Drawn To The Alpha 2 (9 page)

Chapter 14

She woke up on her back, with her chin tucked into her chest. She opened her eyes just a little and saw trees passing by overhead. The rain had stopped and the clouds beyond were brighter. Sophia felt completely peaceful and her body was free of pain or discomfort; all except her hands which were hot and tender. Her initial thought was that she’d died and was in her coffin, being carried to her grave. All that was left was her soul that was preparing to leave her body. They’d failed. All was lost, but somehow it didn’t matter. Then she registered strong hands under her armpits and around her ankles. She tipped her head back a little and saw Van’s face, upside down, looking anxiously ahead. He glanced down at her and his face broke into a relieved smile.

‘Stop; she’s awake,’ he said. When Wilbur set her feet down and turned to look at her, Sophia’s immediate reaction was to recoil from him in fright. She cowered into Van’s chest and looked at him fearfully over her shoulder.

Van rubbed her back gently. ‘Everything’s alright. It’s only Wilbur. You’re safe.’

Sophia buried her face in his neck in the spot that she loved. ‘What happened?’

‘Just when Wilbur had built his energy up enough to begin the transfer, you flipped out. You started screaming, calling him the Devil and trying to rip your hands free. He managed to keep his grip on you while controlling his own transition; he showed incredible restraint. Then you blacked out, so we’ve got no idea whether the transfer worked or not. We decided to carry you back to the lodge to get you out of the rain, which decided to clear just after we set out anyway.’

Sophia turned tentatively to Wilbur, who was standing a respectful distance away. ‘I’m sorry to be so rude, Wilbur. You were only trying to help.’

‘No apology necessary,’ he replied. ‘It’s not the first time a woman has called me the Devil.’ He winked. ‘Besides, it’s me who should apologize. I knew the procedure would be traumatic; it was for the woman I watched before. But I decided not to tell you because I feared that you wouldn’t do it. I should’ve let you make an informed decision. But tell me, did it work? Are you stronger?’

Sophia stepped away from Van and made a mental scan of her body. Her head was clear, vision sharp. All trace of wobbliness was gone from her legs and arms. She felt charged with liveliness, like a bird in full flight. ‘I feel fantastic!’ she said joyously. ‘This is amazing! The only thing is…’ She looked down at the palms of her hands. They were scalded bright red, with tiny yellow blisters bubbling up around the edges. She showed them to the men, who shook their heads sympathetically.

‘I had no idea the heat would be intense enough to actually burn you,’ Van said.

But the injury didn’t dampen Sophia’s reaction. She threw her arms around Van and then, with only a second’s hesitation, around Wilbur as well. ‘I can’t thank you enough, Wilbur. You’ve changed the whole game.’

He chuckled and squeezed her. ‘This result is better than anything we could’ve hoped for.’ He waited until the hug was over before saying, ‘Remember, though; this is only temporary. It’ll only last a few days, a week at best. Then Van will inherit this new energy supply just as he has taken the rest of it.’

Sophia nodded solemnly, giving Van a reassuring look. ‘We’d better get on that plane then.’

Chapter 15

Wilbur’s private jet was sleek, sophisticated and quite simply everything that Sophia imagined it would be. It seemed to sit like a beautiful white eagle, waiting to take flight, while the small party crossed the tarmac. The sun had come out and warmed Sophia’s back as she climbed the steps in front of Van and Wilbur. She noted that even the steel rail beneath her bandaged hands was perfectly shiny. The interior was completely cream aside from sophisticated touches of grey in the edging of the seats and the plump cushions. Sophia removed her shoes, even though Wilbur insisted that she needn’t bother. It didn’t seem right to walk on pristine cream carpet in her old travelling shoes.

