Beast Within (Loup-Garou Series Book 3) Page 12

  He should have known she would be so perceptive. “We’re mad that you disobeyed Darren’s order to stay inside. We’re not mad that you changed. Being able to change on your own is a big step in being a loup-garou.”

  Katey’s hand came to rest on his bare chest. Her touch was soft and affectionate, telling him she had forgiven him for all his offenses against her. It felt like an eternity since she had touched him this way.

  “I know you’re mad that I was able to take that step before you.”

  Logan went quiet, unsure of what to say.

  “I know changing on demand has been the one thing you could never do,” she continued.

  Logan leaned his head against hers. “You’re right. I am mad, but I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at my own inability to do what you’ve done. I’ve been trying for a century to do what you did in just a couple of weeks.”

  Katey slipped her arms around him and squeezed tightly as if that would bring the battered pieces of his ego back together. It just might have. Feeling her embrace chased away some of the demons in his mind and allowed him to love her even more – if that were possible. Logan wondered how it was possible for one mere woman to be in so much pain, yet emit her own kind of peace that others could so easily latch onto.

  “I never meant to upstage you,” Katey whispered.

  “I know you didn’t.” Logan glided his hand across her slightly tangled dark hair and let the bitterness and decades of self-loathing slip from him. He was like an ox being shed of its harness and able to roam free from his burden. What she said wasn’t profound. It didn’t erase the past or what he had felt. I was little less than a thin bandage over a severed artery. Somehow, her presence and her warmth in the midst of her own turmoil gave him peace.

  “What was it like?” he asked after he gave Katey a few moments to compose herself.

  She pulled away from him and searched his face for the anger she must have assumed was still there. After she had found nothing, she smiled. “It was incredible. It still hurt a bit, but I remembered everything.”

  Logan didn’t hold back his unconvinced look. “That’s impossible. You shouldn’t have been able to remember anything past the change.”

  Katey took on a new eagerness and gripped his arm. “But I did, and I was white!”

  “White? Like you were in Alaska?” Katey nodded. “How is any of that possible? New loups-garous are supposed to be black.”

  “I know, but…” she said and shrugged.

  “Did you do something special with your wolf to make that happen?” Logan asked, also eager to learn what he could from her.

  “Darren had been telling me I needed to force the wolf out, but I didn’t have to. She came out willingly and I know it sounds crazy, but it was like we were one. One body, one mind, everything.”

  Logan didn’t know what she meant but grinned when he watched the spark of excitement dance in her green eyes. It didn’t matter if he understood what she did or how she did it. If she was happy, that was all that mattered.

  “Maybe I’ll start training again and see if I can do the same,” he said, a twinge of woefulness in his voice, knowing that no amount of training or effort would ever make him achieve the level of success she had.

  “I can help you if you want,” she offered.

  Logan kissed her forehead. “I’d want nothing less,” he replied with an easy smile.

  Footsteps sounded down the stairs, and Logan looked toward the kitchen doorway. Darren appeared, circles under his eyes and face shadowed in weariness. The alpha looked from Logan to Katey to the slices of meat set aside on the counter. Logan wasn’t sure if it was weariness that dulled the fury he had seen in the alpha’s eyes the night before, or if sleep had taken away the edge, but Darren looked to be in a more amiable mood. Perhaps he had given up on the challenge of disciplining Katey after her show of obvious submission.

  “Decided to have breakfast early?” he asked as he shuffled past them toward the fridge.

  Katey nestled deeper into Logan, seeking refuge in him, which he was more than happy to give. If Darren so much as raised his voice at Katey this morning, Logan was prepared to defend her this time.

  “We were just talking,” Logan replied.

  “About tonight’s plans to leave, I hope.”

  In all the hysteria of Katey’s disappearing act, Logan had completely forgotten about Darren’s orders to leave Crestucky. “No, we weren’t.”

  If he were to be truthful, Logan wasn’t any happier about leaving the area than Katey was. He was sure they would return once it was safe, but he had never liked living life from a suitcase or running all over the country. This preference had developed during his time with Darren in Europe when they were searching for Dustin. Hopping from hotel to hovel for years made him sick of the idea of fleeing from the most stable home he had ever truly known. If it was Darren’s decision to leave, he would honor it with as little grumbling as possible.

  Darren pulled out a carton of eggs and package of bacon from the fridge. “You two will need to pack this evening. Only carry what you’ll need.”

  “We know the drill, Darren,” Logan sighed. To his surprise, Darren didn’t correct his attitude.

  The alpha pulled out a skillet from one of the lower cabinets and turned on the gas range with as much calm as if nothing had happened out of the ordinary in the past week. “I’ll also need you to go with Dustin and Ben to check on the Devian families still in town.”

  Katey straightened up in Logan’s arms and leaned in as if she were chomping at the bit. “What about you?” she asked.

  Darren sprayed the pan with cooking oil and turned to regard her with a look of indifference. “I will be spending the day with you, Katey.”

