The Porch Wolf

Leo Volkov’s POV

Present Day

After the excitement of the day and evening, Shark Bait was fading fast. Vicki begged me to shift back into Wolfy, but I had too much to explain to Liv. If I couldn’t convince her that I needed to be in their lives, that they all were in danger, I could lose her.

The evening had gone fairly well; I had explained to them what werewolves were, how we lived, and what Vicki would become. “Werewolf children normally shift before they can crawl; they will follow whatever form their mother is in. By the time they reach ten years of age, their wolf becomes more independent; they will shift on their own unless their Alpha commands them not to. There is always a risk with having juveniles out amongst humans, that they might shift if frightened, or respond with more aggression than another child would because of their wolf.”

“Like Vicki at day care,” she said. “She was getting in trouble for biting other children.”

“Yes. Since you are fully human, her wolf has grown without guidance. It will push forward, perhaps at an inopportune time. You can’t think of her wolf as being separate from her; they are together, and have been that way since birth. Her wolf will want to express herself, and she needs a safe place to do that. This is why we normally homeschool our children, or form private schools that are under Pack control. It is safer for them to remain among us until they learn to control their wolves, usually around high school age.”

“You would teach her?”

I nodded. “The first shift is painful, but after that it is as simple as telling your body to change shapes. She is way behind the training any other pup would have by this point.”

“PUP!” Vicki raised tired eyes towards her mother. “I gonna be PUPPY.”

“That’s our secret,” I told her. “Only your mother and I can know about that,” I said. “If the wrong people find out, they might hurt you, or take you away from Mommy. I will teach you how, and keep you safe while you learn,” I promised.

“Okay.” She snuggled back into Liv’s arms, her eyes going closed again. As long as she got to be a puppy, she was going to be fine with everything else. She fell asleep shortly after.

Liv sat on the couch with Vicki’s head in her lap while I told her ‘the rest of the story.’ My younger brother was Vicki’s father, and by now he knew that she hadn’t aborted the child as he asked. I explained the Alpha Mantle, and what it meant for her to have it. “So she can grow up to run her own Pack, but it’s more likely someone would try to kill her so it can go back to your brother’s children with his mate,” she said.

“Yes. That’s the biggest danger; the other is that she isn’t part of a Pack. Her wolf scent clings to her now; you wouldn’t notice it walking by, but if a werewolf got close enough, they would pick up on it. As her wolf emerges, and after her first shift, you can’t hide that puppy anymore. Werewolves will know as soon as she walks into the room. Wolves are territorial, and as a ‘lone’ wolf in their territory, she would be taken from you. For her own good, of course. An untrained Alpha heir female is a valuable commodity in a world where many Packs do not have Alphas with that mantle.”

“What would they do to me?”

“At best, disable you while they take her. At worst, they would kill you because you might know about us and you’re human.”

She shook her head as she ran her fingers through Vicki’s hair. “I didn’t ask for any of this, you know. I was just a college kid who wanted to get laid.”

“And my brother should have known better than to have unprotected sex. He will be desperate to find and kill her, because only then can he bring the mantle back to his new Pack.” I shook my head at how screwed up this all was. “Vicki is my niece, and my wolf already claimed her as his. He and I will gladly train her, and we would die to protect her. For the first time in years, I’m waking up with a reason to get through the day. I have to live and be strong to protect her.”

“Making it to Prime Rib Tuesday wasn’t doing it,” she teased. “You were always nice to me, but I could see your fading. I’m glad you’re better now.” She got a text, looking at her phone she noted the time. “Grandma is wondering where we are, and I have to work the next four nights. Can you take us home?”

“Of course,” I said. “May I pick her up?”

“Please, she’s getting so big now,” Liv said. I put her on my shoulder, and on the way out Liv grabbed her shoes and jacket. I was pleased they both left their snowmobile gear with mine in the garage, but I didn’t say anything.

Vicki didn’t stir as I put her in the booster seat, and we were on our way. “I know I’ve given you a lot to think about tonight,” I started.

“That’s an understatement. My head hasn’t spun like this since I found out I was pregnant.”

“I can only imagine. There are a few things I’d like to ask of you and Vicki.”

She looked back at her girl, then at me as I reached the road. “Like what?”

“For now, don’t tell your grandmother about the werewolf thing. It’s fine to say that you found out my younger brother is her father, and I’m her uncle. That might ease her worries about why I want to be around her, and you.”

“I could have told you his name, but you couldn’t tell for sure without me looking at a photo of him from back then,” she reasoned. “I can do that, but I can’t promise Vicki will keep a secret.”

