Unknown Touch

by Gina Marie Long

  We were only in the woods for about fifteen minutes, when both Daniel and Isaac stopped abruptly, their heads cocked to the side, listening intently with their acute hearing. Daniel bent low to the ground and once again checked all the scents available. Something was up.

  Daniel signaled for everyone to come close, and he whispered, "Stephen and David are together. I believe they are just around those trees up there. The sound we heard was them attacking a deer. I can smell the blood. It just happened within the last minute or so. They are completely distracted with their kill and feeding at the moment, so I'm fairly sure we are undetected for now. But, we need to make a strategic move. There isn't enough time to surround them and they would become aware of the sounds of our approach by the time we could even try to do that. So, we'll spread out our line somewhat, and surge in on them while they're still finishing off the deer. Most of this will be a play it by ear situation. But we each have designated roles to fill, so, everyone, get prepared quietly and move in."

  Daniel immediately hugged me, gave me a kiss, and mentally said, Kara, I love you. Please be careful. Don't get close to Stephen until Isaac and I have him under our control. Good luck.

  Daniel, I responded promptly, I love you, too. You are heading into a fight. You be careful.

  Daniel and Isaac removed their clothes and shoes and transformed into the beast – half human, half wolf. United, we stealthily crept forward and peered through the trees and bushes into the clearing at the scene. Stephen and David were feeding on the deer. They were about done, just picking at it, shoving it around with their noses, looking for any spare morsels. I could not comprehend that they didn't sense our impending attack. I suppose they were so confidant in themselves, so arrogant and were thoroughly engrossed in this feeding frenzy that they truly didn't have a clue what was about to happen. I wasn't about to try a mental link with Stephen right then, as that could draw his attention away from the deer and tip him off to my close proximity.

  Daniel and Isaac nodded and signaled to everyone along the line to make their move. As we entered the small clearing, some of us were tight up against the trees, and all, but two, made sure their presence was well known. Stephen and David, still in wolf form, jerked their heads up from the deer carcass. They looked left and right, taking in all the individuals showing themselves. I could sense their fear, anger, and confusion as to what to do next. Stephen's body was slightly sloped forward, feet braced, hair bristled on the shoulders, back and tail. His lips were curled up which exposed the gums and sharp teeth, visible wrinkles could be seen above his nose, ears were held aggressively forward. We could hear a slow, low-pitched growl that seemed to come from the chest and finally direct eye contact was made with Daniel.

  At the same time, David had taken on some similar body signs, but with much less dominance and a very unsure nature. His feet were braced, hair bristled up only on his shoulders, his tail wagged slowly in a low position, and his lips curled up revealing some teeth. David's eyes were blinking, not really staring directly at any one in particular. His ears were pulled back flat, with some wrinkling on the forehead. I could hear a higher-pitched growl that was almost a bark. He was not expecting to be hunted down by so many humans and werewolves. I had a feeling we wouldn't have much trouble from him.

  Daniel and Isaac, in beast form, started their approach. The tension in the air was unbearable. I wanted to scream. We didn't want either Stephen or David to get away, either. Their madness was going to end today no matter what. Everyone in our group was bound and determined to resolve this situation or at the least, get Stephen on the right track with his life. David realized this was a losing battle and turned tail to run. Just then, Rachel stepped out of the woods behind me.

  She screamed out, "David! Stop!"

  David heard her cry out to him. He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. He paced nervously, trying to decide whether to disappear into the woods or to stay and find out why Rachel was here. I knew Zac or Tessa would take a shot at him and bring him down before he could get away, though. Rachel came further out into the clearing, but kept a good distance away from Daniel, Isaac and the enraged Stephen. As she was half way to David, Zac and Tessa had also taken steps closer to where we knew the action was going to take place. Stephen. They wanted to protect Rachel from any attack Stephen might make on her since she was so exposed walking out by herself.

  Rachel paused, took a deep breath, and with tears streaming down her face, proclaimed, "David, please, don't do this anymore. You know what is right and what is wrong. You know the rules we try to live by. Please, come back to me. I need you. I'm pregnant. I am going to have your baby."

  I was the only one who was not shocked by this huge announcement. I had promised Rachel I would keep the secret. We wanted it to have full shock value when she spoke those words. And it did. Everyone was silent. Mouths dropped open, eyes boggled out. Stephen's head glanced over at Rachel and shook back and forth for a second. David quit pacing and just stood still by the trees. Then he sat down with one paw raised and sighed. A single, loud, high-pitched bark signaled for Rachel to come to him. She made her way across the short distance to David. He transformed back to human shape and stood up then instantly held Rachel tightly to his body. She had brought spare clothes for him, since he was standing there naked, although Rachel was in front of him.

  I very gently tapped at Rachel's mind, Rachel, is everything okay?

  We're good. He's going to put clothes on, Rachel quickly informed me. I zoomed this information mentally to several of the team members so they knew Rachel was safe. Time to focus on Stephen, as he was still in a delayed stand-off with Daniel and Isaac.

