The Pack - On the Run

We never saw it coming.

Dad’s attack was as unexpected as finding out that what you believed to be a myth was, in fact, very real. Werewolves existed. But even now, after all that had happened, it sounded ridiculous to my ears.

The funny thing was, I didn’t think about it all as I stumbled through the dense undergrowth, every now and then walking in the twigs that tugged on my already loose ponytail, tangling my hair and painfully ripping more strands from the tie and my skull. I was whipped on my face more than I could count whenever I wasn’t careful enough. And I pretty much wasn’t. With how the moon hid behind thick, heavy clouds, the forest was shrouded in pitch darkness. And while I had a torch on my phone and new night vision skills, they weren’t enough to help me penetrate the blackness that had blanketed me the moment I had stepped my foot into the woods.

I should have listened to my mum and stayed. I was glad I didn’t. I could only imagine what my seven-year-old brother would feel when his rage finally subsided; when he would find himself lost and alone. So I pushed, despite the chills the creepy forest was giving me, trying hard not to think about the dangers lurking in the shadows.

Nope, I was most definitely not thinking about that at this particular moment.

Ironically, it was then that some stupid bird decided to take off from a nearby tree. It jumped at me, fluttering its broad, dark wings, nearly hitting my head and almost giving me a heart attack. I yelped, smacking the air around me, shooing the thing away as my heart threatened to fail.

Effing birds and their effing ideas.

I exhaled softly, brushing my hair at the back of my head with a trembling hand... only to hear a twig snap somewhere unnervingly close on my left. Still spooked from my previous unexpected encounter with mother nature, I whirled on my heel as a cold shiver once again ran down my spine.

“Mikey?” I asked, my voice hesitant. I pointed the phone in the general direction of the creepy sound. No one answered, nothing was there. I shook my head, mad at my own cowardice. I had to chill, or I was sure to scare myself to death. And soon.

I turned around and picked up on Mikey’s trail again - the soft, childish scent tainted by a sour tang of anger - lingering in the air. It was like an arrow pointing me to the boy. All I had to do, was follow. Which I did, or at least wanted to, when I stepped on the loose stone, painfully twisting my ankle. I yipped, falling over. Suddenly, I found myself rolling down the slope that miraculously appeared hell knew out of where. The world started spinning around me as little pebbles dug in my skin, small sticks grazed my face, poking me through the hoodie, and dirt, mud, and bits of dead leaves landed on my tongue. Thank God, I stopped as abruptly as I fell, ending up on the soft grass, spitting the dirt from my mouth while the clouded sky pivoted above me. I blinked a couple of times, trying to get rid of dizziness, and propped myself on my elbows. I was in a meadow of sorts surrounded by dark shades of slender trees that tried to grab the sky with their leave-less fingers.

Well, great.

Tired of sitting on the cold, damp grass, I tried to stand up but the pain shot up from my left ankle. I hissed and immediately grabbed the hurt area, feeling the heat radiating off it. If I was to guess, my ankle was most probably twisted. Just what I needed. Mumbling curses under my breath, I turned on all fours in order to push myself to the standing position...

And that was when I heard a guttural growl.

My head snapped up, and my eyes collided with two icy-blue orbs. I gulped, somehow finding myself face to face with an enormous, light gray wolf. It had its head lowered to the ground and ears glued to its sides as it flashed me with the row of its very sharp teeth, spit falling densely on the ground.

I felt the blood whooshing in my ears as the adrenaline kicked in.

I was a toast.

[*]

~ LOUIS ~

Once again, Louis Everton found himself looking for a tourist in the Redforest state park - and at nearly 12 fucking am, at that.

The funny thing was that - for the first time in his entire life - he actually hadn’t minded being ripped away from what had possibly been the middle of the best afterparty Redforest had yet to witness.

Though truthfully, when his da had called, Louis had been pissed. At first, at least. But, the second he had heard who the little lost sheep was, Louis’ legs moved as if of their own accord. And thus, he was currently pacing the woods with a torch in his hand, uselessly dangling at his side. He didn’t need the artificial light to see in the dark - all thanks to his wolf’s keen night vision skills - but the torch was there for the human’s benefit and to ‘keep up the appearances’. Or so his da insisted...

Tracing Josie wasn’t hard for Louis, the best tracker or not. The trail was easy to follow, and it was pretty much obvious the girl had no idea how to move about the forest, which bothered him more than he was ready to admit.

