My Resolution

Chapter 3

On the way to the store, Donovan would still shoot me the occasional dirty look; I grinned. "I don’t know why you’re mad. Any one of those girls could wind up your mate; it all depends on the moon goddess. Why not take the opportunity to talk to them, even if they do flirt?”

“Yeah, I know, but flirting makes me hell-uh uncomfortable. Especially when it’s kinda young girls, that’s all. You could have announced your presence to get me out of there, ya know?” he explained, still clearly annoyed.

Damn it, he was right. I didn’t consider how young a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old would feel if they were flirting with me.

“You know what, you’re right. While I maintain it was harmless flirting, it is creepy when I think about their ages; I get the discomfort. But I’m still going to find joy in watching you squirm while someone your own size does it. Deal?” I purposed.

He pursed his lips while trying not to smile at the same time. “Fine, but I’m holding you to that,” he asserted while we pulled into a parking spot.

In the store, we filled the cart with all the necessary baking ingredients for the monster cookies, they were all out of creamy peanut butter, so I grabbed some crunchy instead, hoping for the best. We filled a few containers at the food bar, so we could eat lunch while working. We decided to bake at the packhouse since the kitchen managed to be much less hectic than the kitchen at the Boone’s. I was in the process of placing a cookie sheet filled with raw dough balls in the oven while Donovan “taste tested” a seventh cookie when Alpha Frederick came into the kitchen.

“Sup, dad?” Donovan greeted through a mouthful of cookies.

“You’re disgusting,” I said flatly while wrinkling my nose, “Good afternoon, sir.”

“Valerie, Donovan,” he greeted us with a smile while shaking his head at his son, “what is going on in here? Smells delicious!”

“Making some monster cookies for the bonfire tonight out at The Anderson’s place. Your gross son is 'taste testing.'” I explained while making air quotes with my fingers.

“Have a cookie, dad.”

“I believe I will,” he said while getting a napkin, “Val, I’m glad you’re here. I wanted to talk to you regarding that phone call we had a while back.”

Donovan was looking back and forth between his father and me with curiosity in his eyes. I did my best to ignore him while answering the alpha. “Absolutely, sir. If it’s all right, I’ll finish up here, then come to your office?”

“That’ll be fine. Have Donovan mind link me when you’re on your way. Oh, and Val, this is a private meeting.” he said sternly.

I nodded toward him. On the inside, I was incredibly relieved by the alpha making it clear that the meeting was private. Donovan could not ask me what the meeting was about. Alpha/Pack confidentiality was no joke.

As I was unloading the last few cookies onto a cooling rack, Donovan let his dad know I was on my way. I found my way up the enormous sweeping staircase of the packhouse, up to the third floor, and to the alpha’s office at the end of the hall. I knocked on the tall oak door.

“Come on in, Valerie,” I heard Alpha Frederick’s gruff voice answer.

I stepped through the door, being careful to pull it closed behind me.

Glossy dark honey-toned hardwood floors ran the length of the room with a large stone fireplace on the far left wall flanked by floor-to-ceiling windows, a sitting area with two large leather sofas facing each other. A dark stone table running between them, along the wall directly in from of me ran more large windows that created a frame for the scene beyond of the large lake, colorful trees, and the mountains climbing high into the sky, to my right, a harem style rug was lain across the floor atop was sitting a surprisingly large oak wood desk where Alpha Frederick was sitting, gesturing for me to have a seat in one of the deep leather-clad armchairs across from him.

“What have you decided, sir?” I asked without preamble as I took a seat. I knew exactly why I was here; my stomach had been in knots since the day I finally worked up the nerve to call him in the first place. I desperately hoped he would approve my request but was prepared either way this conversation went.

“You certainly don’t pull any punches, much like your dad.” he boasted, “That’s one of the many reasons he was a lead warrior at such an early age. I hated losing him and your precious mother, and I hate to lose you. You’ve become a strong woman, you're honest, and a genuinely good person. What's more, both mister and misses Boone rave about how generous you are around the home. You’re respectful and charitable to everyone around you, and frankly, you’re a major influence on the man this pack’s future alpha is and will be. You two have been thicker than thieves since you were in diapers.”

I could feel tears threatening to escape, “I appreciate the praise, sir. I don’t want to lose my pack, but I can’t stay either.”

He looked at me with obvious concern while resting his jaw on the thumb, thrumming his lips chin with his fingers, in deep thought. Finally, he took a breath and said, “I’m not convinced of that just yet; however, I am going to approve your request to leave for college and live wherever you’ve decided on while attending. I don’t want you to become a rogue. It’s my responsibility to keep all my pack members safe, and allowing you to remain a pack member while living elsewhere, would not be keeping you safe. Would you consider being released to join another pack?”

