The Siren and the Wolf

Bruce sat on the balcony again. Now, which one of those masked girls is her?” he asked himself.

“But why would she be here in secret and unannounced?” he thought as he rubbed his thumbs together. And why would she be here wearing a mask?” he asked himself again.

“No, it doesn’t make sense and now Lyle has gone to bed because he apparently wants to get up early in the morning. There’s no one to talk to,” Bruce told himself.

“Let me go for a late snack before I check the dancefloor again, even if it’s just to dance with anyone,” he told himself and got up from the bench.

He walked through the small private lounge and just before he headed into the hallway he heard some voices. Two people were in the hallway and somehow he could not help himself from stopping to listen to what they were saying before he headed down the hallway himself.

It sounded like two ladies, but one of the voices sounded familiar.

“Where did I hear that voice before?” he asked himself. He leaned in to listen further, but the voices grew faint and then faded away.

Bruce walked up and down the hallway searching for the ladies who were talking.

“It sounded just like her!” he told himself. “She’s right here in my home because that is her voice. Now, where is she and why didn’t I see her yet?” Bruce asked himself as he searched frantically.

He went back to the dance hall and looked up and down. There was no sign of anyone who could be her. It was not difficult to search because the group on the dance group had thinned out. There were no masked ladies on the dancefloor either.

“What now? That was her voice, so, where did she disappear to? Can she be gone out into the parking lot to leave?” Bruce muttered to himself.

He immediately left the dance hall and went out the main doors towards the parking area. There was no sign of anyone getting into a vehicle or driving off. The parking area was quiet and there were few visitors’ vehicles there.

“Well anyway, I don’t even know what kind of car she drives,” he told himself with a sigh. He then shrugged his shoulders and went through the hallway and straight to the dining hall.

“I will probably see her around if I must, whether she’s here or not tonight,” he told himself as he began to load some light meats onto his plate.

He then poured himself a glass of wine and walked back to the balcony with his tray of treats.

“A good thing that there’s no butler there right now or I would have felt self-conscious, as if anyone could see right through me and detect my disappointment,” Bruce thought to himself.

“Lyle didn’t even wait around long enough for me to tell him what I’ve found out from dancing with the two masked ladies,” Bruce thought to himself as he munched on his food.

The sense of disappointment gave him a sudden appetite. It was as if eating would ease the burden for finding the mysterious singer.

“Oh, so you’ve started on another round of snacks,” Bruce suddenly heard behind him. He turned around on the bench to see Lyle approach him through the small lounge. A sense of strong relief flowed through Bruce. He was not alone anymore. Here was someone that he could share his thoughts with.

“You’re back. I thought you’ve decided to call it a night,” Bruce commented.

“No, I received a call from back home in England,” Lyle responded.

“Oh? Is everything alright there?” Bruce asked as he continued to enjoy his snacks.

“Well, I hear there are a few disgruntled pack members who feel that they were senior enough to have been invited along on the trip,” Lyle responded.

“Oh, that’s strange. Someone must have stirred them up. Don’t they know that family had the first priority?” Bruce asked.

“We’ll find out soon enough,” Lyle answered in a cool tone of voice.

“Well, everything is over. We’ve had all the talks that we were supposed to have and we’ve planned how we were going to collaborate with pack members here in Canada, so there’s no need for anyone to still come over,” Bruce responded with a sigh. He was used to bickering amongst pack members when someone’s ego took a knock.

“We will just have to find a way to calm them down and ease their egos,” Lyle remarked.

“Yes, throw a party to celebrate our success here when you get back to England,” Bruce suggested. “Do it as soon as possible,” he added.

“That’s a good idea,” Lyle agreed. “I just wonder who put them up to this. We have to find out who wants to stir up trouble in the pack and why,” he added as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Just do your research discreetly,” Bruce advised.

“Oh, definitely. I won’t be very direct. But tell me, what did you find out about the singer? Is she one of the masked ladies with the dancer figures?” Lyle asked with raised brows.

“Oh, I think she’s here or was here briefly, because I clearly heard her voice just a while ago. But, I couldn’t find her when I followed the voice,” Bruce responded.

“Now I’m confused. You heard her voice, but didn’t see her? But you danced with both girls, so didn’t you hear her voice while you were dancing?” Lyle asked.

“Only one of them spoke while we danced,” Bruce responded.

“So, you mean to say that the other one remained silent throughout the dance?” Lyle asked in surprise.

“Yes, she made gestures only,” Bruce responded.

“But, did you ask any direct questions?” Lyle asked curiously as he sat down next to Bruce, eager to hear his response.

“Yes, I did, but she merely shrugged and made gestures,” Bruce replied.

“That’s weird and not so nice, if she’s the one with the voice. But, maybe she really didn’t want you to know that she was here,” Lyle commented as he shook his head in confusion.

“But why is that? I’m sure that I heard her talking to another girl out in the hallway, just as I was heading out there myself,” Bruce responded.

“And they disappeared so fast?” Lyle asked with a frown.

“Definitely. There was no sign of them in the hallway, the dance hall or the parking area,” Bruce replied.

“So, you really did search for her,” Lyle reflected.

“Well, if she didn’t leave quickly, which is very unlikely, then she must still be around in the mansion,” Lyle remarked.

“Unless of course…” he began, but stopped in mid-sentence.

“Unless what?” Bruce asked, his eyes popping large with curiosity.

“Unless you were so desperate for it to be her that you imagined hearing her voice?” Lyle responded in a lower tone of voice.

“No, I really heard her voice. That can only mean that she could be unusual,” Bruce responded with a deep look in his eyes.

“You mean that she and her friend could have powers to move at lightning speed?” Lyle asked with a frown.

“Yes,” Bruce responded thoughtfully.

“You mean, like wolves?” Lyle asked with his eyes slowly widening up.