keep quiet, she grabbed the back of his
head and kissed him heatedly to keep her
mouth occupied. He added to her
excitement, knowing exactly how to
please her. His fingers glided between her
thighs to find a nub of sensitive, engorged
flesh. He stroked her there, his rhythm in
perfect time with her racing heart.
Caught in his own bliss, he tore his
mouth away from hers, forgetting to touch
her, forgetting everything but the pleasure
and urgency. With one final deep thrust, he
let go, barely aware that he had cried out
in triumphant ecstasy. Maralee’s gasping,
answering cry told him she had found
release as well. He collapsed on top of
her. She wrapped her arms around him,
holding him close as they drifted back to
their senses.
The doorknob turned from outside,
followed by a rapid knock. Maralee
ignored the summons. She cupped Nash’s
sweaty face to kiss him. “I love you,” she
murmured, surprised that her eyes were
wet with tears. Perhaps she would
conceive a child this time. The thought
filled her with remarkable joy.
“I love you,” he answered.
“Maralee!” Jared called from outside
the door. “Answer me. Are you hurt? I
thought I heard you cry out.”
She giggled. Nash moved away from
her before taking his Wolf form again.
“I’m fine, Jared,” she called loudly. “I
just need a moment of privacy.”
“Is there someone in there with you?”
he asked.
“Just Nash.”
Nash barked loudly to announce his
presence and Maralee wrapped both arms
around his broad, furry neck.
“There’s a package for you here.
Thomas Starling just brought it over from
the post,” Jared called through the door.
Maralee sat up abruptly. “Is it from my
aunt?” she asked, climbing from the bed to
find something to cover her nakedness.
She found her discarded hospital gown
and haphazardly tossed it back on. Nash
watched her drowsily, curled up on her
bed with his head on both paws.
“Will you just open the door?” Jared
said impatiently.
“Just a minute,” she said. “I’ll be right
there.”
Maralee opened the door. Jared stared
at her, mouth hanging open, and dropped
her package. It was rectangular and heavy.
A thrill of excitement raced through her.
She squatted down and picked it up before
Jared had recovered. She gazed up at him,
smiling excitedly.
“You
look
different,”
he
said,
perspiration beading on his forehead.
“I feel wonderful,” she told him. “And
happy.” She glanced back at her bed at
Nash who was already sleeping soundly.
“I think it’s time I’m released from your
care.”
“I’m not sure you’re ready.”
“I’m ready. It’s time for me to find a
new destiny,” she said. Her heart was
thudding at the very idea, but she was
ready. With Nash by her side, she was
ready for anything.
“And I suppose I’m not part of your
plan,” he realized, lowering his eyes
behind his glasses.
“Someone still has to beat me at
chess.”
“Your dog can do that,” he said and
laughed.
She glanced at Nash again, her face
glowing with love. “I have other plans for
tha t
dog
,” she said. She glanced up at
Jared again. “Thank you for bringing my
package. I’ll be leaving this afternoon.”
He nodded. “You have to promise to
take it easy for a while though. No hunting
wild Wolves in the dead of night.”
“I promise never to hunt Wolves
again.” She stepped inside her room and
closed the door.
She took her package to her bed and
sat down on the edge of the mattress. She
carefully untied the string and tore away
the brown paper wrapping. Out fell a
book and an envelope. She opened the
book to make sure it was the one she
remembered. The title “The Wolf Men of
the Forest” was faded, but readable. She
glanced at Nash. He was sound asleep.
She wondered if he would be excited to
see the ancient manuscript. She set the
book down on the floor and opened the
envelope. Inside she found a bank draft for
the exact amount she had requested. A
note from her aunt accompanied it. There
was no salutation at all, just three hastily
scrawled sentences.
You’re lucky I didn’t
burn this book. If you want the others,
you’ll have to come and get them
yourself. If you keep spending your
money without regard, it will soon be all
gone.
There was no signature, but there
was no mistaking her aunt’s brusque
manner.
‘All gone’ was obviously an empty
threat. Maralee knew her fortune consisted
of over a million gold. As for ‘the others’,
Maralee had never seen any other ancient
manuscripts. Her interest was perked.
Perhaps she would make the journey north
once the weather cleared, but for now she
would study the manuscript already in her
possession. She retrieved it from the
floor, settled herself comfortably beside
Nash, and opened the book to begin
reading.
The Wolf People of the
Forest
by Lee Decatur
While cutting through the forest,
far to the south of Dubwar, I was
attacked by an enormous Wolf and
left for dead among the leaf litter. I
lay near death, for days perhaps, but
was rescued by a lovely, young
woman with stark white hair. Jaida
nursed me back to health and trusted
me with a wondrous secret. She
could transform, at will, into a
spectacular white Wolf.
