The Legend of the Lost Child

Chapter 2

In the distance, I could make out voices, but struggled to understand what was being said. Not wanting to alert them to my being awake, I just lay there.

“What possessed you to attack him?” my father demanded.

“I didn’t realize who he was. He was a stranger and I…” Alex’s words fell flat.

“He was a stranger? You knew there was a new wolf in the creek. Specifically, my son! And you viciously attacked him! Without even attempting to determine who he was or if he belonged,” my father spat out.

There was a pregnant pause andI contemplated moving when I heard a loud bang, like someone slamming a fist on wood. Not wanting to be a part of whatever that was, I continued my silent vigil.

“And where were you?” my father fumed to another person who must have been in the room.

“We tried to keep up with him. He’s exceptionally fast,” Will tried to explain.

Guilt ran through me as I listened to my father turn on him with as much acidity in his tone, remembering that all of this had started because of a game.

“He is a nova and needs guidance and close monitoring. If he was speeding up, you should have slowed him down. What if it had not been Alex that attacked him?”

The pacing in the room quickened before it stopped short.

“And you! Attacking another wolf. Unprovoked!” my father shouted.

“How do you know it was unprovoked?” Alex asked.

“Are you saying otherwise? Tread lightly with your answer,” my father dared him.

“I didn’t say that, but you weren’t there to see it.”

“I have other ways of knowing what is happening in and around the creek,” he cryptically answered. I understood how he was aware of this information, but wondered why he was keeping it a secret. How much he had seen of my encounter in the woods?

“Deagen, show them out. I need to attend to my son.”

Deagen is here too? I mentally moaned.

Wondering how many people were now in this room, listening to my father reprimand them while I lay here like a dead fish left my stomach feeling like it was being used for a trampoline. As the door closed, I heard my father sigh heavily before the couch cushions shifted near my hip.

“You can open your eyes now,” he said.

Cautiously, I opened them to meet his, deep and blue, staring back at me with concern creasing their corners. Touching the side of my neck, I felt a thick bandage and looked at his neck where I saw its twin. A mixture of anger and frustration ran through me as I released my neck and reached out. Seeing my hand approach, he pulled back and lifted his hand to block mine.

“It was necessary. You were losing blood too quickly. He went for your neck.” His voice faded on the last words as he turned his attention to some distant object on the floor.

“He didn’t know who I was. I heard him say it,” I tried to help.

His eyes met mine as he softened his features.

“We have new wolves come and go all the time. His job is to bring them to me for questioning if he was not aware of them. Alex was aware of you, and that you were out for a run in the woods today. There was no excuse.”

His words left me grateful I was lying down, as the room seemed to sway below me. I also wondered what had provoked the attack, as I was just standing there, trying to figure out which way to head back home. But, I was also talking to Christian. What had that looked like to someone seeing it from a distance? Could that have been what caused him to attack?

Standing, my father began pacing the room, periodically looking back at me. Although I had never been in the principal’s office before, I imagined this is what it would feel like.

“Why did you run ahead of the group?” he asked in a calm tone, which was more unnerving compared to his previous reaction.

“I didn’t plan on it. I was just—running—and then turned to realize no one was near me anymore.”

His eyes narrowed as he stared at me and I wondered if he was trying to reach into my mind and pull out the answer.

As I sat up, my neck felt as though someone had just branded me with a hot poker, and I sucked in a deep breath as I dropped my head again.

“Please don’t move. You’re still hurt,” he said as he reached forward.

“I hear werewolves heal up pretty quick,” I teased.

A smile brushed the corner of his mouth.

“Yes, but you still need to give yourself time to heal. It’s not instantaneous, and larger wounds can still be fatal. You’re not infallible.”

His eyes seemed to darken at the last part of his statement, the warning resonating too close to home for him to bear.

“I’m fine, my back is just locking up and would be more comfortable sitting,” I lied.

Eyeing me warily, he stood up to allow me more room to adjust myself. Swinging my legs off the couch, I moved cautiously, trying to keep my reaction to the pain to a minimum. Finding a more comfortable position, I glanced up and gave him a toothy smile, which caused him to chuckle before he returned to sit next to me.

“Can you tell me what happened?” he asked.

“Like I said, we were running. It was actually a race. I saw David take off ahead of me and I sped up to pass him. By the time I realized I wasn’t with them anymore, I no longer knew where I was. It was when I was trying to get my bearings that he jumped me.”

