by Stacey Mewse
Suddenly feeling very exposed, Audra felt the fur on her nape bristle. She looked about nervously, her nostrils working furiously to try and determine the age and direction of the scent of Varulv. Her tail sunk between her legs and slowly hugged tighter and tighter to her belly. He was very close by, and his scent was stationary. He was watching her.
Gulping audibly Audra began to back towards the trees she had emerged from as fear gripped her in its icy fingers.
A deep voice rumbled out of the darkness ‘Going somewhere my love?’
Audra stumbled and yelped, backing away faster. She was desperate to turn and flee, but she needed to see him to be able to judge if escape was a viable option or if she would have to stand and fight. When she yelped a throaty chuckle seemed to surround her. The wind was playing tricks on her, though he smelled as though he had not moved, his voice implied otherwise.
Unable to speak in her lupine form she stopped dead and growled into the darkness.
This intensified the laughter that rang in her ears.
‘That’s not very nice now is it…?’
Audra sank back on her hind legs and shivered, his voice seemed closer than ever. She could hear him moving closer and every fibre of her being begged her to run, but she was frozen to the spot. He was moving on only two legs, so she knew he must be in human form and logically she should have known she could outrun him that way. But logic had deserted her and so she stood and trembled as he advanced in the darkness. All of a sudden he emerged from behind a nearby cluster of bushes and she was so stunned by his appearance that she yelped.
He was not in human form. Far from it. The awful nature of what stood before her terrified the young female werewolf more than she had ever imagined she could feel fear. It lurched out of the shadows towards her with a deep, rumbling laugh. Its pointed ears long and furless, glistening in the light of the city behind it.
Chapter 27
The pack house was bathed in an eerie silence in the wake of Tobias’ departure with Audra. The bulk of the pack members were happy to be rid of the alpha’s daughter for a while, but with so much tension in the air true happiness was far from reach for all. Their silence was one of sheer gratitude. Alfred however, was tense and nervous about the events which he feared might soon unfold. Though his pack were fully aware of what was happening with Varulv, it did not fall upon them to concern themselves with the possible consequences. The lupine part of their minds was happy to sit back and allow the higher-ranking members to deal with the situation. Only if a beta was injured or killed would things shift and pull them into action. Only then to fill the social void in their family unit. It is difficult to explain the sociological dynamic of a creature which consists of two beings intertwined into one consciousness. But the simplest way to understand it is to get to grips with the fact that to them, the pack comes first. Outside life comes second. In many ways they are wolves before they are humans in their own minds.
In the kitchen most of the females and a few of the resident males loitered and ate and drank together in calm silence. The rest were tucked away in their rooms, except for Alfred who was sat in his favourite spot in the library. The old alpha had always enjoyed spending his time amongst the tomes that chronicled the existence and exploits of their kind. He found it fascinating and comforting to be able to reach up and pick a book from the shelf. Then to be able to fall back in time to a period when things were simpler and tales were bolder. Not all of the stories were happy ones, in fact most were tragic… But he always found them interesting to read and the tales of years gone by would quiet the troubles of his modern mind for a time.
For a while after his daughter had left the old male alpha had paced around the library restlessly. He had pawed at many books and run his age withered fingers down the spines of some of his favourite tales. He wanted to be able to settle his mind and to take one of those books from its shelf and read until real life faded away. But it was not to be; his mind was too full of concern for his pack and his kind. Eventually he paced back over to his desk and seated himself behind its protective form. He usually felt comfortable and safe behind its great wooden bulk, but that day it seemed to be more of a cumbersome obstacle than anything else.
He seated himself with a heavy exhale of air and looked down wearily at the open book he had been reading before Audra’s interruption. Its words did not grab him; there was too much going on inside his mind. There was so much at stake if his pack did not succeed in their endeavours, and it troubled him deeply. He had no doubt that Varulv would soon draw more attention to shape shifting kind than could be deflected away. There was only so much that could be covered up and swept under the carpet. The most recent spate of murders were drawing so much attention that it seemed inevitable that soon the spotlight of truth would be shone upon their kind. It was only a matter of time before a tuft of fur would be discovered at a crime scene and lab tests would be run.
A shaky sigh escaped the old werewolf’s lips. Why did the old beast Nikolai have to be so sensational? There were so many other cases each year of werewolves murdering humans for various reasons. Even those others, who partook in the activity for perverted enjoyment did not make such a spectacle of themselves as he chose to do. It was not necessary. In Alfred’s mind it had to be a game the ancient werewolf was playing with himself. He was testing himself as to how much he could get away with before they were all exposed. To him it must have seemed like nothing, after all he had been made in a time when werewolf legends were on the tip of every tongue in the land. But things were different in the modern age; it was not like it used to be. Where before there were mobs with torches and pitchforks, then there was advanced science and horrendous weaponry. None of which would be spared if humanity were to discover that werewolves and the like were a reality and not the myth they had been led to believe.
As Alfred sank into his thoughts a familiar sound drifted through the window. He was startled into awareness by the clamorous nature of it and sat bolt upright in his chair. The sound was the skittering of claws on gravel, which could only mean one thing. Something had gone wrong.
