Song of The Moon Artemis Lupine

  Praise For Song of The Moon:

  “I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a howling good werewolf tale.”

  –Written Word Review

  “Weaving a mysterious tale that's filled with werewolves, vampires and fae, Banks has written a great foundation within the Young Adult genre.”

  –A Life Bound By Books

  “With it's intense yet tender story, Song of the Moon drew me in. A must read for fans of the paranormal.”

  –Book Crazy

  “Part love story, part coming of age, and all werewolf hotness. If you enjoy ANYTHING that involves the werewolf then you're missing out if you haven't already read this. Go now. You'll fall in love with Artemis too.”

  –Cry Havoc! Reviews

  ~~~~

  Song of The Moon

  (Artemis Lupine #1)

  Catherine Banks

  Smashwords Edition

  Copyright 2010 Catherine Banks

  This book is also available in print.

  Smashwords Edition License Notes:

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  ~~~~

  ARTEMIS LUPINE SERIES

  1. Song of The Moon

  2. Kiss of A Star (2011)

  ~~~~

  Chapter One

  Today is our third day away from home. Darren, my father, decided that we needed a vacation from our small town life by getting away from the drama around us. I don’t know what drama he was talking about, but it was nice to get away. Darren sang along quietly to the song on the radio as we drove towards our third destination: South Lake Tahoe.

  The first day, well technically night, had been Las Vegas with bright lights and non-stop gambling. I’m not actually twenty-one, but somehow Darren got fake ID’s that allowed both Bret, my best friend, and me to gamble and drink. Vegas had been fun, but the men were very abrasive, throwing offers at me like I was a street walker. Darren had, of course, protected me, but Bret was the one to make them back off. Bret is my best friend of thirteen years and is the star quarterback of our high school football team. He just accepted a full ride scholarship to Notre Dame for the upcoming semester. It is the main reason he had come with us, so that we could have one last trip together before he left California for Indiana.

  Our second day was spent in Reno, which is a smaller version of Vegas minus the bright lighted streets. We went to a rodeo, much to Darren’s dismay, and then gambled more of Darren’s savings away.

  That was yesterday though. Tonight we get to enjoy Tahoe. Bret silently stared out the back passenger window of Darren’s Nimbus Grey Metallic, VTEC Honda Ridgeline. The townspeople made fun of Darren for buying an import truck, but I loved it. What’s more reliable than a Honda? I drive a small blue Honda Del Sol. Bret hates my car telling me, “It’s a death trap waiting to happen.” I ignore his domestic car loving mentality and enjoy driving the small car with my targa top off every summer.

  I felt my eyes starting to droop and then Darren cleared his throat. “Welcome to South Lake Tahoe.”

  I turned to the left and stared out at the perfect blue water. “Wow! It’s beautiful,” I said. The mountains which lined the lake still held on to a thin layer of snow making the scene twice as lovely.

  Bret sat up straight and asked, “Do we get to go swimming?”

  Darren laughed. “Of course! I would never bring you to Tahoe and not let you enjoy the lake. That’s like taking you to San Diego and making you stay away from the beach.”

  I started bouncing up and down on the seat excitedly. “I can’t wait to jump into that lake!”

  “You won’t be jumping in. You’ll be flying in,” Bret said as he laughed.

  I scoffed. “Like you could catch me!” I knew he could catch me easily, but it was fun to roughhouse with him. We spent a lot of time wrestling and goofing around. He easily out muscled me, but that’s to be expected since I’m a small girl and he’s a football player. It just makes me feel better to play tough sometimes.

  Darren laughed quietly. “Now children, remember we are supposed to be acting like adults.”

  Bret shrugged. “You said we only had to act in our early twenties and I guarantee any guy in his early twenties would try to throw Artemis in the lake.”

  I rolled my eyes. Boys are so weird.

  Darren sighed. “I don’t think you two will ever grow up.”

  Bret and I shrugged in unison and then laughed together.

  Darren finally stopped in front of a large hotel. “This is my favorite hotel, so no screwing things up. You can use an underground tunnel to go from this hotel to the one across the street.”

  “Awesome!” I said

  “That means there are twice as many restaurants for us to eat at,” Bret said with a smile on his face.

  Darren and I groaned at Bret. “You always think about food,” I complained.

  “Come on! It’s been like four hours since lunch. I know you are hungry too,” Bret said.

  I started to deny his statement, but my stomach growled loudly giving me away. I sighed. “Guess I can’t deny it now.” I looked down at my stomach and whispered, “Traitor.”

  Darren shook his head smiling. “Come on. Let’s get checked in and put our bags away and then we’ll get some food.”

  Darren pulled into the valet parking line and handed the valet the truck keys. I stepped out of the truck, jogged to the back, and opened the compartment in the bed to get out my duffel bag of clothes. I hate those girls who pack five bags of crap for only being gone three days, so I make sure to pack as light as possible. I started to sling my bag over my shoulder when Bret took it from me. He slung it over his shoulder with his. I smiled at him and followed him and Darren into the hotel.

