Danville Horror: A Pat Wyatt Novel (The Pat Wyatt Series Book 3) (19 page)

“Hi, Pat,” big, burly Nathan chimed in with a wave.

“Hi, Nathan,” I responded, and then Mary Anne waved too. I waved back, but continued, “And some of you don’t. But I am here to tell you that all of that is about to change. I’m going to tell you a story and at the end of this story, I’m going to ask you to reconsider your positions on making me part of the pack.”

“Why the fuck should we listen to you?” A tall, blond, dark-skinned wolfman hollered, and many of the other wolves protested with him.

“Because you have to,” I retorted. “Technically,
I
am your Alpha.”

The uproar that followed was crazy. It literally looked as though most of them were going to kill me through the screen while the ones I had met before sat there with smirks on their faces. Until, finally, an older woman stood up from a booth and bellowed for everyone to be silent. They did very quickly and then she smiled at me. “My names Mrs. Betty Ryan,” she said in a quiet, southern voice. “And I’m an elder in this pack.” She looked about seventy, so I could understand that. Mrs. Ryan was short, slender, and had long gray hair pulled away from her face. Her weathered, tanned face, was very kind looking, and she addressed me with respect, which I enjoyed.

“If this is true,” she went on, “then it would be a predicament, wouldn’t it?”

I nodded. “Yes, Mrs. Ryan. One that I intend to clear up as quickly as possible.”

“Go on then,” she said, sitting back down. “Tell us the story. We’re all ears.”

I smiled at her, and she nodded. “Thank you,” I paused for a minute, getting my thoughts together. Then I decided to tell them everything from the beginning. Some wolves nodded, knowing certain parts of the story, while others rolled their eyes about Samuel being my ex-husband. But as I got to the part with Stag, they all seemed to be listening with interest. I explained how I was sent out to kill him, and I had. I even went as far as to tell them how Herbert Morris, another vampire, had changed him into what he was and that he and Stag were hell-bent on world domination. Lastly, I told them what I had sacrificed for their well-being and that because I was the one to defeat their Alpha in battle, I was consequently the head of their pack according to their own rules.

“Now, I don’t want this to be,” I clarified my position on the matter. “I want Mike to remain your Alpha, but because of the way your system works, you have a human as the head of the pack. And a woman at that.” Most of the wolves nodded while others scowled. “So I’m asking you,” I paused looking over at Mike who waved me on. “No. I’m commanding you, as your Alpha, to reconsider your decision. Trust me, ladies and gentlemen, you will be doing the right thing by keeping me an honorary member of the pack.”

“Or what?” tall, blond, and annoying asked.

“Or you have just declared war against me. And believe me when I tell you, you don’t want that.”

“True story,” Angel agreed.

“So,” I sighed, “what’s it going to be?”

They all started talking at the same time again, but Mrs. Ryan silenced them once more. “We’re gonna need some time on this one, young lady. Is it all right with you, Alpha, if we think on it?” she asked, and when she did, I could tell that there was a little more respect for me than before.

“Yes,” I consented, “it’s acceptable. Take your time, but not too long. I’m not known for my patience.”

“Yes, you are,” Mike mouthed, and I quickly glared at him.

She nodded. “It’ll be done.”

I smiled. “Thank you all for listening. Angel,” I said, and she popped up into the frame, nodding. “Disconnect me,” I commanded, and she did.

When I could finally breathe, I shut down the computer while Mike jumped up, punching the air. “Oh my God, bébé. You were amazin’.” He leaned down and kissed me.

“Just promise me one thing,” I said, and he nodded. “If this comes back not in our favor, that you won’t do something stupid or lie to me again.”

He nodded. “I promise.”

“I mean it, Mike. Especially, no more lies. Just the whole truth and nothing but, okay?”

He swallowed hard. “Right.”

“What’s wrong, Wolf?” I asked as I patted the bed next to me, and he sat down.

He took a deep breath. “I want ya to swear that you won’t get how ya get.”

“Mike,” I hissed. “What’s this about?”

“It’s nothin’ bad.”

“That’s what they all say before it gets bad,” I said, folding my arms. “What is it?”

He looked down at his feet for a second, rubbing the back of his neck, and then he looked me dead in the eyes. “Do you remember me tellin’ ya that werewolves weren’t immortal like vampires?”

I thought about it for a second and then I remember him saying something like that in passing. “Vaguely,” I answered slowly. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“Well,” he hemmed and hawed a little, “we’re not immortal, but we don’t age like normal people do. We’re slower than that.”

