8. Chapter Six
CHAPTER SIX
MAE
I t’s been a couple of months since the incident happened, but I find myself still looking over my shoulder. I don’t know when they’ll come back for me, but it could be at any moment. I won’t be able to hear them, that’s why I have to be on alert.
I’ve been in this house with Rylee and a couple of other people for the last few days. She took me in and has taken care of me. She caught me off guard when she signed to me in the forest. I’m starting to get comfortable in her house and a little less frightened of the other man being there. I haven’t had enough courage to ask his name, but he was there when she found me.
I can’t seem to keep my eyes off of him whenever he’s in the room. I feel this pull toward him, but I don’t know what it is, and it scares me.
He signed good morning to me yesterday and today, and it makes me smile. I know from the way he signs that he doesn’t know much, but it’s neat that he’s trying to learn.
It makes me more comfortable around him in a way.
Yesterday was a bad day, I dropped a cup, and it shattered into pieces all over the floor. When I went to go pick up the pieces, I cut my hand. I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings at that moment because blood was dripping on the floor, and I didn’t see the man come running toward me in a panic.
It scared me to death, but by the time I realized he was coming for me, I was already in his arms.
He held me tight against his body and put pressure on my wound. I tried pulling away from him, but he didn’t loosen his embrace. He is a big guy and could easily do anything to me if he wanted to.
I started to panic and tried to look around for Rylee, but all I could see was his chest and arms. My natural instincts kicked in, and I started to struggle in his arms, shaking uncontrollably in fear.
When he finally let me go, I ran straight to the corner of the room and huddled against it. I needed to have something against my back while being able to see the whole room. I didn’t want to have another incident where someone would sneak up on me and hold me against my will.
Rylee made the guy leave after talking to him for a few minutes, and then slowly walked over to me. She signed to me and explained that it was going to be all right and that he wouldn’t hurt me. It felt like years before I calmed down and was able to slowly make my way out of the corner.
Rylee helped me to the couch and then cleaned up the mess I had made. She left me alone for a while, and I started to feel guilty the longer I sat there. She made the man go outside and sit on the front step all because of me. His actions made me terrified, and Rylee sent him out to give me some space and for him to have time to cool down.
After a little while, I found the courage to tell her that he could come back inside.
He made the best chicken noodle soup I have ever had when he came back inside. We moved to the living room after eating, and Rylee told me that he was going to clean up while we relaxed some. That’s when her husband came home. He said some stuff, but I couldn’t read his lips to catch anything.
The man from earlier came back into the living room and sat down, and Rylee said she needed to get a drink. I felt that pull again and made my way toward him. He kept his eyes on me the whole time, and I can’t say I didn’t like it. It felt right, and I wasn’t uncomfortable.
I put my hand out, about to touch his hand, when his finger twitched, and I jerked my hand back. I jumped up and ran up the stairs.
I’m not sure why I was about to touch him. I wasn’t thinking, and that’s what scared me. I’m normally alert and thinking through everything, but with him, it just felt okay to let my guard down.
That was yesterday, and now this morning, I can’t keep my eyes off the man, my mate. I vaguely remember my mom talking about the signs Rylee was talking about yesterday. It all clicked, and I remembered what my mom told me. He’s sitting in the kitchen reading a book and drinking coffee. He’s so interesting.
He came in this morning and asked how I am. Men don’t do that. In my experience, they are only rude to girls, and yet, this man sitting in the kitchen is nice to Rylee and to me. He also plays with her children and helps around the house. That’s a woman’s work where I grew up.
Men don’t help out around the house where I come from. They just get to relax when they come home and leave everything to the women.
I feel something on my leg, and I flinch, looking at my leg. There’s a hand, and I look up to see Rylee smiling at me. She sits down right next to me.
“What are you looking at?” Rylee signs.
“Nothing,” I sign back.
I don’t want her to know what I’m looking at, but the warmth in her eyes tells me that she already knows. I look down at my hands, contemplating whether or not I should ask about this man.
What is his name, and why is he here?
I look at up Rylee, and she’s already looking at me.
“What’s that man’s name, and why is he always here?” I sign to her.
Her smile gets wider before answering.
“His name is Michael, and he’s my guard. I need protection from rogues,” she replies, her hands moving rapidly.
I look at her with fright. My breathing picks up at that word. Where are the rogues? When are they coming?
“What’s wrong?” Rylee signs.
“Rogues. Where are they?” I sign.
“There are none here. It’s while my mate is gone that I need protection in case they come.”
I let out a breath and relax into the couch. There aren’t any rogues coming right now, thankfully, but that doesn’t mean they won’t come later. They’ve been trying to find me for months now, and I’m concerned that since I’m staying in one place, they’ll be able to find me.
I’ve thought about leaving several times, but something is holding me back, and I think I know what.
More like who.
I have this strange pull toward Michael, and I don’t know what it is. Every time I think about leaving, this deep ache sweeps over my chest. Wait, she said when her mate is gone, not husband or boyfriend. I need to know more.
“Mate? What is that?” I sign with a confused look.
“A soulmate. Someone that you are destined to be with,” Rylee signs back.
A person that you’re destined to be with. That sounds wonderful but scary at the same time. I wonder if everyone has a soulmate or if it’s only certain people.
“Does everyone have a mate?” I ask.
“Werewolves have soulmates. So, Xavier is a werewolf, and I’m his mate. Everyone around here is a werewolf, besides me,” Rylee explains.
“So, Michael is a werewolf, too? I’m a werewolf.”
Rylee smiles. “ Yeah, Michael’s a werewolf. He’s a warrior and my guard. He’s super sweet.”
