Fire and Ice

Tiberius nodded grimly, leaning back. I looked at André but he seemed as unsure as I was. Beside me, my dad was shaking his head.

“Looks like we need to go on a field trip,” he said and I frowned at him.

“What do you mean?”

“We’re going to Camp Celestial,” he mumbled.

“But it’s been closed for nearly 10 years!”

“I know but I feel like we need to go there.” He looked at Tiberius. “Would you agree?”

“Yes, I would,” he sighed. “Specifically, your old cabin.”

I bit my lip and stood up. My dad had told me that someone had tried to kill him by drawing a death rune under his bed. They were never able to get rid of it so they closed off the whole cabin. I wondered if they’d be able to get in still.

“Am I coming?” I asked.

“We all are,” Tiberius said. “You in particular, White Wolf.”

“Could you call me Delia, please?” I asked. “That White Wolf makes me uncomfortable.”

“If that is what you wish,” he nodded.

“Okay,” I breathed and led the way out of my dad’s office.

“Pack for three days,” he told me.

He went down the hall to tell my mom and I sighed, packing some clothes. I was overwhelmed by everything.

“Can I come in?”

I smiled at André and nodded. He closed the door then wrapped his arms around me. I put my head on his chest and took a few deep breaths. My wolf curled in content. My mom had once told me that, when with their mates, the wolves always found peace.

“It’ll be okay,” he murmured in my ear. “Tiberius… I mean, my father will keep us safe.”

“I feel like something important will happen there,” I said. “I’m not quite sure what, but my wolf is also anxious about it.”

He stepped out of the hug and ran his thumb over my cheek.

“It’ll be okay,” he repeated. “I’ll be with both of you.”

I smiled and brushed my nose against his. He put his hand on my cheek and exhaled slowly on my lips as if he were giving me his breath. Then he kissed down to where he marked me. His lips lingered on the spot. In unison, we sighed in content.

“I love you,” he whispered and my heart skipped a beat.

“You do?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t look at me and I nuzzled his neck.

“And I’m falling in love with you,” I admitted.

His arms tightened around me. We stood for a while, just holding each other, until someone knocked on the door. I cleared my throat and he picked up my duffle bag for me. I opened the door to see my mom standing there, looking stressed.

“Are you ready?” she asked and I nodded, hugging her.

“Are you that scared?” I asked.

“I’m not scared,” she said, hugging me back. “It just has… unpleasant memories.”

My mom didn’t go back to Camp Celestial after her summer with my dad. Even though the danger had passed, she had me to raise. I had a feeling she wouldn’t have gone back even if she hadn’t gotten pregnant.

We all walked out to the limo that waited. My dad was already in, a folder in his lap. Tiberius helped my mom in and then me. André sat beside me, holding my left hand, while my dad passed me the folder. Tiberius sat on my other side. When the door closed, the limo pulled out of the driveway.

“How long is the trip?” André asked as I opened the folder.

“Three hours,” he answered.

I gasped. Inside the folder were multiple pictures. Many of them were of a rune sketched in white chalk on wood. The others were of the camp itself after Pierre’s attack. I shuddered at the graphic pictures and Tiberius put a comforting hand on my shoulder.

“Why are the pictures of Pierre in here?” I asked, feeling sick.

“Everything I have about the camp is in there,” my dad said.

I looked behind the pictures. There were a few pieces of paper. One had Jamie, Kelly, my dad’s name, and a girl named Opal on there. It had their races and ages. On another was a long list of people’s names.

“What is all this?” I asked.

“Information about cabin 64,” my mom said darkly. “The roommates and the people that had been in and out of the cabin when the first death rune was drawn.”

“First?” André repeated.

My mom sighed heavily. “When we found the first one, Logan and I had been at a lake party. My clothes and belongings had been trashed and Kelly was looking under the bed. She found the rune. During our honeymoon, I started to wonder if maybe the rune wasn’t meant for me. We went back to 64. Another was drawn under your dad’s bed.”

“So the person got the wrong bed the first time?”

She nodded. “We found out it was one of the wolves he was going to choose as his beta. If he had been successful the first time, then it would have sparked a war between all the races and the humans.”

“Where did Pierre sleep?” I asked slowly.

“We’ll go over that when we get there,” my dad said. “For now, let’s just rest a little. I doubt we’ll be sleeping much while we’re there.”

“Just as long as we don’t sleep in cabin 64,” my mom said.

“No, sweetheart, we won’t.”

I yawned and leaned into André. He put his arm around me and I snuggled closer. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Tiberius smile a little as he looked out the window. I assumed seeing his son happy was the best thing Tiberius could experience right now.

I dozed off but woke up when the limo slowly pulled to a stop. André got out beside me and helped me out. I looked around.

I hadn’t been to Camp Celestial, not even to visit. Despite everything that had happened, it was a beautiful piece of land.

There were six cabins, two large buildings, a basketball court, a baseball diamond, and a huge lake. I looked over at my parents. They were at the basketball court, small smiles on their faces.

“This is where your mom beat Orvil at the game,” he told me.

She wrinkled her nose. “Then tossed me on the court.”

He shook his head. “I was so close to killing that bastard.”

“Shall we begin?” Tiberius asked me and I nodded, gripping the folder to my chest.

“Will the cabin still let you in?” I asked my dad and he nodded.

“It should. Once your DNA is in there, it doesn’t leave.”

He went to a cabin that had a 6 over the door. It was worn from the weather, though, and looked ready to fall off. A keypad was by the door and he brushed dust off of it. He typed in 6414 and a second panel opened next to it. He put his hand on it then we heard a clunk. He took a deep breath and pushed the door open.

“It all looks the same,” my mom whispered, walking in.

There were eight beds, four on each side. It had a bookshelf with books that looked like they were about to fall apart. Two doors led to two bathrooms.

“Remember when Opal walked in on me coming out of the shower?” my dad asked and my mom curled her lip.

“Bitch,” she grumbled and he laughed.

The happy nostalgia passed, though, the minute he got to their beds. With the help of André and Tiberius, they moved them. I gasped.

They looked just like the pictures in the folder.

“Don’t,” André said when I reached out to touch it. “It makes my skin crawl.”

Tiberius nodded. “Those runes can kill even a supernatural. Do not touch them; any of you.”

I walked around them curiously. “It doesn’t make any sense,” I mumbled.

“Doesn’t it?” my dad asked. “Peter didn’t want me to be the alpha so he drew these runes to kill me. He got the wrong bed the first time.”

“Yeah but why wouldn’t it wash off?”

“It is a powerful curse,” Tiberius told me.

I turned to him. “Then why are we in here?”

He smiled. “You will make a wonderful Pack Mother.” I blushed in pride. “Why do you think we are in here?”

I bit my lip and got on my knees by the runes. I studied them for a while.

“Because… because whoever drew these were responsible for Pierre’s bloodlust,” I said.

“Impossible,” my dad said, frowning. “Peter was executed two days after we got home.”

“Where did Pierre stay?” I asked.

My dad sighed. “Follow me.”