The Werewolf's Sabbat Ch. 08

She looked down to find that she was still wearing the same outfit from the night before, when she remembered what had happened. She remembered Mitch's revelation to her and the look in his beautiful eyes when he changed right there in her living room. The initial shock of the situation was gone. The thought of him being a wolf didn't frighten her anymore, but she still had trouble wrapping her head around it. One minute she had been living her life, thinking that werewolves were a myth and then the next minute she finds out that, not only do they exist, but her own boyfriend is one. Her boyfriend. Is that what he was?

"I made you breakfast. Come eat with me. There's a fresh pot of coffee ready for you in the kitchen." Mitch leaned down and gently placed a kiss on her cheek.

"I'll be there in a minute. I just need to change clothes first."

"Okay. Don't take too long."

Janette watched him walk out the bedroom and close the door behind him. She got up and went to her dresser, grabbed an old pair of jeans along with clean underclothes and a purple knit top. She quickly changed her clothes and ran a brush through her hair. She opened the bedroom door and walked into the kitchen and was surprised to see the dining table covered with small platters of everything. There was fruit, scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, jelly, sausage... enough to feed a small army. "Where did you get all of this?" She knew she didn't have much in her refrigerator, other than maybe a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter. Everything smelled delicious and her mouth began watering instantly.

"I hope you don't mind. I went to the market while you were asleep," he said as he poured them both a cup of coffee.

"I don't mind at all. It was just unexpected. How long have you been up anyway?" Janette sat at the table and began filling a plate. For some reason she felt like she was starving.

"Basically all night. I couldn't sleep," he said, smiling at her and handing her the coffee he had just poured. "I spent most of the night watching you sleep. Did you know that you snore? It's the cutest thing, really." He laughed when he saw the embarrassment on her face.

"Why couldn't you sleep?" she said, trying to change the topic away from her snoring. She could see the exhaustion in his eyes and it worried her.

Mitch took a sip of his coffee. "I was worried about you," he said, looking into Janette's eyes. "I know that what I showed you last night was a shock, but I didn't know how else to tell you."

Janette swallowed the eggs in her mouth and nodded her head. "The word 'shock' might be a bit of an understatement, but yes, you're right." She took another bite of eggs followed by a nibble on a piece of bacon. God could this man cook. "I'm glad that you told me. I still don't know what to make of it though."

Mitch could see that Janette had a lot on her mind. He poured her a glass of orange juice and handed it to her. "Look, I know that you are confused right now. You can ask me anything you want and I will try to answer you the best I can."

Janette took a drink of her orange juice and wiped her mouth with her napkin. She let out a big sigh, unsure of where to start. There was so much that she wanted to ask him. "Okay, so you're a wolf."

"Yes."

"Until last night, I had no idea that werewolves even existed. I thought they were only in the movies. Are there vampires too?"

"Yes."

Janette's jaw dropped in surprise. "You have got to be kidding me."

"No. I wouldn't kid you. In fact, I know a few vamps who happen to be close friends of mine."

"Mermaids?"

"Not that I know of. If there are, I have never met one."

"Elves?"

"No."

"Gnomes? Goblins? Boogey Man? Tooth Fairy?"

Mitch couldn't contain the roar of laughter she was causing him. He shook his head. "You are something else."

"How long have you been a wolf?"

"One hundred and fifty-six years this coming December."

Janette stood suddenly from her chair. "No fucking way!" Her hand flew to cover her mouth, her eyes growing wide, when she realized what she had just said and a deep flush covered her face. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to say that," she squeaked.

Mitch couldn't stop chuckling. "It's okay. Sit down, relax." He cleared his throat and took a deep breath, calming his laughter. "I was born a werewolf. Some people are born that way while others are born human and then they are changed later."

"I see." Janette slowly sat back down, still trying to get a grasp on everything. "So what do werewolves do exactly?"

"What do we do? Well, the same things that humans do, I suppose. Aside from shifting into an animal, of course. We work, eat, sleep, have sex, procreate, play basketball... and whatever else we feel like doing. We aren't so different from you if you think about it."

