Animal Secrets: A Paranormal Romance (The Animal Sagas) Read online

  Chapter 4

  “She-cat,” the trees breathed the words ominously somewhere above her. Sonya looked up, startled at the sound. As far as she knew she was completely by herself out here since all the other ladies had long since left her on their way back to the finish.

  At the same time, back at the packs camp, Lynda was banished to her bedroom while the men engaged in their own traditional event. She was not sure what it was, but she was sure that she was not permitted to be part of it. Ben had made that more than clear to her.

  “Men only,” he reminded her again as he walked out the door just a little but ago. “So stay here and I’ll be back in a few hours.”

  She was tempted to sneak off and take a peek at all the festivities anyway (suddenly she felt much more like Sonya) but the pain in her sides from her ever expanding stomach kept her from being too mischievous. Bummer – she was really curious. As she lay in her bed drowsily dreaming of Ben’s return and what might happen when he got back, she suddenly felt a shock of pain bolt through her. She and her sister were very strongly connected and she knew that this twinge meant something was wrong with Sonya instantly.

  She jumped up out of bed as best that she could, no where near as agile as she normally was, ignoring the aches of her growing body. She ran out of the house, looked for the men, didn’t see them, looked for any help of any kind and realized that all the women were gone too. Basically everyone was gone except for her. And with that realization she ran straight into the woods.

  As she ran she tossed off her clothes as fast as she could and immediately transformed. It was actually far easier to run in cougar form than it was to run in human form with her extended belly. And it felt so nice to be a cat again – she had forgotten how much she loved her cat counter part. By the time she got maybe a mile into the woods she was confronted by the approach of a pack of racing wolves.

  “Sonya, do you know where is she?” Lynda cried out when Leyna bolted past her as the leader of the pack of females.

  “She hurt her ankle,” Leyna called back, not wanting to stop. “Keep going past the meadow and you will find her.”

  Lynda frowned – she knew that a simple twisted ankle would not cause the kind of twinge she had just felt. So she continued on through the woods, looking for Sonya. The evening was beginning to grow darker and though she had explored these woods a few times with Ben she had never done it at night, or by herself, or in her cougar form. So this was a whole different experience – and she was quickly approaching the furtherest part of the forest that she had ever been in.

  Back at the camp, as the female wolves reunited with their mates, and those who were still single selected mates, Ben and Clay stood patiently amidst the pack.

  “Where is Sonya?” Clay growled as he looked out over the gathering of females.

  “She’ll be here, don’t worry” Ben assured him.

  But Clay was getting antsy. Waiting was not his strong suit – never had been. Their relationship was still very new, and he and Sonya still got into spats now and then. So he hoped that she had not decided to just keep on running – but it would not surprise him at all if she did. She loved to push his buttons every chance that she got but thankfully not quite as much as she used to.

  “Look at us, the only two without mates,” Clay fretted as he watched the other males tackle and frolic about the grounds with their mates.

  “Well, at least I know where mine is,” Ben laughed and turned, headed back toward his house. A moment later her emerged back out to go right back to where Clay was still standing, with a new scowl on his face. “Okay, maybe I spoke too soon.”

  “Lynda’s gone? Are you sure?” Clay asked with a frown. Just then Leyna ran up to the pair and lowered her head in respect to the Alpha.

  “Leyna, where is Sonya?” Clay asked urgently.

  “She twisted her ankle when we were running back in the woods. She asked me to lead the pack so that the tradition would not be interrupted.”

  “Is she hurt very badly?” Clay asked, prepared to run off into the woods as soon as he got an answer.

  “It didn’t look too bad, but Lynda is probably already with her, I’m sure,” Leyna said.

  “Lynda?” Ben’s eyes narrowed sharply. He would have never thought that she would run off into the woods. He thought maybe she went for a walk, but not that she had gone off on her own. Especially in her current pregnant form.

  “This is not good, I need to go to her,” Ben said quickly to no one in particular.

  “Ben you can’t,” Clay warned him. “The pack will be expecting you to lead the ceremony. It’s just about time to start it anyway. Everyone is already gathering over there – they’re just waiting on you. You can’t leave.”

  Ben sighed and nodded his head, he knew Clay was right. “But what if she gets hurt out there?”

  “Don’t worry, I’ll bring them both back home,” Clay assured him before tearing off into the woods.

  Chapter 5

  In the woods Sonya was staring up into the trees looking for the source of the sound she heard just seconds ago. When she heard the crunch of leaves behind her, that was totally unexpected. What could possibly sneak up on a cougaress, even if she were in her human form, right now. She looked from one direction to the other and then whipped her head around to find a woman in a dark cloak standing behind her. With the hood pulled up like that it was impossible to discern her features.

  “She-cat,” she said again in that croaky voice, and her voice seemed to emanate from the trees, the grass, and the sky. It seemed to seep from every object in the forest.

  “Who are you?” Sonya asked the intruder shyly. She was still nude from the run, and with her ankle hurt she knew that she could not run far.

  “No matter who I am. But I am here to ensure that my curse is upheld,” the woman replied to Sonya.

