Lone Wolf Rising

by Jami Brumfield

  Rebecca shook her head, ‘no, it breaks my heart every time I hear about the tragedies in your life. You’ve seen so much cruelty for someone so young.’

  ‘We all have our own challenges we must face. I believe we are not given anything we cannot handle though.’ He grinned in her mind. ‘Unfortunately, I think you will see your own physical challenges in the years to come because of your choice to become a wolf. We’re not known to be a gentle species. But you will always have me there to help you through.’

  “Whatever comes my way for the choice I made I can live with. What I can’t live with is if it ever hurt my family. That is something that could break me.” She whispered as they danced.

  "You don't need anyone’s permission to teach your siblings to defend themselves." His statement made her think. He was right. She was learning to fight, so could they. So what if they didn’t have supernatural enhancements, at least they’d have some way to protect themselves if they were caught in a bad situation.

  He spun her outward and grasped the tips of her fingers to pull her back in, all in time with the soft sounds of the music which was vibrating her very being. It was sensual and forbidden.

  "In a few moments we’ll be announcing your homecoming king and queen. Will the candidates please come to the stage?" Vice Principle Frederick's voice interrupted the song playing and their dance. Rebecca looked around to find Hunter but couldn't catch sight of him.

  "Speaking of my siblings, where’s Hunter?" They both scanned the room and quickly discovered he was nowhere to be found. "Savvy is about to be crowned queen. He wouldn't want to miss that." Rebecca looked at Gabriel nervously.

  Despite the fact that the song was not over he laced his fingers in hers and pulled her from the dance floor. "Hunter is missing." He told Lucky as they passed him and Lucky sprang into action. He took Rebecca’s hand and Gabriel released the other. Her wolf whimpered and Rebecca chastised her appropriately as they headed out the gym doors to find Hunter. Natalia followed closely behind peppering them with worried questions.

  "Do you have his scent?" Lucky asked.

  The worry that filled Rebecca made her forget for just a moment that she would be able to smell where Hunter went. She closed her eyes and focused on Hunter's smell. Frustration filled her when she realized, "he’s all over the place." Which made perfect sense since he was a student there. "What good are these new enhancements when they can’t help me in a crisis?"

  "Focus on the strongest trail." Gabriel urged, and then turned to Natalia. "Do you have anything of his?" Rebecca was barely aware of the crowd gathering. Sundae and Persephone had joined them and helped Gabriel, Lucky, and Natalia form a barrier of protection around Rebecca as she tried to focus on the scent.

  Natalia shook her head and mouthed the word sorry.

  Rebecca closed her eyes again and focused on cinnamon and gingerbread, Hunter's scent. In her mind's eye she could begin to tell the difference in the trails, she even saw the trails in different colors. Her wolf began eliminating the trails; blue, green, red, yellow, one by one they were dispersed until only purple remained. "This way." She led them down the hall, around a few corners and toward the wood shop classroom. "What’s he doing here?" She reached for the door and Gabriel stopped her.

  "Voices." He said in a hushed tone. They both focused their hearing to what was happening on the other side of the doors. The first voice was Hunter's and the second sounded like Ethan, the troll.

  Wolves don't have x-ray vision, but the hearing was so perfect she could close her eyes and see the scene play out in front of her.

  "And you’re sure this will make me stronger?" Hunter asked, doubt in his voice.

  "Danny uses it himself. He wouldn't have recommended you to me if he didn’t trust that it would help you." Ethan coaxed him gently into the sale.

  "Danny isn’t exactly trustworthy."

  "He’s dating your sister; he isn’t going to do anything to jeopardize that relationship." Rebecca heard a pop from a pill bottle being released as Ethan went on. "Here, try the first one for free and you’ll see what I’m talking about."

  The scent of blood carried on the air. Rebecca reacted instantly as she threw open the doors just as Hunter was putting the pill in his mouth. Ethan and Hunter stumbled backwards. Hunter with guilt in his eyes as he swallowed the pill, and Ethan with fear as he took note of Gabriel, Lucky, Natalia, Sundae, Persephone and Rebecca. Rebecca was probably the scariest of the bunch. She could feel anger boiling and the pressure was about to explode.