My brows furrowed. “You lost me.”

He took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “In the spirit of being honest, and all that… uh… I lied when I told ya that I was thirty-two.”

I laughed a little. “Okay. What are you then? Thirty-five? Thirty-six?”

He shook his head. “I’ll be exactly,” his paused a second, but his eyes never left mine, “fifty-seven years old in July.”

My eyes widened, my breathing became shallow, and the only thing that came out of my mouth was, “What?”

chapter

NINETEEN

I sat in silence while Mike paced the floor. Then he stopped. “Bébé,” he said, concerned, “please say somethin’, it’s drivin’ me crazy.”

When I opened my mouth, nothing came out, so I thought for a second. “You’re the same age as my father,” I settled on.

“Okay,” he let out slowly, “that’s somethin’ at least.”

That’s when the second disturbing thought popped in my head. “How old was Stag?”

He half shrugged. “In his forties. Not too old.”

“And Angel?”

He shook his head. “Uh-huh. I’m not tellin’ ya that. She would kill me. Besides, it’s not nice to reveal a lady’s age.”

“I bet she’ll like that,” I laughed a little.

“That I’m bein’ a gentleman?”

“That you referred to her as a lady.” It wasn’t meant to be a crack, but my sarcasm was up and I couldn’t put it away. I mean, this was the un-funniest joke I had ever heard. First, a five-hundred-year-old vampire and then a fifty-seven-year-old werewolf. Was it physically impossible for me to attract someone of my own age?

As if he heard my thoughts, Mike spoke, “It’s really not that bad, Pat. I mean, it’s like reverse dog years.” I glared at him. “That was a joke.”

“I got that,” I replied. “It’s not funny.”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I know. But seriously, Pat, you didn’t have a problem marrying a five-hundred-year-old vampire.”

“That’s because I didn’t know he was a five-hundred-year-old vampire,” I hissed.

He opened his mouth to protest, then nodded. “True. I’m so sorry, bébé. I should’ve told ya all this when I explained that I was a werewolf. It was dumb to keep it from ya.”

I shrugged. “It’s okay.”

“Really?”

“No,” I huffed. “But it will be. Wolf,”—I shook my figure at him—“you are so lucky I love you. And I swear—”

“You still love me?” he asked, interrupting my warning, and I gave him a look. “Sorry. Continue.”

“I swear,” I repeated, “that if you ever lie to me again, you are going to find yourself up shit’s creek without a paddle. You hear me?”

He nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Now get out of here,” I commanded, jerking my head toward the window. “I have matron of honor things to do.” He walked over to the window like a kicked dog, and I got up off the bed. “What are you doing?” I asked.

“Leavin’,” he answered, downhearted.

“Don’t I get a kiss first?”

His eyes lit up with delight. “Yes, ma’am.” He walked over to me, wrapping his arms around me. “Ya sure you’re okay with this?”

“I think I can handle it.” I pulled on his t-shirt with my good hand, leaning up as I did so. As our lips touched the sky decided to go dark, and when we were done kissing, it started to drizzle. “Are you going to be okay?” I asked as Mike backed away.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. It’s just a little water.”

“Where are you staying?”

“Hotel right outside of town. Don’t worry, I won’t be too far. Also,” he said as he opened the window, “have Mortimer stay with you tonight, just in case.”

“Way ahead of you, old man.”

He smiled his sparkly green-eyed grin. “You’re never gonna let this go, are ya?”

I shook my head. “Nope.”

“I’ll be back,” he said, one leg out the window, “don’t you worry.”

“I’m not. Just be careful.”

“I’m a werewolf, Pat. I always land on my feet.”

“That’s cats,” I corrected.

He shrugged. “Same difference.” Mike made a show letting go of the windowsill and falling down the two stories to the ground.

After my heart stopped pounding in my throat, I looked out the window to see him safely on the ground, smiling his ass off. “Not funny,” I hissed at him, and he laughed as he ran away. I took a deep breath, closing the window in the process. “I will never get used to that.” It was true. When he did it the first time in Samuel’s garden it was unnerving, and now that he did it again, it didn’t make it any less so.

I composed myself for a minute before I opened the door making my way downstairs, only to hear Tina and Cindy/Moms fawning over Fang. As they cooed over him, Bobby saw me coming down the stairs and was right there to see if I needed any help.

“I’m good,” I comforted him as I hopped down the last step. “Why are you here?”

“I’m here because your pops wants me to set up the tent in the backyard for the wedding,” he answered, almost proud of himself.

