Oath Keeper

by Shelley Wilson

  From my vantage point in the undergrowth, I could see two students, both friends of Felicity, poking at something inside a cage. No sound came from within: no whimpers, growls, or sobs, and from this angle, I couldn’t see what it was. I crept closer.

  ‘I’m glad Mr Parker’s using the cages again,’ said the first girl. ‘This lot don’t deserve to be inside the school. Imagine if this thing got out; it could kill us all in our sleep.’

  The second student snorted. ‘It couldn’t hurt a fly. It’s weak and useless, but that doesn’t matter, ’cause soon it’ll be dead.’

  The two girls laughed before dropping the prod they’d been using and slinking off in the direction of the back door. I waited. When I believed it was safe enough, I left the sanctuary of the trees and stepped up to the cages. Peering into the inky blackness I thought for a moment that the girls were drunk and had imagined whatever they saw, but then a faint movement caught my eye.

  A young girl, no more than ten years old, shuffled to the bars. Her face was covered in dirt and grime, her hair matted to her head. Full, wide eyes gleamed in the moonlight.

  ‘What’s your name?’ I asked, bending down so I was level with her.

  ‘Arianna,’ she whispered, ‘but my friends call me Ari. Are you going to rescue me?’

  I glanced around the clearing outside the cages, and my eyes fell on the long metal prod the girls had used to taunt Ari. I snatched it up and motioned for the youngster to move away from the bars. Using all my strength, I smashed at the lock until it broke apart and fell to the ground. The door swung open, and Ari emerged sniffing the air.

  ‘Come on!’ I reached for her hand and pulled her to the safety of the treeline. We ran hand in hand as deep into the forest as we could before I needed to stop for breath. I collapsed onto a fallen tree trunk and coughed until I thought a lung might pop out. All this training and yet long-distance running was still a weak point for me.

  Ari, on the other hand, looked incredibly composed as she perched on the edge of the trunk watching me splutter and choke.

  ‘Do you live around here?’ I wheezed.

  ‘No, we come from Yorkshire, but when Daddy needed to visit this area, we all came with him. I got separated from them in town, and then two girls snatched me and threw me in that cage.’

  I shook my head. Cody told me when I first arrived how he’d witnessed students from the academy antagonising members of the public but kidnapping a young child from her family was a new low.

  ‘Why did they take you?’

  Ari shook her head, her long hair swishing around her shoulders. ‘Maybe because I’m a werewolf and they don’t like my kind.’

  I was stunned. Over the past few months, I’d tried to learn as much as I could about werewolves and nowhere did it say anyone turned before their sixteenth birthday.

  ‘How is that possible? You’re so young.’

  ‘Daddy volunteered for my sister and me to have a new treatment. A doctor in a long white coat came to visit our pack leader. He told him about a cure. He said it was safe and that if we had the wolf gene, it meant we would never turn.’ She kicked at a rock at her feet as she processed the memory. ‘It didn’t stop us turning, but instead, it speeded up the process. Daddy said we were probably the youngest werewolves in history.’ She puffed her chest out and squared her jaw, but that pride didn’t reach her eyes.

  I licked my dry lips as I processed Ari’s words. The treatment she spoke of sounded too similar to be anything but Sebastian’s serum, but it was never completed, never finalised, and certainly never administered among the wolf community.

  ‘What did the man in the white coat look like?’ I held my breath waiting for Ari to describe Sebastian. I was surprised at the relief I felt at her answer.

  ‘He was short and bald with a funny moustache,’ she said. ‘And there was a blue picture on the pocket of his coat.’

  ‘What did he do to you?’ I wasn’t sure I wanted to know, if it was anything like the photographic evidence of Sebastian’s lab when it was in action. The horrific image of a man chained to a table was forever stamped on my mind.

  ‘The doctor injected us with something and then kept checking our temperature and stuff. We got ice cream for being so good.’

  I huffed at the twinkle in her eye when she remembered the ice cream.

  The light in Ari’s eyes went out, and she dropped her head, wringing her hands together.

