Wanted by the Wolves

K A R A / A M Y 'S P O V :

“Hey honey, how was the drive in?” My aunt Martha asked me, as we sat in peaceful silence. I shrugged, not sure what to tell her. Currently, we were sitting in front of the local ice cream shop, Jimmy’s Cones. I held my sprinkle cone in my hand, replaying what happened in my head. It felt surreal, like a dream. One moment I was running for my life from a power-thirsty alpha, and the next I find my aunt leaning against her rusted blue truck, waiting for me.

The downtown was old and was used for more of a tourist location than anything else. The official downtown was a few minutes down the road in an area filled with office buildings. Of course, the Silver Crescent pack had their headquarters in their pack house, which was farther in their territory. I looked around, breathing in the sweet air and watching the small quaint town bustling with shoppers, yet somehow peaceful. I took another bite of my strawberry vanilla swirled ice cream, savoring its sweet flavor.

“Your mother said it was just along the border where she dropped you off. That doesn’t sound like the walk took too long.” I shook my head, lowering the cone from my mouth.

“It was fairly quick, I had a run in with a wolf, but I got out..”

“Well, you know the wolves are very territorial around here. I’m guessing that Rachel blocked your scent?”

“She sure did. I was wondering if you have any spray, you know, to hide my...” I got quiet as I watch a group of teenage girls walk by, giggling and chatting among themselves.

“Oh don’t worry, all the wolves were called to meet at the pack house, Alpha Carl sent out a mind link to all of them.”

I raised an eyebrow at this. “Last I checked, you weren’t a wolf. How did you get this information?”

She chuckled, eating a spoonful of her chocolate ice cream. “If you forgot, I’m a witch. I can easily see into mind links.”

I leaned back in my chair. “Fair point, fair point. Now, how far away is your house from here.”

“Only ten minutes. The high school, Jefferson Lake, is 5 minutes down the street from my house. You can use my car if you wish. It’s a mostly werewolf school, so you’ll have to be careful.”

“Do I have to attend?” I whined. Personally, I’ve never thoroughly enjoyed school like some people I know. I especially won’t enjoy it if I have to pretend to be someone I’m not while learning.

Aunt Martha simply rolled her eyes. “You may be a werewolf, but the human documents for Kara Thomas say that you are 17, which you are, and that you must attend school.”

I breathed out a sigh, closing my eyes. I was just reminded that not only will I be lying to werewolves, but to humans as well. Also, I have to attend a school to blend in and get used to being called by a different name. Kara Thomas - a name my mom hoped would attract as little attention as possible and would share no connection to Amy Barlow.

As I finish my ice cream and devour the cone, Aunt Martha and I head towards her rusted blue truck. I take a seat in the front and take out my new, untraceable smartphone from my pocket. I add my aunt’s number in so I can easily contact her in case of an emergency. On the way to her house - which turned out to be very close by - we chatted about how things were going. I told her about how my mom is doing better, and she told me about her business.

The town knows her as a fruit farmer. She appears at all the farmers' markets with her homegrown peaches, apples, oranges, and grapes. She makes just enough to be able to make payments on her small, 2 bedroom house, and her truck.

To anyone that doesn’t know her, she is a plump short woman, that has a dazzling smile you can see from miles away. Her red curly hair is often in a bun, and her rosy cheeks always have a grin stretched across them. Unsurprisingly, she often times smells of peaches.

To everyone else, she is a witch. Home brewed potions are only given to family since we are the only ones that know what she truly is. She sells her herbs and spices that can heal and discolor things for high prices on the black market, where she makes most of her money from. This explains the reason why she has a black sedan in the back of her garage and a modernized basement added on to her house. Of course on the outside, no one would know.

When we pull up in front of the house, I take in how small it first appears. It is a faded sky blue, with a mud-covered brick foundation. The rickety wooden front porch makes it appear in worse shape than it actually is.

“C’mon inside, I’ll show you your room.” I followed her through the house, which had a homey touch to it, and down a narrow hallway. Aunt Martha opened a door on the left, revealing a bedroom. I stepped inside, taking in my surroundings.

Against the wall sat a full sized bed, with a nightstand beside it. In the corner, a wardrobe sat, and next to the large window, a desk stood, with a laptop on it.

“I know you don’t have a lot of clothes with you, but this weekend I promise to take you shopping.”

I look at her excitedly. “Really?” Since everything that has happened in the past few years, I haven’t had a chance to go shopping. Honestly, I was expecting to get some hand-me-downs from my older cousin Kristina, who is in college.

“I will give you some spray tomorrow morning before school. The bathroom is across the hall. Just holler if you need something.” She left, leaving the door slightly ajar. I pulled out a string bag I had kept concealed in my baggy sweatshirt, and quickly removed its contents. I had a large shirt and shorts for tonight and a red short sleeve shirt with jean shorts for tomorrow.

Heading into the bathroom, I took a hot, relaxing shower and quickly slipped into my pajamas. After a few moments of rummaging through the drawers, I found a makeup bag for tomorrow that Aunt Martha left for me, and a toothbrush and toothpaste. I glanced up at myself in the mirror, which took me by surprise.

One of the things my mom and I had decided on doing was dying my hair to make it harder for people to identify me. My once dark brown hair and green eyes were replaced with blonde hair and purple streaks, and blue contacts. And I thought I wasn’t supposed to stand out.

Of course, on the phone my aunt had backed up my mom, stating that all the teens around here had different colored hair, and together, they looked like one big rainbow. In the end, I went along with it. What other choice did I have?

Once I had gotten settled into my bed, I thought about what tomorrow will bring. Will I absolutely hate Jefferson Lake High, or will I make friends worthwhile? My thoughts slowly drifted back to my encounter with the Alpha on the border. What happens if he shows up and recognizes me, or worse, figures out I’m a rogue. And not just any rogue, the most wanted rogue in the nation.

I can’t help but hope everything turns out okay.

But when does that ever happen?