Forbidded

by Adrienne Woods

  “This group is advanced.” The man swept out an arm. “Roger says they have an engineer who creates new contraptions and weapons for them all the time.”

  Their discussion circled the topic of Collin’s hunting team, vast in number and unfathomable in strength. Even so, how on earth were they planning to capture werewolves? Why did they want them alive?

  A chill ran up my spine. What sinister secrets might Collin’s past hold? He’d appeared friendly that day at the farm. Dad had always said, though, that all hunters suffered traumas, all were affected to some degree by the horrors of the job, all had a dark side. He’d be no exception.

  Did he loathe wolves so much that he tortured them before killing them? It was hard to imagine such vehement hatred.

  Sure, we had no love for the wolves, either. They were sadistic. But when we killed, we killed. We didn’t play with our targets. After all, they would escape or worse, kill one of us. Why would they want to find the Alpha of all of them—and take him alive?

  Dad was right. No way was this harebrained idea possible.

  Three brand-new, pitch-black trucks pulled up and came to a stop where all the hunters were milling around restlessly. Burly men—and a few women with attire like that of Liz and Emily—got out. Collin was among them. My sister’s lips tugged upward and her eyes zoomed in on the leader—or at least, I assumed he was the leader.

  One of the older men threw this assumption into doubt when he clambered up to stand in the bed of one of the pickups. With a high-pitched whistle, he called everyone’s attention. He was rather skinny for a hunter, close to Dad’s age, with dark, curly hair that reached his shoulders and a mustache adorning his upper lip. His eyes—as dark as his hair—were friendly.

  When the group had settled down, he cleared his throat. “My name is Greg. Thank you all for coming.”

  Nods, murmured hellos, and tentative smiles trickled through the group in reply.

  “I know most of you think we’re nuts for wanting to capture werewolves alive. But I promise: if you do it our way, all our travails will be history. We recently discovered that a single Alpha dominates all the wolves, and each pack Alpha submits to him, as opposed to each Alpha holding absolute autonomy as once believed.”

  Murmurs greeted this. It flew in the face of centuries’ worth of knowledge and training.

  Greg allowed the ripple to die. “He has been off the grid for a long time and we need all the wolves, and I mean all of them, so we can find out where he is. If we kill the Alpha, every wolf will die. He is their main creator. I strongly believe a single hunting team is insufficient for this task. We need everyone’s help.”

  A woman raised her hand.

  “Ma’am?” Greg smiled.

  “How do you expect us to capture them?” Her question struck the vein of concern that ran through everyone’s minds. “They are skilled at getting out of contraptions. They’ll turn right around and kill us instead.”

  “Not with our contraptions.” He grinned confidently.

  Collin and the guy who had accompanied him to our farm joined a few other younger men and opened the cab of one of the vehicles. They took out a silver chest and opened it to remove a silver net. It caught the scant light and dazzled us all. It was… otherworldly.

  My hand searched for my father’s without taking my eyes off the net. He squeezed my hand as Greg explained how the net worked. The silver in the net contained and weaken wolves for a period of time, allowing them to dose the wolves with tranquilizers. He held up a syringe filled with bright blue liquid. “This is called Stra-vain. It forces werewolves to shift back into their human form. Except when the moon is full.”

  “What do you mean except when the moon is full?” someone to the left called. “That’s the only time they shift.”

  Greg held up another vial, this one containing a brownish-red liquid the color of tea. “Ravain, the opposite of wolfsbane. A few years ago, the werewolves scientifically developed a method to bring the beasts out at will. You’re looking at the accelerant.” He slid the vial back into his pocket.

  “How do you know all this?”

  “I’ll answer that in a few minutes. But first, let me explain our plan to trap them.”

  He went on to explain that trucks would be waiting close by after the wolves had been hit with the Stra-vain. The trucks would be staffed by members who either weren’t of age yet or weren’t skilled at hunting; they just needed to be able to drive. Once the wolves were in their human forms, they would then be transported to a nearby facility to be interrogated about the location of their Alpha.

