Julie

by Foster, Sherry

  “We told you his English was better than you gave him credit for didn’t we?” Dimitri told the room at large.

  Gammon watched as his father-by-mating from long ago wavered on his feet. Reaching out he steadied him, helping lower him into a chair.

  Is no good son. Wish to die as a wolf. Help me.

  As the three men helped him to stand Mia reached up and laid her hand upon his cheek. “Thank you father, for accepting me into your family, into your heart. I will guard your son’s heart with my life and light his soul with happiness until we find you on the other side. May your walk on the other side be joyful and full as you find my mother and sister waiting for you.” With that she bowed her head and stepped away so the men could help him remove his clothing to take his truest form one last time.

  As four walked outside with the old gray wolf the last words they heard him say as he laid down with his head upon his paws, Sunset, sunrise both good time to go but nothing beat freedom of outdoors with family to guard passage to next side.

  The four stood a lonely vigil over Jutoh as he breathed his last. Grief coursed through them at the loss. Gammon led Mia inside and settled her in front of the fire before returning outside to lay to rest the man he had called father for so many centuries.

  The men wrestled closed the door of marble mausoleum that would forever stand watch over the northern most part of the territory and turned to walk away. If their steps were not as strong and their carriage not as straight that twilight filled day, well, no one was around to wonder why and the path back was not so short.

  Chapter Eight

  Allison started when the phone rang. When she picked up she was surprised to hear Kate on the other end. “Oh wow, Kate, you would not believe this place. It is night around the clock and so much room. They gave us our own house?.”

  “Your own house? Look how is Julie? Are they treating her right? Marcus told me Gammon’s pack had therapists and counselors and all kinds of different people to help her. But I don’t want some head shrink poking at her. Are you keeping those people away?”

  “Well, the only person who has been around is a lady named Willow so far. They did station guards outside the house, but not to keep us in. They did it to keep some other lady out. No one told us much about that but I over heard them talking. I am concerned why they need to keep someone out.”

  “Do you feel unsafe? Do I need to come up there?”

  “No, no Kate, everything here is great. The guys who brought us up here sat as far away on the plane as they could and had a female driver come to the hotel and get us so Julie would not be around males right now. No males are allowed to approach her but they told me I could go anywhere on the compound I wanted. Just, well, you know Julie. They don’t and something Willow said made me think maybe she is the worst rescue they have ever had in terms of mental breakdown issues. Do you want me to put the phone to her ear so you can talk to her?”

  “In a minute. First, you said you can go anywhere right? Well walk outside with the phone so she doesn’t overhear me. These idiots can be so overly protective of the females sometimes they forget we need the information they are finding out. I told Marcus from the get-go, before we made it back to his territory two nights ago, anything and everything they find out about Julie I needed to know about. Told him everything had to come through me first. He tried telling me everything concerning Julie was on Gammon. You know that went down like a lead balloon. Are you outside? Do they have any kind of fence around the place, cause you know, compound, fence go together.”

  “Yes. I mean no. Yes I am outside and no they have no fence unless it is far from here. This place is like some small village. I don’t know why they call it a compound. This place is huge and out in the middle of nowhere in what seems like the wilds of Alaska. Saw a moose walking down the middle of the road yesterday when we came in. They stopped so the moose could just amble down the road. When I asked why they didn’t just honk the horn or something they told me moose don’t scare easily but they do attack. So what did you have to tell me.”

  Allison had spent her time looking around the house since walking outside. She had made almost an entire loop around without seeing any guards. Though the sun was not shining, and would not for a few more weeks, the twilight gloom did not seem too much for her shifter eyes. From the dusting of fresh snow on the ground she could tell no one had wandered too close to the house since the snow fell either. All the tracks were on the path leading to the main road with some few crossing in front of the house as though someone had taken a short cut to other houses.