  The thought occurred to me that once again, Stephen was being abandoned. This time by David. He had lost Abigail, Cassius, his pack didn't respect him, and now David was no longer his partner in crime, a buddy to share his wild ways with. He knew positively that if Rachel was pregnant, David would be spending time with her. Pregnancies with the majority of werewolves were not that common. And most of the females in this group simply chose not to get pregnant. It was difficult enough for the adult werewolves to blend in with society, and control their emotions, let alone attempting to raise a baby that is also a werewolf.

  Knowing his sense of loss, I relayed this to Daniel and Isaac. Stephen would be extremely dangerous. I was getting an overload of his emotions. I snatched thoughts out of his head. Unbelievable amount of rage, loneliness, and self-destruction. He knew he was outnumbered. He wanted to be killed. He felt no point in living anymore. He could not win this fight, but would take down as many as he could with him. Which meant he would fight to his death.

  Only minutes had passed since Rachel walked into the woods with David, but it seemed an eternity. No one was making the first move in this stand-off. Daniel, Isaac and Stephen kept up this agitated circling like the wrestlers do in a match just before one steps forward to start the competition.

  Suddenly, Stephen lurched at Daniel, but he hit an invisible barrier. As he landed back on his feet from the jump, a log came zinging out across the ground and knocked Stephen onto his back. Two points for Dominic. He used his telekinetic skills expertly and with perfect timing. Daniel and Isaac jumped on top of Stephen to hold him down, but he somehow squirmed out of their grasp and attempted to flee. A shot rang out. Zac hit him in the back leg as Stephen howled out in agony. He could not run anymore in that condition. He was still trying to limp away, but it was futile. He would heal quickly from this injury, but there was plenty of time for Daniel and Isaac to capture him.

  As they tackled him to the ground, Daniel had a hold of his upper body and Isaac held down his lower body. Stephen wasn't ready to give up yet. His leg may have been shot and he was in terrible pain, but he had plenty of fight left in him. To everyone's surprise, he transformed into the beast shape, the same as Daniel and Isaac were in. This made Stephen stronger, larger, deadlier and at better odds against the other two werewolves.

 
All three were thrashing and struggling on the ground, each trying to get the upper hand in this battle. It looked like a whirlwind of arms and legs and bodies flying around. I knew without a doubt there would be substantial injuries, even possible death. How could there not be horrible wounds sustained when they all possessed dagger-like claws and vicious, snapping jaws let alone the super-human strength and speed that aided them in an all out fight.

  I was warned to stay back until Stephen was restrained and I could understand why. Daniel didn't need to have me so near the action that he would also have to worry about my getting injured, too. He and Isaac had enough to concentrate on. Especially trying to keep from getting their throats slashed wide open. With two against one, they were wearing Stephen down, though. The movements, the fighting, suddenly ceased. One more time, Daniel had Stephen's upper body pinned to the ground, and Isaac was lying across his lower half. Zac and Tessa rushed in to help and used their body weight, one on each arm that Daniel was attempting to keep down. Now that four of our team had him restrained, I stepped up to do my job. Dominic and Eli followed me.

  I stood and looked down upon Stephen. He looked so pitiful, in a way. He glared back up at me with an icy stare that was full of hatred. He growled, low and deep from the pit of his stomach. Stephen tried to vocalize, as we heard him mumble, "Never." I suppose that meant he would never allow me to help him. To soothe, comfort, calm him. To give him pleasant images, positive thoughts, with my power of suggestion. No, he did not want me anywhere near his mind. He didn't want to be controlled, although what I did was not mind control. He just didn't understand and didn't care anymore about anything. He was now teetering on a precipice, right on the edge of falling to the dark, evil side. I tested his mental block to me, and even though he was weary, he still maintained and fought to uphold that barrier. It was some semblance of power to him, one battle he felt he had won. A battle of the minds.

  I knew Dominic couldn't mentally reach him either. Stephen and I kept direct eye contact with each other, which was basically a show of wills. I was prepared to dive into his mind at any second, once his relentless barrier could be broken down. It was now time to pull out my ultimate plan of attack. I would utilize the art of distraction, a technique I was successful with in my experiments back at the resort. Distract Stephen, catch him with his guard down or lowered, and finally, fully access his mind with Dominic's added support. I signaled with one finger to someone behind me to come forward.

  Abigail. The Distraction.

  Stephen's lost love. In person. Right there. He was no longer having a staring contest with me. Abigail had his full, undivided attention. With tears running down her face, how much more distracted could he get? He was so shocked, so caught off his guard, his mental block came crashing down so fast, I thought I could almost feel it like an earthquake.

  And just like that, I pushed into Stephen's mind, with Dom linked up with me. Dom could not do much except be an additional distraction, if needed. Since he only could read minds, he was not capable of mental manipulation as I was. So if Stephen started to rebel against me, Dominic would start mentally talking with him, which would allow me more time to place positive thoughts and ideas into his head, in hopes they would work and take effect immediately.

  I remained solely focused on my task, Dom next to me, while Abigail knelt down next to Stephen. Daniel, Isaac, Tessa and Zac continued to hold him firmly in place on the ground. Eli stood off to the side as did Rachel and David who were many feet away but had emerged from the woods and watched intensely. I tried to work harmoniously with Abigail, implanting images and emotions that matched the things she was telling Stephen.

