Dark of kNight (12 page)

“Sounds like my father and mother. He never remarried. I suppose he had the same feelings.”

“Somewhat
,
” he whispered.

My thought was of my father and the love he had for my mother. So many years I believed he was lonely. It was probably just as Daniel had said concerning the Lycans; he was satisfied to have found his mate in life. My heart swelled inside my body that this type of love actually existed.

“The ancients say that the reason for the bond helps with the hunt.” His soft voice broke my thoughts.

“The hunt?”

“The hunt for werewolves and other creatures of the night. In Lycan form, it cannot speak verbally. Their communications are pretty much like regular wolves. Their thoughts are still human. It is common that mates hunt together. They combine their strengths together. They hunt as one. They attack as one. They kill their prey as one. Only the mated ones are permitted to hunt. Because of the bond.”

“Is that why it is rare that a Lycan would take a human as a mate?”

“Yes. According to the ancients, it is not allowed. The laws have been broken only a few times in the past. The ancients believed in keeping the bloodlines pure and sacred.

Human blood only weakened the lines. Cross breeding, they called it. There were severe penalties.” I could tell his voice had trailed off into a thought as we both heard the wind howl outside and sheets of rain pounding against the glass wall. Soon he continued.

“A human woman could not carry a Lycan child. The body would not recognize it and … .” he paused again. The sigh in his voice made me tremble. “Neither the mother nor the child would survive.” Utter sadness filled his voice.

“You know the stories the locals told of the shape-shifters?” He continued changing the subject.

“Lycans?” I asked and shifted against his chest.

“Yes. A few people say the Indians that lived on Fort Mountain many years ago made a pact with a few settlers before they left. They granted them sacred rights to their lands in exchange for their help. The new settlers agreed and the Indians introduced them to the Great Spirit Wolf. The Great Spirit Wolf, we now call Lycan, would become the protector of mankind and guardian of the great wall which we know as Fort Mountain.”

“I had never heard that version of the story.”

“Not many people have. It has been a secret for many years. The remainder of the settlers stayed in this area and still to this day guard the wall and the humans. They are the only few remainders of the original bloodline of the Lycans.” His soft voice trailed off into another thought.

“I thought the wall was considered to have magical powers.”

“According to the legend it does. The Indians that lived behind the wall were spiritual in their belief. Their chief was a wise man. He was aware of the evil nature of the werewolf. While the building of the wall continued at night under the moon, the Indians performed a ceremony during the daylight hours under the sun. The power was so strong in the wall it was said the sun would illuminate one side during sunrise and the other during sunset. The power held within the wall itself would not let any evil creature past it.”

My eyes were already getting heavy. I closed my eyes listening to the strong beating of his heart. Slowly the world drifted out from underneath me.

SEVEN

The softness of the night drifted into my dreams. Daniel and I stood in the meadow again. My senses ran wild and I felt more alive than ever. His hand slipped around mine as he led me down through the clover filled meadow. Our steps quickened into a run. Enjoying the breeze in our face, we ran until we reached the forest and continued through the trees. Suddenly, Daniel disappeared. I kept running until I reached the river.

Standing by the river, I searched for him. A sense of fear washed over me. In the midst of the trees, I saw a dark figure move toward me. It wasn’t Daniel but instead, a werewolf. My heart thundered when I saw the unimaginably horrifying beast. Its large oversized wolf looking head was covered with stiff hair. The body was shaped similar to a human, with muscular long arms, oversized shoulders and thick muscular neck. The claw shaped-hands were attached to its long arms. It balanced itself on its dog-like haunches. It stared at me with its red blazing eyes. I knew in an instant that I was its target. Fearing for my life, I bolted into a run. The roar and growl behind me made the adrenaline rush through my body.

My heart raced wildly as I found strength in my fear to keep running. The creature was extremely fast. Glancing over my shoulder, I could see it run in leaps on its claw-like hands and dog-like hindquarters.
“It’s just a dream!”
I demanded my mind.
“It’s just a dream! Face your fears!”
I commanded myself. Taking a deep breath, I whirled around to see the creature leaping in the air toward me.

