ChangingPaths

by Marilu Mann

  “We’ve put that behind us, Aunt Willow. Though he’s recently tried to get in touch with us Tom hasn’t been a welcome part of our lives for a long time. He tried to…I gave him a chance to try to be a dad when she was eight. That was a mistake.”

  Willow’s sage nod and sad eyes told her that she understood all the unsaid things. “Does he know you’ve come home?”

  “We don’t have any contact with him. It took me too long to get clear of him and get his parental rights revoked. I don’t care where he is. I came back for Rain. She needs…she needs Pack.”

  “Showing signs, is she?”

  “Other than the typical mood swings and teen angst? Oh yes. Her appetite has increased by more than half but she doesn’t gain any weight. She’s not sleeping much and when she does sleep she’s restless. She’s having what she calls ‘weird’ dreams but she won’t tell me about them.” Both women glanced toward the living room and as though feeling their regard Rain turned to look at them. Rolling her eyes, she got to her feet.

  “Do you have Wi-Fi out here or is this place as lame as the last motel we were in?”

  “I don’t even have a computer, child.” Aunt Willow laughed at the expression on Rain’s face but Harmony frowned. She’d already dragged Rain thousands of miles from what she considered home, she hadn’t even thought about everything they’d be giving up. Honestly she’d thought life on the res might have improved since she’d last been here.

  “If you want to get on the internet you have to go to the tribal council building or the lodge. They do have it at the school you’ll be going to and a lot of the kids from the res hang out in town after school.”

  “Well, can I go for a walk or something? I don’t want to sit around here while you two talk.” The “about me” went unspoken but Harmony saw it in her clouded eyes.

  She shook her head, prepared for the firestorm to follow, even as Willow put a hand on her arm. “Let her go.”

  Facing the teen, Willow folded her arms and assumed what Harmony had always thought of as her “wise old lady” face. “You stay on the paths around the cabin. Don’t venture too far into the woods. You’re not familiar enough with the area. Don’t want you to wander off and get lost like some pup might. There’s a sweat lodge at the back of the property. Don’t go beyond it. And come back before it gets too dark, I’m too old to be tripping over that uneven ground looking for you tonight.”

  Rain rolled her eyes and left, closing the front door loudly behind her. It wasn’t a full slam, because she knew that would get her in trouble, but it was darn close. Harmony sighed as her aunt sat back down and patted her arm again. “She can’t get into too much mischief out back, child.”

  “Really? Seems as if I remember meeting a certain guy right outside that sweat lodge about sixteen years ago.”

  “Yes, but that was a special occasion. If you remember, your grandfather was hosting a celebration then, everyone from the res was here as well as those from outside of the Pack. Tonight most everyone’s in town or at the lodge.” There was no need to guard their speech now. Rain wasn’t in the room any longer.

  “Speaking of which, why aren’t you there? You missed the Gathering and you’ve been with us most of the day today. Won’t the Alpha be angry?”

  “Your uncle went to convey our respects last night. It wasn’t necessary for both of us to be there. Besides, Micah Keeps Vigil already knows about your return, he knew I was waiting for you to arrive. You should go to the lodge soon with the other Moon-Denied to pay your respects and introduce yourself to our Alpha.”

  She drew in a deep breath at the casual way Willow tossed that hated description into the room. She should have been one of the lucky ones. Her genetic makeup was strong and true but for some reason she’d been…denied. She felt the call of the moon, felt the Moonlust rise in her body, but she wasn’t able to shift, had never been able to run as a wolf. Even now, she felt as though her skin was stretched too tight over her bones. She ached and yearned to go outside and just be in the woods. Even if she couldn’t run with the Moon-Called, she just wanted to be…something.

  Every full moon brought her pain and dreams of running and howling that she knew would never be reality. She no longer woke in tears—well, not every month, since she’d learned to knock herself out with over-the-counter sleep aids. Now she needed to find out if her daughter was also one of the Denied or if she would be one of the Moon-Called. Her belly clenched. Rain should be chosen. If she could give up her life for her child to have that ability, she knew she would.

