Caged Moon

by Rachel Deagan

  "Morning sunshine," he said with a crooked grin.

  I scowled. "Not amusing. I told you I was afraid of dogs."

  He chuckled, and I contemplated throwing the stick poking into my back, at him. He could fetch, and if didn't, at least the smirk would be gone.

  I sat up. The earth moved and tilted before settling back to where it belonged. Liam tried to grab a hold of me, but I cut him off with a glare. The grin on his face grew. Ignoring him, I leaned forward on my knees to clear my head, and took in the surroundings. A thick forest canopy covered us and dusk had set in.

  "Ty?" I asked.

  Liam's expression turned serious and he sat down next to me. "We still haven't found her. Don't worry. We will. I promise. She's alive from what the pack's gathered. There's been no scent of human blood or foul play anywhere that we've seen. Knowing my brother, he's using her as bait. I don't think he'll hurt her."

  "As bait for what?" I asked.

  Liam cleared his throat. "You."

  My jaw dropped. "All because of that book?"

  "Possibly," he said. "He could also just want to piss me off considering you're my girlfriend, or he could be curious about what you are. Honestly, Aaron doesn't need a reason. He's unpredictable."

  I felt sick.

  The bushes ahead of us rustled, and the muzzle of a large black wolf poked through the branches. I grabbed Liam's arm, trying not to hyperventilate. The wolf moved without a sound, pushing himself the rest of the way through into the small clearing. His long legged body held a dusting of silver around the fur of his neck and down along his backbone. He let out a whimper as he lowered his broad head, and gazed up at me; golden hues meeting mine. I couldn't breathe as he stood there. He whined again, and then lay down on the ground only a few feet from where we sat. If Liam hadn't been sitting next to me, I probably would have passed out once more.

  "He misses her too," Liam said. "Don't worry, we'll find her you big goof." Liam reached out and rustled the fur on the top of the wolf's head.

  My chin dropped. "Byron?" I asked.

  The wolf gave a short, quick bark and scooted himself forward on his hind legs, placing his oversized head on my lap. My eyes went wide.

  "Hey, watch it man, "Liam said with a chuckle. "She's my girlfriend."

  The lips of the large black wolf pulled up over his sharp teeth, giving the illusion of a cheeky grin.

  "Byron!" I said, with a gasp. I didn't know if I should laugh or freak out.

  The tips of my fingers found the long ebony hairs on his head. Byron watched me, remaining still. I slowly ventured further, embedding my hand in his thick coat, and then rounded it up to scratch behind his ear. Byron leaned into my palm. I scratched again and he pushed his wet nose right into me, knocking me over. "Stop that," I said with a laugh.

  "Alright, that's enough you two," Liam said. "Get out of here, you." He shoved Byron off my lap and I sat up. "Where're the others?"

  Byron moved with a silent, long legged grace, back to the shrub's edge. He stopped, looking back at us.

  "Go get them," Liam said to him. "We've got to move." Liam got up, dusting the dried leaves from his jeans, and extended his hand to me. Taking it, I found my feet.

  "You good?" he asked.

  "Yeah."

  I spoke too soon. The edge of the shrubbery crackled and shook. My pulse soared and Liam squeezed my hand.

  "It's okay," he said. "It's just the others."

  "That's what I was afraid of," I said, as Byron stepped from the overgrowth with two other wolves flanking his side. Flynt and Eldridge: identical, even in this form; rusty brown hair with a hint of white tipping their ears and tails.

  This is so surreal.

  "You sure you're okay?" Liam asked.

  I wondered if I looked as pale as I felt.

  "Great," I said with a forced grin

  Liam shook his head. "If I have to carry you the whole way, I'm going to have to start charging."

  "Very funny."

  Liam grinned.

  The other wolves started closer to us and I felt the Earth tip. I grabbed onto Liam's arm. He chuckled.

  Where was that stick again?

  "So is it true?" Steve's voice asked from behind us. He sounded amused. Great, everyone go ahead and laugh. Yes, I'm afraid of canines. I turned from the three large wolves to glare at the youngest pack member, in human form. I should have been grateful for that fact, but the beaming grin on his face kind of ruined it.

