Soul Mates

Either way, it was only a matter of time. Beth, my Mate, would be mine!

(Jim's View)

Things have been back to normal, mostly. I leave for work in the morning, Beth is usually up as well. I leave a half hour before she goes to have breakfast with her ladies or to a sales call or meeting. I usually help open the shop and get things warmed up, do a last minute check on our schedule and possibly place some phone calls for last minute reminders for people who were supposed to come in. You would not believe how often people forget to come in for an appointment that they themselves scheduled.

As for the "mostly" part about things going back to normal? Beth talks to me about it. It seems that talking about her feelings has freed her up a lot. That's not to say she never has before about other things. There are times I feel she could talk me to death about them! I listen anyway, because we are a team. But this, if there are any ladies reading this? Let me put some knowledge in your laps. I had a BIG...ummm...discussion with Beth about this, so listen up or the significant other in your life might have to have a similar "discussion" with you as well.

Don't be scared to tell us what's going on, actually...go ahead and feel scared if you must, but tell us ANYWAY! Let your partner/spouse know what's going on with you, if your having troubles. If you have doubts or fears or if you think you're going insane tell us! If you are afraid to hurt us, that's fine...tell us anyway. True, we may be hurt. But we will be hurt more if you don't talk to us. Maybe it's different for other people.

But for me, that's what I would want. Beth understands that now. She is her own woman, but I am her man! We go through life together. I may not like what she has to say, but by God she will tell me! Like last night. I didn't want to hear her say she had feelings for another man, I didn't like hearing any of it! But through listening and really hearing what she was saying...I was able to come to grips with it. Though if I ever saw the Frederick D'Angelo I would do a lot more than just walk away. I would...!

Wait a minute? Is that him...?

I had sat down out back to have lunch. Employee parking is behind the shop. There is a small pond fed by a creek back there and a good sized patch of grass on a small incline leading down to the pond. I saw a very nice Cadillac Escalade, for those of you don't know it's a useless SUV, that is very expensive to buy and very expensive to work on. Normally the people who own one, go to a Cadillac dealership to get serviced. We can do it, for less. Not me though, I generally work on larger truck engines. I had taken a couple of bites of my sandwich when I saw that asshole walk around the corner of the shop. He put his hand up to block the glare of the noon day sun and glanced around. I figured he was looking for me, and thought maybe I should roll back behind the edge of the little hill I was sitting on.

Decided against it!

If he was looking for me, he had found me! I had all sorts of things to say to him!

He saw me, and he seemed to stiffen, then walked forward in what could almost be called a "stalk." Conversations I'd had with Beth about werewolves came to mind as I watched him come closer. I took another bite of my sandwich and put my hand in my lunch box. He kept walking up to me and called out, "Hello Jim."

I nodded back while chewing. I thought about what to say next. Decided I could play off this next phrase as me just being a smart ass to him. Maybe I could make a Twilight pop culture reference and appear witty?

"Hello to you Mr. Werewolf!" I said after I swallowed a mouthful of ham sandwich.

He froze in place, his eyes widened and I saw them change from that startling bright blue to a golden amber! A small sound like a growl came out of the corner of his mouth which made me want to engage the old "Fight or Flight" reflex. Can you guess which one I chose this time?

I quickly pulled my hand out of my lunch box and pointed my air pistol at him. I saw his eyes flick down to the pistol just as I pulled the trigger several times.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

He gasped and dropped to his knees, clutching his leg. He groaned and looked up at me as I leveled it at his head.

"Hey Freddy...lets you and me have a little talk now huh?"

(Fred's View)

"Kill him! Kill HIM!" My wolf raged at me. It seemed to come at a distance and was growing fainter. I felt myself separating from that part of me as the wolf grew silent. I could still feel him, but it was as if he were muted on television screen. I moved my hands and saw the small pinpricks in my leg. They burned...badly, and I groaned as I sat down on the grass. Jim placed his hand inside of a box that I could smell food from. His face was white, and I watched him gulp once, then shake his head and a hard look came to his eyes.

"Son of a bitch...you really are one..." I squeezed my leg and slowly one of the pellets worked their way out and fell to the grass. I carefully picked it up then dropped it as a burning sensation spread on my finger tips.

