Pack Bound

by Holly Hook

  Matthew lives on the same side of town as Olivia, and I jog through the blustery chill, crunching leaves that have gathered near storm drains. I can confront him without an issue and demand the pendant back. He won't tell anyone a short girl stole from him.

  But when I reach his house, I find his BMW gone. His father's Hummer has vanished, too. The BMW might still be in the shop, but a few sniffs tell me that no one's home. Matthew and his dad must have gone out for the day on some expensive trip.

  I pace, waiting and waiting as the daylight dies.

  Soon, the moon peeks over the horizon. Only a tiny sliver is missing, and already the pull tugs at my insides, begging me to run on four legs. I shrug, casting it aside, but it'll be stronger tomorrow night. Much stronger. It's just another reason I don't want to go to the dance.

  After waiting and pacing and looking suspicious for an hour, I depart from Matt's house and head to Noah's. Noah lives two streets over, in a more modest two-story home, and I knock on his door. He answers with a grin but the pain's still in his eyes.

  "Hey," I say as he lets me in. I glimpse his parents watching TV. "You still want to go to the dance tomorrow?"

  "We're going with you," Noah says.

  "You know, Olivia might not even be there," I say. "I overheard her talking about losing the necklace she thinks Cayden gave her, and she doesn't want to look bad in front of him. So she might not go. And there won't be a point to our revenge." I have to save Noah and Ellie. Even if Cayden's going to handle it, I can't stand aside and do nothing.

  "But we don't know," Noah says. "And I'm still going. Ellie and I agreed to keep you company."

  "Thanks," I say. A part of me doesn't want to drive them away, but a bigger part has to protect them. "But I'd rather be at the dance alone for this. I need to think about Cayden."

  The hurt in Noah's eyes deepens. He narrows his gaze at me. He's lost all hope of Olivia and now his best friend is pushing him away, too.

  This is what it means to be a werewolf.

  And it will for the rest of my life, no matter what Leonora and Remo say. Instead of being a part of things, I'm locked away all over again.

  "Brie, we're still going, even if you don't want us to," Noah says. He forces a grin. "You can't stop us. And with Cayden treating you the way he is, you deserve to have someone in your corner."

  Everly and Remo are the approved people, and they won't even be there.

  I'll be alone.

  "I'm not saying I don't want you to go," I say. "It's just...I'm worried about things and don't want you to get caught up in them."

  "Worried about what? Matt? He's out of the picture at least with Olivia."

  "Noah, you're a great friend. I couldn't ask for a better one," I say. He won't give me yes for an answer. He won't stay away, so the best I can do is make his final safe night one where he isn't in too much pain. "I'd love to have you in my corner."

  * * * * *

  "Is the day of the full moon always going to feel like this?" I ask Aunt May the next morning.

  I'm ravenous. Even my nerves about tonight don't stop me from getting out four pans and making a huge breakfast for the two of us.

  "I imagine it is," Aunt May says. Her own stomach rumbles. "This is the first one I've experienced, to be honest."

  I keep forgetting Aunt May never allowed herself to turn at all until the Baltic Wolves. She shuffles around the kitchen, nervous, and gets down a coffee mug. Then she shakes her head and returns it to the cabinet.

  "You know, you fought pretty well at the clearing," I say. "And that was the first time you turned?"

  "Yes."

  "Nobody commented on how you fought," I say, intrigued and terrified. "You killed a Savage, and you were just as new as me." What if my father's family were some kind of super werewolves? Maybe that's why the Savages keep trying to get into Breck: they fear us. They want to eliminate every trace of our line. My thoughts turn to Leonora and her family's desire to find a cure for the condition. And that my father's family paired with my mother's, the hunters. There's more to my hometown than I ever thought. Maybe the Savages' fear that the Nobles are trying to clear the world of werewolves has a basis.

  "I'm not young anymore, so the Lowes didn't expect that to be my first shift," Aunt May says.

  "Makes sense. What if we're, like, more powerful than other werewolves?"