  "So is what true?" Liam asked, turning around.

  Steve shrugged. "You scared her so badly she passed out, yet Byron walked right up to her and plopped himself in her lap? At least that's what Byron's saying."

  Startled that this wasn't directly about me, and speechless, my face twisted with guilt. That did look kind of bad.

  Liam fidgeted, his cheeks darkening. I struggled with the urge of giggling, his embarrassment, cute. Of course, it was my fault, but I hadn't seen someone turn into a wolf before. It does things to the nervous system.

  "Oh, is that what he's saying?" Liam asked, turning to the wolf form of Byron. Liam's eyes flashed gold. "You want to challenge me?"

  Byron's lips lifted over his sharp canine teeth, mocking a human chuckle at Liam's retort. Liam dropped down on all fours, taking a runner's stance. Byron pawed at the ground.

  "Liam, what are you doing?" I asked with a gasp.

  A loud crackling snarl ripped from his human throat, and Byron hunched down on his hinds legs, ready to spring.

  "Somebody, do something," I said, but no one paid attention to me.

  The two sprang for each other in mirrored time. Liam's skin rippled and I heard his bones crack as his wolf form pushed through in midair. Dumbfounded, I stared as the two wolves slammed into each other with a mass of snarls. Teeth embedded in fur as they toppled to the dusty ground, rolling, only to get back up to do it again.

  I couldn't tell who had the upper hand.

  Liam's jowls clamped down on Byron's shoulder, and with a shake, tossed the large black wolf several feet. Byron skidded into the edge of the trees, and then scrambled back to his feet with a snarl. He leapt for Liam, flipping him into the dirt. They both rolled, growling, and clawing. I jumped out of the way, as they tussled too close, then they took off again.

  My heart felt close to exploding.

  Flynt and Eldridge paced the edge of the 'battle field' yelping with quick barks, edging Liam and Byron on.

  I groaned.

  "It's okay," Steve said.

  The sound of a human voice amongst the wolves startled me.

  "They're not going to kill each other. They do this all the time. They're best friends."

  "What?" I asked. "You mean they're just messing around? They're playing?" This ticked me off. How dare they scare me like this?

  "Yup," Steve said. "Liam always wins though." He looked like a little kid envying the big boys' game. "It's great isn't it?"

  "No. It's not great." My hands found my hips. "Tell them to stop."

  Steve looked at me like I had lost my mind. "Uh uh. If you want them to stop, you'll have to tell them yourself. Are you crazy?"

  Fine, someone needed to put a rein on this nonsense. We needed to find Ty. Had everyone forgotten that little factor? Turning to the snarling mass of teeth, I mustered up my strength to overcome my fear. "Stop this now!"

  Something in me stirred. Heat burned through me and my body trembled. I lifted my gaze to the wolves and everything cut through my line of vision with crystal clarity. Defined and punctuated, the hair on Liam's thick coat moved with his breath, and the veins of the autumn leaves screamed to life. Even my hearing became amplified.

  The snarls waned and I realized everyone stared at me. Liam and Byron had stopped fighting. All of the wolves stood frozen, watching, and then in unison, they let out a long piercing howl of pain. Their bodies twisted and they scratched at the ground.

  I held my ears in horror. Trembling and shaking, they continued to whimper, and then hum
an hands broke through the wolves' paws. The hairs along their arms retracted revealing fit, lean skin and muscle. The long jowls shrank back through gritted human teeth, and their dull green, brown, and blue hues cooled their gold gazes.

  Four naked, human guys, on all fours, stared at me in shock.

  No one moved.

  No one spoke.

  With a gasp, I turned around, covering my face with my arm.

  "I...I'll get the bag," Steve said.

  He fidgeted, and then took off into the shrubbery. Returning, he tossed a small leather bag behind me. I hoped that contained what I thought - clothes.

  "Charlotte?" Liam said. I didn't look.

  "Are you dressed?" I asked. My voice shook.

  "Yes."

  I turned around, peeking from behind my fingers. Everyone had clothes on. I exhaled, dropping my hand.

  "How did you do that?" Liam asked.

  "Do what?" I asked, swallowing. I wished everyone would stop staring.

