We arrived at our destination. I had been looking at the scenery the whole way, and the men had been taking turns driving. Well, I could have done that, but I didn't have a license, and I wasn't sure about the American rules of the road. Adam opened the window, punched in at least an 8-digit code, and waited.
The gates opened. The driveway was paved, asphalted, and curved into the courtyard of a large building. The yard was well kept, and although it was winter, I could see that the shrubs and trees were in order, but there were few flower beds to be seen.
We drove down the long driveway to the front yard of a large house. There was a fountain in the front yard, and we pulled up in front of the fountain, and then Adam stopped the car. The fountain was empty because it was winter and it was cold in Chicago. I had a jacket in the car but I hadn't worn it in the car except when we went to eat or to the bathroom. I put the jacket on and got ready to get out of the car.
The house was plastered, light-colored, and had a big front porch with beautiful columns. On the porch was a large swing and a graceful metal table with four chairs at one end.
I imagined myself having my morning coffee there. The house was wide, and on either side of the entrance, the house stretched for almost ten meters. I walked behind the men to the door, looking at all the details, and somehow, this house felt like home. It felt safe. And I don't know if it was the men or what. It was just my sanctuary.
The house appeared to have at least three floors. Adam took the key from his pocket, looked at me, and said: "Welcome home."
He opened the door and stepped inside, holding the heavy door open for me.
When I walked through the door, I was in some kind of sub-lounge. Adam walked a few steps to the end and punched in some code. The house was super secure. In this lobby was a coat rack with coats hanging from it. We left our shoes and coats in the coat rack, and I climbed up three stairs at the other end of the lobby. Adam opened the door. There was carpet on these stairs, so it was almost like a movie theater or something.
He stepped into the hallway, glanced to see if I was coming, and Samuel followed me. I wasn't wearing socks because I don't like to wear socks, and the bare parquet felt warm under my feet as I stepped through the door, realizing I was in the middle of the hallway. Adam turned left, and I followed him down the hall.
There was dark brown wood, lighter panels adorned the walls about a meter high, and there were also small lamps on the walls at regular intervals, creating a warm glow in a corridor that might otherwise have been quite gloomy... White double doors at the end of the corridor, and Adam entered through them.
I followed him and controlled myself. Even though I didn't really like anything I saw in this room, I still had problems with these things.
The double doors led to some kind of medical room. There were a couple of patient beds and cupboards. There was even some equipment in the back of the room. Equipment that I didn't want near me. The drip rack brought back many terrible memories, and I retreated into the hallway.
Samuel entered the room and said: "Not bad, not bad at all. You really weren't lying, so not all our clinics are this well equipped."
Adam said: "Downstairs is an even larger infirmary with operating theatres."
Samuel nodded absentmindedly and rummaged through the cupboards. He studied the IV fluids and some medications. He looked at the analyzer for blood testing to see what it could test for.
Adam left the room, looked at me for a moment, and said: "This way, these are all bedrooms. Let's see if we can find you a room here."
He pointed out several rooms, as we now walked down the corridor in the other direction. He opened a few rooms. They were shades of grey and white. Guest rooms. They didn't resemble hotel rooms, but they were quite masculine. We passed the door we had come in through. After a short walk, Adam stopped and opened one door.
" This could be your bedroom, if you don't mind. I promised you a room, so if it's even that way."
The large, spacious room had a double bed and a fluffy pink duvet. There were bedside tables on either side of the bed, and what made the room special was that the bedside tables were different. At the foot of the bed was a bench with some kind of soft cover, bright pink, almost the color of a magenta.
The bed had a headboard that was padded. The pillows were fluffy and perfect looking. The pillowcases were pink with white hearts on them. The room also had an enormous wardrobe and a dresser. The carpet was long and peach-colored, and a dark red fluffy rug was next to the bed. I stood on the carpet and curled my toes into the lovely soft carpet, enjoying the luxurious feel of it under my feet.
Adam said: "There are some clothes for you in there, some clothes at least, but I'll get you some new clothes when I get a chance. "
I said, "No hurry for clothes, this room is lovely, just perfect. I mean, it's more gorgeous than I could have ever imagined. Thank you. Thank you for everything, for saving me, and I didn't remember to thank you enough."
"Oh, this will do, and you're welcome. I wanted to save you from the very beginning, and I'm so damn happy you're here and safe," Adam replied.
"Yeah," I replied, touching everything around the room. I had always been a toucher. I had to be able to touch and feel everything. I've always been like that and I explored the contents of the dresser, and the clothes, and had a quick look in the bathroom. Oh, that was great, too.
Finally, I went to follow Adam. A large living room/kitchen opened up at the end of the hallway. The spaces blended seamlessly together; the kitchen was enormous and well equipped; the kitchen was all modern, and the worktops were grey granite, while the overall look was quite white to contrast the dark hallway. The living room had lovely big recliners and large luxurious sofas.
