The Lost Wolf

CHAPTER TEN.

    Carter’s car hobbled over the winding dirt path in the woods. The road was filled with pothole sized craters and rocks. I was almost sure we needed to turn around, it wasn’t built for a sports car. After a few minutes the car came to a stop at what looked like an over grown parking lot and we got out. Carter walked around the car and grabbed my hand, leading me down a covered path to the lake. London Lake.

     “Carter, this is private property.” I looked around anxiously to make sure no one was watching.

     “It’s okay,” he coaxed, “my pack bought this lake from Evansdale City a few years ago. You won’t get into trouble here.” That explained why he was roaming the lake when he found me last night. 

     “Your… pack?” There’s that word again.

     “It will all make sense, soon.” He led me to the edge of the water and took a step back, pulling off his shirt. I raked my eyes down his body as he kicked off his boots. What is he doing? My throat went dry as he undid the buckle of his belt and pushed his jeans down his legs. He stepped out of them and took off his socks. He was completely naked now except for his boxers. I trailed my eyes down his abdomen, to his boxers imagining looping my thumbs in the waistband and pulling them down, freeing his-. Stop it! I swallowed, hard, and forced myself to look up at his perfect face. 

     “Keep your eyes on mine. Don’t be scared, okay?” I couldn’t speak, too confused and aroused by this perfect almost naked man in front of me. So I did the only thing I knew to do, I nodded and kept my eyes locked with his. 

     Carter moved a step forward but sometime between the millisecond that it took to pick up his foot and place it down again he transformed. I watched in awe as his boxers ripped to shreds before me, smooth skin was replaced by thick, black fur. His nails grew into long, sharp talons. His hands and feet were replaced by paws as large as a grizzly bears. I heard the crackle and snap of bones as they elongated and transformed into the body of a wolf. An unnaturally large, wolf. The wolf from my dreams. His eyes though, his eyes remained the same golden eyes that I have come to know. His eyes were still Carter. 

     Am I hallucinating? The wolf took a step toward me and I startled, stumbling back. I threw my hands behind me to embrace for the fall that never came. Instead, I landed on a warm body of fur. I steadied myself on his side and stood up, gaining my footing.

     “You’re a wolf.” I said the words out loud, rolling them along my tongue is disbelief. 

     He let out a low growl and tilted his head. He could still understand me. Good. I took a deep breath and reached out my hand merely inches from his face. Carter closed the short distance between us and nuzzled his head in my neck, I brought my outstretched hand and placed it on the back of his head and rubbed his prick ears. His fur was soft but thick. Bringing up my other arm I hugged him to my chest and he let out another growl. Low and content. 

     I wasn’t scared. Not even a little. I didn’t know what this meant but now a lot more things did make sense. A pack. Wolves ran in packs, I guess it makes sense that ware wolves also have them. His pack doctor. Although it’s unclear why he would bring me to his pack doctor it makes sense that a doctor specifically for wolves would be a thing. I’m sure their anatomy isn’t quite the same as us humans. Wait. He brought me to a pack doctor. Am I a wolf? No. I couldn’t be. I didn’t even know that creatures like Carter existed. How could I be one of him?

     I pondered all of this while stroking the fur of his neck and the backs of his ears. He stood there for as long as I needed him to. Letting me hold onto him and figure out the questions in my head. Some of these questions I knew that only human Carter would know the answers to. Reluctantly, I pulled away from him, he groaned and circled my body with his. Taking whiffs of my legs, my stomach, my hair, my neck. It was almost erotic the way he slid his muzzle around my body, like he never wanted to forget my scent. Once he seemed satisfied the walked over to his heap of clothing and took his jeans in his mouth and disappeared behind the the trees.

     A few minutes later, human Carter walked out wearing nothing but his jeans. He kept silent eyes on me as he walked over and put his socks on one at a time followed by his boots and then his t-shirt. He moved slow and cautious, like he was almost afraid that at any second, I would run. What he didn’t know though is that I hadn’t wanted to run at all. 

     “Your pack bought London Lake. That makes sense now.” I looked at his face and he seemed confused. 

     “You’re not… you’re not afraid?”

     “No. I barely know you but my body reacts to you as if I’ve known you my entire life. I don’t feel afraid. But I do have questions.”

     “Okay.” He looked pleased with my answer.

     “Am I- am I like you?”

     “Yes. I thought you smelled like a wolf when I first seen you but you weren’t acting like you knew anything about us. However, when I brought you to Morris he drew your blood and confirmed it. I am not sure where you came from or which pack you belong to but yes, you are a wolf.” His answer stunned me yet, somehow, I feel like I already knew. I squinted my eyes at him. 

     “I’ve never turned… like you.”

     “Wolves don’t normally shift until their nineteenth birthday, generally the first full moon after. Your human form needs to be fully matured before it can handle such an intense transformation.”

     “Does it hurt?” I was afraid of the answer. 

     “The first one is excruciating. You feel every pop and break. But after that, it’s easier.” He shrugged.

     My pulse started to quicken and my heart started to hammer in my chest. My birthday was in three weeks. How was I supposed to handle all of this when I didn’t even know who I was or where I came from? I was terrified. Water pooled in my eyes and I looked at the ground, Carter didn’t need to see how much internal turmoil I was in. I didn’t even notice he was standing in front of me until he was wiping my tears away with the pads of his thumbs. 

     Every time he swiped a tear a small electric shock was left in its wake. I looked into his golden eyes with my blue ones and somehow I knew that everything was going to be okay. In an instant I felt safe. 

     “You can talk about it, you know.” He probed. And I did. I told him everything, how my parents weren’t really my parents. About the birth certificates and the death certificate. The adoption paperwork. All of it. How I felt so betrayed by these people that I had loved so deeply and now I didn’t even know who I was. We talked and talked until the hot sun turned into sunset. 

     Carter was an amazing person. He insisted that if my parents had raised someone as great as me then they had to have a good reason for what they did. I don’t think I’m too great, especially not right now but it made me feel good that he thought I was. He took my hand after the sun went down and led me back to his car. I strapped on my seatbelt and picked up my phone for the first time that day. Ugh. I had 5 missed calls from my mom, 3 from my dad, and about 15 calls and texts from Tyler. Crap. Tyler. How do I keep forgetting about him?

     I looked over at the man beside me and for the first time in two days, I felt okay. It worried me. I had never felt this safe at home with Tyler. I knew that I wasn’t being fair to him, even if Carter wasn’t “the” one I knew that it wasn’t Tyler either. I knew that after a year together and SO many firsts that we shared I was going to have to break his heart. I needed to tell him goodbye. I needed to be free for a little while and find out who I really am, where I came from and I needed to prepare for this wolf side of me to come out.