The Crescent (22 page)

Is this a dream?
I asked the man. He chuckled in response.

“Did they cut you?” Lily interrupted my stare at the beautiful man holding me up.

“No. Alex…” Lily squeezed my hand before I could continue and looked towards Brandon. Brandon looked at me. He reached out and claimed my hand from Lily. Peacefulness rushed over my body; ending the twitching and lingering pain from Alex.

Your strength brought me to you.
Brandon and I were lounging by the creek from my dream.
I need you more now than you will ever know.

“Brandon, Alex saved my life. He stopped Sophie.” I rubbed his hand anxiously in mine. “You can’t hurt him.”

Brandon looked away from me denying me his comfort. He pulled his hand back from me. “You can’t ask me that. He would kill me if he got a chance, then you would die.”

“No, he won’t kill you. Please, you can’t hurt him.” I pleaded reaching for his face, wanting him to tell me everything would be ok.

Brandon stared deeply at me, his eyes longing for me to say it was ok for him to do what he thought was necessary. But I couldn’t. “I don’t understand how you can love him. How can you love anyone else other than me?” His voice almost reduced me to tears.

“I don’t know how this works. I can’t explain.” I folded my arms quickly across my body when he refused to let me hold his hand.

I jumped when Brandon reached for my hand to look at my palm; my mark was still small and faded. “I don’t understand.” He said concerned. His eyes shot up to mine. “Did you sleep with him?”

My body started to twitch and ache again; we were back in my living room. All faces turned to look at me and then at Alex. I yanked my hand back from him. “No. I didn’t.” I responded quietly not taking my eyes off Brandon. He glared at Alex, hatred flashed across his face. His fingers dug into the palms of his hands as he clinched them into fists.

Before I could stop him, he started screaming at Alex. “I’m going to kill you!”

Brandon rushed towards Alex. Matt and Trevor both reached out and grabbed Brandon before he could get to him.

“NO.” I screamed.

“NO.” Sophie screamed.

“STOP!” My parent’s both screamed.

Jillian still held Gavin’s head in her lap; my Aunt was tending to him. His paws had started to move. Lily reached out and claimed my hand in hers again.

“Alex, maybe you were better than we originally thought.” Sophie’s voice was high pitched. “Looks like you started to break the bond.” She smiled wickedly and she clapped both of her hands together. Gavin started to stir. “I guess she just needed more time with him, or for him to make the ultimate sacrifice for her.” The large man started to pull me from the house as tension overtook the room. Matt and Trevor both leaned forward just as Gavin had earlier.

“No- stop. You can have her. Get her out of here.” Alex put out his hands trying to stop the melee. “She is safe with you.” He said squarely to Brandon.

Michael stepped forward. “Alex, you are welcome to come with us.” He leaned around and looked at Jillian, “You too. But you know we can’t allow her to leave.” Michael pointed at Sophie.

“I’m not leaving without her.” Alex positioned himself between Michael and Sophie.

“Alex please come with us.” I said. Brandon reached out and grabbed my wrist firmly. He scowled at me displeased.

“Do you not understand that he wants me
dead?
” Brandon said through his clenched teeth.

“He saved my life.” I said defiantly.

“By killing me… he kills
you.”
Brandon flicked his finger in my face.

“Alex would never hurt me.” I stepped back.

“You love him.” Brandon screamed.

“Yes.” I replied trying to calm my heart and my head.

“She doesn’t know what she is saying.” Lily stepped between Brandon and I.

“So you would try to steal my son from me? He would never leave his family. Besides aren’t you afraid the bond will continue to be broken?” Sophie’s tone was musical. She was thoroughly enjoying the tense transaction going on between Brandon and I. Brandon refused to look away, his eyes threatened to break me in half. His hand still clenched around the wrist that Gavin had hung me by earlier.

“You’re hurting me.” I whispered looking down at my hand that was now bright red. A tear escaped my eye betraying my need to stand up for what I believed in.

