Lone Wolfe Protector (16 page)

Chapter Twenty-Three

Maggie gaped at her, then wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her sweatshirt. “Yeah. Okay.”

Holding the gate open, Aimee waited until Maggie passed, then closed it, dropping the latch soundlessly.

She walked ahead a few feet and Maggie followed, her mind tumbling over itself, a mass of joy, confusion, questions, relief. She found she couldn’t hold on to just one emotion, so she stopped trying. She had to trot to keep up with Aimee, who made her way into the trees and shadows on silent feet.

“Where are we going?” she asked, wincing when a branch scraped her thigh.

“Shhhh.” Aimee held a finger to her lips and looked back at the house again. Her hair hung in her face. She looked untamed. Uncivilized almost.

“Aimee?”

“Just hold on, Mags.”

They walked that way for a few minutes, getting deeper and deeper inside the woods. The moonlight pierced the trees above, creating an eerie mix of light and shadow. Maggie shivered, watching Aimee’s back. Watching her hair swing over angular shoulders and the way she stepped so confidently over the forest floor.

When Aimee finally stopped, it was inside a dense thicket of trees and brush.

Breathing heavily, Maggie looked around. Then rested her gaze on her friend, whom she still couldn’t believe was standing there looking back. She shook her head, overwhelmed and a little dizzy.

“Aimee,” she began, “what happened?” Her voice wavered and then broke. “Where have you
been?
”

Aimee’s face settled into a look of concentration that Maggie remembered well. But those black eyes. Those, Maggie was having a hard time with.

“And what happened to your eyes?”

Aimee touched Maggie’s elbow and motioned for her to sit on a fallen log. She did, feeling the dew seep into the seat of her jeans.

“What is it?” Maggie asked, insistent. “You’re scaring me.”

“I’m not the same person you remember.”

Maggie laughed nervously. “No shit.” Her smile wilted when Aimee remained serious. “Of course you’re not. You’ve been through hell. It’s okay though, because we’re going to get you home. We’ll get you some help.”

“Maggie.”

“We’ll find you the best doctors.”

“Maggie.”

“The best therapists—”

“
Maggie.”

She looked up. “What?”

“I don’t want to go back.”

Maggie stared up at her, not processing. “What?”

“I don’t want to.”

“What?” She wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry.
“What?”

Aimee took a step forward. “I look different, because I am different.”

Maggie nodded.

“No.” Aimee kneeled down, putting a hand on her knee. “I’m
different,
Maggie.”

Maggie looked into her eyes. Surely they were contacts, some kind of disguise. None of this made any sense.

“Listen to me,” Aimee said evenly. “It’s going to be hard for you. Really hard. But I want you to try and listen to what I’m about to say.”

The urge to laugh as if it was all an absurd joke was overwhelming. But the look on Aimee’s face remained serious.

“Okay. I’m listening.”

“That night, the night we stopped here—”

“I
know
what night it was,” Maggie snapped, suddenly angry. Why were they sitting here in the middle of the damn woods, anyway? Why weren’t they on the phone to Aimee’s parents right this second? She took a shaky breath. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m just confused.”

Aimee’s lips tilted. Small and weary, but familiar. “I know you are. I’m sorry, too. For all of this. But you have to understand, it’s never what I wanted. I had no choice.”

Maggie twisted her fingers to the point of pain. “Go on,” she said. “Please.”

“The night we stopped here, when I went to use the bathroom…”

Maggie held her breath.

“He was waiting for me. He was behind the door.”

“He?”

“The policeman. The trooper.”

“Aimee.”

“He wasn’t in uniform. He wore a mask. He grabbed me from behind and put an arm around my neck.” She seemed far away when she said this, her voice barely audible. “He was so strong. Said if I made a sound he’d kill me. He dragged me through the window and into the woods.”

Maggie touched her own throat, remembering how Alan’s hands had felt wrapped around it. So that was what had happened that night. Her stomach roiled, and she felt like she would be sick.

“When he got me far enough in, he started groping me.” Aimee’s face was pained, but composed. Maggie had the distinct feeling this was for her benefit. “He tried to take my bra. Of course. Sick fuck.”