There were eight chairs, each as large and comfortable as a lounge chair at home, and at the far end of the cabin Sophia could spy a double bed, complete with cream comforter and fluffy pillows. All of their bags and equipment were already stowed in the baggage area below. An air hostess with a French accent who was as neat as a pin welcomed them aboard. She served glasses of sparkling water and tiny filled croissants while they waited for the pilot and co-pilot to complete their preparations. It was way past lunchtime and Sophia ate her little canapés with gusto, hoping that there were more culinary treats in store during the two hour long flight.

Her prayers were answered in the air a short while later when the petite hostess spread napkins across their laps and presented exquisite meals according to their preferences. Both Wilbur and Van selected the Colorado lamb chop, glazed with honey and sage while Sophia chose seared trout with lemon parsley brown butter. They all had sides of quinoa pilaf and roasted asparagus.   

‘Oh my
goodness,
’ Sophia gushed after her first mouthful. Eating with bandaged hands was a bit of a struggle, but nothing was going to get in-between her and this plate of food. ‘This is
delicious
. What a treat. This sure beats a gas station sandwich in the car. I can’t thank you enough for letting us use your plane, Wilbur.’

‘You’re most welcome,’ Wilbur replied, touching his lips with his linen napkin. ‘Food is one of life’s great pleasures and too often we forget how important it is to enjoy the ceremony of eating.’

‘I totally agree,’ Sophia said, taking another mouthful. ‘I said that exact thing just last night, right Van? Van?’

He looked up distractedly. ‘Sorry, what?’

Sophia frowned. ‘Are you alright?’

He sighed and put down his fork. ‘I am. It’s just… I guess up until this point I’d been focusing on getting us to Weiser State Forest, and now that we’re only a few hours away and there’s nothing else to concentrate on anymore, I’ve started thinking about what it will be like to see that grey werewolf again.’

‘How are you feeling about it?’ Sophia asked gently.

He paused while the hostess came in to check on their meals and refill their drinks, continuing once she was out of earshot. His grip was tight around his glass.

‘I’m not a hundred percent sure how I feel. It was like fate when I first saw that wolf and he jumped up onto my shoulders to bite me. I mean, what are the chances of our paths crossing at that exact moment within that entire vast wilderness? It seemed like he’d been looking for me and then he just needed to go about completing some exchange that was already predetermined. I don’t know if that’s even possible. But, fate or not, for many years I carried a lot of hate in my heart for that wolf. I hated him for what he did to me and for his lack of restraint. Whenever I’m in wolf state, I’ve still got control over myself. I didn’t bite Sophia; I’ve never bitten anyone. The urge to do harm is part of the darkness that resides within every werewolf, but the strong learn to master their desires. I hated that grey wolf for not containing his.’

‘Do you still hate him now?’ Sophia asked.

‘Since meeting you, the loathing has abated. I’ve started to wonder if perhaps I was meant to be bitten so that I’d be able to live until you came into my life. But I can’t banish that deeply entrenched reaction altogether. The fact is I
do
hate that wolf and it’s going to be a challenge to hide those feelings when we find him.’

Sophia leaned over and kissed his cheek softly. Wilbur, who was sitting opposite them, had been listening quietly. He said, ‘Life has many challenges, and forgiveness is one of the most difficult. Only you can truly know the difficulties you’ve faced in this life under the werewolf curse, and you must also be the one who finds it in his heart to let the past lie where it belongs; in the past.’

Van nodded slowly and they all finished their meals quietly. Each seemed deep in thought. Once the plates were cleared, Wilbur moved to the front of the plane to make some business arrangements – including personally covering for Sophia with regards to her delayed book launch – giving Van and Sophia some welcome time alone.

Sophia kissed the back of Van’s hand and stroked her fingers up his strong forearm, with its thick dark hairs. It was warm inside the aircraft, and he wore a simple black t shirt that showed off the muscles of his chest and arms, as well as his slim waist. Sophia felt a welcome tingling between her legs and she rubbed her lips against his. With Wilbur’s tiger vigor and a delicious meal on board, the urge to be intimate with Van began to take serious hold.

