Chapter 29 – Unforeseen

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            It wasn’t unusual for the resort town to have groups of strangers drop in and out of town unnoticed.  Heck, it was their bread and butter.  The number of groups this time of year was small though, with the fall season bringing in rain and storms.  The recent deaths of those schoolgirls didn’t help the tourism any either. 

            Still, the natural hot springs boast an assortment of health benefits touted by the new age groups and hipsters alike.  The new trendy healthy living blogs have spread the word far and wide.  And the secluded pretty valley with its romantic setting was enough to attract a number of people even during off-peak season – couples looking for a few days away from the bustle of city living, corporate retreats looking to build team efforts, friendly reunions of friends, etc.

            No one really made note of the 6 men in two separate groups that strolled into town with their heavy overnight bags.  No one really noticed when they discreetly checked into two separate resorts and started to subtly ask about the little cottage café that had been closed for days now or about the daily fresh bread delivery from the Sweet Apple Inn. 

            Nothing strange or unusual ever happens around the peaceful little village. 

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            Xiu pressed his thumbs into the inner corners of his eyes like he was trying to relieve a great pressure building there.  “Have you talked to…”

            “Your sisters?” Pets asked helpfully, “Yes.”

            “And they’ve confirmed that….”

            “Yes.”

            He took a breath, still reeling.  “And how long have you…”

            “Before I got here.”

            “Did my sister know before then?”

            “Maybe.  Probably.”

            There was a short pause as he ran through the events, “Is that why you got sanctuary?”

            “Um… Yes, I assume….”

            He frowned at her.  “You didn’t ask?”

            “It’s kind of a weird thing to be talking about, especially since they’re your sisters.”

            He gave her another indecipherable look and was silent. 

            Pets steadied his handsome face, trying to understand what was going through his mind.  The talk had been every bit as awkward that she thought it would be.  Of course, it might have helped if she hadn’t just blurted it out like a crazy person when he asked what she wanted to talk about upon her waking to find him, once again, sitting at the foot of the bed watching her.  That was going to be a habit she was going to break him of immediately – it was disturbing. 

            When the silence continued to stretch, Pets squirmed uncomfortably under his unflinching gaze.  “Say something.”

            Sighing, Xiu finally looked away.  “What do you want me to say?”

            She frowned.  “How about whatever is going through that mind of yours?  You’re obviously thinking of something.”

            Looking pained, “Your timing is just….”        

            “Awful, I know,” she nodded.  “I get that I didn’t exactly drop in on you at the most convenient time.  But then again, I’m not actually sure there is a good or right time to be show up at your door and tell you, ‘Hey, guess what?’ don’t you think?”

            He gave her another unreadable look and stood up to pace the room, his movements a little stiff and uncomfortable, like he was forcing himself to do it just so he’d had something to do other than sit there.  After another minute, “I can’t do this right now,” shaking his head as he came to a stop in front her again.  “We’ll talk about this when things come down.  Right now…”

            “Calm down?” she asked, her face reflecting her disbelieve.  “You really think it’s going to calm down any time soon?  And what am I suppose to do?  Just wait?”

            Gaze going cold, “You’ve had weeks…. WEEKS… to process this.  I’ve had less then 5 minutes between crises to breathe much less have the emotional capacity to deal with a life altering event.  So excuse me if I don’t feel adequately prepared to give you a proper response in this immediate second.”

            Pets snapped her jaw shut with a click and nodded her head slowly, swallowing her regrets.  “Sorry.  I’m sorry.”

            Taking a deep breath with his eyes closed, Xiu visibly pulled himself together.  “I’m sorry too.”  He sighed, a little resigned and maybe a little embarrassed.  “I shouldn’t have snapped at you.  You didn’t do this on purpose.  I know that this isn’t something that...”  He shook his head.  “I just can’t deal with this right now; there’s too much at stake.”

            “I want to help,” she replied uncertainly. 

            “And I wish I knew how you could,” he answered back with more patience than he actually felt.  But then again, he was use to reining in his feelings.  “But right now, the best thing is for you to lay low and be careful of what you do around here.  We need to get ahead of this threat and maybe we can get some semblance of a survival plan.  But until we do, I can’t deal with anything other than keeping everyone safe.”  He hesitated a second, this wasn’t her fault.  “I’m sorry.”

