––––––––
“What? What does that mean?” Lee asked in a panicked tone as his gaze shifted frantically around the room.
Lacey stepped forward to stand beside Cole. “It means you’re going to be one of us now. And if you want to live, you’re going to have to fight for your right to. Just like the rest of us.”
Lee stared at her with a look of horror on his face. “No. I don’t want to be one of you.”
“It’s too late for that” Cole said and caught the pair of shorts Dean threw into the room for him to put on. He wrapped his arm around Lacey’s shoulder and headed toward the door. He stopped next to Jeremiah and Scotty. “When he changes, make sure you keep him in line. It’s been a long time since we’ve had a newbie to deal with. Keep his ass out of trouble.”
They both nodded in acceptance of the order.
Cole and Lacey walked out of the room. And Frank followed behind them. His friend’s desperate pleas for him to stay and help him tugged at his heart but there was nothing he could do to help Lee now.
Once outside, Frank kept his distance from Lacey and Cole as they talked amongst themselves. Cole glanced in Franks direction then abruptly walked off, leaving Lacey standing alone twenty feet away from Frank. He walked over to her. “Is everything alright?” he asked and looked in the direction Cole had gone.
“Everything is fine” Lacey replied. “Cole is just going to talk with the rest of the pack.”
Frank was quiet for several long minutes before he finally spoke again, “Why did he do that to Lee?”
“Because it was the only way to get him to cooperate. If his life is in danger too, he’ll be more willing to assist us in whatever needs to be done to keep us all safe” Lacey said.
“But Cole had no right to do that” Frank countered. “He had no right to take away Lee’s humanity. Not when there are other ways of keeping his people safe.”
“Other ways?” Lacey asked. “Like what?”
“Relocating the pack, for one. Why are you all so damn determined to stay and fight instead of fleeing while you still have the chance to?”
Lacey stared at her father for a moment then said, “Come with me. There is something I want you to see.”
Frank followed her into the woods. Neither of them spoke as they walked for nearly twenty minutes. A small cabin came into view ahead of them. And instead of knocking on the door, Lacey walked around to the side and looked in the window. After a few seconds, she motioned for Frank to step beside her. “This is what we are willing to fight for. Look and tell me what you see” she said and pointed to the window.
Frank followed her command. He looked in the window and saw Luke sitting on a blanket spread out over the floor, with Bentley tucked safely in his arms while Maggie and Kindal sat beside him, playing with Claire and Cody. They were all laughing and enjoying each other’s company. Mira was on her knees behind Luke making funny faces at the baby as he looked up at her. It was a perfect picture of how much love her pack had for one another.
After several minutes of staring in the window, Frank looked away. “I see happiness and love” he whispered. “And you’re risking losing it all by staying here.”
Lacey shook her head. “No, Dad. You still don’t understand. I spent my entire life running from who I am. I never knew how to love myself or embrace my differences until I became a member of this pack. I used to think of myself as a freak and now I know that I am a strong woman who can do anything I set my mind to. Yes, we’re different. But does that make my people any less deserving of the right to live than humans?”
Without giving Frank a chance to respond, she continued, “We give birth and raise families just like the humans do. And our children look to us for love and protection. It’s up to us to teach them how to survive in a world that’s against them from the moment they’re born. So tell me, Dad, what would I be teaching Claire and Cody if we allow someone to force them away from the only home they’ve ever known? They’d never learn how to stand their ground and fight for their rights. Instead, they’d spend their entire lives running. That’s not what I want for my children. This is our home and we will fight to protect it and everyone here” she paused, “and unfortunately, the only way to do that is to eliminate the threats against us.”
Frank sighed deeply before he spoke, “But does Cole have to kill them? Can’t he just change them like he did with Lee?”
“If Branson and his men are a threat as humans they will be an even bigger threat as wolves. We can’t take that chance” Lacey said and walked away from Maggie and Luke’s cabin.
Frank caught up to her as she stepped into the woods. “Lacey, I don’t want you to think I’m against protecting the people here. I’m not. And if I’m honest with myself, I don’t really care what happens to Branson and his men. It’s just...” he paused and looked off into the trees as they walked, “All I’ve ever done is run. It’s the only thing I know how to do and the first thing that pops into my head when in a dangerous situation. I’ve never stood up and fought for anything in my life other than my own survival...that is, if you can call living like a hermit on the streets to stay off of Branson’s radar surviving. If there is one thing I’ve learned from the short time I’ve been here it’s that I don’t want to run anymore either. But at the same time, I know I’m not strong enough to fight.”
“You won’t have to. You may not be one of us but you are a part of our family now. We’ll protect you” Lacey said with confidence.
A long silence stretched out between them as they continued their walk through the woods.
“Did you mean what you said about forgiving me?” Frank asked.
Lacey thought about it for a minute then stopped walking and sat down on a huge broken tree limb that laid across the ground. She patted the spot beside her and Frank sat down. “At the time I said it, I wasn’t sure” Lacey admitted. “But now I am. I do forgive you. And I’m glad that you’re here. I just wish that you’d came back into my life sooner.”
“I wanted to” Frank said sadly. “But I was afraid of putting you in danger. You have no idea how hard it was for me to stay in the shadows and watch from a distance as you grew up. There was one time I was watching you ride your bike down the road in front of your mom’s house when you were eight years old. You fell off the bike and started crying. I wanted so badly to go to you but then the bike lifted into the air and you threw it against a tree in the neighbor’s yard. I knew then that you hadn’t learned to control your powers and if I inserted myself back into your life, Branson would have found out about you a lot sooner than he did.”
“I understand” Lacey said. “You did what you thought was best for your child. Just like I’m doing what I think is best for mine.”