  “Okay, get this, Marcus sent a small team to Australia before we left the prison two days ago now. Told them to use their discretion in finding out what or who the number led to Julie started mumbling. Now get this, the number wasn’t hard to track once they reached there. They called and a child answered the phone. They weren’t able to get the dad or mum on the phone because the dad was out on a muster and the boy said he had no mum.”

  “Okay, stop there, a muster? What is a muster.”

  “Not important. Just listen. The little boy gave them his Alpha’s number because, well I don’t know why but anyway, they called the Alpha and talked to him. After talking to the Alpha our people called other people who called other people and well all hell broke lose over there. Turns out the Alpha is pretty much anti-social about letting other packs around his territory. Won’t meet with anyone, doesn’t want anything to do with any other packs. But whatever they know about Julie has to be big because this Alpha called another Alpha and they talked for the first time in like decades.”

  “Yeah, so now what happens? Come on Kate you can’t stop there.”

  “I think they are headed to Alaska.”

  “Who? Who is headed to Alaska?”

  “Well, our Beta’s mate’s grandfather is on the High Council and he is meeting the Alpha named Trevor at the airport. Trevor is going to be the go-between for this unknown Alpha and the High Council guy. The unknown Alpha,”

  “Crap Kate, quit calling him unknown, what is his name?”

  “If you knew how many people I have met and been introduced to and been told the names of you would not ask. Geesh, I have only been here a couple of days ago. I don’t have his name. Now just listen. Ok Alpha unknown guy is bringing his Beta or brother or something with him. The brother, cousin or whatever is bringing his little boy with him. They want Julie and they want her pretty bad. Seems a couple of years ago the Beta or brother whatever met Julie with her parents and he fell in love with her but isn’t her true-mate. He was waiting to woo her until she was closer to twenty-one. She is nineteen now, he met her when she was almost eighteen and for the last eight months no one has answered his calls. When he came to the US to find out why, no one was at the house and he could find no trace of her. Since he is not her true-mate he could not track her. Now if you remember, they brought Julie to the prison just about eight months ago.”

  “So, what? You think they are going to let these strangers have Julie?”

  “I don’t know what is going on. Most of the talk is happening between this High Council guy and this Trevor Alpha guy. Once they got involved Marcus said it went out of his hands. His guys are headed home in a few days. This just happened within a few hours of them reaching Australia. They didn’t even get to meet anyone. Once they made contact things blew up.”

  “So, what should I do?”

  “I knew I could count on you. The thing is, if no one is her true-mate then you should be able to hide her. From my understanding it will take a few days for them to get there because they have to meet with this High Council guy first. So if it is going to take them a few days to get there, and you said they have no fence you can see you need to locate something you can hide her scent with and find a place to hide her. Do you think, if you tell the tree lady what is going on she will help you hide Julie?”

  “Tree lady?”

  “Come on Allison, I told you the last two days have
been nothing but this is so-and-so and let me introduce you to so-and-so and hi my name is so-and-so. I have tried to use some kind of, any kind of memory tricks to remember names but you try meeting an entire pack plus and keep up with everyone’s names. I mean, for the love of kangaroos Craig is a favorite of the pack and they all thought he was dead. Not only did he not die thanks to our mating but I am a witch and he has my wolf to watch over him. This place is crazy with questions and visits and food. They have brought so much food to Craig’s place I ran out of room.”

  “Oh, tree lady, you mean Willow. I don’t know, I mean, I don’t know who to trust here for something like hiding Julie until we know more.”

  “Well, I hate to have to trust an unknown male, but Delany is your mate to be, I have figured out they bend over backwards for a true-mate. So Delany has to almost do anything you ask. I say almost because he won’t be your slave. But if he thinks something is making you unhappy, his wolf will drive him crazy to fix it. I understand more about my parent’s relationship than before thanks to this mating.”

