by Casey Morgan
Anson looks absolutely gutted. This is probably the biggest error he has ever made. The secret that we’ve been protecting for centuries has somehow gotten out under his reign. If the Mathis pack knows, there’s a chance that others know as well. Are we going to have different packs coming to challenge us on the regular now? What we protect is sacred and a prize for any pack to own. I could see them coming in droves just to have their chance to take it from us.
How did our secret get out? What has changed recently? The only different things on our compound have been Mini and Flint. I doubt Mini has anything to do with this. She was fully caught off guard by the reveal of my wolf side. It must be Flint then. He was slimy from the start; even Anson felt it. It has to be him.
“What about Flint?” I voice. My brother and my alpha look at me. They don’t seem to understand what I’m saying, so I clarify. “I think this could be Flint’s fault. We all felt something off about him. He must be connected to this somehow. I mean, isn’t it weird that he pops up, and then all of this happens?”
Tamir doesn’t have much of a reaction, which the usual for him, but Anson looks unconvinced. “It can’t be Flint. He just arrived. We’ve been getting reports of the possible campers for a while now.”
“Maybe he’s been working behind the scenes, getting everything together, and, now, he’s making his move.” The pieces fit together. He comes to our orchard acting like he wants to make a purchase, but, in reality, he’s keeping us distracted and scoping us out.
Anson waves my theory off. “You’re overthinking it, Pax. How can he know anything? We didn’t get his scent off of those wolves. I’m sure a pack member would have mentioned it if they found any evidence of Flint being involved. You’re probably upset with him because of the whole thing with his girl.” Anson snaps his fingers a few times. “What’s her name?”
“Mini,” Tamir answers.
“Mini!” The alpha’s face screws up, and he looks at my brother. “Mini?” Tamir nods. “What an odd name.” He turns back to me to continue his lecture. “But, yes, Mini. Something is going on between you two, and you better hope that she isn’t his mate, or else you will have to answer to shifter law. Don’t misunderstand, I know exactly what you two were doing before I showed up.”
“I already know this, Anson. I’m trying to tell you that something isn’t right about Flint. Don’t you think it’s suspicious that the day he shows up, we discover this other pack? And why does he want to buy land from us? What are his plans for it? Did he ever mention that?”
“No, not really, but that’s not enough to assume that he’s out here to get us. I’m sure everything you’ve mentioned is a coincidence, and, when we get to the bottom of this, you’ll feel like a fool.”
“Anson –”
“I’m done discussing this,” he cuts me off. There’s nothing else I can do if he doesn’t want to confront the obvious. I guess Anson does not like what Tamir or I have to offer, so, now, no one is saying anything. “Let’s get back to the house. I need to have a meeting with the elders, so we can decide what to do next. If these wolves are coming back, we will not be unprepared.”
I guess that is as good as we are going to get. I still think Flint has something to do with this, but Anson probably needs hard proof or something concrete that I can pin on this ‘lone wolf.’ I’ll find a way to convince him. I’m not going to let this one rest.
We start to walk back. Tamir and Anson naturally get ahead of me as I slow down my pace because I want to get left behind. Usually, one of them would notice I’m falling behind, but they are both so preoccupied that, soon, they’re getting out of sight. Once I’m far enough away, I change directions. I’m going to find Mini. I could tell she was running back to the house. She probably needs to grab her stuff before running off, which I hope she hasn’t gotten to yet. I could track her scent either way because I’m sure she hasn’t begun to think about what exactly it means that I’m a werewolf.
There’s no way she knows what this all means anyway. I want to explain it all to her. The fact that we’re not scary or violent, not unless we need to be. I mean, we’re just like people. We come in all shapes and sizes. Like, for example, Flint is someone she should stay away from.
She probably doesn’t even know who he really is. If she was so scared of me, I must have been her first werewolf. I need to get her away from him. He can’t have anything good planned for her. I hope she didn’t run back to him. I’m sure he won’t do a damn thing to help her. He doesn’t seem like the type. He seems like the type to play cruel games and laugh in your face.
Anson and Tamir get far enough away from me that I feel comfortable enough to slip away. I make a detour, turning into another part of the woods. I’ve got to find Mini and explain everything to her. I’m already freaking out. I’ve never cared so much about a woman before, and, now, the one who has wiggled her way into my affections is currently deathly afraid of me.
This whole romance thing is so much more complicated than I thought it would be. I just really hope she hasn’t totally left already. Leaving the pack to chase her, especially at this particular moment, would not be a good look.
Where would she even go? It’s not easy getting in or out, which means Mini could not have gone far. I’m sure everything will be fine.
Chapter Ten
Mini
I can’t believe what is happening.
I mean, what in the actual fuck is going on! Because I am totally in the dark. My brain is barely comprehending what my eyes just saw. A wolf. He turned into a motherfucking wolf. Were all those other wolves just other people I’d ran into earlier today?
Oh, Jesus Christ, I’m going to die.
I stop in the woods for a second. Looking behind me, I check to see if anyone is following me. It doesn’t seem like it. I lean against a tree to catch my breath. Closing my eyes, I do my best not to burst into tears. All I can think about are the fucking wolves. They are going to kill me so they can keep their weird secret. That must be what Pax was talking about. Why he can’t leave. Will they try to keep me here? Are they going to lock me up?
