The Last Werewolf

by Catherine Banks

  I took another step back when the grey cloak turned to me and my breath caught in my throat. He was handsome, with short brown hair, silver eyes, and a strong jaw. He looked to be about twenty, but I wasn’t sure if magic users aged differently, like werewolves did. I began brushing my cloak off, trying to hide my fascination when he spoke. “Are you alright, ma’am?”

  I stopped in mid-brush and looked at him again. “Yes.” I turned to leave and he reached for my wrist. I spun in a circle away from him and pulled my sword in the same instant.

  He dropped his hand and a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I was simply going to check you for injuries.”

  I kept my sword in my hand and backed two more steps away. “I appreciate your concern, but as I told you, I’m fine.” People were beginning to look at us, so I turned and headed down the street, away from the market and towards the pub. I could at least get a meal there for the night. I’d have to wait until tomorrow to get my fruits and vegetables.

  I stopped just in front of the pub and spun around, sword stopping just below the grey cloak’s jaw. “Why are you following me?”

  “What’s your name?” he asked in a conversational tone as though my blade wasn’t an inch from slicing his throat open.

  “Leave me alone,” I said through gritted teeth. I sheathed my sword and walked into the pub despite the foul stench I could already smell. The room was crowded and it took me a moment to find an empty table across the room. I maneuvered my way through the drunken men and rushing barmaids to sit in a chair against the wall at the open table.

  As soon as I sat down, the grey cloak sat in the opposite seat with a wide smile on his face, revealing dimples. “Mind if I join you?”

  I forced myself not to snarl and instead glared at him wishing daggers would come out of my eyes and fly into his. “Yes, I do.”

  He leaned back in his chair, balancing it on two legs and nodded his head. “It’s good that you’re wary, but you have no need to fear me. I’m Irving.”

  “I prefer to eat alone.”

  He looked around. “There aren’t any other seats and besides, in this crowded room you’re hardly eating alone.”

  I had three options. One, strangle him right here in front of everyone. Two, leave and try to eat somewhere else. Three, eat with him. I was tired, hungry, and when being honest with myself, it was nice to have someone eating with me. “Fine, but after this, you leave me alone.”

  One of the barmaids stopped to take our order. Irving smiled at her and said, “I’ll have three racks of ribs and two chicken legs. Oh, and a mug of ale.”

  Normal men didn’t eat that much. From what I knew, magic users were mostly human, so why was he eating so much? The barmaid was staring at me impatiently so I ordered, “Two racks of ribs and a mug of ale.”

  She sauntered away, cringing each time one of the drunken men grabbed her rump as she made her way. I pitied the women who had to be barmaids.

  “So, what’s your name?”

  I looked back at Irving and frowned. Why was he so interested in me? Could he have seen through my spell? Even if he had seen the spell, he wouldn’t know what it was for or be able to smell me. Maybe he was just being polite. “Lily,” I answered after a moment of deliberation.

  He smiled and brought his chair back to the ground, pushing his hood back off his head. “Lily. I like it.”

  “Glad my name pleases you,” I said mockingly.

  He laughed and my stomach flipped upside down. “You’ve a sense of humor. That’s hard to come by in women.”

  I realized I had started to smile and quickly righted myself. What was I doing falling for his charm? I scooted my chair back, farther away from him and closer to the wall. I started scanning the crowd, watching for any potential threat. He noticed my evasive maneuver, but for the first time, he let me be.

  Our ale came out first and then our dinner. I finished my ribs and eyed Irving’s food hungrily. It was hard to eat a human’s portion when I had a werewolf’s stomach. Irving noticed my staring and pushed a chicken leg towards me. I frowned angrily and folded my arms across my chest. To accept food from a male meant you were considering mating with them. I was not considering such a thing from Irving, no matter how nice he was too look at. Irving ignored me and continued eating his food. The chicken smelled delicious and my mouth was watering. My stomach grumbled. I picked up the chicken leg. Irving wasn’t a werewolf anyways, so he couldn’t insist I allow him to court me.

