Realm of the Wolf Book I: Wolf Dance (23 page)

"Justin knows about them," she added in triumph.

Moss smiled nervously. "I think that you are becoming

hysterical, Miss Ellison. No one but the
Sungmanitu
would

have a reason to do this."

"Yes ... them, but not Laura." Busby's voice rose in his

anger.

Two-Bears held up his hand. "No ... Laura is right. This

isn't the work of the
Sungmanitu
. I have suspected as much

for some time, but I was not sure until now."

He turned on the sheriff. "I think you know who they are,"

he stated.

"Are you all crazy?" Moss backed away, dropping his hands

to his pistol.

"What is the real reason you want Laura?" Two-Bears took

a step toward him. In a flash, Moss drew his gun and fired—

Two-Bears was sent flying back by the blast.

Laura's screams pierced the stillness of the morning.

Kenny made a move toward the fallen man, but the

sheriff's gun was turned on him.

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"I guess I have no choice but to kill you all now." His lips

curved into an evil smile.

A flash of movement caught his eye and turning, he fired.

Laura's eyes widened in pure horror, the scene played

itself out in slow motion. Her shocked system wouldn't digest

what she was seeing.

First, a spray of blood and Justin was falling to the emerald

carpet of grass. The contrast of crimson blood against the

green earth played itself over and over in her head until she

was too dizzy to stand on her own.

"Justin!" she screamed, but her world wouldn't stop

spinning. She could not stay on her feet.

Now the sheriff had his gun turned on Kenny, whom he

figured would give him the most resistance.

Click—the sound of the hammer being pulled back.

An explosion seared through the morning, and the sheriff

slumped to his death.

Detective Gates stood above him. "I don't think so ...

Moss."

Staring out the window, Laura saw only the painful life

ahead of her and not the beauty of the land. Her heart bled

for the only man who would every truly possess her.

Tears of anguish came again. She didn't even bother to

brush them away. Her pain was too vast to care what others

thought.

The dark forest seemed to be pulling at her soul. She had

to close her eyes and mind to it, or go mad with despair.

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Before leaving, Busby had made arrangements to return

Two-Bears to his people. Jessup said an emotional goodbye,

promising to visit the reservation soon.

The Wind River Mountains held fast to its dark secrets and

Laura knew that its mysterious forests would forever haunt

her dreams.

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A fiery sunset cast a red-hue on the desert cliffs. The

warmth of the rocks felt strangely seductive on her bare feet,

frustratingly, the old-fashioned dress she wore hindered her

progress up the rocks.

Stopping to catch her breath, Laura stole a glance at the

mesa. Her body shook—a scream lodged in her throat. Justin

stood near the edge of the mesa, his eyes glowing with

hunger.

"Justin!" Laura called out in a shaky voice. "Wait for me!

Please wait!" She began to cry.

He slowly shook his head. An instant later a wolf stood in

his place.

"No!" Laura screamed.

The wolf backed away from the edge until she could no

longer see it. Finally reaching the top, Laura looked around,

but there was no sign of Justin or the wolf.

"Laura...," a voice called from behind.

She whirled around to look upon Two-Bears. He sat next to

the flames of a small fire. In his hand he held a braid of sweet

grass, and the sacred smoke rose from its burning end.

He raised his dark eyes to hers and she felt a sense of

peace enter her soul. Though his lips never moved, the voice

that spoke to her was clearly Two Bears'. "Dark spirits haunt

you—reaching out like the wisps of smoke to work their way

into your spirit. A soul that was once good has been touched

by the evil of the others. Do not trust her. You have found

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that love tames the beast, but in doing so ... you have

enraged them. They will destroy you and all that is within

you. Go to the Shadow Mountains. Only there will you be

safe."

She was overtaken by a vision so strong it staggered her.

A light brighter than the moon shone behind the waterfall—a

jaguar guarded any entrance to the light.

When Laura's vision cleared, Two-Bears was gone. She

was filled with an intense feeling of loss. Grief stricken, Laura

ran wildly until her feet no longer touched the earth. She was

falling—reaching out with thrashing arms to grab something,

anything to stop her fall, but found nothing.

Laura woke to her own screams. Thrashing about she had

hopelessly tangled herself in the blankets. Perspiration had

matted her hair against her skull. Her eyes had been open for

no more than a moment when nausea overtook her.

Fighting to escape from the tangle of blankets, she ran for

the bathroom, bracing for the retching that she knew would

follow.

When she was finally able to move, she went to the sink

and soaked a rag in cold water and used it to bathe her face.

This did wonders in making her feel better, but the reality of

her situation still sat in the pit of her stomach like a rock.

This was the third morning in a row that she had been

sick. Laura knew with a certainty what her illness was.

Reaching down she patted her stomach, already feeling an

attachment for the child that grew within.

She was overjoyed to be having Justin's child, but the fear

of what that child might be like gnawed at her nerves.

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Laura looked below her stomach to the feet that protruded

from the bottom of her nightgown. Bewildered, she lifted the

nightgown and saw that red dust coated her legs as well as

her feet. Her dream came back to her with the force of a

bullet.