  Gabriel stepped in front of Rebecca and slammed Ethan against the wall. In this light Ethan’s dark hair looked bushy instead of the usually perfectly styled way he wore it. His hands tried to loosen Gabriel's grip at his collar but found no success. Gabriel growled, "Be thankful I got to you first."

  His snarled warning helped Rebecca to keep the anger pot from boiling over. She went to Hunter instead and checked him out. "What did you give him?" She asked as she noted the instantly dilated pupils, shallow breathing, and racing pulse.

  Gabriel slammed Ethan against the wall in an effort to get a response. "Black death."

  "You’re not telling me you are brokering blood to humans, are you Ethan?" Lucky asked, his tone even.

  "Blood broker?" Rebecca asked; fear seizing her and threatened to explode in anger. "You gave my brother fairy blood?"

  "He wanted to be stronger, to play better football. Black death will do that."

  "How stupid can you be, giving a child of the Winters family drugs?" Lucky asked, as he approached Ethan. There was a calmness about him that was scary, like the calm before the storm approached and ripped apart everything in its path.

  "He’s just another stupid human." Ethan answered, he had no choice but to answer Lucky’s question.

  "He is a Winters, you fool. There has never been a child in that family born without the witch gene." Lucky accented the name again.

  Ethan laughed. "He isn’t that kind of Winters. I smell no witch on him." Ethan explained.

  "That’s because they’re spellbound." Sundae spoke for the first time that night. "You really are a stupid little troll Ethan." She shook her head.

  "What’s going to happen to him?" Rebecca asked, panic filling her. “Should we get him to a doctor?”

  "I... I don't know. If he’s a witch it could have a different effect on him." Ethan stated, fear finally dawning in his eyes.

  "Lucky, please get him out of here before I rip him to shreds and show him what a Winters really can do." Rebecca could feel the wolf clawing at her skin, begging to get out, the protective instinct powerful. Her fingernails grew before her eyes and speaking became difficult past the teeth that were sharpening in her mouth. The change was pushing itself upon her. ‘NO!’ She screamed at her wolf. ‘This is my battle!’

  ‘It is also my job to protect you.’ The wolf countered, wanting to come out and play with Ethan’s head. ‘Let me show him what you can do.’

  ‘I said NO!’ She pushed the wolf back down. It took everything she had to keep her under control. Her muscles ached from straining against the familiar tearing that came with the transformation. Sweat coated her forehead as the mental battle took center stage in her mind. ‘I will let you know when it is okay to come out.’ The wolf conceded reluctantly. Retreating into the corner of her mind where it took up residence.

  Rebecca kept an eye on her brother who was flying high like a kite at the moment. The only reason she didn’t let the wolf out was because she didn’t want him to see the alpha. He was still too innocent, so she fought the instinct. "It’s going to be okay Hunt. I promise." Rebecca’s smile was shaky, but the promise was a vow. Nothing was going to happen to him, she’d make sure of it.

  She turned her head toward Ethan as he was being escorted out of the room by Lucky. "If anything happens to him I’ll personally track you down and show you how protective a wolf can be when her family is threatened." She could feel the promise burning from her eyes and saw the impact
of her threat slide across his face in fear.

  Natalia came up next to Rebecca and set a gentle hand on her shoulder. Rebecca snarled and snapped, protecting her brother. The wolf and instinct were in reaction mode now. Natalia jumped back, her eyes large. "Let me help him." She asked meekly.

  Rebecca stepped back and let Natalia work her magic; she was, after all, a guardian and guardian's were trained in magic before they became experts of the dead. Surely there would be something she could do to help him work the drugs through his system.

  Rebecca nodded to Sundae, fast becoming comfortable with her silent presence. She was standing next to Gabriel, perhaps for protection or simply to be part of the group. "What does this blood do?"