  “I haven’t even seen Delany since yesterday morning. Some kind of almost fight happened and Gammon made him leave I guess. Willow tried to tell me he had other jobs around here, and he must, but still. I am more than a bit worried. Willow stopped off this morning to check on us but she had an air of sadness about her and she didn’t stay long. I don’t see any guards standing around the house but with negative thirty degree weather I am not staying out long either.”

  “Well get back inside if it is that cold out. Let me talk to Julie. I mean, put the phone to her ear. I know she won’t say anything but, I have to let her know I haven’t forgotten her. I would hate to think she believed I abandoned her after all the other things she has been through, whatever they might be.”

  Just as Allison started to step back inside the house she caught the glimpse of a wolf laying on the porch next door. She giggled as she closed the door. They still had a guard of sorts, but the wolf had, of all things, a heater on the porch keeping him warm. And he seemed more concerned about keeping his eyes on a lady walking to another house rather than on her. The lady looked a bit familiar but Allison couldn’t place why she would. She had not met her yet. She wondered briefly if the lady was the one they were being guarded against.

  “Julie honey, Kate wants to say hi.” Allison adjusted the phone so Julie could hear Kate. “Okay Kate, she has the phone.”

  “Hey Julie sweetie, how are you. I miss you. I hope they are taking good care of you there. If anyone tries to be mean to you get behind Allison, she will protect you. Listen, I don’t know if you understand but I did not abandon you. If you want me to come visit you I will try to get up there somehow. The guys protecting you will hurt anyone who tries to hurt you.” Kate’s voice faltered to a a halt when she heard the faintest whisper through the phone.

  Kate had seldom heard Julie say anything until she had started mumbling the Australian telephone number after their rescue. Hearing the whisper from Julie caught her off guard.

  “I have a mountain too.”

  Kate had met Gammon. She agreed with the others, he was a mountain of a man. Kate wanted to dance for joy at hearing Julie not only speak but speak words that showed she was aware of her surroundings to some degree. Hope rose in her chest.

  “You sure do. Gammon is big enough to take on anybody and win. So don’t worry about anything because your mountain will not let anyone ever hurt you again. Allison?”

  “Yeah, it’s me again. She has said that phrase twice since we got here. Hold on lemme step outside and see if it is snowing again.” Allison had headed for the door almost as soon as she moved the phone back to her own ear.

  Looking around as she stepped outside she noticed the wolf was still in the same spot as before and watching the house the other female had been heading toward. She was going to have to get Willow to give up some more information about the situation. As protective as these males were toward females she thought it really odd to be protecting two females from another. What were they hiding?

  “Okay, I can talk now.” Before Allison could say anything else Kate interrupted demanding to know why she had not told her at the beginning of the conversation.

  “I am sorry. Things are just as strange for us as they are for you. But that is what I wanted to talk to you about. Did you hear what she really said? I have a mountain too. Now Willow said she may be identifying herself as being part of the pack and this could be her way of saying Gammon is her mountain also. But something about the way she says it seems, I don’t know, off somehow. You have spent more time with her than any other female at that place. Answer me honestly. Do you think she could be saying that as a way of acknowledging herself under Gammon’s protection? A way of trying to distinguish she is also part of this pack?”

  “Wow Allison, way to lay it on me. I haven’t ever heard her talk before either you know. Oh, some mumbling in her sleep but nothing anyone could use to find out any information. Some baby-like talk but no conversations, not like we have. She can sometimes answer simple questions. Even then you don’t know if the answer is random or an actual answer to the question asked. I don’t think, I mean, wow girl, help me out here. What were you doing when she first said it? What made her make the comment the first time?”

  “Is Julie her real name? I never asked you how you knew her name.”

  “Her necklace had the name Julie on it when they brought her in that night. I cleaned her up and I had to take it off of her to get the blood cleaned off her neck. She wouldn’t talk so I assumed the name on the necklace was hers. Now, tell me what you know.”

  “Willow and I had been talking about different things, nothing important, and as Willow was leaving Julie said, I have a mountain too. I thought she sounding a bit like a petulant child will when trying to one up someone, but Willow took it another way. You heard her this time. What do you think?”

