Grey Mountain Pack Series: The Prophesied Luna

Family Ties

After loading the deer onto the front of the four-wheeler Tyler and Savannah were exhausted. The buck had to weigh a good two-hundred pounds at minimum, and it had taken everything they had just to lift him onto the front rack. Savannah had chosen to ride back to the cabin with Tyler on the four-wheeler only because she was too tired to walk. Tyler was painfully aware of her presence on the back of the four-wheeler because of the sparks shooting through him from her arms being wrapped around his waist. His wolf wanted to claim her as his and he had to fight to keep control so as not to scare Savannah. Moments later they were back at the house and Tyler pulled up under a pulley system made specifically for hanging deer and other game from to skin and clean. He locked the brakes in place so that the machine would stay still while he got the hooks in the back legs and could attach the rope to the back rack of the machine. He would then back up slowly causing the deer to rise off the rack and be suspended in the air. Once he had the deer at the height he wanted, he once again locked the brakes and grabbed the rope firmly with one hand and loosened the knot with the other. Quickly he fastened the rope to a piece of wood that looked like an old hitching post.

Savannah watched all this in silence and softly giggled when Tyler switched the rope from one anchor to another. The weight of the buck caused him to almost tumble forward, but he had planted his feet firmly in the snow. Without looking to see if she was still there Tyler set to work on cutting the skin of the deer using his hooked hunting knife. He made crucial cuts along the legs so that he could easily pull the skin off without damaging it. "Hey, can you go get the blue bucket out of the shed for me please?" Tyler still had not looked to see if she was standing there, he did not need to, he could smell her, and it intoxicated him. It was a wonder that the buck had even walked out in front of them, because of her not descenting before coming to look for him. Had it been another werewolf they would have smelled her right away. However, had anyone else but the buck stepped out Tyler would have stepped protectively in front of Savannah to keep her from harm. He was going to have to talk to the Elders about how to claim a human as his mate when he returned to the pack.

He heard her shuffle off to find the bucket and sighed a breath of relief. He would have gotten the bucket himself if she had not been standing there; but because she had he could not. He had a large and growing issue in his camouflage pants. There was no way he could have hidden it if he had gone and got it himself. His need to mark her and claim her as his was driving him insane. For werewolves when they found their mates, they were supposed to mark them and complete the claim by mating with their mates. Tyler had to be delicate with this because of Savannah being human. He still had the problem of hoping she did not notice when she returned. To make matters worse he just heard a vehicle pull up in the driveway.

Cursing under his breath Tyler went to see who had just pulled up. As he rounded the corner of the house, he saw the red suburban sitting in the drive. The driver was walking towards the front steps when he greeted them. "Hello sis, how are you today?" Margaret Grier-Kingsly smiled at her brother and wrapped him in her arms as she always did. The only problem this year was that she was heavily pregnant with her and her husband Jack's, first child; and she could not hug him as tightly as she wanted. She was due to pop any day now or so everyone kept saying.

"I'm doing as well as can be expected," she managed once they had ended the embrace. "Your niece is being stubborn and not wanting to enter the world yet. She is going to be just like Jack." "Oh, Margaret you mean to say she is going to be just like her Uncle Tyler." He was grinning at what he had just said. He knew Margaret was ready to have this baby and it showed on her face with every step she took. Margaret laughed after Tyler insinuated that her baby was going to be like her younger brother. "Come on Maggie, let's get you seated before you drop like a dead deer." She could not help but laugh again as he used her childhood nickname and the analogy to compare her to a deer.

She had never cared for hunting like her brothers and father do, but she had been compared to many dead animals in her lifetime. Just as Maggie and Tyler walked back around to the back of the house Savannah had re-emerged from the shed. She gasped when she saw Tyler with a woman she did not recognize. There was one thing she could tell and that was the woman was waddling and that was because she appeared to be pregnant. Savannah could not tell for sure because of her heavy winter jacket but she would almost bet she was at least eight months along. "I got the bucket you asked for Tyler," she said. "Thank you, Savannah. This is my sister Margaret, Margaret this is Savannah Gordon." Tyler made the introductions then went and got his sister a chair so she could sit down.

"Tyler didn't tell me he had anyone coming to the cabin with him," Maggie mused after looking Savannah over. "Oh, it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. He found me stranded on 93 near Big Mountain. My car broke down and he was the only person to come by after I had been sitting there for two hours. He took me to the mechanic Kevin just inside town so I could get my car towed in and looked at. He also told me I could stay here with him until my car was drivable again. He really is a life saver." Savannah finished telling Margaret her sad story just as Tyler returned from the house with a chair. "Tyler you always were the one to be a hero when you see a damsel in distress," mocked Margaret.

