I was now certain there was something that my father wasn’t telling me. I began to wonder how well I knew my parents. My whole life I’d taken for granted that they were just how they were. But maybe there was a point in time when they were different. Maybe Valerie was right—there were skeletons in their closet that would ultimately fall out. Was I ready to accept this new knowledge of my parents? Knowing them only one way was comforting and safe. Similarly, I’m sure knowing me in just one way was the same for them. We spent my whole life having only a superficial relationship to avoid confronting difficult emotions within each other, pretending everything was perfect to the point where we came to believe it.
Feeling courageous, I finally decided to confront my dad. “What does that mean that you understand our predicament?” I asked.
He shook his head and said, “I was young once too, and I had to make some hard choices.”
“What kind of choices?” I pressed him.
“It doesn’t matter. They’re all in the past now. It’s nothing for you to worry about.”
“But...,” I started to say, wondering if it was worth continuing to press my father.
Before I could continue, he spoke again. “Just don’t make your decision based on how you think your mom and I will feel about it, okay? Be with Luke because you want to, not because you feel obligated to. I am your dad, and I will be on your side no matter what happens. I’ve denied it for a long time, but I have to finally accept that you’re an adult now, a very intelligent and capable one at that. It’s time we start trusting you to make your own decisions.”
Before I could respond, he turned and walked out of the kitchen. I couldn’t believe the exchange we’d just had. My dad had never been so understanding before. I let out a sigh of relief, feeling like I could breathe easier now that I no longer had the weight of my parents’ approval on my shoulders.
After I finished my breakfast, I put my bowl into the dishwasher. I knew I couldn’t remain in my human form for the rest of the day, still feeling anxious about what Luke would decide on Monday. I knew that running outside of the territory borders was unsafe, but maybe I could run within the confines of it, not that there was much forested area to do that in. But I would have to make do.
I walked outside to find that a dusting of snow had fallen overnight, coating the ground in a thin layer of white. I stepped into the woods behind our house, my breath turning into a cloud in front of me as I walked. I quickly stripped, feeling the frozen air on my skin, my bare feet touching the frozen ground. As soon as I removed the last layer of clothing, I shifted. I ran within the forested area of our territory, skimming the border. I felt trapped, desiring to run free without confinement.
Eventually, I stopped at the lake on the outskirts of the border. I looked toward the lake which was beginning to freeze over. The ice was thin and crispy with a big hole in the center of the lake that appeared to extend to the other end, which was outside of our territory. I walked over to the lake, gently putting my paw onto the ice. And that’s when I smelled the scent. It was a similar scent to the two wolves who had attacked me. It was on the ice. I put my nose closer, and it was clear that it was there. Someone must have been entering the territory through the lake, and their scent had clung to the solid ice.
I quickly mindlinked Blake,“I can smell the stranger wolves’ pack. It’s on the party lake ice.”
“I’ll be right there,”Blake instantly replied.
I walked back toward the beach area and lay down. After some time, Blake appeared in his human form. As soon as I saw him, I got up and walked over to the lake, gesturing with my nose where to sniff. He went over and got down on his hands and knees, smelling where I had pointed.
“Holy shit,” he said. “I’ve been having my warriors check this area every day, and yet it’s Miss Alpha that discovers the scent. Clearly my team needs more training, and we need you to join us.” He smiled. He got up, and I saw he was mindlinking someone, his eyes glazed over in concentration. He looked back at me. “I’m having some of the warriors on duty help me track the scent. Maybe I can get some action today.” He smiled mischievously. “Nothing like a little torture on a Sunday afternoon.”
“Torture?”I asked.
He looked like the Cheshire cat as he smiled, his eyes appearing evil. “Yes, torture. How do you think we find out what pack these motherfuckers are from? Nothing like the sweet taste of death to force a man to open his mouth.”
I continued looking at him, not knowing what to say.
“You’re welcome to come help us track, of course. It could be your first warrior experience. Although, probably best you don’t come to the torture portion.”
“What happens during a torture?”I asked him. I heard a noise behind me and turned to see that some warriors were approaching.
He looked at them and then turned back to me, mindlinking me,“I get to practice my butchering skills on live mammals, with very sharp knives.”
I shivered. I’d never seen him look so evil before, it was almost frightening. One thing was clear—Blake Wulfric was not someone you’d ever want to cross.
“I think I’m good with the tracking,”I mindlinked him back, the other warriors now standing next to me.
“Men?” Blake said out loud. They instantly all stripped and shifted into their wolf forms, following the border of the lake, leaving me behind.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t look as Blake stripped completely naked in front of me, not even remotely interested in the others. There was something dangerous about him, and I’d never felt so turned on. He both terrified me and wakened something deep within me simultaneously. I never thought I was the type, but I knew I’d let him do anything he wanted to me, consequences be damned.
He was the type of man you went crazy for and, next thing you knew, you found a knife in your hand, tearing through the rubber of his tires. If I didn’t pull myself together, I knew I’d end up as one of his deranged exes.
Chapter 57
Jasmine
Iwoketomyalarm on Monday. I readied myself for the day and joined my parents downstairs to go to temple service. I felt a sickness inside me. Not only would I see Luke at the service, but today was the day he was to verbalize his decision. I knew deep within me what it would be, but it didn’t make it easier to face his rejection so head on and fearlessly.
My parents were silent in the car on the way to temple. The tension was so thick you could cut a knife through it. I’d never seen my parents like this in my life. Their bond normally seemed ideal—they agreed on almost everything, their minds an extension of each other’s. I had barely ever even heard the two of them bicker. It was the type of bond I wished for myself, though now that dream had departed.