  "Charlotte, your words," he said. "The wolf part of me listened to your command. It obeyed and withdrew at your wishes. I tried to fight it. It hurt. I think we all did."

  The others nodded without a word.

  "We didn't have control of ourselves. You did," Liam said.

  I didn't know what to say. I felt dizzy. "Wait, are you saying I made you guys shift back to your human form?" A tight laugh escaped my throat.

  "Yes."

  I waited for that smirk of his to tell me he joked, but it didn't come. My stomach dropped.

  "That's impossible," I said.

  "As impossible as werewolves?" Flynt said, tilting his head.

  Could it be true? Creatures I had believed to be fiction stood in front of me. Jaws ripped into my shoulder, as I lay, five, in the woods. All of it had happened. My mind spun. What did this mean? I shook as tears stung my eyes. I didn't want it to be real.

  "Charlotte," Liam said, moving closer. He took my hand and I snapped it from him, stumbling back a step.

  "Please," I said. "I can't do this."

  "Charlotte," Liam said. "It's not a bad thing. I know this is a lot, but I think you have a rare gift."

  "Gift?" I said with a chortled laugh. "You call this," I motioned my hand around the clearing, "a gift?" I couldn't breathe right. I needed to think clearly.

  "Charlotte, please," Liam said. He reached out again.

  "Don't touch me!" I regretted the words as soon as I said them. "Just don't," I said, softer. "Just don't." I fisted my hands at my sides. I had to stay together.

  "I think it's why you never shifted," Liam said, his words continuing like a dream. I couldn't see. "You have the markings of a bite, Charlotte. You smell like a wolf. I've even seen your eyes shift. We all did just now."

  The others nodded.

  No. It couldn't be true, but my vision had seemed different moments before they started shifting.

  "Oh, my God," I said.

  "I think this gift you have to control wolves, works on yourself as well. My theory? You've been terrified of canines your entire life. It would make sense for your subconscious to keep your wolf tamed up inside you since you have the ability to make it do so."

  Liam brushed his knuckles down my damp cheek, and I let him. "It's okay, Charlotte. It's going to be okay. I'm on your side. I also think hanging out with me, has helped rid some of that fear, hence why I've seen your eyes change."

  "What's going to happen to me?" I asked.

  "That's up to you," he said, bringing his hand down to cup my chin. I turned my gaze up to his. "I believe if you wanted to turn into a wolf right now, you could."

  Chapter 18

  My heart beat so fast, I couldn't think. I wanted somebody to change the subject.

  "How do you turn into a wolf?" I asked. My voice sounded foreign to me.

  The guys gave me an awkward shrug.

  "You feel the wolf stirring and moving inside you," Liam said. "It scratches, and claws, vibrating through your limbs. Instead of holding it back, you accept it, and let it come forward. The wolf then takes over."

  I swallowed hard, trying to stay lucid. "That makes you shift?"

  Liam smiled a little. "Yes, the wolf takes over from there. The rest you don't actually mentally have to partake in. It just happens."

  "But your mind is still there in wolf form, right?" I asked.

  "Yes," Liam said. He dropped his hold on my chin. "The wolf is part of who you are. There are physical differences, but once you both meet for the first time, you become one and the same. The wolf's instincts and mind are blended and mixed with your human one. As I stand here, the wolf and I are on equal ground. Or rather, in my instance, the human is equal with me." He shrugged a little. "It is why even in human form, I probably seem somewhat...inhuman."

  "So you're on equal ground in both forms?"

  Liam chuckled. "Yes. The only thing that changes and shifts is the physical form. The rest is blended and stays the same."

  "Does it hurt?" I shifted my feet, my face hot.

  He paused and I flushed cold. "The first time can be a little painful," Liam said, his face twisting. "The body isn't used to the stretching and remolding that is required for the change. During a shift, your skin, bones, and ligaments actually become flexible. There is a chemical reaction that happens in the body making them no longer firm, but tangible. It is how we are able to change physical form without everything in us breaking."

  I cringed at his words.

  "The first time, the body tends to resist the change. It's similar to the physics notion of a 'body in rest tends to stay at rest'. After the first time, the body accepts it, and it doesn't hurt at all. In fact, it's rather invigorating," he said with a smirk.

