Alpha's Human Mate

Mystery Man

I am starting to lose the faith that I have put in Cole. His little adventure is to a thrift shop in town. Cole walks into the store like it is a normal day; like he isn't covered in mud or has a now muddy girl on his back. The woman behind the counter does not find the situation amusing.

"What are you two doing walking in here filthy like that? Have you no sense?" Cole growls and she instantly looks away. Growls? What is he half animal? I snort at the thought causing Cole to look over his shoulder at me. He says nothing but sets me down. "Go find some clothes," he urges. "We will end this date in a clean outfit." Date? When did this become a date? I just sigh and head over to the Women's racks. There is no way I can argue with his logic one this one.

I am searching through the shorts rack trying to find a pair that fits, when I see movement out of the corner of my eye. On instinct I look up trying to find the source of the unease that I am feeling. Almost instantly I lock eyes with a figure. He is standing across the street wearing a hooded jacket. He is standing in just a way that I can't make out his face.

At first I panic. But then I see Cole standing over by the Men's rack searching for a new t-shirt. I lightly shake my head, attempting to lose the feeling of unease. Cole has done so much for me, I can't ruin this outing for him. There is no need to worry him. I shake any thoughts of the man away and walk to Cole clothes in hand.

"Ready?" He asks me when I approach him. I nod. Come on Dani, I coax myself, you can do this. Cole grabs my clothes and walks over to the cash register. "Is this all?" The women asks, eyeing me over. Cole nods before asking "How much?" The women moves her attention to him, "$27.67." Cole pulls his wallet out of his pocket and throws two twenties down on the counter. He then proceeds to grab my hand and the clothes and pull me out towards the door. "This is where the fun begins!" He smiles his goofy smile causing me to smile.

We walk down the street hand in hand for a while before Cole comes to a stop. "This is where Jorden and I went to high school about six years ago. Whenever we did something bad, we would sneak in here and clean up before returning home. That way Nona had no evidence to bust us." I raise an eyebrow at him. "Come on Dani don't give me that look. You know you want to sneak into the school. This is something every teenager must experience. How old are 17? You must sneak in." I look into his eyes. Is he really this passionate about sneaking into school? I glance behind him and notice the figure from before. I shake my head yes and pull Cole towards the door. At this point I'd do anything to get away from that man.

Cole smiles and guides me around back. "The janitors always leave this door unlocked in case they forget their key. Not many kids know about it. They try not to let that secret slip. Next thing you know everyone will be sneaking in." Like us? I write, a smirk clear on my face and one eyebrow raised. Cole scowls. "Live a little Dani." I shrug and just let him do his thing.

We are walking in the halls when Cole comes to a stop. "That's the girl's locker room. They're showers in there, and here's your clothes. If I remember correctly there should be a machine that will give you shampoo and stuff to buy, so here's a dollar. Have fun and meet me out here when you're done." Spend a lot of time in the girl's locker room? Cole blushes. "Just go." I couldn't stop it. I laugh. Cole never gets to see, fore by that point I am already behind the door.

As I am showering thoughts about the mystery man consume my mind. Who could be following me? Instantly I shudder. Could killing that man be coming back to haunt me? I turn the water to freezing cold, hoping the water will zap the surfacing thoughts away. The cold water worked, temporarily at least.

It was getting harder to not panic each time I saw the man. I ran into him again when leaving the school, on the walk back to town, and now when sitting in the local ice cream shop. This time I'm afraid I made it too obvious. Maybe I shouldn't have been peaking over Cole's shoulder every two minutes to see if he is still there. I mean eventually Cole is bound to turn around and see the man.

What do you know, that's exactly what happens.

"Dani what's wrong?" Cole asks for the millionth time since leaving the school. I look down then shrug. Cole sighs impatiently. "You know you can tell me anything, you know that right?" I nod, still refusing to meet his eyes. I guess my gaze continues to wander outside because I am brought out of my thoughts when Cole brings his fist down on the table. "You're obviously not fine!" He shouts. "What the hell have you been staring at for the past half hour?" He turns around and looks out the window. By this point we have gathered the attention of everyone in the ice cream parlor. I once again peek around Cole to see what he is seeing. To my complete and utter surprise the mysterious man is gone.

Cole turns back around to looks at me before shooting questions my way. "What did you see Dani?" "An animal, a group of people, perhaps a wolf? A single person?" My breathing hitches when he says the last one. Cole clenches his fist; my action has not gone un-noticed. "A person?" I slowly nod my head. Cole's eyes darken. "Come on we're leaving." I look up at him as he begins to stand up. "Now!" he shouts, completely unfazed that some of the people in the room are staring at him in utter horror. Do they think Cole will hurt me? To be honest I'm not sure if he will. Everything he has ever told me is directed towards, no he won't. But with my past, pain from men was and is all I know. Cole is starting to change that, but 10 years of living in fear I know my limits.

Nonetheless I put my trust in Cole and allow him to half guide me half drag me back towards the park to retrieve his truck. 

Question of the day: Who do you think the Mystery Man is?

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