Big Red and the Little Wolf

Chapter 1

Kodiak pov

An uneasy feeling came over me as I trekked deeper into the woods. Normally, being in the woods never bothered me, especially when I was with my best mates. Even though I spent my time in the woods on a daily basis, this time sent a chill down my spine. We had entered the land my parents were killed on.

"There's one over here!" I heard Zane shout from my far right.

I ran towards the sound of Zane's voice and judging by the sound of multiple footsteps, so were Nathan and Brady. Leaves crunched under my boots as I sped across the forest floor. The gunshot sounded before I could reach him.

"What happened?" Nathan asked. Every one of us had rushed over to be back up for Zane, but now that we were all gathered, there was nothing but the trees surrounding us.

"I thought I had him," Zane began, shaking his head in disappointment.

"You let another one go?" Brady asked.

"I didn't mean to. I could've sworn he was in range, but I couldn't hit him."

"I bet you couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with that gun," Nathan jabbed.

"Unless you're just blowing smoke up our asses. This is the second time you've called us and there's been nothing there. Pretty soon we're going to start calling you the boy who cried wolf," Brady added.

"Enough guys," I said. Them giving him a hard time didn't do any good. "Zane is still new. He's bound to make some mistakes so lay off. I think we've been out here long enough for one day. Let's head back to town. We can get some drinks at the pub."

"Great. We drove all this way just to go back home empty handed," Brady complained.

"It's only a half an hour drive."

My comment caused Brady to roll his eyes, but he proceeded back to the truck regardless of his irritation with us. While he and Nate walked ahead, I pulled Zane back to talk with me as we walked.

"Don't let what they say get to you, Zane. You did a really good job in training, now you've just got to get some more experience on the field."

Zane was a younger cousin of mine. He recently graduated high school, but had taken training from his mother on hunting. When he said he wanted to carry on the family tradition, I had no objections to him joining our team.

Both Zane and I were eighth generation werewolf hunters. Our strong family line meant that both of us inherited traits from our parents that allowed us to track werewolves and even the playing field. Our enhanced abilities included a heightened sense of smell and reflexes much faster than the average human. These abilities may not match the same level as an alpha's power, but that's where the silver bullets came in.

"Thanks, Kodi. I've been trying to apply what I learned in training, but it's just so different when it's for real. It will take a bit to get the hang of it."

"I totally understand that. I think for now it would be best if I stay with you during our hunts. That way, you can be more confident having someone at your side and your call for us doesn't notify the wolves of our presence."

Zane looked down to hide the red tint of his cheeks. "I guess I didn't think about shooting the wolf before shouting for you guys."

"It's alright. Let's go catch up with the other lads."

The entire truck ride was silent. No one was too happy about missing out on a kill today, especially Nathan and Brady. They tended to be a little more hot headed and became emotional when a hunt didn't go our way. Though we had all lost someone from the wolves in one way or another, they held their personal vendetta in a closed fist.