The ground was cool underneath his paws. The moon above sung a lovers chant at him, a beautiful halo of red around it's natural glow. The sky was filled with a thousand tiny diamonds that dared him to leap for them, to touch their light. The gentle breezed whisked threw his bright blonde fur.
He ran in full long strides across the country fields. His legs were strong and pounded the dirt hard, sounding like the beating of drums. Every leap was higher, every breath calm and deep. Dean was finally and truly free. Caleb was there with him. He wanted him to see the world through his eyes. A world that Dean had only dreamed of while locked away in the dark abyss of Caleb's mind.
Here, there was no darkness. Everything was clear and vivid, but cast in a film of red. These new eyes could see into the shadows, could hear a million heart beats in the distance. Rabbits, deer, squirrels, birds, possums, a small family of raccoon every heart beat.
Caleb marveled at this new world, he had no fear. He didn't feel like a monster. He felt whole. He knew Dean feared captivity, and Dean knew he feared being lost to the darkness. They shared no words or hatred for one another for the first time since Dean had awakened. They were one.
They weren't man, they weren't exactly wolf either. His paws were bigger than any natural wolf, the size of a catchers mitt, yet his arms and chest were beefy like that of a Gorilla. A long thick tail flickered behind him, the hair running down his spine to his tail was like the mane of a horse, shorter, but thick. He was beautiful beast, with hair that was bright and golden just like Caleb's. Dean in his true form was quite remarkable.
As he dashed through the trees, bats took to the sky, their eyes illuminated with a red glow. The cows in the field across from him had the same glow to their eyes. He could hear their heart beats and could focus in on each one. Prey.
The farm was dark and quiet. The cows all stood together quietly. Their smell filled his nostrils. Dean salivated, his teeth ached. His hunger was undeniable and growing stronger by the second. Hunching down in the tall grass he stalked his prey. Beef was officially on the menu.
* * * *
Ecstasy and pain. Every nerve ending in Caleb's body was alive. Every muscle ached. Yet he had the feeling of a man who needed sexual release. The pain was everywhere yet, nowhere. He felt horrible and amazing all at the same time. His muscled burned but his skin felt joy as the grass he laid on dance across his skin.
Stars shined over head. The ground was cool compared to his body, which was feverishly hot. Suddenly Caleb realized where he was. The tall metal wind mill above head belonged to his family. He was still at the farm.
He was naked, covered in blood with half of a cow carcass laying next to him. Frightened, he jerked trying to sit up. He didn't recognize his own legs, they were bent backwards at the knee and thick white fur was slowly being sucked into his skin throw his pores. In one quick motion his knees popped and snapped back into their original place, Caleb winced as the joints fused back. The pain was bad, it brought a tear to his eyes. But it was nowhere near as bad as before, for that he was thankful.
"Dean..."
The beast stirred reluctantly."Hmmm?"
"What did you do?" He said aloud, Caleb's eyes fixed on the dead cow laying next to him. It's rib cage split open, it's intestines splayed out in the grass, and organs missing.
"I was hungry." He answered plainly.
Caleb was covered in a thick layer of sticky blood, from the top of his nose, down his chin to the bottom of chest, a small trail still dripping above his navel. It was a horror scene.
As he crawled to his feet the last bit of his joints crackled. Slowly he walked clutching his full belly across the dark field, the other cows run from him. Knowing all to well that he was dangerous, inhuman.
Trying to stick to the shadows Caleb made it to his car, thankful his parents weren't home. He grabbed pants out of the packed duffle bag he had luckily placed there when he planned on staying with Freddie. Obviously his plans had changed.
He grabbed the tattered shirt from the gravel below his bare feet. Using the hose near his mothers garden he splashed him self, using the shirt to wash away the thick blood from his face.
"Hello little brother." A voice called behind him.
Caleb gasped turning around. A man stood a few feet away from him resting his elbow on a wooden fence post. He had dark brown hair almost black, shined like liquid against the glow of the moon, small strands hanging down around his eyes. 6'3 he stood, arms thick, built like a boxer. His eyes were pale blue and looked disturbingly familiar. A small half smile spread across his lips.
"Charlie?" Caleb blinked staring a the strange man that didn't seem like a stranger at all.
"Caleb."
