The Wolf's Call (Two-Natured London) (14 page)

That afternoon, wolves and
vampires gathered at the future building site in Betchworth to sign the land
deal there. Charly wondered about the outdoors venue and was told that despite
the friendly relations between the Greenwood clan and the Crimson Circle, they
were both naturally suspicious of each other and wanted neutral ground for the
signing where neither would have home-turf advantage. The composition of the
two groups present seemed to confirm this attitude.

Jamie
and Rafe showed up with Harry, Matt, and Kieran, everyone with their auras out.
Foley arrived with Gabriel and three other huge men who looked so much alike
that they had to be his sons, although one of them was as fair as the rest were
dark. The vampire warriors were wearing what Charly surmised was their battle
uniform, black leather jeans, combat boots, and double-breasted leather jerkins
over long-sleeved black t-shirts, their incredible size making the outfit look
very impressive. Christian, in fighting-leathers too, and Charly, as lawyers
handling the deal, were considered neutral, but otherwise it was two groups of
soldiers and warriors facing each other on the meadow near the creek that was
being sold. Everyone was tense and they kept looking around for possible
threats, or perhaps it was in their natures never to relax in an open space.

For
all the drama and build-up, the actual signing of papers went uneventfully and
perfectly civilly, as if they had been in an office somewhere. Charly and
Christian had tweaked every last detail to Foley’s and Jamie’s satisfaction so
that only their signatures were needed. Those, they put down after a brief
exchange of hellos while their backups watched over the proceedings.

Once
every paper was signed or marked with initials, everybody relaxed, except Rafe
who didn’t trust any of the unmated males around Charly. The handsome vampire
warriors, especially, seemed to be getting on his nerves, as if Charly would
suddenly switch her affections to one of them. Unlike his clansmen, the vampire
warriors didn’t shy from teasing him about his new status as a pledged man.
Charly thought they were getting a bit ahead of themselves, but still she found
their bantering entertaining, a sign of relations friendlier than she had been
given to understand.

Only
Foley was brave enough to get close to her, however, confirming that the
warriors weren’t stupid. “So, Miss Thornton,” he said with a small smile on his
beautiful face, eyeing her aura she still wasn’t able to hide if it didn’t want
to hide, “I see you’re getting along with your wolf. Have you made up your mind
about letting me unblock it properly?”

Everyone
paused, even the vampires, waiting for her answer. She felt self-conscious
being forced to reveal her decision in front of everyone before she had had a
chance to tell it to Rafe, but her wonderful wolf was looking at her with such
heartbreaking anticipation on his handsome face that she didn’t want to
postpone the news. The words were spoken to Foley, but she was looking at Rafe.
“Yes. I’ve decided to let my wolf free.”

Rafe’s
knees sagged a little hearing this, and he let out a breath he had been holding
in a long burst, but he collected himself immediately. He swept her up as
everyone cheered and twirled wildly around, holding her tightly at her waist so
that her legs were off the ground, his eyes glistening although he was smiling
broadly. Charly laughed from happiness, the tension she had felt for days swept
away.

But
when people came to them to congratulate her, Rafe threw her over his shoulder
like a sack of grain and took off towards the woods, ignoring her patting him
on the buttocks, shrieking that he let her down immediately. She could see from
the smiling faces of those left behind that they knew as well as she did what
Rafe had in mind. She could only hope that everybody would head home and leave
the two of them to it.

He
didn’t put her down until they were deep in the small crop of woods. He backed
her against a tree and leaned down to kiss her. This time the kiss was full of
love, the passion they both felt leashed for a moment. It was her total
undoing, her last reservation melting away. He was her future, her reason for
existing from now on.

When
they came up for breath, she didn’t care anymore where they were or who would
see them. She simply had to have him. She pulled off his sweater and he did the
same for her. Their garments dropped carelessly onto the cold ground. She
didn’t feel cold though; his nearness heated her from the inside out. His belt
was next, her fingers clumsy as she tried to unbuckle it. And it didn’t help
her task that he suddenly tensed. He lifted his gaze to look at something
behind her, but before she could ask what he had seen, he swirled her around,
blocking her view to whatever had alarmed him with his large body.