  “They won’t give something like that up easily,” Uncle Fernus pointed out.

  “They might not to you,” Greg said with a hint of smugness, “but we have ways to make them talk.”

  “And if they speak in Wolvain?” another member asked.

  Wolvain was what the SHA called the language the wolves spoke.

  “It’s called Mahur,” Collin answered. “It’s an ancient language.”

  Greg looked at his feet, the smugness solidifying into a smile.

  “How do you know these things?” my father asked.

  Greg tilted his head at Collin. “Collin can speak it.”

  “What?” a couple hunters exclaimed, amid gasps of surprise.

  “He can speak it fluently.”

  Collin averted his eyes and walked toward the truck.

  “Collin was lucky,” Greg said as we all settled down. “When he was little, a pack killed his family… including his mother, my sister. There was another pack nearby. A dormant pack. A she-wolf came to his rescue. She brought him home and raised him as her own.”

  More gasps and murmurs of surprise rippled through the crowd.

  I flicked my gaze to see how Collin reacted to such a secret being shared, but he’d slipped away while Greg was speaking.

  “What?” my father asked. I could tell from his tone that he was having a hard time believing this story.

  “I know it sounds farfetched, but if you’re skeptical, ask yourselves this: how does he understand their language? It’s not easy to learn, and I promise, no university teaches it. Fluency by immersion is the only explanation. In a way, Collin was one of them.”

  “A human living with a pack of werewolves?” another asked.

  Greg sighed. “I searched for him for years. A few years back, we ran into his pack… It wasn’t easy, but thankfully, he’s safe now, and he’s right where he belongs.”

  “That’s why you know so much about werewolves, isn’t it?” Emily asked.

  “It is. Collin knows it’s a curse. He agreed to help us track down the Alpha if we spared his pack.”

  A discordant chorus of voices rose: “What?”

  “Regarding what we all believe about them… Collin was raised by a pack, and they did an okay job. I promised I would do my best not to harm his pack. We need to find the Alpha and free all the innocent people the Alpha turned. The boy and I have a mutual understanding. If any of you do not want to take part in this, you’re free to bow out. No hard feelings.”

  One team of hunters left, the leader spitting in Greg’s direction as he passed. “This is a disgrace to the SHA. You call yourself a hunter?”

  “I do, Bob, one of the best. But I value life and free will, which none of these werewolves had when they were changed.”

  “Bah.” Bob waved Greg’s words away without looking back as he and his team stormed off.

  I looked at my father. His jaw was set and determined. I knew that look.

  We would not be leaving. It was time for a change. And with that came a slew of new things we needed to learn. Especially one: how to capture a werewolf without getting killed.

  Four

  Over the next few weeks, Greg’s hunting team taught us how to work their fancy equipment.

  I didn’t like most of their ideas, as they generally entailed using some of us as bait.

  Human bait.

  Greg had promised sn
ipers at all times, that no one who was acting as bait would get hurt, that his sons were great at what they did.

  To my horror, Greg wanted Liz to be bait.

  Fortunately, I wasn’t the only one terrified by this proposal; my father wasn’t happy about this either. But when Greg explained why she was perfect for it, I saw his point… though I was still wary.

  My sister was beautiful. A picture-perfect damsel in distress, but one who was fast on her feet with quick reflexes.

  Liz didn’t seem perturbed; in fact, she seemed to love the plan, probably because Collin was one of the guys who would always be close by, stepping in if she was in danger.

  I didn’t get to be bait; I didn’t even get the choice. My limbs were too short, I wasn’t fast enough, and the plain truth was that I wasn’t interesting enough to lure wolves into a trap.

  Theo and Will were tapped to be snipers. Theo was a great shot, but one of Greg’s members beat him in the last practice shot. Theo missed the bull’s-eye at 2,500 yards but the guy he was paired with, Tanner, hit it perfectly. They both scored among the top of the shooting division.

