Luna Awakening

Chapter Four

Back at his cabin, Broderick was desperately trying to focus on chopping fire wood. The nights were getting colder, and the cold winter with its blustery winds and heavy white snow would be moving in soon, and he needed to stock up supply to keep Atticus and him warm throughout the winter season. He balanced a piece of wood on the chopping block and swiftly swung the axe up behind his back and around to the front, splitting the piece down the middle into two perfectly size pieces. Despite his efforts of thinking about the work at hand, he found his mind kept wandering to thoughts about Aubrey. He could still remember her scent and the sound of her voice. Her voice wasn’t high pitched but had a lower feminine sultry sound to it. He thought about her blue eyes and how they seemed to hold a powerful secret that only he could unlock. He wondered what she was doing. Was she feeling well? Was she having fun with her friends? Was it only her friends or was she meeting up with a man as well? At that thought, Broderick let out a nasty snarl. This surprised him. He had been successfully suppressing his wolf, Adiran, for a couple of years now. When Broderick had first blocked his wolf, Adiran had fought against the walls desperately to maintain a connection to Broderick. At that time, Broderick had used drugs and alcohol to help keep Adiran at bay. Eventually, Adiran had grown quiet, and Broderick didn’t have to put any effort to block him out. So, when Broderick heard Adrian claim Aubrey as their mate, he completely panicked and tried to maintain a safe distance from Aubrey hoping staying away from her would in some way make it possible for him to block Adiran again. Broderick could feel Adiran fighting to break through especially when Broderick’s mind strayed to thoughts of her long wavy blonde air draping over her shoulders and swaying slightly in the breeze or to thoughts of her lips. They looked so soft, and he wondered what they would feel like kissing them.

“Mine!” Broderick fell to his hands and knees, his muscles straining to keep Adiran from taking over. He squeezed his eyes shut and curled over onto his side trembling. Atticus came running from the shade of the surrounding trees whining and began licking and pawing at Broderick.

“I’m okay, boy. I’m okay,” he reassured Atticus. Broderick slowly sat up petting Atticus.

“Aww hell, buddy. What are we going to do?” he said rubbing the belly Atticus offered up by rolling onto his belly. “I think I’m in trouble. That’s for sure. Let’s say we head inside and get some dinner started?”

Over at the campsite, Aubrey was kicked back laying in a hammock staring up at the light peaking through the canopy of the trees above. Compliments of Gwen, she had just had an amazing dinner of grilled chicken and grilled vegetables. Her stomach was full, and she was starting to nod off as she listened to the sounds of the birds singing and the water flowing in the nearby stream.

“Hey Aubs, we are going to take a drive down to the lake and do some kayaking. Maybe catch the sunset on the lake. Do you wanna tag along?” Izzy asked.

“Yes, I’d love to! That sounds like so much fun! I just have to use the restroom real quick before we go,” she replied.

“Okay, we’ll get the boats loaded up while you do that,” Izzy said with a smile.

Aubrey reluctantly climbed out of the hammock and made her way down the trail to the restrooms. Along the way she passed a couple with three young children. The kids happily skipped along with their nets, while the man and woman carried some clear plastic critter carriers. “They must be heading to the creek to look for some wildlife,” Aubrey thought. Aubrey couldn’t help but notice how happy the little family looked together and the way the couple held hands and laughed and smiled together as they strolled along behind their kids. Aubrey felt the sharp pang in her chest and the threat of tears beginning to build. By the time she got to the bathroom, the tears couldn’t be held back anymore. Overcome with grief, Aubrey ran into one of the stalls, closed herself in, and sat on the toilet letting the feelings of loss and longing wash over her. There was no use in fighting the feelings when they came on this strong and quickly. Gosh, seeing that couple made her think about all that she was losing and what she would miss out on. She thought she was marrying her one true love and that they would live happily ever after, but happily ever after wasn’t part of her story unfortunately. Nope, she was part of that 50% of couples that didn’t make it. Her poor daughters. Unlike the kids she just seen, they wouldn’t get to grow up watching their parents hold hands and stare lovingly into each other’s eyes. How would this divorce affect them? Would they be okay? All of her doubt, all of her grief, all of her distress came flowing out in her sobs. “Why did this have to happen now?” she thought to herself. This sudden onset was just one of the things that made grief seem like a messed-up funhouse. You never knew when it would jump out of nowhere and consume you. One thing Aubrey was quite sure of was that this was not going to be ending any time soon…

Meanwhile, Broderick was cleaning up his dinner dishes when he suddenly felt an excruciating pain in his chest that nearly brought him to his knees. He clutched his chest and cleared his throat. Atticus, sensing something was wrong, began pacing and whining.

“Mate!” he heard Adiran yell in his head. Broderick struggled to keep Adiran contained. Again, he was hit with a wave of pain. This one much stronger than the first. So strong that it gave Adiran the opening to finally break through completely.

“Broderick! We must go!” Adiran pleaded.

“Ugh, Adiran, you know I have no interest in conversing with you!”

“Must get to mate! Our mate is in trouble!” Adiran insisted, slowly gaining more strength now that the barrier Broderick had put in place was completely down.