“What do you normally do with him?”
“We go on walks, hang out with my kids, watch movies, talk with the pack, and more.”
My face brightens up when she mentions walks. I love to be out in nature and just walk. Feeling the grass under your feet and the breeze against your body.
“Can we go on a walk?” I sign, excited.
“Yeah, let me just ask Michael and tell my mate,” Rylee replies.
She gets up out of her seat and approaches Michael. I watch the interaction, and when I see Rylee’s lips stop moving, Michael’s eyes are on me. His eyes soften and almost twinkle as he replies to Rylee.
I blush when Michael looks at me.
Rylee walks in the opposite direction and puts her shoes on. I don’t own any shoes, but it doesn’t matter because I don’t like wearing shoes when I go on walks. Then you can’t feel the ground or the grass in between your toes.
I look over to see Michael, who is now standing. He starts moving his hand, and I realize he’s doing his best to spell out shoes. I shake my head and use the sign for shoes. He squints his eyes and shakes his head in confusion. I use the sign again and point to my feet, hoping that he will understand. He spells out shoes, and then uses the sign, and I nod my head in agreement.
Michael turns to Rylee and says something, but I can’t read his lips. I see Rylee move, looking over at me and then my feet.
“What shoe size do you wear?” she asks.
“I don’t want to wear shoes. I want to feel the grass under my feet,” I reply.
Rylee turns her head and speaks to Michael. He nods, and Rylee turns around and walks away. I look at Michael, confused, but he just stares at me.
He doesn’t know much sign language, so he can’t tell me what’s going on. Rylee comes back with shoes in her hands and gives them to Michael. Looking over at Rylee, I move my hands to gain her attention.
“I don’t need shoes,” I sign.
“Just in case,” she replies.
I let out a sigh and walk to the door. Michael beats me to the door and opens it for Rylee and me. I sign a thank you and take a big breath once I walk outside.
It feels so good to be outside again. I haven’t been outside since they found me a couple of days ago. This has been the longest I haven’t been outside in a long time.
I feel someone put their hand on my shoulder, and I look over, and Rylee starts to sign.
“Stay close to us.”
I nod my head and start to head in the direction of the forest. I’m itching to just take off into the forest and run, but Rylee just told me to stay close to them, and I don’t want to disobey.
Rylee walks right next to me, and Michael is a couple of steps behind.
As if Michael feels my discomfort, he makes his way to the side of me. He’s a good five or ten feet away, but I can see him in my peripherals, and I relax some. I don’t like having someone behind me. I can’t hear anything, so I never know if they are sneaking up on me or not.
We’ve been walking for a while, and Rylee and Michael have never stopped talking to each other. I don’t mind because I’m enjoying being in nature. It feels great to feel the grass, the warm dirt on my feet, and the slight breeze flowing through the air.
I can see butterflies and birds fly by every once in a while. I wish I could hear the birds sing, though. I’ve been deaf since birth, so I haven’t heard anything, ever. I don’t mind, I would rather be deaf than blind because I can see the colors of the forest and everything around me.
I look behind me. Michael and Rylee are still talking and are further away. Rylee told me to stay close to them, but I don’t think I am too far away. I keep walking, not paying attention to where I’m going.
Before I know it, I turn around to find Rylee and Michael, but they aren’t in sight. I start to panic because I don’t know these forests or how to make my way back to Rylee’s house.
I see something move out of the corner of my left eye. I turn just in time to see a huge wolf with bright red eyes coming out of nowhere toward me. I stand frozen in place, realizing that this wolf is a rogue.
Rogues are the only werewolves that have red eyes and a distinct smell.
I feel the ground shake as he gets near me, and he bares his teeth at me. He stops, takes a step back, lowers his head to the ground, and his butt goes up in the air, the position to attack someone.
The wolf leaps in the air, and I open my mouth, screaming, or at least I think I’m screaming. Before the rogue lands on me, another wolf smashes into his side and sends him flying in the air. My eyes follow the two wolves. They are fighting right in front of me, and I watch in fear.
Someone touches my shoulder, and I jerk it away. I whip my head in the direction of the hand in fear, and Rylee’s standing there with an apologetic look on her face.
“Let’s stay back while Michael takes care of this,” Rylee signs rapidly.
“Michael?” I question.
Michael’s the one fighting the rogue. What if he gets hurt? Then the rogue will come after us, and I don’t know how to fight.
“It’ll be all right. Michael is a trained warrior, and he should be done soon,” she assures me.
I try to look over to where Michael is fighting the rogue, but Rylee stops me. I look over at her confused.
“Don’t look. He’s shifted and is changing,” Rylee signs.
My face turns red at the thought of that. I mean, I wouldn’t mind looking; Michael is good looking, but I wouldn’t want to invade his privacy. I wonder what it feels like to hug him or hold his hand. I feel my cheeks heat up even more at that thought.
“What are you thinking about that’s making your cheeks heat up?” Rylee winks at me.
I shake my head as Michael walks toward us. He looks at me and smiles. He points his finger at me and signs the word “okay.” I nod my head and give him a thumbs up.
“Thank you for everything,” I sign.
Michael directs his attention at Rylee and tells her something. I look over at Rylee and see her lips move before both of them look back at me.
“What?” I ask
“He just caught thank you, but not everything else. I was telling him what you said,” Rylee signs back. “ You want to head back to the house?”
I nod my head yes. She turns to Michael and says something. Rylee turns and starts to walk, and I follow her. On the way to the house, I found myself inching closer and closer to Michael with every step I take.