Shadows of the Moon (Black Wolf Agency Book 2) (13 page)

On their way back to the city, Marcus called everyone in the agency to hold a meeting for 5pm. Naturally, no one seemed happy about the random Sunday meeting, but they knew it was for something important, so they didn’t object.

Getting back in the city wasn’t too bad. It usually never was on Sundays. They went to Selene’s apartment first. By the time they made it there, it was around noon. The place was still a mess from that night when Brian had attacked her and then jumped through the window to escape, shattering the glass. Everything was still exactly the way they left it. Luckily there wasn’t any bad weather in the time she had been gone, so the worst thing about the broken window was that it let in some chilly air from outside, which didn’t bother Selene anyway, now that she was a werewolf. She didn’t used to like early spring weather like this, but she was enjoying it now. She dreaded the thought of the hot summer weather in the city.

Selene took a quick shower, and once she was out, Marcus took his turn. While he was showering, she picked up where he left off, straightening the apartment. By the time he was finished in the shower, she had just picked up the last piece of furniture that had gotten knocked over during her fight with Brian.

They stared at the window for a moment, wondering what they were going to do with it.

Then Selene shrugged carelessly and said, “Well, I guess I won’t worry about the window. I’ll put a board over it when I come back later.”

“No need to worry about it. You can move in with me if you want.”

Selene looked up at him and grinned. Of course, the thought had crossed her mind. They were practically living together since the day they met. Why shouldn’t they move in together?

“What? Why not? Why are you just grinning at me?” he asked.

“Why
shouldn’t
I?” she corrected him, still grinning.

“So, that’s a yes?”

“Of course it is, silly.”

They looked at each other and smiled at the thought of officially moving in together.

Selene and Marcus showed up at the agency around 4:45pm, settled in, and took a seat at the meeting table at 4:55, just when people were beginning to arrive.

“What’s this about, Marcus?” asked Yvonne. This time, she and Lucius were last to arrive, though they still arrived on time.

“We have great news!” he announced with a smile.

“You’re getting married,” Lin joked.

“Actually, no,” said Marcus, as he thought, ‘
Though, marrying Selene sounds wonderful.
’ He could sense Selene’s rise in excitement also after Lin’s remark. He pushed that thought from his mind for the time being and continued addressing the group. “We no longer have to worry about the murderer.”

“What?! Really?!” asked Yvonne, in awe. “What happened?”

“Well, it all happened on a camping trip Marcus took me on last night,” Selene began, explaining every little detail, starting with her encounter with Brian, and how she came out of the fight with him unscathed. Then she told them about Sam’s appearance and how it turned out that he was the murderer after all. She went over the details of the fight, and how she had almost died when she threw Sam off the cliff, but Marcus rescued her.

“Wow, that was close!” said Charlie. The story had him on the edge of his seat. He loved stories of action and adventure, especially when they ended well. He missed his own adventures he had had with Yvonne and others from the agency in the past, but those days were behind him. He was looking forward to a calm retirement with his wife, Mary.

“It sure was,” said Marcus. “In that split second, when Selene went off the cliff, it felt like my heart had stopped beating. I was so worried I was going to lose her.”

“But you were there to save me, once again,” said Selene, kissing him on the cheek. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough.”

“I told you, you don’t have to thank me. I love you and I’ll always protect you.”

“Aww, that’s sweet,” said Kate.

“Yvonne and I got together and started making plans for the new facility up north,” said Charlie. “We’d love your input, Marcus.”

“Sure, I’ll be glad to help.”

“Have you decided whether or not you’re moving yet?” asked Yvonne.

“No, not yet. I’m sorry.”

“Take your time. We’re still in the planning stages. We’ll need an answer in a couple weeks, at the latest. We should be finished drawing up the blue prints by then.”

“Okay, I’ll definitely tell you my decision by then.”

*Three Weeks Later*

Things were quiet in the city once again, now that Sam and Brian were gone. Marcus had put in his resignation to the NYPD that Monday, the morning after the murder streak was officially over. He knew they’d miss him there, but after spending that short amount of time at
Black Wolf Agency
, he knew he was needed there. Not only that, but he truly fit in at the agency. He suspected his partner knew he had something to do with the murder streak finally being over, but a word was never spoken about it.