“Mate? What do you mean our mate? We have no mate!” Broderick replied.

“Yes, we do. She has awakened me, and we must not waste any time. She is in danger, and she needs us!” Adiran said.

“What? Who? Aubrey? Are you saying Aubrey is in danger?” Broderick asked.

Suddenly, Broderick was propelled into a vision of Aubrey running for her life through a dark forest. Her blue eyes glowing and wide with terror. Broderick grabbed his head and stumbled back slamming into the kitchen table. He staggered on his feet and braced himself on the table. Atticus ran to the door barking and jumping to be let out. Broderick became overwhelmed with fear and worry for Aubrey. Where was she? How would he find her? Would he get to her in time? Before he could ask himself anymore questions, Broderick could feel his entire body filling with heat. He threw his head back and screamed. Adiran, taking advantage of Broderick’s state of anxiety, began pushing through for control. Broderick squeezed his eyes shut, and when they burst open, his once honey brown pupils were completely taken over with black.

“Atticus, my dear friend. We must go help our mate. Go lay down on the bed. We will be back as soon as we can.” Adiran instructed Atticus who promptly listened to his command. Now fully in control, Adiran walked out of the cabin into the dark night. He didn’t waste any time removing clothing, and as he leapt into the dark forest, he shifted into his wolf form midair hitting the ground with his paws running as fast as his legs could take him.

Surprisingly, Aubrey was able to pull herself together in time to go kayaking on the lake with her friends. She was snuggled up next to the fire drinking some hot ginger peach tea. All of her friends had already headed to bed, trying to recover from the hangover they had developed from the night before. They insisted Aubrey go to bed too, but since her separation, she had trouble turning off her thoughts and falling asleep.

As Aubrey gazed into the fire, she noticed the bright full moon rising up from behind the hills and peeking out above the tree line lighting up the valley and forest below. Suddenly, Aubrey heard what sounded like someone calling out her name. Thinking she was hearing things, she ignored it and continued gazing into the campfire.

“Aubrey!” she heard it again. Was that one of her friends? Did they need help? Aubrey stood up, sat her tea down on the table, and placed her blanket on the chair. She slowly began walking down the trail toward the sound.

“Hello? Anybody there?” She called out as she continued hearing the crunch of her boots on the dried leaves covering the trail. She came to a stop and listened again. She turned and realized she was quite a distance from the cabin. How had she gotten so far? She started back in the direction of the cabin when suddenly she felt a chill run down the back of her neck traveling out through her body. She stood frozen feeling the breeze pick up and blow through her hair carrying with it a foul smell. Was that rotting flesh? She thought to herself. Hearing the sound of a branch snapping, Aubrey whipped her head around towards the sound and couldn’t believe her eyes. Before her stood a creature; a tall humanlike creature with desiccated skin pulled tightly over its bones and eyes sunken deep into its skull. The moonlight illuminating what looked to be ash-gray colored skin. The creature let out a growl from deep within its chest. Aubrey was frozen in terror. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t scream. Was she hallucinating? Was she having a nightmare? Run, she should run she thought. She quickly turned and took off as fast as she could towards the cabin. She could hear the creature behind her let out a cry as it pursued after her. She didn’t dare look back, but she could sense the creature was gaining on her. She didn’t stop running. Suddenly, she heard something else quickly making its way through the forest knocking down small trees along the way. It was running right for her, and she skidded to a stop about to turn in another direction to continue running when it jumped out from the woods. Aubrey dunked while it sailed overhead and landed directly behind her growling and snarling. Aubrey turned to see the biggest wolf she had ever seen. It was completely black, and it was standing off with the other creature which was also growling. Before long, they began fighting, moving so fast that Aubrey couldn’t track their movements. All she saw was flashes of movement, and all she could here was growling and snarling. After some time, the creatures began slowing, and it looked as though the wolf was winning. Suddenly, he pinned the creature down by its neck while the creature let out a gargling scream. The wolf held on tightly while the creature squirmed until it went completely still. Satisfied and covered in black glistening blood, the wolf turned to Aubrey. Shockingly, she wasn’t afraid. The wolf, as if it was fearful of scaring her, slowly approached her. She lifted up her hand and the wolf nuzzled the top of its head into her hand letting out a contented purr.

“You… You saved me.” She said in disbelief. “Thank you for saving me.”

“I will always be there to save you,” she heard in a deep male voice inside her head. “You are not safe here. We must get you somewhere safe.” He said as began leading her back towards the cabin. Once they got to the door, Aubrey took out her key and unlocked the door.

“Will I be safe in here?”

“I will keep watch throughout the night. I will let nothing harm you. Now, go inside.”

“What is your name?” She asked.

“I am Adiran,” he replied.

“Where did you come from? How can I hear you speak in my head?” She asked.

“We don’t have time to answer these questions now, but I promise I will come to you again,” he said.

“Okay, Adiran. Thank you again and be safe,” she said as she went into the cabin and locked the door behind her. She slowly made her way to her bed and climbed in suddenly exhausted and unable to keep her eyes open. She was asleep before her head hit her pillow.