Outcasts

by Craig MacLachlan

  Parking, she looked back at her friends and had to hold back her tears for what was to come.

  “The usual?” She asked Haley.

  “We’ll just come in and order.”

  “No, Morgan is still wanted by the police, among others. Stay here with her. I’ll be back soon.” She closed the door and walked into the restaurant.

  A girl worked the counter, even though Tofug usually worked on Sundays. Skylar had been looking forward to some laughter between the two of them.

  “Where’s Doug?”

  “No call, no show.” The girl smacked her. “What ya getting?”

  After repeating her order several times until the girl got it right, Skylar sat at a table. From the restaurant window, she spotted Morgan and Haley in a heated discussion. Haley continually threw her arms in the air, crying. Morgan petted her hair and seemed to be trying to calm Haley down.

  “Here’s your food. Don’t forget the antacids.”

  “Thanks, I guess.” Skylar grabbed the food and walked outside.

  Morgan was sitting in the passenger seat again and Haley was lying silently on the backseat. Skylar had never seen Morgan cry before, but it was clear she had been, from the moisture on her cheeks. Skylar gave Morgan a warm smile, one which she had trouble returning.

  They drove near Tamarack Falls Park and parked in a secluded spot in the woods, the car well hidden in an alcove. She and Morgan ate the food, but Haley refused, giving them both the silent treatment.

  “I shoulds gets going.”

  “Okay.”

  Morgan climbed out of the car and stood in front of it.

  “You’ll regret not saying goodbye.” Skylar reached back and touched Haley, who pulled away from her touch.

  Skylar joined Morgan outside the car. She found her hand and held it.

  “I’m going to miss you.”

  “Nah, you won’t. Okays yeses you will.” She squeezed Skylar’s hand, rubbed it over Skylar’s heart. “I’ll nevers forget you.”

  “Damn you, Morgan Brood.”

  Skylar placed her hand over Morgan’s. Her lips started to quiver.

  “I was neveres on its side. I always tried to keeps it away from my girls.”

  “You had me fooled for a while.”

  “I knows, and I’ms sorry. I tried to finded a way to dispose of it before things gotted this far.” Morgan pulled her hand away.

  “We can still make this work.”

  Morgan shook her head and Skylar knew it was pointless. They embraced, not letting go for what seemed like hours. Tears streamed down Skylar’s face. She felt Morgan’s land her neck. They stepped back and placed their foreheads together.

  They understood each other. They were connected.

  Morgan licked both Skylar’s lips in one swipe and Skylar returned the gesture. It meant something important—love, she assumed. She didn’t want to let her friend go but knew that she had to.

  Moran gave Skylar a toothy, yellow-stained grin before turning away

  She didn’t look back.

  The car door opened, and Haley raced after Morgan, tackling her. They rolled on the ground until they sat, facing each other. They held hands and rubbed both sides of their heads together, kissing on both cheeks. They sobbed and Skylar cried as she watched their goodbye. Morgan licked Haley’s lips like she had Skylar’s.

  The three of them were never going to be together again. With her head low, Haley returned to Skylar’s side and they put their arms around each other. Morgan turned to leave but stopped and ran to them. With each hand, she grabbed their hair and tugged.

  “You’re it!”

  Morgan spun, ran into the woods and vanished for the last time.

  Skylar wiped Haley’s tears and tried to be strong for her, but it was hard. Her friend wiped away hers as well.

  They drove the short distance to Tamarack Park. Passing by, it was full of people. Skylar caught sight of Samantha, Brad and their posse throwing a Frisbee in the park. Who cared—there would be plenty of time to deal with them. Pulling onto the main road, she and Haley looked to the woods hoping for one last sight of Morgan.

  She was gone.

  They drove back to Skylar’s house and sat on the couch, grateful that nobody else was home. Flipping through the channels, she settled on an old comedy show, until the screen went blank, a message splashed across the screen.

  Breaking News

  A woman reporter stood at the edge of Tamarack Park. Behind her was a large circle of people and police cars with lights flashing. To the right of the crowd was an overly large black SUV.

  Debra and Jake’s SUV.

  “Good afternoon viewers. This a special report, live from Tamarack Park. A short while ago a call came into the Tamarack Police Department regarding an unruly disturbance. The individual involved was surrounded by good Samaritans until the police arrived. We also have a special department of the government on hand to help deal with this wild, deranged individual”.

  “Skye?” Haley said, and Skylar motioned for her to be quiet.

  “We have here the young lady who not only called the incident in but also had a previous encounter with this woman that ended in injury. Miss, will you please tell everyone your name and what happened today?”

  The camera zoomed in on a hand, red and swollen, with bite marks and stitches.