  I didn’t make the sniper team either. I could shoot well, but only at close range. I was skilled with knives, axes, swords—anything for hand-to-hand combat. That kind of fighting was dangerous but it was where I excelled. It was also where I’d failed numerous times.

  No, nothing glamorous for me: Useless Ru got assigned to the trapping team—operating nets with remotes—which was nowhere near as cool or exciting as my siblings’ tasks.

  But at least being on the trapping team meant I’d be okay if I received a vision.

  Because the thought of getting a vision while running for my life was terrifying, I embraced my duty with open arms. Better to stay on the sidelines than risk my own death in the fruitless attempt to entice one of the beasts.

  The trapping team’s training wasn’t as grueling as that of the other teams, but it wasn’t easy, either.

  Greg drilled it into us: we were the most critical team. Ultimately the mission depended on us. No matter how flawlessly the bait and snipers performed, we were the ones on whom success or failure hinged. Our task was the most important one: releasing the nets at the right time. It would take knowledge and gut instinct.

  As for those who were going to be bait? None would survive if we weren’t on top of our game. We needed to play our part perfectly. Lee, one of Greg’s daughters, as well as two of his sons and one of his nephews, were on the bait team. He had personal stakes like the rest of us, which went a long way toward my beginning to trust him.

  One wrong move, one slow reaction, could cost my sister’s life, or that of any of the others I was getting to know and like. This reality had me praying no vision befell me during a hunt.

  It also made me wish that I could tell someone about my gift, could tell them that I was an asset, but I couldn’t.

  The weight on my shoulders grew heavier and heavier. The more anxious I became, the harder it would be to hide my fears from my father.

  “Ru,” my father said.

  I looked up. My fork scraped over the porcelain of the plate as I pushed my food around, my appetite nonexistent. I sighed.

  “What is with you lately?”

  I shook my head, willing myself not to look him in the eyes.

  “Are you worried about tomorrow’s hunt?”

  I nodded.

  “Talk to me, Ru. Use your words.”

  “It’s not like you’re in any real danger, Ru,” Liz said. “You don’t have to run from them.”

  I shook my head, scowling. “It’s not that. Believe me, I would gladly take that run with you if I could.”

  It was the most I’d spoken in weeks, and I felt my family’s eyes on me as I refocused on my plate.

  “Then what is it? Something is eating at you. Since—” Liz stopped talking and I glared at her.

  “Since that night you almost died. It’s been two years, Ru. What happened that night? And don’t tell me it’s nothing like you always do. Something happened, and it kills me that you don’t want to share it with us. With me.”

  I wanted to. “I don’t know what happened. Maybe I’m not cut out for any of this.” I pushed away from the table and rushed to my room.

  “Ru!” Theo called.

  “Let her go, son. She’ll tell us when she’s ready.” Concern was thick in my father’s tone.

  I shut my door behind me and collapsed on my bed with a deep sigh.

  This was messed up.

  No matter how hard I tried to hide my secret, they would find a way to drag it out of me. I needed to tell my Dad something, but what could I say? That I wasn’t cut out for this? That would be a straight-up lie, because I was… in my own way.

  If Dad ordered me to sit out on future hunts, it would send me into spiral of darkness, because then I would be truly worthless, useless to the cause.

  I loved the adrenaline, loved the excitement, but I was terrified of getting another vision during a hunt, especially one where my sister was the bait.

  I groaned into pillow. My father wouldn’t let this go, not with the hunt being so close.

  A knock came at my door.

  He and I were so alike.

  I rolled off my bed and trudged to the door to open it.

  His hulking figure filled my doorway.

  I stepped aside so he could come in, and he took a seat at my desk chair, drumming his fingers on my desk as he waited for me to sit.

  I dropped down on the edge of my bed and tried to school my features so my face didn’t betray my worry and sadness.