            Hopping off the bed, she stopped him before he could exit the room, throwing her full weight against the door before he could open it.  “Don’t be sorry.”  She reached for his hand and tried not to feel hurt when he took a step back, out of her range.  “I don’t want you to feel like you have to be anything but you with me… if that makes sense.”  She let out a breath.  “Just… let me be here.  Let me be the one place you don’t have to be the Beta for.  That’s basically all I can do right now; just let you be who you need to be.” 

            Xiu stared at her, his face devoid of any indication that he understood what she was trying to tell him.  And after a beat, she opened to try to explain again when he leaned forward suddenly and pressed his lips against hers for a brief moment.  It wasn’t anything passionate or spectacular; it was simply kind and sweet; like a gentle touch of warmth after the cold rain.  She didn’t even get a chance to react when he pulled away again.  Brushing her face gently with the palm of work-roughen hands, he whispered, “Thank you,” and left her standing stunned in the room. 

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            “What do you see?”

            “Not… sure.”

            “Seriously, what do you see?”

            “Um….”

            “Anything would help.”

            “Not really….”

            “Emma…”

            “I seriously don’t know,” Emma replied with a sigh.  “It’s all jumbled up.”

            Nick dropped a hand on his brother’s shoulder, “That’s enough, Bass.  Badgering her isn’t going to get you answers.”

            “Besides,” Ming said quietly, as he set a steaming mug despite the heat in front of Emma, “There’s only so much she can do, even with her visions.  If we’re not meant to know, we’re not meant to know.”

            “I don’t want any more tea,” Emma said putting her head down a moment.

            “It’s hot cocoa,” Ming offered. 

            She lifted her head and smiled at him beautifully.  “You are my favorite person.”

            Ming rolled his eyes and ruffled her hair as he would have done when she was a child.  “Did you get any sleep after the meet-and-greet with the elders?”

            “Nope!” she replied rather cheerfully as she sipped on cocoa. 

            “Your sister up yet?” Bass asked, maybe a little too eagerly.

            “Nope!” she replied and gave him the stink eye.  “And you are going to let her sleep.”  She didn’t mind being harassed but she did mind them making a nuisance of themselves with her sister.  “I think Ella and I are going take turns being mentally coherent from now on; better for us both and probably you guys in general.”

            “We’re just trying to…”

            “I get it,” Emma interrupted, “But I can’t tell you what I don’t know.  So you’re just going to have to wait… like everyone else that wants…” her head snapped to the right suddenly, looking blankly at the glass panel of the china cabinet.

            Everyone froze in place.

            “Emma?” Nick asked softly. 

            She didn’t respond.

            “What’s going on?” Fei asked timidly as she entered the room, tea tray in hand with sandwiches for everyone. 

            “She’s having a walk around in her head,” Ming answered and thanked her with a quick nod.  “Sit down, join us for a bit,” he suggested, looing at the tired girl.  “Have you seen your brothers yet?”

            Fei shook her head.  “I spoke with Wayne last night on the phone but that’s it.”

            “Matthew doing okay?  I saw him get transferred before we came here.”

            She looked a little torn.  “They said so.”

            A wrinkle of concern appeared between Ming’s brows.  “After the afternoon switch, why don’t you head into town for a bit?  Make sure you are escorted, come find me if you can’t find anyone to take you.  I’ll clear it with Xiu and Kai for you.”

            Big doe eyes widened with hope, “You think it’d be okay?”

            Ming smiled and patted her gently on the arm.  “Yeah, I think it’d be fine.”

            Looking relieved and hopeful, she paused a moment to look at a still silent Emma.  “She’s been in that an awful long time.”

            “It’s been getting worse the last few days,” Ming commented quietly.  “The visions are either coming in short but rapid bursts that ends with them having splitting headaches.  Or she and Ella go off on these long visions for full minutes and won’t talk about what they see after.  Xiu says it’s not a good thing.”

            “It’s not,” Nick confirmed with a frown.  “The short bursts doesn’t really let them see anything much; Ella said that it’s like getting pelted with images so fast you can’t make anything out other than light and colors.  But the longer visions are… troubling.”

            “How troubling?” Bass asked.  “And what kind of trouble are we talking about here?”

