TAY POV
Don't kill anyone. Don't kill anyone. DON'T FUCKING KILL ANYONE!
I sighed, rubbing my face with one hand. 'Take just a little. You know you want it.'
As if I didn't have enough shit to deal with, I was back to hearing voices. That whinny little voice that sounded so oddly like my first wife had been plaguing me since I first walked into an opium den, some 300 years ago. At first, I thought, meh! Nothing to freak out about. Then it grew stronger and stronger, until it was all I could hear, until I had to obey or lose my mind. Or was that how all drug addicts rationalized their addiction? That they had to do it?
Liar Liar Pants on fire!
I already knew that. Why Eia was repeating it was beyond me. If I was really losing my mind, I wanted to do it right. Since the voice sounded like my first wife, It would bear her name.
Right-o, love of mine. You know I never left you.
Again, I rubbed my face tiredly. My hand began shaking ever so slightly. I really needed a hit. I wanted . . .craved it so bad. All I had to do was turn back and jog back through the forest and get home. That black case would be waiting for me. It was always waiting for me. It was a moment before I realized that I had actually started back the way I had come.
Get a grip!
My moko quivered, appearing to move across my stomach and back as my body tensed and relaxed in rapid succession. I dragged my fingers through a particular part of the ancient tribal tattoo and I began to feel some semblance of calm as I remembered just how painful it had been to get it. That thought, oddly enough, calmed me down. I pulled on my long sleeved flannel shirt as I heard the long forgotten yet familiar sounds of heavy paws striking the ground. No point in scaring the pups with my Maori body art. That and I really wanted to avoid any questions. I was here to talk. They were here to listen. Nothing more, nothing less.
They were fewer that I'd expected.
And much smaller!
I rolled my eyes. I could almost see her rubbing her pixie like hands in anticipation. She'd always been bloodthirsty, overly-violent even by my standards. I heard them slow down, until one by one they emerged from the woods, led by a tall dark as night wolf who glared at me through narrowed eyes. I stood quietly, studying them as intently as they were studying me, as they surrounded me . . . one by one. I remained quietly curious while their rumbling growls pierced the air, my body settling into a deliberately non-combative stance.
"Hard to talk when you're in wolf," I began in a soft tone.
I was only mildly surprised when the russet-colored wolf I had addressed turned his head instead to the black wolf.
Rare, but not unheard of for an alpha to give up his title.
I mentally shrugged as my lips quirked in a small smile before turning to the dark wolf. The air around him shimmered, seeming to literally vibrate with pure energy as he shifted back into human form. He was shorter than me, at a little over six feet, with stern black eyes set in a youthful face. He couldn't be past his early twenties. I must have scared him because I knew I looked older and I was certainly taller and bigger than him. We were like poster children for over-indulgence in steroids.
"You're on pack lands," he stated calmly.
I sniffed deeply and caught the acrid scent of fear emanating from him. I gave a scornful snort at his words.
"I noticed," I retorted.
"What do you want?"
"Just to set a few things straight. Clear the air as it were," he gave a curt cautious nod. I really had to give the young shifter credit. He was much smarter than he appeared. I had expected to be cleaning blood off my muzzle by now. Shape-shifters were stupid. They had a tendency to kill first and ask questions later.
"I have recently moved to the house on Beacon Falls. From the scent, I can tell it's within your –ahem – territory,"
"Beacon falls?" he repeated with a raised eyebrow.
"I have owned the house and its surrounding property for a very long time and I've got the papers to prove it,"
I was sure he was seeing the dilapidated ruin and the surrounding trees and shrubbery. It was decidedly unlivable and incredibly ugly. Its only saving grace was the small pond and the adjoining waterfall at the back of the house. But, alas, it was mine.
"Ngh," he grunted out as he looked at his beta, Mr. Russet, from the corner of his eye.
"I have already taken the liberty of marking the land that I legally own," I said smiling coldly.