My father’s lips pursed as he turned to the fireplace.

“For what it’s worth. I totally get why you have him on patrol,” I teased, trying to lighten my father’s mood.

Again, he chuckled as he dropped his head.

“It was you that hit into him, wasn’t it?” I asked.

With his head still lowered, he nodded, but appeared to be almost mourning the fact that he had.

“How did you know where I was? I didn’t call out to you. I didn’t have time to.”

Meeting my eyes, he cupped the back of my head and drew our foreheads closer together before sitting back.

“As the alpha, I am aware of most things that go on. Being your father, my senses are even more on guard,” he started.

“I wasn’t sure what was happening, but knew there was something wrong and that I needed to get there fast. Deagen and I were in the clearing where I had left you when we both sensed it.”

“What did you feel?”

“A wrongness. Like when you are watching a movie and they are playing a touching song to some gruesome scene playing out. It sent a chill up my spine and when Deagen picked up on it as well, we both ran for the forest.

I’m sure you have felt it with your friends as well,” he suggested.

I thought back and shook my head.

“Actually, they seem to pick up on what’s happening with me, because I’m the one always running into trouble,” I chortled.

That thought sent my blood running cold as I realized what my friends must have experienced. I shot up off of the couch before grabbing at my head, feeling the room sway violently.

“Slow down,” he said as he grabbed onto my arms to steady me.

“You’re right. They’re going to need to hear that you are ok. But let me help you upstairs,” he said, giving me a warning eye not to argue with him.

As we turned to head upstairs, I stopped at the bottom and turned to him.

“Hey, Dad. Can I get a cell phone? I kinda killed mine when I thought Deagen was trying to kill me.”

He chuckled. “Yes, I think we can arrange it.”

Smiling, I made my way up the stairs with Buddy close behind. Entering my room, I turned to look at my laptop and decided this would need a more personal touch.

“I’m going to lie down,” I said to my dad as he guided me over and eased me back onto my bed.

“Are you okay? Do you need me to reposition you?” he asked.

“No, I’m good. Thank you. For everything,” I said with a smile.

“It’s what fathers do,” he said with a smile as he turned to leave the room.

Once alone, I turned inward as I searched for the tethers of my friends and pulled on them, hoping they wouldn’t be too worried.

“Jace! Oh my God. What the hell happened up there?” Brian’s voice came through.

A smile crossed my face as I imagined the large teen concerned with my welfare.

“Are you ok? I was so scared!” Izzie chimed in.

“Dude, we’re all sporting some wicked marks on our necks, and people are looking at us like we’re part of some weird cult,” Marcus added.

Ice ran through me at Marcus’s last revelation.

“What do you mean, you have a mark?” I asked.

“At first, it felt like I was going to have a panic attack, and then there was this intense pain in my neck. When I went to look, there were four puncture wounds. Dude, were you bitten by a vampire?” Marcus asked.

“All of you have it?” I asked.

“Oh yeah. All of us. Some of us even have a fat lip to go with it,” Brian said.

“But I wasn’t hit in the face.”

“No, but Brian was when Zoe saw the marks,” Izzie answered with a laugh.

“Oh, man, Brian. I’m sorry.”

“It’s ok, but I had to tell her what was going on. I’m not sure if she’s more pissed that I have this weird bond with you three, that I didn’t tell her sooner, or that she’s not part of it too.”

“Are you guys ok? Your necks, I mean?”

“It hurt like hell! I thought my neck was about to be ripped open. Who did you piss off this time?” Brian accused.

“One of the teen leaders here, but I don’t know why he has it out for me. My dad had to step in, otherwise…”

There was a momentary pause as my unspoken words seemed to linger between us.

“Whoa. Is the other guy still in one piece?” Marcus teased, trying to break up the mood.

“Yeah, he’s fine. Bruised ego, but otherwise not hurt. My dad had to absorb some of the injury to help me. He’s also wearing a bandage.”

“Jace, I don’t like this. I thought you would be safe there,” Izzie said.

“I am safe. I just have to watch myself around Alex. Now that I know what his wolf looks like, I’ll be better able to ward off another attack.”

“Holy hell. This is a wolf bite?” Brian asked.

“Yeah, why?”

“I mean, it was painful, but not that big. I would have thought a wolf would have been able to literally bite your head off,” he continued.