Brandon released it immediately. “I’m sorry.” He didn’t get the words out fully when Gavin took advantage and sprung towards him. Matt and Trevor couldn’t react quickly enough. Brandon was knocked down and Gavin was biting and clawing at him. Sophie started to laugh hysterically. Jillian and I both screamed almost in unison. Lily grabbed my hand pulling me from the room, but the man was much stronger; he grabbed my arm and completely spun me out of the way and out the door. I landed sharply on the front porch. The wood sending splinters deep into my hands; small droplets of blood rose to the surface as I picked out a few of the pieces.

I looked back into my house, terrified of what I was about to see. My heart ached for Alex’s safety; my head for Brandon’s. The feelings for each of them competing for space in my heart and justification in my mind. Timidly I pulled myself towards the door and leaned around the corner. Only my parents, Sophie, Jillian and Jamie remained in human form. Gavin’s large black frame stood by another large black wolf; I assumed it was Alex. Three additional wolves stood with their backs to me, low intimidating growls vibrated their chests. I bit the inside of my cheek hard trying to stop myself from screaming.

Calming myself, I finally whispered, “Brandon?” Hoping that his hearing was intensified like mine had been the day I felt my body transforming. The large wolf in the center turned to look at me. His monstrous eyes so familiar, so…

“Grant?” I said as a giant lump overtook my throat. There standing before me, larger than life, was my dog; my missing best friend.

“Brandon?” I choked out. Lily wrapped her arms around me and tried to pull me away from the door. Grant came and poked his head out the door to nuzzle his face to mine. A small whimper escaped his mouth. I sobbed harder and full tears were now running down my face.

“Shhh. It’s ok. It’s ok.” Lily tried to soothe me, totally oblivious to how freaked out I was.

“NO it’s not ok! That’s my dog!” I shrieked at Lily pushing her hands away.

She tightened her grip around my waist. “I told you he couldn’t be away from you. It was the only way.”

I broke free of her grip and swiftly stood. I got to the door just in time to see more wolves join the fray. One lunged at Matt; his jagged teeth ripping and clawing at the skin just behind Matt’s neck. He yelped and fell to the ground as Gavin attacked Trevor. Michael took point next to Brandon and the two of them went after the wolf attacking Matt. I hadn’t realized that Lily was next to me now in the doorway. Her little body trembled, her face bright red and splotchy from tears.

“No Matt. No!” She screamed and lurched forward.

I pushed her away from the door to the large man that looked like Brandon. She shook, sobbed and thrashed in his arms trying to get away, all the while screeching Matt’s name as loud as she could.

“Is there anyway to stop this?” I asked him.

“This has gone on for centuries. I doubt
you
can stop it.” He grinned like he didn’t have a care in the world about the war raging inside my living room. Didn’t he realize my world was crumbling? He wrapped his arms tightly around Lily’s shoulder to keep her from running back to the house. Somehow I knew my life would never, could never, be the same again.

“There has to be a way.” I said more to myself than anyone else. Back inside the house, the battle continued as bodies of wolves flew back and forth in front of the door. It looked like natures version of wrestling as the bodies twisted and rolled over each other.

Ok if this is a dream Lacey, you can wake up now.

TWENTY

FOUR

I couldn’t stop Lily’s pain. She was shaking and crying so hard listening to the deep growling and yelping coming from inside the house. Shadows passed across the picture window of the front room as barking was met with louder, more ferocious growls.

I pressed my back hard against the house trying to decide my next move. If I didn’t run back into the house- Alex could get hurt. If I did run back into the house then Alex, Brandon or I could get hurt. That wouldn’t help anyone. If I died, Brandon would die. If I didn’t stand up for Alex, he could die. Filling my lungs to their capacity with air, I prepared myself to run into the house. 1…2…3… I started to spin into the house when the large man crushed my forearm with his powerful fingers.

“Oh no you don’t!” His eyes shifted towards the door. “We have to get you out of here.” He pulled me away from the porch and down the stairs. One of his hands wrapped around me the other around Lily.

I fought him, yanking back on my arms as the noise from the house increased. “No, stop.”

“You don’t understand.” He said through clenched teeth.

“Thomas stop!” Lily stuttered. “I won’t leave Matt!”

“We aren’t leaving them.” He commanded and tugged hard on both of us, slamming us into each other. “DAMN IT!” He shouted as he stumbled down the last step with us in tow.

