by Amy Richie
“About?”
“Gage,” I said quickly.
His face fell for just a second and then he smiled. “Because he won’t teach us to fight?”
“I have to figure out a way to convince him.” We needed Gage. The boys were obviously strong, but they needed guidance.
“Maybe I can talk to him.”
I turned quickly to see if he was kidding. He didn’t appear to be. “No. I … ”
“Hey Willow!” Lindsey pranced up to our small gathering. “Rueben,” she smiled.
“Hey Lindsey,” I responded automatically. Knee-jerk reaction.
“Did you practice?” At my blank look she sighed loudly. “Your cheer?”
“Crap!” With all the talk about Mikhaul, and the probability that he was coming to Grover to slaughter my pack and me, I had completely forgotten about my cheer. “It’s not until next week, right?”
“Monday, but you need all the practice you can get.” She winked at Rueben then took me by the hand and led me towards the school.
I glanced back once, but Rueben was the only one by the car. He wasn’t watching me. I tried to see who he was looking at but Lindsey pulled me to attention. “You’ll never guess who I saw at the Lounge last night.”
“What’s a lounge?”
“It’s a club, for teens. It’s the only place to hang out in Grover.” She bent her head closer to mine so she could lower her voice. “Carlie was there.”
“Last night?”
“Yeah.” She clearly wanted me to grasp some vital information from this fact but I saw nothing unusual with Carlie going to the only teen hang out in town.
Finally Lindsey grew impatient with how slow I was. “She was talking about werewolves.”
I sucked in a quick breath, making me choke and gasp for air. “She was?” I hissed.
“I heard her. She’s sticking to her story that they are real and in Grover.”
“That’s … ” No words would come to me. None that would accurately define how I felt.
“I know. I can’t believe that we were once friends.” Lindsey’s lower lip jutted out. They had only been not friends for a few days but I didn’t point that out.
“It’s weird how fast people change,” I muttered almost to myself.
“Aubrey yelled at her last night.” Lindsey smiled tightly. I couldn’t tell if she agreed with Aubrey’s actions or not.
“What did she say?” It was like a demented hole I was jumping into, the inner workings of teenage girls. I probably should have backed slowly away from the edge and considered myself lucky, but I hung onto Lindsey’s every word.
“She told her she was crazy and that she needed to go home with her crazy dad.”
“Is her dad crazy?”
“Yeah,” Lindsey giggled. “Carlie’s dad claims that his oldest brother was bitten by a werewolf but he didn’t die.”
“He didn’t?” I tried to sound like I didn’t believe any of the story, but the breathlessness of my voice might have given me away.
“No. He said that his brother turned into a wolf.” She had dropped her voice to a loud whisper.
I laughed a little hysterically. “Crazy family.”
“What about your family?” she asked suddenly.
“They’re not werewolves,” I blurted out.
Lindsey laughed loudly. “I know that.”
I felt my shoulders relax. “Then what about them?”
“Rueben said you live with your uncle.” I nodded slowly. “What happened to your mom and your sister?”
The gossip mills at Grover high were like living creatures that required live sacrifices from time to time. I had to wonder why Lindsey all of a sudden was interested in my family. “She wasn’t really my mother.”
“Yeah, but if she adopted you doesn’t that make her like responsible for you?”
“She didn’t really adopt me either. I was just staying with her for a while.” That was almost the truth. And if omission of truth could be considered the truth, it was the entire truth.
“Oh.” Lindsey licked her lips nervously, probably upset because I didn’t give her anything good. No child abuse or prostitution. “Do you miss them?”
I saw Ivy as she had been the day she left and I realized with a jolt that I actually did miss her. “Yeah.”
Lindsey regarded me quietly for a moment then her face lit up excitedly. “Aubrey!” she screamed, waving her arms wildly.
I was so focused on my sister that I didn’t realize she was actually addressing Aubrey until she came to join us outside the front door. “Ladies,” she greeted.