  Since Tom couldn’t shift and neither could she, odds were good that Rain wouldn’t either, but she couldn’t take that chance. Rain needed Pack. She needed to be with others who knew what she was going through and who could help her where her mother couldn’t.

  Her aunt watched her silently. “Harmony, I said should. Micah knows you’ve only just arrived. He’s different than the last Alpha—not as idiotic about Moon-Denied. He’s given you a week before you must come to see him.”

  She hugged her aunt in gratitude. One week to gather up her courage to meet this Alpha. She knew her aunt wouldn’t lie about something this important but it was hard to believe in an Alpha who didn’t relegate the Denied to the back of the shifter bus.

  Rain turned the volume back up on her MP3 player, stomping through the grass as she thought about what she’d heard. Her mom and her great-aunt didn’t know for sure that she’d been listening. The earbuds fooled people a lot of the time. Being here was totally lame. And the explanation that her mother gave her about some stupid freaking genetic thing in their family was just as stupid.

  There was no way she was sick. She felt fine. She was fine.

  So what if her appetite had increased. She wasn’t gaining weight. It wasn’t as if she had some stupid eating disorder. She didn’t want to think about the dreams that had been waking her up and keeping her awake. Teeth and claws. Things that belonged in some horror movie, not her bed.

  Looking around, she realized she’d reached the end of the mown lawn. A lumpy-looking structure caught her eye and she veered toward it. This must be the sweat lodge Aunt Willow had mentioned. She’d read about them but had never seen one in real life.

  Walking around the outside, she trailed her hand over the structure. A pleasant herbal smell wafted around the lodge, mixing with the sweet scent of the grass and even the muskier odor of the dirt around her. She had never really noticed stuff like that before. Rain sighed. Before all the weird in her life, her eyes had been her main source of learning about a new place. Now it was her nose. Everything had a signature scent—like some crazy perfume store. And no way could she go into one of those places—it was like stuffing a thousand different things up her nose. Gross.

  She tilted her head back, looking up at the trees, and pulled her earbuds out. The trees were taller and thicker than she’d ever seen but she’d never lived in the middle of a forest before. That guy who had picked them up was all pine like this place. He must spend a lot of time in the woods. Her mother smelled too. She was the honeysuckle bush that had bloomed behind their house in California. Then Aunt Willow was all gingerbread and cookies.

  It was totally weird to think of people that way. Gingerbread. Pine. Flowers. She wondered about her own scent, what others thought about her. Or was it just her? Did everyone go around sniffing each other? Maybe she was sick. Maybe she did have some bizarre disease.

  She shoved her hood back then spun toward the house. Movement at the tree line caused her to still. Someone was over there, just at the edge of the woods. Someone just standing there, watching her. She tensed when a guy moved out of the shadows. Rain drew in a deep breath, ready to scream.

  He held his hands out to the sides and moved slowly, obviously aware that he’d scared her. “Hey.”

  His voice came out soft but she could hear him. He smiled in the gathering darkness as he stopped. He was close enough for her to see him clearly, not so close that he was making her nerv
ous. “Hey.”

  “You must be Willow’s great-niece. I’m Keme Cloud. I was just on my way home from the council building. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

  She couldn’t think of a single thing to say. He was the best-looking guy she’d ever seen. Coming from California, where every other kid was trying to be a model or an actor, that was saying something. Black hair, natural, not dyed as hers had been before she’d changed to pink, brushed his shoulders. Dark eyes, she couldn’t really tell if they were brown or a dark green or even black, just that they were dark.

  Golden skin that reminded her of a new penny made him look as if he’d spent his life in the sun. And best of all, he was tall. After her own growth spurt had taken her from petite to gawky it was nice to see a guy taller than she was. He must be six feet tall.

  He grinned as he put his hands in his jacket pockets, hunching his shoulders a little against the wind. “What’s your name?”