  ‘My sister got really poorly and was sick, even the ice cream didn’t help. They took her away to try and help her, but we never saw her again. I turned for the first time on the same day.’

  A shiver ran down my spine at her words. Was it a coincidence that this doctor promised the exact thing Sebastian had tried to create? Or had Parker found another doctor to replace my father? I was suddenly filled with dread over Sebastian’s whereabouts. His serum had been faulty. What if someone had decided to use it despite the fact that it hadn’t been stabilised? Could Parker be behind this?

  ‘Where are your parents now?’

  Ari lifted her chin and sniffed the air for a few seconds.

  ‘That way.’ She pointed in the direction of the Mills family farm. My home.

  ‘You said your father was visiting the area, who did he come to see?’

  ‘He wants to see the alpha. The nasty doctor is visiting all the packs, and bad things are happening to our friends.’

  ‘You mean other people have died as well as your sister?’

  ‘Yes,’ she said nodding her tiny head. ‘Hundreds of us.’

  IT WAS WELL into the early hours of the morning when we got back to the farm and, as usual, Cody was nowhere to be seen. The Mills Family Farm truck was missing from the driveway, and I noticed a delivery note pinned to the kitchen door that confirmed he was transporting the farm’s produce to a shop over a hundred miles away. The constantly energetic Byron always accompanied Cody on deliveries so at least the house would be quieter without them.

  When I’d emerged from the forest after leaving Hood Academy, I experienced a feeling of contentment upon seeing this farmhouse. It was like something from a picture postcard. Redbrick walls and a grey slate roof with a low white fence wrapping itself around the rose-filled garden. I hadn’t exactly given much thought to leaving the sanctuary of a school environment and moving in with werewolves.

  That had been three months ago and the joy of being reunited with my brother, and being near my boyfriend, was wearing thin. Boys were loud, messy, and disorganised. The farmhouse always resembled the aftermath of a tsunami. Cody’s sisters, who were also part of the werewolf pack, had both moved out to live with their own boyfriends. With Zak’s blessing, they had joined other packs and lived in cosy little studio apartments nearer to town. I’d wished them well when they left but secretly harboured an intense jealousy that they were getting away from the smell of wet dog and aftershave.

  I kicked the pile of shoes to the side as I steered Ari in through the kitchen door. The large black Aga dominated one side of the kitchen and warmed the stone room to a comfortable temperature. Family photographs in mismatched frames covered the furthest wall, and a picture window looked out over the driveway. In the centre of the room stood an enormous oak table with an assortment of chairs dotted around it. Zak sat at the head of the table with his back to the window and a thin man with a closely shaved beard and greying hair perched on a stool to his right. They had their heads bent together in conversation and didn’t see us enter.

  ‘Papa!’ Ari released my hand and shot into the embrace of Zak’s companion. From the other room I heard the cry of a woman, and then Terry burst through the door with a lady close behind him.

  ‘Arianna, oh my baby girl.’

  The small family hugged one another, peppering Ari with kisses as tears of joy and relief slid down their faces and I couldn’t stop the tug of a smile as I watched the reunion. It wasn’t that long ago that I was hugging Zak that tightly after ten years apart. My gaze drifted to my br
other who was studying me in return.

  ‘How did you find her?’ Zak asked me, his expression not reflecting the joy of the moment.

  Ari broke away from her parents and skipped back to my side.

  ‘Mia rescued me from the bad girls at the academy.’

  Zak raised a questioning eyebrow and I waved my hand in a non-committal way trying to play down my part in the daring rescue. Ari, however, wasn’t going to let it go.

  ‘She burst out of the trees and smashed the lock on the cage and then we ran away.’ The youngster gazed up at me with those wide eyes, and I couldn’t help but smile.

  ‘I wouldn’t exactly use the word burst, Ari. It was more of a slink.’

  I felt my cheeks redden as Ari’s parents rushed forward with their offer of praise. Terry chuckled from his position behind me as he watched my awkward acceptance of their hugs and well wishes.

  ‘I think it’s best if you all try and get some rest.’ Zak’s voice boomed with authority. ‘You can stay in my room, and we’ll talk again when the sun comes up.’