  The chicken melted in my mouth and I groaned happily as I ate it. Irving smiled, obviously pleased with himself and finished eating his food. I sat back in my chair and licked my lips to savor the last greases left from the chicken. I opened the small pouch of money I had on my left hip, but Irving beat me to it and placed money on the table.

  I looked up at him and frowned. “I can pay for my own food.”

  He smiled. “Consider it repayment for distracting my attacker and allowing me the chance to win.”

  I closed my pouch and nodded my head. “Fine. Thank you.”

  I stood up and quickly walked out of the pub and towards the woods. Irving yelled, “Goodnight, Lily. Perhaps we will see each other again.”

  “Not if I can help it,” I muttered quietly to myself.

  Once in the woods I felt better. I trailed my hands along the trees and took deep breaths to smell the forest around me. The sun was setting and the moon would be out soon, but I couldn’t play in her light tonight. I could rarely play in the moonlight since my kind were supposed to be extinct. I made it to my campsite alone finally. Books were burned along with most other human things when the vampires took over. Through my journeys, I’d come across two books and I read them whenever I could. The stories were about love and death, things I understood very well. I took out one of the books and started reading where I’d left off. I hadn’t gotten far when my eyes began closing.

  At midnight, I made my way back to the pub and cleaned faster than ever before, trying to keep my mind off of Irving and failing miserably. The owner paid me and the wife complained about me letting Irving pay for my meal, but I assured her that he owed me for saving his life. She finally dropped the issue and made me promise to come for food the next morning. I walked to my campsite and shook out my bedroll to ensure no creepy crawlies had climbed in while I was away. Once I was satisfied that I wouldn’t get bitten later, I started a fire. I stripped off my weapons and clothes and slipped on a nightgown before curling up inside my bedroll.

  The crickets chirped and an owl hooted in the trees nearby. It was nighttime and I needed to sleep now to keep my day time human habits. I put the book back with the other one and closed my eyes. Sleep was always welcomed.

  The snap of a twig woke me from my dream and I was up and out of my bedroll in an instant. I crouched down and listened for a sign of the intruder that had woken me up. Another twig snapped to my right and when I turned I saw a small girl, no older than ten years old, collecting wood. I sat down on my bedroll and calmed my breathing. The girl looked up and noticed me for the first time. Her eyes grew big and round and she stopped moving. “I…I’m sorry, Miss. I didn’t know anyone was out here.”

  I smiled. “It’s alright, child. I just prefer to sleep out here on warm summer nights. Go on about your wood collecting. You’re not bothering me.”

  A blush covered her cheeks and she scurried off towards the road. Smart girl to be wary of strangers, even female ones.

  I stood up and stretched my muscles. Sleeping on the ground was always so uncomfortable in human form. I quickly redressed, wearing a red shirt underneath my black cloak since today was the day Aiden had been murdered. As I slipped my shirt on, a small rabbit darted out from under his bush and tried to run across my campsite. I pounced on him before he could get away and snapped his neck. Silly rabbit, you cannot escape the wolf’s clutches, even while she’s in human form.

  Roasted rabbit was wonderful for breakfast. I found
some berries nearby and then set to work preparing the rabbit for roasting. The monotonous task let my mind wander while I worked.

  There was something about Irving, something not like other men. It wasn’t just that he was handsome, I’d seen plenty of handsome men. There was something primitive about him. Some part of him that called to me. It made no sense since I was not a magic user like him, but I felt safe near him.

  It had probably just been because he was the first person to approach me and show any kind of interest in me in a year. I knew I couldn’t let myself dream about him because I would never be allowed to be with a man. Sooner or later they would find out what I was and then they’d report me to the vampires and I’d be on the run again. Or dead.

  Besides, at only eighteen, I was hardly old enough to be thinking about mating. At least mom had always said not to choose a mate until I was twenty. Mom. Dad. Aiden. I missed them more than anything else in the world. I would give up rabbit meat for life if I could have just one day with them.