  “Rain Johnson.” She glared as he laughed softly. She’d been teased her whole life about her stupid name, there was no way she’d take it from new kids too. “What’s so funny?”

  “Is your name really Rain?” At her nod, he stepped just a little closer. “Keme, my name? It means thunder. I think we’re going to be good friends, Rain Johnson. Welcome to the res.”

  He stuck his hand out, still smiling at her. She swallowed hard as she offered her own hand. They shook then he just held on to her hand, staring at her face. She couldn’t take her eyes off him either. She really liked his scent of hazelnut just like her favorite coffee flavor.

  Finally pulling her hand away from his, she glanced at the house then back at Keme. “So, what is there to do around here?”

  “Depends on the season. Do you fish or hunt?”

  “What? No. At least I’ve never been fishing or hunting.”

  “Pity. We do a lot of both.” He laughed again and she noticed that he had dimples on both sides of his mouth. “Skiing? Snowboarding? Snowmobiling? Anything??”

  “I ski. At least I used to. We haven’t gone skiing in a couple of years. Aunt Willow said something about a computer at some building? I can’t believe she doesn’t have internet out here.”

  “Believe it. Half the time we can’t even get decent cell phone service. We do have okay web access at school. Are you going to the res school or into town?”

  “I don’t know. Mom hasn’t said much about it. Where do you go?”

  “Town. I’m in AP classes mostly.” He shrugged. Figured, not only was he gorgeous but smart too. She’d barely passed her classes last year mainly because she just didn’t care. The only thing they had in common was their names. “So, what did you do for fun in California?”

  “We went to the beach a lot. Hung out at the mall, played computer games.” She moved restlessly, shuffling her feet through the grass.

  “You like camping out?” Keme jerked his head toward the sweat lodge and they started walking back toward the house, skirting the very edge of the trimmed lawn.

  “Never really been.”

  “A bunch of us, guys and girls, meet up one weekend a month and camp out by the lake. You could come next time we go if you want.”

  “I don’t know.” They walked silently for a few minutes and then she looked toward the house. “Crap.”

  “What is it?”

  “My mom. She totally freaks when she sees me talking to guys. Look, I’ve got to go.”

  “Okay. No sweat. If your mom decides to enroll you at the school in town, maybe I’ll see you there. I have a car so I can drive you if you want. It’s way better than riding the stupid bus.”

  “I don’t know what she’s planning. I have to go.”

  “It’s cool, Rain. I’ll see you around.” Keme waved toward the house and she turned to see that Aunt Willow had joined her mom on the back porch. Keme had already disappeared into the trees, so she took a deep breath and headed back to the house. Might as well get the inquisition over with.

  Chapter Three

  Gareth woke with a jerk. Some sound, some scent that he should recognize teased at his nose…what the hell? Then he heard the sound again but the wind carried the smell away. Someone was walking around outside his cabin.

  Rolling out of bed, he cursed when his feet hit the cold floor. Grabbing the jeans he’d discarded on the floor last night, he pulled them on. Yanking a sweatshirt off a hook, he shrugged into it. With one sleeve of the shirt turned inside out causing him to pull harder, he slipped his feet into an ancient pair of sheepskin-lined moccasins. Looking out the front door, he waited. Like any other hunter, he knew the value of patience. Whoever was moving around out there would soon come into view.

  He didn’t have any appointments. And he sure as hell hadn’t invited anyone over. Could be the three Betas ready to fuck with him again. They’d done it once since Micah had left. They’d been sent packing with their tails between their legs, not to mention a few new injuries. He hadn’t escaped unhurt, but it had been worth it. They’d not challenged him again.

  There. Movement just at the edge of the drive that led to the main road. A flash of red in the trees. There was someone out there. Whoever it was stayed upwind, so he couldn’t catch the signature. Opening the door, he stepped out onto the porch. He didn’t realize he was holding his breath until it escaped in relief as Talia emerged, closely followed by Olivia, wearing a sling-looking thing.

