Were in the City Ch. 08

Bloody (yup, literally) Hell! ... Jessie was shaking, angry and frightened by everything that had happened, everything that she'd been feeling, in the last few days. She was applying pressure to the wound on her arm to stop the bleeding. It was too deep, too wide, she wasn't going to be able to deal with it on her own. She could not believe she was going to have to go to the hospital again. She should call for an ambulance. It would serve those two upstairs right, give 'em a real kick in the ass to subject them to all that attention - but no matter how upset she was, she just couldn't be that careless of their safety.

She looked around and pulled a tie off a robe, wrapping it tightly around her wound a few times and then knotted it. That should hold it for a bit. She quickly dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, grabbed her purse and was about to go out to her car when Jacob knocked on her door, saying quietly but firmly "Jessie, I'm sorry. Please let me in. I know you are hurt. I want to help."

It was after 10pm. The neighbourhood was quiet. It was not the time to have one of those "through the door fights" that everyone overheard and gossiped about afterwards. Jessie still had a lot of adrenalin running through her system though. She yelled "Go away! Leave me alone! I don't want you or your help."

"Jessie, please, be reasonable! You are seriously hurt, the blood trail alone tells me this. You need help." Jacob was still trying to be quiet but his voice was rising.

"I can look after myself. Go away!"

Jacob's voice became stern and forceful. "Jessie, I'm coming in. You are not in your right mind right now."

Jessie felt a wave of panic. She did not want to be anywhere near Jacob. "Don't you dare come in here!" Her mind found a useful fact to use against him. "A landlord has to give at least 24 hours notice, in writing, before you can enter a tenant's suite."

"Really, Jessie? Do you think rules like that mean a damn thing to me?" Jacob replied, getting very frustrated.

"Fine. Then how about this ... I have a very big knife in my hand and if you come through that door, or any window, or kick through any wall, or slither in through the damn plumbing I will use it on you! Go away!!"

Jacob didn't reply. Jessie was trying to decide what to do. She needed to get to the hospital for help, and she was starting to feel the pain. If she went outside to her car, Jacob or Liam could get to her. She didn't trust them not to be waiting for her outside. She was stuck.

Liam's voice came through the door. "Jessie, will you please let me in? Jacob won't come anywhere near you, just me."

"No. Go away, both of you. I don't want to see you or talk with either of you. Go back upstairs and stay away from me. Tell me that you promise to do that, right now." The pain was definitely getting worse. If she didn't get in that car soon she'd be a danger to herself and others on the road.

Liam didn't reply. Jessie leaned against the door, wondering what to do. She heard the two of them talking softly from some distance away but couldn't make out what they were saying. Her excellent hearing suffered when she was tired or overly stressed.

Liam was back. "Jessie, do you have your phone? You are going to get a call in a minute, it's going to identify the caller as "Unknown number" but please pick it up, ok? It's a friend, someone you should talk to, please ...?"

Jessie didn't answer. What was this now? Some kind of trick? The phone in her purse started to ring. She let it go to voicemail, trying to decide what to do.

"Jessie, please pick up the phone. I swear to you, it's ok. It's a friend, a woman named Helen. You need to talk to her, please." She could hear the worry in his voice.

"Fine. Ok. I'll pick up. You go away!" Jessie really needed to sit down, her legs felt heavy. The adrenalin was wearing off. Where would she be safe? She decided she'd go into the bathroom, and walked there, picking up a knife from the kitchen as she went, just in case. The phone started to ring again as she closed the bathroom door.

"Hello? Who is this?"

A woman's voice answered. "Jessie, my name is Helen. I understand you've had a very difficult day today, yes?"

Jessie was in no mood for any patronizing babble. "What do you want? I'm not going to let either of those two crazy, horrible men anywhere near me, so you can tell them to go away too."

Helen laughed. It was a strangely warm and comforting sound to Jessie. "Honey, you may think that now, and from what Liam told me you have every reason to right now, but that feeling isn't going to last."

"Jessie, first I have to make sure you are ok. Are you sitting down? Is the wound on your arm still bleeding? Liam said it was bad."