The living room was also white and black, there were big bookshelves full of books and those armchairs invited you to sit and enjoy, maybe even read. There is something like taking a book and going to the sofa or a chair to read in peace and quiet. Without any reports of tests or green stuff or pain, you could just read.
From the living room, there was also a lazily winding staircase upstairs. The staircase was wide, and the stairs were, as far as I could tell, marble. The banister was of wrought metal. The staircase was stunning and the sofa and armchairs were partially sheltered under the staircase.
There was also a large television opposite the sofa, but now I didn't want to watch TV.
Adam said: " Upstairs, for now, there are only meeting rooms and a couple of guest rooms, but you can certainly go up and explore if you like. Would you like to take a shower now and change into something more comfortable, and then we can have something to eat?" Adam suggested.
He added: "There's a shower in your room. There is also a spa, but you should also eat, not just soak in the bath. You probably saw your bathroom, so you can wash up if you want. "
I showed Adam my tongue and ducked into my own room when I found it. It took me a few tries to open the doors, and then I found it; I remember it now. Then I took a shower. The shower room was large, clean, and peach-colored. Luxurious bathrobes hung on a pegboard, and thick towels were on the shelves. I took off my clothes and stepped into the shower.
There was feminine washing-up liquid in the shower, and I chose a shampoo and shower gel and went to wash up. I tried washing with warm water as Adam and Samuel had reminded me during the drive that my body temperature was about three degrees higher than a human's, 40 degrees Celsius, and it wasn't good for me to be cold because I was really skinny, still, something like a little over 30 kilos or so.
One thing that was new and different from before I became a werewolf was that I was hairless. I had always had a healthy mound of pussy hair, and now I was porcelain. My armpits were also hairless. The good hairs were gone. I washed myself thoroughly, wrapped myself in a luxurious bathrobe, and wrapped my hair in a towel. My hair felt thicker and stronger, and there was a lot of it.
I dried my hair as best I could, then put on the clothes Adam had left on the bedside table, except for my socks. He always tried to put on socks and I never learned to wear socks. I didn't want to put socks on my feet. Instead, I slipped my feet into fuzzy slippers.
I let my hair hang half-damp and didn't even bother to brush it. I put on deodorant, and then I was done. It was already evening as our drive had taken 12 hours, and although we had left early in the morning, it was already after 10 pm at least.
I walked into the kitchen, and Samuel was also cooking. Adam came over to me and directed me to a smaller table on the other side of the kitchen. The table was dark oak and had a cloth tablecloth all over it. In the middle of the kitchen, or sort of between the kitchen and the living room, was a large dining table that could seat at least 12-14 people.
The table was already set, and the plates were black with gold trim. I thought they were too fancy for everyday use, but Adam said, " They are plates; they are to eat food on, not to be used for decoration."
So we ate from them.
We went to eat at the smaller table, which was close to the big glass doors that opened onto the backyard. A big oak tree grew some distance away, and the view ended at the edge of the woods. There was some snow on the ground, and the landscape was wintry; I was already wondering what spring would look like here. Various meats, gravy, lemonade, potatoes, and macaroni were on the table. I ate plate after plate and ate everything, including dessert, which was again croissants filled with whipped cream and strawberries.
Then I was stuffed as a tick, we sat in the living room for a while Adam and Samuel chatted, and I read the newspaper, but I was getting pretty damn tired and said, "OK, I think I'll go to bed now and see you in the morning, we'll see who wakes up first."
Adam nodded and said, " Do you need anything, or can you manage?"
I said, "I need nothing. I'm fine."
I walked into my room, changed into my nightgown, and crawled into my bed to sleep. I fell asleep almost immediately, but then the nightmares took over again. I finally woke up. I was biting my pillow and took my teeth out of it, got up, and sat up for a while. I was soaked with sweat so I took a shower. It was three in the morning.
Then I got dressed and wandered around the house. I knew what Adam and Samuel's room was. I didn't go near them, but I wandered around the house. I didn't really know what I was looking for. I went upstairs. There were three meeting rooms and empty rooms. One room was quite large. It had old double doors and was just an empty big room. I didn't know how long Adam had lived in this house or what that room had been. But I was home, safe, and it would be good to move on.
Now I had someone or someones to look after me and although it felt wonderful, it was also a bit disturbing because as a human being; I had lived on my own for over 20 years, used to doing things the way I wanted to do them. Adam had bitten me. The bite mark was on my shoulder, and I hadn't even paid that much attention to it when it had happened during dinner. I would see what tomorrow would bring when it came.
I must admit, I haven't never felt myself as home in anywhere in that house in Chicago. That house witnessed my growth into person I am nowadays, or at least part of it. That house was my home, as much any place can be home of unique being in universe. I have still lot of stuff from that house; I have my memories and I think that most of my pack members think of me sentimental fool but I have seen Mimosa's expression as she also remembers our original home. That house witnessed some of my worst time and also it saw birth of the love story of millennia.