Willow

by Amy Richie

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The Hunt

  I felt obligated to ride with Carlie when she drove the other girls home and then back to her house. She offered to take me home, too, but I refused. I was aching to run free, my body shaking with the need. "I'll walk from here," I told her with a shaky smile.

  "You want me to go with?"

  "No!" She jumped at my sudden forcefulness, but still managed a smile to make any guy melt. "I'll be fine."

  "Will the boys meet you?" She glanced around me in an excited way.

  "Um … " I crinkled my nose. Carlie was a strange breed of human girl. "We need to talk about them," I called even while I was backing away from her.

  "Yeah?" She grinned wider. "When?"

  "Not tonight," I chuckled. "I have to go." She nodded but seemed no closer to going inside her house where she belonged.

  "See you at school tomorrow?"

  I nodded slowly. "Yeah, I'll be there." I turned to go, but hesitated. "Carlie?" I didn't look at her but I knew she was still standing there. "Thanks." I took off at a run, waiting until I was out of sight before morphing to all fours.

  I was alone in the night, the others were probably waiting for me at the cabin, but it wouldn't take them long to figure out where I was. Exhilaration pumped through my veins and I flung my nose into the air a few times. I had never before howled at the night sky as I had seen Bella's boys do, but I felt a sudden urge deep in my chest that I couldn't deny. With a deep breath, I let out a long, loud howl upwards. The effect was amazing.

  I leapt into the air; for once in my life I was completely content being a wolf. Maybe being at the Lounge with the "normal" teens had been a good lesson for me. I wasn't normal, and that was a good thing.

  An answering call pierced the air. Gage! Before I could call again, more howls sounded. I cringed at the racket they were making but I couldn't squash the happiness I felt when I heard them. I tore off through the woods, gaining speed as the trees thinned into a long empty field. The boys met me there and fell into formation behind me with Gage close to my side.

  "What took you guys so long?" I teased. There was a loud growl behind me, followed by a chorus of short yelps and barks. I threw my head up with a laugh but refrained from any more howling.

  My feet felt lighter than ever as we nearly flew across the field and back into the woods on the other side. I stayed in front, although the boys could have easily outrun me. We were all happy now, but the lesson learned with Carlie would not be so easily forgotten.

  I slowed down only when the trees began to thin again and we were close to another town. A large animal moved a few miles to our right and we effortlessly changed paths to hunt it down. Mine were the first teeth in the deer but the boys helped bring it down. They sat back and waited for me to eat my fill and then finished themselves.

  Full and content, I lay down and enjoyed the feel of the boys cleaning my muzzle and paws. It wasn't anything like letting Bella's boys, this was a feeling of deep contentment. I was almost sad when they were done.

  "Did you enjoy your time at the Lounge?" Gage asked.

  I was surprised to see him back in human form. Reluctantly, I joined him before answering. "Not really," I admitted with a smile.

  "It didn't have anything to do with Lindsey and Aubrey, did it?" Tyson asked nervously.

  "Yeah." I laughed, embarrassed at my possessive feelings now that we were far from the girl's clutches.

  "You don't have anything to worry about, Willow," Colby assured me loudly. "We only have eyes for one girl." He winked.

  I rolled my eyes but flushed with pleasure. "Yeah, right," I grumbled, "Lindsey and Aubrey are … "

  "Annoying," came a chorused response before I could finish complementing them.

  "Kind of," I agreed with a happy nod.

  "The only thing they talked about was who we were taking to prom," Tyson complained.

  "That's months away."

  "Prom?" I almost laughed again, but it fell short. Would I be going to prom?

  "Most definitely," Steven exclaimed. Was that actual excitement I saw shining in his eyes?

  I grinned stupidly back, drunk on these feelings that I had never fully felt before. Was this what it was like to be a leader? What would happen when I left? Would I ever feel like this again?

  "Where are you going?" Jed asked, worry creeping into his eyes and voice.

  "No where," I said a little too fast.

  "Wherever you go," Rueben warned, "we'll just follow."

  "Don't think you'll get rid of us," Rodney teased.

  Rodney sat closest to me, his side crushed into my own side in an effort to be closer, but it didn't bother me. In fact, I was comforted by his closeness. He kept a tight hold of my hand as if he was afraid I would run away.

  Gage's grey eyes twinkled in the bright moonlight. When they caught mine, he smiled softly - lovingly. My heart felt like it could quite possibly explode. He sat farthest away, but I felt closer to him than any of the others.

