Wolf's Bane (2 page)

Yeager sat forward, his body tensed.  I sensed it too.  This wasn’t simply a lost tourist.  A woman stepped from the cab, a beautiful, young black girl with straight hair, blue eyes and curves of her own.  She scanned the area and then spoke to the passenger.  We watched this little drama play out.  The girl was dressed in all black, tight pants, a mock turtleneck and a sleek jacket.  The woman that came around the back of the SUV was in black also.

But this woman was older, her fifties maybe, but with an ageless beauty and a severe look on her face.  Her hair was blonde and pulled back in a bun.  She was thin and athletic despite her age, her deep brown eyes surveying us as she approached.  She wore a skirt that hugged her hips, a black satin blouse, leather knee boots with spiked heels and a long wool coat.  She looked at Edie and frowned.  Then she turned her attention to me.

“You.  You’re the girl,” she said plainly.  I looked around as if there might be someone else she was speaking too, then at Yeager but he was as confused as I was.

“Excuse me?” I asked.

“The shifter, the black wolf with the white patch.  I see you’ve taken on the look in your human form as well or was that always there?” she replied.  I touched the white shock of hair self-consciously.

“Who are you?” Yeager asked echoing the same question in my own mind.  He wasn’t exactly bristling but he was on alert.

“I’m known as Lady Violet.  This is Agnes, my assistant.  I know what you’re thinking.  How does this woman you’ve never met know that you’re shifters?” the woman answered.

“Yeah, how do you know that?” I asked warily.  Yeager looked ready to shift to protect me and Edie had moved to put Yeager and me between herself and the strangers.  The woman smiled, a disarming smile that I knew was carefully practiced, and then revealed her fangs to us.

“I too am a shifter as is Agnes here.  We’re friends, I assure you.  We mean you no harm,” Lady Violet answered.  Suddenly, I had a thousand questions but only one demanded an immediate answer.

“Lady Violet, who told you about us?” I pressed.  I had an idea but I wanted to hear it from her.

“Just Violet, please child.  Lady is just a title and sounds so pretentious, not to mention it makes me sound rather old as well.  You know who told me.  Dolan’s pack informed me after you killed him,” Violet said confirming my fears.

“No, I killed him,” Yeager announced as he stood up defensively.  The blanket fell away exposing my breasts but Yeager stood fully nude, ready to attack.

“Well, aren’t you the lucky girl,” Violet said as she took in Yeager’s form.  “Please, I want to apologize for Dolan’s actions.  Frankly, he was always trouble, just like his father was.  I should have banished him long ago,” Violet explained.  She could tell neither Yeager nor I were put at ease by her words.

“I can tell I’ve alarmed you.  That wasn’t my intent.  I’ve come to see if it was true.  I’ve come to see if Cassie is indeed a shifter.  That would be...unprecedented to say the least,” Violet said carefully.  I decided to indulge this woman.  I leaned forward and by the time my hands hit the ground, I was the black wolf with the white patch of fur.  I bared my teeth and growled, the fur on my back bristling making me look even bigger than my fluffy fur already made me appear.  “Impressive, child,” was all Violet said as she put her hand to her mouth.  She was genuinely surprised and impressed.

“God, that is so awesome,” Edie whispered behind me.  I turned to regard her but I didn’t miss the black girl, Agnes, staring at her as well.

“That one can’t shift, can she?” Violet asked.

“No, she’s my friend,” I said as I stood, again in my human form.  Edie stared at Agnes and the look they shared was almost palpable.

“You are an anomaly, Cassie,” Violet told me.

“So are you, if the stories are to be believed,” Yeager replied.  He had told me that as far as he knew there hadn’t been a female shifter in over a hundred years until I showed up.

“Am I?” was the woman’s reply.

“It is said there are no female shifters,” Yeager explained but I was sure Violet already knew of what he spoke.

“That’s not quite true.  There are some but Cassie is...different,” she said.  Different?  That made me curious.  Curious enough to let my guard down a bit.

“Can we have a moment, maybe put on some clothes,” I asked Violet.

“Of course, child,” she said gracefully.  Violet was a refined woman, of wealth I was sure.  She held back her true feelings and emotions, showing us only what she wanted us to see.

“Let’s get dressed, Yeager,” I told my mate.  I really wanted to speak to him alone, get a feel for what he was thinking.  “Edie, do you mind keeping our guests company?” I asked as much as told Edie.

