Chapter Five

Channon’s POV

I’m tired and hungry. ‘Uncle, where is good to eat around here?’ I ask him over mindlink. My stomach and inner wolf growl at the same time. ‘Depends on if its deer your after or some pancakes. The pancakes I can help you with, the deer you will have to hunt yourself.’ Canagan chuckles in my head. Pancakes it is then, I’m far too tired to hunt this morning. I turn and pull myself away from watching her. My wolfs makes me turn back and resume my position in the woods, he wants to watch her for a short time more. My body and my wolf ache for her. ‘I’ll be back soon.’

                ‘I can’t stay here all day’ I say silently to myself. It’s true, I have to put the final pieces in place for my plan to work. That means meeting with Zev again, I shake my head in disappointment that a wolf could sink as low as him. I will tell him to meet me later when I have eaten. I can’t meet him on an empty stomach, my wolf laughs in agreement, that is asking for a fight. Keeva tosses her hair and laughs. Her childlike giggle floats on the breeze and consumes my soul. Only when she disappears from sight, into a dress shop, am I able to finally pull away. I make the short walk back to The Blue Moon.

I can’t believe I’m back here, where I was born, and with my uncle again. I don’t remember him as well as I thought I did, or maybe it’s the time that has passed. He is older, not just by age, but by the trials of time. He was shocked to see me come into this bar, like he had seen a ghost. Well, he had in a way. As far as he was concerned I was long dead. Blake and Bleiz tried to stop me at the door. I snarled at them in their heads. Straight away they backed down, aware of my status and strength, instantly. They are the only black werewolves I have seen since leaving the South and my pack. I smile at them now as we dig into the steaming towers of pancakes and crispy bacon in front of us. Blake pours a huge glug of maple syrup onto his, just like Ophelia had my first morning in my new life. My mind wanders back to the White Claw and the journey to my new home.

His back is broad enough that I lie down, and my body is contained between his shoulders, that rise and fall with each enormous stride. I hold on to his thick white fur with all my strength and pray to the Moon Goddess that I don’t fall.  The climate slowly changes as the days pass, once cold the air is now heavy and humid. The trees have change to, from towering red woods to sycamore and swamp oak. The marshlands of the south stretch for hundreds of miles and run along the coast line of the Pacific Ocean. After two full days on the move we stop to eat and rest. Finally he breaks the silence. ‘Do you know who I am?’ I am startled from my thoughts by his booming voice in my head. I think I know who he is. All werewolf parents tell their young pups about the mighty, white beast who roams the lands. At least five times bigger than a normal Alpha, with magical powers, he is used to scare naughty little wolves to bed at night. I remember the dreams I had of this fairy tale beast when I was young, and my cheeks burn red. His chuckle unnerves me, and even his wolf lips seems to turn up in a smile.

‘I think you are the wolf of Legend.’ My voice is barley a squeak. I look through the flames of the fire between us. He is gigantic. His head alone is nearly the size of my body and his teeth the length of my seven-year-old hands. ‘That’s true, there are many legends about me. Don’t be scared little one. You are of my blood, I will not harm you. I am taking you to your ancestral home where you will be safe.’ I can’t help but splutter in disbelief. How am I the descendant of this wolf? I knew I was from a prominent line of Alpha’s, but never did I think it was more than that. Did my parents know who we are descended from? My brain is a hive of activity and I don’t realise he has stood up. ‘Be peaceful Channon, we are nearly home. Climb up, you can sleep while I run.’ My body is still sore and weak. I lost a lot of blood when Julius cut me. He leans down to the ground, and I use his front leg as a step to reach up to near his shoulder. He lifts me the extra foot and I manage to grab a handful of his thick, wiry fur and pull myself up. Careful not to pull to hard, unsure of his reaction. I gingerly clamber over the mound that is his shoulder blade, and I come to rest in the place I have called home for the last two days. It’s not long before the motion of his running has rocked me to sleep like a baby. My night is filled with nightmares of fire and my mother’s screams.

‘Channon. Channon, wake up.’ I don’t recognise the voice that floats through the fog of my sleep. Her accent is strong and unusual. I open one eye just enough to see through my lashes and I sneak a peek. The biggest, most beautiful black lady is sat on the bed next to me. ‘Good morning Kekere mi.’ I open my eyes fully and her face breaks into the biggest smile. Her big red lips frame her perfectly white teeth. She has a wide gap between her front two teeth, that a coin could easily fit in. ‘Good morning.’ I move to sit up and notice there is a paste of some sort covering my completely naked body. I cringe and pull the bedsheet up to my chin. Her laugh splits the air and her smile widens further, like it is going to crack her face in two. Her eyes are alive and amusement dances across them. ‘Let’s bathe you and then you eat, yes?’ I let her lead me, with the bedsheet wrapped tightly around my body, to the next room. A steamy hot bath waits for me. ‘It is herbs, the lotion on your body. Your weak Kekere mi, this will make you strong.’ She turns her back to me, and as fast as I can I throw the sheet to the floor and climb into the water.

The bathroom is like a white marble cave and at least six people could fit in the bath with me. I look around in awe. ‘I am Ophelia the Iya of White Claw pack.’ I look at her puzzled. ‘Iya means mother and it comes from my native tongue. Kekere mi means ‘my little one’. Hurry now or your breakfast will be cold.’ I finish washing the thick, green, smelly medicine from my body and feel refreshed. ‘Your clothes are on the chair in your room. Dress up and I will be back in a few minutes with your food.’ I struggle to understand everything she says, but I get the general gist of what she wants me to do. Her large body moves gracefully across the hard floors without a sound. The white fluffy towel is soft on my skin and I wrap it tightly around my waist. I find the chair Ophelia said my clothes are on. The trousers and shirt are bright and colourful, nothing like the blues and greys I’m used to. ‘Pancakes Kekere mi?’ I smile for the first time since waking up. She places a steaming hot tray of fluffy pancakes in front of me. ‘Syrup?’ The thick maple syrup cascades down the mountain and puddles on the plate. Delicious!

 ‘All the pack is at Keeva’s mate ceremony, it will fill up in about an hour.’ I snap back to the room and present. ‘What the fuck did you just say?’ The table almost flips as I stand in anger. My wolf almost coming forth. Everyone stops dead and stares at. ‘Keeva is being mated to Zev, tonight. Now even…!’ The anger I feel erupts from my throat in something between a howl and a scream. When I saw that snivelling little cunt Zev today, he didn’t mention anything to me about his intention to take Keeva as his chosen mate. ‘Touch my mate and I will KILL YOU!’ I scream silently into Zev’s head. I hope for his sake I am not too late. I haven’t left through the back door of the bar before I have shift in to my huge wolf. Not bothered with who may see me, and risking exposure of our secret world. I need to get to Keeva. I leave behind a gaping hole where the exit had stood and I crash into the forest at speed. She is mine.

I run as fast as I can. The trees speed by either side of me in a blur of solid brown and green. My is wolf angry and ready to tear Zev limb from limb, while my human side tries to come up with a plan to get Keeva without exposing us to Julius. ‘Alpha, I didn’t know!’ Zev’s urgent, scared voice comes into my head. ‘Is she marked?’ I growl viciously. If he has marked her then she can’t be my fated mate. I wait for his response and I see the lights of their shitty little settlement come into view through the thick trees of the forest.