  "I don't want to be rid of you," I teased back, squeezing his hand reassuringly.

  "I think I'll go with Carlie to prom," Rueben voiced his thoughts. "If you don't mind," he looked to me for permission.

  "She would like that," I smiled.

  "What about you?" Jed asked. All the boys looked at me with expectation shining in their grins.

  "Me?" My nose crinkled slightly. "I haven't really thought about it. I probably won't go."

  "You have to go," Tyson insisted.

  "Right of passage," Jed added.

  "What is a prom?" Gage asked with a small smile.

  "It's a … dance." I blushed at his intense stare. I knew who I wanted to go with, but I was sure Gage would never agree to go to some stupid high school dance.

  "I … don't really know how to dance," he admitted, "but if it's important to you, of course I'll go."

  "You will?" my voice lifted in hope.

  "Yeah," he looked slightly uncomfortable, "rights of passage and all."

  Jed laughed loudly. "Thata boy!" He thumped him heartily on the back.

  "We'll teach you to dance," Rueben offered.

  "That should be … enlightening."

  I joined in their laughter at Gage's expense, but he smiled good-naturedly.

  

  We lay there in silence for a long time, each lost in the silence and our own thoughts. I leaned further back against a tree that was offering me support. Is this what Bella felt like with her pack? It was hard to imagine, but she must feel the same. Bella hadn't always been with her boys, though, she had taken the pack from someone else. The only other leader my boys had known was Noreen and I couldn't be sure how much she influenced them.

  "Noreen was a good leader," Rueben said suddenly.

  "What?" I was startled out of my quiet revere.

  "Noreen," he reminded me of my wandering thoughts, "she would have been a great leader."

  "If she'd had the chance," Steven added.

  "Maybe," I agreed with a half-scowl.

  "She was careless," Rodney said.

  "She grew complacent, thought she was invincible," Jed joined in the conversation that I hadn't meant to start.

  "But she wasn't."

  "Andros got to her."

  "No he didn't," I denied with a shake of my head. My heart tensed up at the thought of who really killed Noreen.

  "We know that Mikhaul killed her, but he was acting on orders from Andros."

  "How do you know any of that?" I demanded from Rueben.

  "You told us," he reminded me.

  "I told you that … he killed her; but he doesn't work for or with Andros. Mik … He doesn't like vamps any more than the rest of us." Was I actually defending Mikhaul's name?

  "You can say his name, Willow," Gage called lazily.

  I rolled my eyes at him, Gage never worried properly about anything. "Fine. Mikhaul killed Noreen, not Andros."

  "Andros ordered it, I'm sure of it," Rueben i
nsisted. "And one day he'll pay."

  My eyes narrowed to thin slits and I turned to look at Gage, who didn't appear the least bit troubled. "How much do you actually know about Andros?"

  "We know enough," Rodney fired.

  "What do you know?" I persisted.

  "We know he is a vampire," Jed replied and grinned. I involuntarily grinned back. Jed always had that effect on me.

  "And that he's the leader," Tyson added.

  "He's not the leader," Gage corrected before I could. "There are no leaders."

  "He's just one of the stronger ones," I told them.

  "He took over the ancient city," Rueben took over the conversation and everyone else fell silent. "He took it from the wolves of long ago. They thought they were safe inside the city, but they weren't."

  "It's said," I continued. "that an ancient race of elves owed the wolves a favor."

  "For saving one of their daughters," Gage added the part that I didn't know.

  "So they created a charm around a village. A powerful charm that keeps the village hidden from anything other than the wolves."

  "The village became known as the ancient city."

  "But Andros found it?" Obviously the boys didn't know everything.

  "I don't know how he did, but yeah, Andros found the city and took it over."

  "There weren't enough wolves there to keep it safe. They never thought they would be in any danger since it was charmed."

  "And now," I concluded, "he stays there with his guards."

  "Noreen wanted to take it back," Steven stated.

  "Yes."

  "Why would the council not want her to?" I turned to Gage for the answer. "Why wouldn't the wolves all want to come together and take back what was rightfully ours?"

  "Those kind of thoughts are dangerous, Willow," he only half teased. "The wolves can't work together. It goes against who we are. One city to contain many packs?" He shook his head with a smile. "It was never going to work anyway. Let Andros have it."

  My smile froze in its place. How could Gage say such a thing? I had been raised by Bella, who made it a point to always stay out of any sort of conflict, and even she didn't want Andros to have the ancient city. What kind of wolf was he?