Janette thought back to the night before when she watched him shift forms. "Does it hurt?"

"Does what hurt?"

"Well... when you change into a wolf. Is it painful?"

"It can be. If you are changed from human to were, your first shift can be rather uncomfortable, or so I've heard. But after that, no." Mitch tried to remember his first time shifting as a child. It had never brought him any pain. Everything just came naturally to him. "Any other questions?"

"Oh, I'm sure I'll think of something." Janette finished her eggs and put jelly on her toast. They finished their breakfast and began clearing the table, putting the leftovers in Tupperware containers and into the refrigerator. They worked together in ease, as though they had been doing it for years.

Mitch loaded the dishwasher, and started it. He turned to Janette and wrapped his arms around her, happy that she didn't push him away like she had the night before. Instead she put her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest. He placed a finger beneath her chin and raised her face to him. "Come home with me. I don't mean come home and sleep with me. Although..."

Janette blushed and lightly smacked him on the shoulder. "Oh stop," she said with a giggle.

"I'm serious. I want you to meet my family. I want you to see where I live." And where you will one day live, he thought to himself.

Janette felt her stomach flip at the idea of meeting his family. What would they think of her? Quite frankly, the idea scared the hell out of her. She took a deep breath and tried to swallow her fear. "Okay."

Mitch could sense Janette's apprehension and tried to reassure her. "It's okay. You will like them, and I know for a fact that they will like you." He kissed her lips and hugged her close, inhaling her scent deeply.

Janette shook her head and walked over to the sofa to grab her purse and cell phone from the coffee table. She could see through the window that it was drizzling outside, and slipped on a jacket from the coat rack by the door. She sucked in a deep breath. "Okay, let's go. You ready?"

Mitch smiled down at Janette and took her hand, opening the door and leading her out into the hallway. Once they reached the jeep, Mitch opened the door for Janette and helped her climb in. She didn't need help, of course, but the gesture was nice.

"And here I thought chivalry was dead. Well, what do ya know?" she said with a smile. He leaned in to help her with her seat belt when she stopped him. "I can do it. I am a grown woman, you know."

"I know you are." Mitch leaned in and placed a lingering kiss on Janette's lips before going around the jeep and getting in. He turned the key and headed down the main road.

"Where exactly do you live anyway?"

"You'll see." Mitch winked at her. "I think you're going to like it quite a bit." He found himself rather eager to get her home with him and show her around the property. There were so many things he thought she would like. There were the gardens, the greenhouse, not to mention the main house itself. Now that she knew what he was, he didn't have to worry about her stumbling across something that she wasn't ready for. He turned onto the ramp leading to the freeway and put his foot on the accelerator. It was starting to rain heavily so he made it a point to slow down, not quite reaching the speed limit.

"So what kind of house do you live in, anyway?" Janette asked, trying to talk herself out of being nervous.

"Patience isn't one of your better virtues, is it?" he said, laughing at her. "It's a rather large house. It's an old mansion that I bought years ago and refurbished. I could describe it to you but I would much rather show it to you in person." He kept his eyes on the wet road, passed a small blue Ford Escort and found himself stuck behind a lumber truck, loaded full of long, fresh cut logs. The logs stuck out at least two feet past the end of the bed and there was an orange flag hanging off of one. Mitch was going to pass the truck but couldn't find an opportunity to slip into the passing lane. The traffic was unusually heavy for some reason. "Dammit," he cursed to himself. "Anyway, I think you will especially enjoy the gardens. Or at least I hope you do. We have some of the best gardeners in my pack. They are always out there working and keeping it looking nice. It's quite breathtaking in the spring and summer." Mitch looked over at her. "You are absolutely stunning, do you know that?"

"Not as stunning as you," she said, smiling at him. Janette sighed and leaned her head back against the headrest. She closed her eyes for a moment trying to relax. She gasped when she felt a tingling pull at her chest. Her eyes shot open and she half expected to see the fuzzy tunnel again but it wasn't there. Everything was normal.