  Ari and her parents followed Terry as he guided them through to the stairwell and up to Zak’s spacious bedroom. I made to follow in the hope I could escape without a reprimand, but I wasn’t fast enough.

  ‘Mia, wait!’

  My shoulders slumped as I spun on my heel to look at my brother. He was standing now, his big hands placed side by side on the tabletop. His head hung down as he studied something in front of him. I waited without saying a word, something I’d learned to do over the last few months. Zak had his own ways of dealing with the pack, but he had a unique way of dealing with me, almost like he thought I might break.

  ‘What were you doing at the academy?’

  ‘I wasn’t technically at the academy, I was training in the woods and didn’t realise how close I’d wandered to the school grounds, but if I hadn’t then I wouldn’t have been able to help Ari.’

  Silence. Zak didn’t move but continued to stare at the paper in front of him.

  ‘I don’t want you going out at night any more, Mia.’

  ‘What! No way! How am I supposed to train properly if I can’t get my bearings in the woods at night?’ I adopted my what-the-hell stance placing my hands on my hips, a deep frown etched across my forehead. How did this keep happening to me? First Frank had abused me and kept me as a prisoner in my own home, then Sebastian locked me in a hospital cell, and now my brother, who I thought would be different, was trying to control me too.

  ‘If you got caught by the hunters I’d never forgive myself. This is the only way I can keep you safe.’

  ‘No! I’m sorry, Zak, but I’m not going to let you treat me the same way everyone else has in the past. I’m not a little kid like Ari, I’m potentially a werewolf like you, and I want to be ready when the change happens.’

  Zak’s eyes clouded over, and for the first time, I realised he doubted that I had inherited the werewolf gene. It was like a slap in the face. Was that why he was always trying to keep Cody and me apart? He didn’t think I was truly one of them?

  Terry returned to the kitchen and slung his arm across my shoulder.

  ‘I can train her,’ he said giving me a squeeze. ‘She should be able to protect herself, no matter what.’ He trailed off, and I examined his face. That same expression, the clouded eyes and uncertainty. I wriggled free and slapped his arm away.

  ‘You don’t think I’m going to turn, do you?’ I wasn’t looking for them to answer the question because it was clearly written across both boys’ faces.

  ‘Well, screw you,’ I shouted. ‘Screw both of you.’ I stormed out of the kitchen and down the long corridor to the farmhouse extension where my room was located. It was basic but comfortable, and I had my own bathroom. I threw myself on the bed and willed myself not to cry. I didn’t want them to think I was weak in any way because I wasn’t. I’d survived so much, and none of them ever gave me the credit I deserved, except for Cody; he knew what I’d been through, and he knew how resilient I could be.

  I sent a quick message to Elizabeth to check that she’d gotten back to the academy safely and filled her in on the Neanderthal antics of my pack. I wanted to arrange another training session for the next night, partly to annoy Zak and partly because I missed my best friend so much. Within seconds I received a reply.

  I blinked and reread the message. Elizabeth had only told me that night about the Governors’ Agency and their involvement in the various academies across the country. Why were they here? Why now? Surely they couldn’t have descended so fast after I freed Ari from the cage. No, it had to be something else. Something the alpha needed to know about.

  THE LIVING ROOM of the farmhouse was my favourite room. It had an open fire, which was always crackling and alive despite the temperature outside, and a big squishy rug whose pile was so deep you could wiggle your toes in it. There was a huge sofa with faded fabric and worn armrests that was the comfiest seat in the world. Once you snuggled on there you didn’t want to move. Dotted around the rest of the room was an assortment of armchairs that the Mills family had collected over the years. The room was warm and homely. It made me feel safe.

  Zak was spread out on the sofa with one arm hanging over the edge. He wore shorts and nothing else. His tanned, muscular torso reminded me of how much I’d missed of his life. He’d been sixteen when I’d last seen him, and yet now here he was, a man, and alpha of a werewolf pack.