For that whole week after the deaths of Sam and Brian, Selene was plagued by nightmares of them returning. Each dream ended the same way; with one of them killing her. Every time, she woke, sweating and panting, her heart racing. And each time, Marcus was there to comfort her and assure her it was only a dream; that they were gone and would never harm anyone ever again.

Finally, one evening just before sunset, in an attempt to help her, Marcus brought Selene to the cemetery.

“What are we doing here, Marcus?” she asked, holding his hand tight and staying close by his side. Cemeteries always gave her the creeps, ever since she was a child and the older kids told her stories of bodies rising from their graves.

“Giving you closure.”

They stopped right in front of one of the graves. Upon its stone read: Sarah Lynn Anderson. Marcus’ cousin. She was only twenty-five years old when her life was brutally taken from her.

“Because of you, no more innocent lives like Sarah’s will be lost,” he told her. “Because of what you did, the city is now at peace. You are a hero.”

As Selene stared at Sarah’s grave, her eyes filled with tears and gently spilled over, leaving trails down her cheeks.

“I’m proud of you,” he said, gently lifting her chin with his finger to look into her eyes. “You’re the bravest person I know. I’ve never seen anyone face danger the way you did.”

Selene smiled and blushed. “You’re brave, too. You faced the same danger that I did.”

“But I’ve been a werewolf for almost my entire life. I’ve been a cop for years. My job is to protect people.”

“And you do it well. I’ll never be able to thank you enough for saving my life the way you did, again and again.”

“You don’t have to. You’re my mate. I love you.” He smiled, running his fingers through her long, wavy hair.

“I love you, too, Marcus.” She smiled back.

They turned their back on the grave and took their time back to the car. Selene had something on her mind she felt she had to bring up. “So, are you moving upstate with the others?”

Marcus sighed and said, “It’s a difficult decision. I don’t know if I’m ready to decide yet. My entire life is here, including you.”

Selene didn’t say anything. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, never wanting to let go.

“I know it’s a lot to ask, and it’s kind of soon still, but will you go with me?” he asked. “You could even resign from PAIA and come to work at
Black Wolf Agency
with me.”

She stopped walking, turned, and gazed into his eyes. “Only if we go all the way with this because I want you to be sure you want me by your side. I don’t want this to last a month, a year, or even ten years. I want this to be a lifetime commitment. I want you to be sure you
definitely
want me.”

“Of course I’m sure. Wait, are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“Maybe,” she grinned playfully. “But I want you to say it. I want this to be at least a little bit like how I pictured it in my head.”

“Okay, in that case,” he said, kneeling down in front of her. A bright smile spread across both of their faces, their eyes never looking away from each other, as he asked, “Will you marry me, Selene?”

“Of course I will.”

She knelt down and kissed him.

“I’m sorry I don’t have a ring, and I’m even sorry about proposing in a cemetery,” he said, and she pressed her finger against his lips to hush him.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. Sarah’s life was put to an official end here, and ours is just beginning from this point on.”

“Selene, that is a beautiful way to look at it, thank you,” said Marcus.

“You’re welcome, honey.”

“When would you like to get married?”

“Soon, and I was thinking it would be really romantic if we got married in Central Park, where we first met.” She hoped she wasn’t rushing things too much.

“That would be perfect.” He smiled at her, thinking, ‘
I’m the luckiest man in the world to belong to a wonderful woman like this.
’

On their way home, Selene thought about what their new life would be like. If they had children, they would be safe. They wouldn’t have to worry about their kids being kidnapped, getting hit by a car, or accidentally shape shifting in public.

“I was just thinking,” said Marcus with a look of deep concentration. “Now that we’re engaged, I just want to know, what do you think about having children someday?”

“It’s funny how you can read my mind like that.” She laughed.

“Wow, so that’s where the thought came from,” he joked. “No, really, would you like to have kids someday?”

“Of course, honey.”

He looked her way just in time to see her smile. She gazed ahead, deep in thought.

“You know,” she said, pausing for a moment. “I would kill for another one of those rabbits right about now.”

Marcus laughed. He thought she was going to continue the serious conversation they were having a moment ago. Her remark certainly lightened the mood a bit. Not that it needed lightening. He wasn’t stressed at all by their conversation about having children someday. He could tell she was comfortable with the subject as well.

“I’m not kidding,” she said, laughing along with him a little. “Though I could go for the usual rare steak if that’s more convenient.”

“I’m taking a little detour before we go home, if you don’t mind.”

“Sure.”

