Chapter 7 #2
It was morning, and she was ready to start the day. Breakfast was waiting, and only Darren wasn’t there yet. He joined them moments later. Plates of food were on the table, and everyone began to fill their own plates. Harry appeared suddenly.
“I just wanted to check on everyone,” she said.
“Join us, Harry.” Flo invited.
“If you don't mind. Can you tell me how everything is going?” Harry asked.
“As far as we know, there have been no further attempts, but we are still being alert,” Carlos explained.
“I heard Cage planned to come by, but I thought he would already be here,” Harry explained.
“Why was he coming by?” Carlos asked.
“In order to update you on what was being done with the guys that were caught and the main bad guy,” Harry explained.
“You mean Zeon?” Lottie asked.
“Yes, but I think they're also trying to track the guy that ran that dungeon we found you in. They found some of the lower-level workers, but not any of those managing the place.” Harry mentioned.
There was a knock on the door, and Harry looked relieved. Lottie thought that was why little witch really came by to be updated on everything that was going on because she cared. Breakfast was just a bonus.
Liza let Cage in, and he came to the dining room.
“Have a seat and grab some food.” Flo offered.
“I see Harry beat me here.” Cage chuckled.
He sat down, filled up a plate, and took a few bites before he began to talk.
“I imagine that Harry knows as much as I do and has already been giving out the needed information.
Zeon is being watched so that he will not attempt another kidnapping, but we are not sure what the other guys who were involved in this will do.
It's possible since they paid for Lottie that they will try to recover her and may even go after anyone else that's here.” Cage informed.
“What do you think we should do?” Carlos asked.
“Darren can take Lottie and the girls to Ariel's to outwait the danger. That is probably the safest suggestion. There are other places that they could go to, like Lottie’s family. They live in a fairly isolated area, and her mother is also a witch, but her grandmother is a strong witch, and she lives nearby.”
“How strong a witch is your grandmother?” Flo asked.
“Not as strong as Zorth, but stronger than Harry,” Lottie admitted.
“Why hasn't she taught you more?” Flo wondered.
“My father is not a witch. He saw no need for me to be more magically strong than my mother. My dad said that when I hit forty, it was time enough for my grandmother to teach me, and she agreed. Otherwise, I suspect she would not have gotten to see much of me when I was younger.” Lottie explained.
Her father had her grandmother over a barrel as they said, and she had to do as he requested or not see her at all.
His fear of magic had been strong, but over time, he had begun to mellow.
He still insisted that the agreement be kept, and it would be a while before she could learn anything from her grandma.
The decision was made from fear but also out of love because he feared magic would not be good for her, especially at a young age.
She had come to accept the agreement in time because she knew her father loved her and that she could still learn on her own.
Right now, her biggest problem was what to do about Darren.
She knew how she felt, but she had no idea how he felt.
She'd heard that a new wolf had a lot to deal with and might not always understand what it should do.
Her wolf had been with her since birth and had been her best friend, wise counselor, and protector.
One of her problems now was that her wolf was so taken with Darren that all she did was drool whenever she saw him. All she wanted to do was mate him.
Lottie didn’t think that advice was what she should go with.
Cooler heads needed to prevail. If Darren’s wolf didn’t know they were fated ones, she needed to keep her distance.
That is what she tried to do over the next week.
Darren was around all the time, and they took the girls fishing again and climbing at an indoor wall.
He was there when they worked in the garden and when they baked cookies.
Darren even sat in on the schoolwork to see where they each were and told her she was doing a great job of keeping them ahead.
She knew it was between them even if he didn't. He sat close to her, and her wolf got excited. Lottie didn't know what to do because there didn't seem to be any way to escape him until Harry showed up.
“Is Lottie going to have another day off?”
They had just sat down for lunch when Harry appeared. Flo gave Harry a serious look.
“Will tomorrow work?” Flo asked.
“That would be great.”
