Chapter 21
Shocked, tears ran down my face. Joseph patted my hand awkwardly, trying his best to comfort me.
Aunt Bev came to sit next to me, and pulled me in close to her. “You see, Gen, your mother was Adlet. All that time she spent taking you camping, teaching you how to survive, and how to fight, and how to live in the woods. she was preparing you. This has been your destiny all along.”
“I don’t want to do this. Let someone else do it.” I cried.
Aunt Bev pulled my face up so I was looking at her. “This has always been your destiny. Your mother had to fight her whole life to keep you safe. Why do you think she moved you around so much? It’s because Zane kept tracking you. Gen… your mother died saving you. The fire was no accident. Zane burned your house to hide your mother’s murder. You coming here was no accident either. She called me because she knew she could no longer keep you safe.”
I knew what Aunt Bev was saying was probably true, but it still hurt so bad, and I was frightened. “What if I fail? This will all have been for nothing.” My heart ached to know that my mother loved me so much, she gave her life to save mine.
“You won’t fail. This is your destiny. You can do this,” Aunt Bev said softly, trying to smile through her own tears.
I shook my head “I don’t know. I just need time to think about it.”
“There is no time. You leave tonight.” The chief said sternly.
I peered at him. “Tonight?” My heart ached to the point I thought I would die any second.
“Yes.” His voice was cold and without emotion. “You have to retrieve the crest before you can take the throne. Once you take the throne, the lycan will no longer be enslaved to Zane. The killing will stop and you will reign.”
“Shouldn’t we go home and pack?” I asked Aunt Bev. I didn’t really care about packing, I just wanted to be with William. I would go home and pack to runaway with William.
“I’m not going, and I’ve brought your bag already. I would never survive the journey. Only you and your royal warriors will be going.”
“My royal what?” I was having a hard time comprehending that I was a royal anything. All my life I’d been plain old Gen.
“James, Joshua, Joseph, and Luna. They are your protectors.” As Aunt Bev said each of their names, they rose and crossed the room to bow before me.
“What about William? I want him to go, too.” I pleaded, but I could tell by the look on Aunt Bev’s face she disapproved of the idea.
“There’s no room on the plane.” Aunt Bev blurted out. I sensed there was something she wasn’t telling me. “You must leave for New Mexico tonight.”
“I’ll be going with you,” Luna said, happily, getting all perky like we were going on a friggin picnic.
I didn’t want to hurt hers or her brother’s feelings, but I knew unequivocally I wouldn’t feel safe without William to protect me. Whatever he was or wasn’t, he’d kept me alive so far.
I sighed heavily, lowering my eyes. “Let me go tell him good-bye.” My heart ached at the thought of not seeing him for God knew how long… maybe not forever.
I pushed myself up off the couch, and left the room. When I opened the door to the bedroom I was certain I’d been in, it was empty. I ran over to the window where William had been standing when I left, and threw back the curtain. When I tried to push the window up, it was locked. “Where did he go?” I muttered.
I collapsed onto the bed and sobbed uncontrollably. Why would he leave without saying good-bye? I thought we meant something to each other. Everything was confusing, and it hurt. I kept praying that it was all just a bad dream, but in my heart I knew it wasn’t.
After I pulled myself together, I returned to the living room. Luna and the boys stood ready with their backpacks, and I saw mine leaned up against the wall beside the front door.
Aunt Bev picked it up and handed it to me. “I put in everything you might possibly need for the trip.” A strange expression flitted across her face. She whispered in my ear as she hugged me tightly against her. “I want you to be careful. If anything happens, remember what your mother taught you. Do you hear me?”
“I will,” I whispered back. She held onto me until Luna got her attention.
“We really need to go, they’re still tracking us and I feel them getting close,” Luna said quietly.
Luna touched my shoulder and I jerked, so she quickly let go. When her hand had touched me, I saw a blip of something. A man I’d never seen was talking with someone. I couldn’t see who it was because Luna had pulled her hand away too fast. It was the weirdest feeling ever though, like she transferred her thoughts to me. I knew she had felt it too, by the surprised look on her face when I turned to her.
“Uh… okay, I’m ready.” I tried to stand tall and look confident, but a sigh slipped out. I promptly thought, “What if William hadn’t gone, but was just outside somewhere getting some fresh air or something?” I turned back to Aunt Bev. “William might be outside somewhere. If he comes back tell him to call me. Okay?