“Hey Aubrey.” I put as much enthusiasm into my voice as possible.
All around us groups of students were standing around exchanging plans for the weekend. “You going to the Lounge after the game?” Lindsey asked.
“Of course.” Aubrey smiled brightly.
“What about you, Willow?”
“You in?”
The thought of running into Carlie outside the schedule of classes helped make my decision easier. “I can’t.”
Lindsey’s face fell dramatically. “But why not?” she moaned.
I don’t want my pack to hunt without me? I’m afraid of large crowds? I don’t want to run into Carlie? I want to make up with Gage?
“I … uh,” it was really hard to come up with a good excuse on the spot, “my uncle grounded me.”
Aubrey rolled her eyes. “Adults are always so obsessed over being in control.” They both still looked upset, but not at me.
Rueben came up behind me and casually draped his arm over my shoulder. Would it seem rude to knock it off? “Hello ladies,” he grinned.
“Rueben, are you going to the Lounge tonight?” Lindsey asked, already forgetting about me.
“I wouldn’t miss it.” He winked. “You want me to pick you up or are you just coming to the game?” He was looking at me so I assumed he was addressing me. Still, I couldn’t control my stupid response.
“Me?” He only nodded, still wearing that cheesy grin.
There was a darkness smoldering in his deep eyes. Was he really that angry because I was with Gage? I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him, no matter how uncomfortable he made me.
“She can’t go,” Lindsey said in the awkward silence.
“She’s grounded.”
Rueben’s eyebrow twitched slightly but in an instant his face fell. “That’s too bad, what did you do?”
I felt the blood rush to my face but I still didn’t look away. I swallowed nervously. “Stayed out too late,” I said tightly.
He clicked his tongue and shook his head sadly. “What were you doing out so late?”
Finally having enough I spun on my heel and left him standing alone with Lindsey and Aubrey.
I made sure not to stomp into the school; I just walked forcefully. I saw Steven watching me from the water fountain but I didn’t acknowledge him at all. I had probably hurt his feelings but I didn’t care.
I nearly ripped my locker off its hinges when it tried to be stubborn. I growled under my breath when it slammed against the locker beside me. “Stupid … ” I muttered.
“Are you mad at me or the locker?” Rueben was suddenly leaning next to me, grinning that infuriating grin.
“What the hell is your problem?” I shoved hard against his chest.
“Geez,” a boy walking by whispered to his friend.
“Must be a lovers tiff,” the other one sniggered.
My ears burned at the assumption but Rueben only smiled. I sucked in a breath but didn’t act on my rage. “My problem?” He tilted his head.
“What were you trying to prove out there?”
“I was concerned. I wouldn’t want Gage to be unkind to you.”
“Mmmm.” I smiled way too big.
“What did you get grounded for anyway?” His feigned concern had me clenching my fists again.
“I just don’t want to go to the Lounge.”
“Why
not?” He really looked like he didn’t get it.
“Hanging out with a bunch of teenagers doesn’t appeal to me.”
“You know,” he bent down to collect my English book and my copy of Pride and Prejudice from my locker, “you could try to act like a normal kid your age. You are, after all, only seventeen.”
“I’m not normal.” I plucked the two books from his hands. “And neither are you.”
“At least I try to fit in.” His voice remained insanely calm.
That was it, I decided, the werewolf gene had made him insane. “Why try to fit in when I was made to stand out? Isn’t that how the saying goes?”
“I am fairly certain that the saying only applies to normal teens.”
“And who are you to decide in which parts of my life I get to be normal?”
Already kids were stopping to see if there would be any bloodshed. I needed to get to class. With an obvious effort to breath normally I turned from Rueben and started towards English.
In a swift movement Rueben was close behind me and he wrapped his arms around me. “Careful,” he whispered in my ear, “your fangs are showing.”