A shot echoed in the woods.

Charly
didn’t comprehend what the sound was at first. Then Rafe began to sink down,
pulling her to her knees with his lifeless weight. She watched in horror as
blood gushed from a wound between Rafe’s shoulder blades. From courtroom photos,
she recognised it as a close range shotgun wound, but she had no idea if it
would be fatal to a shifter. He was breathing, if weakly, so she drew strength
from that.

She
could hear people running towards them, but she didn’t turn to look. She just lowered
Rafe onto his side so that he could breathe more easily. She knew she was in
shock, because she was observing everything as if from a distance, but she
couldn’t shake out of it. Her wolf was desperately trying to get free and go to
its mate, but she didn’t know how to calm it. She couldn’t even calm herself.

A snap
of a dry twig breaking in the forest made her look up. The landlord from the
pub was standing between the trees, a shotgun pointed at Rafe. “You filthy
animals just couldn’t leave well and truly be. Do you think we want your kind
in our village?”

Charly
wasn’t listening to his words though. She saw only the threat to her mate. Rafe
was defenceless and she had to protect him. Her wolf knew exactly what to do.
She gave it permission and it was all it needed. Its aura began to stretch out
of her, growing larger and pulling farther and farther until she felt something
starting to break inside, her as if she was being torn apart like tight fabric.
It was a painful sensation and she wanted to resist. And then her wolf was
free.

The
pain was exquisite, but it was over before they even noticed and suddenly the
world looked, sounded, and smelled different. They got up on four slightly
tottering legs, but they couldn’t afford the luxury of adjusting themselves.
The shotgun was pointed at them now, more shakily than before, and they could
smell fear, acrid and intoxicating. They didn’t hesitate and lunged quickly,
sinking their sharp teeth into the wrist holding the weapon.

The
man screamed in pain and the shotgun dropped from his hand. He tried to pull
his arm away, but they were too heavy for him. He started punching and kicking
them with all his strength, but they ignored the pain and held tight. Blood was
gushing into their mouth and it tasted wonderful. They bit deeper, breaking
bones. The man sank to his knees, weakened with pain, but still they wouldn’t
let go. He had hurt their mate.

“Cease!”
The powerful command made them pull their ears back and sink lower, but their
grip held fast. A wolf in human form, their alpha, crouched before them and
looked them straight in the eyes. “Let go.”

This
time they had no choice, there was such force in his voice. They obeyed, but
they didn’t like to do it and so snarled. Their alpha snarled back and they
knew their place.

But
then a new threat revealed itself. There were people around their mate. They
charged at the intruders, showing teeth and growling, but their alpha was
suddenly there again, taking a tight hold of their ruff. “Calm down, they’re
just forcing him to shift by pouring Might into him. He can’t shift while
unconscious, and he needs to do it so he can heal.” They watched tensely as the
wolves in human form leaned over their mate. Over and over again, translucent
wolves dove into him, rising up a little paler each time, until their mate’s
wolf awoke.

Their
alpha looked at it and gave it a command. “Shift.”

And it
did.

“Come
on, Rafe, you stubborn bastard, wake up. I need you to shift back to human.”
They felt a hand shake them and they wanted to growl so that Jamie would let
go, but they felt too weak for such a task.

A
memory stirred. Weak wasn’t good. They needed to get their mate to safety.

They
jolted awake and shot instantly to their feet. Their mate was lying next to them,
a beautiful black wolf, and they pressed their muzzle against hers, inhaling
her scent. There was blood, but she wasn’t hurt; it belonged to their enemy.
They licked the blood off anyway, as it might attract predators otherwise.

“Come,
shift back,” their brother commanded, but they didn’t want to obey. They were
as they should be, wolf to wolf with their mate.

“Shift.”