  "I don't see why we would be," Aunt May says. "Then again, I--"

  "Never asked about it. We have something here that the Savages want to get rid of."

  Aunt May gulps and gets her coffee mug back down. "You're too smart, Brie. I fear the same. I've been thinking about it for a while now."

  "And Leonora says she's working on a way to make werewolves normal," I say. Though I won't mention it to the Lowes, I will to Aunt May. "Remo was asking about it."

  "The poor boy used to be human," Aunt May says.

  "Everly told me his story."

  "She told me the truth, too. But Remo doesn't like to talk about it."

  "And neither does Cayden," I say. My mind hasn't stopped spinning with ways to help him. How do I make him realize he did the right thing?

  And how do we get him back?

  I'll prove myself. Again.

  It will all end tonight.

  “Cayden was the one who turned Remo, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “The two of you are having problems because of it.”

  “That, too.” I face Aunt May. She leans on the counter. “I wish I knew what I could do to help him. Everly doesn't know how."

  “Sometimes, people are hard to help,” she says. “It might be Cayden's responsibility to work things out. Maybe Everly isn't relying on you. She might not know what else to do. Cayden only listens to you.”

  “He used to. I can't even tell him anything anymore,” I say.

  “Brie, you always want to solve everything for everyone else. Me included.” Aunt May gives me a weak smile.

  Who else does Aunt May have? As far back as I remember, it's only been the two of us. No pressure.

  “It's my nature,” I say with a grin. Then I go back to frying and I stir the gravy. The kitchen fills with breakfast scents. “Maybe Olivia won't even go to the dance.” Perhaps I should try to relax for a couple hours after the dance begins. I won't be the only one on patrol tonight.

  “Brie, things will turn out okay,” Aunt May says, putting her hand on my shoulder. “There are five of us.”

  “Or more,” I say. “Did you know Leonora's family used to help the hunters and the Noble Wolves? I overheard Remo talking to her about a cure.”

  She sucks in a breath. “So the rumors about a family of witches in Breck might be true, then. Your father said they lived in the woods, but he didn't know where. We thought they were just telling stories.”

  “I don't know about witches, Aunt May.”

  “We exist.”

  I stir the gravy again, watching the sausage mix with the cream. “Good point.” Could Leonora do witchcraft? It might explain all the weird herbs in her locker and the fact that she gives them out to people. “Should we ask Leonora?”

  “It might be an awkward thing to ask.”

  “Come on. She knows what we are. Remo transformed in front of her. I think we should bring up the subject and see what she knows. Our family might have forgotten why the Savages keep trying to come into Breck, but the Russels might not have. They're tied to us.”

  “Leonora comes into the store tomorrow to work. We can ask her after you get out of school.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” We need answers before the Savage Wolves destroy us.

  And we have to make it through tonight first.

  Without letting the human residents know we're here, and without dying. Easy enough.

  Aunt May and I finish breakfast. Though it fills me up, my stomach growls again about fifteen minutes after. I march up to the bathroom and splash cold water on my face, eyeing myself in the mirror. The tug follows, beggi
ng me to give in and shift, maybe even hunt, but I grip the sink, shaking.

  It's not as if I haven't done it before.

  But I fear another reaction like the one I had with Matthew. I have to be around people tonight and if he's there, I might do the worst.

  And I fear what I might do to Olivia tonight.

  My phone buzzes. I jump, remembering I've put it on the sink. I pick it up to see it's Noah texting me.

  Want to grab lunch before the dance? Wait til you see my costume.

  He finishes the text with an evil face. Sure, I text back. We're in this together.

  Noah texts back and says he gets to borrow his mother's car for the night, so he can pick me and Ellie up.

  And I hear nothing from Cayden. I know what he's planning, and it's the worst. This could be Olivia's final night.

  At least Noah will be safe after the fight, I think.

  Devastated, but alive.

  He pulls into the driveway as my stomach gives another rumble. The tug comes again. The moon won't even be up for hours. What if I can't hold out that long?

