Chapter 4: Into the Woods (Lucia's POV)

The mist spread across the forest floor as Chief Wolfpaw, and I climb up the mountains of the Saint Maria woods. The rocks become slippery as the mist sprinkles water from the clouds. Then, finally, the fog appears beneath our feet. Chief Wolfpaw has no time to lose. He needs to find his son, Cody, soon. His very bloodline depends on it.

The Chief shows me his true form. His claws and teeth are more extended and broader than Cody's. His muscles are aged from their wear and tear. Wolves can be either mortal or immortal. They get to choose their fate and it is clear the Great Chief Wolfpaw has chosen mortality.

"Get on my back, Lucia. We have a long way to go, and I don't have time to be held up by the feet of a human girl. So let's go and follow the Ghost into the forest and find my son."

I climb on the Chief's back. His wolf appearance scares me, but I obey out of respect for him and his people. I honor the Chief, for it is his people who became my family after my grandmother got sick and slipped away from this life. The Wolf People Clan are the only family I have, and to stay break that bond would mean I am nothing but an orphan.

My grandma's voice echoes to me on the peaks of the great mountain tops. When the wind sings with the howling wolves, there my grandmother also sings. Her lullabies are in my memories when the owl hoots his tune for the moon. My life is musical, which is why I am comfortable dancing with the wolf people. Their footsteps are my dance. The pack is one, and my heartbeat dances with them and follows them. The fires they dance with at night ignite their culture, and I honor my grandma's memory with their music, dance, and legends. Grandma may have feared the Wolf People Clan, but she would have loved their music and song. The memory fades as Chief Wolfpaw quickens his pace.

Their Chief is fearless. His werewolf eyes don't have the hunger for me like they do for other men. His eyes remain purple and calm like the moon. He looks at me the same way he looks at his own kind. However, his eyes are yellow when he is hungry for a man.

The Wolf-People Clan knows about the yellowing in their eyes, and they seek to end this desire.

The yellowing eyes can only end when a new Chieftain is named, married, or a ritual involving the rare luna lily flower is performed. But with a missing son, no other heir, and only the rumor of the rare flower. The yellowing eyes with continue.

The hate between men and wolves will never die.

That is where I come in. If I marry Cody and he is declared Cheif before the goddess of the moon. The wolf-clan will be closer to peace with man. The yellowing in their eyes would almost be gone, and their desire to hunt them would mean peace and no more war. Once, the rare luna lily flower meant the humans and wolf-people clan could be friends. Until Lester Luster, the wolf-clan slayer, burned most of the luna lily flowers in a rage.

The flower is thought to be extinct. But my grandmother told me she found one once. It's a large purple flower with a large star in the center. And when the petals are peeled back and are consumed by the new Chieftain and his bride, the yellowing will end among the wolf-people clan.

The Chief continues his descent up the mountain with me on his back. His fur makes my nose sneeze. It's a shame I am allergic to dogs slightly. A girl with dog allergies living among the wolf people clan is ironic, or at least my grandmother would have said it is.

"Chief Wolfpaw, can we stop for some water," I ask as he leaps into the air and lands on his feet?

"Sure, make it fast. My son is out there somewhere. Did the humans really think you murdered Cody?"

I nod as I take a sip of the water from the stream. I don't have time to boil the germs out of the water. Relying on my body to keep me from getting sick is hard for me. Living among the wolf clan has been challenging for my body. I have not always been the healthiest of humans, I am better than I was, because I was a sickly child.

"Yes, my Chief. They believe I murdered Cody. His human form was destroyed, or at least it appeared that way to my eyes. I don't believe Cody to be dead. Do you think the Ghost has something to do with Cody's disappearance?"

The Chieftain collects me and places me on his shoulders. His fur is warm to sit on. The rain spouts from the sky as the fog appears with a rainbow above it. If the rainbow gets brighter, the sun will force our trail to end and the fog to disperse. Then, we will only have our wits and Chief Wolfpaw's might tracking skills to keep us going.

"Yes, I would say the Ghost is the cause of it all. And no, my son's body was not harmed. I can't believe that. What you saw must have been a decoy. My father, Chief Bearpaw, told me about the decoy effect. A wolf, when scared, can create another body that will let him escape as he fools his enemy. Perhaps Cody is stronger than me, after all. I was never able to make a decoy. My father tried to teach me, but I was never able to summon that gifting. My father was very disappointed in me. But if my theory is right, then Cody must have mastered this old wolf clan trick. He must have followed the Ghost to the tops of those mountains. And that's where we will go and meet him. Come my girl; we have a long journey ahead of us."

I glance at the tall mountains Chief Wolfpaw points at. As a young girl, my grandma took me skiing on the slopes of those mountains. The tall mountain in the middle is Luna Mountain. If the flowers we seek are ever to be found, it must be over there; perhaps Cody guessed this himself and left us all in search of the rare luna lily flowers. We need them to perform the ritual which will end the eye yellowing. I pull my coat over my head and fall asleep as the Chief carries me deeper into the Luna mountains.