"You know me sis, I can't let someone freeze to death. Did she by chance tell you that I almost ran her over? If it had not been for her cell phone light, I wouldn't have seen her." At the mention of a cell phone Savannah remembered why she had sought out Tyler to begin with. "Tyler, can I borrow your satellite phone to call my brothers and let them know that I'm alright. They'll be worried after not hearing from me last night." "Sure, it's in the house on the kitchen counter by the sink." "Thank you, it was nice meeting you Margaret," she finished before hustling off to the house. Margaret waited until Savannah was out of ear shot before saying; "So Tyler tell me about this woman you have staying with you. Did you really rescue her?" Tyler began to recount the events of last night to his sister knowing full well that before she even got back to the pavement that their whole family would know about Savannah. He kept the fact she was his mate to himself. The last thing he needed was his mother showing up and scaring the soul out of Savannah. Tyler did tell Maggie that Savannah was human and that he had not told her he was a werewolf. He did not need anyone spilling the beans just yet.

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Back inside the cabin, Savannah dialed her oldest brother's cell phone and listened to the distant ringing. After about the fourth ring Joseph picked up. "Hello," his gruff voice was like a reminder of home. "Hey Joe," Savannah answered. "Banana, is that you?" "Yes, Joe it is." "Where the hell are you? I've been so worried about you since your last call and that was at least three days ago." Savannah hung her head knowing that her brothers had been worried about her. As soon as they had come home and realized she was not there they called her cell phone. "Joe, I'm fine, please stop worrying so much." "Banana you know that I'm going to worry. Just as you know that Mike and Ben are going to worry. You're our baby sister and we made a promise to mom and dad that we would always protect you."

Joe constantly reminded her that she was the baby and that he, Mike, and Ben were her protection squad. "Anyway, Savannah, where are you?" "I'll only tell you if you swear that other than Ben and Mike you won't tell anyone else where I am. I don't want anyone from mother's side to know where I'm at" she stated flatly. "I won't tell anyone I swear; just tell me where you are." Joe's voice had a hint of panic that he could not cover. "Alright Joe, I am in Polson, Montana. My car broke down last night and now it’s in a shop," Savannah immediately regretted telling him about the car. He had been after her for over a year to get a new car. "Savannah, I told you that old Corolla was going to break down, but you refused to believe me. What happened to it?" She could hear the irritation in his voice, and she could feel the worry seeping through the phone.

For the next twenty minutes or so Savannah retold her story to Joe and listened as he clicked his tongue. She could almost see him shaking his head at her when she finished. His next words cut her to the quick, "You're staying with a man you don't know? Do you know how dangerous that is, Savannah?" The shrillness in his voice sounded almost like their father when he would punish them for misbehaving at school or not doing their chores when they were supposed to. Savannah felt the shiver run up her spine when Joe had finished scolding her. "Joe, there is nothing to worry about. He is being a complete gentleman about everything. He gave me my own room and hasn't tried anything." She left out the part where she kissed him this morning or how she felt when she had kissed Tyler. Those feelings were something that she was not sure how to describe even to herself and she was the one who had felt them. He did not need to know that.

Satisfied that his sister could handle herself should she need to, Joe calmed down and began to tell Savannah about how things were going there in Georgia. Their mother's side of the family had come by to once again try to talk to Savannah and try to convince her that they knew what was best for her. As soon as they found out she had left they bombarded her brothers for answers. They did not seem to be satisfied with the answers they were given. Aunt Sophie threatened to go to the police and report Savannah missing, but Joe had said that she could not do that since Savannah was a grown woman and had made the choice to leave on her own. That seemed to put an even bigger fire under their aunt's enthusiasm to track down Savannah.

He told Savannah this and he could hear the sharp intake of breath that she took to calm her nerves. He knew she did not want them to find her. They were the reason that Savannah had left Georgia in the first place. He did not blame her in the slightest either if he had been in her shoes he would have left too. "Can't I ever get away from them, Joe? I mean I want my own life where they're not butting in and trying to live vicariously through me."

"Banana, you know you can trust Ben, Mike, and I not to tell them where you are." Joe knew he was only telling her something she already knew. "You know I trust you guys but the less you know for now the better it will be for all three of you. I must go for now. I will call you again in a few days, but it will not be from this number or my old cell phone. I am going to get my own sat phone so that I do not always have to use Tyler's. I only ask that you take every precaution there is to see that only you three have the number. Do not give it to anyone, not even my friends. I do not want them to be able to find me to easily. I know they will track my credit cards, so I will not use them unless I absolutely need to. Now I did use one last night but that was to get some cash so I could have some. I will have to be careful about what I do and who knows I am here. I will even tell Tyler what is going on, he deserves to know since he is being so generous and helping me out. Thank you, Joe, for letting me know what has been going on." With that Savannah hung up the phone and leaned against the counter.