by Jade White
Chastity saw Katie stalking shyly toward their group, and she cast her as welcoming a smile as she could manage. The other woman nodded at her gesture and slid into a seat near the end of the table.
“Katie? Did he finally let you come out of the house then?” Grindelle asked sympathetically.
“I promised him I would behave myself,” she sighed. “But behaving myself seems so difficult.”
Chastity laughed at this. “Do you really think you’re the only one who feels that way, Katie? Every adult here had to learn to follow at least some of the rules. It’s part of being in the pack, you know? You have to sacrifice a little, but in the end you gain a lot more. You’ll get used to it soon enough.”
“You know I’m sixty years old, right?” she pointed out. “I think I ought to know by now, and I do, really. It’s just an urge to misbehave and I really can’t say why.”
“Because your father never let you get away with anything when you were growing up?” asked Chastity sympathetically.
“How did you know that?” she asked curiously.
“Your reaction is based on sound psychological data,” she explained. “But fortunately, it is a learned trait. All that is required is that you condition yourself to another pattern. Over time, it will be a distant memory if you do.”
“I can see why Night favors you,” said Katie appreciatively.
‘Thanks—I think?”
“Chastity? Time to join me,” Night said then, smiling at the others until his eyes fell on Katie. Some of the smile dimmed, replaced by uncertain wariness around the edges.
“Yes, Night,” said Chastity as she took his hand. He brought her to her feet and they stepped up to the head table together. Katie looked down, ashamed that Night still reacted to her that way because she’d pursued him so relentlessly in the past. She could see now how selfish she had been, trying to take him from his wife and children.
“Dane’s a good man,” Grindelle told her when she saw her expression.
“Oh, I’m sure he is,” she said, blushing. “I just feel bad for all the trouble I caused back when Night and I first met. I was so foolish back then. And that foolishness lasted right up until just a couple months ago. I am glad that Dane made me become his mate. He needed someone to cheer him up, and apparently I needed someone too. I never even realized how miserable my life had become.”
“And you think it is better now?”
“Not completely better,” she said. “But at least things are headed in the right direction.”
“That’s good to hear,” Grindelle said, giving her a pat on the shoulder. “And we’re all here for you if you need us. Right, ladies?”
Twenty female voices all gave affirmative replies. Katie’s eyes misted over as she looked at them. “Thank you all. I will try to be deserving of this.”
From their table, Night spotted what was going on. “What’s all that about?” he wanted to know.
“I believe Katie may finally be coming around,” Chastity said with a smile.
“Well, of course she must be, unless Dane is unaware of where she is at present,” Night replied with a light snort. “Especially since he’s not even in the trees at the moment. It’s his shift at the resort tonight.”
“Yes, I gathered as much,” Chastity said. “So, maybe we should think about giving Katie a job. Just up here for now, where we can keep an eye on her. Just because she seems to be reformed doesn’t mean we ought to trust her completely as yet.”
“We could put her in the computer parts shop, I suppose,” Night said. “She might like it there. With Dane’s permission, of course. She’s his little project, after all.”
“You make her sound like a potted plant or something,” Chastity chuckled.
“I’ve desensitized myself where she is concerned,” he said. “Self-preservation and all that.”
Chastity shook her head. “Yeah, I understand. So have I.”
CHAPTER 15
Chastity stepped out of the little hothouse near the lake and took a deep breath of the crisp, fresh mountain air. It had been six months since the path was officially opened and she could hardly believe that the newly erected housing units high up in the trees had been built so quietly once they’d gotten the ground in order.
Rick had figured out a way to muffle the sound of the nail gun so it didn’t carry far enough to be noticeable below. Chastity had no idea what he’d done to accomplish this, but then again, Rick did a lot of things that amazed her these days. Like the plans he had drawn up to create a waterwheel network deep inside the mountain’s caves that they would be using to generate electricity instead of using the system at the resort. It would be a lot safer and that way nobody would have to worry about power outages whenever the inspectors came to call.
Four humans were trotting down the path in her direction, and she cast them a friendly smile. The boy, probably a child of ten, stepped up to her and cast her a winning smile.
“Hello, lady,” he said. “Why do you have a hothouse out here?”
“Oh, well that’s easy,” she answered with a smile. “Some people like to buy a plant to take with that will remind them of their visit here. All the money we make from that goes right back into keeping this path looking the way you see it right now.”
“Oh, mom, can we buy one?” he wanted to know.
“Sure, son, why don’t we have a look and see what they’ve got,” she said with an indulgent smile. “It’s one of the reasons we chose to come here, as a matter of fact.”
“So you’ve heard of the hothouse?” Chastity asked with a smile.
“Yes, a friend of mine still has one of the plants she bought from here, and she said you just can’t beat the view, either,” said the mother enthusiastically. “I’ve been planning a visit to this place for over three months.”
“I’m always so happy to hear when people recommend us,” said Chastity. “I hope you enjoy your stay.”
