Ascension: Wolves of Goose Creek

Chapter Two

My short but banging theme music began blasting out of the overhead speakers. I bobbed my head to the opening guitar riff of Muse's "Super Massive Back Hole" as I counted down the seconds that it took for the credits to roll. The music faded, and I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the soft black denim covering my knees and staring into the camera.

"Hello, Charlotte, North Carolina, and wherever else you happen to be watching me from. My name is Freedom Still Waters, and welcome to Reel Time."

I leaned back and shook my head, trying not to laugh at the running joke that was my name. "If you're joining me for the first time, please forgive the handle. My mom thought she was doing a good thing by giving me such a crazy name. My dad was half Indigenous American, and it was her way of honoring his culture."

I rolled my eyes and flopped back against the loveseat, propped my legs up on the table, and sighed into the camera. I spoke to my audience like I would any visitor to my home. "I can't tell you the times I've been called 'Freedom's Still Waters Run Deep,' so if that's what you were thinking, come up with some new material."

George pointed, and I changed the subject to match the movie poster that should be behind me. "Tonight, I'm going to be reviewing four movies, one of which is the directorial debut of the mega movie star, Chad Holden." I paused for dramatic effect and gave the crew enough time to load the right picture. "That's right, people. I'm going to be reviewing Bled Dry 3D."

I was just about to read a list of Holden's accomplishments from the teleprompter when George began waving his arms like a mad man and pointing to my earpiece that was flashing in his ear. My lip curled in confusion until I felt the vibrations coming from my pocket. I looked to the control room, unsure of what to do. I seriously didn't want to ruin George's chance of getting a better job. Although my on-air hi-jinx were a big draw, answering my phone on camera was not the way to make a good impression.

George followed my line of sight and all but shrieked at me when he figured out the source of my hesitation. "Fuck it, Still. You need to take this. Cicely is on the line. Your brother has been in a wreck!"

My heart skipped a beat as I jumped up from the loveseat and pulled my phone from my pocket."Cici, what happened?" I slammed the phone to my ear, oblivious to the pain the noise would cause me this close to my ear. My sister-in-law was hysterical on the other end. Her voice was so thick with tears and worry that I could barely make out a word she was saying. "Cici, you've got to calm down and tell me what's going on."

A hand tapped me on the shoulder, and I almost turned and snarled. I caught myself when I saw that it was George. He'd come in front of the camera to relieve me. I didn't bother with words. I just looked at the camera and pressed my hands together in the universal sign for prayer. Pray for my brother, please, I thought as I walked off the stage as fast as humanly possible.

On the phone, Cici took a deep breath and started over. "It's Rush. His truck got side-swiped by some kind of tanker. He had left late last night to surprise you."

"What the-where is he?" I rushed through the crowded backstage area, ignoring worried looks as I headed for the back hallway that led to the employee parking deck. I was kicking off my heels as I went.

"He's already in Charlotte, Still. He's been there all day shopping for the overnight camping trip he was taking you on. The EMTs took him to a human hospital, Carolina's Medical Center! I just got the call from the ER doctors. Still, they have no idea he's a were. You've got to get there before something goes wrong!"

Jesus Christ. There was no way a human hospital was prepared to handle an injured werewolf, and an alpha at that. The closed-in space alone was enough to scare him into a shift. Depending on how badly he was hurt, his body would shift anyway. Shifting healed many injuries and was always the first step when a wolf was injured bad enough to need medical care.