Jessie was feeling more and more tired. She sat down on the floor, leaning against the bathtub and put the phone on speaker on the rim of the tub by her head. "I'm ok, I'm sitting on the floor ... but I want to go to the hospital to get it stitched up. I've wrapped it tight so it's not bleeding much anymore."

"Good. Now, Liam told me that you and he had sex, which you initiated. Then Jacob came home and reacted like a typical dominant horny wolf, and that you hit him and pitched him into a wall - which by the way I would have paid a great deal of money to see! That about sum up what happened tonight?"

"Yes ..." Jessie whispered, "but it all feels so much like it wasn't really me doing all that, like I wasn't in control of anything. What's wrong with me?"

"Oh honey, there's nothing wrong with you. You just don't know what's happening, that's all. Tell me, have you been feeling really hot and restless and like Liam's dick is the answer to all your prayers?"

Jessie blushed, "Yeah, pretty much. Only it isn't just Liam, its Jacob too, it's both of them. I can't stop thinking that they are so strong and fit and perfect. What the hell is going on?"

"You, my dear, are in heat. At 31 for heaven's sake, you get your first heat. You should have been going through this for years, don't ask me to explain why you haven't, I don't know why not. The bond you've got with those two, what happens when you touch, must be triggering things in you that have laid dormant all your life. Your heat has probably been building for weeks."

"Why would I be "in heat"? People don't have that, do they?" Jessie asked, puzzled.

Helen said softly, "No, honey, normal human females don't, although they can get horny when they are ovulating it's not the same thing. I'm pretty sure now that you are not a normal human female. You are something else, and I don't know what."

"Are you saying I'm like Jacob and Liam ... I'm some kind of wolf? I can't be, I've never turned into anything. My parents never said anything about something like that ..." Jessie sounded scared.

"All I'm saying right now is that you are not a simple human female. There is something else going on with you. And you are connected now to two long-time loners who really don't know what to do with you. They are going to do things you don't understand, they are going to mess things up a lot, they are going to make you crazy mad at them, over and over again I expect."

"Jacob wanted to hurt me, he was growling and snapping at me. He could have killed me!"

"Jessie, from the sound of things you were defying him. He's a dominant wolf, in our world that means he wants others to acknowledge this, to submit to it. He reacted as any dominant wolf would - in human form you are more vulnerable to that reaction, more likely to get hurt, so I'd be very careful what you do from now on. Acknowledging his rank in your group is important."

Jessie felt the anger swell up inside her again, as she had before. She hissed out "I am not HIS ... he is MINE ... they are MINE." She started yelling "MINE! MINE! You hear me ... you stay away from them ... they are MINE." She stood up, too quickly, and felt really dizzy. The phone got knocked into the tub as Jessie grabbed for the edge to steady herself. She wanted to tear at something, throw something - she looked around and started pulling down and ripping at the shower curtain in a rage.

"Jessie ... Jessie! ... Listen to me honey. I'm thousands of miles away from you, I'm just on the phone. I'm old enough to be your grandmother. I'm no threat ... calm down" Helen's voice sounded weird coming out of the tub, the phone covered in pieces of shower curtain.

Jessie sank back down to the floor, clutching at the remains of the curtain which seemed to be spattered with blood. She looked at her arm and saw the binding around her wound had come loose and she was bleeding a lot again. Crap! She tried to tighten it but it was soaked and slippery, it wasn't working much anymore. "I've got to go to the hospital now" she said and tried to get up but her legs felt too heavy and it was too much effort.

From far away, Jessie heard Helen say "Jacob, Liam, get in there now and for god's sake be gentle with her." Jessie thought about pushing them away when they came for her but it was too much effort - she chose to close her eyes and sleep instead.

***********************

Jessie woke to the heated whispers of her parents rehashing the same argument they'd been having for years.

"Cil, you have to loosen your grip on her. She's 21, she's going to grad school next year, she's a grownup. You have to let her live her own life now."

"She's not safe Sam, she'll never be safe. The world is a dangerous place, she's not strong enough."

"Jessie is strong enough Cil. She's a smart, confident, resilient person. I know she's not what you expected she'd be, but she's really just fine as she is. You've got to let her find her own way, make new friends, connect with the big wide world."

