The Legacy of Kilkenny (48 page)

I heard a light knocking on my door before it quietly opened. “Abel, I know you’re almost grown, but you need to go to sleep.
 
You promised you’d help dad get the deck done tomorrow.”
 
Mom said.
 
“I know you’re thinking about Mr. Phelan Abe, he’s at peace now.
 
I’m so sorry you kids have had to deal with such grown up stuff lately.”

“I know.
 
For the love of everything sacred!
 
I’ve heard about the deck since Father’s day.
  
I’m okay, really I am.
 
Sweet dreams, I
love
you,” I say as I pull my blinds down to obscure the view outside.
 
She has no idea what grown up stuff is
, I thought to myself.

“Do you know if your sister has made it home? Her bedroom door is locked so I’m not sure.”
 
She asks as she wipes some sleepy stuff out of her eyes.

“I don’t think so, I haven’t seen her.”
 
I scramble around trying to find the words to keep her from worrying.
 
“She’s fine, don’t worry, you know how she is.”
 
I bump my leg on the footboard of my bed as I walked over to hug her good night.

“I know. I just can’t help but worry about her. She was in some kind of mood today huh?”
 
She leaned in further taking note of Bryon crashed out.
 
“He sure is loud, no wonder you can’t sleep. I love you, at least
try
to get some sleep.”
 
She kissed me on my cheek and I listen as she goes down the stairs.

Oklahoma in July is probably what hell’s hallway feels like.
 
Gary England said it will be a record setting day at 106 but feels like 110.
 
If it feels like 110 why don’t they just say its 110?
 
Stupid.
  
It hasn’t rained in the past two weeks so everything is covered with red dirt dust.
 
It was so windy last night; I thought my windows were going to shatter.
 
You’d have never known about the wind storm since it is so stagnant out today.
 
Apparently July 4
^th
is a big party at the Phelan farm.
 
The party wasn’t going to happen but Dolly insists things continue as normal.
 
 
She cooks up enough food to feed a small army.
 
Everywhere I look, I see a tray of snacks.
 
The fireworks are ordered a year in advance so the entire light display was the General’s idea.
 
I find out that Oakley is a closet
pryro
junkie, he sets up a laser light show to music and programs the fireworks to go off simultaneous.
 
Everyone else helps with homemade ice cream and of course Dolly has apple pies she baked yesterday.
 
Everything
seems
normal, minus the General’s presence.

Chrissy has the night off and I brought her with me to the farm, most everyone seems to like her, everyone except Pru.
  
I’m not sure if she doesn’t like her, or if it is a girl thing.
 
Dolly tells me that she really does like her, she is just worried about bringing someone into our circle right now.
 

Everything is going pretty good, we eat until we can’t eat anything else… well not for another half hour at least.
 
Chrissy, Oakley, Pru, and I are in a cut-throat game of horse shoes, it is good to see Pru laughing and being herself.
 
Oak and her are holding hands and kissing openly.
 
I’m sure Dolly had something to do with it, she is genuinely happy for both of them.

Before the light show can begin we all get water hoses and watering cans to water everything down since it is a huge fire hazard.
 
It’s been so dry that water rationing has begun, unless of course you have wells like the
Phelans
and one of those huge water reservoir like they do.
 
Chrissy snuck up shoots water at Bryon and Shaynie as they try having a private kissing moment.
 
Oakley and Pru found a couple of the guys eating burgers instead of watering so they got hosed.
 
For a minute I stop and listen, and all I hear is the sounds of summer and laughter.
 
We’re all hot and sticky from the heat but we’re happy for once

We’re all sitting in lounge chairs, couples coupled up, Dolly talking with Parker and the fireflies starting to light up the farm.
 
“When you
gonna
get this show going?”
 
I ask Oakley.

“Parker has the remote, he is waiting for the final light to clear the trees so it’ll be good and dark.
 
You in some type of hurry mister?”
 
Oakley says.

I give
Chrissy’s
hand a light
sqeeze
and she thinks to
 
me “T
hank you for bringing me, this is so fun.”
 

“No, not in a hurry, just ready to be impressed with your
pyro
-techno abilities.”
 
Everyone busts out laughing.

It was only a minute later and my stomach starts to rumble.
 
“Hey, I’ll be right back.”
 
I nonchalantly race to the pool house thinking I can splash some water on my face and feel better. By the time I get there, I have the most excruciating pain shoot up and down the length of my back, then it filtered to my stomach and through my chest.
 
I’m so hot, they must have forgotten to turn on the air conditioning.
 
I step out the back door that faces the woods.
 
I think maybe if I sit under a tree in the shade of the woods I’ll cool down.
 
Oh crap the pain, my hands start cramping and twisting, I can’t do this, I need an ambulance.
 
What is happening.
 
Did someone poison me.
 
I start
 
panting, I drop to the floor on all fours feeling like I need to throw up, and I do.
 
I pant so hard, I need water, my mouth is so dry.
 
If I can just drag myself back to the pool house, I can get a drink of water.
 
I can’t move, my body won’t move.
 
I lay on my side, pain rippling through me.
 
It is too much, just kill me now.
 