  "It reacts differently on people. Some get super human strength, others intelligence, others have their senses enhanced and so forth." Sundae offered as an answer.

  "So basically it allows humans to experience a piece of the supernatural without the nasty side effects." Rebecca nodded as she processed the information.

  "Oh no, there are nasty side effects. They may not show up right away but they’re there. Ingesting fairy blood is never good. Fairies are manipulative creatures by nature. They look for mischief, it’s in their essence. This essence is carried over in their blood." Sundae answered seriously.

  "It really depends on how bad the fairy source is. Most fairies, like other supernaturals, covet their blood and would never share. Only the most mischievous of the race offer their blood up willingly to be sold to the highest bidder.” Gabriel added.

  Rebecca ran a shaky hand through her hair. She had a terrible feeling all day that something bad would happen at the dance, and it appeared, that was exactly what happened.

  "He should be fine as long as this is his first dosage. The worst effects he will feel are addiction to the substance." Natalia offered her knowledge as well. "I really think this is his first taste of the drug. His aura shows no signs of decay as others who’ve ingested the drug multiple times do."

  The deeper she got into this world the more twisted and ridiculous things became.

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  ~”The butterfly counts not the months but the moments, and has time enough.”

  ~Rabindranath Tagore

  Savannah

  Becoming homecoming queen was wonderful, but the celebration was empty without Becca and Hunter at her side. All her hard work and dedication to achieve this paid off and the two people who she wanted at her side were nowhere to be found.

  "And now the king and queen will take the floor in the first dance." Vice Principle Fredericks announced.

  The DJ put on a slow song. The rhythm and the words sounded familiar but Savannah’s focus was on finding her family. Danny pulled her close into a tight embrace as he twirled her around on the dance floor. He smiled at all the right times, chuckled in the perfect moments, said all the appropriate things a girl would expect to hear but behind his eyes she was beginning to notice an emptiness. The magic this night was supposed to leave her with was hollow and she found herself wanting more.

  When the dance ended others joined them on the dance floor, and Savvy made an excuse of needing the ladies room to remove herself from his embrace. As she was about to leave his presence, his fingers grasped her wrist and he twirled her back in for a tender kiss. "Don't be too long." He purred in her ear.

  "I won't." She smiled weakly as she left the dance area and only glanced back one time as she left the gymnasium. Rebecca had been absent lately but it was unlike Hunter to miss this moment. He was her biggest campaigner and supporter. In fact, this was a moment she felt she needed to share with him.

  She went to the restrooms first; it seemed like a good place to start. As she started toward the ladies room she caught Jackson by the arm and asked him to look for Hunter in the men’s room.

  He smiled and nodded. "I hear congratulations on two fronts are in order."

  Her hand went quickly to her crown. "Two?"

  "The crown, and if rumor is correct, you’re officially dating Danny."

  Her mouth took on the ‘oh’ form before the word escaped her lips. "Oh yes, Jackson! We are very excited about it." Jackson always had a unique way of knowing things before she told him. “Who told you?” She asked more out of curiosity than anything else.

  He chuckled. "Danny told his teammates the moment you agreed. He has been working to get you since the beginning of this year. He was practically bursting with excitement over the news."

  Savvy felt a touch of guilt. Danny obviously felt more for her than she did for him. She hoped she would grow to care for him in time. She would do what she could to make herself feel that way about him. “That’s good to know.” It was all she could think to say.

  “Oh, you asked me to check if Hunter was in the restroom. I’ll be right back.” Jackson smiled as he disappeared behind the door. Savvy went into the ladies room to check for Rebecca. Two girls who were under the influence of something bumped into her as she entered the bathroom.

  "Rebecca, are you in here?" The only response was a silent echo. Apparently the two girls who exited a few moments ago were the only ones in the room.

  "Any luck, Jackson?"

  He poked his head outside and shook it, his brown hair moving in time with the movement. "No luck, sorry."

  "No problem, thank you." She said absently as the worry began to grow.

  "Do you need help finding them?"

