Chapter 6: The Loudest Sound

Chapter 6: The Loudest Sound

James

I don’t know where I’m going, but I feel like I have to be somewhere. Rafe is surging forward, and I am not attempting to stop him. He’s reserved for an Alpha wolf spirit, the strong silent type. Most Alpha wolf spirits are rough, quick-tempered, possessive, and, let’s be real, violent. Rafe is claim and took in his surroundings and made calculated calls. We work in perfect harmony. I knew if he was pushing, it was important, whatever it was.

As we are running, I keep picking up faint traces of spices. I recognize the spices from my sister Amelie’s baking. One of them is clove; she makes an awesome cinnamon and clove apple pie. I think the other one is cardamon. It stands out because she makes this chi spice coffee cake and the cardamon always smells so good. The two scents together are making me hungry. I don’t know if it’s the smell of the forest; for some reason, the scent makes me happy. There’re other scents mixed in something sickly sweet-smelling, and the other I’ve never smelt before, it’s faint, but it makes me want to know what it is.

Rafe keeps going deeper into the forest and up the mountain. I take a quick glance and see Rylie on my right and our new friend Yong-rea on my left. Yong-rea looks nervous, but he’s still behind me. Rylie is as carefree and steadfast as ever. Whatever this adventure brings, I know he will be on my side.

The scent is getting stronger, and I see a break in the trees up ahead and slow down. As I get closer, a small house comes into view. It feels like a scene out of a movie, honestly. I can tell the place is really old; it really reminds me I am not in the states. It’s one of those old classic oriental-style houses you might see on a movie set, but it’s just out here in the forest. I shift back and give Rylie a smile and a nod to follow.

“Jay, this is so fire! It doesn’t seem real.” Rylie took the words right out of my mouth.

“Guys, it’s just an old house.” Yong-rea did not share our enthusiasm, rolling his eyes. Yeah, we looked like a couple of dopy tourists, but we didn’t care.

“You don’t see this every day where we are from.” I grin back at Yong-rea, and he just shrugs.

I step up onto the raised, I guess, porch and open the door. As soon as I do, I’m hit with the spice scent again, but there’s something else. “Mate,” Rafe yells out. That’s what it is, the mate pheromone. My mate is here. Where is she?

I let my nose guide me to a back room. No one is here, but the scent is so strong. I look around and see a door. “Mate is there.” Rafe has all his concentration on our senses, and my skin feels like it can feel the molecules of oxygen. It’s so sensitive. I hear Rylie and Yong-rea exploring the house as well. The loudest sound is the beating of my heart in my chest.

I can’t take it any longer and use all my strength; the flimsy door goes flying. Crouched on the floor is the most beautiful girl I have ever seen. She had long black hair and delicate features like a master artisan painted her. The most striking thing was her copper eyes. “Mate.” That was all I could muse out. I found her. I didn’t attempt to stop the smile that overtook my face. She was beautiful.

I was painfully aware we were both naked, and I wanted to see all of her. I reach out my hand to help her up. I think she is just as shocked as I am. I don’t even know if she speaks English. Maybe I should learn some Korean. So many questions are swirling through my head, and all I want is for her to take my hand. I want to touch her and feel those sparks everyone talks about.

“Yeogiseo mwohae, Jieun,” Yong-rae screams and grabs my mate’s arm yanking her out of the closet. How dare he touch my mate. Rafe pushes forward, and my Alpha aura pushes out.

“Hey, don’t touch her.” I’m on the edge of grabbing him and ripping his arm off. Yong-rae stops in his tracks. He’s completely panicked. My mate shakes him off and steps away from him and toward the door.

“She’s not supposed to be here,” Yong-rae yells out, still in a panic tone. What did he mean? Does he know her? Rylie comes through the door, and I see my mate shrink back after taking one look at Rylie. Crap, she's scared.

Yong-rea steps toward my mate, but Rylie blocks him. “Hey, James said don’t touch her.” Rylie crosses his arms across his chest. He can look a little terrifying with those black eyes and dark red hair.

 Yong-rae looks between the three of us, and he’s sweating like crazy. “You don’t understand she’s a monster.” Did he just call my mate a monster? I don’t care if we are guests. No one calls my mate a monster. I hold myself back. I don’t want to shed blood on the night I found my mate. I push out my Alpha aura, and Yong-rae shuts up. He might be an Alpha heir, but I still hold the higher status.

I look at my mate, and she seems like she’s in a state of shock. I want to hold her and let her know everything will be OK. Rylie is blocking Yong-rae. I step around them and take a few steps toward my mate. Her copper eyes are enormous. I see them flash a deep coffee for a split second; then, she shifts into a white fox with nine tails and darts out of the room. What did I just see?

I’m stunned by what just happened. Is my mate a fox or a wolf? I know a smelt wolf on her. “Go after her,” Rafe screams. I do just that. I run after her, shifting as soon as I reach the porch. I don’t see her, but I smell her. I follow after her. Soon I hear two more sets of paws breaking through the brush, and Yong-rae and Rylie are hot on my tail.

She’s fast, but she’s tiny. I can make up ground faster. Why is she running? Did Rylie and Yong-rae scare her? I don’t even know her name yet. How does Yong-rae know her? All these questions are swirling in my head, and Rafe is closing the distance. I’m right on her heels, but if I pounce, I’ll hurt her, and it’s so wooded and dense there’s no way I can prevent something from happening.

She drats off and out of my reach, but I can still see her through the trees. I just want her to stop. Why is she running from me? I feel a swipe at my back legs. I look back, and Yong-rae is trying to knock me off balance. I speed up and drat around a tree. I growl at him, but he doesn’t back up. Rylie comes up beside him and knocks him over. He goes rolling, and we keep running. I can tell we are getting close to a pack’s territory. The scent of wolves is getting stronger.

I can hear a few patrolling in the distance. I need to get to her before they can.