SWNOVELS Chapter 16 - Stone (Part 1)
The look on Aubree’s face when she watched the mother and daughter together cut Stone deep. After writing their little letters from some scrap paper she had in her purse, and slipping them in the door of the elf house, they continued their walk around the lake in silence, hand in hand.
Stone’s mind was in a dozen different places at once, and judging from Aubree’s tenderness toward him, she could only pick up one, maybe two of them—his love for his family and the pain of his loss.
She didn’t need to know the other things on his mind. Not yet, anyway.
In the middle of the afternoon, they returned to the pack house. Gwen was up and welcomed them back with a hug, sensing that there was some kind of emotional tension between them. She didn’t press and instead gave them both a big smile to try and lift their spirits.
“Looks like you two had a good time. You didn’t kill each other.”
[Not yet,] Stone said in her head.
She fired a hard look at him before the smile was back and she took Aubree’s hands in hers.
Aubree’s lips tugged upward a bit. “Yeah. He took me to a rose garden.”
It was fleeting, but Stone didn’t miss the pain that flickered in Gwen’s eyes before it was gone.
Aubree continued, her smile growing wider. “Then we found the elf house.”
Gwen’s brows knitted together. “Elf house?”
She glanced up to see Stone give a little shrug. [A human gimmick.]
“Yeah,” Aubree said, growing more excited by the second. “It was so cute! It’s this little door in the bottom of a tree and you write notes to the elf that lives there and he supposedly writes back. We should all go there sometime.”
[There was a human female with her young offspring there when we arrived,] Stone mentally added. He swallowed and looked away. [You should have seen Aubree’s face.]
Gwen’s expression softened and a hint of salt filled Stone’s nose before she blinked. [Oh, Papa...]
She smiled sadly at Aubree. “That sounds great.”
“I’m going to go out for a run,” he said. “I’ll be back before we set out for the night.”
Gwen nodded, while Aubree’s forehead creased a little.
He gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. You won’t be alone in the house tonight. Gawain, Hector, and Rosemary will be here to keep you safe. They are trustworthy.”
He nodded to Gwen before walking out of the house and pulling his clothes off when he reached the forest. He folded them in half and hung them on a tree branch six feet off of the ground before shifting into his wolf.
Hector and Rosemary had been helping them every day the past week with the simple task of patrolling their borders to ensure the safety of their territory while he, Gwen, Gavin, Alistair, and Gunner took turns hunting in the city. They covered the southern end of the twin cities while the North Fang Pack covered the northern end of the metropolis. The vampire slayers took the days off to rest and covered the downtown core during the nights. They used a high-pitched whistle that only the werewolves and lycans could hear to call upon them if they needed extra assistance.
Stone tended to hunt as close to the downtown core as he could. He wanted to be the one to catch and take out Carina, and no one dared to argue with him on that.
Throwing his head back, he howled out to Hector and Rosemary for their positions. Rosemary responded from the city limits in the northeast, while Hector was at the southwestern border. He turned and headed west to meet him as the pair ran clockwise around the territory.
He pressed forward, hard, his muscles enjoying the burn of being pushed to their limits after being locked up for several hours. While he didn’t mind being in his human form, his body always did prefer to feel the wind in his fur, the strain of running for hours on end in his muscles, being out in nature, and the feel of the earth between his huge claw-like paws. There was a greater sense of power and freedom to him in this form, and his mind tended to relax more.
Aubree wouldn’t see him in the same light though. She’d see the power, but it would be the power of the beast. He wasn’t ready to show her yet.
He barked when he caught a whiff of Hector ahead and could hear his paws hitting the earth at a slow trot. Hector picked up his pace when he came into view and raced toward Stone. His thin, leathery lips pulled back in a toothy grin.
Stone slowed, but Hector continued to race toward him. Instead of stopping, he leaped forward and tackled Stone to the ground. Like an over-sized pup, he nipped playfully at Stone’s neck as Stone tried to throw him off.
He barked to get Hector off, but Hector continued to try and pin him to the earth. They scuffled for a bit before, Stone managed to finally kick him off.
They were both panting and laughing as they shifted into their human forms. Not being packmates, they couldn’t communicate telepathically and were thus limited in their abilities to converse in their wolf forms. And right now, Stone needed someone to confide in.
Stone rubbed his neck, grinning from ear to ear. “You’re such a pain in the neck sometimes.”
Hector smirked pointedly at him. “Hey, someone has to keep you on your toes.”
“I have Alistair for that, thank you.”
“So, what’s up?” Hector asked as they began to walk side-by-side, unashamed by their nakedness. “And why do you smell like algae? Did you take a bath in a scummy pond on the way here?”
Stone shook his head. “I took Aubree out on a date and nearly lost control. So, I jumped in a pond.”
“Hurry up and mate already.” Hector chuckled.
“And how do you propose I do that without turning her into a monster or impregnating her?” He lowered his gaze to the earth, watching where he placed his feet, his stomach tied in a small knot. His voice lowered. “You know human females die when they give birth.”
Hector nodded. “So legend would have it. But what of modern medicine in today’s world? Perhaps she can be saved?”
Stone split from Hector’s side when a large tree came into their path. He sighed as he rejoined him and ran his hand through his hair. Another knot tied in his stomach. “You know I can’t risk that. Even if she did survive, it could happen again. What are the chances of her surviving a second time?”
Hector, although shorter than Stone, draped an arm over his cousin’s shoulder. He spoke softly, his voice reflecting his empathy. “I know. It’s scary as hell, but you know you won’t be able to resist the pull of the matebond much longer. You’ll only wind up hurting her the more you resist it.”
Stone paused in his tracks and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I know. And I know she wants children. I always knew that, and I could see it in her face today when we came across a human female with a small child with her.”
He swallowed and pulled his hand away from his face, hanging his head. “It broke my heart. I can’t risk it.”
Hector gave his shoulder a squeeze. “If she loves you as much as I believe she does, she’ll understand. You have to be honest with her. She doesn’t know our world. It’s your job to ensure that she understands everything before accidents happen.”
Stone looked up, but wouldn’t meet Hector’s gaze. Another knot tied within him. “How did you take it when you discovered Rosemary was incapable of bearing pups?”
He forced his eyes to meet the sadness reflecting in Hector’s blue-green eyes. The filtered light from the treetops mixed with the green and brown colors that surrounded them made the green tint in his eyes stand out more prominently as his eyebrows frowned, and his lips curved up slightly in a small smile.
“It was hard. But it would have been even harder to turn her away. It wasn’t her fault when it happened. She had been far too young. How could I reject her for something she had no control over? No,” he shook his head with a soft sigh, “I decided to count my blessings that she was alive to be with me. Every day, I am thankful for that.”
The knots in Stone’s stomach bunched up, twisting and pulling on the threads that connected with his heart. He swallowed as a tightening sensation filled his chest.
This was why he sought out Hector. If anyone could understand his dilemma, it was him.
“You should too,” Hector added. “The Goddess has brought your soulmate back to you. It’s miraculous. Even though she’s human, and will live a short human life, doesn’t mean you should turn her away for the sake of her safety and well-being. Be thankful that she is alive to be with you today and every day for the rest of her life.”
Hector closed his eyes, inhaled a deep breath, and lifted his palms and face up to the sky. “Praise unto Her and Her blessings unto us.”
Stone closed his eyes and lifted them to the sky with his palms open. “Praise the Moon Goddess.”