It was one of those mornings where I woke up peacefully. There was no alarm clock, no reason to rush to get ready as we were not going to school today, and nothing to disturb me. Truth be told, I needed it. Just a few seconds of peace before I was flooded with questions about last night again.
I sat up, stretching as I did, careful not to wake Eric. I was happy he came to my room last night. I don't think I would've slept if he didn't.
After very carefully getting out of bed, I brought my overnight bag into the adjoining bathroom to take a shower.
Under the hot spray, I let my thoughts wander.
If Eric was like this, could he fully shift now, what did that mean? I really hoped he wouldn't be taken from us, I don't think I could handle that.
And why couldn't I shift? Like, was it a gender thing? Did it have to do with Mom being a hunter?
I took a deep breath, stepped out, and got dressed, closing down that part of my brain for later today.
I made my way downstairs, deciding I might want to get breakfast started for everyone. To my surprise, there were already three women working in the kitchen. The smell of gravy filled my nostrils and my mouth practically watered as one of them took fresh biscuits out of the oven. The woman stirring the pot on the stove saw me first and gave me a warm smile.
"Hello, deary, come have a seat." She was older, probably late sixties, early seventies. Her thick raven hair was pulled up into a tidy bun, and her apron read, "Head Chef in Charge."
I liked her immediately.
"Are you sure? I could help with something if you'd like," I said this as I neared the counter even further.
"Nonsense, hon, we've been doing this since the day we retired. You just sit down and relax, ya' hear?" This time it was the woman who was pulling out the biscuits. Her mocha skin was beautiful and shined with life, though I would bet she was only a little younger than the other women.
"Are you sure?" I asked, still not taking a seat.
"Rule number one, sugar, you never tell Cathy no." The third woman told me, she was minding the dishes and cleaned them as they went. The three were almost synchronized in their movements. I guess they had been doing this a long time.
I reluctantly took a seat, making conversation with the three of them and sipping on the apple juice that Cathy, the head chef in charge, gave me.
I found out that the African American woman was named Wanda, and the other woman Janette. She was obviously Latino, with her rich mocha skin and forever long dark hair. She told me she was from Cuba, which was interesting because I've always wanted to go there.
Once the clock struck twelve, people began to pour in. It was the rest of the pack, I assumed. They looked like one giant family with the way they were so familiar with each other. I just sat at the counter, a little mopey as no one paid me a second thought.
Who could blame them? I was a stranger within a sea of friends.
I guess Cathy picked up on my mood, because she nudged a plate of steaming hot biscuits and gravy and bacon towards me.
"It's nothing personal, deary. It's always like this after a full moon. Everyone is usually pretty out of it for awhile. Most of them probably only woke up fifteen minutes ago." Her crows feet were visible as she gave me a warm smile, comforting me a little.
I nodded and grabbed the plate. Making my way through the crowd to the front door, I took a seat on one of many porch swings and ate what was probably the best breakfast of my life.
This area really was beautiful. Woods surrounded us, a huge green front yard spread out and trails led into the woods, probably to the rest of the pack's houses. I felt at peace here.
I felt...safe.
Something I hadn't been for a long time.
The afternoon sun beat down on the lawn, making it a vibrant green. It was almost too bright to look at, and it seriously contrasted with the changing color of the leaves around us.
"Wanda said I would find you out here." My whole body jolted and my hand went to my jacket where I had my pistol, "Woah! Easy there double-O-seven." I relaxed once I saw it was just Jonah.
"You scared the hell out of me." I put my gun back in it's sheath. I was annoyed. Why did he look so good in a plain long sleeve and jeans?
"I can see that." He plopped down next to me, making the swing sway backwards a little. "So, why are you out here?"
I shrugged, not looking at him.
"I don't know. The view I guess."
"Well, all you have to do is look in a mirror to see that."
And that is how Jonah ended up face first on the deck.
"Ow! What was that for!?"