And there was a glimpse of her old friend. The dry humor that Maggie had loved so much.

“He was going to kill me. I knew it. It’s strange, you know? All those things you hear, about what to do in a situation like that. I couldn’t remember any of them. I couldn’t remember shit. All I kept thinking was,
This is how I’m going to die.”

“How’d you get free?”

Aimee looked away, seeming to hear something in the forest Maggie couldn’t. “I didn’t. Not on my own.”

Maggie’s blood chilled.

“Someone helped me.”

“Who?”

When Aimee looked back, her eyes seemed infinite inside her delicate face. “Jim.”

“Jim…Jim…the
caretaker?
”

Aimee nodded.

“What?” Maggie was having trouble breathing. “How? Why? Why didn’t he
say
anything?”

“Because. He has a secret, Maggie.”

“A secret.”

“Remember when I told you that you needed to hear me out? You’re going to have to listen very carefully, okay?”

Maggie dug her fingers into the log where she sat, jamming bits of bark underneath her nails. A piece of bark broke off. The moss was slick and soft against her skin, and she held on for a minute, rubbing her thumb back and forth over it.

Aimee reached over and stilled Maggie’s fingers, the touch familiar. She shoved the bark in her pocket, finding comfort in its cool, earthy texture.

“Okay. Sure. I’m listening.”

“Jim isn’t what he seems.”

“He’s not a caretaker?”

Aimee smiled at this, but it was Maggie’s turn to be serious. She was beyond confused. All of this was getting weirder by the second.

“He’s Koda and Zane’s uncle from their father’s side. His name is James Bastien Wolfe. No one but Ara knows that. Until now.”

Maggie considered this, felt a strange prickling sensation and then understood why. “Koda and Zane. Ara,” she said. “You know them?”

Aimee shook her head. “I know
of
them. But I don’t know them. Not like you.”

“Their uncle.” Maggie sampled the words on her tongue. “Why wouldn’t he tell them?”

“Because. The fewer people who know about him, the better.”

Suddenly Maggie didn’t want to hear any more. It was all getting too bizarre.

Aimee’s strange dark gaze settled on hers. “Jim didn’t so much see what was happening to me, as he sensed it.”

Maggie waited, silent.

“He sensed it because the Wolfe men…they’re special.”

Above them an owl hooted. The sound sent shivers up Maggie’s back. What she really wanted to do was get up and walk away before Aimee spoke again. But she forced herself to sit still. Because she loved her and couldn’t bear to leave her again. No matter how freaky she sounded.

“You know about the legend.” Aimee said.

“The legend,” Maggie repeated, as if it would start to make more sense. Her entire body felt coiled, ready to spring.

“You know about the lupus, the family tragedies.”

“Yes.”

“There’s no lupus.”

“Thank God,” Maggie said.

“It was just an explanation.”

“For?”

“Early deaths and disappearances. Because the tragedy part
is
true.”

Maggie immediately thought of Koda’s father who’d died so young, and her head throbbed. She fixed Aimee with a wobbly stare. “So they have bad luck?” She wanted it to be that simple, wanted Aimee to stop right there and not say anything more. But a tiny spot of clarity began to reveal itself inside her brain.

“You could say that. Among other things.”

“What? Just tell me.” She took in Aimee’s features, beautiful, apprehensive. Whatever it was, her friend worried about saying it out loud. Maggie was worried, too. And for whatever reason, all she could think of was that spine-tingling howl she’d heard that night with Koda.
There are no wolves around here,
he’d said.

Aimee sat back, the heels of her moccasins sinking into the bed of pine needles. “Well, here’s the thing. The legend…the part about werewolves…” She took a long breath, blowing it out slowly. “That part is true.”

Maggie laughed. It was high pitched and shrill. Almost loony. She looked at Aimee and wiped a tear from her eye. “Excuse me?”

“It’s true, Maggie.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“I’m very serious.”

“Aimee—”

“Mags.” Aimee cut her off. “If you’re being honest with yourself, deep down, I think you probably already knew.”