  I nodded, numb.

  "Charlotte," he said. His fingers found my cheek again. "Do you want to try? You're safe, here, with us."

  "Yeah, we already consider you part of the pack," Steve said.

  "We do?" Byron asked.

  "Quiet," Liam muttered under his breath. He didn't look away from me. "Seriously, we're here for you. We've all been through it before. There's nothing to be nervous about."

  He moved his hand to the edge of my hair, brushing it behind my ear. "I love you, Charlotte," he whispered. "I already consider you my Alpha Female." The edge of Liam's lip turned up, giving me flutters despite the situation.

  "Told ya," Steve said.

  Liam rolled his eyes and I heard a low growl reverberate from his chest. "Of course, there are some downfalls to having a pack around." He shot Steve a glare. Steve gave a tight inhuman yelp, and looked the other way.

  "So?" Liam asked.

  "What if you're wrong?" I asked. "What if I'm not really what you think I am?"

  "There's only one way to find out," he said, his eyebrow lifting. "Come on. Just relax. Feel the wolf and let her come. I'll help you."

  "I...I don't know, Liam." My hands started to sweat.

  "Just let my wolf help bring yours to the forefront. The pheromones call to each other. It's why it's been so hard for me to stay in human form around you, Charlotte." He smiled. "Being near you brings out the animal in me."

  I bit my lip. "Very funny, Liam."

  He chuckled, then became serious. "Remember, you're the one not allowing her to come out. You need to let go and give the wolf permission." He leaned in close. "Close your eyes," he whispered. "Listen to my voice and bring yourself inward."

  My pulse pounded in my ears, but I did what he asked. I could feel him in front of me. His fingers still rested in my hair and then his warm cheek brushed against mine. I inhaled sharply, his scent of musk and pine everywhere.

  A low growl gurgled from him and everything in me went white hot. Something stirred and stretched inside me and my eyes shot wide. Liam opened his - burning gold, and I gasped. My body dropped - something else pushed through, taking over.

  I freaked.

  Stumbling backwards from Liam, my left sneaker caught on an upturned root, and I fell.

/>   "Charlotte, are you okay?" Liam asked, helping me up.

  I nodded, my hands trembling. "I...I can't. I can't do it."

  He held my hands, steadying them. "Hey, it's okay," Liam whispered, and pulled me to his chest. "You've had a lot to take in today. I shouldn't have rushed you. I'm sorry."

  "It's not your fault," I said. His embrace felt amazing, safe. How could I have ever doubted him?

  "Man, I wish I had a girlfriend," Byron said.

  My cheeks burned.

  Flynt punched Byron in the side, and I smiled.

  "Come on," Liam said, motioning his head to trees. "Let's get going. It's getting late and we need to find Aaron."

  Dusk had settled in around us. How long had we been out? Ty and I left school midafternoon.

  "I should call my dad," I said, feeling very self-conscious. Considering everything going on, the necessity seemed rather insignificant. I didn't want my father to worry though. I had a clear plan of what to say. I'd make it quick, and tell him I was staying at Ty's to study.

  "Are you with Liam?" Dad asked with bite.

  "Please Dad. It's not what you think. I'll be home soon. I promise. Everything's fine."

  I winced and hung up.

  "There goes my reputation," Liam said with a chuckle.

  "Sorry."

  "Come on, let's go already," Eldridge said, pacing the line of shrubbery. He picked up the small leather bag and stepped through the bushes. Several branches shook and crackled and then a large, slender, reddish brown wolf emerged.

  I swallowed hard, it all still too new to me. In his mouth the pouch dangled. He tossed it towards the center of the group with a whine.

  Liam seemed to read my expression. "We carry our clothes in there."

  "Who carries the bag?" I asked.

  "Usually Steve," Byron said, stretching his back. "The pup gets the tedious duties. It's a hierarchy thing. Steve's the youngest."

  "At least I'm not the ugliest," Steve said with a grin.

  Byron laughed. "You wish."

  Liam shook his head. "Alright, let's move before Aaron has time to clean up his trail."

  "Told you guys I saw tracks outside our house the other day," Steve said. "No one ever listens to me."