This
time they couldn’t ignore the command, and a strenuous moment later Rafe was
back in human form, naked and cold. Matt tossed him his clothes and he dressed
quickly before turning to scold Jamie. “What the fuck?” Even in human form he
felt angry for being forced to leave his mate.

But
Jamie was unfazed by his anger. “You have to make Charly shift back. She simply
refuses to obey me.” He sounded both worried and admiring. Not many wolves
could resist him. “The wolf’s been locked up for too long and now it won’t let
her come back.”

His
human brain registered only now that Charly had indeed changed form, and he
turned to study her in awe. She was exquisite even to his human eyes,
perfection. She pressed her head against his hand and he rubbed her ears
affectionately. “She shifted? But how?” It wasn’t even a full moon.

“Apparently
a threat against her mate enabled her to conquer some very strong magic,” Foley
said dryly, and Rafe turned to look at the vampire who was observing them a
little distance away, surrounded by his warriors. “But she can’t stay in that
form any longer. It’s only her first shift.”

Rafe
understood immediately. A similar thing happened with all cubs during the first
shift, the freedom intoxicating for them. But any adult could order them to
change back to human. Charly, however, was an adult, and a dominant to boot. He
got worried even as he admired her strength. “I don’t know what I can do.
You’re stronger than I am,” he said to Jamie, who nodded.

“A
mate can overrule an alpha in some occasions. You have to try.”

Rafe
crouched before the beautiful wolf, wincing slightly in pain when something
twitched in his back. “Why does my back hurt?”

“You
were shot. It was the landlord from the village pub. The police have him now.”

“The
police? How long was I out?” And more importantly, how long had Charly been in
wolf form? This might be more difficult than he had anticipated.

“Far
too long,” Jamie answered gravely. “The police left with the bastard twenty
minutes ago.”

This
wasn’t good. Rafe took Charly the wolf by its muzzle and stared deep in its
eyes. He felt an onslaught of Might streaming back from it as the wolf
expressed its will to stay free, but he didn’t back down. There was a time and
a place for even the strongest man to bow before his woman, but this wasn’t it.

Mind
to mind communication between shifters was easier when both were in animal
form, but it could be done even if one of them was in human form. It just took
some concentration. Unfortunately, his healing had left him feeling a little
weak. Sweat was soon streaming down his back as he battled with Charly the
wolf.
Come on, my love, I know you’re in there
, he murmured into her
mind. The wolf was at the forefront. It growled at him and he growled back.
I
don’t want to hurt you, I just need to talk to Charly
, he assured it. He
could feel its suspicion, but he murmured soothing words and little by little
it lowered its defences, allowing him through.
Charly, are you there?

Yes.
Can you get me out?
She sounded scared, her
worst fears having actualised, so he assured her that he could do it in the
most persuading voice he had.

Just
follow my voice.

It
took more convincing, but finally the wolf lowered itself before him, pressed
its head down, and he rubbed its black fur to show that he wasn’t angry with
it. “Shift.” He put the last remnants of strength he had left into the command.
And thankfully, she obeyed.

It
took longer than it should have, but finally Charly was back in human form,
lying naked and panting in exhaustion on the cold grass. He pulled her into his
lap, and when someone gave him a blanket, he wrapped it around her. She was
shivering, and he pressed her closer, protecting her with his warmth.

“I’ll
never do that again,” she declared in a feeble voice after a while.

“What,
shift? I’m afraid that’s not possible.” He smiled against the top of her head,
happy to have her back, but she must have heard the amusement in his voice.

“It
bloody hurt!”

“I know, baby. But it’ll get easier, I promise. After a
couple of shifts you won’t even notice the pain.” He rose up with an effort,
taking her with him, and refused when Jamie offered to carry her to the car. He
wasn’t dead, so he was strong enough to carry his mate. She needed pampering
after everything she had been through and it was his privilege to provide it. A
bath was in order. And then he would make love to her until their brains
melted.