Maggie laughed again. “That’s ridiculous. I never believed any of that crap. And what’s really hard to swallow, is that you do. Why, I don’t know. The only thing I can think of is that you’ve been traumatized.”

“That’s true. I’ve been through something horrible. But I’m not crazy.”

“How do you expect me to believe this? God knows I love you. I’m so thankful, and…and…” She was having trouble getting the words out. None of them fit. None of them were strong enough or encompassed all of what she was feeling. “I’d do
anything
for you. You’re my family. But…”

“But what?”

Maggie rocked back and forth, hugging herself.

“If you really love me, you’ll believe what I’m saying. It’s imperative that you do, Maggie.”

Aimee stood. She was so tall now, so different. Her eyes, her build. Things that Maggie had questioned in the back of her mind, but knew she’d be able to explain away later. Now, she wasn’t so sure. She wasn’t sure of anything anymore. Coming back to Wolfe Creek had turned her world upside down in more ways than one. Everything that she believed to be true about her life had changed the second Aimee had walked back into it.

“This is a magical place,” Aimee said. “There’s more going on here than an outsider could ever guess. I think it’s always been this way. Magic exists, but most people are just too busy to notice.”

Maggie remained quiet.
Magic.

“I think maybe we stopped here for a reason,” Aimee said. “I think I went into that bathroom at exactly the moment I did, because I was meant to.”

“You never believed in fate before.”

Aimee shook her head, her long, tangled hair moving against her cheeks. “No, I didn’t. But I do now.”

“So what happened? When Jim…appeared?” Maggie couldn’t bring herself to believe any of this, but there was a strange compulsion driving her to ask.

“I’m going to tell you, but I need you to stay calm, okay?”

“I will.”

Aimee narrowed her eyes. They sparkled even in the darkness.
“Really
calm.”

A tranquility settled over Maggie’s shoulders. She nodded.
Those eyes.

“Jim saved my life that night. The trooper ended up getting away, but I was caught in the middle.”

Goose bumps prickled Maggie’s legs.

“I was accidentally bitten.”

An owl hooted again. Something scampered off to the left, rustling the bed of dry leaves. Maggie remained still, soaking in the words. Bitten.
Bitten.
What the fuck did that mean? Did she have rabies?

Aimee watched, intent. “Say something.”

“I don’t know what to say. Are you telling me that Jim bit you?”

“Yes.”

“Are you telling me that you were bitten by a…
werewolf
?”

Nodding slowly, Aimee stepped forward.

“So…so you’re saying you’re a werewolf.” The words fell from her mouth like boulders.

Aimee leaned down until she was within just a few inches. Maggie could actually feel the heat coming off her skin. Could feel the sweetness of her breath against her forehead.

“Yes,” Aimee whispered.

This time Maggie didn’t laugh. She looked at her friend, the girl whom she’d grown up with, shared so many secrets with. The girl she thought of as her sister. And felt only pain.

“Why are you doing this?” she asked.

Aimee bent to one knee, her expression mirroring Maggie’s. “There was no way around it. You had to know.”

“I can’t believe this, Aimee. I’m so sorry, but I just can’t.”

Aimee didn’t answer. Instead, she reached out and wrapped her long, graceful fingers around Maggie’s wrist.

“Ouch. You’re hurting me.”

Aimee’s midnight eyes widened, their shape actually changing, growing.

“
Ouch
,” Maggie said, trying to pull away. But the hand that held her wouldn’t allow it. It was like a steel trap. Her heart drummed in response, and she wanted to run.

Before Maggie knew what was happening, Aimee clamped her other hand over her mouth. She struggled, too caught up in a rush of panic to understand.

An electricity pulsed beneath Aimee’s hot, dry skin. It was salty against Maggie’s lips and smelled like meadow grass. She tried to scream, but couldn’t.

“It’s okay,” Aimee said. “I’d never hurt you, Maggie. I love you. Don’t you see? I’ve been with you this whole time.”

