Shadowed Instincts Read online

  “Don’t catch an attitude with me, Melanie. Just explain.”

  Melanie sighed loudly. “Okay. Jeremy is Ace.”

  Elaine’s eyebrows raised high. “Ace? As in that black beast that rescued you…twice?”

  “He’s not a beast, but yes.”

  “How long have you known? Since the beginning?”

  “No. He told me after we got together, a few weeks ago.”

  “Wait a minute!” Elaine exclaimed. She narrowed her eyes at Melanie. “Did you know the night I found him in your closet?”

  Melanie felt her face heat up. She nodded her head and kept her eyes glued to her plate.

  “Melanie!”

  “Elaine,” her father interjected, “let it go. We have bigger issues here.”

  Melanie looked up at Darren, unwanted gratitude blooming in her chest. He gave her a wink and took a bite of eggs. Melanie tried to hide her smile, but wasn’t entirely successful.

  “Okay. Okay. I’ll let it go, for now, but I’ve got your number young lady.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” Melanie said, grateful she was dropping it. “Anyway, he told me after he showed up in the yard as Ace a couple of times. I didn’t believe him, of course. I thought it was some huge joke he cooked up with his friends to humiliate me. I turned to leave, then changed my mind. When I turned back, Ace was sitting there.”

  Darren and Elaine looked at each other and smiled. “That’s pretty much the exact story of how your father told me.” After a brief pause, she continued, “Is that why you broke up with him?”

  “Of course not! I love him, no matter what!”

  “Then why?” Elaine asked, ignoring the declaration of love.

  “Um, well, it was to protect him.”

  “From what?”

  “Well, I told you how Mr. Hughes was harassing me and I was too scared to tell anyone.” At her mom’s nod, she continued, “I may have left out a few minor details.”

  “I don’t like the sound of this. What didn’t you tell me?”

  “Okay. So, Mr. Hughes threatened to hurt Jeremy. He said he would break his arms if he saw Jeremy touch me. I panicked. I broke things off to protect him, but I told him it was because I couldn’t handle the whole dog thing. That’s why I got so mad when Sissy came at me, telling me that he never loved me and that she would get him back.”

  “And you got suspended for attacking her.”

  “I didn’t intend to do it. I guess it was a symptom of my impending change. But I have to admit, that whole show I put on with the principal was to make sure I got suspended. I couldn’t be there anymore, knowing that my stalker was Mr. Hughes. I would have had to serve detention in his classroom and I couldn’t even bear the thought.” Under her breath, she added “Besides, I needed time to come up with a plan.”

  “You should have told me. We could have called the police.”

  “There was no proof. It would be my word against his. He would have been released and things would have gotten even worse for me. Don’t you understand?”

  “Yes. I get it.” Melanie could see the anger brimming in her mom’s eyes. She wasn’t sure if it was directed toward herself or Mr. Hughes and before she could ask, Elaine continued, “But, what’s this about a plan?”

  “Oh, did I say that out loud?” She grimaced. “Um, well, that whole party was a set up.”

  “What?”

  “Jeremy and I set it all up. We made sure Mr. Hughes knew I would be there and that Jeremy wouldn’t. We made sure Sissy showed up to drive me out into the parking lot. Jeremy was there as Ace. He found Mr. Hughes’ hiding spot and showed me the way. I called the police and got Mr. Hughes to admit everything he’d done. Then Ace incapacitated him until the cops showed up.”

  “Melanie! How could you? Anything could have gone wrong! He could have kidnapped you, or worse.”

  Melanie’s gaze landed on to Darren as he growled softly. He looked furious. Unsure whether or not his anger was directed her, Melanie shifted her attention back to Elaine.

  “Mom, please understand. I had to end it. I was going crazy. I had this overwhelming fear and anxiety that was at war with the uncontrollable anger building inside of me. It had to end.”

  “But-”

  “Elaine,” Darren interrupted. Elaine looked at him. They had some kind of silent conversation before she turned back to Melanie.

  “Okay. It’s over. I’ll let it go.”

