A Werewolf's Saga Books 1, 2, & 3 (A Werewolf's Saga Boxed Sets)

by Michael Lampman

  “It prevents the cells from transforming.” He smiled. “With all honesty, we don’t know the full process of how it does it, it just does.” His confidence showed again, more this time.

  She couldn’t help but blink. “It’s the cure?” She couldn’t believe that he would have kept such a thing from her, if it did what he said it did do. Why would he do that? Why am I wasting my time when they already have what I’m looking for?

  “Not exactly.” He placed both hands into the front pocket of his suit’s slacks. “It’s only temporary. The change comes again only a few days after the injection.” He looked from her down towards the floor. “We used to give it to him around the full moon. It would keep him human. It was our way of trying to control him.”

  “But it does keep the change from happening? It keeps him human.” She still couldn’t believe what she just said. If it did what he told her it did, it was her answer to all of her questions. Hope came strongly again into her mind, and it made it hard to control it. It meant that she could help Jimmy after all. It would make her able to help him stop it.

  He nodded. “It prevents it. The wolf will come out again after a few days.”

  She looked from the vial and back up to his face. The vial stayed up. She couldn’t let go of it. She couldn’t bring herself to do it. “Why didn’t you give me this when I came back here?” she now felt obliged to ask. Again, why was she wasting her time looking for something they already found?

  He breathed with one giant exhale of air. “I was going to.” He bowed his eyes. “I just did.” He smiled.

  She likewise winced. He wasn’t going to tell her the true reason behind what she asked him, she knew that, she felt it, and with his lack of wiliness to answer her, she just turned her thoughts over to what she had. She now had to look into it more thoroughly and see what it did, but more importantly, she wanted to see what she could do with it. If it prevented the change from happening, she might be able to make it permanent. It was just an idea, but one that was now more than worth taking. She had to take the chance.

  Watching her eyes move back to the vial, and feeling comfortable that he completed what he set out to do, Ross turned and left her side of the counter and walked back to the door. He stopped just as he opened it back up to the hallway beyond it and turned back to her with a smile. “I hope it gives you what you needed.”

  She heard him, but couldn’t bring her eyes off the vial long enough to look towards him. Instead, she kept her eyes down on the glass, and continued to watch the fluid dance inside it.

  Ross smiled one more time. “I never intended to harm him.”

  Hearing him, she looked up.

  “Please tell him, when you see him again, that I am truly sorry for what happened to him. Gary acted on his own accord. I tried to stop him. I tried so very hard to treat him well.” He turned and left. The door closed softly behind him and latched.

  With him gone, she finally breathed. Everything he said only made her blink. Frankly, she heard nothing. She felt too overwhelmed by what she now had. She just turned back to the microscope behind her, and took a deep breath. She had so much to do, that now, she had trouble in trying to decide what to do first. She had to start with something, so as she thought about it, she decided to see what she had first. She needed to know the compounds of the fluid, but to do that, she needed to find Amanda.

  She left the counter, almost ran to the door, and headed out to find her so they could start all over again.

  4

  It’s been too long. I should have found them by now. Gary crossed the city, heading down south. He had to get back to the hunt. The freak hadn’t shown up again at the house on 157th Street, and that wasn’t good. As long as they were still out there, and the longer it took to find them again, the longer it would take him to finish what he started. He had to find them and soon, and now he felt like time was running out. He had to think of something. He had to head back to that abandoned building over by the river, because if the freak wasn’t at one place, then he had to be at the other. It felt like the last place that he could think of to look. He wasn’t only running out of time, but now, he felt like he was running out of options too.

  Arriving there, not far from the Hudson River, he parked right out front. He no longer felt concerned trying to hide from them. It felt too late for that.

  He stood out of his car, made sure that his holster was on him, pulled out the automatic from it, and cocked the weapon. He felt ready, so he took a long and deep breath.

  He ran to the red door at the side of the building and opened it quickly. The wet dog smell perforated around him almost instantly as soon as it opened. God do I hate that smell. It smells like decay. It smells like death.

  He went inside, coming into the large open room behind the door, and there the smell became worse. It smells like rust and rotting dirt. The door banged closed behind him. He held the weapon out in front of him, using both hands to let it guide him to the center of the room. The echoing of the door’s closing was the only sound he heard.

  He looked around towards his right and then to his left.

  He saw nothing moving. He strained to listen, but still heard nothing.

  He left the center of the old factory floor and made his way to the back hallway towards the bedrooms, and ran to them with his military boots thudding along the concrete floor as he moved. When he reached the doorway to the hallway, which led to the back rooms, he looked inside.

  The hallway looked quiet. Again, nothing moved. Everything felt deserted. It seemed that no one was there. Even still, he had to make sure.

  He moved into the hallway, moving fast, and looked to the first door on the right. He then moved on to the first door on the left. He continued moving, checking every door, checking every room, but found all of them looked the same. All of them looked deserted. No one was home.

  Fuck! No one’s here. No one came back.