Maggie shut her eyes. Sharp, vivid memories came at her one after the other. They were relentless. Hitting the dog on the freeway, the howl rolling over the meadow where she’d slept with Koda, the night she saw the animal crouching by the gate. All of them assaulted her at once.
Aimee. It had been Aimee all along.

And when she looked back, her friend’s eyes were no longer black.

They were a bright, lustrous gold.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Maggie stopped struggling. Her body stilled as if she’d been shot full of a tranquilizer. Even her heartbeat slowed, filling her with a sense of calm that was probably just pure and absolute exhaustion.

Hesitantly, Aimee removed her hand from Maggie’s mouth. Somewhere in the darkness a lone dog barked. And farther away, dulled by distance and landscape, was the sound of the freeway where the occasional log truck barreled down the mountain.

“What…?” Maggie couldn’t finish. She didn’t know how.

Aimee’s burnished gaze was almost serene. “It’s true,” she said quietly.

True.
True.
It couldn’t be. Couldn’t possibly be. Yet, the light reflected in Aimee’s animal eyes confirmed what she’d been feeling all along.

All this time, she’d been watched. She hadn’t imagined it.
It was true
.

Maggie opened her mouth to speak, but Aimee stopped her.

“Don’t. It’s going to take some time, Mags.”

“But why?” she choked out. “Why are you telling me now, after all this time?”

“You were on the verge of finding out, anyway. You weren’t supposed to. But I know you, and you would have put it together eventually. And I wanted to be the one to tell you.”

“What about Koda? Is he…?” Maggie thought of the man she’d fallen so helplessly for. She pictured his eyes, black like Zane’s. Black as the night she was sitting in now. How could she ever wrap her mind around this?

“He doesn’t know.”

“How could he
not?
”

“It doesn’t happen right away. It might never happen for him. But it did for his father. It could for his boys.”

“And Zane?”

Aimee wet her lips. “It’s too early to tell, but Jim thinks yes. Maybe for Zane.”

It took every bit of strength Maggie had not to cry out. The curse really existed. Magic surrounded Wolfe Creek, and was tangible in the form of the men who bore the same name. They carried it with them without even knowing.

“Don’t be afraid, Mags,” Aimee said, touching the spot on Maggie’s wrist that was faintly purple now. “Something terrible happened a long, long time ago. It’s changed so many lives. But the tragedy stops there.” Her face turned up, stunning in the moonlight that settled over it. “Things happen in life. You can choose to be beaten by them, or you can choose to see the beauty and peace that’s almost always there if you look hard enough. I
choose
to live my days as something good
.
Something worthy.”

And with those words, there was finally a moment of understanding that Maggie could grasp. Whatever Aimee was now, she would never hurt her, Maggie knew that. And neither would Jim. They wouldn’t even hurt Alan, as dangerous and deadly as he’d been. Aimee carried with her a realm that might take a lifetime to figure out. But she also carried her humanity as well. Maggie could see it in her friend’s expression. That part hadn’t changed. If anything, it had grown stronger.

“I’m grateful,” Maggie whispered.

Aimee’s sun-colored eyes were glassy. “Me, too. But there’s no perfect ending to this story. We can only take each page as it’s read to us.”

Maggie put her hand on Aimee’s, feeling the power there, the heat.

“I’m not sorry about what’s happened to me,” Aimee said. “It’s taken a long time, and there are moments when I still struggle with it. But I believe this is a gift. I really do.”

Maggie considered this. “Will you ever go home again? Your parents, Aimee. They’re heartbroken.”

“I don’t know.” Aimee looked away. “It’s complicated. I miss them so much. Maybe someday. But for now I need to be here. These woods are where I’m most comfortable. And there are others. Living in society is possible, but for me it’s harder. I just need more time.”

“So you’re going to stay dead.” Maggie felt the certainty of the words before they’d even formed on her lips.

“For now, yes. Until I can think of something better, yes. It’s the only way.”

“What about me? What do I do now?” She felt like she was being let out of a car on the side of a deserted road. She didn’t know whether to turn left or right. If she wasn’t the girl looking for Aimee, then who was she?

