Soul Bound (Completed)

Chapter Twenty-Six

          Sammy bristled in my lap, his little body tensing as he rose. I could feel the sharpness of his claws on his feet – his paws – against my leg through the jeans I wore. He yowled pitifully and I ran my fingers through his fur, trying to comfort him. "What is it? What's wrong?" I asked, looking at Donna.

           "It's fine. He's just feelin' the pull of the moon. It's stronger for the pups. He wants to run," she said matter-of-factly, though her eyes looked a little helpless as she stared at her son. "It can't be helped."

          Sammy trembled in my arms, the word 'run' seeming to cause an intense yearning to go through him. "Why don't you just let him run?" I demanded.

           "He can't exert himself for too long tonight or tomorrow he'll be feelin' the consequences of it. His body is too small. He can't take that kind of extreme exercise. Hell, even the best of us are usually achin' the next day, that's why we usually wait until later to run. Once we get started, it's hard to stop, so it's better to start later on in the evening. Well... that and the dark. It gives us cover," Donna explained. She pulled Sammy from my lap and placed him on hers. She nuzzled her nose in his fur, hugging him close to her.

           "It's not like he's in pain or anything," Keaton said suddenly and I turned to see him looking at me. "There's no need to look so worried. He's just a little uncomfortable, aren't we all?" He ran a hand through his hair, his leg bouncing up and down.

          Being surrounded by the three of them... their edginess was contagious and I fought the urge to start pacing.

           "A few more hours," Donna said reassuringly. We all shared a look of mutual understanding.

         Not long now, the words were a promise echoing through my mind.

          ***

          They all ate like... animals. Luca sat next to me, devouring a burger in no less than four bites. Even Sammy munched happily on some chicken on the floor. Keaton... Keaton was in a world of his own. He didn't even speak; he was so busy eating. The small table in Donna's kitchen was overflowing with food. I had scoffed when I'd seen the excessive amount, but they were all making a significant dent in the food, building up their energy.

           I couldn't quite believe that I was there. It had been less than three weeks since Luca came into my life. Less than two weeks since Christian told me about the cancer. In such a short space of time, my whole world has changed. Irrecoverably. Tonight was just another glaring reminder of that. My whole body thrummed with excitement, my heartbeat strong and steady. I had to accept that things were never going to go back to how they were before. This was the norm now.

          After we'd all eaten our fill, Donna went to grab some clothes for Sammy to wear later on, and Luca excused himself to take a call. I stayed standing, feeling too keyed up to sit down. I moved my head side to side, trying to loosen the tenseness in my neck. Keaton seemed to feel the same way, as he paced the small space of Donna's living room, his brows furrowed.

          Luca came in after a short while. "We need to talk. I spoke to Uncle Trevor–"

           "This should be good," Keaton said, looking between us in anticipation. My guard immediately went up.

           Luca glared at him, before turning to me, his face softening remarkably. Every fibre in my body charged in anticipation as he drew closer.

           "Is everything okay?" I asked softly.

           He pushed some of my hair behind my ear, his hand lingering against my skin longer than necessary. "I didn't want to worry you." His eyes tightened and his jaw clenched. "I've told you before about the research Trevor's been doing for us..."