Mitch glanced over at Janette once more, unable to keep his eyes off of her sweet face. "My father is definitely going to love you. He's been wanting me to find..."

"MITCH LOOK OUT!!" Janette screamed. She squeezed her eyes shut, slammed one hand against the window and the other against the dashboard when she saw one of the straps securing the logs give way. The thing rolled off of the bed of the truck in front of them and was heading straight at their jeep.

Mitch looked up in time to see what was happening and he jerked the wheel to the right, trying to avoid the flying log. The jeep hydroplaned and began spinning out of control before it finally rolled. He didn't know what to do so he just held on.

Janette felt the jeep rolling over and over again. She opened her eyes and screamed when she found herself in an older model car and her parents were in the front seat. The car was rolling and she was getting dizzy. She didn't know how many times the car rolled but she had hit her head at some point. She squeezed her eyes shut once more and began crying but the sound that came from her was that of a small child.

Everything stopped. All was quiet.

Janette opened her eyes, gasping, unable to get enough air into her lungs. She was trapped by her seat belt, upside down in the jeep. It took her a minute to shake the fog from her head and realize what had happened. She had a huge gash on her cheek and she felt a rush of something warm and wet oozing down her face. She reached up with one hand and touched the wet stuff only to find it was blood. She was bleeding all over. The windows were shattered and some of the glass had sliced into her arm. One jagged piece was still protruding from her right bicep. There were numerous other cars surrounding them, some of them right side up and some upside down. She could hear a baby crying but she didn't know where it was coming from. She was panting frantically, almost to the point of hyperventilating.

"Mitch., she whispered. She looked around and found him sprawled out on the roof of the jeep. He hadn't been wearing his seat belt and he lay there with his head at an odd, sickening angle. She couldn't contain the shrill scream that escaped her when she realized that he was dead. She put both hands to the sides of her head as if to cover her ears from the cries that she heard surrounding her. Those deafening cries. She found herself in a state of pure panic when suddenly there was an explosion up ahead on the highway. She squeezed her eyes shut, her hands still pressed firmly to her ears. "Please God, please God, please God..."

*

"Janette!" Mitch pried her hands from her head. He wasn't sure what was happening but she was scaring the shit out of him. He had been driving, talking to her, and next thing he knew she was pressing her hands to her ears and crying. "Janette, sweetie, look at me. Come on, open your eyes. Look at me."

Janette slowly opened her eyes to find Mitch standing there. He had pulled the jeep to the side of the highway and was now standing outside the open passenger door in the rain, holding her wrists in his hands. "I saw it," she said, her bottom lip trembling. "I saw everything."

"What? What did you see?" Mitch looked at her, confused.

"There was an accident, a horrible accident. You were...were dead," Janette sobbed. " Your neck was broken. It was that log truck we were following. One of the logs fell off and caused the accident. There was an explosion..."

"No Janette. Calm down. There's no accident or explosion." He took her face in his hands and looked deep into her tear reddened eyes. "I'm not dead, I'm right here. I will never leave you, do you understand?"

Mitch wrapped his arms around her and held her tight while she sobbed uncontrollably. She was shaking violently when suddenly he heard a loud explosion from down the highway. It was so loud that he could feel the ground vibrate under his feet. Janette tried to turn and see what had happened but Mitch stopped her, pressed her head against his chest, holding her even tighter. He stared in disbelief at the billowing black smoke rising into the sky. "Don't look, baby. Just don't look. Stay with me, okay?"

She began to cry even harder. He didn't know how to console her, he just knew that she was traumatized and he didn't want her to see what had happened. What had almost happened to them. The realization that they were almost involved in the accident hit him and he found it difficult to breath. He turned her face up to his in the rain and brushed the wet strands of hair aside. "We are okay. I won't let anything happen to you."

He kissed her forehead and helped her back into the jeep. She was reluctant to get in but he had to get her out of the cold rain. Mitch knew what they needed to do. He shut her door once she was safely inside and took out his phone. With one shaking hand he dialed Rose and Marion's number to inform them that they were on their way to the cottage. Mitch introducing his mate to his family would just have to wait.