"Cause you're literally impossible to hold a conversation with." He smirked at me and rubbed his head.
"Sorry, can't help it. That's just one of the many things you do to me." I rolled my eyes, attempting to fight off the grin that was about to take over my face.
Without another word, I stuck my hand out and helped him up.
"So." He started.
"So?" He walked over to the railing, leaning on both hands.
"I'm assuming you have a lot of questions about last night."
"Only a few." I went to stand next to him, getting as close as I could without touching him.
"Well, I don't know if I can answer them, but I'll try my hardest." I only nodded, letting the silence linger as I thought of how to phrase my first question.
"So, what exactly is he?"
Jonah let out a little chuckle, shaking his head. "And that, is the million dollar question." He took a deep breath and continued, "he is a wolf, for sure. I mean, that's what his form was at least, but it's a question of what kind. Usually, a wolf is born into their rank, and you can see it through their eyes. For example, mine are golden cause I was born an Alpha because of my parents, a Beta's turns blue when he is selected, a Delta's is orange, Omega's are green, the rest of the pack is yellow, a Lone's is black, and Rouge's is red. But violet? I have never seen that color before and have no idea what it means."
"Wait, Rogue? Aren't they the same as a Lone?" Jonah shook his head.
"No, a Lone has no pack, no rank, nothing. A Rogue belongs to a pack, but the pack has no Alpha, no leader. And thus, there is no ranking system or government within the pack, so all their eyes are red."
I shivered, I had gone up against a few of those. Of course, I killed them, but I could only imagine if I had taken a loved one away from a family and didn't even know. I had no clue that Rogues were not the same as Lones.
"But, anyways, Eric is a mystery. It could have something to do with the fact that your mother was a hunter, but I doubt it."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you can't pass down being a hunter, there is no special gene, really anyone can do it if they've been exposed to the supernatural and find the right people. So, I don't think that's it."
I sighed, we may never know what Eric is, and I was ok with that. As long as he was safe, he could be half flamingo and I'd be happy.
"Well," I started, putting a hand on his shoulder. Jonah looked me straight in the eyes, relaxing a little bit. "We don't have to figure everything out right this second. Have you eaten yet." Jonah shook his head. "You might want to before Cathy has your head." Jonah laughed and went to hug me.
Only something wasn't right.
Why was there a red dot on the side of his-
"Get down!" I tackled Jonah to the ground just as wood splintered into bits on the wall behind us. "Go, go, go!" I pushed him to the doorway, staying by the railing and unsheathing my pistol.
More wood rained down on us and I covered my face in the crook of my elbow, trying to figure out what direction the bullets were coming from.
"Ariel! What are you doing?!" Jonah screamed from his position by the door. He was waving me to join him but I shook my head.
"You have a pack to protect! Go, Jonah!" I risked standing up and taking a shot in what I figured was the general direction of the shooters. I hurriedly got back down, the bullets coming at a little slower rate than before. Hopefully that meant I shot one. Jonah was still out there watching me. "Now!" I demanded, and he growled before rushing back in.
"Stay safe, baby girl."
This time, his mind link didn't hurt. It just felt like a gentle push on my brain.
I kept taking shots in their direction. I knew I couldn't hold this position long without running out of ammo.
I needed to think, and fast.
That's when I heard the familiar engine of a truck racing around the side of the house and stopping at the front steps. I hurriedly made my way down there, making sure to stay low.
Dad hopped out, setting up his sniper rifle on the side of the back tail bed.
"How many?"
I skidded to a stop beside him, taking the ammo he held out to me and slamming the bullets into my pistol. The metal tinged as they began to take aim at the car.
"Not sure, but I think it's coming from our right judging by the trajectory of the bullets."
He swiveled his rifle in the direction I said, pulling the trigger once he saw one of them.
"Hunters. One less now, though."
Why would hunters be here? They didn't hit packs like this. They only took down the dark, sinister, and dangerous. This pack was innocent and hadn't done anything wrong.