Frank turned around on the branch to face her. “The difference is you’re teaching yours to fight and I taught mine to run away” he paused, “I see now how wrong I was. I should have stayed by your side and helped you through your childhood. Maybe things wouldn’t be the way they are now.”
“What do you mean?”
“If I’d been there for you maybe you’d still be human.”
“Does it bother you that I’m not?” Lacey asked.
Frank thought about it for a minute then shook his head. “No. But I do wish I knew the circumstances around why you gave up your human life.”
Lacey stared down at the ground in front of her as she thought about her last days as a human. “I didn’t give up my human life. It was taken from me.”
“The tumor?” Frank asked as he studied the sorrow on her face.
“Yes” Lacey replied. “By the time I knew what was wrong with me it was too late. The doctors said that the nose bleeds and headaches I’d been having were symptoms of the brain tumor. But I ignored them and didn’t seek help. When Cole changed me, I was so close to death that I actually felt my soul leaving my body. I felt completely hollow as I took my last breath. I was so far gone that I wasn’t even aware I was still alive until I awoke two days later, here on the mountain.”
“So Cole was the one who changed you” Frank said, “I had a feeling that he was. That must be why he’s so protective of you.”
“He’s protective of me because he loves me.”
“But how can you feel safe around him, Lacey. He’s very dangerous. I can see it in his eyes. There is a raging killer inside of him just waiting to be released. And that makes me fear for your safety. I don’t understand why you aren’t afraid of him.”
A small smile played across Lacey’s lips. “Why would I fear a man willing to wipe out the entire human species just to keep me safe? Regardless of the rage and brutality he shows others, Cole loves me and would never do anything to hurt me. It may sound insane to you, but he is the only person I would ever trust with my life. Even my pack mates, while they do care about me and will fight to defend me, not even they will go the lengths that Cole will to save me. He’s my everything. I owe him my life but all he’s ever asked for is my heart. And I’ve gladly given it to him.”
“Can I ask you a question?” Frank asked.
“Sure.”
“What’s it like to be a wolf?”
Lacey’s brows raised at his unexpected question. “Are you worried about your friend and the changes he’s going to go through?” she asked.
Frank nodded. “I am.”
“Well, being a wolf is great. At least, I can say that now. But in the beginning I didn’t feel that way. It was hard to accept the changes in my body and mind. I struggled against my wolf and caused myself a lot of stress because I didn’t understand that we were two halves of the same whole. But now, I love the connection I have with my wolf.”
“And the shifting from human to wolf and back again...is it painful?” Frank asked.
“The first time it happens is excruciating. Your body feels like it’s on fire from the inside out. And you feel every bone in your body break and reform into the structure of a wolf body. Your senses are off. One minute you feel human and the next, animal instincts consume you and you want to hunt. It’s a lot to adjust to but it does get easier with time.”
“So Lee is going to be okay?”
Lacey looked at her father with soft eyes. “Yes. Lee will be okay.” She paused briefly, “Look, I don’t totally agree with what Cole did to him but I understand why he did it and that’s why I’m not mad about it. But under normal circumstances, I don’t think anyone should be forced to become one of us and I would never allow Cole to go out and start changing people just because he wanted to” she said to ease Frank’s concerns.
“But what if someone wanted to be changed?” he said and stared down at his feet. “Would he change them then?”
Lacey studied Frank carefully. A sorrowful, defeated look covered his face. “What exactly are you asking?”
It took him a minute to respond. “I want to know if Cole would be willing to change me if I asked him to.”
A shocked expression crossed Lacey’s face as she stared at him. “Why? Why would you want to be like us?” she asked, truly interested in his answer.
Frank got to his feet in front of Lacey and blew out a deep breath. “Just look at me, Lacey. I’m forty-three years old with the body and strength of someone twenty to thirty years older. I can’t even defend myself much less help defend anyone else. My body has seen so much abuse that it’ll be a miracle if it lasts another five years. But the real reason I want to change is because I never want to feel as weak and pathetically helpless as I felt two days ago when I was forced to watch Branson hurt you” he paused and wiped at his eyes as tears filled them. “A part of my heart died that day and I don’t think I’ll ever feel whole again. But if I’m like you...maybe I’ll be strong enough to protect you next time.”
He stepped closer to Lacey and placed his hand on her cheek and stared into the blue eyes she’d inherited from him. “I want to be someone you’ll be proud to call your father.”
Lacey placed her hand over his. “I am proud of you. Just the way you are. But if you are serious about wanting to be changed because of your physical condition...then I’ll change you myself. It should be done by someone who loves you. And I don’t think Cole is at that point with you yet” she said with a teasing smile.
Frank let out a relieved breath and dropped his hand from her face. “I’m glad to hear you say that. The thought of Cole doing it was a bit frightening.” He glanced around the woods, “can we do it here?” he asked.
Lacey stood from her sitting position. “No. It’s better to be some place where I can keep you contained if you freak out like some newbies do. Shifting for the first time is a major shock to your system and some people are more aggressive than others. Since the twins are at Maggie’s we can go back to my place and do it there. You already know what’s involved. All I have to do is shift into my wolf and bite you.”
“How long will it take before I change?” Frank asked.
“The time varies. Some change within an hour and others ten to twelve hours. According to Cole, I didn’t shift for the first time until forty-eight hours had passed because I was unconscious. With the whole near death experience and all, it took my body a little longer to recuperate enough to shift.”
A look of deep concentration filled Franks face. “If we do it now, I should be able to shift by the time Branson shows up, right?”
“As long as he doesn’t show up within the next twenty-four hours, I think so” Lacey responded.
“Then let’s go. I’m ready to start my life over” Frank said and headed down the path to the village.