Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Will

“Where are you taking me?” Alexis asked for the dozenth time in the past hour. Given that it was a surprise that I didn’t want to ruin it in any way, I chose not to reply with the most obvious answer.

And what was the most obvious answer? It was complex. This entire situation was one convoluted Gordian knot. It had been one whole week since we had defeated the vampires in that legendary battle. One whole week of pure peace and bliss in the commune and Fiddler’s Green. Spring had finally come, and it had done so with such splendor and color that the entire world looked like it had been painted green. Green leaves on all the trees as far as the eye could see. Green grass in the lawns, slopes, and meadows. Greenery in Fiddler’s Green, courtesy of the new mayor who had promised a cleaner Fiddler’s Green. Flowers bloomed in every direction, from the flowerbeds to the greenbelts between the roads. For the first time since I had arrived in this town, Fiddler’s Green felt like a fitting title for this place.

It had looked like heaven. The entire pack had been one happy family, partying, celebrating, and partaking in the many communal activities. Now that the threat of vampires was over, the kids of the pack played baseball and basketball outside of the commune’s bounds, using the green field to the left as a makeshift baseball pitch and using the deserted parking lot as a makeshift basketball court.

What was more surprising than this sudden cheery atmosphere all around the commune was the behavior of the townsfolk. In all my time in Fiddler’s Green, I had never seen the people as friendly or amicable. They were all very businesslike, curt, and quiet. But not anymore. From the way they behaved, hugging and talking and laughing, it felt like a curse had been lifted off the land. Teenagers and people in their twenties were dancing in the streets and holding beach parties. Girls shopped at the only mall in town, drinking their shakes near the mall’s fountain. The old men and women gathered around the town square, reading their papers, drinking their coffee, walking their long walks, and perusing the collection at the new library that had been opened by the new mayor.

What a change all that was. A remarkable change. The sky remained blue and spotless. The seawater was suddenly clearer, the sand on the beaches whiter. People seemed happy, and so did the entire place.

All except for Alexis, who seemed deeply troubled.

For the past week, she had refused to sleep. It wasn’t for lack of trying on her part, either. She had gone to bed every single night, and every morning when I woke up from a very peaceful sleep, I’d find her sitting upright on her side of the bed, dark circles under her eyes denoting that she hadn’t slept even one wink. Time and again, I asked her what had happened to her, and time and again, she answered with the same response: “I don’t know.”

It took some introspection on my behalf to reach a valid conclusion. Alexis was suffering. She had been through a lot, especially in the last few months, and as a result, she had developed emotional and mental trauma. What the shrinks these days called PTSD. After learning how to operate a computer, I’d now become a little bit fluent with how to use the internet and search queries.

I found out that the symptoms of PTSD included being easily startled or frightened, always being on one’s guard, self-destructive behavior, trouble sleeping, trouble concentrating, irritability, and guilt.

Alexis had been displaying all those symptoms for the past week.

She’d become jumpy every time a door so much as banged near her. Sometimes, she’d see a shadow in one corner of the room and think it was moving. This would cause her to become frightened for no particular reason. She’d never say a word to me, but I could tell from the bond that we shared that she was coping with fear.

Whenever she walked around the commune and in Fiddler’s Green, she walked as if she’d get jumped by someone. She was always on guard, her ears perked up, her eyes darting from one corner to the other, her hands clutching her purse to use as a weapon should the worst transpire. Except, well, the worst didn’t transpire. Nothing happened.

She had started drinking more and more in the past week. She thought that I didn’t notice, but it was hard not to notice when we lived together all the time. There were empty whiskey bottles in the trash, and whenever Alexis kissed me, there was whiskey on her breath.

The lack of sleep hadn’t troubled me for the first day or two, but on the seventh day, I’d made up my mind that I’d do something about her trauma. A person could die from lack of sleep, and from the way she looked and behaved recently, Alexis looked like she might at least go into a coma, if not outright die. She had lost so much weight that she looked gaunt as a ghost.

I’d ask her a question, and she’d answer with something else that was on her mind. I’d ask her if she wanted dinner, and she’d tell me something completely unrelated in return. Last night, she replied, “I’m going to my grandma’s home.” Alexis’s grandma was Ariana, who had long been dead.

Whenever I tried to confront her about these things, she became agitated. She never lashed out at me, but I could see that I was driving her mad. Her face would flush with color, and her voice would become a bit louder. But she never lashed at me.

