The Wolf Came on Christmas (Johanna and Alexander) novel Chapter 26

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“I knew it! Alexander was far more badly wounded than he wanted to admit-he was in pain and hiding it!” How much courage he had to endure suffering so seriously, without making a single grimace. I bit my lips and poured the already prepared baby formula into the bottle. Sasha saw what I was doing and let out a little squeal of delight; she was hungry.

Really, that girl was far too sharp and clever to pass for an ordinary baby.

“I can’t go to a hospital right now, Rex,” I heard Alexander reply, in a tone as calm as the one he usually used with me. “At least not until I manage to file down my fangs again and find a good explanation for those gunshot wounds. It’s been a very long time since I transformed for such a prolonged period.”

“I understand that, but when Hans arrives, he’ll want to examine you. You know how he is.”

“So nothing has changed, then. I was counting on that too.”

“Neither have you-you’re still just as idiotic and stubborn,” Agent Aguilera sighed, with a dissatisfied growl. “You’re a damn lunatic, you know that? Why didn’t you tell us what you were planning to do? l’understand that you wanted to cut contact with the family, but why didn’t you tell us? We’re your comrades, your friends. You hurt everyone a lot, starting with Nika. And when they held your funeral, she was even worse. You are a-”

There was a moment of silence, during which I stopped pouring milk to listen better.

”

“…go on, say it. I’m not going to jump you. You have the right.”

“You’re a fucking piece-of-shit idiot,” Rex cut in, impatiently. “A real son of a bitch. Now then, where is Anya? Obviously, she’s not here.”

“Right, that’s another thing I have to deal with. I couldn’t go back for her in my condition, with the children. I need you to go to Anchorage quickly. You have to find her; I can’t leave this place, I’m not fit to. And I can’t leave my children.”

The bottle almost slipped from my hands as I tried to check the temperature on my wrist. Anya! The wife was called Anya, and she was still in Anchorage. Anchorage-Alaska? Had Alexander fled from Alaska with his children? Aguilera and the “others” apparently knew the woman-far too well. At that moment, I had no doubt that if his friends knew her, Alexander’s wife was like him, a werewolf. How did Alexander know that Anya was still there? Was he so sure of it? And what if she…?

Fortunately, Agent Aguilera asked the very question that was in my head:

< Chapter 26-1

“Are you sure she hasn’t moved from Anchorage? What if she’s looking for you?”

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“I don’t think so. Rex, listen, I need you to leave right now. I can hold on until Hans arrives and operates on me, but Anya’s situation can’t wait any longer. You have to find her. I made sure to lure the panther away from the city, but even so…”

“I understand you. All right, if that’s what you want me to do, I’ll do it. I’ll look for her.”

“It’s been two weeks,” Alexander commented, in a distressed tone; I thought I heard an animal whimper in his voice, a pained yelp that made me shudder. “I’ve been trying to call, but she doesn’t answer; I swear that-”

At that moment, he lowered his voice so much that I could no longer hear what he was saying.

An annoying snort from Sasha brought me back to reality, and my heart started beating again. I checked the temperature of the milk on my wrist, but it seemed too hot, so I set it aside. The baby looked at me with a pout; she wanted her milk and I wouldn’t let her have it yet. I felt like kissing her chubby cheeks, but I realized it was best not to. While I waited for the bottle to cool a little, I put cereal in a bowl and soaked it with yogurt for Andre. I handed him the bowl and a banana, and a glass of warm milk just taken out of the microwave. The little one received breakfast with a discouraged smile and picked up the spoon with a languid gesture.

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Chapter 26-2

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Alexander had told me that very morning: “We are people, before beasts.” It made complete sense that Andre would use such a strong word as “monster” to talk about his enemy-about a different, fierce, bloodthirsty creature who had the audacity to attack them in their own home. Again, my hands were occupied and I couldn’t hug him, but I would have liked to.

I didn’t want to lie to him either, so…

“I’m sure it’ll be worked out. Now your dad has an ally and they’re going to work together. It’s easier. And more people are on the way, didn’t you hear? They’ll be able to do something,” I replied. I didn’t want to promise him that they would find his mother, because I wasn’t sure that would happen, much to my regret. “Come on, finish your breakfast and then we’ll play or read a bit. Let your dad talk to his friend and take care of everything, okay?”

“She didn’t answer her cell phone either,” Andre sighed, and picked up the spoon again.

I closed my eyes for a moment, troubled. All right-yes. It looked bad. It looked VERY bad. But with so many mountains in between, effective telecommunications were only satellite-based. What if Anya didn’t have signal on her phone? On the other hand, what if the children’s mother knew she had to hide and cut off all contact, for their sake? But a part of me told me that if that were the plan, Alexander wouldn’t have tried to locate her by phone.

I closed my eyes more tightly and tried not to think about it anymore. The more I tried to find an explanation, the more clues I found to think that, in fact, something bad had happened to the mother of those little ones. I focused on Sasha and the bottle she was holding; she had almost finished it.

That girl had a huge appetite-she was voracious, like a nest of termites.

“Maybe she doesn’t have it with her, Andre. Don’t think about ugly things. You know, with everything that happened, maybe she lost her phone,” I told the boy, in a softer, kinder tone.” The best thing is to stay positive, don’t you think? I bet your mom wouldn’t like you being so sad and thinking like that. Come on, what would she advise you?”

“Mom would tell me to trust in God and try to smile.”

“Well then, let’s do that. Let’s think about God,” I agreed, and smiled at him a little.

To be honest, God didn’t mean much to me one way or another. Mentioning Him was just part of the cultural mechanism installed in my mind by my mother, someone who still went to Mass and prayed from time to time. Since the accident, it had been very hard for me to believe that there is a higher power that feels anything for the human race-or for any other living being. So many tragedies happening in the world every minute only supported my way of thinking.