  I get into the car to find Ellie already in the passenger seat. She's a nature fairy with a wreath of flowers around her head.

  And Noah's dressed as an old-fashioned cop with a bowler hat. He looks back at me and grins.

  “What's so funny?” I ask. “Are you carrying a box of doughnuts, too?”

  “Better.” He turns and lets me see his chest since I'm in the backseat.

  Noah's glued a name tag to the front of his police hat that reads Cop A'Fiel.

  Then he points to his button-up blue shirt, which has a second name tag on his right pocket. In tiny print, the bronze pin reads Matthew.

  I explode into laughter and Ellie does the same. The tug vanishes and I'm just Brie, sharing a moment of stupid humor with my geeky friends.

  “Isn't that slander?” I ask as I wipe away tears.

  “Not if it's true. I'll just say this is a random pin I found in the attic. It's not like I got one of those grocery store ones with the huge name.”

  “Be careful,” I warn. “We don't know he won't show up to the dance. I think he asked Devyn.”

  Noah starts the car. “At least Olivia won't be with him.”

  “Thanks for reminding me,” I say, lowering the mood in the car a few levels.

  “I didn't mean to go that way,” Noah says. “Now, lunch. I wish we had a doughnut place in town.”

  We go to Teeyah's, where I gorge on carrot cake. It does little to solve my hunger. Sweat sneaks in between my fingers as Ellie watches me.

  “Hungry?” she asks.

  I can only nod.

  How am I going to focus at the dance? Every hour brings me closer to the inevitable.

  I want the lunch at Teeyah's to last forever, but after some small talk and checking of my phone for Cayden, we move on. Next stop: school. We'll get there early since I have to help staff and set up, but that will help me patrol the area and see what's going on. And it leaves a few hours before dusk.

  The parking lot is bare and Mr. Saffron isn't here. I smell nothing unusual. Cayden's scent rides on the air when I get out of the car. Should I even talk to him or just let him handle this on his own? Aunt May might tell me to stay out if he wants me to, but I can't do that. This is my problem, too, and my friends in danger.

  The only unlocked doors of the school are the ones closest to the gym. The dance staff, other drama kids, two teachers, and some random people with nothing else to do this Sunday mill around and move the refreshment tables into place. Two girls ready the ticket table while the stereo platform remains empty. Fake ghosts hang from the periphery and lights already glow, casting the gym in orange and purple. I wish I were here to enjoy myself tonight.

  “Where's your costume?” Noah asks.

  “It's in the props room,” I say. “And it's nowhere near as funny as yours. Unless you count feeling like an old lady.”

  I go to put on the witch costume, leaving Noah and Ellie to mingle with the other people setting up. But before I step into the props room, way on the other side of the school, I freeze.

  Rotten wood and dirt lingers in the air.

  Upon smelling it, the tug returns, urging me to transform and find the source. But on the next breath, the scent has vanished.

  Gripping the door, I listen to the narrow props room for any breathing or other movement. Nothing. Somewhere far in the school, a locker slams—someone must put away homework they've done over the weekend. Sniffing again, I pick up nothing but fabric and musty cobwebs hanging in the rafters of the props room.

  Was a Savage Wolf in here?

  I have to find Cayden.

  He's not in the halls when I check, but testing the air tells me he's just outside, in the parking lot. In my witch costume, I step out and find him in his mad scientist gear, complete with large, creepy glasses I can't see through.

  “I smell a Savage Wolf,” I tell him, all business.

  “So did I. But whoever it was is gone now.”

  “They're coming into our territory?” I ask.

  “More likely, the infected smell like Savages now. It's the day of the full moon and they're probably feeling strange.” Cayden speaks without looking at me.

  “Makes sense,” I say, trying to ignore the pain in my chest. “One was near the props room earlier.”

  He gulps. “Olivia. She must be getting the scent now. She's been looking for her pendant. Olivia told me it was her phone because she didn't want to disappoint me. But I could tell she was lying.”

  So now he's keeping me in the loop. “She was."

