Semua Bab MOONBOUND: Bab 41 - Bab 50

HAYLEY Impossible. It's impossible. The air in my lungs feels heavy, like weight pressed upon my chest. In the growing darkness, I can only make out his upper body, splattered with raindrops streaming down his chest. The wolf is Axel. The revelation sends jolts of disbelief burning through me. Slowly, every event that's followed Axel's return to Greystone flashes through my thoughts. An aversion for silver utensils. Claw marks on the doors of Lucas's garage. The disappearance on the night of a full moon. When I glance at him again, his eyes hold a sober, pained look. Crouching low, he meets my gaze. “Hayley, I know there's a million questions running through your mind this moment—”“Axel.” “—and I'd love nothing more than to answer every one of them—” “Axel.” “—but I need you to know that I'm not what you think—”Shane sighs impatiently. “Goddamnit, Axel.” “For fuck’s sake!” Axel swivels to meet Shane. “What the hell is it?” “You shifted.” “No shit, Shane. Of course I shift

HAYLEY“A man that loves to cook is a big deal, Hayley.” I drop a large pumpkin decor on a shelf and turn to face Corey. “Okay, first of all—who are you? And what have you done with my friend?” Corey rolls her eyes as she arranges stacks of unused sales pamphlets in orderly fashion. She's been smiling since the conversation on Harold came up, and it doesn't seem to be wearing off anytime soon. “Seriously” I continue, “where's my randy, horny best friend? You know, the one that thinks football guys are such a catch?” “Technically, Harold is a football guy.” “Right—but you just said he's only playing football to help boost his GPA, and that his real interest is cooking.” I pause, watching as Corey grins sheepishly. “Is my best friend in love with a nerdy, freckled boy who loves to cook?” Corey fumbles with her glasses, wearing a lopsided grin. “Your best friend will love for you to shut the fuck up, okay?” Caleb—Corey’s four years old brother—walks into the storage room. “Chot the

AXELA gust of breeze sweeps across the field. It feels like the temperature has gone a notch down since Shane and I acknowledged the tense situation we're in:There's a werewolf on the opposing team. “You think we can take him?” Shane shakes his head wryly. “I don't know, Ax. He's tough and fast—way too fast.” He heaves a breath. “Old magic is strong in him.”We both turn our gaze to where the Oakville Warriors are walking out of the tunnel, huddled together. Brett steps out last, casually chewing a gum, like he's not fazed in the slightest by anything. I drag a hand through my hair. “We've gotta stop him and the rest of their team.” “We can't risk exposing ourselves.” “Golden hair over there doesn't seem to be worried about that,” I point out. Shane grates his jaw. “I know. And it's fuckin worrying.” The referee’s whistle shrills to kickstart the second half, and both teams start to head onto the field. I nod at Shane as he walks away, silently bidding him luck. Nerves roil

NARRATIVE POVSheriff McKenna knew something was wrong when the station's landline rang repeatedly that night. Greystone rarely ever saw the kind of trouble that warranted multiple calls. At least not until recently. Not until the murder in the woods a month ago. Now, every shrill of their landline felt like an insidious warning of what was to come. And tonight, the one thing the Sheriff feared had showed up again. A dead body. “Jesus Christ.” Deputy Morales walked up to Sheriff McKenna, wincing at the sight before them. Never one for a sore sight, Morales quickly tore his gaze away. “He’s just a kid, goddamnit,” the man hissed. Sheriff McKenna took off his hat, staring at the lifeless body of the boy wearing a bloodied football jersey. It wasn't his first grim sight—three years in active duty as the Sheriff of Greystone had given him a good measure of those. But it was the unnerving similarities between this body, and the one found a month ago that sent a tremor through his veins

HAYLEY If anyone else had walked in on me reading a book on Lycanthropy Folklore, I'd be drowning in questions about it by now. But it was Corey who found me by the library, so I knew I was safe. She probably didn't even know what the word lycanthropy meant. “Whatchu’ doing?” She asks through a mouthful. I stare at her, my gaze moving to the cookie in her hand. “You know eating in here is against the rules, right?” “The rule is to not be found eating here, Hayley,” she winks.I roll my eyes, suppressing a smile, as I bring my gaze back to the book in front of me. After an hour of reading, I've grasped nothing other than silver being harmful to werewolves, thanks to the noisy state of the library.The usually quiet study hall is a hub of hushed conversations today—conversations, no doubt about the most recent murder scare in the woods two nights ago. The school authorities have been very tight-lipped with what really happened on the night of the game. But that secrecy has only fue