Aimee looked up. “You go home. Or you stay put. You do what you feel is right in your heart. But I think your heart is what led you back to this place.” She smiled then. “And maybe it wasn’t just to find me. There’s love for you here, Maggie. I feel it.”

The great expanse of sky above was turning a gritty blue, the moon disappearing behind the gray-velvet mountaintops. The stars were fading, until soon they’d be only a memory of another night gone.

“It’s going to be light soon,” Aimee said, helping Maggie up. She wrapped a steady arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. It felt like coming home. “Let’s get you back.”

“Maggie.”

A bright orange light shone through her closed lids. Beneath her cheek, a pillow that smelled like fabric softener.

“Maggie.”

Rough hands nudged her gently. And then breath on her temple, stubble against her skin.

She lay perfectly still, feeling as if she were moving inside the feathered walls of a dream. She opened one eye, just a slit, but enough to let a golden shaft of sunlight in.

“It’s eight,” Koda said, kissing her again. “I know I should have let you sleep, but I’m going to be on duty for the next few days and won’t be able to see you much. I was hoping you’d want to grab a bite before I go in.”

Maggie rolled onto her back. It felt like she’d been asleep for days. Or weeks, even. Her head throbbed insistently.
Aimee, Aimee, Aimee,
it seemed to say. She opened her eyes to see Koda swimming there.

“Hey, lassie.”

He looked so handsome in his uniform, his black hair shining in the morning light. She reached for him and his face softened.

He leaned down and she wrapped her arms around his neck, beginning to cry.

“Hey, hey,
hey,”
he said, pulling back. “What is it?”

She rubbed her eyes, embarrassed. He’d caught her at such a raw moment, with the dream still painfully fresh.

“It’s nothing.”

“What?” He looked so concerned that her heart squeezed. All of a sudden, she wanted to see him smile. More than anything. They’d all had enough worry to last a lifetime.

“I just had the most bizarre dream.”

“About?”

She turned toward the window and squinted at the sunlight coming through the glass. The lovely prisms of yellow, orange, and red. “About Aimee.” She looked back at Koda on the verge of saying more, but stopping short. The feeling of seeing Aimee again was still so real, that she wanted to keep it to herself a while longer.

“I’m sorry, Maggie. For everything.”

“Don’t be.” She put a hand on his thigh. “Really. Don’t be. It all happened the way it was supposed to, I think. And as crazy as it probably sounds, deep down, I feel like wherever Aimee is, she’s okay. Does that make sense?”

His expression was bittersweet. “Perfect.”

Her mouth tipped at the memory of the dream, of her friend’s sweet voice.
You can choose to see the beauty and peace…if you look hard enough.
She was so lucky to have known Aimee. For meeting her when they’d been little girls, for growing up together and creating a patchwork quilt of memories, joyful and grim, clear and vague, near and far. They would always be a part of who she was. And so would Aimee.

She held Koda’s hand, reluctant to let go. “I’ll get dressed and be right down.”

“Okay,” he said, tugging on a curl. His dark eyes locked with hers, and he leaned down to kiss her for a long, wonderful minute. She felt his tenderness there. Love. She could feel it.
That’s how it should be
. Life went on.

She washed her face, dressed quickly, and came down the stairs to where Koda was waiting at the front door. Ara was there, too. When she saw Maggie, she pulled her into a hug.

“I’m glad you’re here,” she said simply. Maggie gazed into the other woman’s face and saw for the first time how lovely her eyes were. A deep blue gray that seemed to hide nothing. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.” Winking, she turned and disappeared into the kitchen where the scent of something baking waited.

Maggie stared after her.
Your heart is what led you back to this place,
Aimee had said.
And maybe it wasn’t just to find me.

Koda took her hand and led her out the front door. She squeezed his fingers, knowing now that he had opened his guarded heart enough to let her in.
Really
let her in. And that would never stop thrilling her. “Hope you don’t mind if Zane and Candi join us,” he said. “They invited themselves.”

“I’d love that.”