  “Honestly? I would start looking for her damn mountain ‘cause honey, I don’t think she was talking about Gammon. I agree, she did sound a tiny bit like she was trying to, I don’t know, establish Gammon wasn’t her mountain, she had one of her own? But if she has her own mountain, where is he?”

  “You have seen the man right? I mean my god Kate, they don’t grow ‘em any bigger than than man. He is a tank. His mate is about my height but have you ever seen them together? He has to be two feet taller than her. I want to agree with Willow, except I can’t fully accept her explanation. Something about the tone of voice and the expression on her face for a brief moment. However, Willow is the professional around here so maybe she knows what she is talking about?”

  “Maybe. Let me talk to Trina and get back to you.”

  “Trina? Is she the one mated to Fido?”

  “I am literally rolling over here. Yes, yes she is mated to Fido and I get the Ship Me Back Box Man. The pack may never let him live it down.”

  “Kate? Quit laughing and listen. What is Fido’s mate gonna do.”

  Allison stood grinning while Kate tried to catch her breath. A noise off to the left caught her attention before Kate recovered so she turned. What she saw caused her blood to turn cold and she abruptly told Kate she would have to call her back and hung up the phone.

  The woman from earlier was facing off with two wolves who matched her no matter which way she tried to step. At first Allison thought the woman was in danger but soon realized the wolves were staying between the other female and the house where she and Julie were staying. The woman was looking right at her. As Allison stared back she could almost feel the blood drain from her face. She took one last look at the other female and jerking around dashed back inside the house where she slammed the door and took care to bolt it also.

  She may not have been involved with Julie as much as Kate but she had been there when Julie was newly arrived at the prison. She had seen Julie with long hair and a full face. She remembered how utterly different Julie looked after Kate got her hair cut by the stylis
t at the prison. The weight Julie had lost in the last eight months, combined with the short hair, caused Julie to look completely different than she did back then. That woman standing across the way tonight could pass for Julie’s sister if Julie still had her long hair and healthy weight. As Allison looked from Julie to the door she felt for the first time since arriving she was in way over her head. She wished Delany was around. He would tell her what was going on for certain. He would have to or she would threaten to cry. No crying sounded weak, she would threaten something.

  Chapter Nine

  “They what? Have you lost your fucking mind? Hell no, hell fucking no. Not happening!” Gammon was not a quiet peaceful man at the best of times so the shouting barely caused Mia to blink. At the first shout she had gotten up and wandered down the hall to his office. He would probably appreciate her being there to calm him down. She wasn’t sure who was on the other end of the phone call, but from the expression on her mate’s face whoever he was talking about was a bare step away from dying. She hoped the person was not important. The politics with the High Council always got a bit ugly when Gammon went head to head with them. Though finding out one of the High Council was involved in the rogue faction had gone a long way to explaining the problems Gammon had with them.

  She tried to hear what the other person was saying. She couldn’t which in itself was a the deciding factor in determining the person on the other end of the call was William. She knew of no other shifter who could pitch their voice just right as to not be heard by eavesdroppers on phone calls. She had been trying for years to prefect that trick. Not that she had any secrets to hide, but the ability would be an achievement. She had failed every attempt so far. At one point she had even asked William how he managed the trick. Unfortunately for her, he had been doing it so long even he wasn’t sure how to do it.

  Wincing she watched as Gammon seemed to expand and couldn’t help but think whatever William was saying had to be terrible news indeed. Her mate was on the verge of exploding and he did not need this, whatever this was right now. After laying his father to rest in the early morning hours her mate needed some stress-free days and cuddles from her. She studied him a moment longer before she made her move. Turning around she headed for the front door. After she was done locking up she headed for the bedroom. She could hear the yelling from the office and she could just hope that no one tried to visit and find out what was going on till she was done.