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Author's Note: Another talking chapter but I think people will be very satisfied with the end of it. I'd like to take this opportunity to point out the other fine DarkRealms stories on the front page, written by fantastic authors. I'd like to thank djkauf for the editing and everyone else for loving my universe so much.

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Ch.17

Something wet and cold woke me up. I didn’t bother opening my eyes, instead I swatted at it. It disappeared for a moment only to come back a second or two later. Whatever it was, it was sure persistent. I gave it a shove and then it shoved back. Seriously? I groaned and rolled over, wanting just a few more minutes sleep. I pulled the sheets with me, hoping that whatever it was would get the hint and leave me alone. It didn’t. I felt the cold wetness again, this time on the back of my neck. I let out another groan and snapped my eyes, fed up with it. I rolled back around ready to kick its ass only to be shocked as all hell to see Boomer lying there.

“Lady wake now?”

Boomer, what the hell was he doing here?

I sat up, pulling off the sheets as I did so. I was confused as all hell. The last thing I remembered was crying in Terry’s arms, sitting on his couch. Now I was apparently in his room and had no idea how I got here. I looked around, not the least bit surprised by the place. It looked like a guy’s room, clothes scattered on the floor with empty pizza boxes and beer bottles. There were some modern art prints on the wall, a sports poster and a large flatscreen mounted on the wall. Terry’s computer was on a desk in the corner; his DVD’s were in a glass fronted entertainment center. A month ago, I would have thought this place was pretty cool but now it kind of disgusted me. There was this rancid smell that lingered in the room---a combination of rotting things, stale beer and BO---and I couldn’t tell if Terry even knew how to clean.

Funny what a gender change does to someone’s outlook.

I climbed out of the bed, trying not to step on the box of donuts nearby as I did so. I was still wearing my convenience store clothes, which was better than waking up with nothing on. I looked around for the bathroom but apparently, the apartment didn’t have one attached to the room. I navigated the minefield of crap until I reached the door and the hallway. I caught sight of the sun streaming through the window as I left the room. Was it the next morning or just later in the day? I hated falling asleep and not knowing what was going on.

When I made it to the bathroom, I tried to overlook the fact that it was just as messy as the rest of the place. Instead, I quickly did what I had to do. While sitting there, I got a look at my legs. Particularly the one that was wrapped in bandages earlier. The bandages had torn off when I turned into a wolf in Mason’s truck and now I got a good look at where those bastards bit me. I was surprised that most of it was barely visible. The teeth marks were still there but they were like a faint scar just like Uncle Frank said they might be. I looked at my arm too; it looked just like my leg. I guess that was one good thing about being a Werewolf. Ok there were a few other things too---but I could definitely do without the enhanced sense of smell right now.

When I finished up and washed my hands, I found Boomer in the living room on the couch. Silver was there too, on the floor though. He looked at me when I entered but didn’t say a thing. Boomer on the other hand jumped off the couch and came padding over.

“Uncle Wolf is wise,” he said happily.

“Uncle Wolf?” I asked, looking at Silver.

Silver took a second to respond. “It’s a sign of respect dogs show my kind.”

I nodded and walked over to the couch, dropping into it gently. “So where’s my brother?”

“He stepped out for a moment.”

I sat there with my thoughts. I’d calmed down a bit since earlier but not by much. I was still pretty pissed off about all of this. It was one thing that Dad ignored me but to use me like that too, I don’t think I’d ever forgive him for it. What’s worse, he roped others into it too. Mason was one thing but I was surprised the Coven would ever agree to it. I wonder if they went out of their way to put girls in danger like that. I mean they let those bastards come after me. Ok so maybe they didn’t know that was going to happen but they had to assume it might. Mason was big, strong, and probably really fast but he almost didn’t get there in time. Those cougars nearly tore me apart back there.

I started to rub my arm just thinking about it.

“He didn’t have a choice you know” said Silver as he walked over and sat in front of me.

“Who didn’t?”

“Mason” said Silver with a sigh. “He’s the Omega in the family; therefore he has to do what the Alpha tells him. So him going along with whatever stupid plan your father comes up with, he had no choice.”

