The Twin Moon (The Moon Series) (6 page)

“Fine.
How are those
babies?”
Ian stepped back and
rubbed a ha
n
d over her largely swollen belly.
A little hard knot kicked his hand and he grinned.

“Good, playing soccer in there I think.
How they have any room to move I will never know.
Edge and
I are still fighting about their
names.”
She scowled as she lovingly rubbed her big belly
.

“You want me to beat him up?”
Ian shoved his hands in his pockets.

“As if you could.
No
,
we’ll agree eventually.
Are you teaching today?”
Ivy picked up the schedule and looked over the days classes.

“Yeah.
I wanted to do
it
today before the weekend comes and the cubs get all wild.”

“We’re having the barbeque/
baby shower on Sunday.
You are still coming, right?”

“Of course I’m coming.
Can I bring a date?”
Ian curled his lips
into a grin.

“A date?
Is this something serious?”
Ivy narrowed her eyes at
him and he flashed her his lady-
killer smile.

“Could be.
Can I bring her?”
Ian studied Ivy for her reaction.
He had never brought a
woman
to meet his family.
His heart beat faster and his palms started to sweat inside his pockets.

“What’s her name?” Ivy had a smile now too.
She had that sister grin she got when she
thought she knew a big secret
.

“Andy.
She’s a legal assistant.”
Ian shifted as Ivy gazed at him.

“When did you meet her?”
Ivy took a step toward him.

Batwings beat inside his stomach.
He wasn’t ready to tell her everything.
“You know, I’ve got this class I have to get ready for.
I’ll catch you later
,
sis.”
Ian kissed Ivy on the forehead.

“Ian
Landry
, you can’t run from me.”
Ivy called down the hall after him as he
jogged
away.

“Just watch me.”
He
hollered
over his shoulder as he
headed
toward his classroom.

***

The cubs shuffled into
the
classroom in their loose fitting clothes as a
group
. A
ll five of them pushed and jabbed
at each other
, a few snarls sounded
from their midst.
The cubs were young
,
sixteen years at most and all male.
Ian never taught the females, they were just too hard to understand and they cried.
He didn’t do tears.
The cubs’
bare feet slapped the mats as they crossed the floor to the center of the small gym room Ian had chosen for today’s practice.
The same roo
m that
was
used for
elder meetings
.

Ian took in a deep breath through his nose, his nostrils flared.
He could still smell the scent of the pack elders lingering in the air and the coppery tickle of blood.
That would do nicely to awake the aggression in the cubs.
The
y
had to
le
arn
about control and anything he could do to make them loose it would help.
Somebody was shoved and a small fight broke out in the back of the group.
Ian cleared his throat.

“Alright, can it.
It’s time to work.
Form a circle around me and breath
e
through your nose.
Deep breaths
,
in through your nose
,
out through your mou
th.”
The cubs fanned out,
automatically spacing themselves an arm
’
s length apart
in a loose semi circle
.
“Tony, what do you smell?”

Tony
,
a tall lanky boy with dark brown hair closed his eyes as his nostrils flared.
“Something metallic.”

“Take it in through your mouth and taste it on your tongue.
Try again.”
Ian watched the boy closely as he obeyed.

“Tastes like a copper penny.”
Tony opened his eyes and stared at Ian.

“No, dumb ass, it taste like a nose bleed.
It’s blood.”
Gavin pushed his shoulder
s
back and raised his chin at Ian.

Ian
didn’t need to see Gavin’s crooked
nose to know why he knew it was blood.
The boy had tasted it often enough
in the back of his throat
.

“Gavin’s right.
It’s blood.
Now who was here?
There were
six
W
eres.
One human.
”

“The
one
’s
easy.”
Gavin closed his eyes.
His nostrils flared
and he stiffened.
“My uncle.”

“That’s right
.
Warren was here.
Five
more.”
The cubs brows narrowed as they focused and names popped to lips until and five remaining elders were named.

“One left.
Anyone want to try?”
Ian stared directly at Gavin challenging him.
He was a smart cub, but
acted
to
o
big for his own good.

Finally
,
the cubs shoulders dropped and Gavin shook his head.

“It was me.
The reason you can’t sort through it is because I’m here now, my scent is block
ing
my earlier scent and throwing you off.
With enough practice you’ll be able to tell a current scent from a past scent.
”
Edge stepped from behind the lockers and moved toward the cubs.
His tall muscular build and dark hair
was
something that intimidated most adults.
He
lived at the Haven and frequented the rooms often
;
his scent was everywhere. T
he cubs
couldn’t scent him in the room because it had become a part of the center itself.

T
hey all stared at their alpha
with wide eyes and open mouth
s
,
even the smart mouth
ed
Gavin.
It wasn’t often they got to be in the same room with him without the elders.

