The BlackWolf Effect (Book IV)

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE - Gunfire

"Oh," said Henry suddenly wide awake. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sleep so long. I need to change my shirt, I'll be right back."

Henry disappeared into the bedroom to put on a shirt that wasn't soaked while Timber wiped the sweat off of his leather chair. Timber put the rag under the sink when she heard a knock on the door. She quickly straightened her pearls and pulled down the hem of her lemon yellow sweater. Henry came out in a clean black shirt and opened the door just as Timber hung up her apron. Renegade came running out of the room to greet everyone with a loud bark and a wagging tail.

"Hello, Renegade," said Queen Aiyanna happily.

"Timber, you've outdone yourself," said Jaci, looking at the appetizers that Timber had painstakingly arranged evenly and the elaborately set table. "It looks amazing!"

Henry smiled at Timber and she blushed.

"Let's start with these before we get into the meal," said Timber passing around the tray of caprese salad.

Merlin took a bite and his eyes widened. Timber was worried he didn't like it until he took another bite. Timber ate hers but she was still too nervous to enjoy it. After finishing the appetizers, Timber passed around the main course. Everyone helped themselves and ate every last noodle Timber had made. The meat was so tender, the bones slid right out and the toasted breadcrumbs gave the cheesey pasta a wonderful texture.

"Timber, this is by far the most tender and flavorful meat I have ever had," said Lord Avanti. "There is a smokey flavor to it that I really enjoy. And there's something sweet under the heat. What is it?"

"I grilled some pineapple and blended it in the sauce with a couple of peppers. The smoke is from my bottle of liquid smoke," said Timber.

"You are a phenomenal cook," said Lord Avanti. "I think you could teach our kitchen staff a thing or two. They're great chefs but their red meat is usually a little dry. This is so juicy."

The clock then chimed the hour and Timber changed the subject.

"Please, excuse me. I'm going to put Renegade to bed," said Timber, "and then we can discuss ideas. I'll only be ten minutes. He falls asleep rather quickly if his tummy is full."

Henry began cleaning up the dishes while Timber took the protesting puppy into his room. Timber fluffed up his faux fur blanket he liked to sleep on and straightened his pillow. She put him in his little den, Turned, and lay on the floor beside him. His stomach was full of pureed shrimp and warm chicken broth and it did not take long for him to fall asleep against his mother. Timber put him under his blanket and walked out of the room still in her wolf form.

"Oh my!" said Merlin. "Is that Timber?"

"Oh, yes," said Henry. "I forgot to mention that Timber is larger than the average wolf. Her parents were werewolves. She's the first of her kind."

"Well, you are a lovely wolf," said Merlin.

Timber Turned and said, "Thank you. Hey, you said 'you' instead of 'thee'."

"I spent last night and this morning updating my language and studying the way words are used today so that I can be better understood," said Merlin. "I am a quick study and Lord Frost was kind enough to assist."

"I'm glad because it was really difficult understanding some of what you were talking about last night," said Timber. "Thank you for taking the time to learn modern language."

"You are most welcome." Merlin smiled at her. "I enjoyed the experience."

"So what ideas do we have so far," asked Jaci.