Chapter Thirty Three - Together at Last

Lia sighed in relief as her wolf and Jake’s finally managed to mind link. The first image he shared with her was of a majestic white wolf on a lounge chair with her eyes closed and her head tipped up to the sky, the moon gleaming brightly behind her, its light sparkling and glowing on her fur. His first image of her as a wolf, she guessed. She heard Jake whimper then and knew that without her consciously trying to, her wolf had shared the feelings of her experience with him. Her orgasm had been sweet but then the pain of shifting had ripped through her with such intensity that for a moment she’d been terrified the change was going to just tear her open and she’d bleed to death instead of fully transforming! As that had dimmed, her other senses had exploded. She had always been able to see, hear, and smell more than her human friends, but the full wolf senses were amazing. The intensity of it had completely overwhelmed her at first. She could scent every wolf in the pack and hear every one of their heartbeats pounding and the music and howls had become almost defining. She had closed her eyes as even the gentle glow of moonlight had felt blindingly bright. The sensory input had slowly dimmed, she could still feel everything she had a moment ago, but it was bearable now.

Jake nuzzled her face again, comforting her. Then he padded over to the railing and got up on his hind legs with his front legs on the railing. He looked out over the grounds and Lia got a mental image of her there with him, so she moved carefully, concentrating on moving all four legs so that she wouldn’t trip over herself as she got off the chair and made her way over to him, standing up as he had shown her. A few snowflakes floated down and rested on the edges of his fur. She watched him tip his black nose towards the moon and howl, she did the same, amazing herself by making a decent sound on the very first try.

Below them, the grounds had gone completely silent. When the last of their howls trailed off to nothing the entire yard erupted in a chorus of howls. Jake looked over at her and tipped his head to one side. His tongue lolled out in the way that she’d come to know as playful. Before they could start chasing each other around the sounds of yelps and snarls filled the air. An image flashed into both of their minds, Selene, on her feet, frightened and angry, charging at every wolf she saw.

The pair dashed for the door. When Jake used the lever-style handle and the door swung open Lia suddenly realized why all the doors in the Pack House, and the Rogue’s home, had that uncommon door knob style. Wolf paws couldn’t open round doorknobs, but levers were not a problem. They dashed down the three flights of stairs, through hallways, and out onto the deck where Selene’s cot had been set for her to sleep in the moonlight. She was there, facing down Mark, Marie, and David. Ellie and Elsie were there too, along with some other wolves Lia didn’t know. She stepped forward slowly, trying to mind link with Gran. She stopped, blinking as she was suddenly swamped with images about what the she-wolf was upset about.

She was looking for her daughter. Not her granddaughter? She was afraid someone had taken her daughter and was blaming the wolves in front of her. At first, Lia thought that Gran was confused, or maybe there had been memory damage caused by the neurotoxin, but as the images sorted themselves out she realized that the wolf she thought was Gran was actually her mother. She sat down and tipped her head. That was Gran, wasn’t it? Or was it a different werewolf and actually her mother? Had her mother been right here, at Cloud Lake, and just ignored her all these years while she grew up just a short run away through the bush? The other white wolf suddenly stopped snarling and spun around to face Lia. She blinked, then dashed forward. Lia flinched back, and Jake stepped up to protect her. He snarled at Selene, putting his body in between the two white wolves. Selene stopped, a look of surprise in her eyes before a steely resolve took its place. For a moment Lia was worried they were about to fight, but then she started to see their communication through the link, more clearly now, as though one of them was helping her make sense of this new method of communication.

Gran was her mother.

Gran had been sleeping and heard Lia yelp so she’d tried to wake up to help her pup. Her eyes had opened but her body wouldn’t move, and that had scared her.

She had looked around and been scared not knowing where she was or who most of the wolves were.

She’d thought she couldn’t move because she was tied up and someone was going to hurt her.

She’d searched for her link to Lea and found nothing, which had also frightened her.

Then Lia had howled and suddenly her body had worked! She’d leaped from the bed and tried to run off to find Lia, but the wolves in the room wouldn’t let her go, so she’d become angry.

Lia was here now and seemed unharmed, so she would be calm. She just wanted to see her daughter.

Jake dipped his head and stepped to the side.

Selene stepped toward Liana. Lia, a bit uncertain, took a step back but then stretched her head forward and rubbed noses with her mother. Selene ran her face down the side of Lia’s neck, stroking her with her head. Then she froze, a low growl coming from her as she picked up her head and turned towards Jake. Lia searched again for the link with Selene and tried to communicate with her. Yes, they had mated, but it was her choice. She shared the feeling of joy and completion that had accompanied their bonding with Selene and her mother’s head snapped back. She didn’t believe it. Lia stepped up and touched noses with Selene again, sharing more feelings of satisfaction, contentment, and safety. Selene blinked, her eyelids growing heavy. She wasn’t fully healed yet and had spent too much energy confronting the other wolves, she needed rest, and now that her pup seemed safe her wolf was going to insist she go back to sleep. Lia and Jake both stepped forward to support Selene’s body as it sank to the ground. With none of the wolves able to shift to human, and Selene too big to be carried as a pup, she would just have to sleep where she was. Fortunately, she was in the middle of the deck, being bathed in moonlight, and likely would be for most of the night.

Leaving Selene there with one guard and one Omega, the other wolves left to join the Wolf Moon party. Liana had shifted, the Alpha and Luna were happily mated, Selene was recovering and would probably wake, healthy and whole, very soon. Everyone was light-hearted and anxious to celebrate. Snow fell soft and steady from clouds that were separated just enough to show the full moon. The tiny flakes sparkled and shimmered their way to the ground like confetti, as though the Goddess herself had thrown some down to celebrate with them. It was a perfect night for a celebration.