“Uh...sure, why not,” she replied.  I grabbed the blanket and then Yeager and I went into the old motorhome, closing the door behind us.

“So?” I asked as I went about finding something to wear.

“I don’t trust her,” Yeager said.

“I don’t either.  So what should we do?” I asked in a hushed tone.

“Well, if they meant us any real harm they wouldn’t have driven up and introduced themselves,” Yeager observed.  He had a point.  I still felt like they wanted more than to see if what they had been told was true or not.  The fact they knew about me at all is what concerned me.

“I’d feel better if she wasn’t involved with my half-brother,” I told Yeager.  Dolan claimed his father, the man Yeager had caught raping a woman years past and who was killed by Sheriff Jones, was also my father.  My mom was dead so I couldn’t ask her but I knew it was true.  I sensed it.  Dolan now was dead too but the questions remained.

“You’re thinking she can tell you about your mom and Dolan’s father?” Yeager stated as much as asked.

“My father, Yeager,” I corrected.

“I’m skeptical,” he replied.

“I’m not. I know Dolan was being truthful.  I could sense it,” I told Yeager.

“Well, let’s get dressed and invite her in.  I have to admit, I’m a bit curious about meeting a female shifter.  The young girl too.  I know our history is a bit sketchy, all hearsay and rumors, but it’s hard to miss something like a female shifter, much less two of them,” he said.  I had to agree with Yeager.  I was curious about that along with the reason Lady Violet believed I was special.

“Can’t hurt to talk, right?” I replied.

“I guess we’ll find out,” Yeager said a bit ominously.  I felt it too.  Lady Violet was more than she appeared.  Her purpose was unclear but she had a purpose and it wasn’t just to verify my existence.  Whatever it was, I felt like things were about to change.  For the better or worse, however, I couldn’t know.

We dressed, just blue jeans, t-shirts and such, and then invited Violet and her assistant inside.  Edie too.  She wasn’t a shifter but she was caught up in all of this along with Yeager and me.  She was one of the few people that knew about us, about our ability to become wolves and that we were mated.  Edie and Agnes sat at the dinette while Yeager and I sat on the ratty built-in sofa covered with an Indian blanket.  Violet chose to stand as we talked.

“Thank you for hearing me out.  Our kind must stick together if we are to survive,” Violet told us.

“How many of our kind are there.  Do you know?” Yeager asked.

“Tens of thousands, maybe more.  Many reside in Eastern Europe, where our kind was born, but since the new world was discovered and now with modern transportation, our kind has spread.  Some have become isolated.  You, for instance, Yeager,” The woman explained.

“Isolated?” I wondered.

“Isolated from other shifters.  We have always been a loosely organized lot.  We live in packs without any centralized leadership.  But we, like the rest of the world, have learned to act more civilized over the centuries.  The various packs cooperate, those that know of one another.  Others are cut off from the larger community in smaller groups. Even you two associate with other shifters.  It makes sense to associate with your own kind, does it not?” Violet told us.

“I suppose it does,” Yeager admitted.  He rubbed his bearded chin gathering his thoughts but his question was not subtle or thoughtful.  “So why have you really come?” he demanded with a soft voice but the edge it held was unmistakable.

“You get right to the point, don’t you?  I know what Dolan and his pack did and that you, both of you, eliminated him.  He worked for me, though I am ashamed to admit it.  There are realities that must be dealt with and those like Dolan are an effective tool.  His actions towards you, Cassie, I do not condone, however,” Violet said by way of apology.

“What of my mother?” I asked pointedly.  If Yeager could cut to the chase, so could I.

“Child, I don’t know.  I know Dolan’s claims and I believe them but his father was a rogue.  So was Dolan for that matter until I tamed him with money.  He was a means to an end.  I’m sorry I can’t reveal more,” Violet said.  I wondered if her choice of words were unintentional or not.  Did she really not know or was she unable or unwilling to reveal what she knew.  I chose to take her at her word.

“So, you still haven’t answered my mate’s question, Lady Violet.  Why are you here?” I prodded.  Violet smiled that practiced, disarming smile.  The same kind you’d get from politicians and used car salesmen.