It was impossible to bring back physical evidence of a

dream, but then again she had seen more remarkable things

lately. Before going to Wyoming, she would never have

believed that shape-shifters were anything more than

legends—now she would not question their reality.

Laura examined the dream, aware that Two-Bears had

been trying to warn her about something ... but what? It

could not be the
Sungmanitu
. They were too far away to be a

threat.

Laura pondered this as she began her day. It was time she

cleaned her grandfather's trailer. For the past week he had

been in Shiprock visiting relatives. The task would be much

easier while he was gone. If he were here while she cleaned,

he would be constantly over her making sure she didn't

disturb some sacred possession.

Laura wanted the place to be somewhat presentable when

Kenny drove over to pick up her grandfather today. First thing

on the agenda was to gather the laundry and take it to a

Laundromat.

As of yet, she had told no one of her pregnancy. Laura

wanted to put it off as long as she could. She didn't want to

put more stress on her grandfather than he already had.

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In her grandfather's room, she began to throw discarded

clothing into a bag she was holding, when her eyes caught

sight of something protruding beneath the nightstand.

Dropping the bag, Laura kneeled down to examine the

object more closely. It was a photo album—one that she had

never seen before. On the first page were several pictures of

her mother as a child, of her wedding, and others that Laura

vaguely remembered seeing.

The second page contained pictures of herself as a child—

many of them whispering of cherished memories. There was

the one when she was ten years old. She stood next to

Kenny—both of them in traditional attire. It was taken at one

of the several Powwows they had attended that summer.

When Laura turned to the next page, she felt the room

begin to spin. There, staring back at her from a time long ago

was that same hard granite face that had haunted her for

several months—she even wore the same cotton skirt.

Laura dropped the album to the ground and backed away.

When her trembling subsided, she opened her eyes to again

peer at the picture.

The woman was her grandmother, Isabelle. Not until now

did she become conscious of the fact that she had never seen

a picture of her. Rarely had her grandfather ever mentioned

his wife.

Why had she never thought to question this lack of

information before?

Laura closed the book and put it back where she had found

it. Why had she never seen a picture of her grandmother?

And why was the woman making contact with her?

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The
Dineh
were a very superstitious people and Laura

knew there must be a reason why Isabelle was kept in the

closet. Whatever the reason, it was more than just the

common fear of the dead ... much more.

All thoughts of housework fled. She slipped on some shoes

and left the trailer, taking the path that led to the resting

place of her relatives. Laura had never gotten very close to

the cemetery. She had always been forbidden to go there.

Before now ... she had never had the desire to.

Her family had been laid to rest for the past hundred years

near the entrance of Snake Canyon. Laura's footsteps

disturbed a nesting hawk and it flew from the rocks,

screeching at her.

Ignoring the bird, Laura took slow—careful steps, making

sure not to disturb any graves. At last she reached the grave

of her mother. Autumn had died on October 15th. Although

she'd known what year her mother and father had died, she

had never been told exactly what date.

Laura felt tightness in her chest. What would it have been

like if she could have had her mother with her as she was

growing up? Though Laura had many women within her clan

to talk with as a child, she could not help but wish it had been

her mother.

"Laura...," a singsong voice called out to her.

Startled, Laura's eyes sought out the intruder. Sitting on a

grave about fifteen feet away was a little girl.

She giggled at Laura's fright.

Laura felt a curtain of darkness come down on her. It was

the same girl she had met in Wyoming.

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It was Rosa.

How could she have gotten here?

The question crept into Laura's thoughts as she tried to

rationalize the apparition.

"There once was a girl who loved the beast, but her heart

and soul were too weak. One day he was there, the next he

was not, and now his love ... she has not." The girl's rhyme

ended in another burst of giggles.

"Rosa!" Laura called.

The girl's face turned serious. "Go away, Laura. Go to

where your child will be safe. They want to destroy your son,

for he will one day be their king." With that, the girl turned to

a misty vapor that seeped into the ground.

Laura ran to where the girl had been sitting. Her heart

skipped a beat when she read the inscription on the

headstone. It said Rosa Ellison, and she also died on October

15, in the same year as her mother.

Laura quickly scanned the remaining graves until she

found Isabelle's resting place. She had also died on the same

day as her mother.

What could this mean?

She began to shake, the shock taking hold of her. All these

years, this had been kept from her,
why
?

Who was Rosa?

Her sister, logic whispered.

As far as Laura knew, she and her mother had been the

only Ellisons in the area. If there had been another child

before her...?

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Laura did not finish the thought, but took the trail home at

a run. Grandpa had one heck of a lot of explaining to do.

Nearing the trailer, Laura saw Kenny's new truck sitting out

front. They were here!

She burst through the door with wind-tangled hair and a

wild gleam in her eyes.

Startled, both men looked up when she entered. Laura

pushed the door shut against a sudden windstorm.

"What's the matter?" Grandpa Busby asked.

At first no words would come to her. She was not sure if

she felt more like crying or screaming.

"Who is Rosa? And why did she die on the same day as my