            Nick shook his head.  “Ella and Emma don’t share what they think may cause greater harm; they generally subvert the bigger problems by altering events around it but they don’t generally do that unless it’s really bad.”

            “So we’re looking at worse case scenarios?”

            “Maybe.”

            Bass closed his eyes a second.  “Not exactly the kind of reassuring answers I was hoping for.”

            Emma blinked and then blinked again. 

            “What did you see?” Ming asked quietly into the incomprehensible silence. 

            Staring blanking a moment, Emma hesitated before she answered, “A brown wolf.”

            When nothing more was forthcoming, “That’s it?  A brown wolf?”

            Confusion colored her face as she turned to Nick, “Who’s smaller than Mickey in shifter form?”

            “What?”

            “Do we even have a brown smaller than Mickey?”

            “Not that I’m aware of,” Ming muttered than looked at the two brothers.  “Thoughts?”

            “There are no browns smaller than Mickey,” Nick confirmed with a nod.  “Allie and Lucia might be smaller but they’re both blacks.  Are you sure it was a brown?”

            “Definitely,” Emma muttered and took a sip of her hot cocoa.  “Can’t mistake it.”

            “What was it doing?”

            “Attacking.”

            Nick frowned at her, disliking her one-word answer.  “Attacking what?”

            She looked at him funny.  “Me.  He was attacking me.”  She rubbed her head just above the temple.  “And it was definitely a he.  And he was small, really small and wiry but strong.  There was something about him…” She understood the familiar feeling in visions but it was never easy to explain.  

            “If he’s attacking you, he’s not pack,” Kai reasoned as he stride into the room, a dark vestige in the sunny parlor.  “Describe him.”

            “Hello to you too, Brother,” Emma greeted making a face.  “Where’s your new mate?”

            “Don’t use me to change the subject,” Jing said maneuvering around Kai, “I’m not getting in the middle this.”

            “Coward,” Emma winkled her nose at her. 

            “Self preservation is a great motivator,” Jing shot back with a grin and helped herself to a sandwich.  “Stop avoiding the subject.”

            Taking the sat Bass vacated for him, Kai looked at his sister gravely.  “Describe him to me.”

            Taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, Emma mentally pulled herself back into the vision, using a memory recall technique she had been taught years ago for these moments.  “He’s small and springy, not like one of ours but built more like an Eastwall Red.  His coat is more latte than mocha, rough edged.  There’s…. there’s some darker color, brown maybe black around his collar and hind legs, longer hairs like it’s a different coat coming in from beneath and…”

            “Say that again,” Calvin commanded from the doorway. 

            Emma’s eyes flew open, startled from her line of thoughts.

            “Tan coat with dark hair around collar and legs?” Calvin asked, his eyes fixed on Emma’s face.  “Around the jaw too?”

            She blinked at him.  “Um… some but there wasn’t…”

            “Who is it?” Kai demanded. 

            “Don’t know who but the coloring is distinctive.”  Calvin’s face was pale with sickening dread.   “It’s a Southern Brown.”

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            “Are you leaving?” Ella asked groggily.

            Chun paused; his hand still on the door had been trying to open as quietly as he could.  “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

            “You always leave once you think I’m asleep,” she murmured, wiggling around until she was comfortable again. 

            “I thought it’d be better.”

            “Better how?”

            “Ella…” he shut the door and leaned against it a moment.  “Please don’t test me.”

            “Chun…”

            “I’m not as strong as you think I am.”  And lying in bed with her was pushing his limits.

            Silent for a moment, “Is that why you won’t get under the covers?”

            Anywhere else, his eyes would be glowing yellow to tell her exactly what she needed to know.  “It would be best if I don’t… if we don’t…” he took a breath slowly and calmed himself.  “I’ll be here for you.  I’ll do whatever you need me to do to help you get through this.  But please don’t test my control.  I can’t… I can’t stand it.”

            “I’m not testing you,” she said very simply, sitting up.  “I’m simply asking you to stay with me.  I feel safer, steadier, when you’re with me.  It gives me something resembling peace, let’s me rest.”

            He closed his eyes a moment, letting her words sink in.  “You’re not playing fair.”

            “Who’s playing?”