"Cil, I know you haven't wanted to tell her your history but she's old enough now. Share things with her, she'll understand. It will bring you closer again. It's been hard to see the distance between the two of you, I love you both so much."

"No Sam, its better if she doesn't know. She'll never do anything to bring attention to herself, no one will find her. Its better this way ... let it all just disappear forever."

Jessie faded back to sleep, her heart aching. Her mom was always afraid, always restless, never trusting anyone. What had happened to her to make her that way?

************************

Jessie woke to the sound of coyotes howling as another siren racing by on the highway. She opened her eyes to see Jacob looking at her from the chair in the corner of her bedroom.

"Why do they do that?" she croaked out, her mouth dry.

Jacob sighed. "It's partly the frequency ... its uncomfortable and annoying to sensitive ears so they are yelling "stop it!" ... and partly it sounds like some odd, mutant coyote so they are challenging the stranger."

He stood up and walked over to the bed, picking up a glass of juice on the side table. "Here, drink some of this."

Jessie managed to sit up, her right arm sore and bandaged from shoulder to elbow. She gulped down the whole thing. "Thanks. What time is it?"

"It's about 7pm. You've been out for a little over 20 hours. I called your work to tell them you were sick so that's covered, no need to worry."

Jessie gentle shrugged her shoulder. "Who fixed up my arm?"

"Liam has a very steady hand, he stitched it carefully ... luckily no major artery got sliced. The scar shouldn't be too bad."

Jessie sighed. "What's one more scar at this point anyway, it will just blend in with all the others."

Jacob sat on the bed beside her. "I'm sorry for what happened. We ... I ... will be a lot more careful from now on." He looked uncomfortable, saying "How are you ... ah ... "feeling"?"

Jessie looked more than a little annoyed. "You mean, am I "feeling" like I want to ravish you? Sorry to disappoint, but I'm just feeling tired and only my arm is throbbing, nothing else. Do you have to be here? I can manage just fine now, thanks."

Jacob looked hurt but Jessie didn't want to care. It was all too much and she didn't want to think about anything right now.

"Ok, I'll go. You lost a lot of blood, we gave you some IV fluids but you need to take it easy for a few days. If you need anything just call. Your phone is right here on the table. Jessie, Helen wants to talk with you, with all three of us, as soon as you are feeling better. I think that's a good idea."

"Fine. Just let me rest for a while more. I'll call when I feel up to it."

Jessie sat still for a while, just staring at the walls, wondering what to do now. She saw her phone and decided she needed to talk to someone. She selected call-return and heard it ring at least 8 times. Just as she was about to give up, it was answered. "Hello Jessie."

Jessie had to take a few breaths before she could reply. She felt like any second she'd start crying.

"I'm sorry Helen, I don't know if its ok to call you on my own, but I needed to talk to someone. I don't know what to do ..."

Helen said softly "Its ok honey, I understand. I'm sure this is all overwhelming for you. How are you feeling now?"

"My arm hurts and I have a headache, but I feel more in control of my temper ... and other things ... right now. Is it over?"

Helen explained, "You can be in heat for a week or more, it's a bit different for every woman and it can change over time. It can happen 3 or 4 times a year. You'll have to pay very close attention for overwhelming feelings of arousal from now on. If you don't want to act on your feelings with either Jacob or Liam, or any other male in the neighbourhood, then you should avoid them all until it fades enough and you are in control again."

"I don't know if I can face the two of them again. What must Liam think of me?!"

Helen laughed. "Honey, even though Liam and Jacob haven't been around anyone in heat for many years, they know what it is and what happens. It's natural for us. I'm not sure if Liam recognized what was happening to you right away but he knows now and he does understand. They both do. And believe me, my dear, Liam isn't complaining."

"Oh my god! This is so embarrassing!" Jessie exclaimed, then wondered out loud "Will I only want sex when I'm in heat?"

Helen laughed even harder. "Oh heavens no, heat just puts us into overdrive, sets us up to get pregnant. The rest of the time we still sexual beings and act as we wish, as we want."

Pregnant. Crap! Jessie cringed. She was not ready to have a child, certainly not ready to have one that turned into a coyote, and absolutely not ready to have one with someone she barely knew who was hiding from "very unpleasant people".