That didn’t change anything. “He could have refused.”

“No he couldn’t have” said Silver with another sigh. “It’s a lot more complicated than it sounds. I’m not sure how much Trev and the others told you but being the Omega is not an easy thing. You’re at the bottom of the pecking order, always trying to please the Alpha, always trying to rise up through the ranks.”

Something clicked then. It was the way Silver was talking; I’m not sure how I didn’t catch it before. It was so obvious now though.

“You were the Omega weren’t you?” He nodded his head. “What happened?”

“I disobeyed your father.”

“Is that how you got stuck in wolf form?”

“No, that was my own damn stupidity actually. Me being Omega was something I did when I was younger, something I’m not proud of and if I could, I’d take it back in a heartbeat.”

“So you’re one of my cousins or something like that?”

“Something like that.”

Wow, I never thought something like this was possible. I’d heard about it of course, Weres being stuck in their animal form but I never thought it actually happened. But here he was, living proof. I couldn’t imagine what it must of felt like, what it feels like now. Living as a wolf the rest of your life, watching your family and friends from afar. Everything would be so different now, so lonely. I shuddered just thinking about it. Suddenly my problems paled in comparison. All I wanted to do was give him a big hug instead; I just wanted to know more about him.

“Do you have a family?”

I didn’t get an answer unfortunately, because Terry chose that moment to come back into the room. He looked around and saw me then saw Boomer. “Where’d he come from?” he asked, setting his keys on the little table near the door.

I was so preoccupied with other things that I forgot to ask actually. “I’m not sure; he was here when I woke up. I thought you let him in.”

Boomer put his head on my lap. “Boomer come to lady.”

“He’s being very cryptic,” I told my brother.

“I think he went up the fire escape,” said Silver, pointing his head toward the open window. “He jumped through there about an hour ago.”

“Well I’m not sure how much Mom is going to like that.”

“Mom?”

Terry smiled. “As much as I love having you here, you can’t stay here, I’ll get arrested.”

I forgot about the bar. Of course, I couldn’t stay here; I was a minor after all. “You’re not sending me home are you? Because I’ll run if you try to send me back there.”

Terry shook his head. “I’ve already talked it over with Connie. We both agreed that home might not to be the wisest place right now, well not until Dad calms down a bit.”

I pissed him off, good. I felt bad about Constance though. I’m sure she was worried sick about me but I couldn’t go back knowing that that bastard was trying to send me away. “So if I can’t stay here?”

Terry smiled. “I just had lunch with Mom, we cleared it with Constance. You’re going to stay with her until Dad cools off a bit.”

I’m not sure if I should smile or frown. Terry’s mother Marisol was always a nice person to me but she was a bit---well, I’m not really sure how to describe it actually. I guess the word I’m looking for is focused. That might work. Marisol---call me Aunt Mari---was definitely a very focused person when it came to what she wanted. As far as places to go though, it was better than running to one of my uncles for sanctuary.
Aunt Mari here I come.

Aunt Marisol lived in the upper Middle Class part of town, the Harper mansion was right around the corner on the next block actually.

The taxi pulled up in front of her large brick house. Aunt Mari was the kind of woman that took care of everything she owned. She had one of those lawns that belonged on the cover of a Home and Garden magazine. Everything was nicely trimmed and very green. It always surprised me how she could still have flowers in bloom this late into Fall. If I were to guess, I’d say they were fake. Either that or her gardener had the greatest green thumb I’d ever seen.

“What does your mother know about me?” I asked as I we got out of the cab.

“I keep no secrets from my Mom.”

I always felt bad about how things turned out between his Mom and our Dad. I’m not really sure of the specifics, of course, but I knew things were kind of done in secret. I’m not saying my mother was a home wrecker, just that things kind of happened. Both of them were busy, their jobs keeping them out of the house more than in it---Aunt Mari was just starting her clothing business back then. My mother was Dad’s secretary but things didn’t happen between them until Aunt Mari and Dad were divorced. A few months after the divorce, Mom got pregnant and they were married. Nine months later, I was born and Mom was gone. What always surprised me about the whole thing was that Marisol never once held a grudge. She was there almost every single day after I was born or so I’m told. I never really knew who she was when I was younger, I only ever knew her as “Aunt Mari”---a woman who my brothers called Mom. It wasn’t until later that I discovered the strange circumstance to it all.