My hands flew instinctively in front of my face while its claws dug into my upper arms. The full weight of the beast forced my body onto the ground. With a heavy thud, I landed on my back. My hands grabbed its prickly shoulders while my arms locked to prevent the sharp teeth from biting me. My resistance was a futile effort. Its strong muscled jaws pushed forward to my throat. Its sharp teeth snapped toward my face. The loud and heavy snarls ripped from its mouth. Quickly its head moved and I felt a sharp stab in my arm. Its head moved closer to mine, dripping crimson red blood from its mouth. Closing my eyes, I screamed,
“Daniel!”

My eyes flew open while the rapid beating of my heart pounded in my ears. I tried to comprehend that it was just a dream. My breath came in gasps. It was morning. Looking around the room, I realized I was now on the floor beside the sofa. Laying my head back on the floor, I inhaled deeply trying to relax. My mind was coming back to reality. I raised myself to a sitting position. With one hand on the sofa, I managed to stand up. The sudden throbbing pain in my arm hit me. I raised my right arm and turned it around.

Apparently, when I fell off the sofa I had hit it on the coffee table.

“Daniel?” I called out. There was no answer. He was probably taking a shower. This was not a bad idea. A nice hot shower would help me clear my head from the dream.

Slowly, I walked up the stairs.

I grabbed my bathrobe and walked into my shower. The hot water felt good when it hit my skin. With my arm feeling the throbbing pain, washing my hair appeared to be a difficult task, but somehow I managed. The images of the dream still lingered in my mind of the horrid beastly creature. I finished my shower and stepped out. Wrapping myself in my bathrobe, I returned to the bedroom to dress.

“Julie?” I heard his voice call from downstairs.

“I’m up here! I’ll be down in a minute!” I yelled back to him.

I dressed quickly and ran down the stairs. The butterflies in my stomach fluttered again. He sat at the kitchen bar watching the TV. My eyes wandered down the length of his arms, noticing the bulging muscles. The tight muscles in his body showed clearly through the light green T-shirt that he wore, sending a rush of warmth through my body. My eyes traveled back to his wide shoulders, traveling slowly down his side. Not missing anything, his stomach must be tightly muscled. My eyes traveled down the length of his upper legs.

“Are you okay?” His words broke my thoughts. The warmth of blood rushed to my face and I couldn’t help but smile as my eyes turned toward the TV.

“Yeah, I guess I’m just trying to wake up.” It sounded a lot better than saying to him that I was admiring his well-built and toned body. I quivered at the thought once again when I managed to walk by him and head for the coffee.

“I checked outside for storm damage. Luckily, there was no damage to the house. A couple of trees fell down across the driveway. I managed to move them out of the way.”

There was something more. His voice was a little tense. I turned to see only the worried expression on his face.

“What’s wrong?” The sickening feeling of fear crept inside of me.

“There were two more attacks last night. I just saw it on the news before you came down the stairs. Two campers.” He spoke slowly never taking his eyes from the TV. “I received a call from Scotland. There appears to be some kind of problem and I need to leave this evening.”

Everything within me wanted to scream at him,
I need you too!
Holding the cup tightly in my hands, I considered the possibility that I may just be daydreaming. The fact that I had grown so attached to him fascinated me. Daniel had become my shelter of safety. He stood and then walked toward me. Gently he touched my arm and I winced from the pain that ran up to my shoulder.

“What?” he responded to my sudden movement of pulling my arm away from his hand.

“I had another nightmare, apparently after you left; I fell off the sofa and must’ve hit my arm on the coffee table.” Cautiously, his fingers clasped around my arm, drawing it closer to him. He ran his finger down my arm and over the hard red spot. Tingling sensations ran through my entire body from such a simple touch.

“I don’t think it’s broken, but you definitely took a hit.” His eyes traveled back to mine and a frown formed on his face. “What were you dreaming about?”

Carefully, I chose my words; there were some details that I wanted to leave out. He didn’t need to know the part about us running hand in hand through the meadow. It sounded too childish. Actually, I thought it was a good idea not to mention he was in my dream all together. “A werewolf attacked me.” There. Straight to the point.