A shot of white hot anger went through me as I pictured Wanda, Cathy, and Janette, all working in the kitchen, Jonah helping Eric, and everyone that was currently stuck in this house.
It gave me the motivation I needed to go through with my crazy idea.
"Keep them distracted, I have a plan." Without another word from him or me, I took off around the house, a few bullets grazing the ground next to me and kicking up dust.
I disappeared into the woods behind the house. Making my way around, I used the woods as my cover to get in close to them. It didn't take long to find their set up. There were 12 at most. They had 6 M4s lined up on logs, each one occupied and taking fire at the house, hoping to catch one of the innocents. Another three stood behind the shooters, ammo at the ready and in hand. Two others stood behind them, keeping watch to make sure they were not attacked from the back. Where was the remaining one?
I didn't have time to figure it out as one of the guards glanced in my direction. I ducked out of sight behind the tree in front of me. I knew she didn't see me, I'm sneakier than that.
"Ariel, where the hell are you?"
Jonah.
"Well...you're not going to like it..." I thought back, hoping this thing worked both ways.
"Please, just tell me that you aren't anywhere near the hunters." I didn't answer back. "Ariel." His tone was deadly. I didn't know you could even think in tones like that.
"Sorry, Ariel can't come to the phone right now. Please, leave a message after the beep-"
"ARIEL."
"Beep."
With that, I did my best to block the connection. Getting back to business.
One of the guards had wandered off. I bet she was doing a perimeter sweep.
I moved from my tree, staying in the foliage and shadows till I finally found where she went. She was clear out of sight of the others, all alone, and walking towards the bush I was currently inhabiting. I unsheathed one of my daggers from my boot, the cool silver handle feeling heavy in my hand with what I was about to do. When she was just near enough, I grabbed her, keeping her shoulders locked around my front and quickly driving the dagger into her neck. I slowly walked backwards into my bush as her blood soaked my hand, almost making the dagger fall from my grasp.
This is where I knew I needed to turn it off. If I was going to help everyone in that cabin, I knew I needed to not feel anything for these people.
No, these monsters.
Without another thought about the fact that I had just taken another life, I went back to my original tree, careful to stay out of sight. The other guard was looking anxious, probably wondering where his friend went. A figure emerged from a tent I hadn't noticed before and walked up to him, shouting.
It was definitely female, her hair pulled back into a slick ponytail. The tips of it were white, throwing off the texture of her brown hair. As a matter of fact, all of their heads were shaven, the remaining stubble dyed white.
Weird.
The two finished arguing and the guard stalked off in the direction that the other, the one I killed, went in. And that's when the woman took over his position, and I lost every ounce of breath I had in me.
It was like being punched in the stomach multiple times by Rocky. My whole nervous system stalled and my heart was no longer in my chest. I wanted to puke, but I couldn't move.
"Mom." No one could obviously hear me due to the guns still going off, but I had to say it to at least get some air into my lungs.
It was her. Clear as day, looking the same as the day she left us despite the hair. The small wrinkles that had outlined her face back then had grown a little more prominent, but she was still beautiful. Everything was the same.
Including my burning hatred for her.
I hadn't realized I had stepped out from behind the tree until she looked directly at me. Her hard expression turned into first a confused one, then shock, then over my right shoulder. I immediately knew who was behind, and didn't waste any time.
My arm flew around as I used the momentum of my turn to bury my fist into his Adams apple. He died almost instantly and I spun right back around to meet the woman's eyes. They were wide with an emotion I did not expect.
Pride. She was proud that I had just killed someone.
But she didn't have time to think much more about it as a dozen wolves led by a ginormous white one came storming out of the undergrowth and right at the hunters. Mom veered to the right taking off running to the gravel road. The wolves made short work of the remaining hunters, seeing as the sound from the guns made a nice distraction from the pounding paws on the dirt. I didn't move, only watched as the woman who was supposed to love me unconditionally just left me.
Again.