My brow crinkled. “Why you?”

“Best man duties.”

I cocked a brow at him as we walked toward the kitchen. “Really? You?”

He shrugged. “When you see him ask him yourself.” When we made our way into the kitchen, Bobby saw Fang nestled in Tina’s lap and whispered, “You’re boyfriend, I assume.”

“Shut up,” I whispered back, elbowing him in the rib cage.

“Are you okay?” Tina asked when she noticed Bobby and me. She glared at Bobby, and I gestured with my head for her to follow me. So she got up from the table, handed Fang over to Cindy/Moms, and then said, “Be right back,” to him and her.

We walked into the hall, far enough so that no one else could hear us. “What’s up?” she asked quietly.

“Long story,” I explained.

“What was goin’ on up there?”

“Mike came in through the window, and that’s not all,” I answered and then I told her what happened as quickly and as quietly as possible, including the whole Mike being old enough to be my father thing.

“Okay,” she breathed, “ew.”

I shrugged. “That’s least of my problems.”

She nodded. “True. So what was their decision? I mean, a human Alpha must’ve pissed them off.”

“You think?” I sighed and then took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “They haven’t decided anything yet, but I have a feeling when they do that it’s not going to be good.”

“You always say that,” she pointed out.

“And I’m always right.”

She put her hand on my shoulder. “Let’s not panic until we know for sure that you’re screwed, okay?” I nodded. “Now,” she continued, “we have to go get fitted. It’ll be your final fitting and my first, so let’s just focus on that.”

“Got it,” I agreed as we made our way back into the kitchen.

“Where’s the tent?” Bobby asked Cindy/Moms.

“In the garage,” she said in Cindy’s voice. There was no way that would never
not
be creepy.

Bobby walked over to the garage door and then I remembered Mortimer was in there. “No,” I shouted. “I mean,” I recovered, “maybe you guys should wait a bit. It’s really starting to rain out.” And as if on cue, there was a rumble of thunder. “See? There’s nothing you hate more than freezing rain, right?”

He nodded, but his eyes narrowed. “Yeah, I guess.”

I changed the subject. “We should go get our fittings done.”

Cindy/Moms nodded, getting up from the table. “What should we do about Fang?”

“Take him with us,” Tina suggested. “I’m sure the dressmaker won’t mind.”

Bobby shook his head. “My mom will freak out. She’s terrified of dogs.”

“Then what do you suggest, Robert?” Tina huffed. I glared at her, mouthing for her to be nice, and she dropped the attitude.

“We can watch him,” Andrew said, taking him from Cindy/Moms arms. “I would just wuv dat,” he baby talked to the puppy, and Tina placed her hand over her heart as if it was going to melt.

“Okay then,” I agreed, “since that’s settled, we should probably go.”

“Yes,” Cindy/Moms said, “we should. We’re kind of late as it is.”

“Then let’s get a move on, bride,” I joked, and she laughed.

After Tina, me, and Cindy/Moms put on our coats, we made our way out into the freezing rain, driving the ten minutes to Mrs. A’s shop in silence. Mostly because no one had anything to say, and also because I think both of them could feel how overwhelmed I was with everything that had transpired in the past couple of days. Then I realized I had no clue what day it was and that I couldn’t even remember when I had left Louisiana. It seemed like a lifetime had passed in just a few days time. So I just leaned my head back against the headrest and tried to forget. All I needed to do was focus on the wedding, and goddammit, that was what I was going to do.

When we finally made it to the shop, we braved the sideways rain, and we were greeted by a smiling Mrs. A. “Hello, ladies,” she said with a wave. “And who is this beautiful young lady?” At the compliment of “young lady,” she had already won Tina’s heart, and my best friend blushed.

“Come.” Mrs. A gestured for us to follow her, and we did. The three of us went into our respective dressing rooms and whoever got out first would be the winner, or the one to go on the pedestal before the others.

As I tried on the dress, something was wrong. It was perfectly fitted, but even with Mrs. A’s superb skills there was always something a little extra that needed to be done. After all, she had fitted my two prom dresses and my wedding dress all those years ago. Something was definitely up. Especially, since I noticed the blue in the dress was a shade darker than the original. It looked similar to the old dress, but it just didn’t feel like the dress. In fact, it was softer and felt almost like silk on my skin. Even the snowflakes were made of better crystals.

“Oh my God,” Tina yelled from her dressing room.

“What is it?” I shouted back.

“Patty,” she sounded panicked, “you need to come in here. Like, right now!”

