Death's Saviour

Song of the Chapter: Take Me Home, Country Roads by John Denver

Two weeks of training have passed for Lily and she has already gained as much control of her powers as she can have at her age. Lily is a talented girl with a strong family to back her up, I watch her sitting with her mother and sister as they eat a large deer with Sicora and Garth. Noah sits beside me with Carl licking his chops, we already had our share of food, but I swear these boys could eat endlessly, they are always hungry.

’I am not, at least not for deer anyway.’ - Noah’s thought breaks into my mind and his sexual remark has me rolling my eyes in laughter at him.

My eye roll earns my rear end a bite and I smack Noah with my tail causing him to bark in laughter. Noah’s laugh catches the other’s attention as they briefly look over at us in between bites. Lora still refuses to join us on pack hunts, she is getting there with Cassie’s mom, but still, she hasn’t forgiven her. A noise in the distance catches my attention causing me to prick my ears up as I swivel my head to find its source. I sniff the air raising to my feet my hackles rising off my neck. Beside me, Noah stands as he looks out into the bushes, Carl and the other’s are not far behind us.

‘Someone is coming.’ - Carl states in a small voice as he looks out into the forest.

I can smell it too, it is a teenage boy coming our way. I sniff the air again recognizing the scent as a wolf from the pack, yet, he is not in wolf form, he is in human form. From the sound of it, he is dragging his feet gasping for breath as he goes, potentially injured.

‘That scent, I would recognize it from anywhere, it’s Danny! He is no threat to us Dusk, Danny had figured it all out about Noah and was telling me about if before we had to leave for Lily. He believes in peace.’ - Cassie’s voice reminds me, she sounds so sincere that I want to know more.

‘Stay in the bushes behind me and don’t make a noise. I want to face him alone and hear what he has to say. Danny doesn’t need to know there are more of us just in case he turns out to be the enemy.’ - I command not giving Noah an option before taking off into the bushes following Danny’s scent.

’I’m glad Lora isn’t with us on this run, she wouldn’t be happy about being told to stay behind.’ - I catch Carl’s thoughts but ignore them, Lora is a concern for later.

It isn’t long before I come across Danny as he walks along the edge of the river following it and stopping to drink from it, his one leg is twisted and dragging, and he is bloodied. I step from the bushes standing right behind him, I carelessly step on a twig to alert him that I am here. The sound causes him to jump and fall into the shallow part of the river from which he was drinking from. I watch as he rights himself before his eyes widen as he looks at me sitting on the bank watching him. Danny looks a lot like he did when he was a kid, he has the same scruffy dirty brown hair and broad-shouldered jacket-clad form. His pale blueish-green eyes gaze at me from beneath his long hair. I watch as he picks himself up moving out of the shallow water to stand a few meters away from me.

“Noah? I know it’s you, man. I mean you no harm, I only want to talk.” Danny pleads his voice exhausted but insistent, I’m slightly hurt he doesn’t recognize me.

‘Noah, talk to him. Danny may be blood, but I don’t know if we can trust him. You can come out and shift to talk to him. Maybe knowing there are two of us will make him spill his true intentions.’ - I send to Noah as I back away from Danny moving closer to the bushes.

Noah comes stepping out of the bushes his fur fluffed out and he looks like a killing machine as he steps up beside me. He is trying to intimidate Danny. It works as Danny’s eyes widen even further and his face pales in colour while a weird strangled cry leaves his lips. Noah licks my cheek before shifting into human form.

“Talk, Danny,” Noah states his voice comes out gruff and ready to be violent if needed.

“So, there are two of you, Noah I knew you were a Wolf, I thought you were the Hellhound, but, that theory is in the wind now. Look I want to talk to the Hellhound, I don’t want to fight. I want peace and equality between us all I know that I was taken away from my real mom and given to the white-furs to be raised on their side and that was wrong. I do not want to be on their side, they are not rightful rulers, they are cruel and evil in their ways. I know that the Hellhound is getting revenge, but I also know it will make a better leader than any that currently exist. I want to help!” Danny exclaims finishing as exhaustion gets the better of him as he sinks to his knees on the bank of the river.

