“So, party at our cabin?” Ky leaned back in his chair, popping a gummy bear into his mouth.
After the week we’d had off, school felt like it was lasting years. I longed to be home, running through the trees once more. I wanted nothing but to be in wolf form, among my fellow packmates. I saw Mel’s fingers twitch as she stared into empty space and realized she must be thinking the same thing. I squeezed her shoulder comfortingly and she smiled up at me.
“I’m sure your pack would love to welcome a bunch of strange human youths into their territory to drink and make a bunch of noise.” Damien flashed him a mocking smile. “Let it go, man.”
“Oh, come on.” Ky sighed. “You’re all dragging me down.”
“We could throw our own party.” Ava smiled at him. “Just the pack. We could even get a keg; we all know how much you like those.&rdqu
“My name is Cassidy, or, that’s what everyone calls me.” He offered me a small smile. We’d left the park and were headed to a more secluded place, as he’d put it. He was willing to talk, I could see it in his eyes, but he wasn’t sure he trusted me just yet. I wasn’t sure I trusted him either. In retrospect, we were both playing it smart and dumb. I wasn’t sure who was the player and the played in this situation. He led the way into the abandoned warehouse and I almost choked on the stale air inside. It was fairly chilly outside, but in here, it was freezing and impossibly decayed. The walls were crumbling, after years of abandonment. The floors were caked in dust and spattered with unidentifiable fluids. The entire building was covered in graffiti, left behind my intruders. Someone had left this ruin to rot on its foundation a long time ago. He led me up a flight of stairs to the second floor, which looked jus
By the time I’d left Cass, school was out. We’d spent hours talking and I’d come to find him intriguing in many ways. Even though he’d shared some of his life with me, I could tell there was so much more he was hiding. I didn’t mind, seeing I was doing the same. We had a mutual understanding, but that didn’t mean we trusted one another. I headed the way of the library, knowing I wanted to see Hugo as much as I needed to work on the project. As soon as I stepped into the building, I could smell him. His scent was as fresh as the face sitting behind the counter. The librarian smiled up at me briefly before returning to typing on her laptop. I’d never noticed her before and she must have been new, because I was sure her scent was unfamiliar. Not that I knew very many people in town. I shrugged it off and headed to the lounge area, where I knew Hugo would be. As I approached, he glanced up from the book he was
I awoke earlier than the others, for intended purpose. I was itching for a run and I needed more than wanted to do it alone. My wolf barely let me get down the stairs before it surfaced, shifting mid-stride. I stifled a howl, one that desperately wanted to be let out to express my joy. The clouds in the sky were so close to pouring down on the forest, I could smell it. Rain would be on us within the hour. This was my only thought as I ran through the trees, farther away from my packhouse. Returning home hadn’t been as hard as I’d thought. My father was so caught up in the rouges he didn’t even know I’d skipped school. I wasn’t a rebellious teen looking for attention, but it had struck a nerve. My paws padded against the earth as I slowed to a walk, letting the scents of the forest wash over me. It took me a moment to realize where my wariness came from. I lowered my muzzle to the ground and tested the air, noting the dried blood.
There were no books in front of him this time and he wore a look of worry on his face. As soon as he saw me he leaned forward in his chair and waited for me to find my own seat. I sat beside him, taking care to keep my distance. “Are you okay?” His words were so genuine, so sincere, I almost forgot about the things I had to say to him. Almost. “You can’t sit with us anymore and you need to stay away from the other wolves.” The words blurted from my mouth in a rush. They were followed with a long silence in which I was sure he’d yell or scream. He did neither, instead staring at me with a blank expression. “But Mel and Fyn…” “Mel and Fyn know their place and it’s with the pack. I know you were just being friendly, but it ends now. Stay away from them and stay away from Byron. Don’t talk to any of them, don’t look at
“We need to up the rounds as much as we can.” Benton, Mel’s father and my father's Second, clenched his fists in frustration. “We’ve already done that.” My father looked stressed. “A boy is missing. Do you want one of ours to be next?” Benton continued. I listened intently as they discussed the means of Casey’s disappearance. It had been three weeks since the day in the library, but Hugo’s words were fresh in my mind. I thought of him a lot, even catching myself glancing at him in class from time to time. He stayed true to his word and kept his distance. That only made it worse, for me anyway. My pack was content with the distance. They’d gone back to their usual happy selves, enjoying in each other’s company when it came. Lane and I had reconciled and I learned he was actually an interesting character. He and Axel were the least trusting of the all the youths of
On a normal Saturday afternoon, I would take advantage of my free time and go for a run or join the patrol. The last few Saturday’s had been spent hanging out with the Redclaw youths, but not this one. That Saturday, I needed some time to think. I hadn’t told my pack about Lance’s informative story, and definitely not Bryon’s pack. It seemed like the secrets were piling on top of each other. I waited until my pack was busy with their weekend tasks and told my father I was going to the library to do homework. The town was busy so it was easy for me to blend into the crowd on the sidewalk. I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets and kept my eyes ahead. I tried to appear as an aimless window shopper, though I’d never window shopped and I felt like I was doing a horrible job at pretending. I caught a familiar scent and my eyes flickered to a coffee shop where Quinn and her friend group were emerging from. She sipped from a steaming cup
Sweat drenched the man’s face and stuck strands of his blonde hair to his forehead as he hurried inside, despite the chill of the air outside. He didn’t notice us at first, but when he did, his beady eyes darted between Hugo and I behind thick lenses. His scent hit me like a wave, and I could tell this man hadn’t showered for at least a few days. Human? I felt my impulses settle slightly, knowing I was capable of handling this situation now without shifting. Hugo moved around me. “Dad?” The man’s face lit up and he moved to embrace his son with a look of relief in his eyes. I was rooted where I stood. The situation might have been heart warming for Hugo, but I could sense that there was something very wrong with this man. He was on edge, looking like he hadn’t slept and smelling like he hadn’t showered. When he pulled away I saw the strain it took for him to smile and knew he was holding some
The Doc made me tell him everything I knew first. He listened intently while I relayed the last months events from beginning to end. There were some things that even Hugo didn’t know and I could see he didn’t like the part where I promised Cassidy that I’d keep him safe. He didn’t like me putting myself in danger on his behalf. The part about my mother was harder to get out, but the two of them let me go as slowly as I wanted. I could see that this hit Doc especially hard, but also made him understand why I’d done a lot of what I’d done. He had eased up quite a bit by the end of my story, which took some stress off me. I didn’t know how much time had passed since I’d left my packhouse but I tried not to think about that while I had this chance to learn more about Hugo and the necklace. “I’m sorry to hear about your mother. Hanon rarely speaks of Ally but when he does it’s only kind words.”