“Sit down and fix the plate for yourself, Harry. We have plenty of food.”
Harry did as she was asked, piled a plate high, and looked very happy to have been invited. Everyone started eating, and the food was good as always. When dessert came out, Harry seemed especially happy.
“I love pumpkin pie, especially in the fall. It's even better with whipped cream on top. You're so lucky to have Liza. If I made a little bit more money, I would try to find a cook for my house.” Harry commented.
Once Harry was done, she was ready to go. “I'll come back for you in the morning.” She said just before she flashed away.
Harry did as she said and was there the next morning to pick her up.
She enjoyed her time with Harry, but this time it was more of a learning experience, and they didn't work on any of Harry's cases except for a little while on the computer. Lottie found some things that made Harry very happy, and after that, they just worked on a few spells and got back to Flo’s in time for supper.
It had calmed her down to have a day away from Darren.
After a wonderful supper, Harry flashed away, and everyone went their own way to prepare for bed.
Maybe Harry's only plan had been to give her a little peace as far as time away from Darren went and to get two meals at Flo’s.
Harry loved food, and that was easy to understand, but Harry could also make more intricate plans, and those were never easy to understand.
In the morning, the day was turning out different again.
Lottie felt as if fate were plotting against her.
“Carlos and I are taking the girls out for the day. Darren, you and Lottie will be on your own.” Flo said.
What the hell did that mean? It was like they were purposely being thrown together. She would have made plans with Harry had she known this was going to happen. After breakfast, they cleaned up, and Carlos and Flo left with the girls.
“I need to ask you a favor,” Darren observed. “I've been told that a new wolf shouldn't run alone the first few times. Will you take a run with me?”
It sounded so innocent, and yet she knew that it wasn't. The last time they had gone for a run, he had ended up kissing her. She could say no, but how would that look? Maybe it would work out all right, and she would escape at the end of the run with no problems.
“When did you want to go for a run?” She asked.
“What about right now?” Darren wondered.
“All right. That sounds OK.”
He grabbed her hand, which surprised her, and then he pulled her out the door and headed toward the woods.
Lottie was in a bit of a daze, but she let him lead her out to the woods, and when he turned into his wolf, she changed as well.
This time, he was the one who took off running, and she followed.
It was a beautiful day, and the air was a little cool.
The leaves were changing, but the trees were still full of leaves.
They hit the trails that ran through the woods, and he was just a little bit ahead of her.
She stopped suddenly because she smelled strange wolves.
Darren was continuing his run, but at least he was running away from the strange wolves.
She changed back to her human form because she was going to need her magic.
There were at least half a dozen, if not more, of these wolves.
If they broke into the house, it would do them no good because Liza had been given the day off after breakfast. She and Darren were the only ones home, and they were in the woods.
Darren had finally stopped, and he had come back and shifted back to his human form. “What's wrong?”
“Strangers are here, and they are near the house. Close your eyes and pull in the scents around you, and I think that you will recognize an unknown group of scents.”
It surprised her when he did as she asked, and when his eyes opened, there was a little gold in them. He was an alpha being challenged on his own turf. “They are unknown and probably up to no good. What should we do?”
“There are too many of them for the two of us to handle as wolves.
We should wait and see what they plan to do, because our scent is all over the place, and they will not know where we are.
I'm not sure if they can get into the house because Harry has wards on it. No one with ill intent can get in without injury.” Lottie explained.
“I didn't know that.”
“That doesn't matter because it doesn't mean that the ward can't be overwhelmed. It's only a little bit of protection that they may be able to get through. What good would it do you to know that?”
A wolf howled in pain. “Is that some of the protection?” Darren asked.
“It is. The ward will shock them if they try to go through. If enough of the others pushed the first one, they may get him through, but not without pain. A stronger witch could also get through.”
“Magic sure is complicated.”
“You’ve only begun to see just how complicated it can be,” Lottie admitted.
“I’m also just beginning to see how complicated being a wolf can be.”