“I want to bring you into the fold.  My pack, or rather a collection of packs choosing to live as one, resides in Colorado.  Wolfsbane Ranch is thousands of acres of meadows, streams, forests and valleys in the Rocky Mountains.  It’s named after the flowers that grow there but it’s rather fitting, wolfsbane, isn’t it?  There we gather and live as our kind deserves, free and with dignity.  I want you to join us, Cassie.  You and Yeager.  Edie as well, if she wishes.  You are correct in part, there are few female shifters so many human women join their mates,” Violet told us but she had more to reveal.

“We must protect the females of our kind.  They are our future.  But you, child, you are special.  You were born of a human mother.  That is rare thing, child, if not unheard of.  You could be the key to our survival,” Violet said.  I found her story a bit unnerving.  I didn’t want to be some kind of savoir.  I just wanted to be me.

“I’m not sure I want to go to Colorado.  I love living here with Yeager.  We live here on our terms and I’ve come to cherish that,” I told Lady Violet.

“Me either.  I love it here,” Edie piped up.  There was Violet’s disarming smile again.  The one that carefully hid her true feelings.

“Of course, I don’t want to force anyone to do anything they don’t want.  Our kind values our freedom, our individuality.  Come to Wolfsbane as a guest.  Let me show you what we have to offer and you may come to see differently.  Our kind are few but a healthy few.  I don’t mean to come off as dramatic.  But I think you and Yeager will come to see the value of living as part of a larger pack and I know you will have much to offer us in return.  I only ask you give me, us, a chance,” Violet said, her hands folded now and her voice almost pleading.

I looked at Yeager but his eyes told me that he would let me decide.  I wasn’t ready to make the decision there and then, however.  I needed time.  I needed to discuss this without Lady Violet present or hovering nearby.  “I’ll consider it, we’ll consider it.  But we need time.  Give us a few days and we’ll talk again,” I said.  For a moment, there was obvious displeasure on Lady Violet’s face but it was gone almost as soon as it appeared, replaced by that practiced, reassuring smile.

“Of course, child.  Agnes and I will come again in three days, at dawn.  I look forward to your answer no matter what it is.  We will leave you alone now,” Violet said and then glanced at Agnes who immediately stood up and came to her mistress’s side.  Violet was the young girl’s mistress, she held some sway over Agnes but in what way, I couldn’t tell.  They walked outside but as they left, Agnes looked back at Edie.  Her expression was forlorn but in her eyes, I saw a glimmer of something else.  The door to the motorhome closed and we sat in silence until the Black Cadillac Escalade had gone.

“Well, that was awkward,” Edie observed.  Yeager turned to her.

“No kidding,” he replied and then turned to me.  “You’re not really thinking of going, are you?”  He asked me.

“I...I don’t know,” I admitted after a moment.

“You don’t trust that woman, do you?” Yeager pressed.

“No, but I’m curious.  Other shifters, other women shifters?  Aren’t you curious?” I asked.

“Yeah, I suppose I am,” Yeager admitted.

“It can’t hurt to visit, can it?  I mean, meeting other shifters would be a good thing, right?” I wondered.  It was obvious Violet wanted us to go to Colorado, and probably not just to visit with us, but what was she going to do to us once we arrived?  If she meant us harm, there were easier ways to accomplish that.  I suspected she was simply looking out for her own, trying to ensure our kind’s survival.  Would I do any less?

“Let’s sleep on it, at least,” Yeager suggested.  I wasn’t certain and some time to ponder the offer would probably be best.  Some distance and perspective couldn’t hurt either.

“Yeah, that’s a good idea.  What about you, Edie?” I asked.

“I’m up for whatever.  You’re all I’ve really got, you and Yeager,” she replied.  Edie was all I had too.  Well, until Yeager appeared and announced I was his mate that is.  But Edie had a special place in my heart.  She was my best friend and she was there when my mom died when I had no one else.

“I’ve got to work tonight.  I need to get some sleep.  We’ll talk it over in a couple of days, OK?” I offered.  Both Yeager and Edie nodded in agreement.  Edie bid us goodnight, though it was morning, and left Yeager and I alone.  We undressed and climbed into the bed wedged in the back of the old motorhome.  Yeager held me but he didn’t say anything for a while.  Finally, I asked, “Is being a shifter always so dramatic?”

“I was going to ask if your life was always so dramatic.  Things were pretty quiet until you came around,” Yeager teased.  I could tell he was joking but there was a hint of truth in his words.

“Well, in any case I’m glad I’m facing this with you by my side,” I replied.