Mom was Dad’s second wife and soon after Constance became his third.

As soon as the taxi was gone, Silver came padding around the corner. The driver wouldn’t let him in the car. I think he suspected something about the strange silver furred dog. Boomer got a lot of strange stares too but he was at least allowed inside. When Silver walked up to me, he stared at the house for a long time. I could tell from his stare that this wasn’t the first time he’d been here. I didn’t want to press it though, allowing my new canine companion some secrets of his own.

“Wait here” said Terry as he opened the little gate and walked slowly up to the door.

I watched as he rang the bell and a second later, Aunt Mari opened the door. She was a very classy woman of fifty, always very well dressed. Her olive colored skin and dark hair always made her look like an exotic beauty. At one time, she was a fashion model before she got too old for the industry. She and Dad dated for a while and were married for quite a long time before she retired. After that, she started her first boutique---now she had a chain of them all over the state. There was even some talk of going national, soon there might be a Marisol’s on every corner.

She and Terry talked for a few moments before she looked past him to me. She had a big smile on her face. She patted her son on the shoulder and slowly walked toward me. How she was able to walk in a skirt that tight and those heels was beyond me. She got to me she opened the gate and surprised me by pulling me into a tight hug.

“Tracy sweetheart” she gushed. “I’m so happy to finally meet you in person.”

She let me go and looked at me long and hard. “You look so much like your mother, it’s uncanny.” Then she frowned. “How your father would want to get rid of you is beyond me.”

I smiled. “Thank you Aunt Mari.”

She looked at Boomer and Silver, I think her eyes might have bugged out of her head a bit at the sight of the wolf. “I suppose they’re with you?”

“Boomer is my dog, Silver is…well I’m not sure what Silver is actually.”

“Silver, huh?” she said with a strangeness in her voice. “Well I suppose your dog can stay but that wolf can’t come into my house.”

“That’s not fair,” I said, feeling slightly offended.

“Its ok, she has every right to bar me from there” said Silver. “I’ll wait out here, it’s easier that way.”

He didn’t wait for my reply before he turned and disappeared into her garden. She watched him go, keeping her eyes on him until he vanished from sight.
Clearly, there was more going on there then I was supposed to know.

I followed Aunt Mari into the house while Terry hung back. I looked around the house, surprised that it looked vaguely normal inside. I’m not saying the outside was abnormal of course, but things didn’t look like how I imagined they would. Of course, it was clear that she’d hired an interior decorator and the room smelled badly of potpourri but it was less extravagant. I guess I was expecting something over the top and not so down to Earth. Aunt Mari gave me the grand tour: living room, kitchen, dining room, bathrooms. On the second floor, she led me to one of three guest rooms.
It screamed ultra feminine but I could deal with that for a few days.

“I know it’s a little much but I think it might suit you,” she said with a sweet smile.

How is this supposed to suit me exactly?

I think she saw my face because she gave my arm a gentle squeeze. “You can’t take the boy out of the girl after all.”

“It’s a nice room but not really my style.”

Aunt Mari laughed, looking me up and down. “I can see that.”

I felt embarrassed. “This isn’t really my style either.”

After showing me my room, we rotated back down to the living room where we left Terry and Boomer. Terry was sitting on the couch but got to his feet when we entered. He was always much more polite when his mother was around. I couldn’t help but wonder how she’d react if she saw his apartment.

“Smelly Lady has nice house” said Boomer as he sniffed around.

I sniffed the air, realizing why Boomer called her “Smelly” The potpourri was a bit overwhelming, especially for the senses.

“Did you get the nickel and dime tour?”

Aunt Mari frowned. “Nothing about this house is nickel and dime, I assure you of that.”

“It’s just an expression Mom.”