Lily and I continued to complain as he dragged us into the yard and onto the grass. “Stop.” He growled. More noise came from the house; shadows of furniture being tossed were flying across the window. Lily and I stopped moving, Thomas was enraged staring at the house.

“Thomas? I can’t leave him.” Lily pleaded, her green eyes shifting between his face and the house.

“Lily…” He stopped, scanning the street. The hair on my arms stood and I could feel the small hairs at the base of my neck prickling. A cool, unsettling breeze glided over my skin sending cold chills through me. Before I could say anything Thomas reached forward and pushed on my shoulders causing me to land hard on my back, knocking the wind out of me. It didn’t take long and Lily joined me on the grass. Thomas leaned forward on his knuckles and started to transform. Noise and movement echoed on the street rushing closer to the house. I grabbed Lily and pulled her to the side yard just as more of the Mare wolf pack appeared in our front yard. Thomas, now an imposing black wolf, was blocking the pathway to our house.

Lily clawed at my arms trying to get back to the house. “Stop! Stop! I’m not the enemy remember?” I whispered trying to get the gate opened without drawing attention to us.

“How do I know that? You would let Brandon die for Alex?” She clenched her jaw and pulled her hand from mine, scratching my arm in the process.

“Can we talk about this later?” I couldn’t explain my feelings now. I didn’t even understand them myself. I had something real with Alex; everything with Brandon hadn’t been real. Or at least I didn’t feel like it was, not yet. I glanced down at my palm, thinking of the day that my mark appeared, thinking of laying in bed with Brandon, kissing him.

“Don’t you love him? Can’t you feel it?” Lily furrowed her eyebrows as she leaned towards me. “You have to feel it. He can’t survive without you. You have to believe in him…”

We snuck to the backdoor to see if there was another way to get this insanity to end. I watched Trevor and Matt advancing on Gavin. Michael was circling Sophie. Brandon and Alex were nose to nose with each other.

“I wish I could just get them to stop.”

“They don’t want you to be with Brandon.” Lily mumbled as she tapped on the window. She laid her palm flat to the smooth glass.
I love you Matt. Come back to me.
Matt turned and locked eyes with Lily as if he sensed her presence, her need.

“How did you do that? Could he hear you?” I asked almost doubting what I had just seen.

Lily frowned. “That’s what
you
don’t understand. Once you are bonded, you will be able to hear each other’s thoughts, feel each other feelings, the love… the pain. You don’t understand because you haven’t given him a chance.”

I looked back just in time to see Alex advance on Brandon. My skin boiled at the thought of Brandon being hurt over me. I grabbed the door and mustered all my courage flinging myself into the house. “No!” I screamed running through the kitchen towards the living room, Lily screamed and pleaded with me to stop.

Mom and dad were both still in the corner of the living room comforting Jillian as Gavin fought Matt. Their faces turned to horror when they saw me. “No! Lacey get out of here!” Dad screamed and put up his hand trying to stop my advance.

I wish I had listened.

Grant was crumbled against the wall, lying where Alex had thrown him. I rushed and threw my body to cover him, just as Alex advanced again to pounce on him. Alex’s terrifying claws ripped into my arms and back.

I tumbled down on top of Grant, feeling the warm blood oozing from the slits in my back. It trickled down my body and across my arms. Every one of my ribs cracked under his weight; my body twitched again as the smell radiating from Alex burned my senses adding to my misery. I was sure dying would have felt better than this.

“Lacey!” My mother screamed.

Alex panted just feet from me while Grant, now turned back to Brandon, was lying limp beneath me. I tried to get up, but the gashes on my arms split open further with every movement causing more pain. My mother and father rushed to my side pushing Alex out of the way. Alex whimpered and lay down obediently at my mother’s feet. All I wanted was my mother to comfort me, instead, the horrible smell surrounded them and I couldn’t breathe. I gasped for air, but the fire penetrated my lungs.

“Lacey…” The breathing below me was shallow. I looked towards Brandon; he lifted his fingers to rub down my cheek. “I’m so sorry.” He said straining for breath.

All the wolves were back in human form. I glanced up at Alex, tears forming in his eyes. Jillian and Aunt Jamie were both crying too.

“Get her!” Sophie screamed at Gavin.