Chapter 14 - Body
I’m standing in the driveway, watching Amanda go and feeling more lost than I ever have when my phone buzzes in my pocket.
We need help!
It’s from Bae.
Where are you?
My mom’s place! Hurry!
I barely remember to lock the door before I leap into the truck and roar down the driveway. I gun it when I hit the street, burning rubber down the road.
Even though this sounds potentially devastating, I’m relieved to have a distraction. I wasn’t looking forward to sitting around by myself, trying to figure out what I did wrong.
I know what I did wrong. I can’t ever take it for granted, no matter how comfortable Amanda seems with me. I ripped out her heart and tore it in two. I need to own that.
As I put my foot down on the gas and tear through the back streets, I remember those wonderful months I spent with Amanda back in high school. Suddenly, I’m seeing all of it from a completely different perspective, and it makes me feel like an utter piece of shit.
We often hung out at her house because her mom was hardly around. Sometimes we went for walks to the river or lake. But we were never together at school. We never went on a date, and I never held her hand in public.
I was so afraid my parents would find out. They had me so well-trained, so scared of disappointing them. It was only once I lost Amanda that I realized I truly didn’t give a fuck what my parents thought.
After school, we’d spend long hours in her bedroom, listening to music and talking about our favorite movies. She played around a little with a guitar. I said she was good, but she didn’t believe me.
It was fun having the little house to ourselves and sneaking kisses behind the gym. The whole time, I thought she was just being totally chill with the situation. And backing me up because she wanted to help me get around my parents.
I told her once high school was finished, we could be together and it wouldn’t matter anymore. But, if anything, the pressure got worse. My parents wanted me to go to state tryouts and college interviews in big cities. If I couldn’t make an impact on the pack, they wanted me to be out in the world, measuring my success by money and power.
As I approach Carla’s house, a groan rips out of my throat, and the ache in my chest is so bad, it feels like there’s a blade stuck through my heart.
And right in front of the whole school… I dumped her. I panicked. I always intended to find her later and explain, but by the time I went looking for her, she was already gone.
I grip the steering wheel so hard, I can hear it crack a little under my fingers. Even if I could have found her after that, I have no idea what I would have said.
There are no words that can heal that wound.
It wasn’t until the next day when I was standing in front of my parents while they decided my future, that I realized I didn’t give a fuck what they wanted. I ran from the house, I ran from the pack, I ran from the entire town.
Months of solitude cleansed me, stripping away all my superficial layers and leaving nothing but my raw, unadulterated self. I discovered a strength inside me that I’d never known, as well as a newfound purpose.
Amanda did the same thing when she went into the woods with her witches. Both of us returned to our very base nature.
As I pull up to Carla’s house, I can hear screaming from the backyard. I leap out of the truck and tear around the house, fearing the worst.
Bae is struggling on the ground, gasping for breath. His daughter, Natalia, is kneeling on his chest. Her cousin, Gray, bounces on Bae’s stomach. Little Dana is tugging on his shirt, giggling as she tries to climb on him as well.
A bloodcurdling scream rips through the air as Caleb comes hurtling out of the forest in his wolf shape, racing at top speed. Jack and Rider are hard on his heels, chasing him down. Peter is sitting on the ground near Bae, wearing a troubled expression as he rocks Isla back and forth. Kyle is sitting on the back steps, observing the scene with a look somewhere between utter joy and complete horror.
“Are you guys okay?” I ask, looking around.
“Do I look okay?” Bae shouts. “Get over here and help me.”
“Don’t you dare!” Natalia shrieks. “He said if I got him down, he’s going to buy me a pony!”
“If you got me down by yourself ,” Bae yells. “You enlisted Gray and poor baby Dana in your schemes.”
“Gray wants to ride the pony, too,” Natalia says, crossing her arms across her chest. “And I’m not responsible for Dana. She’s a baby.”
“Yeah, Kyle, who is responsible for Dana?” Bae yells helplessly.
“On my way,” Kyle says, coming over to scoop Dana into his arms.
I approach cautiously, waiting to be attacked.
“Hey, Uncle Body,” Natalia says. “Did you come to babysit, too?”
“Well, I thought I was coming to the fight of my life, actually,” I answer. “Now I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“I am fighting for my life. Good God, man,” Bae mutters. Natalia giggles, bouncing on his chest once more before jumping off him.
Even though the kids have grown up around me, I’m not exactly sure of their ages. Natalia is at least five now, and Gray around four. Dana and Isla are the youngest, I know that much.
And Caleb’s a teenager now. On his way to becoming a man.
On the other side of the house, I hear a fearsome scuffle of growling and barking. There’s a high, sharp yelp that makes me jump out of my skin.
“What the fuck is going on back there!” I yell.
Bae shrugs. “Caleb has started really throwing down with his dad… and beating him.”
“Like, seriously? Or is Rider letting him win?”
“Hard to tell.”
Three wolves come around the side of the house, Caleb in front with Rider and Jack on his heels. Jack shifts back to human and scoops up Gray from Bae’s chest, breathing hard after his run.
