Reluctantly Lycan (6 page)

All these things raced through his mind as he waited on a bench across the street for the father and son duo to return.
He dug a discarded
Cosmopolitan
out of a nearby trash can and kept his face concealed as he watched, his eyes barely peeking over the top. His private eye work came in handy in situations like this. He hadn’t lied when he’d said he owned a studio, but down and dirty investigative work gave him a thrill and a few extra bucks.

A dirty, beat up Jeep went down the road. Short
ly, it came back from the other direction, parking in one of the few spots available. Jak hopped out of the passenger side and a huge man with long black hair out of the driver side. He was most definitely “the ex.” If Jak had been hopped up on steroids, then they would have looked alike.

Taylor waited for them to cross the street and enter the building before tossing the woman’s mag in the trash and following.
He waited until he could no longer hear their footsteps on the metal stairs and then climbed them himself. His back pressed flat against the wall at the top. He peered around the corner to see them disappear inside. After a quick glance around, he slinked up to Mara’s front door and pressed his ear against it. The material was cheap and thin, so he could hear most of what they were saying.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I should have never doubted you were telling me the truth.”
Jak said.

“It sounds crazy, so I don’t blame you.
What did you think about it?” She asked.

“Still trying to figure that out.
He made it seem cool and he rolled around on his back all funny to make me less scared.” Jak laughed. “Good reason to skip school. I’m going to my room so you can talk. Thanks, Kaden.”

What the fuck?
Rolling around on his back?
If this dude was a pedo, Taylor swore he’d break every bone in his gigantic body. Even if it took a large hammer to do it.

“You did that,
Kade? A pack leader acting like a common dog?”

“Yeah, well. That’s what dad’s do, right? Make the hard stuff easier for their kids.” He went silent for a moment. “He needs to be with other wolves, Mara.”

“I can take care of him.”

“I don’t doubt that, but it will be easier for him.
For you. For…
me
.” He seemed to be waiting for her response. She didn’t say anything, so he spoke again. “You can shake your head all you want. It’s the truth. Do you know I looked for you? Took me two years. I didn’t even know I had a son until he was a toddler. What I did to you wasn’t fair, Mara, but neither is what you did. I couldn’t bring myself to confront you because I was afraid I might kill you.”

Mara began to speak, but a sob choked her up. “I’m sorry,
Kaden. I was only a child myself.”

“Me too.
It all started with my mistake. And last night, you know that was the wolf. I’m sorry if I did… anything against your will.”

“You couldn’t help it and neither could I. It was because of how long we’ve been separated….”

A phone went off and Kaden let out a growl. “One moment.”

“Sure.”

Taylor couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Packs and wolves. That brute saying he could have killed sweet little Mara. Apologizing for doing things
against her will
. Taylor wondered what the man had done to cause Marala to leave him in the first place. This conversation was definitely none of his business, but the longer he listened, the more curious he became. Besides, he thought he might love that woman. Maybe. Infatuated at minimum.

“What?”
Kaden said sharply into the phone. “Missing?” His tone softened. “Keep everyone calm. I’m coming home. We’ll find him.”

“
Kaden, what’s wrong?” Mara asked.

“One of the boys nearing his first shift went missing last night. We’re not sure if he ran away or something worse. Are you coming home with me?”

“It’s been too long. I don’t think I can.”

“What about
Jak?”

“I’ll send him to you when it’s time if that’s what he wants.” She answered.

Growing brave and stupid, Taylor twisted the knob slowly and pushed the door open a crack so he could see inside. He knew violating their privacy was wrong. Sure, he’d spied on cheating husbands and wives and taken pictures of naughty nannies, but not once had he invaded privacy so severely without being hired.

Kaden
reached into the inner pocket of his leather jacket, pulled out a fat stack of cash, and tossed it onto the kitchen table. “There’s a thousand dollars there. Pack up what you can, rent a car, and come home when you’re ready. Hell, call me and I’ll come back and get you if you want.” He turned toward the door and Taylor ducked back just in time. “I have to go.”

“Wait. I…” She paused. “I hope
that kid is okay.” It sounded like she wanted to say something else.

“Me too.”

Taylor scrambled through the hallway and down the stairs while he still had time. He snapped a picture of the license plate on Kaden’s Jeep before jogging up the street and hailing a cab.

Dumbass!
Kaden slammed his fists against the steering wheel as he gave himself a good talking to. “Stupid, stupid! Why didn’t you tell her you still love her?” Not only did he not know how to act around the only woman in the world he had ever had sincere feelings for, he’d left without even telling his son goodbye.

Between thoughts of his estranged family and the missing boy back home
in the mountains, he teetered on the brink of losing his mind. The pack couldn’t even keep its shit together for a few days without him. His second in command, the beta wolf Levi Boone, needed a thrashing or two. Kaden was planning a beating that would send him home whimpering with his tail between his legs to his mate, Elle.

Kade
scoffed. At least, Levi had a mate. And… he was back to thinking about Marala again. The cycle was never ending throughout his entire eleven hour drive. Nothing was resolved, he was tired and cranky, and the irritating scruff on his chin was getting worse.

After driving past good
ol’ Dollywood and through the tourist strips, he turned onto a side road and drove for nearly thirty minutes up a road that inclined and curved. Near where it ended there was an overlook. Kaden parked and walked to the wood’s edge. He sniffed the air and scanned the area before pushing a large log blocking a narrow dirt road aside. Returning to the Jeep, he drove it through, got out again, and replaced the natural blockade.