  "No, I think I’ll just call them. Thank you again, Jacks." Savvy headed towards the exit door distracted as she struggled with pulling her phone out of her tiny purse. She dialed Rebecca's number, heard the first ring, and then was attacked. Someone had come from behind and placed a white cloth over her mouth and nose. She struggled against the man, who was cold and strong. The chemical on the cloth was already doing its work by entering her lungs and putting her to sleep. It was only moments before she was seeing darkness.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  ~”You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love.”

  ~Henry Drummond

  Hunter

  Natalia and Rebecca were fluttering around Hunter like irritating butterflies. He batted them away as reality started shining through the haze of the drug that he’d taken. "What happened?" His throat felt like he was talking around cotton balls. "Does anyone have some water?" He asked, barely able to recognize his own voice which was raspy and cracking.

  "Be still while you get acclimated." Natalia's sweet voice soothed his nerves.

  "How could you be so stupid?" Rebecca hissed angrily.

  He put his head in his hands trying to stop the pounding and keep her angry voice out. Gabriel handed him some water which he accepted with a grateful, shaky smile. The water was cool and crisp as it flowed down his excessively dry throat. Bits and pieces of what happened after he took that pill started to flit through his mind, but nothing made sense.

  "He should be fine now." Natalia offered a determined look as she placed the little pouches of herbs back into her purse.

  "What on earth would posses you to take drugs?" Rebecca was still pacing and fuming and nothing about her looked to be slowing down.

  He cleared his throat. "Don't judge, sis."

  She stopped pacing and zeroed dagger eyes on him. "Don't judge? Really? I walked in on you taking drugs and the first thing you have to say to me is don't judge?"

  "I can't talk to you when you’re like this." Hunter told her, irritated with her attitude. He tried to get up, but his legs and brain were not communicating correctly. Instead, Natalia helped him to his feet which only irritated him more because making a dramatic exit was ruined.

  Rebecca turned and grasped both his arms. Her eyes locked with his. There was hurt, annoyance, and love in those eyes. "I can't lose you. I don't care why you did it. Just please promise me that you’ll never do that again."

  Hunter nodded and
he meant it. All the drug did was make him weak and the whole reason he was even willing to take it was to make him stronger and a tougher competitor on the field. Danny had promised him that Ethan could help. He lied.

  "Say it." Rebecca demanded.

  "I promise." Hunter nodded. "I promise." He looked around, "Where’s Savvy? Did she win?"

  "Oh my gods, I forgot. I was so worried about you that I forgot why I came to find you in the first place. Surely she has been crowned queen by now. We need to get back." Rebecca started for the door. "Are you okay to return to the dance?"

  Hunter nodded. He may be weak but this was Savvy's moment. He didn't want to ruin it. They made it back to the gym in record time, considering the small fact that his legs were not working one hundred percent yet. A quick scan of the gym told them that she was not there, but Danny was. Hunter approached him first. Now in truth, when he moved toward Danny, Hunter was intent on simply asking him where Savvy was. But that all changed when Danny turned that evil smile onto him. Danny stood up and without another thought the fist at Hunter’s side swung and hit his jaw with a resounding crunch. Gabriel reacted faster than was humanly possible by pulling Hunter away from Danny before a fight broke out. Lucky pulled Danny back and whispered in Danny's ear. Whatever he said made Danny's face fall and he put his hands up in surrender.

  "Where’s our sister?" Rebecca asked.

  Danny looked at her with surprise. "I assumed she was looking for you."

  Danny looked coldly at all of them and Hunter knew he was making a promise to him silently that his life was going to be hell when they returned to school next week.

  "Okay, we need to find her." Hunter ordered, his hand still throbbing from the impact of the blow but he felt a level of satisfaction he never thought possible. It felt good to stand up for himself.

  "And fast, something doesn't feel right." Rebecca chimed in. She led the group; Lucky, Gabriel, Natalia, Sundae, Gabriel’s date Persephone and Hunter followed armed with purpose.