“I would rather remain a member of this pack, all the people I love are here, but I will consider it. The issue remains that I want to live outside of any and all werewolf territories. I explained my reasoning for this. I don’t want to hurt my mate through rejection, should I find one. It wouldn’t be fair to either of us to have to experience that kind of heartache if it can be avoided.” I sighed, “Look, I know it’s unorthodox, and I know it’s not as simple as moving away and starting over... I'm trying to do the right thing here.”

“You know, you could change your mind about pups,” he interjected.

I closed my eyes and dropped my head back, sucking in my lips, biting them both in frustration, took a deep breath, and composed myself. “I suppose I could, but I really don’t think I will; regardless, why would I take the chance? I could also reject my mate, potentially destroying him, when all I needed to do was take precautions not to find one in the first place.” I countered with conviction.

He raised an eyebrow, “Well, we still have the rest of the school year and the summer before you leave for school. I promise to keep this in consideration. You will have an answer before the time comes. None of this is an issue until you’ve finished your degree, anyway, right?”

“Right,” I nodded.

I pulled the door behind me as I was leaving the office. I started shaking with anger immediately. I wasn’t one to be disrespectful to anyone, and I know he was trying to be helpful, but f**k! I don’t want pups. Why is this so damn hard for people to wrap their brains around? I can’t be the only wolf ever to feel this way.

I stopped off in the restroom to collect myself before going to find Donovan. He already knew I didn’t want pups; he was the only person who seemed able to accept this as fact, but he didn’t know I was planning to leave for college not return to the pack. It broke my heart to leave in general, but when I thought of never seeing him again, it made me not want to go. I had already gone over multiple scenarios in my head of ways to remain with the pack, but none made any sense when I could walk past my mate at any time. Leaving was the only thing that made any logistical sense from where I was sitting. It still made me sad, though.

Donovan was in the kitchen with Tobi and twins Nolan and Sloane. They were all eating cookies. “You all do realize if you eat all of those now, there won’t be any left for us to take tonight?” I chided.

“Tobi and I only split one,” said Sloane.

I chuckled and shook my head. “No worries, only Donovan has probably eaten two dozen by now.”

“I’ve only eaten like twenty, Valley Girl, ya know...ish. Besides, Nolan had a bunch too.”

“Hey!” Nolan gasped.

“Oh, excuse my vast miscalculation,” I snorted while rolling my eyes, “Nolan, I already know about your sweet treat escapades, so don’t go thinking he gave you away.” I started packing up the cookies into plastic containers and put all the containers in a big over-the-shoulder bag, then tied the bag shut.

Tobi and Sloane were going to go back to Sloane and Nolan’s house to get ready. They asked if I wanted to come, but I declined. I was ready to go at this point. I just wanted to run home to grab my jacket and a blanket for the hayride. I told them as much but said I would see them out there later.

Donovan grabbed his jacket before we made the drive back to my house so I could pick up my things. We still had a few hours until the party, so we lounged in the great room of the Boone house, watching a documentary about the African Savanah. We both ended up napping for the rest of the afternoon until Bennett accidentally woke me up when he changed the channel on the television.

“Hey, bud,” I said groggily, “How’s your day?”

“It’s good,” he smiled, “I won hide and seek, but Cody got mad. Mrs. Boone said he can’t play if he isn’t going to play nice.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah, she said everyone has to learn to lose, but I like winning.”

“Me too, little Ben,” Donovan murmured. I guess he got woken up as well.

“I’d say she probably knows a thing or two about winning and losing, though, so it's probably best to listen.” I smiled.

“I guess, but I’d still rather win, wouldn’t you?”

“Yeah, I like to win too.”

“Valley Girl, it's after six-thirty. We’re going to be late.”

Ah crap! I hate being late. “You should be having dinner right now,” I remarked to Bennett, “I’ll be home later, but you’ll probably be in bed, so I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Will you come tuck me in if I’m still awake?”

“Sure, bud. Now, go eat.”

“Okay, see ya, Val.”

He bounced off toward the kitchen as Donovan, and I headed to his Land Rover parked out front, but not before I made sure I had my jacket and blanket. It's only about a half-hour drive to The Anderson’s farm, but I hate being late anywhere, so we had to move.

“Damn it!” I barked as we rolled up the driveway toward the massive barn where about twenty cars lined the drive, “I forgot to take the cookies inside. They’ve been sitting in the car for hours.”

“So?”

“So? It’s still kinda warm in the afternoons. I bet the chocolate is all melted.”

“I’m sure they’ll be fine, it was only like seventy degrees out today, and warm cookies are delectable. Everyone will love your fresh car-baked cookies.”

I balked, “Well, I hope so because I can’t do anything about it now.”

