Page 13

Chapter Thirteen

AUTUMN

I awaken the next day in the softest bed I’ve ever felt. It’s not feathers like I’d expected, but cushiony like wool. The last thing I remember from last night, Renall and I were ‘talking’ until late in the evening, eating meat and drawing symbols for each other. I learned quite a few new ones, and astonishingly, I was able to identify far more than I ever thought possible. It’s like I had unlocked some latent knowledge.

He must have moved me to the bed after I passed out. Bed. I’m in Renall’s bed. My cheeks flush with heat. The only bed. Anticipation rises in my blood as I turn to my left. Only blankets meet my line of vision. I sit up abruptly. I’m alone in the bed. Renall glances over his shoulder at the sound of my movement. He’s seated on the couch a few feet away. I run my hand down my hair, attempting to smooth it out. I wish I knew how long I’d slept, but there are no windows in the cave. After those few nights on the road, I know that I slept like a rock and wouldn’t be surprised if it’s noon.

Renall rises to his feet and walks over to the raised step up to the bedroom. He pauses before it. “Rokay?”

I yawn. “Yeah, I think I’m okay today.” That late night Pictionary conversation seemed to ease my aching heart, a little.

He points to my backpack and motions for me to follow him. After scooping it onto my shoulder, I meet him at the curtain to the bathroom. He reaches for the pipes behind the toilet. There’s a series of pullies and levers along the wall and he pulls one of the levers to the side. A flap opens and water starts flowing into the geode tub. My eyes follow the pipes up and over and there’s another lever that supplies the basin and sink. The tub’s water begins to steam and mushrooms into the air.

“You have hot water?” I gasp, reaching my fingers down to touch it.

He shrugs, not understanding, and hands me a few sea glass bottles before backing out of the bath alcove and adjusting the curtain. Still more privacy than the lake. Renall doesn’t seem to have a modest bone in his body, so I’m grateful he understands my need for privacy at all.

* * *

Renall is pacing by the time I get out of the tub and dress in the last pair of clean underwear in my possession. His eyes have that wild look to them again, and his brows are furrowed in a way I’ve never seen before. He reaches his hand out for mine and holds my gaze. Slowly I place my hand in his when my sixth sense tingles with the emotion on his face. Worry. Renall is worried about what we are about to do. If he’s nervous, we’re in deep shit. He didn’t even have this look in his eye when we were getting shot at. Panic, yes, but this, this is a deep-seated fear I’m feeling in his tense expression.

With my hand tightly in his, he tucks me behind him and opens the door. With my other hand, I clutch the skeleton key that’s wrapped around my neck. All we have to do is get back here in one piece, I tell myself as we exit the room. Renall has a death grip on my arm as we trek back across the circumference of the cave and down the steps to the ground level. There’s a permanent growl emanating from his throat, as if daring someone to make a move on us. We are getting a lot of attention. Couples pause their humping to watch us pass. Others outright stare and send hushed growls to each other. The tension in the air is stifling. My hand grows sweaty in Renall’s grip and my heart beats wildly in my chest under all the gazes and whispers.

We make it to the ground floor and bypass all the onlookers eating at the rows and rows of tables when Renall takes me down a corridor to the right. It stretches on for a while, lit only with torches. The growling seems less intimidating the farther we get until it’s only a hum along the wall. The hall opens into a meeting room of sorts. One large table sits at the center with a dozen high-backed chairs along the sides. The chairs at the two ends are carved from solid emerald. Along the center of the table sits a giant bouquet of exotic flowers, and lining its sides are baskets of fruits and vegetables. The walls of the room are lined with vibrant roses and lush vines. This is how I picture the main cave used to look before things died off. On the far wall to the right, beside an open doorway, is a drapery of solid green with gold stitching, and in its center the Guardian symbol with a circle around it. It’s situated behind the chair at the head of the table. The opposite end hosts a matching chair and doorway, and above those there is another drapery on the wall behind it; its sigil is an M that ends in fangs like a wolf on a green cloth with red stitching.

It’s the only place that’s clean and clear of dried leaves. The crisp air reminds me of my garden with the scent of flowers and fruit lingering in the air. This place, whatever it is, must be sacred to them. It’s empty and quiet until two figures appear in the shadowy doorway to our left, the one with the sigil of the wolf beside it.

Renall stills, although I can feel his heartbeat stammering through our interlocked hands. This is what he is anticipating. A figure approaches and comes into the faint light of the torches. She has long dark hair braided over one shoulder that stretches over her shoulder and reaches to her thighs. Her face is hidden in shadow until she claps her hands, and a candelabra of fire ignites above the table. It casts her in an orange glow, making her tan skin and dark, almond eyes visible. Her hair is braided so that your attention is drawn to the bare side of her neck where two fresh bite marks can be found. I wince, reaching for my neck, wondering if it hurts to be bitten. Her arms have gold bands adorning them, and her eyes are lined with dark kohl. Flowers bloom behind her. She’s strikingly beautiful, and the flora cowers to her power. A deep part of me envies her. To command a room with a walk alone.

“You must be Renall’s new Guardian, I’m Lupe,” the woman states in perfect English as she holds out a hand for mine.