  He left the last bedroom doorway on the left and hurried back up the hallway, ran back out into the large empty front room, and stopped again in the center of the floor. Wherever they went, they didn’t come back here. That knowledge burned him. Now, he had only one thought left. If they didn’t come back here, and they didn’t come back to the place on 157, then I have to go back up north. I have to go back to the cabin out in the trees. They have to be there. There’s no other place to check. His limited options have coursed their way down to only two. He had to check out the lodge. If they’re not there, the only other option is to head back up to Redford Forge, and find Rachel. He would have to find her and hope she would lead him back to them. Something he hoped that he wouldn’t have to do. Rachel got in the way the last time. She could have been hurt. She’ll do it again. She can’t help herself. The thought made him feel right. He knew she would. She even fought him. She kept him from killing the freak. Doing so, she put herself in danger. He couldn’t let her do that. He wouldn’t. Maybe I won’t have to find her. I’ll head north. I’ll go back to the cabin. It was just a thought. It felt like hope.

  He left back out the same way he came in, ran back to his car, and climbed back behind the wheel. He started the car and took off down the road. He knew he had a long drive ahead of him. It would take time to get there. He had to finish this once, and for all.

  5

  They headed out in the early evening. For summer, dusk was still a few hours away, so the sun was still somewhat high, but it looked like it already started to set. With it edging down, it already began casting shadows everywhere. Soon, Sasha knew the walkers of the Albany area would be out and gathering for their nightly hunts. That’s what she would have done, if she still had her family. They would prepare. They would wait for the sun to go down, and then they would start the hunt. Knowing that, she knew they would have to move quickly, and get out of the city before night. Wolves were territorial. They didn’t like it when others crossed their territory. They would defend it to the death. They would defend their homes. They would defend
their hunting grounds. Knowing that, she knew they would see them as a threat. They had to move fast. They had to get through the city, and if they were lucky, they would do it before anyone knew they were there.

  After about an hour, they made it through Albany without any trouble. They avoided everyone, which helped. They kept their senses alive as they moved. They kept the wind coming from their respective lefts, towards the city, letting it carry their scents to the east as they traveled along the Hudson River and moved north. It must have worked, but still, they didn’t relax until they left the city and turned northwest.

  They moved briskly. They made it into the Adirondack Mountains a little after midnight. They kept going until they reached the little town of Old Forge a few hours before dawn. They continued on, coming to a dirt road out in the middle of nowhere, north of town, and there they headed back into the trees. The sun turned the horizon pink when they reached an old barn along the road.

  Seeing it, and finding it hard to see anything else, Jimmy’s thoughts turned over, and over again in his mind. “How much longer is this place?” They kept quiet for most of the day. For him, he kept his memories going back to that dark night in the trees—the night he saw the boy. Being there, in the middle of a dark forest again, made those memories come on even stronger than ever. He kept hearing the young boy calling out for help. He could see the boy off in the distance, through the trees, with his orange colored halo shining brightly around him in the night. It looked so bright; it felt so mesmerizing, that it almost didn’t look real. He could see himself moving around the trees, and approaching the orange color quietly, and then once there to him, just when he was about to reach him, the memory stopped. Then the memory faded, and again, he would see himself back on the road.

  For Sasha, she kept quiet because she felt like she needed to do it. She used the excuse that it was because she didn’t want anyone to hear them, but there was a little more to it than that. In all reality, she didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t force her thoughts to come together long enough to say anything. Therefore, she didn’t, and just kept quiet. She kept to herself. Being lost, and feeling her mind wander, at first, she didn’t even hear him.

  With her lack of an answer, he spoke louder this time. “Sasha? You awake?”

  “What?” This time she did hear him.

  “How much further is this place?”

  “Not much farther.” They walked side by side. The dirt road looked and felt completely deserted. She could tell that no one was around them for miles. Only the sounds of the bugs, calling through the trees were there. “His place is on the other side of the bend. He’s in an open field. You can’t miss it.”

  He looked back to the road. Just up ahead of him, he could see the road wind up a slight hill, and at the top of the hill, with the sky turning lighter, he could see a clearing where the road ended. Seeing that, he nodded. We’re almost there. The trees surrounded them everywhere. How am I going to react to seeing him again? The area felt so welcoming that he could almost taste it on the breeze. He took a deep breath, and with it, everything smelled relaxed. Everything smelled calming, almost soothing to the soul. Suddenly, and quite unexpectedly, he felt longing. He felt needing. I haven’t been here for years. He kept his eyes fixed on the road. The stones under his sneakers popped as he stepped. The sound felt familiar. He felt everything, but didn’t know what it meant. He still couldn’t remember him. He couldn’t remember his place. It felt like he just saw a ghost. He knew something was there, but he didn’t know what it was.

  For her, she couldn’t wait to see him again. She missed him more than she ever thought she would.

  They came to the hill, and began walking up it, having to lean forward some as they walked. Feeling his legs, it made him breathe again. With it, he felt even more relaxed. He felt calmer. He felt subdued. When they reached the top of the hill, they both stopped. The field looked large and opened up to tall green grass that looked like it stretched out for miles. Seeing the field, he suddenly felt warm. The feeling felt something like seeing home again. The town you grew up—the house where you played. He couldn’t believe it. This is his place. I know it. I feel it. He took another deep and cherished breath. It’s him. I’ve come home. It felt odd, feeling it. Even with that said, he still never saw the place before and had no memory of it.