"We also noticed," the boy confirmed.
"Why are you here?"
My eyes widened innocently, "the weather, of course," I replied drolly.
"Will you join then?" His head was quirked in the most inquisitive manner.
Whatever happened to no questions? Came Eia's sarcastic tone.
Good point, I retorted.
But the boy interested me so I would allow him this one opportunity to get as much information as he could . .even though most of what came out of my mouth was untrue.
Can you say pathological liar? Eia
Learned it from you, love of mine. Yeah, answer that you overgrown toad.
"Once an alpha, always an alpha," I said, shrugging my wide shoulders. He frowned in confusion before his dark eyes flared in challenge.
Silly. Little. Wolf.
He didn't know just how hard it was, restraining myself from sinking my teeth into his throat.
.KILL!
Breath in, breath out, I tutored myself, actively ignoring Eia's maniacal voice. I wouldn't be able to control myself for much longer. I needed to wrap this meeting up. Quick.
"Do you mean to take my pack?" he growled out.
"And what in the flying fuck would I do with a bunch of untrained pups?" my lips curved in a sneer when he flinched back. My hands clenched into fists with the effort it took not to respond to the challenge.
"Then what the hell do you want?" That effectively calmed me down. What did I want? An end to poverty? The twenty year old Angelina Jolie? A drug that will keep me high for the rest of my life with only one shot?
"I just want to be left alone. Don't bother me and I won't bother you." The others stepped back as I walked past them, still growling beneath my breath. "Name's Sam. Sam Uley," he called out. I raised a hand in acknowledgment but didn't turn back.
They came sniffing around a couple of times after that initial meeting but after that I never saw them again. They steered way way clear of the territory I had claimed for myself. In a way, I was glad for it because it meant I didn't have to kill some poor kid. And yet, I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
If I'd been Sam, I'd have killed myself-I mean him . .well, you get the picture. I'd rip the head off anyone who came into my territory, especially anyone who was as shady and uncontrolled as I was. But c'est la vie. Not everyone was a clinically insane psychopath.
I threw myself into making my poor excuse of a house habitable. It was hard, mind-numbing work. It made me forget, just for a moment. Then Eia would come and break the spell and I'd be leaning against a tree, a tourniquet on my abused left arm . .a fat syringe in my right. Then I'd be blessedly happy . .at peace. It always seemed to wear off too damned quick. Then again, it wasn't like I actually timed myself or owned a watch for that matter. I lived by the rising and the setting of the sun or better yet, the lightening and darkening of the sky because this was Washington, one of the coldest places in the US. There was rarely any sun. Thank the stars for shifter genes otherwise my nuts would have been frozen off years ago.
After a few weeks of living in a tent and on canned and junk food, the building contractors finally arrived. I hated the thought of other people on my territory…especially fucking humans. But they were a necessary evil. I wanted to get back to work as soon as I could and I couldn't do that living in a shit hole. As much as I liked getting back to nature and the whole roughing it gig, I was a creature of comfort. I hadn't survived living in a world without microwaves; plumbing and hot showers just to neglect them now.
When the final wall was painted and the last hardwood floor polished did I finally have my last landlord ship my belongings down to La Push. I had only travelled with one duffel bag during my long trip. I couldn't abide planes. Only a masochistic wolf-shifter would be able to stand being in an enclosed space for hours on end so I had first taken a ship from Greece then driven down from the port. It had been a long and arduous journey but definitely better than going via plane.
I was so wrapped up in renovating the house then in arranging my furniture and finally moving in. Before I knew it, an entire year had passed and I hadn't left my home. Everything was delivered to me and what couldn't be, I went without. I was alone. Finally. Well .. .as alone as I could be with Eia constantly harping on in my head. I should have known it was too good to be true. But I've always been a firm believer in ignoring all signs and hints. Like an ostrich, I buried my head in the sand or in this case, my work, when I should have been noticing the signs of an impending catastrophe.