            “Ella…”

            “You said you’d stay,” she countered.

            He nodded and let out a slowly breath before approaching the bed again.  “You’ve been having nightmares.”

            “Visions,” she corrected softly, patting the space next to her. 

            Chun hesitated then took a step forward anyways, telling himself to be strong for her sake.  “Are they getting worse?”

            “Yes,” she pulled back the covers for him.

            He pulled the covers back over and sat on top of them with a quick, “Don’t,” warning.

            Ella smirked.  “You really are worried, aren’t you?”

            Frowning at her, “Go back to sleep.  You need the rest.”

            “Chun,” taking his hand.  “This… here, with us, is what I need right now.”  She took a breath and brought his hand to chest, holding onto like a comfort item you bring with you through the hard times.  “You don’t know what it’s like to know and know that there’s nothing you can…” she stopped herself.  “I just want this right now, for myself.”

            He stared at her, hating the vulnerability he saw in her, a fragileness he hadn’t seen before.  “What did you see?” he asked, even knowing she wasn’t likely to give him a real answer.  To date, neither she nor Emma would give a direct answer to any pointed questions about…

            “My own death,” Ella answered in a bluntly candid way that left nothing in doubt. 

            Everything stopped. 

            The world ceased to exist for a moment in time. 

            Chun suddenly forgot how to breathe.

            Ella gave a resigned sigh.  “Don’t look at me like that.  It’s not like you didn’t have an inkling of what it was.  Everyone does; just no one has the guts to say it to our faces.”

            “Not that,” he replied softly once he restarted his lungs again.  “I didn’t think that.”  It hurt.  It hurt so much to breathe right now.  Nothing in the world could ever prepare him to hear it.  And her candor made it worse – like she had already accepted it as unavoidable fact.  “We need to get you out of town.”

            “No,” she shook her head and tightens the grip on his arm.  “And you’re not going to tell my brothers either.”

            “Ella!” he admonished.  “This is your life we’re talking about here!”

            “I’m aware of that,” she said calmly.  “And I didn’t tell you so you can fix it for me.  I told you because I want you to know what I feel right now.  And this,” pointing at the space between the two of them, “This makes things easier for me.  I need this if I’m going to get through the next few days with my sanity in tact.”

            Physically turning so he was facing her on the bed, he resisted the urge to shake her like a rag doll.  “Why are you just sitting here like there’s nothing you can do about this?  We can leave.”  And god how he wanted.  “We can leave right now.  No one has to know.”

            “Everyone will know,” she replied calmly and touched his face.  “You don’t think I’ve thought about it?  You don’t think I’ve tried to change it?” Her eyes plead with him to understand.  “It’s not that I can’t change it; it’s that I don’t want to.  I can’t do that to you.  Or to my brothers.  Or my pack.”  She willed him to understand.  “I can’t.  I won’t.”

            And he did understand – it hurt him to no end but he understood.  The greater good of the pack, the survival of the family, must outweigh one individual.  Even if that individual meant the world to only one person.  Throat tight with pain, “Does Emma know?”

            “Maybe,” she answered honestly.  “I’m not sure.  We… we’ve been avoiding talking about what we see in greater terms.  Emma probably sees more than she wants and less than what is needed.  But she sees enough and she probably sees more than she’s willing to say.  What that means is difficult to define; and I’m okay with that.  I think we both can see the writing on the wall but neither of us really want to talk about it.” 

            “I…” he didn’t know what to say that didn’t sound selfish.  But for once, he wanted to be.  “I can’t accept this.”

            “But you will,” she replied quite confidently.  “You will because I need you to and because you know I’m right.  The pack comes in first, even for a seer.”  She sat up on her knees, leaned in close and pressed her cheek to his softly.  “And when the time comes, you’re going to let it happen.  You’re going to save the people that are important to me because you’re going to know that’s what I want.” 

            He closed his eyes, willed the pain down, “Ella… please…”

            “You’ll do it because that’s what I’m asking you to do.” 

            Every fiber in his soul ached with pain.  It hurt because he knew there wasn’t a damn thing he can do to change her mind – he could see it in her eyes; she knew what was coming and she knew what had to be done.  And he knew he’d comply with her wishes because… because he didn’t know how not to.  She had asked; point blank.  “Tell me what I can do now – right now – to make this better.”