From all of this, I had concluded that my mate, my partner, the woman I loved so much, was suffering from PTSD. I even contacted a psychiatrist based in Chicago, a fellow who offered online and on-the-call help. He told me that the best way to help her would be to take her away for a few days to separate her from the place where she had suffered her trauma. Of course, I didn’t exactly tell that psychiatrist about werewolves and vampires and whatnot, but I got the message across and, in return, was given a followable set of instructions.

The most significant was to take her away for a few days. It had taken me less than an hour to finalize the location where I’d take her. A two-hour drive from New York and a five-hour drive from Fiddler’s Green was a small peninsula upstate called Frampton with a lighthouse and an old inn that catered exclusively to couples. Frampton Inn was a Victorian Inn with several astonishing features, such as a swimming pool studded with cyan and green rocks at the bottom, a large library, a hedge maze, rock stairs leading down the cliff side to the beach, and a series of caves that were turned into an underground restaurant by Frampton Inn.

That’s where I was taking her. But it was a surprise that I couldn’t reveal it before time.

“It’s a well-earned vacation for us both,” I said.

“What if something happens to Fiddler’s Green while we’re still away?” There it was, that PTSD was acting up again.

“I can assure you that nothing will happen. Vince is in charge, and we’re off on a nice weekend vacation in Frampton.” Oops. I accidentally let it slip.

Her eyes widened as her face broke into a wide smile. “The Frampton? The actual location where they regularly film so many TV shows and movies? Those picturesque rocks in the swimming pool! That great lighthouse atop the cliff? That very same Frampton?”

I smiled at her, my eyes full of love.

“Why don’t you see for yourself?” I asked as I waved my hand across just as the car reached the top of the crest on the road, revealing Frampton in all its glory. Pictures didn’t do this place any justice. It was not unlike anything that I had seen. Not even the resort in Vermont where I had proposed to her was as special as this. When we reached the top of the crest on the road, an evergreen slope extended into the distance till it reached the cliffs on the far end of the peninsula. Around here, the water was completely deep blue and opaque, unlike the seawater in Fiddler’s Green.

Behind the cliff, into the unending sky, white clouds hung low on the horizon, revealing the clear blue sky behind them. The sun shone from behind the white clouds, its piercing rays making the water shimmer and the grass glow.

“My God!” Alexis gasped as she beheld the view. “Will. What’s the occasion? You haven’t brought me down here for a surprise wedding, have you?”

“No, my love. I just brought you down here to help you deal with the trauma you’ve been experiencing this past week,” I said, parking the Jeep on the side of the road so we could both come out and view the scene from this vantage point.

“Trauma? You think that I’ve been going through trauma for the past week?” Alexis asked innocently. I just wanted to hold her tight and hug her and let her know that the world was going to be okay. And so, I did that.

I held her in my arms.

“You have been through so much. It can sometimes cause trauma in even the most resilient of people. I just figured that this would be a good way to help you unwind,” I said.

“Do they have a day spa and sauna?” Alexis whispered.

“Oh, yes, they do, and they also have a Jacuzzi on the deck outside the room I’ve booked. Ain’t that simply fabulous?” I asked, holding her tightly, smelling her perfume, and feeling her hair brush against my face.

“Oh, Will, now I feel so guilty,” Alexis said. There it was, right on cue, that last and most potent symptom of PTSD. “I feel like I’ve been bugging the bejesus out of you this past week. I should have done better. Damn it.”

“It’s not about that,” I said, holding her by the arms and squeezing them. The psychiatrist had said that physical touch from a partner could help soothe the symptoms of mental anguish. I was trying to do my best to be a supportive partner, who could bring her back to normal. “I know how you feel. Fiddler’s Green, the Grimm Abode—you feel tied down in those places. You sometimes feel like there’s no escape, and the years are passing you by. That there’s so much to see out there and so little time. Tell me if I’m wrong.”

Alexis looked away from me and stared into the horizon. It was noon, and the sun had finally managed to break through the clouds. It shone in all its splendor, illuminating the entirety of Frampton and the sea around it—a truly mesmerizing scene. Alexis looked at me and said, “I’m in my late twenties. I’ve devoted my entire life to that town. Of course, I feel that way. That doesn’t mean I don’t love it. I love the place, but I want to see more of the world.”

“Well then, how about this?” I pointed at Frampton.

“Oh, this will do fine. Just fine. I love it. And I love you!” Alexis gleamed and hugged me. “Thank you for bringing me here. You know, I never say it all that much, but I just love how you pamper me.”

“It’s my duty,” I said, pecking her on the cheek. “One that I take great joy in performing.”