  I shook my head to clear the thoughts and refocused on preparing the rabbit. Once the rabbit was ready and sizzling over a new fire I closed my eyes and listened to the forest. Birds had begun singing and a breeze shook the leaves on the branches. It was nearing midday, I’d overslept. I ate the rabbit quickly and made my way into town to work at the pub and to once again try to purchase my fruits and vegetables.

  The pub owner nor his wife were in, but I cleaned anyways, knowing they’d repay me later. It was strange that the wife wasn’t there when she’d made me promise to come for breakfast, but I ignored it and left the pub to make my purchases.

  The town was bustling with excitement and people murmured nervously.

  What is going on?

  I had to dodge people as they hurried from one place to another, which was not normal for this town. I’d chosen this town due to its calm people and the fact that hardly anything ever went on. A crowd was gathered in the market place and I had to push my way through them to get to the merchants to purchase my items. The merchants only paid half attention to me as they sold me their items. By the third merchant I’d grown irritated and asked, “What has everyone so worked up today?”

  The merchant said, “You haven’t heard?” I shook my head. He leaned closer and whispered, “One of the townspeople saw a wolf in the forest. They’ve called a Hunter to come hunt for it and he’s arriving today.”

  “Why would you need a Hunter for a simple wolf? Any farmer can kill a wolf.”

  He frowned. “Thickheaded aren’t you, girl? It’s because it’s a werewolf.”

  Fear clawed its way up my spine. “That’s impossible. All of the werewolves were killed,” I said in as even a voice as possible. My fear probably only proved my humanity to the man though.

  The man shrugged. “That’s what we all thought, but the person swears they saw the wolf change back to human, but they couldn’t see who the werewolf was to identify them.”

  This was it. I had to go. I hadn’t changed last night, but maybe the girl had seen the wolf in my face. Maybe I hadn’t realized I’d started to change. Or maybe someone had seen me at the last moon and the Hunter was just now arriving. Whatever the case was, I couldn’t be around a Hunter. I had to go.

  I handed the man his money and smiled. “Thank you.”

  I started pushing my way through the crowd when a hand caught my elbow. I jerked back in surprise, but the hand remained on my elbow. “I seem to have a knack for startling you.”

  I swallowed and nodded my head, turning to face Irving. “You do, Irving. Now, if you please, release me so I can be on my way.”

  Irving kept his hand on me and whispered, “You’ll want to stay and watch.”

  I shook my head and pulled out of his grip. “No thank you. I have things I have to do. I’m leaving today.”

  Irving shook his head. “No. If you leave today the Hunter will think you’re the werewolf simply because you’re leaving. Wait a few days.”

  I glared at him. “Who do you think you are ordering me around?”

  Irving tilted his head to the side in a manner so like a werewolf that it made me gasp. “I’m just trying to help. I wouldn’t want a pretty young woman like you to get hurt simply because of a misunderstanding.”

  Pretty? He thought I was pretty? I opened my mouth to tell him thanks, but I was leaving, when the crowd silenced and everyone stilled. The only sound that could be heard was the hooves of two horses clopping on the ground as they made their way down the road. I could smell the Hunter from here and my fear grew. I pulled one of my daggers out and stepped slightly behind Irving. Irving glanced at me and then at the dagger in my hand and frowned.

  The Hunter asked, “Where is the person who saw the werewolf?”

  An elderly woman with grey wispy hair stepped forward. “I saw the wolf.”

  The Hunter dismounted and tossed the reins of his horse to his apprentice. It was him. The same Hunter and apprentice who’d killed Aiden. I took a step backwards and Irving caught my wrist. “Stay still,” he said softly.

  His hand on my skin disturbed the spell I was wearing. Irving looked at my wrist and then at my face. His eyes widened and he dropped my hand. I turned away from him and quickly whispered the spell to fix what damage he’d done. I wasn’t a magic user, but I could perform simple spells such as the one that covered my scent.