The sound grew closer and closer and he clearly heard the thud of a fall. There were two sets of limbs moving… He was at a loss as to who it might be. Stiffly he stood and made his way to the window, too late to see the wolves who had charged up to the house. He was not too late to pick up their scents however, or the smell of fear and pain which was strong in the air. It was Eve and Tobias, which could only mean that something had gone drastically wrong. He made his way back to the desk and seated himself just as they tore through the front door.
He heard them clatter up the stairs and down the corridor and watched as they bounded into the room. Tobias came first, skidding to a halt just inside the doorway and panting heavily. Eve followed shortly, moving more slowly than her co-beta and with steam rising in tendrils from her thick fur. Both wolves seated themselves and looked to their alpha expectantly. Eve falling on one haunch awkwardly and just managing to suppress a yip of pain.
Alfred nodded at them and waited as Tobias padded out of the room to change in his bedchamber. Eve however did not move, which confused him at first. She sat and looked at his chest, not making eye contact out of respect. A quiet whimper escaped her and her tail thumped weakly against the wooden floorboards. It was custom to request permission to change back from your pack alpha if you happened upon them when a change was near. Eve’s lack of movement troubled Alfred, and the smell of pain clinging to her worried him even more.
Shortly Tobias returned and bowed to his alpha as he re-entered the room. He was dripping with sweat and clothed only in a pair of grubby old jeans. He looked down at Eve before he addressed the alpha male, hoping to see her looking less worse for wear than she was.
‘I have bad news Alfred, I’m so sorry.’ His voice was low and tinged with worry and regret.
Alfred sat forward in his seat and scowled. ‘What is it?’
‘It is more than one thing
I am afraid. Eve and I crashed on the road a few miles from here; both the cars involved are now useless. We ended up in the ditches by the roadside and Eve broke one of her legs very badly.’
Alfred looked down at the black female wolf who sat beside the half naked male beta. She was shivering and in obvious discomfort. ‘Why did you risk the change? It could have killed her.’
Tobias hung his head. ‘I know. We both knew, but our hands were forced. We had hoped that it would re-set itself in her lupine form and we were right, to a degree. It has but it seems to be weaker and it is causing her pain.’
Alfred nodded slightly, concern crossing his features as he responded. ‘I can see that, but what is so urgent that your hands were, as you say, forced?’
Tobias gulped quietly before continuing. He was not relishing telling the alpha what had happened with his daughter. For all the old weres good qualities, he was very electively blind when it came to her. ‘I’m afraid to say it’s down to Audra Alfred.’
The old werewolf’s face creased into a scowl but Tobias continued regardless. ‘She’s gone AWOL… We went to the barn to search the scene and were hopeful to find a good scent trail to follow. We went separate ways. Whilst I was inside the barn looking for signs of Varulv that we could use, Audra was outside searching the exterior of the building. When I went back out to find her she was gone.’
Alfred became immediately enraged. ‘What do you mean gone? Gone where? She’s got more sense than to just vanish Tobias, give her some credit!’
Tobias hung his head. ‘I’m sorry Alfred, I thought so too… But I tracked her for quite some distance and I’m afraid to say she’s gone off the rails a little. About a mile and a half from the barn she made the change and continued on in lupine form. She was following a recent scent trail left by Varulv. She’s gone after him alone.’
Alfred took a moment to process this, his face slowly fell and his hands slumped against the table. ‘Tell me its not so?’
Tobias shook his head. ‘I’m sorry Alfred, I can’t.’
Alfred sunk in his seat for a moment, then swallowed loudly and sat up straight in his chair. ‘Whilst I cannot apologise in her place, obviously I am not happy about the stupidity of her actions. What do you think she is intending to do?’
Tobias had been dreading the possibility of this question being asked of him. He visibly squirmed like a naughty child caught with a hand in the sweet jar. ‘I can’t say for certain… But my fear is that she thinks she has a chance of capturing him or even killing him unaided. I know she desperately wants a chance to move up the ranks, and my worry is that she thinks this is her one big chance to prove herself.’
Alfred’s face contorted into a strange mixture of fear, pain and helplessness. ‘She’ll be killed herself.’
Tobias nodded gravely. ‘Which is why we’ve raced back with less consideration for Eve’s wellbeing. We need to get the pack out there, and fast. If she’s found quickly we might be able to save her. As a unit we may even be able to bring Varulv down and finish this whole sorry affair.’
Alfred nodded, knowing that his daughter might already be lost but praying that this was not the case. ‘And what about Eve?’
Tobias looked down at his co-beta, who though clearly in pain was sitting proud and strong. ‘She needs supervision through her change back to human form. Beyond that I don’t know what we can do?’
Eve listened to them discuss her fate and nodded her head once, a strangely human action coming from her lupine body.
Tobias continued as his fellows listened. ‘I think its best that Anna supervise, being the eldest female pack member. I trust she will have more knowledge about what could potentially go wrong than the others. The rest of us need to gather in the hall and I’ll select who I’ll be taking with me on our hunt for Audra and Varulv.’