“Why should we trust you?” Noah asks Danny his voice is icy cold as he looks down on the other Wolf.

“I just left behind the only blood relative I have left, I left everything just for this chance, the chance to help do the right thing. Besides if I was really a bad guy don’t you think I would have told them who you are by now, or let Perry tell them?” Danny questions in a steady voice but his eyes go off taking a glassy look as he is uncertain.

Danny isn’t lying as he has a steady heartbeat and that look of total defeat on his face making me believe that he fully believes this is the end for him. He knows if we don’t want anything to do with him then we must kill him, he still risked that to come here and try to talk to me. Noah looks over his shoulder at me waiting for some reaction, something to show either we kill him or let him talk.

“Please, I’m not ready to die. I want to do the right thing, hell I did the right thing by coming here.” Danny whispers as he looks up at us his eyes pooling with unshed tears.

‘I think we should trust him Dusk, he is being sincere. Danny did just leave everything he has ever known behind to come and find us. He left Crane behind, he has a right to know you and his mother are alive.’ - Noah’s voice whispers in my mind, I’m still amazed by how quickly he manages to piece things altogether.

‘It would be a waste to throw my cousin away anyways, go on then.’ - I send to Noah who turns back away from me towards Danny who has tears trickling down his face.

“We aren’t going to kill you, Danny, we are smarter than that and so are you. We just needed to be sure you had a hundred percent left Crane’s side or else knowing what you are about to know would ruin everything.” Noah explains in a calming voice as he grabs Danny by the shoulder raising him up from the ground.

“Knowing what?” Danny stammers in a confused tone as a look of amazement and joy cross his face at the fact of being kept alive.

Noah steps back away from Danny allowing me to move forward in my wolf form. I move slowly, and I can tell it is making Danny anxious but he is more curious than anything. Curiosity is good, I don’t even know if he will remember me after all he didn’t recognize my eyes. It has been a long time since he has seen me. I stop a few meters away from him before I shift.

“It’s been a long-time cousin,” I speak in a calm manner as I stand before Danny even though my stomach is a jumbled mess of butterflies and I fear rejection or worse.

Danny stands motionless as he looks at me, up and down and then up and down again. His mouth wobbles before dropping open as he blinks several times over. Finally, I reach my hand out towards him knowing what his logical brain needs. Danny moves one shaky arm up and forward until his fingers brush my hand. He jerks back like he’s been hit by electricity and then suddenly he launches forward embracing me in a body crunching hug. I wrap my arms around him hugging him back, this reunion feels so good.

“How are you here? I watched them bury your body, Dusk. I mourned you.” Danny stammers out as he steps back from me, his hands slap over his mouth stopping the flow of words.

“Let’s just say the world wasn’t done with me yet,” I reply smiling sadly as Danny lets out a hearty laugh that makes me smile my real smile.

Noah steps up beside us wrapping an arm around me protectively. It is an act of dominance which causes Danny to look between us studying something that only he can see. Suddenly he smiles his face practically glowing.

“I wasn’t sure how you had become a Wolf Noah, but now I can see that you never needed to become the Wolf, it was within you the whole time just waiting for someone to come along as strong as it. You make a good strong alpha pair. I hope that you will accept that I would like to be a member of your pack.” Danny starts off in a light tone before he changes it taking on a more serious note as he kneels before us bowing down to us.

“I think Cassie would very much appreciate us letting him join the pack.” Noah laughs his nose twitching and I give him a light smack as we share more laughter.

“Cassie is here?” Danny questions his voice taking on a higher pitch which has Noah and me exchanging a knowing look that causes Danny to turn beat red.

Sicora, Garth, and Carl can’t contain themselves as wolfish laughter barks from the bushes causing Danny to flinch.

‘You may show yourselves, Danny will be joining us.’ - Noah and I send out to the pack as they continue to crouch in the bushes.