Laughing, I imagined Brian’s six-foot-three frame making grand gestures with his arms.

“I guess it’s not that big because I was also in my wolf’s form when he did it.”

There was a silence as everyone seemed to process the implications of the day’s events.

“So what does this mean? We used to only pick up on your emotions, but now we can get hurt when you are?” Izzie asked.

“That was actually Alyssa’s question. She’s a bit freaked out right now,” Brian added.

I felt myself gulp. “Both your sisters know?”

“You have not known the Lewis sisters that long. If one knows something, it’s not long before all three know it. I told Zoe, so she immediately called Alyssa in to tell her,” Brian answered apologetically.

“There has to be something to keep this from happening. I don’t think my heart can take it. I feel like a sitting duck waiting to get shot. Except the g*n is seven states away, and I don’t know when the trigger will be pulled,” Marcus said.

I tried to imagine things from their point of view and felt the bile rise. These are my friends, and they are suffering because of that friendship.

“Did you mention it to your aunt Lilly?” I asked Marcus.

“God no! She’s already hot to trot over the connection we have as it is.”

“Can you talk with your mom? I’m sure there has to be a way to separate us. It’s not a strong Darwinian trait. Your leader gets taken out and the entire group drops dead from the same affliction,” Izzie added.

The mention of my mom made me realize she had not been in the house when I woke up and wondered where she could be. Something this serious would have her racing back to the house.

“I’m going to talk to her now. I promise to keep myself safe until I know how to break this part of the connection.”

“Um, no. You need to promise to keep yourself safe indefinitely!” Izzie amended.

Imagining her small frame standing with a hand on her hip brought a smile to my face.

“Okay, okay. Indefinitely.”

“Better,” she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice.

“Out of curiosity. Is there any way you can make someone an honorary member of our club and let them listen in?” Brian asked.

“Zoe?” I asked with a slight chuckle.

“It would make things sooo much easier for me.”

“I’m not sure how I did it with you guys, let alone someone else. But I can ask my mom.”

Downstairs, the door slammed and I heard frantic movement followed by my father’s deep voice in an attempt at a calming tone.

“Guys, I have to go. My mom just got home and is about to come up here.”

“Think about what we said,” Izzie urged.

“I will.”

Allowing myself to pull back into the present, I tried to sit up so as to not frighten my mother any further. I’m not sure what I look like when I am talking with my friends, but lying on the bed with my eyes closed and not moving is likely not the image she was looking to come in to find.

Shifting on the bed, I tried to ignore the burning sensation in my neck and decided moving over to Uncle Roman’s chair would be more comfortable and less traumatic for her. Repositioning myself, I tried to appear as casual as possible as the loud thuds coming from the stairs increased, with my father’s muffled voice pleading close behind. In front of me, Buddy had lifted his head and was watching the door with his ears perked and head tilted, waiting to see what came through.

The door swung wide. My mother’s eyes wildly scanned the room until she landed on me and let out a noise somewhere between a gasp and a sigh. Running to my side, she quickly assessed my neck, then began turning my arms and legs over until I felt like a rotisserie chicken.

“What happened?” she seethed through clenched teeth, which caused me to take pause.

It had only been a few weeks, but I had never seen my mother react like this. I stared up at my father, whose brows knitted tightly while he stood behind her, seeming to judge what he should do or say next.

“It was a case of mistaken identity,” I said, trying to calm her.

“Mistaken identity?” she spat out.

Gulping, I looked back to my father for guidance and only received a slight shrug with wide eyes. Reaching forward, she touched the bandaging on my neck. The slight shift of the material against the raw skin below caused me to wince and her face flushed. Delicately, she peeled the bandage back and her eyes widened before she returned it to its original position. Turning to my father, she stood on her toes to reach up and removed the twin bandage on his neck and gasped at its sight.

“Luca! This is as bad as his! Was it shared with Deagen as well?”

His eyes dropped and for the first time, my father seemed more like a young child being reprimanded by his mother. My mother eyed him warily before her eyes widened.

“Gavin too?” she asked in a strained whisper.

“I hope there were some serious ramifications for his actions. This was a death blow. Alex tried to kill our son!”

Her words hung heavy in the air and I felt the breath being drawn out of me as I wondered again what had triggered his reaction.

“My love…” my father whispered as he nodded in my direction.