  Sasha stopped, just at the start of the field and at the end of the dirt of the road.

  “Why are we stopping?” He looked to the center of the field. Within the tall green grass, he could see what looked like a small single sided mobile home sitting comfortably amongst the green. The smell of the area cast a different scent. It smelled of earth and of the weeds. With it all, it only added to the feelings that he had deep inside his heart. I’ve been here before; he felt so sure of that now. Realizing that, it also made him feel worried some. This is the first time I don’t have a memory to go with the feelings. I wonder why? I wonder why I can’t see him? I wonder what’s wrong.

  Sasha looked around the area and took a deep breath. On the breeze, she could smell something like sweet lavender. With the smell, it caressed her mind. It calmed her heart. It all smelled the same. She had to take it all in. She had to let it consume her some, before she moved on. “Do you smell that?” She closed her eyes and tilted her head up.

  For an instance, hearing that, his heart rose fast in his chest. Suddenly he felt nervous and overwhelmed. He felt like a battle was about to begin. He felt exposed. He felt like she was telling him that a fight was about to happen. He felt like at any moment a wolf was going to come running out of the trees after them. It felt strong. He felt almost sure of it. He spun around, looking to his right and then to his left. Seeing nothing, he spun back around behind them. Again, nothing was there. The area stayed quiet. Nothing moved. Nothing came running out after them. Relieved, he took another deep breath, and when he did, he did smell the must in the air, but with it, there was also a flowery smell mixed in with the must that made it smell different. It didn’t smell like a wolf, but instead, it did smell relaxed and even calming to his mind. Smelling it, he instantly did calm, and when he did, he turned back to Sasha. The smell came from her area. In fact, it came from the field. He could even tell that it seemed to be coming from the mobile home itself. The smell came so strongly to him that it almost brought him to a point of a hypnotic blaze of beauty.

  “I smell flowers burning in the sun. I smell the earth, filtered with the flowers. I smell calm. I smell an open earth.” He looked to her and felt her breathe.

  “It’s the smell of nature. It’s the smell of a wanderer.” She opened her eyes and looked back to him, and smiled. “It’s Kenny. Remember that smell. It will tell you when one of them is near you. It will help you distinguish them from other humans.”

  “Why is that?” His stare glazed over towards hers.

  “The smell of a wanderer is one with nature. They smell of flowers. They smell of the trees. When you smell that, you will know one of them is near you. If it smells calm to you, then he is a friend. If you fear the scent, they are your enemy.”

  He nodded taking everything she said deep into his mind. He could almost feel it wrap around his heart. She’s right. It all made sense. In fact, he already knew it.

  “He’s here.” She looked back to the mobile home off across the field.

  Before he could say anything else, she began again, heading away from him into the overgrown grassy field.

  He followed her, having to wade through the overgrowth with care. It felt like wading through heavy water. It felt like wading through stiffening air.

  When they reached the trailer and approached the only door at the left side of it, the smell of lavender only grew stronger. It smelled so strong that he could almost taste it. He had to remind himself to breathe. He just wanted to taste the smell. He just wanted to keep it in him, and let it consume his lungs. It tasted irresistible. It felt even more like life.

  Sasha came to the steps first that
led up to the front door. She climbed them, with Jimmy staying at the ground beneath them. The sound of old wood cracking beneath her came out strong and heavy, and when she reached the top step, she knocked on the door.

  Jimmy watched it all and breathed so deep that his lungs almost felt like they were about to burst open from the force of the air. Inside, he felt more than just winded. He now, more than ever, felt like he finally came home. The sounds are the same. The smells are the same. Nothing has changed in all of these years. He realized it. He felt back again. He felt so strong. He felt expecting. He felt right. He watched the door open, and watched with fascination in seeing him again.

  “Sasha?” Kenny couldn’t believe who he saw, standing on his steps, even though he already knew they were there. The excitement he showed for her was nothing when he turned and saw who was standing at the bottom of the steps behind her. When he looked at Jimmy, his waning face lit up almost like it became the sun itself. “Kalima? My God, is that you? Is that really you?”

  Jimmy smiled. The bright orange halo around him looked as bright as the sun. He could even feel its warmth caress his face. He looked to the old man and it dawned on him that he still couldn’t remember his face, but even with that said, he still felt, deep inside his belly, that he has seen him many times before. In fact, he even looked older to him. He looked warn out. The age of time did its job well. He looked like he was now in his early eighties. His long black hair had withered away to long streaks of white. His face looked torn, wrinkled beyond his years. He looked bent over some, and walked with a slight limp. He looked heavier with his belly protruding some through his red and black flannel shirt. Seeing him, he winced. He didn’t look like the man he once knew. He didn’t know why he knew this. However, he would ask all of that later, but for now, he just smiled and nodded. “Hi.”