The Reluctant (9 page)

“Yes, yes, I know, you trust me,” Luka
sneered. His voice broke on his next words, “Don’t you remember
what happened to Shasta?”

“Come on man, it was an accident. Let
it go.”

Luka snarled. “It is a
selfish thing you ask of me. Like a
rato
crouched in the mud to see his
friends eaten by the
jacare
.”

“The Clan will not find
out.”

“They will.” I heard
Luka’s hand slap the wall to emphasize his words. “They will. They
always know. And then they will come for me and for Emily, but not
for you—oh no, not for you little
rato
, because of your
mother.”

“Luka…”

“And when she’s lying dead at your
feet, you fucking well better remember that you told me to let the
guilt of Shasta go.”

“Luka!”

I hurried to the screen door just in
time to see a Changed Luka bounding off to the woods.

Will turned to me and blanched. His
eyes held a pain I could not even imagine. “I’m sorry we woke you,
Emily.”

I instinctively pulled him to me,
hugging him close. The need to protect him from his own sorrow
overwhelmed me. “I’m fine,” I murmured. “What was that all
about?”

Will sighed. “Luka does not want to
Change you.”

The heat drained from my body in the
cool night, but I released Will.

“Why would he Change me?”

“A pure blood must do it. I am not
strong enough as a Changeling.”

“I heard him say that the Clan will
kill us.”

Will shook his head violently. “Myth.
They do not hunt their own, especially not here in America. They
only hunt renegades. We honor the Clan’s ways. Anyway, I have every
intention of seeking their approval first.”

“That’s not comforting.”

He pulled me to him, forcing my lips
to accept his kiss. His tongue caressed mine and the familiar wave
of current crawled up my spine. He inhaled deeply.

“I can’t live without you,
Emily.”

I said nothing. I just continued to
let him hold me, stupidly thinking that this change, whatever it
involved, could not be that big of a deal. Apparently, werewolves
infested the state of California in droves. A thousand questions
swirled in my head, but I knew Will would only answer them
partially. No lies, just a strategic placement of the
truth.

My gut told me that Luka would tell
me. At this point, I had accepted that I would be a part of Will’s
world. Luka would not Change me if he became my friend. In my mind,
I spun a plan to snare Luka’s affections and his trust. I did not
know then that I was one step closer to accepting my fate and
defying Will’s version of it.

Emily

Will and I sat in the kitchen sharing
lunch and talking about catching a movie when the doorbell rang.
Yes, contrary to what you probably believe by now, our lives
remained relatively normal, boring sometimes even, though the
Lycanti females stalked us from a distance and Will wanted me to
become like him. Our relationship existed easily and I was more
under his sway than ever. The doorbell, unlike the events of the
past two weeks, was a rare occurrence. Since only Luka ever visited
the house, I jumped up eagerly. Will looked very
uncomfortable.

As well he should. After all, it had
been two weeks since the argument on the back porch. We had
discussed the matter very little since Will made it clear that
without Luka’s help, I could not be Changed. I took small comfort
in that. My plan would be easier if he stayed angry at Will. I
could not allow them have a chance to see eye to eye on Will’s
reasoning.

I opened the door to Luka’s smiling
face. “Good day, Emily,” he said boldly.

“Hey Luka,” I responded equally
affectionate. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much. Just here to let you
and Will bask in my glorious wonder.” He spread his arms wide and
cast an attempted holy gaze towards the sky.

I laughed and he relaxed. “Yeah, okay,
Ghandi, come on in.”

Will stood and took Luka’s proffered
hand. “Hey man. Good to see you again.”

Luka nodded. “I had to work some
things out. A long run cleared my head.”

“Did you go home?”

“Yes. I also visited your mother’s
clan on the way back to deliver non- FedEx-able messages to the
elders.” He grinned. “Your mother sent something for
you.”

Will stiffened. “What?”

Luka reached into the inside pocket of
his leather riding jacket. Oh, did I mention earlier that Luka’s
choice of transportation happens to be a Ducati 999? Probably not.
I was pretty dazzled by his personality at the arcade that night
and focused on Brooke and her hostility. Some things just slip my
mind as I recount events.

He pulled an invitation out. “She
wants you to attend her Bonding.”

“Again?”

“She swears it is truly love this
time.” He cast a smug smile to me. “Surely you realize how
addicting it is to be in love?”

I blushed. Will smiled softly at me as
he took the invitation and glanced over it
indifferently.

“If I wasn’t in present company, I’d
say that the Lycanthrope don’t love. No offense, Luka.”

Luka grimaced. “Yes, well, we
heartless fiends sometimes like to play dress up anyway and
pretend. Humor us.”

Something passed between the men then
that I could not recognize. As an observer, I felt I had no right
to intrude on the tenderness of the subject. Luka’s laughing
demeanor had instantly turned mournful. I thought of my owl in the
park, so sad and lonely. I did not want to hurt my new friend by
bringing up something that he and Will would not discuss
openly.

I attempted to change the subject,
lighten it up a bit. “We’re going to watch a movie tonight, Luka.
Want to go?”

“What are we seeing?” he asked equally
vibrantly. Strategy achieved.

“Some remake from the 80s,” Will
answered. “Emily’s obsessed with seeing it, so I promised we could
go tonight. Her obsession with that decade stretches to cover the
obscenity that is hair bands.”

“Yes that is a tragedy,” Luka agreed
solemnly. Then, in a chipper tone he added, “Will there be beer?
Because everything is remarkably better when beer is involved.
Well, except when Emily provokes people into wanting to devour her
entrails whole. That’s always entertaining with or without
involving alcohol.”

Will and I laughed at Luka’s
cheekiness.