“That’s the last time I help out with your son, Rider,” he pants. “I’ll stick to my own, thanks.”
“Coward,” Rider grumbles after shifting back to human.
“Excuse me!” a loud voice bellows from the back steps. “What in the hell is going on out here?”
All of us look up guiltily to see Carla standing by the door, glaring at us with her hands on her hips.
“It’s not fair,” Peter protests. “The girls left us alone, and—”
“Enough!” Carla rolls her eyes. “Caleb! Get over here, young man!”
Caleb shifts back to human. “Yes, Aunt Carla,” he says obediently, returning from the edge of the forest. “I’m sorry.”
“I want you to get inside and get cleaned up. You’re making dinner with me. Natalia, you’re going to help with getting the babies settled.”
“Yes, Grandma,” she says, taking Gray’s hand and going inside.
“How the hell did you do that?” Kyle demands of the older woman.
“Years of practice, son,” she says. “Get inside and put Isla and Dana in their cots. I’ll take it from here.”
“Thanks, Mom,” Bae says, picking himself up off the ground. “I really appreciate it.”
Carla chuckles, coming over to ruffle his hair. “No problem. Get out of here, alpha pup, and have yourself a good time. We’ll talk about your parenting skills later.”
“I’ll put that off until the next millennium,” Bae jokes. “Come on, guys. Let’s get out of here before she changes her mind.”
I blocked the driveway with my truck when I came in, so I back out first, and the others follow me to Shelley’s. The parking lot is full, and the back area and parklands are already flooded with people.
As I head out the back with the boys, I take a deep breath of the smoky, delicious meat cooking on the grill. I grab a cold beer out of a cooler and follow Bae to a set of chairs in the park.
“Great turnout,” Bae remarks. “I wanted a good mix of people from all three packs. This is to bring us together, just mingle, and remember why we need each other. I’m really happy so many people came.”
“Everything looks pretty peaceful, too,” Jack replies. “At least for now.”
“I’ll have to go around soon,” Bae says. “Just to get a feel for things. But at the moment, it looks like everyone’s having fun.”
“Except you,” Kyle says to me, nudging my arm. “What’s going on, buddy?”
“Oh,” I say hesitantly. “I don’t think I want to talk about it.”
“Sure, you do,” Peter answers. “Otherwise, you wouldn’t be here. And even if you weren’t, we’d beat down your door and make you talk to us.”
“What did I do to deserve such good friends?” I chuckle, shaking my head.
“Seriously, man.” Bae turns to me, locking his eyes on mine. “I have firsthand experience with your situation, and I want to tell you—hang in there. You have to.”
“My situation wasn’t the same as yours—”
“Oh, really?” Bae snorts. “I think you’ll find it frighteningly similar, actually. If you’re anything like me, then you’ve been beating yourself up over it for years. But I’m telling you, now it’s time to stop. You have your chance. Don’t blow it.”
“It seemed like things were going great!” I exclaim, finally cracking. “Up on the mountain, she got so close to me, and I thought…”
“Out of town,” Rider says, nodding. “She felt comfortable in the wilderness. It’s probably more what she’s used to, from what I heard.”
“You are, too,” Bae agrees. “Maybe another camp, with just the two of you?”
“She was pretty frosty to me this morning,” I say. “I don’t know if I’d want to suggest it.”
“Eyes up, boys,” Kyle hisses with a low whistle. “Something’s cooking.”
All of us look up immediately, and I can see people gathering in a tight knot on the other side of the yard.
“What happened?” Bae asks in a low voice.
“Nothing yet,” Kyle mutters. “But there was some tension, then two people started getting in each other’s faces. I can’t see who.”
“We should get over there,” Jack suggests, standing up.
“Wait,” Bae says, putting a hand on his arm. “If we charge in there, it could start the fight. Let’s just watch. I won’t let anything happen.”
Even though Bailey has given his order, Rider stands up and moves toward the trouble. He doesn’t directly approach the conflict but obviously wants to be nearby.
Agitated shouts begin to rise above the murmur of the crowd. Now, all of us are up and moving. The group is getting bigger. With everyone standing so close together, it’s hard to see what’s actually going on.
“We aren’t going to allow this!” a male voice shouts. “You shouldn’t be here. You have no right to be here.”
“They have every right to be here. I’m questioning your right, though.”
It’s a female voice, but I can’t tell who it is. A sick wave of anxiety is starting to seep into my guts, and I want to hurl people out of the way to get into the center of the circle, but I’m still very aware of Bae’s order.
He’s right. Someone aggressively shoving in there could light the fuse.
“If you have a problem, then take it up with me,” says another female voice.
And it’s familiar.
“How dare you, witch!” the wolf roars. “Everything was just fine until you came back. We will run you off this mountain just like we have before!”
The crowd tosses in front of me like the angry waves of a violent ocean. The people part slightly, giving me a clear view of where the argument is happening.
It’s a wolf—a big one, from the Decker pack. He’s in full threat mode with his shoulders high and fists clenched as he glares at the source of his hate.
She stands alone before him, her arms folded across her chest, meeting his gaze with a dreadful calm.
No…
Amanda!