They had a bit of playful banter back and forth after that. Terry’s relationship with his mother was fantastic. They teased one another a lot, which is something I would have loved to have. Not that I didn’t have a good relationship with Constance but a small part of me was a bit jealous of them. Watching them laugh made me realize how much I longed for my own mother and got felt bad that I never got the chance to laugh with her. I let them have their fun while I wandered over to the mantle. There were a lot of pictures on it, some of Aunt Mari but most were of Terry and Teddy. It was sad that I never got to know my brother. Looking at his pictures, I couldn’t help but see the resemblance to Terry. He had a nice smile too; one that I’m sure would have made me feel warm inside. Terry used to talk about him a lot, telling me all the cool things our big bro used to do.

I’m not sure when their laughing ended but Terry came up behind me. I was looking at a pic of him graduating from high school.

“Good times” he said.

“You miss it?”

“Sometimes.” He touched the pic. “But I had a lot less freedom back then. Dad was a bit of a tight ass, wanted to make sure his Heir didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Is that why he got pissed about Carmilla?”

He scoffed. “Dad hates her. He thinks she broke up his parent’s marriage.”

Grandpa and Carmilla? She was a beautiful woman but it was just hard to imagine it. It was hard to imagine her even being around back then actually.

“How old is she anyway?”

“Old enough” he said with a smile.

“What does your mother think about it?”

“Carmilla is a very nice girl,” said Aunt Mari as she wandered over. “She and I have had a nice talk about things. She’s promised to treat my Terry well and that’s all that matters to me.”

Terry blushed which I couldn’t help but laugh at. It was strange to see my big tough brother show any sign of embarrassment whatsoever. I thought about teasing him but instead I had other matters to attend too. It was now mid-afternoon; school had been over for quite some time. If I knew Mary---and I did very well---she was probably freaking out big time. So I asked Aunt Mari if I could use her phone and she surprised me by telling me there was actually one in my room. So I excused myself and quickly returned to the land of pink. I tried not to think about that as I closed the door and found the phone on the night stand.

Mary picked up on second ring. “Before you freak” I said “you have to know why.”

I quickly told her everything from the moment I woke up that night, to hearing them wanting to send me away and right up to walking into the pink room to call her. When I was finished, she groaned. It was a typical Mary response. What wasn’t typical was what she said after.

“You have no idea how scared I was,” she said, a hint of tears in her voice. “I thought something happened to you, you stupid idiot.”

Her crying got me crying. I tried to reassure her that everything was ok. We talked and cried for about an hour. To say I was surprised by her reaction was an understatement. Mary never cried, she was the toughest person I knew. I guess having your best friend disappear and almost get killed put things in perspective. After the crying, came the berating---that sounded a lot more like my Mary. She blasted me for being an idiot and promised to kick me in the ass the next time we saw one another. That took the majority of our hour long conversation. The end of which shifted to talking about the Stiles’ Halloween party.

“So are you still going?” she asked.

“Of course. You know how much I was looking forward to it and our mystery costumes.”

She laughed. “I’m still not telling you what they are so don’t even bother asking. You can find out Sunday morning when I bring them to you.”

I think I could wait two days.

“So what happens now?” she asked, referring to my situation.

I shrugged even though I knew she couldn’t see it. “I don’t think it’s really been discussed. I definitely don’t want to go home if they’re just going to try and send me away.”

Mary was quiet for a second then sighed. “Don’t get mad at me but maybe that’s for the best.”

I was kind of ticked. “Who’s side are you on?”

She groaned. “Yours but you have to agree that it might be better than things are now. They tried to kill you, Tracy, nearly would have if not for grey, black and slightly brooding.”

I blushed a bit at her comment about Mason. I wouldn’t say brooding per se. I shook my head, breaking that train of thought. “You’re missing the point. They used me as bait, Mary. Those bastards thought I was some kind of pawn in whatever little game they were playing.”

“Yes and you walked right into it. I’m sure they had their reasons but you could have stopped at any time. The Coven doesn’t do things half assed you know, they have a reason for everything. You might not have agreed with their decision to charge your father but you should have at least let things play out.”

