on top in my green bag, and decided to go downstairs. As I walked out of my bedroom, the smell of the coffee hit me, and I knew Pops was up. Walking down the steps careful not to jostle my wounds, I made it to the last step and sighe
d, relieved that I didn’t fall flat on my face. Turning left, I made my way down the hall and through the arch into the kitchen/dining area. There Pops was, making his usual five in the morning breakfast and coffee before he headed off to work. I blinked back tears as I imaged my mother walking up behind him, giving him a hug. This was not the time to cry. Actually, the time to cry was never. That’s what Pops always taught me, but sticking to it was harder than I thought. I mean, there was a time I could do that, feel nothing, but that time had since past and, frankly, I really missed it.
“Hey, Pops,” I said, and he turned to face me, his blue eyes looking tired. In fact, if I was being honest, he looked exhausted. Even his silver hair looked almost white in the dim light. I stopped dead in my tracks, he had frightened me so. “What’s wrong?”
“Happy New Year to you too, baby girl,” he deflected with a harsh smile.
“Happy New Year,” I replied, not getting off the subject. “And you didn’t answer my question.”
“Nothing’s wrong, baby girl,” he reassured me. “Absolutely nothing.”
I wasn’t buying it. “Could I have a cup?” I asked, walking up to the kitchen table and sitting down.
He nodded, getting a mug out of the cabinet above the median, which sort of separated the kitchen from the dining area. Pouring the coffee, he fully smiled at me, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Pops was only fifty-six, but suddenly he looked about twenty years older. When he was done pouring, he walked back over to the table, placing the mug in front of me while he sat.