  Darren checked us in, and then we followed him to the elevators. No one was waiting so we got the elevator to ourselves. I breathed slowly trying to fight my paranoia of imagining the elevator reaching the highest floor then plummeting back to the first level, killing us. Bret put his arm around my shoulders and rubbed my arm to calm me. Darren rolled his eyes at me and pushed the button for the tenth floor.

  I groaned. “Tenth floor?”

  Darren shrugged. “At least it’s not the top floor. There are fourteen.”

  I snarled. “Four more isn’t that big of a difference.”

  Darren smiled sideways. “It is when you are falling to the ground. Four less floors may be the difference between death and being permanently paralyzed.”

  I started breathing faster and turned my face into Bret’s side. Bret shook his head. “Darren was that necessary?”

  Darren scoffed. “She is such a baby about heights. One day she’ll have to get over them.”

  I shook my head. “It’s not the heights, Dad, it’s the elevator. I would more than gladly take the stairs up. I just hate the thought of plummeting to my death in this tin can.”

  Bret rolled his eyes. “But you drive the Del Sol and feel safe. Isn’t that kind of backwards?”

  I shook my head. “Nope. Nikkou is very safe.” (Nikkou is the Japanese word for “sunshine” and my little car always makes me think of the sun.) Darren rolled his eyes as the elevator door opened. I ran out from under Bret’s arm and sat on the tile of the tenth floor. “Oh thank God, we made it.”

  Bret picked me up under the arms and set me on
my feet. “Come on scaredy cat. Let’s go.”

  Bret and I followed Darren as he wound the way down the hallways towards our rooms. Darren stopped next to two doors. “That one is your room and this one is mine.” He handed Bret a keycard and then walked into his room without another word to us.

  Bret turned to our door and opened it with the keycard. I walked in before he could and looked around the room. It was a large room with two queen sized beds and a gorgeous view of the mountains. I walked into the bathroom and giggled happily. A large jetted tub sat to the side waiting for me to get in. I turned on the bath and then walked out to the bedroom. Bret was flipping through the channels on the television and then he groaned. “All that is on is some breaking news story.”

  I shrugged. “Let’s watch it.”

  Darren burst in through the side door that connected our rooms and took the remote from Bret, turning off the television. “No TV! I told you that before we left!” His voice was raised, he was breathing heavily and his face was flushed.

  “Why are you so angry?” I asked.

  Bret shrugged. “It’s alright. Whatever you want, Darren. I was just curious what the breaking news story was.”

  Darren shook his head. “You aren’t allowed to watch TV. I told you we were getting you both away from the drama and watching TV won’t do that. Now dammit, enjoy yourselves without the TV!”

  I stared at my dad as he tried to play off his anger and become playful. I wasn’t buying it. “I’m taking a bath.” I grabbed my bag and walked into the bathroom. I could hear Darren and Bret talking quietly, but I focused on relaxing. I set my bag down in the area with mirrors, grabbed a towel and set it next to the tub as I climbed in. I settled into the hot water and turned on the jets. I love hot baths and any free time I had was spent in the tub. I let my body relax with the gentle humming of the jets. In a matter of minutes my mind began to wander and my subconscious took over.

  My breath steamed out in front of me as I ran through the thick forest. The other five people around me panted and sucked in air as we fled from our pursuers. The three wolves chasing us yipped in delight at hunting and fear made me trip on a tree root. I increased my speed, dodging around the trees as fast as I could. I knew I only had to run faster than the last three people. I increased my speed dodging in and out of the trees. I knew I couldn’t run my fastest or I would increase my chances of hitting one of the trees and ending up in the claws of those pursuing us. The sounds of the others grew fainter as I dodged around more trees. My shirt was plastered against my chest from sweat and the pressure of the wind. I heard movement beside me, but moved too late. A large animal slammed into my side, sending me flying sideways. I wrapped my arms around my head to protect it as I slammed into a tree and slid to the ground.

  The animal stood over me snarling and snapping its teeth, but made no move to hurt me. I moved one arm to my stomach and one to my throat to try to protect my most vital parts. I opened my eyes and gasped. A wolf the size of a horse stood over me snarling. I had never seen such a beautiful animal before. The wolf’s jet black fur reflected the moonlight as its muscles flexed. The wolf sat staring at me with its deep amber eyes. It seemed strange to me for so much hate to be emanating from such a beautiful creature. I reached out and stroked the soft furred neck and the wolf quieted. I slowed my breathing as I stroked the wolf. I looked down the wolf’s body and saw the male sheath and smiled. “Hello boy. Why don’t you change and let me see how beautiful you are in human form?”

  The wolf snarled and I pulled back my hands. The words seemed to come out even though I wasn’t sure of their meaning. “I only meant that you are so beautiful in wolf form that I have no doubt that you are gorgeous in your other form as well.” The wolf stepped back and stood up on its hind legs. I scooted backwards to get farther away from him and watched in amazement as the wolf’s body rippled like water and became human. The man before me smiled and walked forward. I couldn’t help but stare at his naked perfection, although I kept my gaze above his belly button so as not to offend him. “What’s your name?” I asked.