Was he really standing here? Was this really him? Caleb didn't know how he would feel the moment he laid eyes on his brother. Until this moment. His eyes found themselves welling up with tears once more. There was no anger, there was no animosity. There was only his brother.
Caleb limped over to his brother and threw his arms around him. "Charlie you are alive."
"In the flesh." He smiled putting his arms around Caleb.
Embracing him deeply, he buried his head in his shoulder. "Where have you been?"
"Here and there."
"Are you alright?" Caleb asked putting his hands on his cheeks getting a good look at the man that stood before him. He looked like his real father.
"So, you know what our parents did?" He hissed releasing him.
Caleb stared into the eyes of a ghost. "Yes. Sheriff Dan- our Father told me. Today."
"He is not my father." Charlie spat, but quickly recovered with a sly smile. "I will be taking care of him soon."
"Charlie where have you been? You left me. You..." Caleb wiped tears from his eyes and hugged his brother again this time pulling back so that he didn't smother him. "I missed you."
"My story is a long one little brother. But the quick simple version is, I found other wolves. They took me in and cared for me. Taught me how to be strong. Unafraid of the beast that our Mother tried to kill."
"What?"
"She kept me so doped up on sedatives and tranquilizers that I could barely function. She tried to kill me." Charlies eyes darkened as he looked away from him.
Caleb shook his head in disgust, he did not agree with his mothers actions and he understood Charlies angry towards her. "You're here now. That's all that matters."
"You're right. And with my return comes a lesson. A lesson our elders must learn. And I am here to teach them the error of their wicked ways." Charlies eyes flickered with the light showing the wolf underneath.
"Charlie, The Sheriff said the wolf- your wolf took over. That the real Charlie was gone. Are you really my brother?"
Holding out his arms with a smug smile he replied, "Who else could be this dashing but Charles Talley, the one and only. The original." Then with a menacing whisper he continued, "Don't believe everything your parents tell you."
"I learned that the hard way." Caleb said to himself in total agreement.
Charlie stared his brother, looking him up and down, his eyes glancing over him. He smiled at how tall he was, not taller than him, but not many were. His muscular physique, his real Father's blonde locks, and his mothers smile."Look at you all grown up. I heard you had become quite the man. Or shall I say wolf?"
"How did you know I was...like you?"
"Because I bit you silly."
His brow furrowed and twisted into a look of anger and confusion, "What?"
"I bit you. I wanted us to be a family again. You were meant to be..." he put his hand to his brothers chest just over his heart, "this. Wolf is in your blood. You're welcome."
"You attacked me?" Caleb said swatting his hand away and taking a step back.
"I would hardly say 'attack'. I marked you."
Dean growled and Caleb screamed, "You nearly killed me!"
"Not even close. I could never." Charlie closed the distance between them. "Everything I have done, I have done for you. I knew you would never find out the truth or accept me as I was, unless you understood your own bloodline."
"What do you mean everything? What did you do?"
Charlie didn't want to fight, but Caleb's eyes said otherwise. "You wanted a real family. Now you have one. A brother. A mate. A friend." there was so much in his words that he didn't say.
His first thought was of Simona. "It's your fault."
"You'll have to be more specific than that."
Breathing heavily he replied, "Simona. I infected her because of you."
"Yes and No."
"What?"
Charlie put his hand on his shoulder his calm and friendly, but his words carried much more weight than Caleb was ready for, "You bit her. It was enough to make her sick, but not enough to fully turn her. The infection was going to run it's course, so I made sure that didn't happen. You wanted to claim her, so I helped."
"Excuse me? What the fuck did you do."
"I am an alpha. I forced the her to change. Well, I forced the infection to spread. Don't worry I didn't touch her. She is still all yours. Which is a pity, she too is legacy blood and you can tell she will be a wild wolf."
"You did what!" Caleb without thought punched him in the mouth. Dean urged him strike again, but he didn't.
Charlie staggered back holding his jaw, a small chuckle followed. "I thought you would be happy. Hell, I don't want to tell you the mistake I made before that."
"Mistake?" It was a threat not a request.
"I went to that damn diner 5 times over the last month, schmoozing. Meeting the locals and so on. A little redheaded waitress told me you were her great love. I thought she would be a perfect gift to you. I knew she was an easy mark so I took her home and... I turned her. For you of course." He smirked as if it all meant nothing. As if what he did had no consequence.