We unloaded and walked around to the backside of the barn. It looked like everyone from school was already there. I dropped the cookies off with Nell Anderson, Micah’s mom, before joining the others. Mr. Anderson was getting ready to take everyone on a hayride through the wooded area around the fields. I climbed onto the back of the extended trailer and laid my blanket across the top of some of the hay in the front corner, and sat down to get comfortable. I loved all the fall activities. It was fun spending time with everyone outside of school, and I wanted to soak it all while I still could.

Tobi and Sloane came up and sat on my left side, along with Tobi’s boyfriend Brady. Donovan joined us, claiming my right side while more continued to climb in and find a spot. We were squeezed in tightly, but as dusk was falling, it was starting to cool down quickly, so we were keeping each other warm. As we were rolling into the woods, a glass bottle was passed to me. Aiden’s sister always got him a few for just these occasions. I took a sip and gagged. I hate fireball. I’m not so cold that I need that crap to keep me warm. I sent the bottle on down the line trying to scrape the taste off my tongue with my teeth. The ride continued with jubilant laughter and ghost stories. I just listened and laughed.

While Nolan was in the middle of a story about an alpha-turned rogue wolf who was killed by his former beta trying to get through pack territory to his Luna, so his ghost lies in unrest because he never found her, I started feeling uneasy. The tiny hairs on the back of my neck were standing on end. I had this weird feeling we were being watched. I turned and investigated the darkness but couldn’t see anything.

“You, okay?” Donovan whispered in my ear, making me jump, “Woah, calm down.” Everyone else was listening intently to the story and didn’t notice my reaction.

“Sorry, you startled me.” I replied softly, “I just had this creepy feeling we were being watched.”

He gazed out into the woods with his ears perked up; after a moment, he looked at me and explained that I was just really into the story and freaked myself out. He was right, so I leaned back and decided to shake it off. It was just a little bit of heebee jeebies.

When we got back, the bonfire was roaring with life. Mrs. Anderson had a long folding table weighted down with aluminum trays full of hotdogs, bags of hotdog buns, all kinds of condiments, plus several different kinds of chips. Another table held various drinks and desserts. There was a massive bundle of long sticks that had been cut down on one end so we could skewer the hotdogs and roast them in the fire. Everyone ate and laughed, especially when someone would lose their hotdog to the fire when it fell off the end of the stick. Mrs. Anderson was trying to help Jonna after her third loss, explaining that she had to push the hotdog down really well if she didn’t want to lose another one. We clapped for her when she finally got to eat.

As Mrs. Anderson was cleaning up, it was time to start the journey through the haunted corn maze. The Anderson’s hosted a haunted corn maze every October, they hired people to play creepy characters in the maze and usually charged for entry, but they always did a special night for Micah and his friends to come out to the farm. We could split up however we wanted, so it wasn’t one big mass of people all at once. Some had already started. Sloane, Tobi, and Brady joined Donovan and me as we started making our way through. There were small lanterns placed in each corner of the maze to help guide us, but we ran into several dead ends as we trekked around. A pumpkin head jumped out through a wall and chased us for the length but stopped once we rounded the next corner. We continued deeper into the maze, where we began finding fewer and fewer lanterns, never knowing what was coming around the next corner. Micah had once explained to us that his dad has the employees chase people in the direction they should be going, so no one gets too lost. While catching my breath after running from a bloody lumberjack with a roaring chainsaw, we were going down a long patch with no light at all when that same feeling from before crept over me again. I got goosebumps down my arms and a chill down my spine. I slowed down as I looked around again, straining to see through the corn stalks. I decided to shake it off, knowing I was continuously being chased by costumed people paid to scare the s**t out of me, so someone probably was watching us.

I followed the rest of the group but could not completely shake the feeling that something else was happening. I kept turning and looking behind me; I could swear I had seen movement the last time I had turned around.

“Valley Girl?” I felt Donovan place his hand on my shoulder when I turned back again.

“Sorry,” I explained, “I just can’t shake this creepy feeling again.”

“Maybe, we should just get you out of here. We can take the escape path. Everyone else has already gone on ahead, anyway."

“No, it’s fine. I’m being ridiculous.” I replied, still feeling uneasy. While speaking, I saw Donovan jerk his head, looking toward the path we had just exited, and his ears perk up. A huge man in a Jason mask jumped from the row of corn right beside me. I screamed like a banshee, and Donovan jumped about four feet in the air. The man removed his mask and was hysterically laughing. It was Mr. Boone.

“I didn’t know you were working out here!” I screeched.

“Only for tonight, I told Mrs. Boone and the alpha that I was gonna get ya both.”

“I nearly pissed my pants, Mr. Boone,” Donovan grumbled. He wasn’t often so easily frightened. I nodded in agreement.

While we were laughing, we started hearing screaming and then more screaming, then more. This wasn’t the same screaming we had heard throughout the maze the last hour.

“What the hell is go--” Donovan began, but Mr. Boone’s abruptly serious tone cut him off.

“Shush! We’re surrounded by rogues.”