  “Do you have any questions for me, Melanie?” Darren asked quietly.

  “Yes, actually.” After a brief pause to collect her thoughts, Melanie continued, “Yesterday, when I got mad and tried to leave, you told me to sit down. I felt like I lost all control of my body. You said sit and I had to sit. Can you explain that to me, please?”

  “It’s because I’m the alpha. I can infuse power into my commands and no cynanthrope in my pack can deny me. I can control them physically as well as mentally, making them forget things that have happened should the need arise.”

  “But I’m not in your pack!”

  “You’re my daughter, my blood,” he said with a serious expression. “Believe me when I tell you, Melanie, you are most definitely in my pack.”

  “This is insane. I can’t believe…There is no way you can control me by…”

  Melanie’s words trailed off as a pressure built in her chest and she lost the power to speak. She patted her chest and grabbed her throat, but no words could escape her mouth. After a few seconds, she felt the pressure ease and gasped.

  “What the hell was that?” she asked incredulously.

  “I am your alpha. I commanded you to stop speaking and you had to obey.”

  “But you didn’t say anything!”

  “I don’t have to say the command out loud. I can send it mentally…if I’m within close proximity.”

  “This is crap! So what, now I have to do whatever you say or think? All the time?”

  “Melanie, I only did that to show you that I could. I don’t indiscriminately use my power over my pack. I only use it when it’s necessary, which isn’t often.”

  “Well, it still sucks,” she responded with her eyes downcast.

  “We are animals, Melanie, with animal instincts. Yours are just barely starting to surface and you physically attacked a girl for saying something that you didn’t like. Can you imagine, for just a moment, an entire community of people with that kind of anger and lack of control ingrained in them? Imagine what it would be like if there were no one to help control them.”

  “Chaos,” she whispered. Her eyes widened a bit with understanding.

  “Exactly. I only invoke the power when it is necessary. I don’t make a habit of interfering in personal squabbles, but if it gets out of hand, I take control.”

  “Okay. I get it,” she said grudgingly. “Just don’t use it on me anymore, okay?”

  “I won’t. Unless I have to.”

  Melanie decided that was the best she was going to get. She glanced over at her mom and narrowed her eyes. Elaine was staring at Darren. There was a happy glow on her face that Melanie had never seen there before. A glow that she had seen when she looked in the mirror after time spent with Jeremy. Especially after he told her he loved her.

  “Mom?”

  Elaine’s eyes jerked to Melanie and her face flushed. “Yes?” she answered with a squeak in her voice.

  “Are you guys getting back together now?”

  “Melanie, I don’t…I mean…”

  “Yes,” Darren interjected. “We are.”

  Elaine’s face got even redder as she glanced down at her barely touched breakfast. She looked embarrassed, but Melanie saw her lips lift with a small smile. Melanie started to smile too, but was hit with a horrible thought.

  “But you’re the alpha.”

  “Yes.”

  “That means you have to live with the pack in Kentucky.”

  “Yes.”

  “So, you’re going to have a long distance relationship? Travelling back and forth
between here and there?”

  “No.”

  “What do you mean, no?”

  “I mean,” he said as he stared deep into her eyes, “that you and your mother will be moving home with me.”

  Chapter 4

  Melanie slammed her bedroom door shut and barely resisted the urge to scream. After Darren’s proclamation, she hadn’t said a word. She stared at her mom for several beats, but there was no help there. Elaine hadn’t even looked at her. Melanie had stood abruptly and pounded her fist on the table. When Elaine still refused to make eye contact, Melanie flew from the kitchen and stomped as loud as possible up the stairs.

  “No way,” she said aloud. “There is no way in hell I am moving to Kentucky.”

  She threw herself down on her bed and picked up her phone. Jeremy was at school, so she couldn’t call him. Tara was, too. Dropping the phone with disgust, she closed her eyes and counted to one hundred. Her anger was just starting to fade when there was a knock on her door.

  “Go away!” she yelled.

  “Melanie, please.”