Her small village was built as if it
were a part of the trees. Dwelling
within the village were a people fair
in appearance, but with leery
dispositions. I was at once intrigued
by their mannerism, which at times
reminded me of animals, but I did
not suspect at first, that they were as
Jaida, a race of humans that could
transform into Wolves at will. I
thought she was special. She was. I
loved her with every fiber of my
being—but that is another story.
Jaida’s brother, the clan chieftain,
Burl, became interested in my
longevity and my ability to survive
grievous injury. He befriended me, or
so I thought, and I lived among his
people for several months. While
living within Burl’s home, I was
involved in a series of unfortunate
“accidents” that would have killed an
ordinary man. I am convinced now
that these “accidents” were staged to
test me and prove I was immortal.
It was only after he was
convinced of my immortality that Burl
revealed his true nature. He was, like
my lover, Jaida, a Wolf. The same
Wolf that had attacked me in the
forest and left me for dead. After Burl
revealed his secret to me, he
expected me to reveal my secret to
him. I, of course, refused. As I have
revealed in my previous writing, a
stipulation of my own immortality
was that it should remain a secret.
And now as I write this final
testament of my life, my once
youthful and indestructible body is
frail and aged, weak and diseased. I
am not sure I will live long enough to
finish this tale, but I am getting
ahead of myself. I must now discuss
the reasons why I went back on my
word, and betrayed the trust of my
lord
and
teacher
who
trusted
unworthy me with his secret of
immortality.
Nash laid his head on Maralee’s lap,
disrupting her reading. She scratched his
ears. He huffed out a breath, before rolling
onto his side.
“Are you awake now?” she asked.
He opened his amber eyes marginally.
“I have a present for you,” she said
with a sly grin.
His eyes opened and he wagged his
tail. If a Wolf could smile, he was
smiling.
“Not that kind of a present,” Maralee
said, with a chuckle. “A book written five
hundred years ago by one of my
ancestors.”
He sat on his haunches and looked
down at the book. She closed it before he
could read any of it.
“I seem to remember a certain man
refusing to allow me to read any of his
precious books.”
He glanced up at her, his eyes
narrowed.
“I think he was afraid I would figure
out that he’d been keeping secrets from
me.”
He lowered his amber gaze to his
forepaws.
“So I decided to have my aunt send a
similar book from our estates in Dubwar,
a nd is this some strange coincidence or
what? It’s all about a people who live in
the forest and can change into Wolves at
will and an immortal sage who finds
himself mortal. Of course I haven’t read
far enough to figure out why, but it seems
it must have something to do with this
chieftain named Burl.”
Nash took his human form. She was
surprised to see him scowling.
“I can’t believe you took one of my
books, Maralee,” he growled at her,
snatching it out of her hands. “It is my
responsibility to figure out this puzzle and
I don’t want you to…” He trailed off,
having looked more carefully at the book.
“This isn’t mine.” He opened the book,
and though he didn’t recognize the
handwriting, he knew the story. The sage,
Lee, was a Decatur? How could Nash
have overlooked that very important tidbit
of information?
“No,” she said, snatching the book
back. “It’s mine, and if you want to read
it, then you have to tell me everything.
And I do mean
everything
. Everything
about your people, the curse, your
immortality, and the Wolf Guardian thing
Carsha mentioned last night.”
He
surprised
her
by
laughing
mirthfully and hugging her. “I suppose I do
owe you that, love. Was that book really
written by the sage that granted my people
immortality?”
“I think so,” she said, moving the
worn, leather-bound book out of his reach
when he extended his hand towards it.
“You’re not going to budge and inch
on this, are you?” he asked, kissing her
lips lightly, distracting her completely.
“Why should I?” she murmured,
dropping the book on the floor and
wrapping both arms around his neck.
“You’ve been keeping secrets from me for
too long. The only thing I know about you
for sure is that when you’re in your human
form I can’t think of anything but how
much I want you.”
“So maybe I should stay a Wolf like I
promised myself,” he said, kissing her
more deeply now.
“Don’t you dare,” she growled into his
mouth.
He broke their kiss to look down at
her. “And what would you do if I did?”
“I guess I could get used to it,” she
said, “or I could start dating Jared.”
He looked shocked by her idle threat.
“Are you interested in him?”
“I was teasing, Nash. What girl would
want a boring, steady doctor, when she
could have a shape-shifting Wolf?”
“Uh, all of them,” he said with
conviction.
She smiled and touched his face. “Not
all
of them,” she argued. “Not me.”
“So you’re just trying to make me
jealous. Do you know what Wolves do
when they’re jealous?”
“They make love to their woman for
hours,” she guessed hopefully.
“They kill their adversary.”
Her eyes widened. “You wouldn’t.”
“Without hesitation,” he said, “but I
like your suggestion better.”
His hands ventured beneath her
hospital gown to grasp her hips and
position her beneath him.
“You make me feel like an animal,” he
growled, and plunged into her without