Well, even if Josie’s movements weren’t so apparent, Louis was sure her spicy, citrus aroma mixed with the light coppery tint of blood would tell him precisely where he had to head. And so he trotted, soundlessly, with werewolf speed and grace, reaching the slope just as fucking Max Stone emerged on the other side of the meadow in his wolf form.

The twat had the decency to growl at the (not-so-human after all) girl. Louis smelled her fear as it wafted to his nose, unexpectedly pissing his wolf off. He couldn’t help a low rumble that followed, which, on the other hand, drew Max’s attention to him. Good. The wolf’s ears twitched as Max looked up - his watery eyes meeting Louis’ quicksilver ones in a challenge. No surprises there. Louis lifted his brow, staring the other boy down to show him who was at the top of the food chain, urging the annoying prick to just scram. They both knew Max couldn’t handle Louis’ wolf once he let him peek through his eyes. Maybe Louis would finally put the twat in his place once and for all... If he would feel like it.

Max finally backed down, nervously licking his nose and throwing Louis the last hateful glance before he skittered away.

The idiot...

[*]

The wolf’s growling stopped as suddenly as it started. The beast licked its nose in a - from what little I knew about dogs - submissive manner, and just like that, it leapt away, leaving me perplexed.

If that wasn’t just weird...

“Josie!” A familiar voice made me turn around as a warm, yellow light of a giant torch flooded me. I placed my hand in front of my eyes, shading them, watching Louis swiftly and gracefully treading down the slope. He was clad in a dark green windproof jacket, plain jeans, and converse sneakers.

“Oh, thank God,” I said, relieved. “What are you doing here? How did you find me?” I asked, somewhat shocked.

“Auntie Rosie bumped into your mum when she was on her way from a family meeting,” Louis explained, nearing me. His smell - a mixture of sandalwood, rain, sweat, and musk, totally suppressed by the scent of oil and car waste earlier before - wafted to my nose, making me all jittery and funny as a result. I gulped, leaning away while his quicksilver eyes looked me up and down, stopping on my left leg, still awkwardly suspended in the air. “Can you walk?” He asked, concerned, nodding at my ankle.

“I’m good,” I shrugged, trying to put some weight on my foot. The stabbing prickles immediately followed, making me wince from pain. “Or maybe not... I think I need your help,” I bit my lip, feeling my cheeks turn pink from embarrassment. “I have to find Mikey. He ran into the woods and probably got lost. He must be scared...”

“My dad’s on it. He will find him in no time. He knows these woods like the back of his hand. C’mon, let me take you to the lodge. Your mum’s beyond herself. She’s somewhat broken down on Rosalynd,” he said, giving me his back as he crouched in front of me.

I sighed, nervously rubbing my face with my hands, suddenly tired of everything. I didn’t know what to do anymore, whom to help - my lost brother or unstable mother.

Louis seemed to sense my dilemma as he inclined his head, eyeing me from the side. “Easy, Josie. We have loads of tourists getting lost in the forest every year, and my dad has tracked and found every single one of them and brought them home. If it makes you feel better, though, I can help da out after I drop you at the lodge,” he assured me and then waved at me with his hand. “C’mon, hop on, I really don’t bite. That is, unless you ask...”

I actually barked out a laugh at his lame joke, surprising myself.

“Do the girls seriously fall for that?“” I asked, conceding.

“All the time,” he grinned without missing a beat.

Shaking my head, I finally placed my hands on his arms and wrapped my left, then right leg around his torso. He lifted me as if I weighed nothing, his scent wrapping me like a cozy blanket, soothing me. It was strange how the guy I bearly knew made me ease up so quickly. I hadn’t felt so light-hearted in the whole effing week.

“Let me call my da first, so he knows you’re with me,” Louis said, giving me a torch. He fished for his phone and dialed the correct number.

“It’s Louis,” I heard him murmur after a second beep, his tone oddly business-like. “Yeah, I’ve got her... There was a little... incident, but she’s fine... Can’t really talk right now. Great, okay. We’ll meet you up at Rosie’s... I know...”

“Has your dad found Mikey?” I asked the minute he hung up.

“Yep. He’s okay. They are on their way to the lodge. We’ll meet up there,” he answered, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Louis started to walk up the slope. “Mind telling me why did your brother run for the woods in the first place?”

I sighed. “It’s a long story.”

“Well, try me.”

I had no idea why, but I did.