I rushed out, running over to the cubicle next to mine. Before I could even knock on the door, Tina opened it, and I saw that the dress was a perfect fit. “What the fuck?” I hissed, not believing my eyes.

She looked down at herself in shock. “I’m not even remotely the size of your sister. How the hell?”

“I have no idea,” I answered, shaking my head, dumfounded.

“What’s that?” she asked, pointing to the bottom of my dress.

I must have been so distracted that I hadn’t noticed it when I put it on. There, on the hem of the skirt, was a pinned note. I bent over, taking it off gently as to not ruin the dress. As I handed Tina the pin, I turned the note over in my hand and recognized the elegant handwriting.

“Samuel,” I growled as I unfolded the paper to see what the bastard had to say.

“Read it aloud,” Tina ordered, and I could see her jaw clench and unclench.

I cleared my throat and began, “‘Dear Patricia,’ trust him to be an informal asswipe. ‘I must admit that you were right about me, and that I was a fool for thinking that I could win you by sheer force alone. I forgot how to be human a long time ago and, even though this will not make up for anything, I have decided to try to regain some humanity. Consider these dresses a gift for your father’s wedding with no strings attached.’ Bullshit. ‘This will not forgive me my sins against you, but I hope it will make your life a little easier. After all, silk is better than anything your father could afford anyway—’”

“Egotistical asshole,” Tina interrupted in a huff.

“‘Yours, with love and admiration, Samuel,’” I finished, shaking my head. “He’s always doing shit like this,” I hissed, tearing the note to shreds. “He thinks that he can make everything right by buying things or writing me a nice note. I’m so happy I staked his ass in that dream, you have no idea.”

“Let’s just be grateful this is all he did.” As soon as those words were out of Tina’s mouth, Cindy/Moms walked out of her dressing room in a dress that looked to be more expensive than I knew she could afford. It was covered with silver crystals that resembled snowfall, and was off-the-shoulders, revealing an elegant line. The sleeves were long and sheer with beautiful crystals spiraling around her arms. Long, flowy and white, the crystals pooled at the bottom of the skirt, making Cindy/Moms look like an angel.

“This isn’t my dress,” she said, looking shocked.

“Oh my God,” Tina said dreamily.

“You’re beautiful, Mommy.” I let that slip and Mrs. A was right there with an “awe.”

“I think that’s so sweet that she can call you mommy like that,” Mrs. A added. “That’s wonderful.”

When I thought about it, calling her mommy was kind of perfect. It was a good combination of Moms and Cindy. So I figured that it was an easier way to address her. “Is it okay if I call you that?” I asked her, and she nodded with a wink.

“That dress just looks perfect on you,” Mrs. A interrupted our moment. “I’m so glad we went with this one.”

“This isn’t my dress,” Mommy said, looking at Mrs. A as if she was crazy.

“Yes, it is,” she protested. “I have the order form and the confirmation. Look, you signed and paid.” All four of us looked at the form and at the bottom was clearly a signature that said Cindy’s name, but in Samuels handwriting.

I looked at my mother, nodding at her, and she hit her forehead dramatically. “Duh. Pregnancy brain on the loose.”

We all laughed, but three of us knew that this was nowhere near funny. This was unsettling. Samuel could just walk into a shop, change a person’s memory, and act like it was all okay.
Fucking bastard
, the little voice in my head screamed in frustration.

Mrs. A fitted us, patting herself on the back for a job well done, even congratulating herself on fixing the sleeve of my dress in order to fit the cast. The rest of us just stood there and smiled as if we didn’t know what was really going on.

When we were done with the ordeal that was the fitting, we headed home in the same silence as we went. The only thing my mother said the whole ride was, “Samuel?” in her real voice. To which both Tina and I nodded.

As we walked in the house, there seemed to be some sort of commotion going on in the kitchen. Fang was yipping while three men sat at the table laughing. At first, I thought it was Mike, then I realized it was Mortimer. It had grown considerably darker since we left, and as we put out coats away the thunder rolled again.

“I’m just sayin’,” Bobby was laughing. “All this rain makes me wanna punch a baby.”

“That was graphic,” Tina said with distain.

“Yeah,” I agreed, “remind me never to leave my children around you.” Fang yipped again, and I picked him up. “Did any of you think that he has to go out?” All three of them just stared at me. “That’s what I thought.” I took him out, staying under the awning while he did his business. Then I got that feeling again. Like someone was watching me. As if to confirm my suspicions, Fang growled and I quickly picked him up, taking him back inside.