His mouth twisted into a sly grin while his eyes twinkled with humor. “So,” He held up my arm. “How much damage did you inflict on the werewolf?”

“Not much.” There was no way I could’ve stopped the laughter that burst out of me. We shared the humor for a moment, and then his face turned serious again.

“Listen, I should not be gone for more than a week. I want you to stay with Mom and Dad,” the soft voice pleaded with me.

“Daniel,” I sighed.

“Julie, it is for your own protection. This house is in the middle of the woods, and you are about ten minutes from the nearest house.” He pleaded.

“I’ll be fine here.” I protested.

“I won’t.” His expression changed. The warmth of his brown eyes peered deeply into mine. “I would not be able to concentrate on anything else but worrying about you, wondering if you were all right. I do not think I would forgive myself if something terrible happened to you while I was gone. Please Julie.” He continued in a velvety rich voice.

“You mean too much to me.”

Those words lingered in my ears. It touched something within my heart. I’m not sure what he saw in my eyes, but his face moved closer toward me. His lips touched mine ever so lightly. I couldn’t breathe. My pulse raced. His lips trailed over mine lingering ever so softly. Fire flamed through my veins, bringing my blood to a boil.

Electricity charged my body. My hand gently touched the side of his face. His warm hand touched mine, sending wonderful sensations throughout my body. Pulling away from me, his face only inches from mine, my eyes slowly opened to see him carefully watching me. When I finally exhaled, his lips pursed into a smile. He had done his job well, intoxicating me from the first kiss.

Satisfied, slowly he came closer again. The look in his eyes was more than satisfaction; it was desire. His lips pressed against mine again with a little more force. I caught my breath. His fingers traced my jawbone down my neck where his hand cupped the back of my head. He took a deep breath and then pulled me closer to him. His tongue traced my upper lip, wanting to be invited inside to explore what he desired. My knees weakened. His arm wrapped around me, pressing my weakened body closer to his. I molded into every inch of his lean muscular body. I drew the scent deeper in my lungs, allowing his fragrance to fill my senses. My hand ran into his hair, clutching tightly the black tendrils between my fingers. My body burned with an intensity of fire like never before. His mouth hungered after mine, teasing, taunting and unleashing a desire that I had never known before.

Daniel stopped, tearing himself away from my lips. His ragged breath matched mine. The desire in his wild eyes intensified, matching my own desires for him. He held me firmly in place while stepping away from me slowly. Somehow I still managed to hold onto the coffee cup without spilling it. We laughed when we looked at the cup and then each other.

“I will come back. I promise.” His words were as true as any I had ever heard. “Please, just stay with Mom and Dad, for me?”

“Okay,” I whispered.

“I’ll call you every day to make sure you are okay.” The confirmation was all I needed.

“What time is your flight?”

“I am leaving in three hours. I have just enough time to get packed and make it to the airport.”

“I’ll drive you to the airport. It’s still daylight. I don’t think we will have to worry about werewolves in the daytime. Right?” I forced out a smile.

His head tilted to the side, giving me the impression he had to think about it. “Yeah, you might be right. I would like that.” After a quick kiss, he turned and disappeared into the great room.

My hand absentmindedly went to my face. My finger touched my lips where his lips had been. The thought of what I had missed all those years brought back a slight regret.

However, excitement and joy ran through me. I felt like I could skip through the clouds and run laps through the meadow outside. I wanted to fling myself out a window and scream. The feelings I had were the kind I wanted to savor forever. Never had I felt this way before, and I wanted to enjoy it.

After a few moments of basking in my newfound delight, I came back to reality. The news on the TV issued a special report. The two victims from last night’s attack remain unidentified. Police stated the attack was animal related. They suspected a large wolf or possibly a pack of wolves. The doorbell rang, breaking my attention from the news. I set the coffee cup on the counter on my way to the front door.

Heading around the kitchen, I glanced toward the front door. Two police officers stood waiting patiently for me to answer the door. One police officer, taller than the other, had blond hair and wore dark shades. The other officer, a much stocker build with brown hair glanced down at his note pad. Two men dressed in animal control uniforms stood behind the police officers. Nervously, I reached for the door and opened it.