A little while later, they arrived just outside Central Park. Marcus parked the car and opened the door for Selene, as usual.

“Really, you don’t have to get me a rabbit,” she said, stopping for a moment. Her eyes went wide for a moment and she had a dazed look on her face.

“Are you alright? You’re not feeling good, are you?” Marcus could tell. Whether it was a hunger pain, or something else, he wasn’t sure.

She snapped back to reality, fighting the momentary feeling of nausea, and continued on. “I’m fine. I’m just real hungry, that’s all.”

“Well, I’m going to catch you a rabbit. Worst case, I may come back with a squirrel, but they’re good, too.” He laughed.

She smiled and grabbed his hand, giving it a little squeeze. “You’re so sweet. You don’t have to do this.”

“Yes, I do. I want to make you happy.”

They walked to a more secluded part of the park. Marcus decided it was dark enough to be able to shift into his wolf form without being noticed, though when he looked, he saw no one was around anyway. All the usual people walking, biking, and roller blading had gone home for the day. The only people out this time of evening were other werewolves and trouble makers.

Marcus inconspicuously assumed his wolf form and sniffed around for a few minutes. He caught the scent of a rabbit and tracked it down. He spotted it, sitting by a rock nearby. He stealthily snuck up on it and tackled it, breaking its neck with his jaw. He always found that to be the most humane way to kill prey, and would use that method whenever possible.

He picked up the dead rabbit, trotted back to Selene happily and dropped it at her feet.

“Thank you so much, sweetheart.” She picked up the rabbit and started removing the fur, preparing to eat it.

Marcus, still in his wolf form, looked in the other direction a couple times, making eye contact with her and licking her hand.

“Of course, go get another one for you. I’ll be fine here.”

Marcus licked her hand again lovingly and trotted off again as Selene turned to her wolf form, preparing to have her rabbit dinner, licking her chops hungrily. Minute’s later, he returned with a slightly smaller rabbit than the first one he caught.

When they finished dinner, they licked their paws clean before changing back to human form. Then they leisurely made their way back to the car.

“Thanks again, Marcus. That was delicious.”

“No problem, honey.”

When they returned to the apartment, another small wave of nausea washed over Selene. Maybe the rabbit wasn’t agreeing with her, but she had the same feeling before she ate. And she felt the same yesterday also. She was beginning to wonder if something was wrong. She went to one of the kitchen cabinets and grabbed some crackers to eat.

“Still hungry?” asked Marcus, concerned. He could tell Selene was worried and not feeling too well again.

“Something like that, I guess,” she said, not making eye contact with him. She suspected what might be going on, but didn’t want to say it out loud. Not just yet anyway.

“You’re feeling nauseous again, aren’t you?”

‘
How the hell did he know I was nauseous before?
’ she thought, looking up at him with a slightly worried look. “Yes, I am.”

“How long has this been going on?” He was concerned.

“Since yesterday.”

“Are you feeling weird in any other ways?”

“Well, I’m a bit tired lately, but I just assumed that was because of lack of sleep from the nightmares I’ve been having. Is it possible for werewolves to get a slight touch of the stomach flu, or something along those lines?”

“No, not at all. I haven’t been sick since, well, I don’t even remember.”

Selene was scared. No, she was terrified. She didn’t know what to do. This was too soon; far too soon.

Marcus walked up behind her, wrapped his arms around her, and embraced her gently. She turned around and rested her head on his chest. His heartbeat calmed her down.

“Don’t worry, baby. It’ll be fine. There’s no need to worry. I’ll be here with you through everything, no matter what.”

“We don’t know if it’s that yet, Marcus,” she said, walking away from him and sitting down on the couch in the living room, her head in her hands.

“Do you have a pregnancy test? Was there one mixed in some of that stuff you moved here from your apartment.”

“Yes, actually there was.” She ran into the bathroom and began digging through the basket of miscellaneous items from the move.

“I hate to be nosy, but why do you have one of those kicking around, anyway?” he asked. “Just curious.”

“Um,” she began, blushing in embarrassment. She hated mentioning anything about situations with past lovers. None of them could even compare to what she and Marcus had. “To be honest, I had a scare last year. I went ahead and bought a 2-pack instead of just one.”

“Ah, I see.”

Just then, Selene spotted it at the bottom of the basket. “I found it.” She picked it up and held it for a moment, staring at it with a mixture of fear and excitement. “It doesn’t expire until next year, so we’re good.”