“Your grandmother may not believe her, or you can tell her if you must. At some point, she will need to know the truth just as I’ve had to tell you.”

“What else?”

“As I said, the more her wolf pushes forward, the stronger her scent becomes and the more likely she is to shift. If you are taking her out in public, I would like to go with you. I can be there to scent for other wolves, and if they smell me with her, an Alpha wolf, they’ll leave us alone. You’re also not going to accidently wander over a Pack boundary and cause an incident.”

“She wants to do a lot, especially now,” Liv said.

“I don’t mind. Your family is always welcome in my home, because you are family. I’m retired, and I don’t mind having Shark Bait pull me around to look at stuff. I even have my own membership to SeaLife.”

“She loved that yesterday,” Liv said. “I practically had to drag her out of the tubes in the shark cove.”

“It’s all up to you, Liv. I would hope that you would become comfortable enough to let me watch her, maybe while you work. I need you around to help her as she learns about her wolf side.” We had reached Miesville and I’d turned west on Highway 61. I only had seven minutes until we got to her house to talk. “I’m sure she’ll be asking you tomorrow when we can go snowmobiling again, especially since we’re supposed to get a few inches overnight.”

“She will want to do it all,” Liv agreed. “I’m curious about a few things. You said Vicki is a werewolf because her father was, that one parent is enough. What about when she grows up? Will she have to mate a werewolf, or can she have a human life with human children?”

I tapped the steering wheel. “She could marry a human, but her children will be werewolves. You can look at is as a dominant trait, it will always come out. With her wolf, she’s more likely to be attracted to other werewolves, and them to her. An Alpha Mantle female with no Pack is desirable; she could start her own Pack, or strengthen another.” I paused for a second. “It’s our job to make sure she grows up and gets that choice.”

“That brings up the next question. Can you make me a werewolf too? If I need to do that to protect her, I will.”

“Can it be done? Yes, humans can be turned. It’s a prolonged, very painful change, and many do not make it. No one knows why some do and some don’t; it’s not always the best conditioned or the ones who want it the most. I think the Moon Goddess gifts a wolf to those she wants to have one, and the others die.” I looked over at her in the glow of the dash lights. “I don’t want to risk your life too. I can train you in self defense; we can get you a permit to carry a firearm, and I can teach you to shoot. I’ll help you learn to protect her, Liv.”

It was quiet as we drove the last mile, finally turning into her fourplex lot. I parked in the visitor’s spot. “Can you bring her in,” Liv asked.

“Of course.” I got her out and onto my shoulder, following Liv into their home.

“Sorry we were out so late, Grandma,” Liv said as she took off her boots.

“Oh, look at that girl, she’s tuckered out,” Natalie said as she came over. “Hand her over, I’ll take her to get ready for bed. Did you kids have fun?” I kissed Vicki’s forehead as I gave her over; she stirred and I told her good night.

“We really like snowmobiling,” Liv said. “Thank you, Leo, for a wonderful day. I’ll call you when I’m ready to talk more about it all.”

“Any time, day or night,” I said. I leaned down and gave her a quick hug. “It’s going to work out.”

“Goodnight, Leo.” I walked out and she closed and locked the door behind me.

Driving home, it was my head that was spinning. I was totally dependent on how much trust I could build up with Natalie and Liv in a short period of time. Being Vicki’s uncle helped explain my need to be in her life, but what if Liv couldn’t trust me because of my brother? Would she think I would help him save his mating and his Pack by turning her over?

The thought of being frozen out of her life now had my wolf ready to bust out. I made it home, parking and stripping in the garage before shifting and going outside. I ran hard through the dark night, the clouds covering the moon. I ended up on our spot, looking down at the Cannon River Valley in the darkness, my head on my paws.

If I was to protect her, I needed to be ready.

I had to be strong, fast and deadly again.

No more boozing it up.

Eat right, and get my life on a regular schedule.

Work out every day, in both forms.

Improve the security of my house and land, and see what I could do for Liv’s place.

Most of all, I needed to step up and be an Alpha again.

I trotted back home, shifting and going back inside. I showered and got ready for bed, thinking over how I could make this work. For a Pack to be recognized, you needed an Alpha and at least four other members. If I got the word out that I was back, I knew some would seek me out to join me, banishment or not.

As I laid down to sleep, I vowed to build a Pack that Vicki would be proud to take over when she was of age. She would be my heir; the daughter my brother rejected, would be the daughter my mate and I prayed for.

I fell asleep with a smile on my face for the first time in years.