I need to get the hell out of here before any of them catch me. I’m not about to become a prisoner on this weird orchard.
I start running again and make it back to the main house. No one is here. Maybe I do have some good luck. If Pax is a werewolf, then maybe his entire family is. I don’t think I’d be able to keep a straight face knowing what I know.
I need to find Flint. He’s the only one who can get me out of here. I don’t care about all of his previous creepiness or any of the other shit he did. Dealing with him is a world better than dealing with actual werewolves!
Anson had someone give us a bedroom to share, maybe that’s where Flint is. If Anson is out in the woods being a wolf, Flint has nothing to do then.
I make my way to our room. Pushing the door open, I expect to find my traveling companion there, but the room is totally empty.
“Flint!” I call out, distressed.
He doesn’t suddenly materialize. Where could he be? I clasp my hands together, wringing them. All of his stuff is sitting around the room, so he hasn’t abandoned me here. I’m sure he left his keys somewhere in the room. If I can’t find Flint to get me out of here, I’ll get myself out of here.
I go to his jacket that’s hanging on the chair. Quickly, I stick my hands in all of the pockets but come up with nothing.
“Shit!”
There’s a close-by bag, so I start to shift through it. I shake it and hear a few things clinking, so maybe they’re in there. I dig through it, but it’s starting to look like the car keys aren’t in there either. Where in the world could they be? It’s not like the room is overflowing with things. There aren’t too many hiding places.
“Looking for something?”
I jump back, frightened by the sudden voice. I turn around to see Flint standing in the door frame. I’m still on the floor, looking up at him. He slowly approaches me, his hand
s in his pockets. I hear the tell-tale sounds of keys jingling and realize they are in his pocket. It looks like I’ll need him to get me out of here after all.
“What are you doing down there, Mini?”
I get my ass off the floor and walk up to him. “We need to get out of here.”
“Why? I thought I told you I needed time.”
“It’s not that!” I nearly scream. He’s still thinking about his stupid deal when our very lives are in danger. “I saw them, the guys who live here. They turn into wolves. One of them did it in front of my eyes, and that Anson guy had a bunch following him. You have to get me out of here before they come back and kill both of us.”
Flint doesn’t seem to be taking me seriously. He has that stupid smirk on his face.
“Don’t you get it! We are going to die unless we leave. Please let me leave.” I’m begging him at this point. If he needs me to, I will get on my hands and knees.
Flint starts to laugh, and I almost start crying. Clearly, he doesn’t believe me. He must think I’m completely insane. We’re going to get stuck here once the werewolves get back, and then they are going to kill the two of us. They’ll probably start with me. Or maybe they’ll start with Flint since he’s the man. I don’t know. I just know I’m going to die
“You don’t get it, do you?” Flint says. I furrow my brow because I don’t understand. “Mini,” he smiles, moving closer to me, “we’re all werewolves here.” His face shifts for a second, becoming wolf-like before returning to a human. I scramble away from him, clinging to the bedroom wall. “Now that you know our secret, you're stuck here. We can't have you running off and telling all the humans about us, now can we?”
I'm stuck here? I can't be. There's no way these guys aren't going to hurt me. They'll probably torture and do all kinds of horrible things to me. And Flint will be first in line, no doubt.
I knew he was sick, but this is beyond my wildest imaginings.
“Are you going to hurt me?”
“Mini,” he pouts. “I don't want to hurt you. I mean, if you leave me no choice, I'll do what I have to do, but,” he starts.
“But what?”
“If you do everything I say, then I can let you go. It’s that simple.”
“What do you want?”
“I need you to do me a favor, and then I'll get you away from here.”
“Anything! I'll do anything!” I've never been more frightened in my life. I don't care what he asks me to do if it gets me away from this godforsaken orchard, I'll do whatever it is in a heartbeat.
“Perfect.”
Flint comes towards me, and I instinctually flinch, but that doesn't stop him. He grabs my wrist and pulls me out of the bedroom.
“Where are we going?”
“To do that, anything you promised.” It's so ominous the way he says it, but I did promise.
I swallow the lump in my throat and allow myself to be dragged around the house. He pulls me downstairs, and we stop in front of a door.
“Down there,” he points, “in the basement, there's a map. You're going to go down the stairs. There will be a bunch of doors, go into the red one with a cross on it. The map is a large one, and it has silver markings on it with red X's. There will be some trees and rivers drawn on as well. It is a hand-painted map, and it’s on the older side, so treat it with care. Bring it back to me, and I'll drive you wherever you want to go.”
“Okay, um…” I trail off.
“Red door, big map, silver markings. I'll be waiting for you.” He pushes me towards the staircase and shoos me away.
I take a deep breath and open the heavy wood door. The stairs are steep. They look like they are going into an endless hole. I hug the railing, not wanting to fall and break my neck. That would be how I'd end up dying in this damn place with my luck.