In a matter of minutes
of driving, the woods thinned to reveal a small town. Cabins dotted the area. Some were arranged in a semi-circle to form a sort of village center around a water well. Other homes, further out, were barely visible since they were nestled into the woods. Most were small, one or two bedroom homes. Two larger ones housed unmated wolves. One was for the males of age and the other for females.

Dakota, the wolf haven named after Kaden’s ancestors when they returned to claim the area, could be completely self-reliant if need be. Solar panels distributed power, though it was finicky at best with the tree coverage and random weather. There were generators if power failed. A tributary flowed nearby and a natural spring just a short hike down the mountain.

The pack members were free to come and go as they pleased. People went shopping,
enjoyed events like minor league baseball games, and went to the Rod Runs to check out the hot cars. Children attended public schools, if their parents chose not to teach them at home. At the end of the day, though, most everyone returned to the safety of the wolf sanctuary.

With the loss of wolves for numerous reasons
ranging from old age to leaving for different packs, the town now housed about twenty lycan. There should have been more rituals held in honor of the moon, more encouragement to breed. Those responsibilities rested with the alpha female and there wasn’t one. The wolf gene was dying out.

Kaden
walked up to Levi’s house and knocked on the door. The beta answered and bowed his head respectively as he gestured for the pack leader to come inside. “Explain.”

Levi went to his bedroom and shut the door softy, so as not to wake his mate, before returning.
The man was older than Kaden, almost as big. His short shaggy hair was an ash brown and he had matching light eyes.

He poured them both a shot of Tennessee whiskey. “
Last night he went to meditate in the forest. Common for a boy near transition. When he didn’t come home, his parents came to me.”

“Nothing has been suspicious?”

“The high pack scoured everywhere trying to find his scent. No trace whatsoever. Commoners came out to help, too. Nada.” His hand shook as he slung back his shot.

This caused
Kaden’s worry to deepen. Levi and the rest of his men could track anything or anyone. It didn’t make sense for the boy’s trail to be gone completely. “There’s no way he could manage to disappear without a trace with no help.”

“If things keep going at this rat
e, there will no longer be a pack.”

Kade
swirled his whiskey in his glass. Jack Daniels was an old friend. He drank the alcohol and then handed Levi the glass for a refill. “Our elders have all died out but Old Finn. A child hasn’t been born in years. Now a wolf nearing his first shift has disappeared without a trace.”

Levi
lowered his eyes and frowned. “Who do you think is behind this?”

“I don’t know.” He swiped the refilled glass from Levi before kicking it back. “But, I intend to find out.”

Mara picked up the money
Kaden had left and glanced around the apartment. Was it that easy to go home? She certainly wouldn’t miss the apartment. She’d done her best to make it feel like home, but she was a wolf, not a magician. Or better yet, a demolitions expert.

After hiding the money under a loose piece of floor tile and placing the trash can over it, she headed toward
Jak’s room. Lightly, she gave the door a few knocks. He opened, smiling like she’d never seen before.

“Come in.” He grabbed her hand and tugged her over to his
cheap laptop. It had been his Christmas gift. An image search of wolves was on the screen. Jak mooched wi-fi off one of the neighbors. Mara didn’t like it, but she didn’t make him stop. Internet access was a must for the modern kid.

“Wolves?”
She asked.

“Yeah, I was wondering if I’m going to look like Dad.” He pointed at the screen. “This one here is black with green eyes kind of like
you and me.”

Marala
had never heard him so excited about anything before. Apparently the fear had worn off. She smiled tightly. “It’s going to be hard for you when the time comes. I’ve thought about it since you were born. We’ll have to go far away from the city. Maybe get a cage to keep you safe during it.” She sat on the edge of his twin bed.

“Mom.
I want to go live with Dad and the others. I don’t belong in this city.
We
don’t belong.”

She’d known he would want that. The moment
Kaden had walked back into their lives, she’d known. “It is not all fun and games. They fight for rank and to prove themselves. Everything is a testosterone slugfest of dominance and supremacy.”

“Tell me the good things you remember. What was it like before you ran away?” His eyes pleaded and she couldn’t argue.

“In the spring, it smells like honeysuckle. At night, there are lightning bugs everywhere.” She closed her eyes, picturing the days of her youth. “There’s always a ritual during the full moon, even if no one is shifting for the first time.” Mara inhaled deeply, as if she could remember the scents of the forests. Then, she opened her eyes. “It’s the most beautiful place in the world in fall. Leaves are red, orange, yellow… such amazing colors. And there’s just peace.” Her face grew serious. “But, the noise of this city drowns out all the bad things, Jak. I can’t handle the quiet.”

“
He loves you, and whatever he did, I know he regrets it.”

Mara wiped at the corner of her eyes. “You
spend one day with him and you think you know him?”

Jak
frowned. “I know you and you’re better than this grudge you’re holding. What’s it going to hurt to give it a try? You can’t work like this for the rest of your life.”

“I am so very tired,
Jak.” She sighed, giving in a little.

“I know, Mom. Let him take care of us for a while. I’m sure you still have friends there.”

“My world revolved around Kaden even before your grandparents’ were shot. There are people I know, though. Used to know.”

He patted the top of Mara’s hand gently.
“I’ll take care of you. We’ll be alright together.”

She smiled, tucking
Jak’s dark hair behind his ear. “You’re not a kid anymore, are you?”

“No
t by a longshot.”

“Get only the most important stuff you want to take. You can use trash bags for your clothing and I’ll get a few boxes. Tomorrow, I’ll rent the car and we’ll go.”
She said. They were really going home. This had to be a mistake, but Jak deserved to be with his kind.