  Logan felt his grip tighten around his fiancé, but her body went slack for a moment, probably from disbelief. She had noticed the lack of hostility in their alpha as well. After all the bickering and fighting, Darren was willing to spend the day with currently his most difficult pack member.

  “Why can’t I stay with her and you go with the others?” Logan asked, subtly probing for an explanation to his sudden change of heart.

  “I have something in mind for Katey and me to do. A little field trip,” he replied with a furtive smile.

  “Where are we going?” Katey questioned, a sprinkling of hesitance in her words.

  “You’ll find out,” Darren replied before he began to prepare their breakfasts.

  Chapter Eight

  They had been driving for over an hour. At first, Katey had been suspicious of Darren’s plan to leave the house while they were under a hunter-warning. Once he assured her this field trip was part of the next step in her training, she was more than eager.

  From the driver’s seat, Darren glanced to Katey beside him. The window was rolled down and her chin rested on her arms that were crossed over the doorframe. The cool breeze whipped at the tendrils of hair that escaped from her ponytail. Sunlight splashed across her face, and a contented smile was spread across her lips.

  They had passed nothing but rolling fields of farmland and untouched forest as they drove deeper into the countryside of northern Florida, following the state line that divided them from Alabama. Darren hadn’t been out this way for at least six months, but he could remember a time longer ago when there wasn’t even a paved road to drive on.

  Darren looked back to the road ahead as they passed by a few modest homes, the first he had seen in nearly twenty miles. They were drawing closer to civilization, but he would have to make the turn soon that would take them farther away from the town and further into the country.

  He judged that it would be safe for them on this route, knowing the hunters were working their way from west to east. It was likely they hadn’t scouted around this area yet or they had already passed through after inspecting the small towns, but he remained alert, knowing hunters could be unpredictable.

  Hunters had consumed his mind over the last week, infiltrating his drea
ms and keeping him vigilant at all times. Darren understood his mental and physical health was at risk because of his obsession. The benefits far outweighed what he suffered. Knowing that his pack - his family - was safe would stand as satisfaction enough for his efforts.

  He glanced again to Katey and realized how fond he had become of her, despite everything they had been through in the last twenty-four hours. He had always cared for her. He cared for all his students in the same way and wanted the best that life could offer them. Katey had turned into something special through all of her stubbornness and issues.

  Darren had served as a teacher for so many years, educating countless young people. They never stayed in an area long enough for him to gain tenure or raise suspicion of why he never aged. As a result, many of his students moved on with their lives, and he was never able to see the fruits of his labor.

  He never knew if a student grew up to be a scientist or accountant like they had planned. There was the occasional word of gratitude from graduating seniors, if he was still around, but he sometimes wondered if any alumni had tried to reach out to him in their adult years to let him know that they finally made it and to thank him for the dedication he gave to their education, when they may or may not have deserved it.

  They were all, each, shooting stars across his night sky. They stayed for a moment and then passed on in their journey. He stayed in place, watching them brilliantly shine before him and fade out just as quickly.

  Katey was different. She was the one shooting star that took her place amongst the fixed constellations in his life. She would be around for centuries to glean from his wisdom, but she had yet to thank him for what little he had done so far. He was tempted to feel embittered by her disregard for the protection and guidance he had given her, but she was still young, and with all they had been through just that week, gratitude was that last thing on her mind.

  She wasn’t just his student anymore. She had become part of the pack and part of the loup-garou community as something of a Messiah for their race. He hadn’t let it fully set in that he was the caretaker of the one person who would mean so much to this world.

  Her influence wouldn’t be felt by just loups-garous and vampires. Peace between their two races would mean peace for the world as a whole and an end to so many conflicts and internal wars. Looking at her now, no one would truly understand that.

  As far as anyone else knew, she was a spirited youth, full of life and an eagerness to please and experience everything. She was too young to have gone through so much. Even Darren wasn’t sure if he could have carried her burden at that age. He was still trying to get a grasp on his new life when he was a mere eighteen years old.

  “I never meant to take your freedom from you,” he said over the roar of the wind blasting through the car.

  Katey turned her head toward him but didn’t say anything. They locked eyes, but Darren couldn’t see any change in her expression. She seemed to be scrutinizing him in the same way.

  “You must know I’m only trying to keep you and everyone else safe.”

  “Maybe that’s not your job,” she replied softly, her voice almost lost in the noise of the car.

  “As your alpha, it is my job,” he said sternly before easing his foot on the brake so they could make the next turn.

  Katey leaned back inside the car and rolled up the window until there was only a narrow slit at the top for air to blow through. He knew Katey didn’t keep the window down for the cold air, but for the scent of the pine and earth outside. He couldn’t blame her for enjoying the aroma. His wolf responded to the heady smells as well, but he had better control over his bestial instincts.

  “I’ve been doing research about wolf packs, and the alpha isn’t always the strongest wolf,” Katey said. “It’s the beta that keeps the pack safe. So, wouldn’t that be Dustin’s job?”

  Darren wanted to admire her thirst for knowledge, but he didn’t appreciate the way she constantly called out the flaws in their system. “A loup-garou pack is still slightly different from a wolf pack.”