“My name is Autumn, you speak English?” I want to hug her. I haven’t held a real conversation with someone in weeks. Possibly a month if you count the days locked alone in the cabin.

She smiles without teeth, but not in a way that reaches her eyes. “Yes, all Guardians know English. Those who grow up in Luna Cavern are taught both languages from birth. Wolves, on the other hand, most were born before English was introduced to this land. They have been given the option to learn. I’ve been telling Renall here to learn it for years.” She gives him a playful smack on the shoulder, but again her playfulness doesn’t reach her eyes.

Renall growls something light and playful back and she laughs flatly. Until a tall male figure finally enters the room. He’s a few inches taller than Renall, but twice as big around. The muscles on his arms look like he could lift cars. His hair is chestnut, shaggy, and tousled like someone just ran their fingers through it.

“This is my mate and the pack Alpha, Zev,” Lupe tells me, waving him over.

How do you greet a wolf pack Alpha? Bow? Shake hands? Growl? I’m at a loss for pleasantries when I meekly state, “Hi, I’m Autumn.”

“Oh, Zev doesn’t speak English either, stubborn wolves, the whole lot of them.” Lupe shrugs.

Zev gives me a glance over before nodding once and motioning for Renall to follow him back through the dark doorway. Renall pauses talking with his Alpha in the corridor opening.

“Renall and Zev have much to discuss, but let’s have a seat at the table. I’m sure you have many questions.” Lupe guides me over to two chairs in the center of the table. The one closest to the apples and pears. “Help yourself to anything you’d like. Onai, my daughter, has quite an affinity for gardening, we can’t eat them fast enough.”

We take a seat next to each other, “A ‘few questions’ is the understatement of the century. I feel like I haven’t spoken to another human in ages.”

She nods, her dark braid touching her lap as she sits. My eyes gravitate to her red bite marks again. Lupe sits up straighter, angling her neck toward me. These markings are a source of pride for them. “It’s been a while since we’ve had an outsider join our ranks who didn’t actively seek us out.”

“Why is that?” I ask, grabbing an apple from the bowl in front of us.

“Well, that is a story for a later time.” She sighs. “Why don’t you ask some of your questions and I will try my best to answer them all.”

“Okay, where do I even start?” I shake my head, taking a bite of the apple. “Well, what is this place?”

“This is Luna Cavern, we are the Protector Clan that currently consists of 150 right now, including wolves, Guardians, and pups. Zev is the clan Alpha, and I am his mate. Although, it seems that even with the more we create, more of our group is picked off by the human demons.” She takes a deep breath before beginning what I assume will be a long story. A younger girl with two long black braids and tan skin like Lupe’s places another plate of fruit down in front of us. She meets my eyes and smiles before leaving. “That is where we come in. We are Guardians. A race created to protect nature and the wolves. You and your brother must have been raised not knowing our customs; it will be a slow, painful process, but I’m sure you will adapt.”

“How exactly are we supposed to protect wolves from anything?”

“Well, we have our own little protective gifts.” She nods at me. I think back to the tree in the forest. “Wolves are like human men, only worse.” She rolls her eyes before sighing. “They are stubborn, reckless, and downright scary sometimes. It’s our job to reel them back in and make sure our secret stays that way. Plus, we spend most of the time getting them out of the trouble they have caused themselves.”

“Like when I saved him from the bear trap?” I ask, taking another bite of the apple.

“I haven’t heard about all of your adventures, but I suspect so. The protective call of a Guardian to her wolf defies nature. It’s a gift and a curse. You’re connected with someone so completely it’s exhilarating. But on the other hand, you can’t seem to ever escape their feelings, fears, and not to mention the constant worry for them.”

The apple freezes in my throat and I swallow. “What you’re describing … It’s how I felt about my brother before he … you don’t think that …?”

The question hangs in the air between us.

“I’m sorry to hear about your brother. I cannot speak to your bond, but I can tell you that fierce overprotectiveness and overwhelming heartache could possibly be indicators that you might have been his Guardian. Renall didn’t feel the pull of the heartcall until a few weeks ago when he petitioned Zev to go find you. If you were Renall’s Guardian this whole time, he would have felt the pull when you turned eighteen.”

“So … it’s true.” I sob, the apple falls from my hand. “I failed my brother. I didn’t protect him like I was supposed to.” I’ve never felt more anger toward my Mother. She left us without sharing the knowledge of what we are. If I had known, I could have practiced or sought out a pack and protected him. Colton would still be alive today if it weren’t for me.

“I see where your thoughts are taking you, there is no way you could have protected him not knowing your powers or our ways.” Lupe pulls me into a cold embrace. Her scent is a mixture of lemon and lilacs. “Some of our trained Guardians have fallen at the hands of these human demons. They have destroyed almost half of our numbers, as you can tell by looking around. Once the demons have their sights on you, it’s rare you survive. If Renall didn’t find you, if you didn’t leave your home, make no mistake, you would have suffered the same fate as your brother.”

At the sound of his name, my eyes drift to the shadowy alcove in the corner. Renall is standing there with Zev talking beside him. But his eyes are on me, studying me. Zev points into the darkness behind them. Renall offers me a small nod before disappearing to talk to his Alpha.