Waindale

forty-nine. it's almost time

I look to him for clarity, but he says, "I'll see you tonight. I just have to assure everyone that I'm still capable."

I can't play stupid and say that it doesn't make sense. I wouldn't want anyone doubting Adam's ability to be Alpha. After swallowing my deprivation for one more day, I finish breakfast, dress myself, and prepare to leave for the town with Ester. As she buttons up her heavy coat and steps into her boots, I ask, "Did Adam leave? I wanted to say goodbye."

"Yes, Ben got him while you were upstairs."

There's a feeling in my chest—a tight, unnerved one that has my mind conjuring anxious thoughts. "I don't feel well," I tell her.

She pauses and looks to me. "Is it the baby?"

"No. I just—something doesn't feel right. Maybe we shouldn't go."

"Wrenley, there is nothing to worry about. Adam will be fine and you will see him tonight at dinner."

I roll my lips together and take my shoes as she hands them to me. My fingers are shaky as I lace up my own boots, causing Ester to crouch down and tie them for me.

"There is nothing to worry about," she repeats.

"I-I have a bad feeling. I don't think I should leave Adam alone."

"He isn't alone. He's with Ben, and surely they're around many others as well."

I cross my arms. "I just—"

"You've been in the house too long," Ester concludes. "You've become a paranoid hermit. You used to like coming to the market with me."

"I know, and I do, but I don't feel right leaving Adam, not today."

"He just got back and suddenly he's gone again; I know it can be frustrating, but he has responsibilities."

"The last thing I want is to stop him from doing his job, but i don't feel right, not today. He should be with me."

She studies me for a moment then asks, "Would you feel better if we went to see him?"

"Can we go to him? Do you know where he is?"

"I know that they're heading to the northern border."

"Then we have to go there. I have to get him," I tell her. "I know I sound crazy, but you have to believe me when I say that I have a bad feeling. I know something is wrong. I need to get to him."

Adam's mother thinks again about my words. It's as if I can see her thoughts processing through the black of her eyes.

"Alright," she says. "Let's go. Come on."

She drives us down a road I've never been on before, and it suddenly turns to dirt. I realize it's because I've never been this north of Waindale, an area close to the mountains and blanketed by dense forest. The ground is uneven and rocky, bouncing me around in my seat. When I stare out at the trees, they seem to carry on forever, never thinning out, only becoming thicker, so close that they seem to grow into each other like conjoined twins. Around grandma's house, you can see the ocean between them, spots of blue luring you in. Something is luring me in here, too—but it is not the ocean or the view from the cliff—it is something much more complicated.

The unsettled feeling only grows worse, nearly taunting me as each minute passes that I'm not with Adam. It's dread. Apprehension. Before I've felt terrible things when away from him, but this isn't like that. I'm not deprived. I don't feel malnourished. It's as if someone is hunting him, wanting to hurt him, take him from me—would he? Would my father do something so horrific?

"Are we close?" I ask, impatient.

Ester seems stressed by the road, overwhelmed by its dips and over-growth. Just as her lips part, the car jolts strangely. She mutters something and glances to the side mirror. She slows, but I soon realize that it wasn't just another bump.

"What is it?"

We come to a complete stop, and she gets out of the car. I follow suit and quickly come around to her side. She's examining the front, right tire. "There's a tear. It's popped," she breathes. "It must have snagged on a rock or—there's a spare. In the trunk. I can change it, but it will take me a minute. Don't go anywhere."

"I can help."

"No. No," she refuses, "you just stand by the car. Don't strain yourself."

"I won't lose the baby by lifting a tire," I assure her.

"I don't care. I'm not risking anything."

It's her baby too. I want to make her happy, but we don't have time for this. "Where is the border? "

Ester stares at me. "No."

"I have to get to him."

"Wrenley, just give me a minute."

"You don't understand," I say, painfully anxious. "I can't wait. I need to get to him."

"What is it?" She insists. "What is it? What is so terrible? Why do you have to get to him? Why are you so scared? He's with Ben. He's the Alpha—just let him be a good Alpha."

"Ester please!"

She storms up to me, grabs my shoulders. "Adam is fine. Alright? You have to be strong, Wrenley. If you aren't strong, you will lose the baby. You can't lose the baby."

"This isn't about the baby. Adam isn't safe. I can feel it."

"Why? Why wouldn't he be safe?"

"He's coming for him."

She lets go. "What are you—"

"He's coming. I can feel it. He's going to hurt him."

"Who? Who, Wrenley?"

The word is on the tip of my tongue—father. But when she asks who, I don't want to say my father; I want to tell her that something evil, something dark is stalking Adam and he has no mercy for life beneath him. Adam has come home, but maybe he was safer out there, far away from me.

John Aymon said Adam was nothing but a restraint put on me by the moon goddess, so what if he's decided to free me of such restrictions?

"I-I don't know. I don't know what really he is. Who he really is. But he will kill him. He will kill Adam."

************************************************
Who's ready for some answers...