by Wilde, Rhea
With the van completely stocked, we locked it up. Before we got inside, I noticed that Vaughn was standing there and looking out into the city. His head was held high and he looked lost in thought.
“Can you sense them?” I asked him. “Are they out there?”
He closed his eyes for a second then exhaled a deep breath.
“I can feel… something. But they are not here. Let’s go. Quickly.”
We hastily made our way into the van. I couldn’t lock the door fast enough. I sighed a deep breath because we managed to make it this far without getting killed. But I couldn’t completely shake the feeling that there was something out there waiting for us.
Irvine navigated his way through the streets and we lost ourselves in the traffic.
“Have you ever heard of anything like this before?” I asked. “A wolf with a sweet tooth…”
“I don’t know wolves long enough to know their personal tastes, Ms. Everhart,” Irvine said to me. “But there are wolves of all shapes, sizes, colors, ages… Just like humans. It is an odd request but not completely unreasonable. I’m beginning to see why Cyrus was hesitant to speak to Sosa in the first place.”
“He is only a child,” Vaughn said. “For him to be in such a position already means that he is a strong Alpha. If we manage to fulfill his requests, this will significantly strengthen our alliance.”
“Maybe he’s so strong because of his desire for candy,” I said as I turned to look at Vaughn in the backseat. “You should give it a try.”
“Maybe, Ariel. But I only eat what you prepare for me.”
“Are you complaining about what I make for dinner?”
“No,” Vaughn smiled. “But maybe you could switch things up a little.”
“Really? Is that what you think about my cooking? Vaughn, why didn’t you say something then?”
“I’m not complaining about your cooking, Ariel. I’m only saying that everything you prepare is from the same market. I…”
He shook his head and started to laugh. Even though it was the least of our concerns at the moment, it felt odd to hear this from Vaughn. He was usually open and completely honest with me.
“But you’re right,” I said to him. “I should look into cooking different things every night.”
“Ariel, you’re taking this the wrong way. I could eat spaghetti and drink lemonade every night forever. I love it.”
“Now you’re just trying to make up for it.”
We began to chuckle at one another. I stared at Vaughn and despite everything we had been through, his smile was still as gorgeous as ever. I was exhausted and beaten but I’d rather be here than anywhere else in the world.
“Vaughn, I—”
Crash.
The windshield of the van shattered. I put my hands up to shield myself from the broken glass. The van swerved off of the road and into an alley.
“Ariel!” Vaughn shouted.
I lowered my hands and looked at the werewolf that had caved-in the hood of the van. I screamed as he snarled at me. Irvine raised his crossbow up next to me and fired at him, knocking him off the van. But just as soon as the werewolf fell off, another leapt onto the van in his place. The metal roof above us started to bend. I looked behind me and could see the werewolves chasing us through the windows.
“Ms. Everhart!” Irvine shouted at me. “You have to take the wheel.”
“B-but—”
“This isn’t a discussion! Switch places with me.”
I got out of my seat and did my best to work my way into the driver’s seat. Irvine loaded his crossbow and fired at all of the werewolves in front of us through the open windshield.
“Over there!” Irvine yelled “Into that forest!”
I did as I was told. I listened to the sound of the wolves now piling on top of us. The van was beginning to slow down. I pressed my foot down on the gas pedal as hard as I could as I weaved in and out of traffic.
Vaughn made his way to the front of the van and switched places with Irvine. He swiped and slashed at all of the wolves that kept on landing on the hood. Irvine stabbed at the roof of the van with his blade, trying to hit all of the wolves that were jumping on top of us. Despite no longer being in the city, the wolves didn’t relent.
I was forced to slow down as I made my way through the forest. The large van could barely squeeze between the trees and the wheels could barely get any traction on the dirt underneath us. I didn’t want to think about how many of them were after us. They didn’t stop. One by one, Vaughn would rip them off of the hood. One of them swiped at me. I screamed out in pain as it tore my shirt and dug into my flesh. The sight enraged Vaughn and he leapt out of the van and onto the hood. He managed to maintain his balance and knock away each of the werewolves jumping at him while I drove deeper into the forest.
“Vaughn! Look out!”
I shouted out to him as a werewolf jumped onto his back. The two of them tumbled off of the van. I slammed on the brakes and brought the van to a halt.
“Ms. Everhart—”
“I’m not leaving him here!”
I looked at all of the mirrors but couldn’t see where they had fallen. Instead, I was greeted with nothing but the presence of other wolves. The fear was rushing through my body. My palms were sweating from how hard I was gripping the steering wheel. The cut across my chest was beginning to sting. But I wouldn’t drive any farther into the forest without waiting for Vaughn.
I listened to the sound of the wolves beginning to surround us. They were growling and fighting. I knew that they were struggling but I didn’t know which voice belonged to Vaughn. I started to fear the worst. Maybe they had already gotten to him. But none of the wolves were attacking the van. I made my way out of the driver’s seat and stood next to Irvine.
“You have to help him!”