  "Stephen, I still love you. I never stopped loving you. Let your anger go. I want to make things work out for us. But you cannot keep up this destructive behavior. If you want to have a life with me, you have to abide by our own werewolf laws. We can do this, if you're willing to try. We can learn to control your aggression. You can see by now that this lifestyle you've been attempting to embrace, is not going to be tolerated. You don't want to threaten humans. You're not a murderer. And you don't really want to risk all the werewolves' exposure, our hidden existence, do you? You cannot bring unwanted attention to this area. Do you really want the people, fanatics, the government hunting us down? Hunting and maybe killing me?" she pleaded.

  I kept feeding Stephen's mind with positive emotions, pleasant thoughts of Abigail's love for him, reassurance she wanted to be with him. I implanted images of them together, walking through the woods, hand in hand, smiling, laughing, enjoying themselves. I added an image of them in wolf form, just running free, letting the wind flow through their fur. That would show him it was still acceptable to transform into a wolf, and that he didn't need to associate it with rage and crimes of violence. I flooded his mind with waves upon waves of comfort, blissful feelings at the exact same time Abigail continued pleading with him, and then, gradually...something shifted in his mind, body and soul. I sensed it. I felt it. I could see his expression change on his human/wolf face. Dominic and Abigail could see something happening to him, too.

  The evil that had started invading Stephen's spirit, that had tried to consume him, was departing. It was losing its grasp on him. The good was seeping in, slowly replacing the bad. He relaxed flat out on the ground, still with Daniel, Isaac, Tessa and Zac on top of him. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, opened them, and tears slipped out both sides, trailing back into the long hair on his head.

  Abigail gently, lovingly, stroked his head with her hand.

  Chapter 23

  Mediators

  Without any advance warning, Stephen transformed back into human shape. The team holding him down to the ground had to quickly maneuver their dominant positions and grip on him as his body changed form. Stephen did not protest. He did not try to fight or push them off. He remained submissive.

  Abigail and I stated at the same time, "Let him go."

  Daniel looked directly at me, and questioned in his beast form, "It's okay?"

  I answered, "He's not bluffing us. He's really surrendered. Stay nearby, he's very confused, but you can get off of him."

  As Daniel, Isaac, Tessa and Zac tentatively released Stephen, he drew his body up into a ball, sitting on his rear, with his arms curled around his legs, head down. He was totally naked, very exposed both physically and mentally. I reached into the backpack to retrieve a pair of pants for him to put on. I handed them to Abigail, and she instinctively rubbed the pants over her chest and arms to put her scent on them. They belonged to Daniel, and his clothes, his scent and mine, needed to be toned down for Stephen to make it more acceptable to wear.

  Everyone stayed on high alert. They backed away from Stephen a few feet to give him some space. Abigail rubbed his head and back which helped to console him. I continued to monitor his mind, and to make my presence not so overbearing for him. I tried to fade into the background of his thoughts. And, yet, a majority of those thoughts are ones I had created, along with many new, positive emotions. Stephen was being very quiet, unmoving, as his mind processed everything. Abigail suggested he put the jeans on as she touched them to his hand, letting him be aware they were readily available.

  Stephen looked so defeated at Abigail and said, "I don't know what I'm doing anymore. I'm sorry. Help me."

  And with that last sentence, he glanced up at me, and then turned back to Abigail. He hugged her tightly and took the jeans from her to put on. We didn't turn our backs on Stephen as he dressed, but we discreetly looked another direction to give him privacy. After the jeans were on, it almost seemed like Abigail was supporting his weight on her shoulder. He leaned on her as if he had very little strength or energy left in his body.

  I looked around to survey the damages. Stephen's leg had been shot, and blood was actually seeping through the jeans he had just put on. He had several cuts, gashes and bite marks, which were scattered over his body. Daniel and Isaac didn't have any gunshot wounds, thankfully, but they s
till had many nasty, bleeding injuries all over them. The three of them looked pretty messed up to me. But I knew that werewolves heal fast, and it appeared that none of the wounds involved any major organs, and even though they were bleeding from cuts, none would make them completely bleed out and die. Zac and Tessa were on the receiving end of a few slices themselves, but had only stepped in when Stephen was restrained by Daniel and Isaac. Eli would have to check Zac and Tessa out to make sure they didn't need any stitches or other first aid.

  Abigail spotted some fallen trees that could substitute for a chair or couch. She guided Stephen over to that area and they sat down. The rest of us followed, not sure what to expect or do next. We did feel that the showdown was over and now it was recovery time.

  Daniel gestured to the woods that we had emerged from and said gruffly, "Clothes."

  He momentarily left our group to transform to human shape and put clothes on. The second he returned, Isaac followed his lead and did the same. They did not have their shirts on yet, as I assumed they wanted the wounds to completely stop bleeding first. At least this time around, before we attacked Stephen and David, they remembered to undress first to prevent destroying more clothes during a transformation. Now that the fight ended, they were able to retrieve those clothes from where they had left them. And, of course, I had the handy dandy backpack on me, stuffed with additional clothing, as back-up, which worked out well since Stephen had no clothes available.