"Silver?" I asked quietly. Jim nodded mutely. "Are you a Hunter?" I said just as quietly, my eyes fixed on his. I knew the answer. A real hunter would have disposed of me much differently than this!

"No man...never believed in...nope...." He said just as quietly. He blinked and then I saw his wrist muscles tighten and knew he was gripping that damn little pistol again.

"I don't want to kill you. But I got a few more shots ready for you in here, I am pretty sure one of them in your eye ball is not going to feel good. I made them out of silver I got from some old silver dollars my dad gave me when I was a boy. Pretty easy to make pellets for my air gun out of them when you know what your doing. I assume you came here to talk...well...talk!"

Another pellet was squeezed out of my leg and I let it fall in the grass. I could feel that barrier between my wolf and I fading as more silver left my body. Soon I would be able to tear this man to pieces and...what? Everyone here would be a witness? Someone could see and then, would my Mate come to me? Maybe one day but not...

"I don't have all day." Jim said suddenly. "I am just on my lunch break, and I got a Cummins to rebuild. Tell me what you want."

"I want my Mate!" I said harshly. Jim's eyes narrowed at me and I saw him start to draw his pistol again, pause and then his arm relaxed.

"Marriage doesn't mean much to you...werewolves then?" he asked, a slight hitch in his voice. I ignored the pain from the silver pellets and looked more closely at him.

"It means everything. It is a lifelong commitment, and that life is a long long time." I told him. He nodded and glanced away, then back at the shop.

"Sit down, or people are going to take notice. And quit moaning about your leg! I have been hurt worse than that when my Dad beat me for taking apples from our neighbor's orchard." He told me. I hobbled over and sat next to him, just out of reach for both him and I. He glanced at me again then asked. "Silver hurts you guys huh?"

"Yes..." I said through gritted teeth. He nodded. Then broke off part of his sandwich and set it next to us. I glanced down at it then back up at him.

"I read somewhere that eating helps you guys heal or something like that. It true?" I nodded and he indicated the food. "Well, dig in. You may be trying to seduce my wife but if the other crap I have read is true...you can't help yourself can you?"

I didn't say anything and picked up the half sandwich and wolfed it down. I was smelling him, the man underneath the scent of rust and oil and grease. Also seeing his posture I saw a man who was secure in himself and very troubled. It was obvious that he was troubled by me, but not by the fact I was different than him. That fact was made plain in how he handled himself. The last two pellets worked themselves out of my leg and my wolf jumped to the forefront of my mind, and I almost let it out to see if I could...

No, it would serve no purpose. I would kill him, probably very messily and it would be public.

He looked at me as he took a drink of his soda, his eyes running over my features and build, he smirked and said, "Well, even I can tell you're a good looking guy and I am straight. It's no wonder you can have the effect you do on women."

I shook my head, "No, I do, but I am generally not interested. You were right in your guess. When we find our Mates we can't help ourselves." I saw Jim's jaw muscles work for a moment. "Explain it to me." He said harshly.

And so I did. I told him how in our society, there will always be just one, one out there for us that our wolf will recognize. They are the missing piece of our soul that will make us whole. Without it, we are adrift, constantly searching for our Mate, be it a man or woman. We will wait centuries if need be to find them! His ears twitched at the word "centuries" and he looked back at me.

"So how old are you?" He asked quietly.

"282 years old. I was born in the year of our Lord, 1733 in Spain. Named after my great grandfather." I told him

"You have money then, I would guess?" He asked.

Ah! Here it is! I knew it was good to come and talk with him! Every human has a price. A werewolf would accept no price or relief of pain to give up his Mate for they are priceless! I had found the human's weak spot.

"I have a great deal of money and lands both in America and overseas. What would you wish then?" I said quietly, hiding my smile. He raised an eyebrow at me.

"I wish you never came into our lives...honestly. It's just, you could take care of her. You're not some poor schmuck who will be leeching off of her..." His voice trailed off as he stared out at the garage. He looked down at my hands, then slowly looked at his own fingers. I had come from the city on Pack business, and had gotten a manicure. It made me feel a little like a domesticated dog to have that done, but appearances were important. Jim had grease under his fingernails, and his fingerprints stuck out sharply against the dark back drop of ingrained motor fluids.