Irvine nodded his head and made his way out of the van through the windshield. With his blade in his hand, I watched him cautiously look around the forest. The wolves quickly converged on him and Irvine managed to slay them one by one. Even though Irvine was comfortable handling a blade, it still didn’t stop me from fearing for his life. And there was still the question of where Vaughn was.
Irvine managed to down all of the wolves that had attacked him.
“Where is he?” I shouted.
“I don’t see him. He must be far behind.”
“Well, we have to backtrack and get him.”
“Ms. Everhart—”
“I already said I’m not going to leave him here.”
Irvine sighed then nodded his head. I got out of the van and stood as close to him as I could. The forest was suddenly silent. Not only were the wolves quiet but there was no other sound in the wilderness. There was no shuffling in the trees and nothing hiding in the bushes. There was only the sound of the leaves being crushed underneath my shoes. The silence made my stomach turn.
“Where are they?” I whispered.
Irvine raised his index finger to his mouth to quiet me. We started making our way back through the path the van had traveled. I looked around for any sign of Vaughn or any of the other wolves but there was nothing.
Where are you? Not like this. Please, don’t leave me.
Suddenly, I saw something shifting underneath a pile of leaves in front of us. I rushed forward but Irvine grabbed me and pulled me back. He held his crossbow up and aimed at it as something started to stir. Without warning, a wolf suddenly burst out of the brush and tackled Irvine, knocking the crossbow out of his hand. Irvine struggled with the werewolf.
“Ms. Everhart… My crossbow…”
Irvine motioned for his crossbow. I hesitated to pick it up.
“Shoot him off of me!”
Irvine was pinned down to the ground. I picked the crossbow up. It was taking every ounce of strength to hold it up. But I couldn’t get a clear shot at the wolf. Irvine continued to struggle underneath the werewolf. He dodged every time it slashed at him. I closed one of my eyes and aimed at the wol
f.
“Ms. Everhart!”
My finger slowly started to press down on the trigger.
Please, don’t miss…
I squeezed the trigger of the crossbow. The bolt went flying through the air and collided with the trunk of a tree behind them.
“Shit!”
I lowered the crossbow to the ground but I couldn’t figure out how to reload it. As I struggled with it, a wolf suddenly came out of the trees. The silver and white wolf pounced on top of the werewolf and clamped its mouth down on his throat. The werewolf that was just attacking Irvine fell lifeless. The wolf turned to me and shifted back to the man we had been looking for.
“Vaughn!”
I rushed up to him and wrapped my arms around him. I let out a deep sigh of relief into his chest and he embraced me just the same.
“It’s okay,” he whispered to me. “They’re gone.”
I squeezed Vaughn as tight as I could. The forest remained silent except for the sound of me weeping against him. When I looked up at him, there was a smile on his face.
“I thought I’d lost—”
“Come on,” he said. “We’re not finished yet.”
I nodded then wiped the tears away from my face. Irvine finished dusting himself off and picked his crossbow up from the ground. I looked back at the path I had driven through the forest and saw the trail of bodies upon the floor.
When we got back to the van, I could finally notice how much of a beating it took. There were dents all over it. The glass from all of the windows was shattered. Steam was beginning to rise through the hood, which was about to fall off at any second.
“The Agency’s not going to want this van back, are they?” I asked.
“It’s New York, Ms. Everhart. They’ll understand.”
Chapter 16
“Let me get this straight…”
Sosa paced back and forth in front of us, stroking his chin. I grew nervous because of the serious look on his face. If I didn’t know any better, I could swear that he was angry with us. I stood between Irvine and Vaughn. We waited for Sosa’s response after we told him everything that happened.
“…You filled a van up with everything I asked for then drove it through the Bronx and into the forest while fending off an attack from the Nakas?”
I looked at Irvine and Vaughn and waited for either one of them to answer. But they remained silent.
“Now the Nakas know exactly where we are.”
“The van is still—”
“I don’t care where the van is now. I don’t think I’ve ever even seen a single member of the Nakas clan in this part of the forest.”
Sosa cut me off before I could reason with him.
“You were serious,” he continued. “They really are out to kill you. But you risked your lives for me. All for a bunch of candy…”
He slowly walked up to me and stared at me with his burning gray eyes.
“Boy, you really are desperate.”
He suddenly burst into laughter. He returned to the two ladies that flanked him on each side and wrapped his arms around their shoulders. They all had big smiles on their faces as they enjoyed our apparent brush with death. I looked at Vaughn and Irvine in confusion.
“Do you really think that we’re that desperate for candy?” Sosa said.
“Wait… You mean, you don’t even want it?” I asked.
“Sure, I’ll eat a piece or two,” he chuckled. “But do you really think our clan’s allegiance could be bought with a van full of candy?”
He started to laugh even harder. One of the ladies placed a small candy bar into his mouth and he chewed on it ravenously. I was still dumbfounded at everything he had just said to us.
“We risked our lives for this stupid candy and you’re not even going to eat it.”
I could feel myself growing more upset. After everything we had been through, he didn’t even want it.
“I said I’d eat it,” he said. “But this wasn’t about candy.”
“Then what was it about?”