“Keep working, it’ll get easier.”
He waved at Ian and left the room.

“
Which brings me to homework.”
Groans went up around the room as the door closed.
“This weekend I want you to find a room in your house that other people have used
,
identify the scents of the W
eres or people.
Then wh
en there is someone in that room attempt
to separate the past scent from the present scent.”

The door to the gym opened and a red haired teenage
cub
stuck her head
in.

“I’m looking for Dr. Martin’s office.”
She shuffled her feet back and forth and pushed her glasses back up on her
freckled
nose.

“You want the second floor.”
Ian pointed up and she smiled
then
turned away.
As the door shut a musky womanly scent shot through the classroom.
A female in heat.

“She’s mine.”
Gavin growled and lunged for the door.

Ian tackled Gavin to the floor as the other cubs twitched and shivered.

“Get off me.”
Ian struggled to ge
t a better hold on Gavin’s arms as the cub
thrashed under
him
.
Any minute
the immature cub
would change.
A deep groan signaled exactly what Ian
predicted
would happen.

Ian jumped up and raced for the door, locking it.
If he couldn’t control t
h
em he would have to contain them until they came to their senses.
One teenage cub in heat had sent his
entire
class into chaos.
Gavin moaned as bone popped and snapped.
Tony was doubled over ripping his shirt over his head.

“Control your change.
Don’t let it control you.”
Ian’s voice thundered through the room as the cubs all dropped to the floor and she
d
clothing.

“It hurts.”
Someone cried out.

“Why is this hap
pening?”
They were confused.

“She was in heat.
Just breath
e
and roll through it.
Remember what I taught you.
This is how
it works when it happens on it
s own.”
Ian stood guard ove
r the door as hands became paws,
arms and legs shortened.
Tendons
snapped and backs lengthened.
Gavin
changed and
panted
,
nearest to Ian.
He was the one Ian worried about
most
.
The one that would fight to get out.
He knew too much for a cub and Ian wondered if
his human uncle,
Warren
,
knew any of this about his
Were
nephew
.

Fur washed over Gavin’s body in a rush of
caramel as he changed into his cougar form.
Gavin
threw his head back
and screamed
as his tail swished around his feet.
Gavin lay still for a minute panting as the rest of the cubs were still in the midst of their changes.
Then he
slowly rose on trembling legs
to his feet
,
shook his head and
screamed,
the sound deafening
Ian in the small echoing gym.
Gavin paced back and forth in front of Ian his head between his shoulder blades, his tail swishing behind his legs, moving slowly as if sizing up his prey.

Damn it to hell
.
Ian did not want to fight the cub
, but he would if he needed to.
If he had to prove who was boss
,
so be it.

“Gavin calm down.
She’s not yours.
She’s just another cub.
I know your blood is roaring in your ears, but you need to
think right now.
Use your brain. D
on’t allow the cat to control you
.”
Ian kept his gaze steady on Gavin, showing no fear.
“Breathe, in through your nose
,
out through your mouth.
Allow the calm to wash over your body.”

The other cubs were on the floor panting now having completed their changes.
The orange and black tigers huddled in on themselves gather
ing
together.
Slowly one by one the
y
stood
test
ing their
limbs, some stretched their back
s
and legs.
Others sniffed the air and shook the
ir great heads on their necks.
It
wasn’t that they hadn’t been in tiger form
before, but with the high hormones in the air they
soared
with aggression.
Hair stiffened and tempers flared as the tigers eyed each other, all four of them.
The tiger bodies arched into the air as their feet left the ground and they met chest to chest
,
snarls coming from their lips.

Shit.

Gavin turned his head
as his cousins fought and the hair on
Ian’s
neck bristled.
Ian quickly flung clothes off his body and called the change.
His bones popped and snapped as his hand rounded into pa
ws.
His feet followed suit
as his arms and legs shortened.
H
e dropped to all fours.
His jaw snapped open as his teeth filled his mouth sharp and pointed his fangs dipped down below his upper lip.
His skull contorted as his ears moved to the top of his head and thinned out.
His spine rippled and cracked as it lengthened and went flexible.
Then in a prickly wash his fur shot out of his pores and covered his body in orange and black stripes.
His tail grew in last as if by pure m
agic, swishing around his feet.
Ian panted as the pain rolled over him one last time making his gut clench.
The pain was the worst part.
Ian never got used to it.
He
rose up to all
fours shaking his head to resettle himself.
Gavin stared, his golden eyes gone wide in his face.
Ian
had a good couple hundred pounds on the cub.
And the sure intimidation factor of Gavin seeing him in full grown tiger for
m
seemed to have knocked
the cub down a peg or two.
Still Ian eyed him carefully.
The other cubs continued to wrestle behind Gavin.