Shit. Mary busting my chops, what was the world coming to. I was about to open my mouth to respond when I heard the screech of tires. It was coming from outside. I rushed to the window and looked out, making sure I wasn’t seen. What I saw surprised the hell out of me---it was my father’s Mercedes. It was parked in front of the house and my father was now marching furiously across the lawn. Behind him was Constance and she looked pissed. A moment later, Mason pulled up in his big truck. That’s when the real fireworks started. Terry and Aunt Mari came rushing out into the front yard after that. Even with the window shut, I could hear my father screaming.

“WHERE IS SHE?”

“Mary” I said quietly. “I’m going to have to call you back, there’s World War Three outside my window.”

I didn’t wait for her to respond before I shut off the phone. I dropped it on the floor and took off out of the room. So the bastard was coming for me, was he? There was no way I was going to let that happen. Anger swelled inside of me as I ran down the hallway, determination building. I was sick and tired of all his crap. Firs he ignores me then uses me and then tries to send me away. I’m not sure what his game was now but I was tired of playing. No longer was I going to let that man dictate how my life went. I was a human being, not some piece of furniture he could move around as he pleased.

When I got downstairs, I heard multiple voices shouting at once---Dad, Terry and Marisol. Terry and Dad were the loudest though. In the living room, Boomer was pawing at the door to get out. I didn’t waste any time as I rushed and opened it. The German Shepherd went first but didn’t leave my side. As soon as I appeared on the porch, Constance smiled. She looked overly relieved to see me too. Dad on the other hand looked like he was about to pop a blood vessel.

“See, she’s fine” said Terry, finally getting his anger partially under control. “I’m not corrupting her.”

Corrupting me? Give me a break.

Dad looked at me, still seething. “You get in the car, now.”

“Theodore Tobias Locke” snapped Marisol angrily. “That is your daughter, a young woman who deserves your respect, not this overwhelming hatred. You will apologize and you will explain the circumstances.”

“You lost the right to tell me what to do a long time ago,” snapped my father but he was starting to calm down. He turned to me. “Get in the car, please.”

Even though he was partially polite, I could still feel the anger in his voice.

I took a deep breath and shook my head. “No.”

Terry smiled. Even Constance slightly smiled.

Dad’s eyes popped a bit. “What did you just say?”

“I said no” I was feeling a bit more confident now. “What’s the matter, never heard the word before? I’m not surprised, the Great Tobias Locke, the man who gets everything he wants. I’m surprised you haven’t broken out in hives from just hearing the word.”

I felt strong now, powerful. Dad was speechless. Terry and Aunt Mari had their mouths hanging open slightly.

But I was far from done.

“I’m tired of all your shit, Dad,” I said, advancing down the steps and across the lawn. “You call me a thing, you ignore me for weeks, you go out of your way to treat me like I’m the worst thing that ever happened to you and then I find out you’ve been using me this whole time. I’m not some kind of TOY for you to play with. Like it or not I’m your daughter, the first female Wolf in over three hundred years, Matron of this family.”

I’m not sure where that last part came from but it felt right. As soon as that word came out of my mouth, Dad’s eyes popped even more.
“Where did you hear that word?”

I smirked. “What’s the matter, shocked that someone let slip your big bad secret.” I turned to a confused Terry. “Men aren’t supposed to be in charge of this family, women are. They only rose to power after all the female Wolves were killed. That’s why things are such a mess, this man,” I pointed at my father. “Has been running our family into the ground for years.”

“Tracy” gasped Constance, surprise in her voice.

I was a bit surprised too. I’m not sure where that came from.

I was on a roll now. “Is that why you’ve been ignoring me, why you’re really trying to send me away. Now that there’s a woman in the family, you think I’m going to steal power from you. Well here’s a news flash, I don’t want power. I don’t want to run your precious empire. All I want is to be a normal sixteen year old boy but seeing as I can’t have that I’m stuck with this” I waved a hand over my body, particularly my chest area. “Call it a curse or divine intervention or maybe just something to piss Tobias Locke off but I’m your daughter now. My name is Tracy Anne Locke and I’m not going anywhere. You either get with the program or get the fuck out of my way.”