  “Mom, I don’t want to talk to you right now!”

  Her door creaked softly as it opened a crack. Elaine stuck her head through and gave Melanie a sad look.

  “Melanie, please talk to me, baby.”

  “You really don’t want me to, Mom. Not right now.”

  Elaine walked into the room and shut the door behind her. She walked over to Melanie’s bed and sat gingerly on the edge. Melanie refused to look at her, keeping her eyes trained on the ceiling.

  “Melanie.”

  “Mom, don’t. I’m too mad and I don’t know if I can control it right now.”

  “Just listen, baby. I know this sounds like a terrible idea, but I only agreed to move because I thought it was for the best.”

  “For the best? I have a life here! What about Tara and the rest of my friends? I’m a junior! You want me to start a new school my senior year?”

  “Why don’t you just say what’s really bothering you?”

  “Fine! I can’t leave Jeremy! I won’t! I love him!”

  “You’re so young, Mel. You have your whole life ahead of you and you’ll find lots of boys to love.”

  “Are you kidding me with that?” she shouted angrily, sitting up to glare into her mom’s eyes. “Is that what you told yourself after dad? You were young, too and I don’t seem to remember you ever having a date, much less finding someone else to love.”

  “That was different. I had you.”

  “Oh, don’t you dare blame your lack of relationships on me. Be honest. You never tried because you are still in love with Dad! I can see it all over your face!”

  “I’m sorry, honey,” Elaine said with regret. “I didn’t mean to make it sound like I was blaming you. You are the best thing that ever happened to me. And…you’re right. I do still love your dad.”

  Elaine turned her head to stare at the floor. Whether it was with embarrassment or remorse, Melanie wasn’t sure. She reached out and placed her hand on her mom’s cheek. Elaine looked back into her eyes with the gesture.

  “Is it so hard to believe that I have the same thing with Jeremy? That it would destroy me to leave him?” Her eyes hardened a little. “We are, after all, the same species.”

  Melanie’s voice trailed off. She couldn’t imagine leaving Georgia, leaving Jeremy and Tara and her life. She laid back down and sobbed into her pillow for a few minutes while Elaine rubbed her back. Suddenly, an idea occurred to her and she sat up.

  “I know! I could stay with Tara and you could go to Kentucky with Dad.”

  “Melanie, don’t be ridiculous. I am not leaving you here.”

  “But, Mom-”

  “No,” Elaine interrupted. “That’s my final answer. I am not leaving my daughter. Besides, this move isn’t just about me and Darren. It’s about you, too. You are going through some major changes right now and you need support. Darren’s community can help you. They can teach you what it means to be a cynanthrope.”

  “So can Jeremy.”

  “Melanie.”

  “No, Mom. I. Am. Not. Moving. You need to figure something else out.”

  The door to Melanie’s bedroom opened and Darren walked in. He had a determined look on his face as he stalked toward Melanie’s bed.

  “Don’t. Don’t you dare use your freaky mind control on me to make me go with you! I would never forgive you.”

  A stricken look crossed his face before he masked it. “I wouldn’t do that, Melanie. I told you that I only use that when necessary.”

  “Desperate times. Desperate measures. I am not moving and that’s all there is to it.”

  “I have a deal for you,” he said gently as he pulled her desk chair over to the bed and sat down. “If you’re mother agrees, we can compromise.”

  “I’m listening,” Melanie said. Her voice was filled with doubt.

  “You and your mom can come visit me for the summer. We can square things away with your school so you can wrap up early. We’ll leave Saturday morning.”

  He looked at Elaine and she smiled. “That sounds good to me,” she replied.

  Darren looked back at Melanie and continued, “You can stay for a few months, meet the community, and have everyone there to support you during your transition and first shift. Then you can decide if you want to stay or come back here. I’ll support your decision and travel back and forth to see you and your mom until you graduate, if that’s what you decide.”

  “A few months? I don’t know.”

  “What’s the problem? Your boyfriend?” Melanie blushed and he said, “I thought so. And I anticipated this. He is a shifter. He’s one of us. He will be welcome in Wilkes.”