After looking around for a while, the mother and her son each chose a plant. The father and daughter waited for them out in the park, unpacking their lunch at one of the tables. After they made their purchase, the mother and son rejoined the others and they all enjoyed themselves for about an hour before they packed up and moved on to visit the lake.
Chastity was happy to watch them, and the five other groups who visited that day. It was exciting to her, knowing that everything was coming together the way she and Night had always dreamed it would. Now, only one thing really worried her, and that was what might happen if the humans learned the truth about this place. Would it be a total disaster, like Night and Rick and the others believed, or would the humans actually understand?
There was a time, far in the past, when humans would have automatically sought to kill the werewolves if they discovered their existence, but these days, mankind was all about understanding differences, and accepting people for who and what they were. Would that desire to understand extend beyond their own species as well? Would they seek to understand werewolves rather than destroy them?
Could they afford to take such a risk, Chastity wondered. It would be beyond foolish to allow themselves to be revealed to the humans if it could at all be avoided. Even a small boy, like the one who visited today, had the potential to ruin them, she knew. They’d gotten lucky that the one man who had learned the truth had taken their side. And next week, Fiske would arrive to be transformed into one of them.
They’d decided to make a bigger deal of this thing than usual. The only people who would be at the resort for the week would be those already aware of what was going on there. They would all be there to witness when Fiske was bitten, and Julian was going to come there himself to do that biting. This was the first time since the resort had been built that the old Alpha of the pack in New York would set foot on the premises he had financed.
There was a small doubt inside Chastity’s mind, like a niggling little bug that wouldn’t quit wriggling around, that Fiske was truly what he said he was. Wha
t if this was all some sort of an elaborate ruse, a way for him to get proof he would need that his story was real. If he were to reveal their intentions to turn a human to the public at large, that would only cause mass hysteria among the humans when they knew.
But really, Fiske had specifically asked to be turned. No one here was forcing him, so if he did try it, they could always use that as a defense. Although that would be of little comfort if an angry mob showed up bent on destroying them all.
When Chastity went home that night, she contemplated telling her husband about these thoughts, but his mind seemed to be preoccupied with other things. He’d had the children sent to the sitter so they could have some time alone, and he even had a bottle of champagne on ice. She spotted it as she walked through the door and wondered if she’d forgotten a special occasion, but she couldn’t think of one that she would have missed.
“What’s all this?” she asked him curiously as he came to the door to give her a kiss as she stepped inside.
“Oh, it’s just because,” he smirked. “I was just realizing it’s been a while since we’ve had any real alone time and I thought we could use a break.”
“That’s so sweet, Night,” she said, kissing him back. “I love you so much.”
“And I love you, my sexy wife,” he grinned. “Tell you what, why don’t you go in the bedroom and try on your new outfit while I serve up our meal?”
“You prepared the food, too?” she gasped. “Okay, seriously, what is going on?”
“Sweetheart, I just want to let you know how happy I am, being with you,” he said with a smile. “That’s really all that’s going on.”
Chastity found the negligee on the bed and put it on, then she joined Night at the table, where he’d placed two very rare steaks and a couple of salads along with two glasses of red wine.
When they had finished their meal, Chastity contentedly let Night lead her into the bedroom. They brought the champagne with them, and alternated between sipping it straight out of the bottle and making love.
“Are you feeling good and appreciated yet, Chastity?” Night asked her with a grin.
“Mm, almost,” she chuckled. “Could you appreciate me just one more time?”
“Sure, babe,” he said with a smirk. “And maybe even a few more times after, if you’d like.”
“Hm, I always love it when you’re thorough, Night,” she chuckled appreciatively.
They didn’t go to sleep for a very long time.
*
The two days leading up to the event were very busy at the resort. All of the human guests had checked out, and now the werewolf visitors had begun to arrive. Fiske himself came just one day early; he looked excited. He even gave Chastity a grateful hug.
“Hey now, just remember, that little she-wolf belongs to me,” Night said as he reclaimed her.
Chastity laughed as she wrapped an arm around Night’s waist. She wondered if Fiske was being a bit too friendly and her misgivings returned. But really, if the man were plotting to harm them in any way, why would he have arranged such an elaborate ruse? He’d been here to visit more than once, he could have easily done something nefarious on either of those occasions if he wanted to, but he hadn’t.
Maybe she was just being paranoid, Chastity thought. Maybe in a way, she wanted him to be pretending so that all of this could be out in the open. Let the chips fall where they may. Wouldn’t it be better if humans and werewolves co-existed together knowingly? Wasn’t the world ready for that to happen?
After Fiske was out of sight again, she couldn’t help but tell Night all of her concerns.
“Oh, now Chastity, I don’t think there’s any call for you to worry about that,” said Night as he gave her a hug. “There’s no way he’d go to this much trouble if he didn’t mean to go through with it. You watch, you’ll feel much better once he’s been bitten. I just got a text saying that Julian is only about an hour away. Shouldn’t you be more worried about greeting our old Alpha than you are about this? We haven’t seen him for five years.”