            Brushing her lips gently across his cheek, then the lid of his eye, across his brows, before setting gently on his mouth, Ella breathed in the peace she found when she was locked away with just him as her sole source of company.  “Stay with me.”

            He took a shuddering breath, the pain so awful it hurt to simply breathe.  And when he thought he could take it no more…

            “Please…” she whispered softly against his lips.  “Just once, I want something for me.”

            The kiss he gave her tasted of fear and desperation.  The hands that pressed her back into the mattress were bruising tight, frantically trying to hold onto her, to keep her with him forever.  They both shed tears, both of love and of despair – knowing their time was short and this moment might be all they had together in this lifetime. 

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            Nick felt the chill down his spine and turned toward the resort village for a second.  Incomprehensive apprehension suddenly gripped him. 

            “What’s up?” Bass asked as he followed his brother down the front way path.  They needed to head back to check on the rest of the recovering Betas at the Beta House.  With the other packs pulling back, they needed a new strategy to cover both Five Lake, the Alpha, and Sweet Apple Inn – they were going to be spread thin.  “I thought we were heading back.”

            “We are,” Nick assured him with a quick nod.  He couldn’t shake the sudden feeling of unknown fear.  But he had a job to do and paranoia wasn’t going to deter him.  “Let’s go.  I want to get back to Nicie at the café before sundown.”

            “What’s Nicie doing at the café?”

            “Well…” Nick made an uncomfortable face.  “I can’t be away from her for long periods of time and it’s not a good idea for us to be staying at the inn… for obvious reasons.”

            Bass frowned in confusion as he shed his clothes for the run back home.  “What reasons?”

            Slanting him a look, “Are you serious?”

            “What?” more confused then ever.

            There were days Nick questioned everything about his life.  “Nicie and I just… mated.  You’ve read the books and heard the accounts, what do you think we’re going to be doing the next few nights while we wait for the full moon in two days?” Comprehension was slow to enter Bass’ eyes but it eventually got there.  “You really want us at the inn with you?  Plus Kai and Jing?”

            Pressing his hands to his ears, Bass made a face of traumatizing horror, “Enough said.  Gagh… now I have to scrub those mental images from my brain.  Thanks a lot.”

            “You asked,” Nick muttered with quiet affection even as he tried to shake the unease from the back of his mind.  He didn’t have time for this right now; he had things to handle and a mate to return to.  “Come on, let’s go.”

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            The knock on the backdoor caught Nicie off-guard; she wasn’t expecting anyone.  Cautious by training but trusting by nature, she made her way to the back door, peering through the distorted glass windows with apprehension.  She hadn’t made a sound yet.

            “Hello?  Is anyone in?” someone called out through the back entrance.  “I’m looking for the manger for this café.  The manager at River Spa Inn said I should talk to someone here about the pastries they served at dinner last night at the resort.  I’m looking for catering for a corporate event we’re hosting next month at the resort.”

            Biting her lip, Bernice hesitated a second longer before she reached for the door. 

            “Hello?  Anyone?” the voice called out again before a simple white business card with black lettering was slipped under the doorway.

            Nicie picked up the card silently.  There was blue writing on the back of the card with a short explanation about catering.  If nothing else, they were still a business that needed to be ran.  “Hey, wait!” and twist the lock open with her free hand.

            The man that stood outside had a pretty face, sharp cheekbones and heavy brows that furrowed for a second before he took a step forward and directed a mist of sickeningly sweet scent into Nicie’s face.  She had a second longer of consciousness to note that she was going to be in a lot of trouble for this. 

To be continued….

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Author’s Note:  Confession time!  2016 has been a very long health battle for me and it’s kind of laid waste to the rest of my life.  I’m still writing, but it’s a very slow and taxing process… mostly because I can’t actually remember what I wrote from day to day and I end up doing a lot of review of what’s already been plotted out – memory is one of those things effected.  I was hoping to finish this story before the end of the year but it’s looking less and less likely now as I prepare to head into surgery next week.  Oh well…. I promise to not abandon the story; I will see it to the end.  When that might be is anyone’s guess at this point.  Have a great holiday everyone – most likely I’ll see you in 2017.  Cheers!