“Come on,” I said between laughs. “Eat
lunch with us, and then let’s see when the movie’s playing. Oh, and
my entrails are not on the menu.”

“
Alright,” he conceded.
“But only because Will keeps beer in the fridge, no other reason
without the promise of intestines. It won’t truly be lunch without
it.” He offered me his arm.

I slapped him playfully on the bicep
and took his arm in a courtly fashion. Gah, werewolf humor, gross.
Will followed us, lightheartedly mumbling, “Damn alcoholic
mutt.”

Luka called back over his shoulder
dismissively, “Yes, well, better to be engaged in alcoholism than
be some emo-kid half breed with a penchant for humans.” He winked
at me. “No offense, Emily.”

Will reacted exactly the opposite of
how I thought he would. Instead of exploding, he
laughed.

“Yes, it’s all true,” he admitted.
“But still, at least it’s pretty humans I obsess over.”

Luka chuckled and grinned at me.
“Indeed. Ravishing. Practically edible.”

My face went scarlet, completely
enamored of these two bantering men. Believe me, at this point, no
thought of escape entered my mind.

On the car ride to the theater, I
begged Luka for his story. “Will knows everything about you, it
seems. I know nothing.”

Will supported me, albeit
mischievously. “Yeah, Luka. Let’s have a biography. I’m curious to
know what you’ll leave out.”

“Alright, a short biography, but no
questions. I will tell you what I can—things you could have found
out from any local pack member if they were inclined to talk to you
instead of eating you and not terrified of me.”

“No questions,” I promised. “Just tell
me.”

I will try to recall his story as best
as possible. His serious tone surprised me, but then, they are
serious subjects he spoke of. I cannot remember it all, but the
main facts remain intact:

“My mother and father are both
prominent Clan. I have three sisters, two older one younger. Being
raised in Venezuela was an experience like no other. I have found
nothing of that lovely country to compare here. I never believed
anything was wrong with me. Rather, my family raised me to believe
that I am special. Humans are a regrettable part of existence by
our reasoning, but since you outnumber us significantly and are a
great delicacy, we must co-exist with you.

“Most Lycanti do not believe this.
They cannot control their passions very well, being Changelings,
and they see no need to reign in their animal side, even while
human. Most are like Brooke. They are drawn to each other’s
natures, forming their own pack here in Southern California. They
hunt together. Occasionally you will hear of people who go to the
mountains and do not reappear? Well, usually the insurgent Lycanti
are the culprits. The Clan does not condone the renegade hunting of
humans, but we are so far from this burgeoning culture that we
cannot control it effectively. Will and Brooke are the only
Americans Changed that I know of; the rest have fled the Clan in
Mexico and my family in Venezuela to escape persecution for
different offenses. Lycanti are killed if their Lycanthrope Master
dies, for they will be beyond control unless bonded to another
Master. At least three of the pack here, three of the women who
literally hunt Will like bitches in heat, literally, killed their
Masters… a good way to get yourself on the to-do list of the Clan.
Fortunately, not all Lycanthrope are strong enough or so inclined
to Change humans for mates. They choose from others of the Clan,
making the numbers manageable and a special case when a Lycanti
mutinies and forfeits the protection of their Master through
murder.

“My parents are hunters, too. They do
work for the Venezuelan government as assassins since they need not
provide the bodies, only the evidence of a dead human, usually
photographs—or teeth, which are inedible anyway. But they are Clan
matadors—Slayers—to keep the balance of the law. I, too, am trained
as a slayer and left for this task at twenty-two. Allowing Lycanti
to go unchecked would be disastrous. I have hunted Lycanti for six
years, making sure murderers are taken care of.

“Yes, technically I am supposed to
kill Will, but the professor broke the rules by Changing both him
and Brooke. Lycanthrope may only take one mate, and by Will’s
story, Brooke was changed in a fit of malice and is an innocent,
though she does not seem to be one now. Therefore, the professor
had to be punished. The Clan is strict, the punishment swift. We do
not allow rogue Lycanthrope to start clans of their own without
Council approval. There will be no civil war between our
families.

“So I am here to hunt Lycanti, sent
instead of my mother and father or my sisters. I absolutely refused
to allow one of my sisters to come here alone, though they are just
as well trained as I, the younger Isabella perhaps better. It is
hard to relocate our people with the pack being so close, but I am
a solitary man. The Clan sends me a living stipend. Do not let my
idiotic ways fool you, Emily. I am here to protect the humans—and
Will is my accomplice.”

I stared hard at Will, who drove
without comment on Luka’s story.

“I didn’t want you to tell her that,”
he said softly.

Luka’s eyes met his in the rearview
mirror. “She would have found out eventually. I need your help on
the next hunt. The time for dallying is over. You have had almost
three undisturbed weeks with Emily. Even I took a break, but the
Lycanti become bold. They stalked and killed a human in San Diego
last week. The human authorities are suspicious. They will come for
Emily soon. We have to get that bastard who always goes after the
college girls. I’m tired of reading about it in the
paper.”

Will nodded silently. He raised my
hand to his lips and kissed my wrist. “Don’t worry, Emily. In two
more weeks, we go to Mexico. The Council will approve you. I will
make you safe.”

Luka grumbled, “More like I will make
her safe.”

“For which I will be eternally
grateful,” Will said.

“Don’t I have a say in this?” I
demanded, suddenly fearful. “Mexico? Why are we going to Mexico?
Will, what’s going on? Luka?”

It was possibly the most unfortunate
moment to stop at the theater, but events usually happen like that.
Without the car moving, the conversation halted, too.

Will smiled. “Let’s watch the movie. I
promise, I’ll explain everything tomorrow morning. We’ll start
fresh.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”