  “And the omega is supposed to be the tension reliever,” she continued. “The omega jumps into fights and diverts the attention onto him so no one else gets hurt. They sometimes do that by playing the clown, and that sounds like Dustin. So, Ben shouldn’t be the omega. It seems like everyone’s position is switched around.”

  “Dustin wasn’t always the clown,” Darren replied as they pulled onto another country road, the sun glaring down through the windshield and warming the inside of the car. “Loup-garou packs are structured around dominance. As for roles, we serve where we are needed.” He looked to Katey. “Besides, don’t you remember last night when Ben tried to intervene, and Dustin had to hold him back? That’s a demonstration of their titles, isn’t it?”

  Katey opened her mouth to reply, but then closed it and she turned her stare out the window. He had made his point, but her new submissive attitude made him wonder what had changed. She wasn’t as quick to argue anymore.

  The way she had behaved in the past few days would have suggested that her wolf was fighting for a higher rank within the pack, despite her greenness. Now, she was resigned and didn’t challenge him.

  “What was your change like last night?” he asked, hoping to lure her into further conversation. If they were to repair their pack bonds, Darren had to make her feel comfortable talking to him again.

  Katey shifted in her seat and sighed. “Fine.”

  Darren laughed at her attempt to brush him off. “Are you becoming a one-syllable kid now? I know it couldn’t have just been fine. Tell me how it went.”

  She smoothed back the flyaway hairs from her forehead and appeared to be deep in thought before she replied. “It was hard at first because I was trying to force it, but then I just let the wolf take over, and it was so natural.”

  Darren let her go on about her night, how she had been so surprised and pleased that she had a white pelt and the various things she did with her wolf. He was especially intrigued to hear she was able to stay conscious through the experience. He had never known a loup-garou who could do that so soon in their training. No other loup-garou he knew of had white fur either. Even John, who was at least a couple centuries older than Darren, had gray and silver fur, but never the snow-white color Katey prided herself with.

  When she was finished, he hardly knew what to say. She had managed to change on her own without any outside coaching. “Where did you get the idea to just let the wolf take over instead of forcing it?”

  As calm as if they were discussing the weather, Katey replied, “My wolf told me.”

  Darren had never been one for believing that loups-garous were just vessels for the spirit of beasts to inhabit. Even centuries ago, when superstition was the law of the land, Darren knew there had to be some more worldly or philosophical explanation for what he had become. After listening to the way Katey talked so intimately about her wolf partner, he wasn’t so sure everything could be explained with science.

  “What else has your wolf told you?” he asked.

  Katey shook her head and let her gaze fall into her lap. “Nothing else, really.”

  Darren wasn’t so blind. He could see through the deflection and knew there was something more she wasn’t telling him. The only solace he could take now was the fact that what he was about to show her was something she would never have learned on her own.

  They turned once more down a dirt path off the highway. The unpaved road was clearly marked by a painted sign reading “Florida Wolf Preserve.” He watched Katey look over her shoulder at the sign as they passed it.

  “I didn’t know there was a wolf preserve in Florida,” she remarked as she turned back around in her seat.

  “It’s the only one in the state.”

  Darren’s silver sedan rocked at every little bump and divot in the road. If it weren’t for the distance and the sheer number of farms they would have to traverse, Darren would have preferred he and Katey traveled to the
preserve on foot. With their loup-garou speed, it would have taken the same amount of time – if not less.

  Their few moments of suffering the path paid off when they eased through a break in the trees that opened into a gravel parking area that could accommodate perhaps a little over a dozen vehicles. Two pickup trucks and a minivan were already parked in unmarked stalls.

  Darren shouldn’t have been surprised by the low visitor count, but it was a Saturday. He wanted to think the vacant parking spaces were due to the winter chill that still hung in the air, despite the warm sun beating down. He also knew the preserve was struggling. It had been since the day it opened. They needed more visitors to keep the wolves fed and the gates open and his monthly donation was not going to make that happen. Tours from the schools were a great way to bring awareness, but what parent in their right mind would allow their child to be within snapping range of a wolf?

  He parked close to the welcome center, a wooden building perhaps the size of a single-wide trailer. As they walked up the weed riddled path, Darren looked at Katey and noticed that she was walking just a few paces behind him, gazing around with a look of amazement and trepidation. Like him, she could probably smell the wolves close by in the enclosures. However, they remained out of sight, hidden in their dens.

  Inside, there was a cashier counter manned by a middle-aged woman with short black hair and shiny dark eyes. Her high cheekbones gave away her Native American ancestry. It had been a while since Darren had seen Tessa, but she hadn’t changed. Not to him. Despite everything she had been through, she still held her chin up high and kept her gentle deportment. The laugh lines around her mouth and eyes still creased into her dark skin; those lines Chris had blessed her with.

  Dressed in a simple sweater and high-waisted jeans, Tessa still retained an element of exotic beauty that had drawn many of their kind to her. Chris was the lucky one to win her heart, but he knew plenty more who were bitter about losing such an appealing prize.