The island wasn’t more than ten miles in diameter. No wonder no one knew it was here. The beautiful deep green foliage dominated everything. Small hamlets dotted the island, but there was never a cluster larger than two or three in one location. Alicia felt like she had stepped back in time.
She hadn’t seen any modern transportation anywhere. Every person she saw walked. They also smiled. No hustle bustle of the modern world. No hectic rat race. No constant ringing of the telephone. “Any phones at all?”
Max smiled and slipped an arm around her. “Nothing modern here, except for the jet and I have special permission to bring it here.”
“I didn’t think people would voluntarily give up the things we take for granted. How can you stand it?”
“Stand it?” Max looked around, smiled and took a deep breath. “Honey, I love it here. No one can get a hold of me. I don’t have to worry about what time it is, where I’m going, where I should be. Give it a little time. I promise you’ll feel the same way.”
She wasn’t sure if she could agree with him. Max steered her away from the plane so Patrick could take it back to the main land. They walked around a bend in the dirt road when the drone of it faded from her hearing. “So where do the people live? I didn’t notice any town when we flew over.”
“Yeah. About that. You see we keep our land protected. Our homes hidden from those who might try to take our little island.” He paused at another bend. “Our village is small compared to what you’re used to, but I hope you feel loved and welcomed.”
As they rounded the bend Alicia found a small band of people waiting and watching them. Max bowed his head slightly and they all came running at them. Laughter and salutations rang in the air as people hugged and hands shook.
She felt a little out of place since she didn’t know anyone here. Stepping aside, she watched as residents swarmed around her friends.
“You are Alicia?”
She started at the voice. A quick turn revealed a tall, thin, gray haired woman in a long home spun charcoal dress. “Um, yes.”
The woman gave her a sweet smile. “I have refreshments and a soft seat for you while you wait for Maximilian.”
“Thank you.” It looked like the greetings would go on for a while. She followed the woman to a small house nearby.
“Have some tea, dear. And I have something a little stronger if you’re willin’.” She winked and went to a small sink to grab cups.
Her soft lilt was beautiful. “Do you have a name?”
“I’m sorry for not introducing meself. I’m called Katherine. You’ll find it a very popular name here, but most call me Kat.”
“Nice to meet you, Kat.” She picked up the tea and sipped. It was a thin sweet broth she had never had before. “This is delicious.”
“Thank you. It’s my personal recipe.” She sat at the small wooden table Alicia was at. “You’re the first outsider Maximilian has ever brought here.”
“Oh.” She took another sip. “Is that a bad thing?”
“No. Just very unique.” Kat picked up her tea and took a sip.
“I wouldn’t even have known about your island if it hadn’t been for the Tear.”
Kat picked up the teapot and topped off Alicia’s tea. “The what, dear?”
What the heck made her slip like that? She had never mentioned her work with anyone she didn’t know. “Never mind. You think they’re still at it out there?”
“No.” Max’s deep voice washed over her, relaxing the nerves that had tightened at her slip. “I see you met, Kat.”
Kat walked up to him, raised herself on tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Alicia’s height of five-foot-ten was still at least two inches shorter than Kat. It made her realize how tall Max really was.
“My sister.”
That stopped her. “You have loved ones? Didn’t see that coming.”
Kat laughed. “Oh, I like her, Maxi. She’s got backbone. You need someone who will stand up to you.”
“Maxi?” Alicia laughed. “Oh, what a cute nickname.”
“No, you don’t. Only family can call me that and only my sister has the gall to still use it around other people.” He gave his sister a squeeze.
“Too late. Now it’s ammunition when you try to be a jerk.” She stood up to face him. “And you can be a big one from time to time.”
“I see you know my brother well.”
Alicia nodded. “He’s been my own personal stalker for several weeks now.” She sat back down and picked up the tea. “Max, why haven’t you tried to market your sister’s tea? This is the best I’ve ever had.”
“Don’t want to be famous. If I wanted that I would have moved with Max to America.” She placed the pot back on her stove. “I’m quite happy here at home.”
Alicia nodded. Change wasn’t always the best thing for some people. She knew she’d never be happy here without all of the modern conveniences she was used to.
“I hope you don’t mind, but you’ll be staying with my sister. I have a few things I must take care of, so if you’d like to rest she has your room ready. We’re going to have dinner with the rest of the village this evening. Hope you like crowds. Our people will be swarming around you.”
“First outsider you ever brought here?” She wasn’t sure she was comfortable staying with a stranger but would rather talk to him privately about it.
“Yep.” He pulled her into his embrace and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “Kat will take good care of you ‘til I come back.”
And he was gone.
“Let me show you to your room.” Kat led her down a small hallway to a door on the right. “Hope you like it. Most tell me it’s cozy.” She opened the door to a quaint little room filled with sunshine and flowers.
Alicia stepped into the warmth of the sunlight filtering through the windows. The big bay windows had a seat covered with deep green pillows. The walls were painted with a light green tone, which accented the white linen with lilacs and greenery. The bed covers had the same pattern. Short, fat dark wood furniture dotted the room. A dresser against one wall. A trunk at the foot of the bed. Nightstands framed the bed.
