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“She doesn’t know and I don’t want her to. We need to talk but in private. Can you meet me later tonight? It’s a matter of life and death,” He emphasized those two words with a deeper tone than the rest of his words.
“I feel
like I’m dreaming. To meet you after all this time doesn’t seem real. You gave me those meditation exercises and breathing techniques. All of you contributed in some way to my upbringing without my parents’ knowledge.” I didn’t dare look at him but I could feel him behind me with his hot breath on the back of my neck.
“We can talk about that but not here. I’ve always been the spiritual one and I wanted to share with you something intimate. I know you sometimes feel like you are losing your mind. It’s to be expected when you are this close to the truth. The awakening is coming but it can be considered a gift or a curse. The closer the day comes the more you will be recognized by rival factions. It doesn’t make any sense and we should’ve done a better job of preparing you. The Alpha has the final say. Callan makes the rules and we follow them.” His mention of Callan was surreal. They obviously knew each other and for some reason, they’d found it necessary to reach out in this way.
Wesley was around six feet tall and he had an aura of cool detachment. He was the one to help me to get in touch with my spirituality. He never pushed me to any one religion but we talked about it at length. His words of wisdom conveyed his experience in these matters and I took it on faith he knew what he was talking about.
“What about Crosby?” I figured if he was going to mention Callan that Crosby would be in the same breath but he wasn’t.
“He was injured in an attack and is still recovering. His intervention was premature and had consequences. Do you remember the incident on campus a couple of months ago? Let me refresh your memory. There was an attack on a girl coming back from the library, amazingly similar to your build and hair color. Crosby thought the same thing as the assailant and came to the girls’ rescue. The girl got away but Crosby wasn’t so lucky.” I felt a tug of concern for Crosby, now it made sense why he had become silent in the last couple of months.
“I will meet you anywhere. Name the place and time. Please let Crosby know I’m thinking of him.” Crosby was responsible for teaching me the finer points of guerrilla warfare including how to handle a blade in close combat.
Practicing was the key to mastering any art. I became dedicated and found a rhythm with my technique. Fighting wasn’t my main form of self-defense. Words could be a weapon but I couldn’t rely on talking my way out of every situation.
Callan was a mysterious factor and his contribution was different than the others. He was the one to teach me about history and how to hone my instincts into razor-sharp efficiency. Concentration in conjunction with the breathing techniques from Wesley made it possible to reach my inner animal.
Chapter Five
Lunch was postponed until after the launch of their product, which was understandable considering the circumstances. Natalie didn’t seem shaken and took everything in stride. She brought her team together, unaware that I knew Wesley.
The park seemed like a strange place to meet but it was off the grid in an influential neighborhood patrolled regularly by the police. They were on horseback and on foot, with joggers feeling secure in their safety, even though they couldn’t be everywhere at once.
I sat there scraping the recently painted green park bench with my blood red nail. It flaked off easily with barely any effort. It was a nervous habit but it was far better than biting my nails down to the nub. I hugged my black jacket over my body to ward off the elements from the cool breeze coming off the lake.
Wesley was a little late but I could forgive him for his lack of punctuality. There was no way I was going to leave until he filled in some of the blanks. I knew the voices were real but there was a part of me afraid that my mind was unraveling. I had no reference to know if mental instability ran in my family. Knowing they were real and putting a face to one of them was another matter.
I was still trying to wrap my mind around how he suddenly came into my life. I felt bad for Crosby for getting hurt after he perceived an attack was imminent on me. The lady in question didn’t speak of her ordeal and soon vacated campus a few days after for greener pastures. She was saved but emotionally she was scarred, which reminded me of the one on the back of my neck.
“I’m sorry it took me so long to get here. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t followed,” Wesley said. “The awakening is going to change everything. Rest assured nobody is going to get close to you without going through us. We have a vested interest in keeping you safe but I will get to that in due time. I’m sure you have a lot of questions.” That was an understatement.
“I don’t think it’s unreasonable to want to know what the hell is going on. My adoptive parents know something but they aren’t telling me anything. You and the others have given me direction but for what purpose. Tell me something. Tell me anything,” I begged with my hand reaching out to touch his on the back of the bench.
“The awakening is a tradition dating back centuries. The chosen one is said to have great power but it can be only be unleashed by a mating ritual. We’ve known about you for quite some time. All three of us had the same dream with you being attacked by three black wolves and we were the only thing standing between them and you.” He was trying to tell me something but he was going the long way by taking baby steps.
It was rather infuriating.
“What you’re saying makes no sense to me. I’m not a child and I wish you wouldn’t treat me like one. The unvarnished truth is what I’m looking for and I won’t settle for anything less.” I squeezed his hand and felt a certain electricity localized in my lower extremities.
There was no escaping the attraction I felt for him but there was no way I was going to act on it with all of these unanswered questions between us. Wesley was the perfect specimen of a man, yet my mind went back to Daniel and the second date we'd scheduled for today, the day before my birthday. I didn’t want to lead Wesley on. It would be unfair to both of us to commit to something long term when I had feelings for another man.
“Patience has never been your strong suit but you need to tether your enthusiasm. The awakening is extensive, for lack of a better word. You will be tested as you have never been tested in your life. There are skeptics and others who consider you a threat to our way of life. We have made it possible for you to fight.” He curled his fingers around mine, with the heat of his scent making me a little lightheaded
“These are a bunch of riddles getting us nowhere. What gives you the right to dole out information with an eyedropper? I’m stronger than you give me credit for and not much shocks me. I’m sure you think you are protecting me but you’re not,” I stammered, slowly shifting to get a little closer to him.
“It wasn’t my idea to leave you in the dark and it’s not my place to say much more. To be perfectly blunt there has to be a consensus and I’m only one voice out of many. They think you can’t handle the truth. I know it’s not going to be easy but I will make every effort to get them to come to their senses before it’s too late. You really don’t know how serious this is,” He muttered and I could feel it was on the tip of his tongue just waiting for something to pull it out of him.
“Tell me and let me decide what I should know. If I’m going to be a part of this awakening then shouldn’t I go into it with my eyes wide open? You know I’m right. Tell Callan that I want to see him and I’m not taking no for an answer. You can word it any way you want but you get the idea,” I replied with a cold reception.
“Nobody makes demands of the Alpha, not even the chosen one. I will relay your message and, hopefully, he will see clear to giving you an audience. He’s very busy preparing for the awakening and has left strict instructions not to be disturbed by anyone. This is unknown territory for all of us and we have to tread carefully when everybody is watching. The attack at Black Industries was directed at you but I think you already know that,” Wesley revealed and then his hand slipped free from my grasp.
I turned but he had magically disappeared without a trace. I slammed my fist into my palm in frustration. I didn’t know what the meeting was all about and he certainly didn’t tell me much of anything. It was more than I knew a few minutes ago but I was still essentially flying blind. Callan was going to receive some choice words when we finally came face to face. He had no right to make assumptions and why he was considered an Alpha was anybody’s guess. What was this pack mentality all about?
I sat there trying to absorb all the information but nothing made any sense. Learning those voices had real bodies attached to them was my awakening. That wasn’t what Wesley was talking about but he wasn’t very clear on the details.
I looked at my watch and wondered how Daniel was going to feel about me once again arriving fashionably late for our date. My love life was on life support but somehow I had found Daniel with the help of my friend. He was charming and sophisticated with a unique taste for the finer things in life.