  “I know you didn't want things to go in this direction.” Cayden sighs. “I'll try to just drive her out tonight, but the Wolf in me might have other ideas after what happened to my family. Sorry, Brie. I know you don't want to see Noah get hurt, so I'll make sure you're not the cause. You did the best you could.”

  “Cayden,” I whisper.

  His hazel eyes fill with pain. “I'll make sure she doesn't come back. This should have turned out better for you.”

  “It's okay,” I say, which is about the worst thing I can muster. “Cayden, none of us could do anything about this. Pure silver pendants are rare and Matthew got in the way. We both did the best we could, so you need to stop beating yourself up.”

  “I failed you.”

  “You did not. You're doing your job.” It kills me to say it. But I'm relieved I won't have to kill Olivia tonight. Cayden's taking that burden on himself. But another part of me hates that.

  I might not hold back for Cayden's sake.

  He eyes the pavement and says nothing.

  “Look, we will get through this,” I say. “And we both know I'll help whenever I can. You shouldn't have to do this alone. We're supposed to be a pack and work together. Let us share the burden."

  “You should have been alpha, not me.”

  “Can females even be alpha?”

  “It's rare, but it can happen.”

  “You can step up, Cayden. I know it.”

  He forces a smile. “You know, we might be free to be together again after tonight,” he says. “But the question is, would that be good for you?”

  No one else gets me like Cayden does. “Yes,” I say without hesitation. “It would.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Cayden and I patrol the parking lot. More like, we stand on either side of the school entrance as people arrive.

  Cars pull into the lot starting at four, leaving us a few hours of daylight. My stomach roars again and I have to dive into the school to steal some cookies, but they do little to calm things down. Out there, Aunt May, Everly, and Remo are getting ready to patrol town, searching for any new Savage Wolves to drive out.

  They don't have to worry about risking everything in front of all these people, people who are just here to enjoy a dance. As the time inches past four, and the sun lowers in the sky, the crowd coming in through the doors thickens to where everyone's sc
ents merge, making it impossible to tell if a budding Savage Wolf is coming through the doors. Makeup cakes the air as more fairies, Hersey's Kisses and, girls wearing animal ears and low-cut tops enter the school. The guys smell more normal except for some cologne. I spot a submarine sandwich and a few serial killers in hockey masks.

  “Do you smell anything?” I ask once the crowd thins for a moment.

  “Nothing,” Cayden says. “It's impossible with so many people here.”

  “Great,” I say. “Do we have to watch for someone convulsing?”

  He frowns. “Maybe. I'll get Olivia out of here before it happens.”

  At least we're working as a team now, even if Cayden wants to handle the last moments alone. But will Olivia even follow Cayden since she now knows what's up? Panic explodes in my chest and makes my heart race.

  “Brie? You're scared.”

  “I don't want to blow my cover in front of all these people.”

  “You'll have a warning for when you need to leave.”

  “What if someone turns into a Savage Wolf on the dance floor?”

  “Best case,” Cayden says, “is to pull a Superman move and find a phone booth. Just let no one see you turn. A new Wolf might feel scared and confused at first, which will buy you time.”

  “All we have are bathrooms.”

  He snaps his attention to the parking lot. “She's here. And it looks like Matt's tailing her. I must stay by her side so he doesn't get hurt.”

  I follow his gaze. The red convertible has arrived and Tiffany's getting out. I smell tons of makeup. Olivia's caked it on as if trying to mask her scent. She gets out of the backseat, dressed up as an angel as if trying to convince everyone she is one. Tiffany's wearing red devil horns and Alesha's just put on some bunny ears. A few spots away, Matthew's BMW, now fixed, parks. Ted gets out, minus a costume, and Matthew does the same. He glares at Olivia. He's come to the dance to intimidate her and ruin the experience. And maybe to pick up another girl afterwards.

  “I'll meet her,” Cayden says. “Otherwise, things could get ugly.”

  “Matthew doesn't deserve protection,” I say. I don't want to see Cayden holding her hand or dancing with her, but to keep everyone else safe, it's necessary. Just for tonight.