The moment she stepped into the room she felt a weight lifted from her shoulders. Peace surrounded her.
“Rest and I’ll get you up when we should head to dinner.” Kat leaned on the doorframe. “Hope you brought an appetite. All will bring their best meals. We don’t get visitors often and we do take advantage of it.”
“I’ll be ready.” The door closed quietly behind her. Although she never saw anyone bring her bags out of the plane she found them neatly lined up next to the closet. Picking up her small bag, she pulled out her toiletries and essentials and placed them either on top of the dresser or in an empty drawer.
Her clothing followed next until she emptied the other bag she had brought. Once she finished that, she placed them in the closet. The bay window drew her. She sat on the seat and looked out.
Beautiful scenery surrounded her. A yawn escaped her, surprising her a little. She had slept all the way here so she shouldn’t be tired, but all the talk about her napping was taking its toll. She felt a little sleepy.
Turning her head, she gazed at the bed. Fluffy and snuggly, it looked inviting. She could rest a little. It didn’t mean she would sleep.
Another yawn escaped her as she stood and walked over to the overstuffed mattress. A smile spread across her face the moment she settled her head against the pillow. It was heavenly. In seconds she was asleep.
***
Max stood in front of the council building, gathering his thoughts. He dreaded the next few moments. Having to explain how he mated with a human instead of a member of the pack wouldn’t be easy, but he didn’t regret what happened between them. Now he had to convince his people it was a good thing, too.
A slap on the back made him look around.
Patrick stood next to him. He looked up at the building too. “Ready?”
“No, but I can’t put it off.” Max took a big breath. “Let’s go.”
“Can I stay out here instead? It’s you they want to talk to anyway.”
“Where’s your backbone? You’ll be sitting quietly in the background while they rake me over the coals.” Max didn’t mean a word of it, he was just voicing what he was feeling and Patrick took it like a friend.
“You’re right.” Patrick filled his lungs as well. “Let’s show them what we’re made of.”
Max shook his head as he walked up to the simple brown building. A single one story meeting hall, this was where all their large get-togethers happened. The three wooden stairs that led up to the porch were the hardest to climb because once he started up, there was no turning back. The thunderous sound of his first shoe hitting the plank of the board helped him remember his resolve. He loved Alicia and nothing they could say would make him leave her. He climbed the next two stairs quickly and walked into the building like the leader he had been bred to be.
The elders sat around at different tables. Each stood and bowed, showing proper respect, before crossing to the main dais. Only one seat remained empty and Max dreaded that person’s arrival.
Patrick took a seat toward the back of the room. Max knew he would come to his defense if needed.
The door creaked open as the last and highest ranking council member walked in.
He swallowed hard and approached the dais once she took her seat. Having his sister as the highest-ranking officer of the council didn’t let him get away with anything.
“Welcome home, Maximilian,” his sister said. She wore a long flowing robe of green velvet. Something she always hated but it went with the position.
“Kat.”
“You will address me properly in this building, Maximilian.” She pulled the robe behind her so she could take her seat without being handicapped by the cumbersome garment. “I will be shown proper respect.”
“Of course, madam council leader. I apologize for overstepping my boundaries.” He bowed to her.
“So, why are you here?” She leaned forward to grasp the wooden pitcher on the table in front of her. “I’m sure you came home for a reason, correct?”
“Yes.” He kept his back straight and his eyes forward. “I have chosen a mate.”
“So I heard. Catherine came to visit me earlier.” She poured herself a drink. “Alicia is the woman in the legend?”
“Yes, ma’am. She fits it perfectly.” He looked at the council. “And I want to thank our people for their warm reception of her. She wasn’t sure how she would be received and you made her feel welcome.”
“Yes, well, that makes perfect sense since you show no respect to your mate.” She slammed her cup on the wooden table in front of her. The echo filled the room. “You come here claiming she’s your mate yet she has no idea what that entails. I saw that as we spoke while we waited for you. She didn’t feel comfortable because she doesn’t know her place here. Why didn’t you explain things to her?”
“She is human and doesn’t understand our ways. When we mated, it was—” He scratched his head. How was he going to explain this? Max thought they’d be angry because he married a human, not because he messed up the mating. He was going to kill Catherine when he saw her. “Alicia wasn’t happy when she learned we were mated. She had hoped we would take it a little slower.”
“She doesn’t honor our ways?” Kat looked flabbergasted.
“That’s not what I said.” Max sighed. Once again his sister went right to the point. The best thing he could do is come clean. “I didn’t handle the mating properly. When I tried to explain it to her she was upset. She didn’t know how she would explain all this to her family. I promised her we could take it slow.”
“And how did she deal with our shape-shifting ability?”
“I’m not sure.” Max kept his eyes down. “I tried to explain best I could, but she is afraid of wolves so didn’t want to see me change. I fear she doesn’t quite believe me.”