He stared down at the parking lot and was silent. He was obviously having some deep thoughts, and I let him. His responses were different than I thought. He didn't want money for his wife, his questions had been about my ability to be an effective Mate for her. My respect for this human went up a notch. Even if he had shot me with silver, it was to be expected of him to protect her. I found myself starting to like this human...Jim. He thought more like a Were than some wolves I know.

A few more minutes passed as he stared at the parking lot before he spoke again.

"The decision I make, it isn't...I mean it is, but I need...Damn it I hate you!" He grunted. I saw his arm tightening on the pistol in his lunchbox, I got ready to move, if need be. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. I saw his body go still as he closed his eyes. After a few moments he let the rest of the air out of his lungs and looked at me with a steady and calm expression.

"This is not a decision I can make for her, Beth my wife. This is February, on Valentines Day...the 14th. Come to our house, alone. You can state your case for her there. She will hear you out and make her decision when she has all the facts." His eyes narrowed.

"You will abide by what she decides, or you will deal with me. It won't be a little air gun next time that happens either...understand?" He said softly, though his eyes were anything but soft. I nodded my head in understanding.

"Good, now leave please...and Freddy? Don't come back here again." I told him I wouldn't and then walked back to my Escalade. I put the keys in the ignition and pulled out on to the road and started driving back home. The whole meeting had been surprising, shocking, infuriating...and left me feeling incredibly hopeful. I was going to be able to see my Mate! To see Beth and smell her and hear her voice! This was my chance to make my presence known and show her how much we needed each other. As I pulled out onto the road, I looked out of my driver's side window and saw Jim sitting on the little hill, his arms loose around his knees. With my keen eyesight, I could see tear tracks down the sides of his face. I felt bad for him, but then, he should know to step aside for True Love.

(Beth's View)

I was so angry I didn't know which way to turn or say or if I would scream or yell or...or...

So I settled for glaring at him!

"You didn't think to ask me? To call? To let me know he came by your work!?" I wasn't making sense, but I didn't think I had to right then. Werewolves are real and my husband shot one with a pellet gun, and I am supposed to be his Mate and now he is going to come to visit me to state his case for why he wants me to...to what? Bare his little werewolf children and we go off and do...what?

I slumped down onto the couch, I don't even remember standing up. Jim had come home and said he needed to shower and wanted to talk to me. He sat me down on the couch and sat across from me and took my hands in his. Then told me all that had happened between Fred and him today and I just about lost it!

Why did I just about lose it? Because I had been getting better! I had been pushing that jerk off out of my head and now, I thought for a second I could smell Frederick D'Angelo on my husband's clothes as he walked past me to take a shower. I had pushed him from my mind and then realized I actually HAD smelled him on Jim's clothes! I am just a normal woman and I do not have the nose of a bloodhound. But I had smelled his scent on Jim!

I guess it was fear of the unknown, what would happen if I decided to go with this Frederick? What...? No, don't think of that right now. Right now, Jim. Next...everything else.

I looked my husband, my best friend in the eyes, "Why would you do this to me? To us?" I asked. He swallowed and almost didn't meet my eyes, then his shoulder's firmed with resolve and he finally looked me straight on.

"Because we need to know, you and I need to know if this Soul Mate thing is real. I can't go the rest of my life with you wondering if someday Freddy is going to come back and take you away. He lives a long time sweetheart. If you are old and gray and so am I, we give the best parts of our lives to live together and then you leave me...?" He choked for a moment and then I saw his lips tighten.

"You need to know what he can offer you and make a decision. Just having his shadow over us, his presence in your head and heart...it's killing me Bright Eyes. I know you are doing your best, but it will slowly drive us apart. We talked, you opened up to me and we are dealing with it. I know all of that. But in the end I see your hesitation when I hold your hand every now and then. I feel you stiffen before you relax into a hug."

I squeezed his hands tighter in mine. I knew exactly what he was talking about, and deep down I knew he was right.

"So, I made this decision, should I have asked you first...yes. But sometimes a man has to be a little stupid. I also knew that once you thought about it, you would agree with me. If not, well...what's done is done. You need to face your fears as well Beth."

I nodded slowly. It made sense, all of it. I was still curious though, at how he had thought up this crazy plan. He just shrugged.

