Chapter Three—Wolves and Knives

Chapter Three—Wolves and Knives

**ASHER**

She was stupid coming into the creek during a full moon. The painter, a very pretty woman but irresponsible and a tad bit on the loony side—and yet I found myself drawn to her.

I made my way into the deep part of the woods, staking my place near the redwood tree where I waited patiently. Silence, a good sign. They actually listened to me and kept their shenanigans under wraps until the moon drifted away.

I crouched to the ground and picked up a bout of soil, one sniff and I knew whose scent it was. A lurker, someone who disobeyed my orders.

“Saul,” I murmured under my breath, dusting off the dirt from my hands, “I know you’re here.”

Saul, my second in command, a beta, suddenly appeared from behind the redwood tree. His stealth skills had improved a lot, seeing as I didn’t notice his presence immediately.

“You interacted with a human.” He muttered, arms crossed and legs ajar, a scolding stance, “It’s against the pack’s laws and you—

“I make the laws now .” Cutting him off abruptly, “I never said to not interact with a human, the rule is to keep human interaction to a minimum. We can’t have the events of last time happening again, besides I was just checking the perimeter.”

“Checking for what?”

“The other pack,” I answered, my brows furrowed at his incessant questions, “There was a human,” A really beautiful human at that, but I couldn’t mention that to him, “….and I can’t have another incident. Our kind has been under cover without any intrusion for the past ten years, I can’t have them ruin that on our turf.”

Saul shrugged, turning around to leave when I grabbed onto his shoulder, “You’re forgetting something.”

“What?”

“I gave specific orders. No lurking in the woods tonight.”

“So what?” He sneered, “You’re just the Alpha, that doesn’t make you the boss of me.”

“It exactly makes me the boss of you.” I replied, claws protruding at the sense of a fight coming on.

Saul snickered loudly, his claws also exerted as the golden hue in his eyes shone brightly. It was a call, a stance to show he wasn’t backing down to his Alpha, well against the pack rules but Saul wasn’t exactly known to follow the book. He always hated me, a stray picked and brought home by his father, and now the leader of the pack. It was his birthright, and I, a stray took that away from him.

“You’re not going to win this fight Saul.” I warned, “You’ve never won and it won’t start now.”

He chuckled softly, “Let’s see about that.”

I didn’t want to fight him, knowing I would win and taint his ego even more. However as the Alpha, it was customary to defend my honor, and if he wins….becomes the new leader of the pack.

He stepped back. I could hear the sound of his bones crackling as his transformation began, his muscles started to shift and contort, muscles flexed, skin frizzy as his pores opened up to fur springing out of them. He let out a sharp cry of pain, turning during the full moon was as excruciating as the next, only the strongest wolves endured it.

I wasn’t going to turn, not needing my true self to win a fight with a jealous Beta. Instead my fangs sprouted and my claws extending even further, eyes turning red and my instincts going full primal. Saul was a full wolf now, his coat soft auburn and thick. He let out a loud howl.

He lunged at me with full force, I ducked, piercing my claws into the redwood tree which I pounced on for support above the ground. Saul might be a strong Beta but he was nowhere near my level of strength.

I growled, taking a deep breath and finally launching a counter attack. He lunged at me the second time and with my full strength, i hit him hard right under with full force. He let out a yelp as his body jammed against one of the trees, plummeting him to the ground.

“I warned you!” I growled again as I geared closer, ready to strike another blow, “I’m the Alpha! I am the strongest for a reason!!”

He howled, a call for backup from the other wolves. No one dared do question or fight me, unless they wanted to die under my feet. I was gettin closer, my claws sharpened as ever as my eyes beamed with anger and rage from being challenged by a subordinate. My senses grew stronger by the passing minute, the urge to kill was ever overwhelming…even I knew it was a matter of time before I lost control.

Saul’s form was stuck, his paw jammed under a root and so he couldn’t wring his way out. He howled again, he was in pain which I sensed but I needed to teach him a lesson on defying my orders.

Then I heard it, the sound of crackling branches. A familiar musk, a human—-there was a human in the woods.

“Hello??” I heard a distinct voice. It was the painter!!

Saul, now weak and injured shifted back into his humane self. He coughed hard, blood spouting from his lips as he rested against the tree, he breathed hard, almost like the force of my blow was too much for his human body to handle. My senses tingled and my claws retracted, my eyes turned into a lukewarm golden brown and I dampened my instincts.

Why was she here?! I asked myself.

“Come on,” I said to Saul, stretching forth my hand, “We have to go.”

“Your human is gonna get killed.” He sneered.

My human?

His words confused me, I ignored him however and still let out my hand to help him up. He ignored my gesture, wincing in pain as he managed to get up by himself—typical, I thought.

“Go on without me,” I whispered. The painter’s voice even more clear now, she was near.

Saul growled as he limped away, his broken leg from the root his leg was jammed him meant he couldn’t use his primal speed. A small price to pay for his audaciousness.

**AURORA**

The tires on my bike were slashed by someone which meant I had to take a detour home. Common sense would be taking the high road, but there had been a bunch of robberies these past few months and I didn’t want to get raided by a bunch of armed men.

I sniffled loudly, pushing the dead wheels of my bike along the damp soil with my easel tied on the seat. I heard a loud thump and a howl, probably Coyotes or a cat…a very big cat.

I was scared, sure of someone’s presence in the woods with me and called out. I was met with no response, only the bustling of leaves and a particular sound of someone walking away…was it the same creep from earlier? I thought.

I strode even further, my hands gripped tightly into the leather casing of my bike handles, my throat dry and my legs itchy from all the mosquito bites.

I gulped hard, the moon was out of reach now and then night drawing closer to midnight. I could feel a set of eyes watching me, probably paranoia seeping in but still I kept pushing forward until I got to a redwood tree.

The famous redwood, stories had been told about a mythical beast burying his one true love underneath it. To me it was just a landmark, one that meant I was getting closer to home. I paused for a moment when my eyes caught the sight of a particular mark.

Four incisions on the tree.

Very sharp and very fresh.

“What the—

I felt a sharp breeze at the nape of my neck, and then a hard blow at the back of my head. My head singed, spun and then I slumped to the ground, closing my eyes as the darkness overtook my senses.