A hushed silence fell over the gathered crowd. My heart was pounding in my chest and I could hear my own breathing. I was pumped, never before in my life have I felt quite like that. I kind of liked it. I knew knew how my father felt every time he did one of his slimy deals, every time he berated someone on the phone. Not that I’m saying I wanted to be like him, hell at the moment I didn’t even want to be related to him. But this power, this high was invigorating. It was scary too. I could feel myself shaking. It occurred to me right there that though I somewhat liked the feeling, I never wanted to feel that way again.

Terry finally broke the silence. “You heard her. Now if you don’t want me to call the police, you better leave.”

“You have no…” Dad started.

Constance cut him off. “Teddy, shut up.”

She looked at me and smiled. I’ve never seen her smile quite like that before. Then she grabbed my father’s arm and dragged him back toward the car. I watched in silence as they got back into the Mercedes. A tear rolled down my cheek. Constance got behind the wheel, which surprised the hell out of me because I knew that Dad never let anyone drive his car. As they were pulling away, I caught eyes with my father. I expected to get an angry glare or a grimace. What I got though was a smile. Wait why was he smiling at me, he shouldn’t have been smiling?

The car pulled away and disappeared around the corner.

Out of sight and out of my life. I’m not sure for how long. I nearly broke down after that. Terry caught me as I wobbled and fell. He scooped me up into his arms and carried me quickly into the house. Aunt Mari and Mason were at his heels. My brother carried me up the stairs and back to the pink room. He laid me on the bed and put a hand on my forehead, checking my temperature. I swatted his hand away.

“I’m fine, just got a little overwhelmed.”

“You want me to stay here?” he asked, concerned.

I groaned. “Terry, I’m not made of glass.”

Aunt Mari chuckled. “After that little display, I’d say you were made of steel.”

I couldn’t help but smile. “He had it coming,” I said softly.

She stroked my hair. “That he did.”

They lingered about for a few more minutes. Terry was particularly concerned. He was a little overprotective when I was his little brother but now he was smothering. It took me three times to convince him I was fine. After that, Aunt Mari had to drag him from the room. Mason tried to duck out too but I wasn’t done with him.

“You stay here,” I said sternly.

He stopped dead in his tracks and turned around. “I…ummm….”

I shook my head. “No ass kissing. You don’t need to cower to me, I’m a nobody.”

He shook his head. “I beg to differ.”

I couldn’t help but smile, blush even. Damn it.

I sighed and cleared my throat. “Silver told me some things…about your ummm situation. I’m sorry I didn’t know. I wanted to thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“You don’t have to thank me. Protecting you is my job, giving my life for you is my duty.”

I blushed. Why was I blushing at that?

There was an uneasy silence in the room after that. Mason looked at me with those smoldering dark eyes of his. I felt my heart skip a beat. Damn it. I shook it off, turning away from him. I took a deep breath before I turned back.

“So I’m stuck with you then?”

He nodded. “I’m afraid so.”

I took a moment to gather my thoughts. So Mason was my Sword and my Shield. I think I heard that in a movie once, somehow it seemed appropriate. I looked at him again; I guess it wouldn’t be so bad having him tagging along everywhere I went. He was easy on the eyes after all. Damn it. Me and these stupid girl thoughts. I took a deep breath. But if he was going to hang around, I was going to make sure he got one thing straight.

“I’m not going to New York.”

“I gathered as much,” he said with a smile.

“And I’m not going home either.” He nodded. “Sunday night I’m going to the Stiles’ Halloween party. I’m going to have fun and nothing you or my father says is going to damper that.”

He laughed. “I think you’ve proven that your father doesn’t have much say over you anymore.”

I smiled. I wasn’t proud of what I’d done but I was glad that I finally stood up to him and told him how I really felt. Who knows what would come of it but at least I felt better knowing that that man couldn’t affect me the way he used too. Thinking about the look on his face made me smile; I was going to be thinking about that moment for a long time to come.

Author’s note: As I’m sure all of you know, comments are life blood to an author. I’m not begging or demanding, but I certainly would appreciate anything you have to say (or ask). It doesn’t have to be long and involved, just give me your reaction to the story. Thanks in advance...EOF

Picture Credit: Actress Jane Levy

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