Why try poisoning me, just shoot me.
 
I’m going to die all alone under a tree.
 
Someone must be in the woods and saw me.
 
No, the pain started by the fire with Chrissy.
 
Oh crap!
 
I roll back to all fours, my back arching up higher than I have ever felt my body move.
“Chrissy, if you can hear me, send Oakley, don’t let anyone else know.
 
Do it fast, I’m behind the pool house.
 
Hurry!”
 
I pray she heard me.
 
How did it go?
 
Our Father who art in heaven…. Oh no, the pain, please stop the pain.
 
I’m going to be sick again…. Thy kingdom come…. Oh,
ow
, I can’t do it, please I need help….
Thy
will be done…. Oh God, help me I need your help, I don’t know what is happening…..On earth as it is….. Oh please get Oakley here, I need his help…..

“Abel?”
 
Oakley says as he runs up to where I’m sprawled out on the ground.
 
“Oh,
ohhhhhh
.
 
You’re shifting, OHMIGOD you’re really shifting.”
 
His voice slightly panicked, I hear him take a breath and say, “Okay, it’s okay Abe, I’ll get Pru, you’ll be fine.”

“No!
 
No, I don’t want her; I need you to be here.
 
How long will it take?”
 
I ask through panting.
 
“I need water; please I need something to drink.”

“I’ll run over to the pool house and grab some bottles of water, just stay here, I’ll be right back.
 
Just breath, through your mouth, nice deep breaths, filling your lungs, it helps.”
 
He ran off like he was set on fire.
 

He reaches over holding the bottle to my mouth so I can take a drink.
 
It is ice cold and so cool on the back of my throat.
 
“Thanks man.”
 
It takes me a minute to catch my breath.
 
“I just knew it was going to happen soon, but not like this.
 
Oh man, this is intense.”
 
I fall over to my side, feeling my skin ripple and roll all over my body, none of it is left out.
 
My butt cheeks feel like a baseball is bouncing around, my face is bulging to the music, my skin itchy like a bad case of poison ivy…. Oh to scratch it would feel like heaven, I can’t bend my arms the right way and my hands are on fire, no scratching from me.
 
“Oak, scratch, please.”
 
I plead between pants.

He starts scratching my back; I know what a dog feels like.
 
If I could shake my leg I would, it is like heaven having your back scratched.

 
“Abel, it will go faster if you concentrate.
 
Close your eyes go to a quiet place.
 
I’m going to undress you so you won’t rip your clothes up.
 
Don’t worry, it isn’t like I haven’t seen a naked man before, I promise no funny business.
 
Trust me, you’re not my type.”
 
He pats my back.
 
“I’m kidding, well not really, you aren’t my type though.
 
Seriously, just breathe deep.
 
Think about the ocean, the waves rippling across the beach, feel the salt air everywhere, envision the sun setting, the intense colors dancing in the sky, now focus on your shift, your change, your beginning as one of us.”

I focus on what he is saying, I relax and then I feel it, my head changes first, my neck is having a horrible time holding up my heavy head, and then my back arches and I feel my torso and neck change…. I take another breath and the strangest feeling I’ve ever experienced, an appendage starts to grow out of my butt!
 
I have a tail! It won’t lie down; it is bouncing around in the air.
 
I am sure I look like a freak.
 
My left arm starts burning and my hand turns into a paw.
 
It is huge!
 
I fall over to my side and my legs and right arm change.
 
Everything is muffled, an empty space, not hearing….and then it becomes clear as to why….. because I am growing ears, they are the last thing on me to shift.
 
I changed!
 

I stand up; my legs feel so strange, yet familiar.
 
Oakley looks at me in awe, his eyes are huge and he’s crying.
 
He puts his arms around my neck and hugs me.
 
His voice thick, his usual drawl subdued.
 
I don’t really hear his words, my mind translates them into pictures and knowledge.
 
I did it, I’m a wolf.
 
I am the wolf of all wolves.
 
OHMIGOD as Pru would say.

Oakley stands up and tells me to follow him, and not to come out from behind the building.
 

PRU

I kept looking at my dad’s chair, the one we had made for him a few years ago, HEAD HANCHO embroidered on it.
 
So many times I went to send him a text or call him.
 
I saved some of his messages on my voice mail, I listened to them every night before bed.
 
Mom was trying so hard to keep us all together. I admired her strength as she fought to keep the peace in the Pack.
 
It was her idea to set his chair up to respect his fallen status.
 
A pit in my stomach clinches when I think of him, basically it is always clinched.
 
I hate this reality.
 
I hate vampires.
 
I hate rogue wolves.
 
I hate missing my dad.
 
Someone will pay
, I think to myself.
 

Oakley had been so sweet, but I just didn’t
feel
connected with him right now.
 
He still wouldn’t tell me exactly what had happened.
 
I didn’t
blame
blame
him, I just felt like something was being left out.
 
Oakley is one of the best at what he does, how this could have happened I don’t know.
 
I would trust him to guard the Pope, so how did my dad get hurt and no one else?
 
I couldn’t think like that, it wasn’t healthy.
 
I knew that he loved my dad.
 
I shook my head trying to clear my thoughts.