"Helen, how likely is it that I'll get pregnant from what happened with Liam? I'm not on the pill and we didn't ..."

Helen sighed. "The chances are probably low but not zero. Were females don't get pregnant often, but I can't say what the likelihood is for you. I suggest you get a home pregnancy test and check in about 2 weeks to be sure."

Jessie decided to ask something completely different, probably to distract herself from this new worry. "Helen, who are you? How do you know Jacob and Liam?"

"We have known each other a long time. You three need to get to know each other better, trust each other, help each other - so ask them to tell you their story. I'm a part of that story. For now, let me just say that we three are all unaligned - what the pack wolves call rogues. Jacob and Liam have never belonged to a pack, they've only had each other. I was once a pack wolf but now I am not.

Normally our kind needs to belong to a pack, we generally suffer and eventually die if we are alone, but some of us loners discovered that we could survive and thrive if we helped each other. We don't want the control of an Alpha leader and a pack bond, but we do need to belong to something, to be noticed and understood. There are also other kinds of shapeshifters who don't live in packs, who live alone much or all of the time. They do better with some contact too. In this modern age, we loners have ways to connect and communicate over long distances we never had in the past. I'm one of the points of contact for a loose association of rogues, wanderers and small groups of adults and/or children that keep in touch and help each other."

Jessie wasn't sure she should ask but needed to know ... "Helen, Jacob and Liam are hiding from what they called "very unpleasant people". How bad is their situation?"

Helen sighed. "You'll get the details when they tell you their story. It is serious Jessie. If they are found, they'll be killed, and it will be a slow and painful death. The ones that are hunting your two don't care about collateral damage as long as it doesn't lead back to them, so if you choose to stay with Jacob and Liam you could end up hurt or killed too. They know the danger having you with them puts you in, but the connection you all have means they can't leave you alone. There are layers of protection around them, and you now, but it will always be risky to be with them. I have to say this to you, though they'll be furious if they find out ... If you can walk away from them, then think seriously about doing it sooner rather than later."

"But enough now, I've got to get back to work. I want to talk with all three of you when you are feeling better. So rest, and we'll talk again soon".

Jessie thanked Helen for all her help, and her honesty, and hung up. She had a lot to think about.

It took Jessie 4 days before she thought she could face Jacob and Liam again. She called Jacob to set up an appointment with them and Helen, and went upstairs after eating dinner alone. She couldn't look Liam in the eyes. They all sat down in the living room, in separate chairs, and Jacob called Helen, putting her on speaker.

"Hi Helen, we are all here."

"Hi everyone. Jessie, I'd like to tell you what I know about your parents after doing some research and then I'd like to hear what you can add to what I know, ok?"

Jessie said ok, and Helen told them what she knew about her father: Samuel Taylor was a history professor and had lived in Canada his whole life, as had numerous past generations of his family. Helen felt he was a normal human, not Were, from all she could tell. "Jessie, is there anything you can think of that gives you any concern that your father was not exactly what he seemed to be?"

Jessie shook her head, "No. He talked about his family, his parents and grandparents all the time. He was really into history and would always talk about what his ancestors did and where. There are all sorts of family photos and documents about his family in the second bedroom in my suite, rescued from my family home. His family is an open book."

"Ok, so now on to your mother." Helen told her about what she knew of Cecile Taylor's life (nothing before her marriage to Samuel Taylor and very little after) and death (more than Jessie knew - she was shocked to learn of the details that made Helen suspect her mother was Were).

Helen then said "Jessie, please tell us whatever you can about your mother and her family. There may be things you know that will help us figure out who you are".

Jessie was silent for a minute, gathering her thoughts, and then started to talk ...

"My mom was always nervous and worried about everything. When I was young she was always with me, she never let me out of her sight. When I started going to school she'd take me there in the morning, bring me home at lunch, pick me up at the end of the day. I never went to anyone else's house and no one was invited to ours. My father told me that they didn't think they'd ever have children, so when I came along I was so precious my mom wanted to make sure everything was perfect for me, but she was obsessive. It caused all sorts of problems between us as I grew up and wanted more freedom.