***

We lay in each other’s arms, wrapped under a blanket while completely naked. The room had walls made of expensive stone, which the receptionist had assured us was the highest level of soundproofing. This room was another level of luxury, something that I hadn’t seen before. The floor was original oak hardwood with just the right amount of scruffiness, making walking barefoot an absolute treat. The windows were tall and broad, covering one whole side of the wall, offering a pristine view of the sea and the cliffs. By the window was a deck with a Jacuzzi, which I fully intended to use later in the evening.

“I love you for bringing me here,” Alexis said, her breast brushing against my chest. “I needed this.”

“I knew you did. And I love you too,” I said, kissing her on the cheek. Then I pulled her closer and lay her down on her back as I disappeared inside the blanket. I could see her slender thighs and her pink pussy tucked between them. I needed to kiss it. I wanted my lips on it. I followed that impulse, licking the clefts of her labia and cradling her clit on the tip of my tongue. Alexis moaned loudly and grabbed me by my hair, pulling me closer to her. I licked faster and enjoyed the sensation of her thighs clamping around my face as she shook and moaned louder.

“Will! Stop! I’m cumming!” she panted a minute later. Her whole body trembled as she orgasmed. I climbed back on top of her and lay with my body resting atop hers.

“My turn now,” I said, kissing her lips gently as I entered her. She was already wet down there. Wet, tight, and deep. I thrust my cock deep into her pussy, reaching places where I was sure I hadn’t reached before.

Alexis’s whole body jolted, and she arched her back up as I pleased her with my gentle, deep, and sure strokes.

Her eyes bore into mine passionately as our faces came closer. We kissed another time, this time our tongues clashing together as I thrust deeply into her.

Then she rolled over and came on top of me, her breasts in my face and her arms on my shoulders as she straddled me, moved her hips, and rode me swiftly. Perhaps it was the location, or perhaps it was the intensity of our lovemaking, but I couldn’t hold it any longer. I came with such force that my toes curled. I gushed inside her just as I felt her orgasm a second time.

Panting, we both fell on our sides in the bed, lying in each other’s arms.

“That…was quick and sexy,” Alexis said. “Very effective, I must say.”

“And you came twice,” I said.

“Will!” Alexis laughed, slapping me on my chest. “You shouldn’t keep count of your partner’s orgasms. It’s unseemly.”

“Well, I never really had a partner before you, so what do I know?”

“True. True. Well, you have succeeded in tiring me out. I’m going to sleep, and when I wake up, I’m going to take you to that Jacuzzi, and we’re going to get massages at the spa, deal?” Alexis said as she yawned.

“Deal,” I said, yawning in response.

“I just want you to know that all of this…the vacation and everything else…it is helping. I do feel like things are going back to normal, and I appreciate you doing this for me. Truly,” she said.

“I love you so much, baby. I’d do anything for you,” I said wearily, feeling sleep tug behind my eyes.

It just didn’t occur to me that she’d do something strange while I was asleep. I was so certain that she was going to be okay that I turned to my side and fell fast asleep, only to wake up in the middle of the night to find no signs of Alexis anywhere. She wasn’t in the bathroom, nor was she out on the deck.

“Will, you fool!” I snapped at myself, thinking about what I’d done. I had taken someone who was suffering from PTSD out into the open and had gone to sleep without checking to see if she had slept or not. Who knew where she might be?

I hurriedly got dressed, noticing at the same time that Alexis’s clothes were gone from the bathroom. The rest of her stuff was still there, including her luggage. So, wherever she was, she hadn’t gone far. I tried to use my bond with her, but it gave me nothing in response. All I got was pitch black in return, which meant that she was either very far or something very worse.

Not wanting to think more about it, I headed outside my room while locking it behind me and went into the lobby, where the receptionist was still standing behind her desk.

“Excuse me, the woman who came with me, do you know where she went?” I asked her.

“Umm. Yes, sir. As it happens, I did see her leave the lobby precisely an hour ago,” the woman responded, smiling at me professionally. Could she not see that this was a case of emergency and her smile was unwarranted?

“Did she say anything?” I asked.

“Nothing at all, sir. She just headed out of the inn and went to the road.” the woman pointed at the road from the window.

“Great. Thanks for your help,” I said, heading out of the inn and to the car park where I had parked my Jeep.

It then occurred to me that instead of going on my Jeep, I could simply shift into my wolf form. I’d be better able to follow her by picking up her trail.

Where are you, Alexis? I called out, hoping that there would be some response on her end.

There was just radio silence.