‘What do you say we change the tempo and head to the bathroom for a little mile-high action?’ she whispered, giggling naughtily.

Van looked at her with mock horror. ‘You bad girl. I’d love to, but you need to save your energy for what’s ahead. Plus, Wilbur’s no angel; he’ll know exactly what we’re doing.’

Sophia grazed past the bulge in Van’s jeans suggestively. ‘So what? I don’t think he’d care.’ She heaved a mighty sigh and sat back in her seat. ‘But you’re right; I shouldn’t waste this gift that he’s given me.’ She raised her eyebrows. ‘Not that it’d be a waste.’

Van whispered in her ear, his lips tickling her earlobe in a most tantalizing way. ‘Tell you what; when we get there and Wilbur leaves us alone, I’ll make sure there’s a chance for me to get you off. It drives me crazy watching you come.’

‘That sounds delicious,’ she whispered, kissing him passionately. A warm feeling of pure love filled her heart. When she felt his love channel into her body as it was right then, it intensified her own feelings even more too.

A few minutes later, Sophia was very pleased to discover that the dessert was not the type of dish that she sometimes found in fancy restaurants; a mere taster, leaving one desperate for more. No, this was a generous portion of rich chocolate brownie accompanied by silky vanilla bean ice cream.

‘She should serve herself a large piece of this brownie,’ Sophia whispered to Van as she watched the hostess’s tiny rear retreat back to the service area.

‘She could have a big, curvy derriere like mine in no time.’ She giggled and Van grinned. She knew he loved her plump body and felt sexier than ever as a result. She took her time to savor the rich chocolate, and then as they began their descent she voiced a concern that had been nagging at the back of her mind.   

‘If we manage to find this grey werewolf and lift your curse…’ she began.

‘
When
we find him, you mean,’ Van interrupted.

‘Yeah, yeah,’ she rolled her eyes good-naturedly at his persistent optimism with regards to finding the wolf. ‘
When
we find the grey wolf, how on earth am I going to convince him to give up his life for our cause?’

‘It’s his cause too – The Mother will lift the curse of
all
werewolves, him included.’

‘But think about it; he won’t ever know the benefit of that curse being lifted because he’ll already be dead before we get a chance to achieve that goal.’

‘True. It’s tough, there’s no denying it.’

‘And another thing,’ she continued, ‘how do we know he – and other werewolves for that matter – will even
want
their curses lifted? Some may find pleasure in the darkness that you talk about, who aren’t willing to give up the ability to run and hunt freely like no mortal man possibly can. I talked briefly with Dorin about this, but he didn’t give me any answers and it’s been playing on my mind.’

Van nodded grimly. ‘I’m anticipating pockets of resistance to the coming of The Mother, especially in the Eastern Forests where those who wish to live permanently as werewolves roam. But we will have to face those problems when we come to them. As for the grey wolf, we’ll each have our challenges when it comes time to face him. I truly believe that if you speak from your heart you’ll be surprised by how convincing you can be. You have a way with words and a magnetism that shouldn’t be underestimated. Trust yourself, Sophia. You can do this.’

‘And if it works and we lift your curse, you’ll finally be a man once more. How do you feel about that finally being a reality?’

‘It’s what I want. More than anything. To be a man with you by my side.’

Sophia stroked his cheek. ‘All of these trials we have to go through I do because that’s my deepest wish too.’

‘There is a downside, though’ Van said regretfully. ‘I’ll return to Oak Tree Forest with you a mortal man, not a werewolf. We’ll both be targets for the Colti as we move onto the next phase.’

Sophia cringed. ‘I hadn’t thought of that.’

Van kissed the back of her hand in reassurance while Wilbur returned to his original seat for landing. Out the window Sophia saw miles of green forest stretching out into the distance. Somewhere out there was the grey werewolf that would make or break their dreams. If he was still alive. If they could find him. If he’d agree to sacrifice himself. There were so many variables in this complicated equation. Could it all work out?