"You turned Rachel?" Caleb turned his back on him shaking his head in disbelief, he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Why the hell does every one think I want to fuck Rachel?"
"Marian didn't think so. I guess I should have listened to her."
Caleb turned around, "Marian? You talked to Marian."
"Grandma Marian has always been good to me. She has always known I was still alive. She's the one that took care of me after that hunter shot me. Chuck Hillman." He gave the sky a hateful glare thinking of the middle aged man who stared down a barrel at him. "I was alone in the woods, just a fucking kid. I didn't know what to do. That bullet saved my life. It weren't for Marian finding me, I would have died. Just the way Mother wanted. She took me to the Elsefire Clan where I found my adopted father. The clan took me in. I was raised by 4 fathers who all cared for me more than Frank or Wes ever did. Until..." Charlie's face darkened again. His optimistic childlike eyes faded.
"Until what?"
"All in good time." Charlie wasn't yet ready to tell him his story, not all of it, not yet.
Though he wanted to push him to speak up on his past, he needed to know what the hell was happening in the present. "Charlie, what did you do to Rachel? Is she okay?"
"She's fine. She's at the rental cabins by the lake. Where she wants to be. Getting the attention you refused to give her. You know there's no rule saying you have to mate only one female. Wolves are weird like that, but luckily we are men, with hungers and we desire many."
It was hard to know if he was telling the truth or not. Rachel was a wild child and enjoyed the company of men. But did she know what she was getting her self into with Charlie. Hell, Caleb wasn't even sure.
"Not me. I love Simona. And the thought of me hurting her is already tearing me apart. She will never forgive me for this. For what I've done. For what you have fucking done."
"Wolf is in her blood as well. Just ask her Grandmother."
What was he saying? What could Mrs. Cade possibly tell him. Charlie wasn't making any sense to him. Either way, he was done. He was emotionally drained after this day, all he wanted to do was find Simona. See if she was okay, tell her the truth and hope she would forgive him. Though he didn't feel like he deserved it.
"Ya know Charlie, I cried over you for years, and years. I kept your picture on my mantel. I put flowers on your grave every holiday, every birthday. I remember coming home from school and staring at a fake urn with your ashes in it, and telling you about my day." Caleb laughed at himself, but it wasn't a joyful laugh. There was pain and anguish with each huff, embarrassment even. "I wished you would come back somehow. I wished you weren't gone."
The first glimpse of Charlie with his guard down appeared, his eyes somber, his lips parted as if he wanted to say something but Caleb's words had him frozen. His words cut deep.
"I remember being 5 years old, praying to God every night for him to bring you back. Then today I find out that you're alive. My prayers were answered, and what do I find? A pompous asshole that destroys peoples lives without a care in the world. A selfish fucking child."
Charlie whispered, a hint of shame in his voice. "I am what your parents made me. "I promised myself Caleb, that if there was ever a way to right the wrongs of our parents I would. They split us up. Not me. I cried every night, wishing I could come home. Wishing I could play toy trucks with my baby brother again. Wishing I could play hide and seek with you one more time. But time flies when you're being hunted." His eyes darkened once more. "We're grown and I have scores to settle. I want you with me. I know I may seem like an arrogant asshole. But I'm trying very hard not to crumble right now. I have waited years to see you again. I want the family that was stolen from me. I wanted you to embrace your birth rite, along side me."
Caleb two steps towards his brother and hugged him, a final tear dropping from his eyes. "I love you Charlie. I always will. Goodbye."
With no other words between them Caleb walked away. Leaving his brother staring at him as he walked back to his car and drove away. Charlie raked his hands threw his hair roughly pulling the ends trying to keep himself from crying. This conversation didn't go the way he wanted. A part of him knew Caleb would be upset, but he hoped he would be understanding. He did this for him. All of this was for him and... his clan.
Again Caleb found himself driving away from someone who claimed to be family, but was an utter stranger to him. His thoughts were all over the place. His Mother lied to him about everything. Charlie was psychotic, Marian lied to him. Mrs. Cade had secrets of her own and Sheriff Daniels was his father. It was all too much. His head was swimming. He needed to see Simona. The only person who hadn't lied or betray his trust. The one person he had lied to, the one he had hurt.