“You’re right,” she agreed. “I know you’re right, I’m just so happy, that’s all.”
“Happy?” Night asked with a shake of his head. “I don’t understand.”
“You know, if you’re at your happiest, there’s always something to bring that down,” she said, blushing.
“Oh, sweetheart, is that really what you think?” Night laughed as he drew her into his arms.
“I’ve even been having nightmares that the villagers would come with their torches and try to burn us right out of our homes,” she admitted with a blush. “I know it doesn’t make any sense—“
“You’re not pregnant again already, are you?” Night teased her. “Didn’t you have something like this last time?”
“Like what?”
“Bad dreams, worrying about things that really aren’t that bad—“
“You’re right, I did,” she admitted as she wiped at her eyes. “Maybe we should have Boris check me out.”
“Yeah, why not, we’ve got an hour to kill,” said Night with a grin. “I’m game if you are.”
“Call and see what he’s doing, tell him what’s up with me,” said Chastity.
Night was already dialing. “Hey, Boris, are you in your office? Me and Chastity wanted to get her checked out for a minute. If nothing else, she could probably use a sounding board to help her work through a few things she’s been worrying about. Sure, we’ll be right there.”
“What did he say?” asked Chastity.
“Oh, he’s in his office,” he said. “We can go right on over, and you can tell him everything you’ve been telling me, see what he thinks, okay?”
“All right,” she agreed.
They stepped into the medical building and greeted the receptionist, Mary, as they continued on toward the door. Night said, “He’s waiting for us now, Mary. Will you hold all calls for a while if any come in?”
“Of course, Alpha Night.”
As they headed for Boris’ door, Chastity couldn’t help smiling yet again. The medical building now employed three resident doctors to care for the two hundred people who now resided at Wolfhaven in the trees. All of them were also trained in human physiology and were capable of treating the resort patrons as well. Boris, of course, was in charge of the other two doctors and the entire nursing staff.
Mary was a human turned wolf who had come here with a male wolf. It was their daughter who hoped to find a mate, and it looked as though she and Leroy Bucket, another made wolf, were soon to be mated. They were actually living down in the resort housing units Rick had devised to make it look like the employees stayed on-site after one of the inspectors had asked about that about a year back.
Boris was seated casually on the breakroom sofa when they entered. He smiled warmly and shook both their hands as he said, “Come in, come in. Why don’t you tell me what’s up.”
“I—well, I guess I’ve been having nightmares about the humans discovering this place,” Chastity admitted. “What with the upcoming turning and all, and realizing just how much we would be losing if any trouble started, it’s really got me keyed up. Of course, Night just had to point out I did this when I got pregnant with Jaimie and made it even worse.”
Boris chuckled. “Hey, Chastity, don’t feel so bad. You’re not the only one who worries about that sort of thing. I’ve been getting others, you know. Mostly the females, though I’m sure that’s because of their mothering instincts and such. Anyway, I understand how you are feeling. Your concerns are a very real and constant threat, so it’s natural to be upset by them. But really, you’ve got to remember that even human women do this. They worry about paying the bills, keeping food on the table, all of that, as well. So when you think about it, you’ve already got a leg up over them. You don’t have to worry about any of those issues here.”
“No, but I sure would if here didn’t exist anymore and I managed to survive its demise,” she pointed out.
“Hm
, well let’s go ahead and run a pregnancy test just so you don’t stress on that one way or the other,” he said then. “I’m going to go ahead and change your supplements a bit to give you a calming herb or two, maybe add some St. John’s Wort to create a sense of well-being. It might take a few days before you notice a change but I believe it will be to your benefit.”
Chastity took a deep breath and slowly let it out. “I don’t know, I just can’t seem to shake the feeling something’s going to go wrong tomorrow. I really hope I’m wrong.”
“Interesting,” said Boris. “You’re the fifth person who has told me that today. In fact, even Hope gave me a call earlier from Tess’s place expressing those exact sentiments. Night, perhaps this might be worth looking into?”
“What’s the point, though?” said Night. “Even if it is some sort of a set up, it’s too late to change it up now. All of the principle players are already here, or about to be here. If the humans learn about this place because of tomorrow’s event, we’ll just have to take a stand. Legally, we have every right to use our land as we please as long as we have followed the guidelines of not destroying the ecosystem. The only thing we should be considered guilty of is not filing a plan to build in the trees and failing to obtain the proper permits and such. At worst, they’ll make it tear it all down. At best, we’ll just pay all the fines and cut through the red tape. Either way, we could do what it takes to resolve it.”
“Yes, if the humans allow us werewolves to live at all,” Chastity reminded him. “There’s always the very real possibility that they won’t.”
CHAPTER 16
“Well, you don’t appear to have become pregnant, Chastity,” said Boris a while later. “I really didn’t think you had, what with the strange dreams plaguing some of the others as well. All I can say for now is, take the altered supplements and see if you start to improve. But for now, I believe you and Night should be headed to the main building before Julian arrives. And since I haven’t seen my friend in a very long time, I intend to join you.”