  I turned back around and Irving stepped back so that he was standing beside me. He whispered, “I think you and I need to talk.”

  The Hunter was scanning the crowd as the woman recounted her story. His eyes stopped on me and widened slightly. He shook his head and looked back at the elderly woman. “It sounds to me like it’s a male werewolf, if what you saw is accurate. Alright, I’ll start looking at dark, but I don’t believe there are any werewolves left alive.”

  The crowd began dispersing and I turned and made my way towards the forest. Why today? Why of all days did this Hunter have to come here? Wasn’t it enough that he’d taken my brother, my last packmate from me? Now he was here to torture me again and to try to find a werewolf. Irving followed me. I waited until I was inside the cover of the forest and turned to face him. “Please, just leave me alone.”

  He shook his head. “You can’t stay camping out here.”

  I glared at him. “And why not? I’ve been out here for two months and been perfectly safe.”

  “That Hunter is going to be scouring the woods looking for the werewolf. If you’re sleeping out here, he’s going to attack first and ask questions later.”

  “I’m not scared of that Hunter.”

  Irving arched an eyebrow. “Really? Because when you saw him you started trembling. Usually when you aren’t scared you don’t tremble. Or perhaps I have that mixed up?”

  “Perhaps you do.”

  Irving ran a hand down his face and sighed. “You’re stubborn. Look, I understand you have some haunted past that makes you not prone to liking men, but you have to understand that I’m not here to hurt you. I’m trying to protect you from the Hunter and possibly the werewolf, if one does exist. Please, just gather your things and stay at my house. I won’t try anything with you. I’m just worried for your safety. You do understand that men are naturally protective of women, so this is really just a natural instinct.”

  His words made sense, but I got the feeling that he had an ulterior motive for wanting me near him. Some natural instinct was telling me that much.

  I chewed on my lip nervously and then heard the Hunter talking loudly to his apprentice nearby in the woods. “Fine, but if you try anything, I’ll cut off your manhood.”

  Irving smiled. “Agreed.”

  I walked quickly to my campsite and packed up all of my gear. I made sure to hide my books in the bottom of my bag so he wouldn’t find them. Just having books was a crime punishable by death.

  We stopped by the pub and I explained to the owner that I’d have to come the next morning and not that night. He seemed pleased and smiled bright
ly as Irving held the door open for me to leave. I got the feeling that soon the town would be gossiping about my “sleepover” with the warlock, but I didn’t care much about that. As long as they thought I was human and safe, that was all I cared about.

  Irving led the way to a small house on the outskirts of the town, near the river. His house was very close to the spot I’d seen the man fishing, but I doubted he had been that man. He held open the door and I walked inside. The house was small, but well kept with clean floors and hardly any dust on the furniture. Irving directed me towards the hallway and a door on the left. “You can sleep in this room.” He pointed down the hallway to a door on the end. “That’s my room.” He pointed across the hall from me to another door. “That’s the bathroom.”

  “The bathroom? You have indoor plumbing?” I asked in shock.

  Irving smiled. “I allow myself certain perks as long as no one else finds out. I trust that you won’t rat me out to anyone.”

  Trust. It was such a hard concept for me, but then again, I was being very trusting of Irving when he hadn’t really given me a reason to trust him.

  I set my things down in the bedroom and turned to face Irving. What was it about him that made me want to trust him? I’d only been on my own for a year, so I couldn’t be starving for attention that much. Was it a spell? “Did you put a spell on me?” I asked.

  Irving shook his head. “No. I swear I haven’t done anything to you, except partially mess with the spell you already have and that was an accident. By the way, why do you have a spell covering you?”

  “That’s none of your business.”

  Irving just shrugged. “Alright. Sorry. “Are you hungry?” He asked.

  “I could eat.”

  He smiled. “I noticed at the pub. You have quite an appetite.”