Alfred nodded ‘Very well, take Eve to Anna and I shall call the others to the main hall for a very brief meeting. Time is of the essence.’
Tobias nodded and motioned to Eve that she should leave the room. She rose to her paws and walked out without looking back, breaking into an uncomfortable trot when she rounded the door into the hallway. Tobias followed her out, offering a half bow to his fretful alpha before exiting the room. He called out loudly as he went ‘Anna?! We need you up here Anna!’
It took only a moment before his shouts were answered by the sound of approaching footfalls. Soon Anna’s head could be seen bobbing up the steps as she jogged up to answer him. She was obviously confused by the sight of Eve in her lupine form.
‘You called?’ She asked.
Tobias nodded ‘I need to ask a favour of you. Could you follow me to Eve’s room?’
Anna nodded, a motion which sent her grey streaked rich brown hair bobbing about her slender face. She dutifully followed her betas down the corridor and into Eves chamber. It was not a room she had ever entered before and looked nothing like she had expected it would. She had always imagined Eve’s quarters would be painted black and dimly lit. Instead she was greeted by the sight of a room painted in natural earthy colours, with murals of great twisting trees decorating the walls and an ornate baroque mirror dominating the far side of the room. The bed that Tobias lifted Eve onto was a four-poster made of dark wood with rich green curtains tied neatly to its corners.
Eve grumbled quietly as her co-beta wrapped his arms under her softly furred belly and lifted her onto the bed. It was not painful but she disliked the sensation of being contained. Tobias heeded her warning and put her down and quickly and carefully as he could. She lay on her side panting with her chest heaving, the bedclothes soft under her pain wracked body.
Tobias then turned and directed Anna as to what he would like her to do. She agreed without question, but was curious as to what had caused the situation they found themselves in. Tobias gave her a very clipped short version of events and then left them be in order to gather the others for the meeting. He jogged out of the room, shouting loudly into the vast expanse of the house. ‘Everyone into the meeting hall now! We need you all there as fast as you can. No delays. No dawdling. Get your tails in there everybody.’
As he moved he could hear the awful sounds of Eve’s reverse transformation beginning, and he shouted ever louder to drown them out. He ran down the stairway and hopped over the bannister at its base, marching down the corridor to the meeting hall. He flung the doors open wide and strutted up to his place at the head of the table beside Alfred, oozing authority as he went. Behind him a few stragglers bustled into the room and by the time he took his seat all others were already seated.
Alfred looked gravely at his pack, making deliberate eye contact with each and every one before launching into an explanation of what had happened.
His voice was calm as he spoke, but the scent of concern seeped from him so strongly the whole room could smell it. Not that any gave any indication of this as he delivered his speech. ‘No doubt you all heard Tobias and Eve return a few moments ago… Well there is good reason for their haste and I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news to you all but things have taken a turn for the worse. Earlier today Tobias and Audra left to visit the barn where the first murder took place.’
This statement bought murmurings from the room of ‘first murder?’ and ‘There has been more than one?’
Alfred continued to speak over the commotion. ‘Yes there has been more than one. We do not need to dwell on that for now. Audra has gone missing, and it seems she has followed Varulv alone.’
As he spoke Alfred could not help but notice that amongst the horrified looks in response to his statement he did not see one surprised face. In fact, when he glanced at Courtney she was smirking. She saw his eyes on her too late and could not change her expression before he noticed.
‘Is something amusing Courtney?’ The old man snarled, flashing a set of perfectly healthy teeth which were all his own. ‘Perhaps you would care to enlighten me?’ His voice was so full of menace that the girl crumpled under the weight of it. Dr
opping her head she shook it firmly, but Alfred pressed her. ‘No Courtney, I would like to hear it. Now.’
She did not raise her head, instead answering from behind the protective veil of her hair. Her voice shook as she spoke. ‘I… I’m sorry Alfred, I just… Um… well, I’m just not, you know… Surprised at all?’
Alfred snarled so loudly that it echoed throughout the room. ‘Why not young one?!’
Courtney shrank even lower in her seat and it was plain to see her wish that she could simply disappear. ‘I… I don’t know’ She stammered, her body then visibly trembling and tears beginning to fill her eyes. ‘I just… She just… Well… She always wanted to rise up the ranks… It seems like… Well… Something she’d do sir?’ A lone tear trickled down the girl’s cheek and she roughly wiped at it with the back of a clenched fist.
Alfred growled. ‘Well it seems this is not a particularly unpopular opinion. Did any of you actually expect this kind of extreme behaviour from her?’ He swept his gaze around the room, to see a uniform set of slowly shaking heads. He sighed deeply, his face so creased from the scowl that refused to leave it that he was beginning to get a headache. He continued ‘Well I would appreciate in future, if regardless of rank someone would tell me when a pack member is obviously becoming a problem. This needs to be regardless of lineage or rank, with personal problems aside. We cannot operate effectively as a unit if we are not working together at all times, do you all understand?’