  Grinning, he started to move toward them then remembered he wasn’t wearing his patch. Cursing under his breath, he raked his hair over his face to hide his ruined eye. Talia was used to his eyepatch now but she’d never seen him without it. If he had his way she never would.

  “Gareth!” she shouted and broke into a run. He jumped off the porch to meet her and swung her around, keeping his head turned so she couldn’t see his scars. “I missed you!”

  He laughed at her. She said that every time.

  “I missed you too, Little Bit. It’s been a whole week since we had dinner after the Gathering. Tell me more about your trip to New Orleans, did you have fun?”

  “Yes. Uncle Frank took me to Café Du Monde and Aunt Julia took me to the Mardi Gras Museum and I met so many new people! The Compound Pack is growing. Uncle Frank says pretty soon it’ll be the biggest Pack in all of Louisiana!”

  He listened to the rest of her chatter as Olivia reached him. Nodding in respect, he stepped aside slightly so she could precede him into the house. Talia still held his hand as they went inside. He almost wished they had called first. Not that his place was messy but he could at least have started the fire so it would be nice and warm.

  As they took off their jackets and Olivia put Miakoda down on the soft rug by the fireplace, he took a brief detour to the bedroom to grab his patch. Tying it securely in place, he moved toward the stack of firewood and set about stirring up the coals and getting the fire going. Talia finally ran out of steam and leaned against Olivia’s side. He turned his attention to Micah and Olivia’s son.

  Though he’d been born with hair as black as Micah’s it seemed to be getting lighter. The baby was content, gurgling and sucking on his fingers. His scent hadn’t developed, so he just smelled of baby powder and formula. He wondered what Koda would smell of when his scent came in. But that was at least two years away if not three. Looking at Olivia, he shook his head.

  “He really has gotten big.”

  “Almost twenty pounds, thank you very much!” Olivia laughed and leaned back on his couch. “Believe me, I felt every one of those pounds on the walk over here.”

  “You should have let me know you were coming. I’d have ridden the ATV over to get you.”

  “No, after all that rich food in New Orleans, I needed the exercise. You’d think it would go off as easily as it went on.” She patted her flat stomach and he shook his head. Micah had been doing his best to put some meat on her bones, since she’d been nearly starved when she’d first come to the lodge.

  Nothing like the woman he’d met last week. Not t
hat Harmony was overweight but she’d definitely had some smoking curves under that jacket. He’d really appreciated the shape of her ass in her jeans as well. He wondered how she’d look without them. Hell, he really wondered what she’d look like without any clothes. His cock gave one appreciative jerk.

  “Well, what put that look on your face?” Olivia had leaned forward. He realized he’d totally zoned out thinking about Harmony naked.

  “Uh, nothing. Sorry. I guess I was thinking about what Micah has planned for the Pack.” He knew it sounded lame. He could see the curiosity sparkle in Olivia’s eyes. He shifted his gaze to the baby gurgling on the rug.

  “Do you want to hold him?”

  Scooping up the bundle of waving arms and legs, Olivia deposited the baby in his arms. As he sat down on the floor, something swept over him. He didn’t mind holding Miakoda. He actually enjoyed young ones. He’d always been available for babysitting his niece and nephew and the other young in his birth Pack.

  Ruthlessly he shut that memory down. He was no longer a part of them. Hadn’t been for years really. They’d made it very clear he would never be welcome there again, though his brother apparently had been accepted home with open arms. It didn’t matter, he was of the Wild Haven Lodge Pack now.

  Making soothing noises, he gently bounced the baby as he looked at Olivia. She was smiling at him. He knew that smile. All mated females got the same look around unmated males. He braced himself for what had to be next.

  “Gareth, why do you only run with the males? I know you aren’t gay.”

  He choked out a harsh laugh. “No, I’m not gay. I just don’t have any luck with females.”

  With a glance at Talia, Olivia pointed at the door. “Now’s the time, darling. Fifteen minutes.”

  Without a word the young girl donned her gear to head outside. Olivia explained, “I told her I wanted to talk to you about boring adult stuff.”