Together they stepped down to the walkway. The fall morning was crisp and impossibly bright. The sound of chopping wood reverberated through the air. Maggie turned to see Jim at the side of the house, tall and imposing, raising his ax and bringing it down to split a fat piece of wood. He wore an old denim coat and had a pipe in his mouth. She caught a trace of its pleasant smokiness and for some reason was comforted by it.

Maggie’s stomach rumbled. Suddenly she couldn’t wait for breakfast. It felt like she hadn’t eaten in ages.

A breeze moved the pine boughs above, making them sway and shiver in the sunlight. A stray curl blew across her face and she tilted her head just in time to see something small and dark flapping on the hinge of the gate. She brushed her hair away and stopped, curious.

Koda was already on the sidewalk, whistling something unrecognizable, hands deep inside his jacket pockets. He turned. “Coming?”

“Yeah,” she said. “I’ll be right there.”

“Just so you know, Zane’s a pig. He’ll eat everything before we get there.”

She grinned. Tucking her chin inside her collar, she crossed the lawn toward the gate. Overhead, a hawk cried. Maggie looked up and shielded her eyes, watching it dip and sway on the wind.

The gate creaked and blew open a little, then hit the post again with a
bang.
She looked down. There on the hinge, was what had caught her eye. Hesitant, she reached out and took a small tuft of fur between her fingers. It was soft and textured, the tips of the hair, a deep charcoal black. Her heart drummed a steady rhythm as she brought it to her cheek. It smelled like meadow grass.

Behind her, the chopping came to a stop, leaving the air naked and quiet. The house cast a long shadow, as if reaching out to touch her on the shoulder.

She turned to see Jim watching her, the ax in his hand, the pipe between his teeth. Before she could say anything, he gave her a knowing smile and turned away.

Maggie stood looking toward the little town that was tucked so perfectly away inside these vast, sprawling woods. The rooftops of the old houses were laced with frost and sparkled underneath the morning sun.

Her hands were chilly at her sides. Shivering, she shoved them in her pockets and jabbed her finger on something sharp. Pulling it out, she saw a piece of moss-covered bark.

Magic?
The word was plump with meaning. She wrapped her fingers around the tuft of fur and placed it lovingly, gently into her breast pocket.
Just maybe.

She walked toward Koda, wanting to stay, but not knowing if he wanted the same. “I guess I need to pack when I get back from breakfast.”

He stopped and faced her. “Why?”

“We know what happened to Aimee now.”

He watched her for a moment, his eyes mirroring the longing she felt. The desire. But was that enough?

“Don’t go,” he said softly.

“What?”

“I want you to stay.”

She considered this. Needed so much to believe it, but all she could think of was how much he’d tried to get her to leave before. “Do you really want me to stay, Koda?”

“I do.” He stepped closer. “Honestly, I can’t see my life here without you in it. Don’t you know I’ve been waiting for you? I didn’t understand that before. But I do now.”

He slowly leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. The kiss made her dizzy, and when he leaned back, she touched her tingling mouth, savoring the feeling.

She grinned, so full of joy she thought she might break from it. It had been so long since she’d felt
joy
. Pure and sweet, and consuming her completely. “Aren’t you afraid someone will see you kissing an outsider?”

“You’re no outsider now, lassie. You’re mine. If you’ll have me.”

His…
One little word that meant everything.

“Okay,” she said, her throat aching. “I’ll stay.”

He held his hand out and she took it, stepping close. Together, they walked along the curious, cracked sidewalk that led into Wolfe Creek, a town so often cloaked in fog. But it wasn’t today. At that moment Maggie realized a simple truth. She knew that this sidewalk could lead to so much more. It was a pathway toward a brand-new life. A new love.

She hadn’t been able to trust anyone for so long. She’d been scared of the unknown, of the mysterious and unproven. But holding onto Koda now, she knew she’d let him lead her anywhere. Down this sidewalk and beyond. Because she trusted him with her life. Her healing heart. And even more precious, her future.

“By the way,” he said, smiling down at her. “What’d you find?”

The smile looked perfect on him. Magical, as a matter of fact. She smiled back, feeling the sunshine warm on her shoulders.

“Exactly what I was looking for,” she said.

The End