Turning, my mother’s face blanched as she dropped next to me, grasping my hand.

“Are you in pain? Is there anything I can do?” she asked.

Thinking back to my friends, I wondered if now would be an ideal time to mention that Alex’s one bite had actually taken out seven people, not just me. She seemed to be barely hanging on, and I decided that mentioning my friends being injured was likely not the best idea. Behind my mother, I saw my father’s face slacken, as he must have also picked up my previous thought.

“I’m ok. It’s already feeling much better,” I lied.

Narrowing her eyes, she stared at my neck wordlessly.

“Mom, you’re freaking me out a bit. What are you thinking?” I finally asked.

“You healed your friends and your father. You had to get the ability from one of us. I-I want to try,” she said with concern etched deep into her features.

Remembering the fear and despair I felt at seeing my friends scared and hurt and not being able to help came rushing back as I looked in her face. Wanting to ease her pain, I nodded.

“So, I just imagine what I think you need?” she asked.

“Yes. I’m not sure what I am asking or where it is coming from, but that is what my intention is when I have done it.”

My mother squeezed my hand tighter as she closed her eyes. Initially, there was nothing, but then there was a small warmth that I noticed in my hand. I stared in amazement as she seemed to glow a pale pink, like she was being illuminated with a light from behind or within her. Around us, there was a gentle breeze blowing through the room, which caused my father to shift uneasily. But, although the physical display in front of me was impressive, there was no difference in my neck. Opening her eyes, she pulled the bandage down and looked dejected when she saw the wound still present and as angry as ever.

“I really hoped that would have helped.”

“It’s ok, Mom. I will heal, but it will just take a few days,” I tried to reassure her.

Concern creased her face as she stared at mine.

“It is our job to protect you. That was why we brought you here.”

“You are protecting me,” I tried to stress.

“There are far greater threats out there. Now that Alex knows who I am and what I look like, in both forms, this should never happen again,” I continued.

My mom eyed me dubiously before turning on my dad.

“You never answered me. What are you doing about Alex?”

“Maybe we can discuss it later,” he suggested as he motioned to me, making me feel a bit like an outsider.

“No. I think he deserves to hear the fate of the one that literally tried to rip his throat out!”

My father dropped his head in resignation before meeting her eyes. “I don’t know yet.”

“You don’t know yet? What is there not to know?”

“He’s still a kid and—”

“He is eighteen, and his actions are not that of a child,” my mother interjected as she stood to meet him face-to-face.

“You were very quick to throw Deagen out, but now you show reserve?” she spat, causing him to wince and recoil back from her.

I stared at them in bewilderment and met my father’s eyes before he looked back at my mom.

“I was foolish in my thinking then, and you helped me to understand the need for compassion, which is what I am trying to do now. If I throw out every wolf for fights, I wouldn’t have a pack.”

“Luca, this wasn’t a fight. This was an assault intending to kill. There is a difference.”

“My love, please. I know, because I was there for both events. This one is different. Alex truly believes he saw something that was a danger to the pack. I need to figure out what that was.”

My stomach lurched as my breath caught. The only things in that area of the forest were Alex and me. Was my dad having second thoughts about me? Did he no longer trust me? My world seemed to spin wildly off its axis and I was having trouble finding something to anchor myself onto when I felt firm hands grasp my shoulders, forcing me to look into their owner’s face.

“I trust you with every fiber of my being, but I have known Alex since he was a very young boy and could not see him doing what he did without a powerful reason. I need to figure out what that was before I do something irreparable.”

Searching his eyes, I could see the emotional tug of war being played out in his head. Behind him, my mother turned away from us and absently petted Buddy, who was sitting upright, anxiously watching the argument. She turned away and I heard her sniffle. My father’s head spun to look at her before he pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her face to his. Gently, he wiped away the tears with his thumbs.

“This is my heart in this room and I will do everything I can to protect it. Please trust me.”

She stared at him for an extended period before she nodded. Leaning down, he kissed the top of her head before pulling her into a tight hug.

“I love you, Callista Volk, and I love our son, no matter what.”

Without turning, he reached his right arm out to me. I stood and walked into their embrace, enjoying a sense of peace at those simple words. Close to my mother, I could feel the stutter of breath from her tears before she took in a deep breath and let it out.

“I love you, Luca Volk, and I love our son, no matter what.”