APEX

Ch. 19: Interloper

Rhys

For all urban-based werewolves, the Wilderness Cycle was a reminder of the importance the natural world played in a shifter's existence. Yes, I enjoyed the trappings of modern life—the bright lights, the commotion, the continued access to any cuisine the planet had to offer. I was a cultured Alpha, a city boy. But at heart, every werewolf longed for a run through the forest, paws trampling fresh mud after a thunderstorm instead of plunking along on oil-streaked asphalt. Every fourth full moon, I looked forward to taking in deep breaths of forest air, of being able to look out with my wolf eyes onto the moonlit cliffs comprising Apex mountain territory.

During this Wilderness Cycle, I had promised myself a time to collect my thoughts, to remember my place as Alpha of the most powerful pack in Sury, and, most importantly, to be away from the person whose presence constantly threw me off-kilter.

Calla. I hated her intrusion into my life. I hated her entitlement. More than anything, I hated the fact that I didn't hate her anymore. Because if I did, that mark on her neck wouldn't be keeping me awake at night with fantasies of finding the wolf who'd done that to her and pummeling his face into the pavement. I spent my working hours next to her, and all my energy went towards ignoring these thoughts. The only thing I let Calla see was my indifference. I held my jealousy and possessiveness close to my chest, but the effort to suppress it—something an Alpha was rarely called to do—was exhausting.

The Wilderness Cycle was just what I needed. Calla would run with her pack; I would run with mine. And when it ended, the healing power of nature would restore balance to my life and that obnoxiously beautiful Luna would be no more than another attractive shifter that got my blood pumping. Nothing less, nothing more.

The day before we were due to leave for our lodge in the foothills north of town, my father, as he seemed so fond of doing, announced a change in plans.

Calla and I were both at our desks pretending to ignore each other when Gerald popped his head into our office. "I just spoke with your mother, Calla," he said with a nod in her direction. "It's agreed: you'll run with us during the Wilderness Cycle. Hope your bags are packed."

"What?" Clearly thrown off, Calla spun around, knocking over the photograph she kept on her desk. I caught it before it could hit the ground. In it, Calla stood between her younger siblings, beaming at the camera as she placed a protective arm around each of them.

My father didn't stick around to answer her question, so she aimed one at me instead. "Did you know about this?"

"No," I said as I handed her back her family portrait. "If he'd told me that was the plan, I'd have tried to talk him out of it."

"I wish you would have." She closed her laptop and pushed herself away from her desk. "This is a bad idea."

She was right. It was a terrible idea. But it needed to be a terrible idea because I didn't want to be around her, not because she didn't want to be around me. Not wanting to seem like I cared, I didn't agree or disagree with her.

"It is what it is," I said. "You'll survive."

"Will I?" She looked at me, her eyes big and unnerving as they searched for mine.

Realizing she wasn't asking a rhetorical question, I looked away before responding. "Of course. Don't be dramatic." What I wanted to say but refused to admit fully to myself, much less to her, was that she would be okay because I would be there to make sure of it.

***

As the full moon approached, my mind circled around the reality that Calla would be running with us. I needed to keep my distance, but also couldn't stomach the notion that another wolf might approach her. No one else at Apex knew about the mark on her neck, and whether she was truly claimed or not, I wasn't going to tolerate any other shifter presuming they could stake their claim.