Heat started low in my back. I swallowed back the bile that had risen in my throat. My whole body was shaking with my rage. I brought my arms up and fiercely broke Rueben’s grip on me so I could turn around. My eyes were wide and I could only breathe out of my nose.
Rueben took a step back, realizing too late that he had pushed me too far. “Willow?” His tone had lost its cockiness.
“I don’t have fangs,” I growled.
I half-ran to the girl’s bathroom and flung the door open. Rueben couldn’t chase me in here. It was irresponsible and ridiculous to let myself get so angry at school. I splashed water on my face. I needed to cool down. What was wrong with Rueben anyways? The girls here worshipped him. Couldn’t they see what a jerk he was?
“You ok?” a voice asked from a couple of sinks down. Green eyes flashed curiously in my direction.
All my anger dried up instantly. “Carlie. I didn’t see you in here.” Did my voice sound too high?
“You didn’t seem like you wanted to be interrupted.” She smiled softly.
Carlie was different somehow. She was still the prettiest girl in the school, but it seemed as though someone had pulled all the plastic Barbie off of her. She was wearing faded jeans that rested comfortably on her hips and a brown shirt with a blue UFO on it.
“I’m ok,” I assured her without moving my lips.
“All right, but if you need to talk to someone … ” She shrugged and left me to hyperventilate in the bathroom alone.
Chapter Fifteen
Lessons Begin
I refused to ride home with Rueben and since no buses went out to our cabin, I resigned myself to walking. The boys didn’t want to let me walk home alone. Rueben sped off in a dust of anger while Rodney, Steven, Tyson, Colby, and I started our long walk.
“You should have just gone with Rueben,” I huffed as we crossed Main Street.
“Walking is good for us.” Steven pushed his unnecessary glasses up on his nose. His voice, like always, was calm. It held no hint of accusation or even teasing.
“We can’t let you walk alone,” Tyson added.
“I think I can handle myself.”
“Gage would kill us.”
I bit my lip and turned away. “He’s mad at me right now so maybe not.”
“Why is he mad at you?”
“I want him to teach us to fight.”
“We already know how to fight.”
I rolled my eyes. Why were all boys the same? “We need to learn better skills to help us beat Mikhaul when he comes for us.” All four boys nodded solemnly. I was glad that they seemed to be taking the threat of Mikhaul seriously, Gage on the other hand was not.
Thoughts of Gage made me suck in a deep breath through my nose and let it out slowly. He was wrong to not try to teach us. If Mikhaul came now he would destroy us.
Main Street was a bustle of small town activity. People walked lazily to and from different shops. They didn’t bother to lock their car doors and they had a ready smile for anyone who passed them. An old man rode his motorized wheel chair to the front of the pharmacy and lumbered off of it. A kid I recognized from school held the door open for him as he slowly, so slowly, made his way inside.
A black car pulled up into a parking place a few feet in front of us. Rueben. I ground my teeth together.
“I don’t know why you’re so mad at me,” he called lazily.
I didn’t grace him with a verbal response but I did glare his way as we passed. “Come on, get in the car. Let me drive you home.”
Not a chance was I riding with him. If he couldn’t even understand why I was mad, no way was I going anywhere near him. Rueben needed to start realizing he wasn’t a normal teen. He never could be again. He went out of his way to irritate me every chance he got.
If he was in Bella’s pack she would have already sent him away. He was lucky I was such a lousy leader.
Once we reached the outside of town we ditched our bags and morphed so we could get home faster. A few miles from the cabin Jed and Gage joined us. I felt a small twinge of guilt that Rueben wasn’t there, but I shrugged it off and pushed myself to go faster.
The wind rushed musically across my coat, lulling me into a false sense of security. My pack was behind me, Gage was beside me; nothing could ever hurt us.
We stopped at the stream to drink after running for almost an hour. Rueben was waiting for us there. I growled my warning. I wasn’t ready to forgive him yet; in fact, as a wolf the irritation was much stronger.