Slowly they reveal themselves coming to stand behind Noah and me. When they shift into human form Cassie looks over at me and I nod giving her what she wants. She bolts forwards and Danny catches her just in time to be able to embrace her in a hug. Noah pulls me a little tighter against himself as we witness this exchange. Sicora and Garth stand close together beside us.

‘Any bets that they are mates?’ - Sicora’s voice teases into our minds but Cassie doesn’t react, Sicora made sure to leave her out of the question.

‘How long do you think it will take before they admit it?’ - Carl adds, but the thoughts are cut short by Cassie’s words.

“Do you have the energy to shift and run with us? When you shift your leg will heal.” Cassie asks a little flustered as she pulls back from Danny’s arms.

“There is someone else who will be excited to see you.” I smile at Danny and he looks at me with another look of confusion.

Noah and I shift moving away from the group towards the forest. The others follow suit until we are looking back at Danny and Cassie still standing together.

‘Do you think Lora will be excited to see him?’ - I ask Noah only causing him to look at me out the side of his eyes as we move, Cassie has caught up to us with Danny on her back.

‘She is getting to see her long-lost son. I think she is going to be happy, excited and more!’ - Noah responds to me, I take his words at heart as a smile plasters across my face.

We come out into the clearing in front of the house stopping outside to gather. Cassie hangs back at the edge of the bushes as we all shift.

“Lora!” Noah calls out in a commanding but excited tone that immediately summons Lora from inside where she was cooking leftovers.

“What are you hollering about boy?” She calls out in a teasing tone from the porch as her nose twitches.

Carl moves to embrace her fondly, they have developed a special bond as Lora took care of Carl when he was preparing to shift. He has become her sort of adopted son in a sense. Carl steps to her side as I motion with my head for Cassie to come forward with Danny. She brings him to me allowing him to climb down and stand beside me wearing a mixture of nerves and astonishment upon his face at the sight of his mother. Danny doesn’t go to her for fear that she will reject him as not hers, that much I can see from his tense shoulders as he stands still beside us. Casse shifts behind us, but she doesn’t stray far from Danny.

“Lora, we have brought another Wolf, come down and give him a good sniff,” I suggest causing Lora to do as she is told her body moving down the steps as her nose sniffs the air before her.

Her blind eyes travel right to Danny’s unmoving form as he stands barely breathing as he looks at her. She stops in front of him her nose twitching over and over. Finally, she reaches forward and touches his cheek with her outstretched hand, like mother like son.

“Danny, my son is that really you?” She questions her tone unbelieving as she grasps his face in her hands feeling it over, taking in every detail.

“It’s me, mom!” Danny sobs out as they pull into a deep embrace as they practically collapse into one another.

Tears come to my eyes and I quickly wipe them away, Noah pulls me into his arms. He gives me a good squeeze as I lean on him. It is moments like this that cause me to want to give up on my quest for revenge, maybe I should. Maybe I should take this pack and leave. We could live a safe life in the forest, a life that we would never have to look back from, not ever. We could be safe. I’m brought out of my thoughts as Danny and Lora break from their embrace.

“Mom, your eyes!” Danny exclaims as he really gets a good look at her, he gets a good look at her scarred white eyes.

“It’s okay my boy. They may have taken my eyes from me, but I have grown to be able to compensate for it in my other sense.” Lora explains to him as she pulls him into another reassuring hug, they shed more tears for one another.

When they pull apart Lora moves to Cassie’s mother hugging her which causes us all great surprise. I smile a little because this is the only time this woman will be free of Lora’s wrath. In fact, she is free from both of us being angry, we are both so grateful to just have Danny back alive. This woman has even earned some respect in my eyes, for doing what she had to do to protect Danny always. She was right when she knew that we would have gotten him killed because we would have tried to seek him out, he had to come to us, it was the only way. I catch both Danny and Noah looking at me as though they can see right through me, I wouldn’t be surprised at this point. Noah is my mate so, he can sense what I am feeling, maybe he can even see it. Danny grew up with me, he always could read me like an open book.

“Dusk talk to me,” Noah whispers in my ear, I tug on his arm motioning towards the woods.