Aunt Bev hesitated and cleared her throat. “Um…he left, Gen,” she uttered.
“How do you know? He might still be around.”
Her eyes averted mine. “I know, because…I sent him away.” She pulled her shoulders up, almost like she was proud of what she’d done. “There wouldn’t be enough room for him in the plane, and I figured it would hurt him less if I told him.”
“You had no right! I didn’t even get to tell him good-bye. Why do think you need to control every aspect of my life? I’m sick of it!” I shot her a disgusted look and threw my backpack over my shoulder. “And I’m sick of you!”
I spun around on my heel, and without looking back, I stormed to the door. Luna and the boys had already gone outside.
“Gen!” Aunt Bev had shouted from somewhere behind me. “I’m sorry.” I heard her voice grow thick.
“Good riddance!” I slammed the door, and ran to the truck.
Their grandfather waited patiently in the driver’s seat. I was the last one to climb in. I sat back and Luna put her arm around my shoulders, laying her head against mine.
“I’m sorry, Gen,” she whispered.
I bit my tongue to keep from sobbing. My heart pounded erratically, and I felt like throwing up.
Luna’s grandfather stomped on the accelerator, but instead of heading back the way we had come in, we drove around behind his house and onto a dirt road.
I noticed Joshua and James were rather edgy while they kept a constant watch out the windows for some lurking danger that might be close. Joseph stared straight ahead. He was quiet and seemed withdrawn. I didn’t feel like I was in danger, but what did I know? My new best friend, Luna, was an Adlet wolf.
We stopped next to a huge lake, wrapped on three sides with snow covered mountains. Luna pointed out that all the land, including the lake, belonged to Luna’s grandfather.
When we stepped out of the truck, the icy wind whipped over me, and I wrapped my arms around myself.
I scanned the area around me looking for William. I couldn’t explain it, but I had a feeling he was watching me from somewhere close by.
“Where’s the plane?” I asked, flatly.
“Out there.” Luna pointed across the water, and when I looked closely, I saw a tiny dot.
“So…like, how are we supposed to get out there? Swim?” I threw my hands up.
At first, Luna gave me this look like I had hit it spot on. But, just as I started to protest, she laughed light heartedly. “Just kidding. A boat is coming.”
She knew by the look I shot her that I didn’t find her sense of humor funny. I turned my ear toward the water, and I heard the faint burbling sound of a boat’s engine slowly growing closer. I was genuinely relieved when I heard it coming. I was really starting to get a bad feeling and it scared the hell out of me.
I was the first one to climb into the boat. Joseph helped me in and then jumped in right behind me. Luna and the twins loaded our
gear and then settled into the boat. The icy wind was way worse on the water than it had been standing on the shore. They had talked me into leaving my big jacket in the truck. Joseph said we wouldn’t need them where we were going.
The plane had just started to climb when I remembered my phone was in my jacket pocket. “We have to go back,” I shouted frantically over the loud engine noise that the Cessna made. Everyone jumped, even the pilot, which made him temporarily let go of the control thingy, causing the plane to teeter to one side.
“Are you trying to kill us?” Joseph shot me a look. “You don’t have to scream,” he said into his microphone that was connected to a set of headphones. “See this little thing right here?” He asked sardonically, pointing to my microphone. “You speak into it in a normal voice, and then we all can hear it in our headsets.” He pointed each of his index fingers to each side of his headset.
“Sorry. But I just realized I left my phone in the truck.” I was as close to hysterics as I could be without crying.
Joseph shook his head. “Sorry. We can’t turn around…it’s too dangerous.”
“Please.” Tears stood in my eyes. “I…need it,” I trailed off trying to think of an argument that would convince them I needed my phone, but the truth was, there wasn’t one. I wanted my phone so I could talk to William, not because it was needed to help me sustain life or something. I dropped my shoulders and lowered my head.
I turned toward the window, and watched the sky grow dark as we flew south. I thought about William and how I might not make it back. He would never know what happened to me. Fresh tears streamed down my face when I thought about how hurt he had to have been when Aunt Bev told him to leave. There was no telling what she’d told him. She probably said that I didn’t want to face him, so she offered to do it for me. I would never forgive that woman as long as I lived.