  ‘Hey, Mia,’ he said without even opening his eyes. I didn’t think I’d ever get used to the wolves knowing my scent that well.

  ‘Something’s going on at Hood Academy,’ I said taking a seat in the armchair opposite him. ‘Elizabeth sent this message.’ I handed him my phone, so he could read it for himself and watched his face scrunch up with concentration and worry. Being alpha must be a huge responsibility, and I wasn’t being fair to him.

  ‘I’ve seen these Governors’ Agency agents before. They made life difficult for a pack in Norfolk a few years ago.’

  ‘What happened?’

  Zak looked up from the phone, his expression cold. ‘They murdered the entire pack.’

  My hand flew to my mouth as I gasped. How could they do that? Yes, the pack were werewolves, but they were also human 99 percent of the time. I couldn’t speak for other packs across the country, but I knew for certain that Zak’s pack never hunted people, or killed in cold blood. They loved nature and living in balance. None of them deserved to be punished for who they were.

  ‘How?’ I almost didn’t want to know the gory details, but somewhere deep inside me, I had to know.

  ‘As far as we could tell they were poisoned. The local authority covered it up saying it was a leak in the gas line but Terry and Byron saw some of the bodies and they all had puncture wounds around the main artery in their neck. A single needle hole. We think they were all stabbed by a syringe in their sleep.’

  My stomach knotted up, and I had to fight the urge to vomit. Those poor people had been murdered in cold blood by a silent weapon.

  ‘Do you think there’s a link to the doctor who injected Ari and her sister?’

  ‘Ari’s father told me the doctor was a representative from a new pharmaceutical company who were sympathetic to the werewolf cause.’

  ‘Sympathetic?’

  ‘The doctor claimed to have a werewolf wife and daughter who had been cured using the product. The alpha bought it and reported back to the pack so they could choose.’

  ‘Choose to let a weirdo experiment on their family?’

  ‘No, choose to cure their children. Prevent them from turning.’

  I wondered if Zak ever regretted leaving home and seeking out his werewolf destiny. Our mother had wanted him to see Sebastian before his sixteenth birthday in the hope that he would have completed his miracle cure for lycanthropy before Zak turned, but my brother chose the pack. A bit like I’d done.

  ‘Do you think Sebastian’s involved in this?’

  ‘Sebastian is definitel
y capable of creating a cure, or poison depending on your interpretation, but after hearing what Terry said on the night you escaped, I don’t think Sebastian is capable of mass murder. He’s crazy, yes, but I don’t think he’s a cold-blooded killer.’

  ‘You don’t have to protect him on my account.’

  ‘I know, but I realise you must be confused about your relationship with him, and I don’t want it to come between us.’

  I blinked. ‘Why would it come between us? You’re my brother. Just because we found out we have different dads doesn’t make you any less of a brother to me.’

  He smiled an exhausted smile. His eyes crinkled slightly, and I felt a tug in my chest. He seemed so young in that moment, and I had to remind myself of the role he played and the responsibility he held for so many lives.

  ‘That’s good to hear, Mia.’

  The key in the front door broke the spell between us and I heard the low whispers of Byron and Cody returning from their delivery. My mood lightened on hearing Cody’s voice, and I jumped from the chair to open the living room door.

  In a flash Zak was off the sofa and grabbing my arm, moving my hand away from the door handle. At my puzzled expression he lowered his eyes to the floor.

  ‘I’m sorry, Mia,’ he mumbled, ‘but I’m going to need Cody to be focused on the pack until we figure out what’s going on. I…I don’t think you should distract him.’

  I yanked my arm from Zak’s grasp, unable to hide the hurt and pain I felt at his words. Turning away from him to pull open the door, I stopped myself from calling after Cody and telling him what my stupid brother had said. I stopped myself from screaming to the entire household that apparently I was never allowed to be happy, but I couldn’t stop the feral growl as it rose up from somewhere deep in my gut. From the shocked look on Zak’s face, it surprised him as much as me.

  I stormed off into the darkness of the corridor and back to my room without another sound. If I ever did become a werewolf, the first thing I wanted to do was bite my brother.