“I said you risked your lives. Why you did it is not as important. Just as long as you did it for me. And because you did, that means you’re strong. I like that.”
“So, you were just testing us.”
“In a way.”
“Then we have your allegiance?” Vaughn asked.
“I said two favors,” Sosa said with a smile. “The candy was just one.”
“Then what’s the second favor?”
“Please. There’s no need to hurry. You’ve been through a lot. Sit. Relax. Have a piece of cake. There’s plenty to go around.”
He started laughing even louder. Along with the two women he was with, he moved to the side of the cave. Together, they laid around and enjoyed the sweet snacks we had gotten for him.
“So, now what?” I asked Vaughn and Irvine.
“He’s right,” Irvine said. “We can afford to take a break. You need to recover our strength. Even for just a moment. Besides, there’s nothing we can do now. He’ll tell us what his second favor is when he feels like it. We might as well enjoy the comforts of this place.”
“Well, it is a nice change of pace from sleeping in the forest…”
We found a spot at the edge of the cave that wasn’t occupied by any of the Capes. I took a seat against one of the walls and Vaughn took the place next to me. Irvine sat across from us and together, we all finally started to relax. It felt like we had already been through so much. But there was still a long way to go.
I looked around and noticed that the men in the cave got a hold of the candy we had gotten. It wasn’t until then that I realized how hungry I was. My stomach was completely empty and beginning to cave-in on itself. Watching the rest of them fill their bellies made me jealous.
“Figures,” I muttered. “We head out into the city and all of the negative stereotypes of New York are the ones we encounter.”
“What do you mean, Ms. Everhart?” Irvine asked me.
“We’ve seen nothing but violence since we got here. I barely got a glimpse of Times Square. I just… It’d be nice to get a slice of pizza or something. I’ve never had pizza in New York before.”
“What’s the difference between pizza here and back home?” Vaughn said, his face both confused and curious.
“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “But any kind of pizza sounds good right now. Just a big, greasy slice with gooey melted cheese and big pieces of pepperoni and—”
“Ms. Everhart, you’re not exactly helping matters,” Irvine said. “We do need to eat but if you’ve gone this long, you can go a little longer.”
“I know… It’s just…”
I sighed as I tried to remove the thoughts from my head. Irvine laughed at me as I wrapped my arms around my stomach. Vaughn leaned in closer to me and pulled me into him.
“I’ll get you something,” he whispered to me. “Not now but I will.”
“It’s not important, Vaughn. I was just letting my mind wander for a bit. At least I wasn’t thinking about anything else.”
“I still owe you,” a voice suddenly said to us.
I was bundled up against Vaughn when we heard the voice right next to us. All of us turned and looked at the man standing there. It was the man that we had saved earlier.
He looked much taller now that he was standing. His skin was dark and his hair was the same, short and cropped close to his head. His eyes were gray like the rest of his clan. His pupils were much richer compared to the other gray-eyed men that were in the cave. The darkness of his skin allowed me to see all of the features of his body much better and he was just as fit as the rest of the men in the cave. The wound on his arm was now closed with a huge scar in its place.
I was about to stand up to greet him when he held his hand up to stop me.
“Please,” he said to me. “You’ve already done enough. Sit. Relax.”
He took a seat next to all of us. His calm demeanor was warm and inviting. It was nice to know that th
ere was at least one other person in the cave that didn’t mind our presence.
“My name is Rio,” he said.
“Yes, Sosa told us of you,” Vaughn said. “Call me Vaughn. This is Ariel. And he’s Irvine.”
“Ah, yes, the hunter.”
“You’ve heard of me,” Irvine asked.
“You have quite the reputation, Mr. Gold. You should know that.”
“And what reputation would that be?” Irvine raised an eyebrow.
“Let’s just say that I was surprised to learn that you were responsible for saving my life and not ending it.”
Rio and Irvine smiled at one another. Then Rio turned to me and gave me a curious look.
“It’s not often we have humans in here,” he said.
“Not often?” I asked. “So you do have humans in here?”
Rio laughed then started to shake his head.
“A human, a hunter and a lone wolf,” he looked at all of us. “I should say that this has never happened before.”
“Desperate times call for desperate measures,” Irvine said.
“And nothing says desperate like risking your lives for the Alpha of the Capes because he wanted candy. Let me be the first to say that I apologize for his behavior.”
“Apologize?” I asked.
“Look at him.”
We all turned and stared at Sosa at the side of the room. He laid on his back while the two women lavished him with their tongues. Their bodies pressed up against him, each of them taking turns to please every inch of his body. Sosa’s eyes were closed and there was a grin on his face. The light from the torches in the cave illuminated a man that looked like he didn’t have a care in the world.
“Sosa only believes in one thing,” Rio told us. “Being a wolf is a gift. So he lives his life just like that. He indulges every single one of his instincts when he can. That’s all he knows. He doesn’t care about the lives of others. Even his brethren are secondary to him, except for his queens. If you were to ask him, he would say he’s carefree. Others would say he’s sinful. Regardless of how you view it, that’s what you must understand about him.”
