Realm of the Rogues

Chapter XVII

I look all around me, trying to see where the guy went, but to no avail. Kai and I make eye contact, both of us looking equally bewildered. 

"Do you know him?" Kai asks me, but I just shake my head. Do I? No, I'm sure I don't. But something about his voice seemed familiar... Kai proceeds to look at Hera, who shakes her head as well. She makes a great yawn, exposing all of her teeth. I get why that old lady might have been scared of her. Compared to that little rat-dog, Hera looks terrifying. Kai and I instantly yawn as we see Hera do it. Weird how we do that, but it reminds me, that we should probably find a place to sleep.

"Should we maybe break into a house or something? I really want to sleep in a warm bed tonight. I can feel my entire body ache from that long hike earlier today," I suggest to them. Kai giggles.

"You do realize that it says 'motel' right over there?" Kai points to a building only a few houses down. I laugh nervously and hit my hand on my forehead.

"Yeah, I knew that", I mumble, trying to hide my embarrassment. Kai just pushes me playfully on the shoulder. By the way, how does he know so much about humans and what their different buildings are, and what animal companions they have? He must have been a rogue for a while to know so much, that normal werewolves don't. That also makes me wonder what made him a rogue in the first place. I might ask later - first sleep.

"Come on, let's see if they have some available beds." Kai begins walking towards the motel, and Hera and I follow him like loyal servants. I feel like he has a habit of getting the last word, and that doesn't sit right with me.

We walk into the foyer of the motel. It is nothing fancy, but it doesn't look rodent-infested either, and it's a definite upgrade from sleeping in the woods. I walk up to the counter, and a young dude looks up from his phone. He quickly spots Hera and furiously rips his earbuds out.

"Wha... what is that... WOLF doing in here?!" He almost screams with his voice breaking multiple times. I can't contain my laughter and have to step back while covering my mouth with my hand and turning away from the boy. Hera snorts as well, and although Kai seems very amused, he manages to keep his composure and go up to the counter instead of me.

"It's a wolf breed," Kai begins. "Don't worry, she is tame," he adds, as the guy doesn't seem less frightened at the first remark. He appears to realize how foolish he looks, as he quickly clears his throat and stands up straight again.

"Yeah, I, uh, I knew that", he says with little conveying. I snort but try to hide it with a cough, as the boy looks at me with mean eyes.

"I'm sorry, but we're just wondering if we could get a room?" I say, trying to change the topic.

"... Yes..." he answers, clearly not ready to let this little incident go. 

"And we would like two separate beds," I add, glimpsing over at Kai because of the awkward feeling in the room. He just smiles, clearly amused by my uncomfortable look.

"No can do. We only have a queen-sized bed available. It's what you can get." The guy smirks. He is either lying to get revenge, or he is speaking the truth, but obviously enjoying making us sleep in the same bed when we don't want to. I sigh, not ready to deal with this shit. I decide to accept it.

"Alright. We'll take it." I hear Hera beginning to growl. Yeah, it's not like I want to cuddle up next to her mate either, but she'll just have to deal with it. The guy grabs a key from behind him. 

"You'll need to pay up-front, because, honestly, I don't trust you guys. You look sketchy." My jaw drops as I am flabbergasted by his weird remark. Excuse me? Poor customer service. 

"Uhm, can I speak to whoever is in charge?" I ask, rather annoyed. The guy just smirks and turns his head towards a door behind the counter.

"We have a Karen!" he yells. I look at him confused. That's not my name? Kai slams his hand down on the counter.

"Listen, we don't want any trouble, but there will be if you don't give us those damn keys." He smolders, clearly exhausted and this situation isn't directly boosting his energy. The guy just swallows a lump, and I can smell his nervousness, even without my wolf-enhanced smelling abilities. He slides the keys across the counter. Kai grabs them and begins walking down a hallway with the sign 'Rooms' above it. We follow him, and behind us, we hear the guy.

"Just pay tomorrow, alright?", his voice breaking yet again, but this time I'm not in the mood to laugh.

~~~~~~~~

"I need a shower," Kai exclaims as I throw myself on the bed, which I'm pretty sure is smaller than queen-size. I say 'hm' and close my eyes. I hear the bathroom door open, followed by the sound of feet on the tiles. And then the sound of claws on them as well. Omg, are they going to shower together? Nasty. I can't deal with all those hairs down the drain, and if Kai decides to shift as well, it's just going to be puke-worthy. I don't even want to think about what they are planning to do in there, but I'm pretty sure they have talked about it all the way from the lobby to here.

I turn over and put the pillow over my head as the shower turns on. Before long I drift off and dream about a mysterious man following us around. His presence intrigues me, and I don't know whether to feel scared or curious. He walks up to me, his face covered in a dark shadow, so I can't read his facial features. He opens his mouth as if he is going to say something to me. I lean in trying to listen.

"Wake up!" My eyes shoot open as Kai shakes my body. His hair is dripping wet and the streams of water are running down his chest. His left hand is on his back, holding up the towel he must have thrown around himself quickly.

"What?" I ask, still groggy but also startled. 

"A guy was standing at the foot of the bed. I heard something strange, and Hera said she smelt someone else in the room, so I hurried in here." I look over at the bathroom door and see Hera standing in there, shaking to get all of the water out of her fur. I gush, not wanting to think of those two showering together. I look back at Kai, who is still looking bewildered.

"Did you see who it was?" I ask him. 

"No, he jumped out of the window as soon as I opened the door." He pauses and locks his eyes with Hera. 

"She says that she had smelt that scent before, and she thinks it might be the same guy, as the one that made the officer turn back to his car." He looks less startled and more alert now, looking over at the window with dark eyes.

And that's when I remember the dream I just had. Who is he, what was he doing here, and did he just invade my mind?