Slowly, I take one step at a time. It's dimly lit, giving me just enough light to get where I need to, but also not enough light to assuage any fear, so I'm even more on edge. I reach the bottom, and there's a hallway with several doors. I spot the red one with the cross that Flint described and go into that room.
Flipping the switch, I can see that the room is stuffed with shit.
“How am I supposed to find the map?” I ask myself. Guess I've just got to start looking.
I go deeper into the room, and my eyes start scanning the shelves. There are so many random things, and none of them are making me feel better about currently being here. There are swords, guns, contraptions that look like torture devices - so I was maybe right about them going Spanish Inquisition on my ass.
I start to go through a pile, absentmindedly moving things out of the way. I pick up a white, weirdly shaped object that I drop the second I see what it is. It hits the floor, the top cracking a little. I inspect it a little more closely, and I'm sure it's an actual human skull. Then I notice one that's shaped more like a dog. That must be one of the werewolves.
Creepy.
I back away from that pile and notice a stack of papers in the corner.
“It's probably over there,” I mumble. I kneel down in front of it and flip through the sheets. There are a bunch of maps, but none of them are what Flint described.
“Shit!”
I get to the end of the stack, and it's not there. I'm not going to find the stupid map. This room has too much crap, and I don't have enough time to look through all of it. And what if Flint has the wrong room? Then I really am screwed. How could he expect me to do this for him? I’m already freaking the absolute fuck out, and there is no way I can keep my thoughts straight.
I lean back against some random whatever, wanting to cry. My eyes wander in front of me, and I see a rolled-up scroll. I reach out, thinking maybe I'll get lucky. It's probably not what I need, but all I've got is hope at this point.
I pull out the rolled-up scroll, and it's rather large. Undoing the string holding it together, I unfurl the thing, and I think it's what I need. It has the trees and rivers and red Xs and silver markings like Flint described. It’s hand-painted and looks really old.
Thank God! I can finally get out of here. I reroll the map and get up off the floor. I exit the basement, going back up the stairs just as carefully as I came down them. When I reenter the main floor of the house, Flint is nowhere to be found. I thought he said he was going to wait for me.
“Flint!” I whisper yell. I don't get a response, and I don't want to start actually yelling in case I catch the attention of someone else.
I check our room, but he's not in there either.
Maybe he just went to the car. That makes sense. I go to the front door, careful not to make too much noise.
I open the door, ready to make a mad dash to the car, but I'm assaulted by bright lights. I bring my arm to cover my eyes, my heartbeat spiking. The light is taken away from my eyes, and I see I'm surrounded by wolves again. I clutch on to the map in my hands, the fear coursing through my veins.
They're not going to let me leave. I saw Pax change, and now I'm stuck.
I see Flint standing with Anson. Maybe he's going to get me out of this situation.
“See what I told you. She's a thief. She's working with the rival pack to steal from you.”
What is he saying? It doesn't sound like he's defending me. It sounds like he's throwing me under the bus.
“Take the map from her,” Anson orders.
One of the wolves stalks towards me. I back up but hit the wall. They get closer and closer until they’re only a few inches away. They snarl at me before turning back into a man. He snatches the map from me and takes it over to Anson, who unfurls it to inspect it.
I look around and see Pax in the background. He's back to the boy I found myself starting to like. He would be the only other point of potential solace, but I can't get visions of him changing into a wolf out of my head.
“You were right about her having the map, but why were the two of you traveling together?”
“She was hitchhiking and manipulated me in
to bringing her here. You know how young women are. They'll use whatever methods they have to get a man to do their bidding. Sadly, I was fooled.”
“Mmhm,” Anson says.
Everything Flint is saying is a lie. I never wanted to come here. He knows I didn't want to come here. Why is he doing this to me? Why are all of these bad things happening in my life? What did I do in a past life?
I look straight into his eyes, and he gives me an evil smile back. It's like an icepick to my heart. I don't know what to say or how to say it. There's too much going on, and I am scared stiff.
I see Pax trying to get Anson's attention, but he's paying him no mind. “Tie her up and lock her in the basement.”
“What!” I scream. It's the first thing I've been able to say. They can't do this. They can't lock me up. That’s not how any of this works. Maybe I did have the map in my hand, but only because Flint made me. I just wanted to leave this hell hole.
Two men approach me from either side. I try to run, but they stop me, grabbing my body. I fight back, but they're too strong, and I can't get out of their hold. It’s like struggling with a brick wall, that’s how solid these dudes are, but that doesn’t stop me from trying.
“Let me go! Let me go! I didn't do anything! He's lying!”
My pleas fall on unsympathetic ears. They don't care about me. They're going to lock me up in their dark basement, and no one will ever hear or see me again. My parents already think I ran off, so they won't look for me.
“Please let me go! I’m sorry! It’s not my fault!” I keep crying, hoping, and praying for something to happen. To get out of this in some way. But they continue to carry me inside. Nothing I do elicits any emotion from the two men tasked with imprisoning me.
There is no hope left. I'm never getting out of this orchard. Years from now, some other unsuspecting girl is going to find my skull in a pile of shit and wonder what happened to me.
Oh, god, I’m going to die.
Chapter Eleven