He dropped to his belly and whined, tossing his head once or twice. I stubbornly kept my position. He crawled close to me and Gage flew at him. Gage’s teeth clamped down on Rueben’s hind leg, making him yelp. His ears flattened against his head and he stayed on his belly.
Satisfied that he had learned his place, at least for today, I relaxed my stance. He ducked his head under my chin submissively, thumping his tail on the ground.
“Let’s get home.”
The pack followed me back to the cabin. During our run we’d caught rabbits so I didn’t feel the need to hunt again tonight. I morphed back first but didn’t stick around to see if the rest had followed. I bolted inside to find another outfit to put on. I hoped Aubrey and Lindsey wouldn’t notice if I never wore these jeans again.
“Hey.” Gage tilted his chin in my direction when I came back in the living room.
“Hey.”
“I could give you some pointers on morphing,” he offered.
“Oh, you’re agreeing to teach me something?” I knew my voice was whining, but I still felt put out with Gage from this morning.
“I’ve been thinking about that.”
My head jerked up. “And?”
“I’ll teach you guys to fight.” It seemed like he had come to this decision at great personal sacrifice.
“You will?”
“Yeah.”
“What made you change your mind?’ Like I cared, as long as it was changed.
“I want you to be able to protect yourself and the pack needs to be able to protect you.”
I’d take it. I ran the short distance to him and flung my arms around his neck. “Thank you.” I kissed his lips quickly. “This is a good thing,” I assured him when he still looked uncertain.
“Go tell them to be ready at the clearing in ten minutes,” he said shoving me away.
“What’s the clearing?”
“They’ll know.”
He followed me outside but morphed quickly and disappeared behind the cabin. I watched him go with a mixture of emotions. I was glad that Gage had finally agreed to teach us to fight but he so clearly didn’t want to. Maybe I shouldn’t have guilted him into it. What if he hated me because of it?
“What was his problem?” Rueben asked with a scowl.
“He’s teaching us some fightin
g skills.” I clapped my hands together. “He said to meet him at the clearing in ten minutes.” My voice rose in question.
“Excellent!” Jed exclaimed with a wide grin.
“So you know what the clearing is?”
“Beside the stream, about a mile out.”
I traveled the distance in my mind. Yes, it was a clearing of sorts. It was where we always stopped to rest after a hunt. It wasn’t very clear though, several trees still stood to offer shade.
“You guys need to listen to everything he says.” Rueben rolled his eyes but the others listened intently. “Gage is old so he knows a lot about fighting.” He had survived for this long on his own, he had to be a good fighter.
“Plus, he works for the vamps,” Rueben said slowly. “I’m sure they have taught him a thing or two.”
Shocked silence pervaded. “He works for the vamps?” Rodney looked like he was going to be sick.
“He works for the council.” I didn’t really see much of a difference either but I had to defend him. Rueben just looked at me, not quite a glare on his face. “We need to get going,” I said quickly. Why was Rueben always trying to irritate me?
In just a few minutes we were all running for the clearing. My steps kept pace with my heart. I had never seen a fight among wolves. Bella’s pack was fairly submissive, rarely ever fighting for anything. If they did have to fight Bella hid Ivy and me away to keep us safe.
Gage was lying in the clearing, his black fur glistening in the sun. He immediately jumped to attention when he saw us. He rubbed his muzzle against the side of my neck.
I laid down under one of the massive trees, ready to just watch. It surprised me when Gage morphed.
“The most important thing is to know your enemy,” he began without any fancy preamble.
“How are we supposed to know them?” The boys had also morphed back and were watching Gage as if he were a teacher at school. A teacher they didn’t like.
“There are things you can learn in only a few moments.”
“Wouldn’t it be better to just attack right away?” Steven asked.
“Go in with guns blazing.” Jed grinned.
“Take them by surprise.”
“They’ll never know what hit them.”