  The man smiled and held his hand out to me. He spoke with a voice like honey and said, “Ares.”

  The dream ended as quickly as it had started. I sat up and stared at the wall in front of me. I slowed my breathing as I focused on reality, and then sighed heavily. It was the same dream I had been having for the past week. I wished it wouldn’t end in the same spot every time. I wanted to know what happened next.

  Bret knocked on the bathroom door. “Are you alright, Artemis?”

  I inhaled one more big breath then called back, “Yes, I’m fine. Just fell asleep in the tub.” I climbed out of the now lukewarm water and dried off quickly.

  Bret sighed. “Well hurry, I’m starving.”

  My stomach growled in agreement and I groaned. “Alright. Sorry.” I threw on a pair of jeans and a low cut t-shirt then ran my brush through my shoulder length black hair before throwing it up into a ponytail. I pulled open the door and ran into Bret’s chest.

  He stumbled backwards and smiled at me. “Shit, you caught me off guard.”

  I smiled back. “Don’t lie. You know I’m just stronger than you.”

  Bret rolled his eyes. “Yes, you, a five foot two, hundred and ten pound girl, is stronger than me, a six-foot, hundred and eighty pound guy. Not likely.”

  I shrugged. “It’s okay that you don’t want to admit it. I know the truth.”

  Bret sighed and motioned towards the door. “Let’s go eat.” I hurried out the door to find Darren, who stood against the opposite wall waiting for us. He acknowledged us with a smile and then started walking down the hall towards the elevators. I tried to listen to the boys’ conversation, but all I could think about was the wolfman of my dream.

  Darren interrupted my thoughts by pushing me into the elevator. I frowned at him, but ignored his taunting. Could the man be real? I shook my head. Of course not. There aren’t men who can turn into wolves or vice versa. That’s all just fantasy. Wait… wouldn’t he be a werewolf then?

  Darren cleared his throat making me look up at him. “Are you alright?” he asked.

  I nodded my head. “Sorry. I fell asleep in the tub and I’m still trying to wake up.”

  Darren rolled his eyes and changed topics. “I was thinking we would go to a steak house.”

  I licked my lips hungrily. “Steak sounds great!”

  Darren frowned at me and Bret laughed. “I swear if we took red meat away from you, you would end up eating one of us just to get your fill.”

  I wrinkled my nose in disgust. “I don’t think you would taste too good.”

  Darren rubbed his temples. “Let’s not discuss eating each other.” He walked out of the elevator as soon as it opened and led us through the now crowded hotel. A line of at least thirty people was formed at the steak restaurant, but Darren walked up to the front and the hostess nodded her head as he spoke to her. She walked into the restaurant quickly. Bret and I walked up to Darren who stood, looking smug. The hostess came back and waved us in, smiling happily. Darren walked in and sat down at the largest booth. Two waiters came up and handed us menus and took our drink orders without even asking for ID.

  I turned to Darren. “Why are they treating you like royalty?”

  “The owner is a long time friend of mine,” he said. A short very muscular man with a three inch tall, bright green Mohawk walked over to our table. He had on a nice, very expensive looking suit that fit every curve of his body. Darren smiled wider, but it seemed to almost look like a grimace. “Koda! I didn’t think you would be here! I thought you were still in Germany.”

  Koda smiled wide, flashing perfectly white teeth. I stared at his face and guessed him at about twenty-five, but that made no sense to me since Darren was close to forty. “We came back from Germany a few weeks ago. I’m sure you know why.”

  Darren frowned. “Yes, yes I do.” Darren’s sudden mood change made me stare at Koda longer. He was very hands
ome and looked very strong. Darren shook his head and smiled again. “Where are my manners? Koda I’d like you to meet my daughter, Artemis and her friend Bret.”

  Koda turned his attention to me and stared at me in shock. His bright blue eyes pierced through me as he stared into my own. He slowly reached his hand out towards me and I took it shaking hands like Darren had taught me. His skin was extremely warm and I felt a small tingle rush up my arm and to my head. Koda smiled and shook my hand back with an equally firm, yet gentle shake. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Artemis. I have heard so much about you.”

  I frowned. “Unfortunately, I cannot say the same. But it is nice to finally meet one of dad’s friends.”

  Koda dropped my hand abruptly, making the tingling disappear, and turned to Darren. “She hasn’t heard about me?”

  Darren swallowed hard and started to look nervous. “I have not told her of my past life.”

  Koda’s lip twitched in a snarl. “That is very interesting indeed.” Koda turned to me, smiling again. “If you want some time away from your father and friend please feel free to find me. I am always around this restaurant and, if not, my staff can reach me at any time, day or night.” He took my hand again and kissed the back of it. “And I would be more than happy to show you around.”

  Bret stiffened beside me and I smiled nicely at Koda. “Thank you Mister…”

  Koda shook his head then winked at me. “Call me Koda.”

  I smiled wider. “Thank you, Koda, but we are only here for one night and I’m sure the boys have a lot planned.”

  Bret relaxed back against his seat and Darren let out the breath he had been holding. Koda shrugged. “As you wish, but the offer is open any day.”