  “Wilkes? The town is named after you?”

  “My family, our family, founded it about a hundred years ago. It’s named after your great-great-great grandparents, Simon and Emma Wilkes.”

  “Okay,” she said, dragging out the word. “So Jeremy can come see me whenever he wants? Great.” After that bit of sarcasm, she frowned and continued, “I still don’t like it.”

  “You misunderstood, Melanie. I meant he can come with us. If his parents agree, and, of course your mom as well, he can make the trip with us and stay all summer.”

  Melanie felt hope bloom in her chest and looked at Elaine expectantly. She saw indecision etched on Elaine’s face and was quick to beg.

  “Please, Mom. Please! I can’t leave him behind. I’ll go and I promise I will keep an open mind if you just say yes.”

  Elaine sighed. “Okay,” she started but was interrupted by a squeal as Melanie jumped into her arms. “But listen to me, Melanie. You will stay in separate rooms.” She pulled back to look into Melanie’s face. “Do you understand me?”

  Blushing, Melanie nodded. “Of course. You know I, uh…we haven’t…”

  She trailed off and Elaine smiled. “Good. Then it’s settled. You’ll finish out the week and we’ll arrange for your teachers to give you your finals now. Jeremy can talk to his parents…are they back in town yet?”

  “They come back tonight.”

  “Okay. He can talk to his parents and if they agree, we will all leave Saturday morning.”

  “And if they don’t agree?”

  “Then you’re going without him.”

  No I am not, Melanie thought, but she just smiled and hugged her mom again. I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. Now Jeremy just has to convince his parents.

  “Thanks Mom. Thanks…Darren.”

  “You’re welcome, sweetheart,” he said with a sad smile.

  He turned to leave, holding out a hand to Elaine, which she quickly grabbed and followed him out. After the door clicked shut behind them, Melanie stared at it for a while, thinking about the trip, her parents and what their newly rekindled romance would mean for her in the long-term.

  Chapter 5

  Jeremy was pacing in the living room of his family home, a nervous wreck. It was nearly 5:00 pm and his pa
rents were due home from the airport any minute. He had everything he wanted to say to them planned out in his head, but his heart was pounding in his chest with agitation. In order to get his questions answered, he had to tell them the truth.

  He had to tell them that he broke several of their iron-clad rules while they were gone. First, he told Melanie what he was. Then, he shifted in front of her. Then he told her parents.

  “By the way, Mom and Dad, my girlfriend and her father are just like us. Weird, right?”

  He snorted at the absurdity of that statement. He wanted answers. His parents were obviously lying to him. He had a strong feeling that they knew a lot more than they had ever let on. He intended to find out just how much more.

  His phone beeped an incoming text and he picked it up off the coffee table. He smiled as Melanie’s name flashed across the screen.

  “Hey, babe. U busy?”

  “Still waiting for mom and dad to get home.”

  “So U R gonna talk 2 them 2night?”

  “Yep.”

  “Ok, well add this 2 the list. I’m leaving for KY on Sat. to meet dad’s pack. Gonna be gone all summer.”

  “WHAT?! No!”

  “That’s what I said. U wanna come 2? Dad’s idea. Said you’d be welcome if your parents ok it.”

  “Calling U now.”

  “Hello?”

  “Explain this to me.”

  “Okay. So, my mom and dad are getting back together and they tried to force me to move to Kentucky,” Melanie explained. “I stated, in not so many words, that there was no way in hell I was going to move and leave everything behind.”

  “Everything?”

  Melanie laughed. “Fishing much? Yes, I told them I wouldn’t leave you. Then dad offered up a compromise- I’d go live there for the summer, let him and the rest of the pack help me through my first shift, and then I could decide. I told him I didn’t want to leave you for even that long, so he suggested you come too.”

  “What about your mom?”

  “She ordered us to sleep in separate bedrooms, but otherwise, she’s fine with it. As long as your parents are okay with it. They said they could get the school to give us our finals this week and we could leave Saturday.”