“Don’t you think your mate should know what makes all of us so different? Or are you going to wait until she gives birth and the infant comes out as a cub?”
Max’s head snapped up. He opened his mouth to speak, but found his sister spoke before he could.
“You need to fix this and fix it soon.” Kat stood up. “We will give you time to make this right, but she must know everything before you leave home again. If you won’t tell her, I will.”
***
Alicia slumbered peacefully, not knowing her fate was being decided.
Her thoughts focused on a small knoll covered in trees. Something moved on the grass but she couldn’t see what. Fear raced through her.
Alicia tried to call out, but couldn’t find her voice. A shadow fell across her eyes, hiding the blinding light that had her squinting.
A strong wind whipped her hair around her face, blocking her view. She walked up the small incline to the trees at the top to see what moved around in the darkened areas.
A sob escaped her when she spotted wolves dancing around one tree. Dancing wasn’t the right word, but the way they moved reminded her of dancing more than anything else. If they saw her she could lose her life.
As if sensing her thoughts one turned toward her. It trotted over to her side, but instead of attacking her it nudged her toward the rest of the wolves cavorting around the center tree. They parted, allowing her to join them.
A beat entered her. She wasn’t sure where it came from because she didn’t hear any music, but it filled her to the bone and she knew she couldn’t resist.
Music flowed through her as she moved among the wolves. They smiled at her, bowing before moving with her. It was the most bizarre thing she had ever experienced.
“Alicia?”
She turned to face one of the wolves who had sat on its hunches. “Did you speak?”
“How else do you expect me to communicate with you, darling? It’s time to wake up.”
She opened her eyes to find Kat sitting on the edge of the bed. “Time?”
“Time.” Kat smiled at her. “Must have been a good dream. You were humming in your sleep.”
“Actually, it was a little weird. I dreamed I danced with wolves.” Alicia sat up.
“Now, you know if you tell someone your dreams before you eat something it will come true.” Kat stood up.
“Where did you hear that?” Alicia stretched before getting out of bed. “Sounds like one of those ‘old wives’ tales my grandma used to tell me.”
“My mother did tell me that when I was a child, but I know nothing of a tale. It does come true. I’ve seen the proof.”
“Oh, come on.” She slipped her shoes on and followed Kat back into the living room. “How can you say that?”
“Because it’s happened to me.” Kat grabbed a lightweight coat and handed one to Alicia. “You ready?”
“Of course.” She slipped the coat on. Should she pursue the conversation or let it slide?
“You will meet everyone in the village. I hope they don’t overwhelm you, but you are Maxi’s guest. That’s never happened before.”
“I do pretty well socially.”
“I’m not doubting that.” Her lilt came through strong. “But our people might swarm around you like bees. Air might be a problem.”
“Great, like kids trying to get candy.” They approached a brightly lit building. “I can handle it.”
“Good. Doubt Maxi would expect less from you.” She led Alicia to the side door. Placing her hand on the knob she turned to look at her. “You ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.” She took a deep breath and followed Kat into the room packed with strangers. Claustrophobia started to crowd her. She hated tight spaces and all these people in one room was a little more than she wanted to handle.
Max stepped to her side and placed a hand at her elbow. Calm filled her. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Crowds get to me from time to time and there’s an awful lot of people here.”
“You’ll love them, just give them time.” His eyes danced as he looked over the people. “This is my family. I might not be related to all of them by blood, but I am by love.”
“You’ve always been painted as a loner in the papers.”
“Something I perpetuated. I didn’t want to have all kinds of loons coming at me, asking me for favors. So I created the loner slash crazy man. It was the most unapproachable image I could come up with.”
“You did a good job. How about the obnoxious side? Is that fake too?”
“Nope.” Patrick said from behind her. “That’s one hundred percent real.”
“Patrick.” Max turned to smile at his friend. “Please don’t lie to her.”
“He’s not.” Alicia gave him a quick wink. “I’ve seen you in action. If you faked that you deserve an award.”
“Thanks. I think.” He wrapped his arms around her. “You’re a real peach at times too. Stubborn.”
“Hey!” She turned in his arms and swatted at him. “You bring it out in me by trying to bully me around all the time.”
“Someone has to keep you in line.”
Her spine straightened. “Excuse me?”
A loud gong rang. “Dinner is served,” someone shouted.
“Let’s take our seats.” Max led her to the dais. Six chairs graced the table resting on the rise. The two middle seats were more ornate and he was leading her to them.
“We’re not going to take those two, are we?” She slowed her pace at the thought of being the true center of attention. All the tables surrounding the dais were set so all the diners would face it.
“It’s okay. Just take a deep breath.” He kept her moving until she stood beside the chair. Other people joined them. Kat, Catherine, Patrick and one other man she hadn’t met yet. Max helped her take her seat before taking his own. After he sat so did the rest of the dais. Once everyone up front had sat then the rest of the diners took their seats as well.
“They’re honoring us like we’re royalty.”
“In a way we are.”