  “Curse? Exactly what are you talking about? I think you’ve got the wrong person, old lady!” Sonya exclaimed to the cloaked figure just as Lynda ran up to help her.

  “Sonya, are you okay? And who are you talking to?” she asked Sonya breathlessly, trying to catch her breath. Just then she turned and saw the figure standing about twenty feet away and she froze right on the spot.

  “The curse,” the witch continued. “My curse. The one that has been placed on your kind, ever since one of mine was murdered by one of yours.”

  “You’re not making any sense,” Sonya protested, and Lynda lowered her head defensively.

  “Twenty years ago one of your kind took the life of my child, so in turn I took the lives of all of your children. Plus I made it impossible for any more children to be born from your kind. And when you two are gone the death of my child will be avenged. But I never thought that you would dare to venture into the bloodline of another were,” she hissed. “But you, Yukonia, you will do anything, won’t you?”

  Lynda bristled at the figures claims. At the same time Sonya managed to get to her feet, though she winced as she set her injured foot to the ground.

  “Be careful who you threaten, old woman” Sonya warned, leaning against Lynda, still in her cougar form. Lynda growled a low deep moan at the old woman.

  “Oh, I’m not threatening little girl,” the witch promised from beneath her shadowed hood. “I will make good on my curse. You two are the last of your kind so I am almost done already. I have been patiently waiting for your kind to disappear for years now – I will not be defeated when I am so very close to the end.”

  And with that statement the dark hooded figure pulled her gnarled hands from her pockets, holding a stick of some kind. “I just needed to expand my curse now to finish you both off. So now, those babies you now carry inside you, cougar bitch, they will not survive! Furthermore, there will be no more children from any kind of were line,” she snapped out her words, and waved the stick in her hand with such fury that Lynda was sure she was telling the truth. She backed away protectively from the cloaked figure as the babies inside her suddenly
felt different.

  “You can run she-cat,” the old woman cackled as Lynda slowly retreated. “But the damage is already done. I will make sure that those twins you carry are never born, and that neither of you ever have a fertile cycle again.”

  “Back off!” Sonya growled at the woman protecting her sister and her offspring.

  “Or what? What do you think you can do?” the witch asked and her hood slipped back enough to reveal her glowing green eyes. “You have no power to stop me, your ancestors had no power to stop me, what is done, is done. And soon you will both be done too!”

  The cloaked figure bent down and picked up a leaf from the ground. It was a leaf from the pile of leaves where Sonya had been laying just seconds ago before the old lady had appeared. Overall this pile of leaves was nothing special – except for this one leaf. On it was a single drop of blood from a small cut on Sonya’s injured ankle.

  “This is all I need,” she smiled and cackled once more in that croaky old woman voice as she waved the leaf about in front of her.

  “Be gone from here, hag!” Clay’s loud voice boomed from behind them as he came tearing up the path at that very second.

  The witch shrieked at Clays yell, waved the stick and then shimmered in response to his intrusion. Clay, still in his wolf form, lifted his head toward the moon and howled long and hard, alerting the other wolves in the pack that there was danger, and their support was needed. When the other wolves heard this, they began to howl in return. All of the wolves, Ben included, began charging through the woods back toward Clay’s howling.

  “It’s too late,” the witch Cackled again, even as she shimmered further. “It has been too late since the day my child was taken!” then abruptly the woman, the leaf, and the blood drop disappeared completely.

  Chapter 6

  Clay, Sonya and Lynda were immediately caught off guard by the old woman’s disappearance. How did she do that? And where did she go? They were almost as confused as Sonya was when the old woman appeared initially. Just who was this old woman? What was she talking about? The curse she mentioned, what did she mean by that? None of Lynda or Sonya’s family had ever killed anyone. At least to their knowledge that was the case. There were so many questions going through all their minds it was impossible to understand or completely comprehend what had just happened.

  By the time the other wolves had arrived, there was no trace of the old woman. Lynda, Sonya and Clay hadn’t had much of a chance to rehash what had just happened but they would surely have to now. The pack members had hundreds of questions it seemed and the threesome would surely have to answer all of them that they could once they got back to their homes. But for now they were all safe.

  Clay transformed back into his human state, and carefully picked Sonya up into his arms. “Did she hurt you?” he asked her with a worried look on his face.

  “No,” Sonya shook her head as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

  “Lynda?” Ben asked as he transformed and walked up to her with his arms out to hold her. Lynda had also shifted back into her human state, and her hands were on her rounded belly. Her eyes were filled with tears as she looked back at Ben, shaking.

  “Lynda, what is it?” Ben asked, cautiously stepping closer to her. Lynda could not bring herself to speak, as her grief was running far too deep. She continued to shake as the grief overtook her.

  “The witch, or whatever she was, that old woman, you didn’t see her, but she threatened the babies,” Sonya explained to Ben in a horrified whisper.

  “Lynda, no one is going to hurt our children. Don’t you worry about the babies,” Ben promised as he stared her straight in the eyes. “I will protect you, and them as well, so don’t you worry. Okay? Do you understand me?”