The shift had worn Charly out
worse than she had believed. She fell asleep during the drive back to the
manor, and again in the warm bath. She wanted to look after Rafe’s wounds and
take care of him in return, but she was too exhausted, too tired to make love
even, something she knew he wanted. Lying naked on the bed, he simply drew her
close to his warmth and told her to sleep. He would watch over her.

A
small part of her feared she would shift back to a wolf in her sleep, but even
that couldn’t keep her eyes from closing. When she woke up, the sun had already
set and it was dark outside. Someone had built a fire in their fireplace, so it
was warm and cosy, and she felt content to just lie there next to quietly
dozing Rafe. She was still human and her wolf was hiding, happy to do so now
that it had been given its freedom.

She
hadn’t lied when she’d told Rafe the shift had hurt, but she didn’t regret
letting it happen. She would do it again in a similar situation. No one could
hurt her mate and get away with it. She felt fiercely protective of him even
though she knew he was strong enough to look after himself – and her.

She
must have stirred because suddenly Rafe woke up, instantly alert to his
surroundings. She turned to look at him and saw him smiling down at her. She
smiled back. “Did you sleep well?” he asked, reaching to stroke her hair.

“Yes.
Does it always tire one this badly to shift?”

He
pulled her closer. “No, it’s the opposite, in fact. It should energise you.”
She must have looked sceptical because he suddenly grew serious. “I’m sorry it
was forced on you in such a manner. I would have prepared you better for it. Do
you regret it?”

His
question was hesitant and she reached up to stroke his face. It felt a bit
raspy against her soft palm, but wonderfully manly. “I have absolutely no
regrets,” she assured him, and she felt him relax beneath her hand.

“Thank
you,” he said with feeling.

Though
she wasn’t sure what exactly he was thanking her for, she answered anyway. “My
pleasure.”

Then
it definitely was her pleasure as he set out to fulfil the rest of his plan for
pampering her.

An
hour later, they entered a noisy dining room where Harry and a dozen or so men
were having their dinner. A friendly food fight was going on between the two
sides of the table, the cause of which wasn’t immediately clear to Charly, but
she didn’t care. They seemed comfortable and loving with each other and she
could feel the welcome extending to her as well. Having been rejected by her
parents, she needed the acceptance of her adopted family.

“Thank
you for giving me this,” she said to Rafe quietly as he led her to the other
end of the table, away from the line of fire of bread rolls.

He
smiled at her happily. “No, thank
you
. I know you had your doubts and
that you wanted to explore the shifter side more thoroughly before committing
to it. But you didn’t hesitate to embrace your wolf for me.”

His
eyes shone with love as he watched her. He was the strongest man she knew, yet
he didn’t mind showing her how vulnerable he could be in front of audience.
Could she be anything less? “For you, it wasn’t a sacrifice at all. It’s how it
should be. This is what I’m meant to be, a wolf-shifter, and your mate. I love
you.”

His
smile deepened. “I know you do. You conquered powerful magic for me. Only love
can do that.” He pulled her against him and looked her deep in the eyes. His
eyes offered love and she accepted it. “And I love you.”

She
let her wolf out and, as it mingled with his wolf, she suddenly understood what
everyone, her wolf included, had meant by the wolf’s call. There it was, their
connection in Might, and her wolf accepted it. It was so beautiful she got
tears in her eyes and he kissed them away.

“So
what happens now?”

Rafe
looked amused. “Life happens now. And it’s a long one, so we can take it slow.
You don’t have to make hasty decisions about anything, but I would like you to
move in here with us. And I’ll definitely want children.”

She
didn’t have anything against that. “What about my job?”

He
gave her a teasing smile. “You can work. I’m not that old-fashioned. If you
like your current job, keep it. After all, fifty years from now you can do
something else.” It was a mindboggling thought. “Or, if you like, you can come
to work for our firm. We could use someone like you there.”

That
sounded fine too. Everything sounded wonderful now that she had found her true
self and the man who let her be what she was, a strong woman and a wolf. She
reached up and kissed him. She would never shy from showing emotions again,
showing him and the world how much she loved him, her wolf.