  “Is it true? The way you feel?”

  Think, Ru, think. I looked past him. The silence was heavy, deafening, as I contemplated what to tell him.

  “I don’t know, Dad,” I finally said. “Liz is fast, strong—”

  “Everything she can be, Ru. You know this isn’t a contest.”

  “I know.” I sulked. “I feel so out of place in this family, Dad. You and Uncle Fernus are fantastic shots—so are Will and Theo. Me? Sometimes I freeze up and I don’t know what to do. What if I freeze on this hunt, Dad? Liz could die!” Tears formed in my eyes—genuine ones. Despite the rivalry, there was no escaping the fact that I loved my perfect damn sister.

  “It’s my job to worry about that, Ru, not yours. Concentrate on what Greg assigned to you. Nothing more.”

  “It’s not that simple.” I rubbed my hands hard over my face.

  “What’s going on here?” he pressed. “This is more than cold feet.”

  “It’s not,” I said too quickly.

  He sighed. “What Liz said is true, and you know it, peanut. You changed that night. Since then, you’ve become less talkative, more anxious. I can’t help if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”

  I shook my head. “Like I said, I feel out of place.”

  “Do you want to sit this one out?”

  “No, please don’t make me. I love hunting. I love the thrill. Besides, it’s natural to feel this way. Like, she is my sister.”

  “There’s a reason everyone at the SHA calls her the new Red,” he said in a consoling voice. “She’s brilliant at what she does. You can stop worrying, okay?”

  I nodded as if it could be easy to stop worrying. Nothing my father said eased my fears. I might have a vision when I needed to be on high alert, and that would compromise the entire mission—everyone would be in danger if my vision decided to come on at that moment.

  He got up from the chair and kissed my head.

  “We’ll be okay. I promise.”

  I nodded, and my father left.

  Tears flowed from my eyes. I couldn’t contain my frustration anymore. My secret was a heavy burden to bear alone.

  My family would never understand. They chucked Grandma Marie into a freaking institution because of her visions. They’d do the same to me. Why of all people was I the one to inherit her ability?

  As much as it had changed my life for the better
, I hated it. I hated that it could lead to the death of one of my siblings if my visions butted in at an inappropriate time.

  And if there was anything in the world I loved more than reading and hunting, it was my family. I wouldn’t be able to cope if my secret led to one of their deaths.

  The night of the hunt finally arrived. My uneasiness was at an all-time high.

  In the days leading up to the hunt, I tried to be more talkative, but I hadn’t had a vision, and it only served to increase my trepidation.

  The nights before the hunt were filled with planning and training… and with Liz and Collin getting better acquainted.

  It was easy to see that Liz was infatuated. The fact that he had been raised by a pack of werewolves intrigued, rather than repelled, her. She wanted to know everything there was to know about him.

  It shouldn’t have bothered me that my sister was taken with him, but something about this guy made it difficult to trust him. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

  But she was smitten and it looked like he was smitten with her, so I pushed my feelings toward him to the back of my mind.

  We sat around the towering bonfire. I hated these bonfires. Tomorrow night, the hunt would happen, and without my visions, I had no idea whether we’d be successful.

  I was watching Liz, unblinking, trying to work through the uneasy feeling I had about Collin, when it happened.

  The headache hit me right between my temples, and I tried to suppress a groan from the pain, because it was ten times worse than usual.

  “Ru…” my father and sister said.

  I groaned from the piercing pain. I got up, pushed past them, and muttered that I was okay. I stumbled toward my tent, but before I could get inside, the dizziness hit me like a tornado and I collapsed into my tent.

  My family wouldn’t come check on me; after all, I’d told them I was fine. I waited for the dizziness to pass and watched as the image in front of me changed.

  I thought of it as the pull.

  At first, it nauseated me because everything around me swirled and when it stopped, I wasn’t where I should’ve been.