  Lynda felt the tears cascading down her cheeks, still shaking as she held onto her tummy. “Her curse. She told us of a curse – one that has caused our line to be eliminated over time. I’ve always wondered why our numbers have dwindled – you can’t protect me from her. And you can’t protect the babies either!” she whispered. “You can’t protect them either,” she cradled her belly gently with her palms and sobbed uncontrollably.

  Ben cupped her cheeks with his hands and turned her eyes back to his.

  “Yes I can, and I will, Lynda. Please believe me, I will take care of us all.”

  Sonya felt a deep shame wash over her and tears stung her eyes as she looked away from her sister and the Alpha of their pack as he tried to console his bride – her sister. She had never seen her in this state. Lynda was always the strong and savvy one. And seeing her like this was was ultimately horrifying to her.

  “What’s wrong, Sonya?” Clay asked, he could tell she was hiding something. He cradled her close to him, trying to reassure her that she could tell him the truth.

  “She took something,” she quietly murmured in Clay’s ear.

  “What? What did she take from you? Or was it from Lynda? What are you talking about?” he asked studying her intently.

  “She took a leaf,“ She said to him quietly, trying to keep all the attention off of her

  “But a leaf isn’t anything, honey. Don’t worry about that. That doesn’t mean anything,” Clay said trying his best to reassure his new mate.

  “But it is special Clay.” she confided to him.

  “Why? Why would a plain old leaf be anything out of the ordinary? Crazy old woman, she was probably just trying to scare you by picking something up,” Clay commented.

  “But Clay… It was a leaf… and it had my blood on it,” she blurted out and buried her face in the crook of Clay’s shoulder and neck, now crying just as hard as Lynda. “She has our blood now, Clay. She has my blood!”

  Clay and Ben met eyes over the tops of the two women’s heads. They both knew that this one fact made the situation much more serious.

  “That’s not your fault, baby,” Clay murmured to her in the best reassuring tone he could muster. “You couldn’t have stopped her.”

  Sonya and Lynda were both still visibly upset as they all traveled back through the woods. What was supposed to be a night of celebration had just turned into a night of fear. They had no idea how completely their lives would be affected by this new occurrence. The arrival of the old lady had scared the girls beyond words, but of the two sisters, Lynda was definitely the most badly affected.

  As soon as they got back home Ben led Lynda into their bedroom, and helped her back into bed. He gently covered her with the sheets and comforter. Then he sat down beside her, and rested his hand on the rise of her stomach. He smiled faintly as he felt the flutter of movement inside.

  “See?” he said gently. “They’re doing just fine in there.”

  Lynda did not answer as she tried unsuccessfully to hold back the tears that insisted on flowing.

  “Lynda,” he drew her hand to his lips and kissed her fingers gently. “Please, don’t worry, they are going to be just fine, and we will have many more if I have any choice in the matter.”

  “Ben, you don’t understand,” Lynda felt her heart sink and did her best to talk between sobs. “You’ve never seen your entire line just die off. For all I know she is the reason our parent’s died too – maybe it wasn’t an accident like we had thought all this time. She murdered them! And if she had the power to do that, she certainly has the power to make good on this too!”

  “You’re right,” he said quietly. “I don’t understand. But what I do know is that your entire line did not die off,” he met her eyes sternly. “You and Sonya are part of this pack now, we are your line, and we will protect you both.”

  Lynda sniffled, started to regain her composure a bit and nodded at Ben’s last comment. He kissed her fingers once more, drew her hand down from his mouth and laid it gently across her belly, with his large hand on top.

  “Feel them,” he murmured. “They want you to know that everything will be just fine too.”

  Lynda again felt the flutter of their movement inside
her and sighed contentedly. She wanted to believe Ben. She did believe in him. And she wanted to think that the pack would be able to protect them, but she also knew better. The old lady had gave her quite a scare. But she wanted to be strong for Ben and Sonya especially so she vowed internally to try and get herself together. She knew what the threat meant – she had seen the grief in the eyes of her family as they attended funeral after funeral when she was still a teenager. She also knew that if her babies did not make it to birth that she would be devastated.

  Would Ben still want her if he knew that she could not have any more children? He was a proud man, but would the loss of the babies be too much for him to bear? Would he blame her for it? She turned away from him, hoping to hide the fear in her eyes as question upon question fought for dominance in her brain. She just wanted to shut it off so the questions would stop. Even if only for a few minutes.

  Ben’s jaw clenched as he sat there, realizing that she was still worried. He knew she would not let it go and would run scenario after scenario over and over through her brain. She needed peace but he did not know yet how to give her that. He wanted to be able to reach inside of her and make her trust him, but he could see that the witch had truly rattled her. So he kissed her forehead gently and curled up in the bed right beside her.

  “I will keep you and the babies safe, don’t you worry,” he murmured to her as she finally fell into a fitful slumber.

  As it turns out Sonya and Clay were in a similar position inside their own home. She was staring listlessly out at the sky, her injured ankle tended to and wrapped up tightly in a tan ace bandage, thinking about the events that had happened only moments ago. She thought long and hard about every statement the old woman had made to her, in fact to all of them, trying to decipher exactly what she meant. As the baby in the family she was aware of some of the old Yukonia tales but all the things the witch had said certainly made no sense at all to her.