"I was sitting next to asshole and was staring off at the cars in the parking lot, at my Frankenstang. Remember how I got her? I was fourteen and wanted a car for when I got my driver's license. Dad's garage was full and so he set up a lean-to beside it and he found that rusted out '65 mustang. Told me to fix it up and use what I could find in the garage to do it. He got me that complete parts manual and I started rebuilding that car on a budget."

I saw Jim look out the front window at his car parked outside, his face breaking into a grin. "Dad always was trying to teach me to think, to use what I had. Since this was my first car and he figured I would wreck it in a year or so, didn't matter if the parts were stock or not. Found an engine for cheap, Inline six-cylinder for a 280z. Got a drive train from a Mazda pick up trick. Heck, there are more Toyota and Nissan parts on that thing than Ford!" He laughed at the memories, and I remembered helping him reupholster the inside of that car when we were 18.

"Dad must have taught me the lesson to make do with what I have well." Jim said softly, his fingers gently stroking over my knuckles. "I thought about scrapping my Frankenstang over the years, getting a real car. But every morning she starts, she takes me to work, gets groceries and took us on many dates. Shot a bunch of old paint on her for base coat, finished up with a ton of primer and a couple of layers of pearl white before we put on the clear coat. By then I knew that car inside and out, I knew what made her tick. I knew she was always a little sticky coming out of second into third so I usually skipped it for fourth gear."

He turned his head to look directly into my eyes, "I made do with what I have and I have a car that still runs great and has for 13 years. I am not going to replace her anytime soon. I plan to keep that car until the wheels fall off, and even then I will try to put them back on..."

I was starting to get where he was going with this story, and I blinked suddenly at the stinging tears working their way into my eyes.

"We are a team, partners...I need to know that you are staying with me because you love me. Not out of a sense of obligation, not because you made a promise to me in front of others. I need to know that you want me because of me. I don't want this decision influenced by me in any way so I will not be here when Freddy comes over. It's between you and him. You have to decide what is right for you."

His voice broke and he bowed his head, forehead touching my hands, "I love you so much, but I want what's best for you. I want you to have the best things in life, to travel...see the world and all it has to offer you. If that's with him and not me, take it. I will move on if need be." He raised his head and I could see he was on the verge of crying. He sniffed once, coughed and then looked at me with a dark grin.

"Course it would be great if when I move on, the next woman I meet isn't someone's Soul Mate!" I laughed at the terribly inappropriate joke. Inappropriate because as sad, and hurting as I was for my husband, I knew the truth. Deep down inside of me, a part of me was dancing for joy that Frederick was coming over to see me on Valentines Day.

Then a thought occurred to me. I looked at Jim and asked, "Do you have anymore of those silver dollars left?"

Chapter 5

The day had come, four days after Jim had told me to let Frederick come over and plead his case. I had gone target shooting the day before, using Jim's black powder revolver. It came easily and naturally to me, a lot like my Dad's old .22 magnum, but with a slight delay and a bigger recoil. I made sure it was loaded with the .44 cal silver bullets, with a spare cylinder at my belt ready for loading. That small part of me knew that Frederick would never harm so much as a hair on my head. I knew it as sure as I knew that the sun would be out at noon. However, the other side of me knew, that occasionally...eclipses happened!

Jim, over the last few days acted...normal. Which surprised me since I figured if this was a showdown between him and Frederick, he might try to do something special to sway my decision. I was going to ask him about it, but I realized that he wanted me to have normalcy. In our marriage we were just, normal. Oh every now and then we would go do something crazy and spontaneous!

But generally...?

We would each go to work, whoever got home first would get dinner started. Or the crock pot would be perking along with a roast that would be ready when we got home. Which made me think of the lasagna disaster with the foil and somehow we shorted the dang thing out and lost power to the house! Our evenings we would see what was on Netflix, or go bowling. Sometimes we would go out for a drive and see what the next towns had to offer. Others we would have dinner on top of the flat roof garage under the stars. One time Jim even took the theme music from that Disney movie Lady and the Tramp. I loved that song as a girl! He played it while serving spaghetti and meatballs to me on a little table with a couple of candles. We shared the same plate, and both fought over the meatballs playfully. Then it began to rain and we moved indoors!