  “My name is Samantha, and that bitch will finally pay for doing this to me!”

  The camera panned up to Samantha’s face, her devilish grin followed by cruel laughter.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Police officers formed a barricade, keeping the public at bay. Skylar tried unsuccessfully to push through the raucous crowd as they yelled obscenities meant for Morgan.

  “Go back to the woods where you belong!”

  “She’s a beast, she should be locked up!”

  “My children aren’t safe!”

  “Put her in a kennel!”

  Skylar tuned out the voices as she spotted Morgan crouched in an animal stance. Several officers approached with long poles and padded leather collars. Her growl was fierce—Skylar knew she wouldn’t be easily captured. Morgan lunged, grabbed an officer’s leg and biting while another officer looped the collar around Morgan’s neck, and it latched in place.

  And then Skylar spotted them.

  Debra and Jake held the cage door open and Morgan went ballistic. Officers rushed in, struggling with a straitjacket, and Morgan fought back. She clawed, kicked and tore at them.

  Incensed, Skylar hoped Morgan would tear them apart. Her blood coursed with adrenaline and the need to protect her friend, her pack member—her sister—but there were too many of them. Morgan fell to their numbers.

  Skylar cringed and Haley pulled on Skylar’s shirt as the straitjacket tightly cinched around Morgan’s body. Two officers lifted Morgan from the ground, pushing her along while another yanked her with the pole. Morgan spotted Skylar and instantly calmed her eyes fixed on her. Skylar couldn’t hold back the tears that wells as Haley gripped tightly to her shirt.

  At the cage, the officers tried to shove Morgan inside as she grew wild and once again. After the collar was removed she was forced inside. An officer followed, connecting another collar to Morgan’s neck and attached it to the steel bars.

  With a scream, the officer scrambled from the cage, blood spurting from her hand. Morgan spat a chunk of the officer’s finger and began bouncing around the cage.

  “Strap her down!” Jake commanded.

  Another officer climbed warily into the cage, received a few kicks to the body but was able to attach straps to Morgan’s ankles. Morgan was now helpless.

  Debra pushed something through the bars, but Skylar couldn’t make out what it was. The officer took it and crawled to Morgan. He unraveled the item and carefully slid it over Morgan’s head and tied it around her neck, keeping her from being able to bite.

  Horrified, Skylar could take no more. As the cage door closed and locked, she tore from Haley, p
ushing an officer to the ground and ran for Morgan.

  “Stop her!” Someone yelled.

  Several people tried, but she easily evaded them with fluid movements, and she was even able to land a punch to one. As she reached Morgan, she expected Debra and Jake to stop her, but they stepped back. Skylar kneeled and pressed her face against the bars.

  Morgan turned her head the best she could. Skylar could hear panting and a low, fearful growl as the mask grew wet with what Skylar realized were Morgan’s tears.

  Someone grabbed Skylar and she, shoved them away, falling back to her knees.

  “Let her be,” Debra said. “Give her a moment. Let her friend through, too.”

  Several officers had been holding back Haley, and when they let go, she ran.

  “Morgan,” Skylar said solemnly.

  “My Skye. Wanted to give that bitch one last nibbles. Watch over Haley. Keeps her safest for me.”

  “I’m going to get you out of there. I promise.”

  “Promise me that you keep her safest.”

  Haley knelt next to Skylar. She stuck her fingers through the bars and petted Morgan’s cloth-covered head. “Don’t leave me again, Morgan. Don’t leave us.”

  A flood of tears streamed down Skylar’s cheeks. “Morgan, we’ll be together before you know it. And I’ll make sure you’re never found again.”

  Movement restricted, Morgan tried to shake her head. “I’m too stubbornness . . . stubborn right? I’ll never be free again.”

  “Yeah, stubborn.” Skylar cried even harder. A hand touched her shoulder and she knew it was Debra.

  “It’s time, Skylar.”

  “Leave her alone!” Haley burst out. “Let her go! I won’t let you take her!”

  Skylar sprung to her feet as Haley attacked Jake. Skylar pulled her away. “Shh, it’s going to be okay, Haley.”

  Morgan turned her head, and Skylar sensed her looking at them from the small slits in the mask. As a group of officers lifted the cage, the crowd roared. The sound made Skylar sick to her stomach.

  “Rule the school, my wild ones,” Morgan managed as she was carried away.

  “No!” Haley screamed.

  The cage was slid into the back of the SUV, and a deep, haunting howl ripped through the air. Without thinking, Skylar fell to her knees beside Haley, and together they arched their necks toward the sky. Their howls of mourning chorused with Morgan’s.

  The crowd hushed as they continued their anguished cries, and the SUV doors slammed shut, sealing Morgan inside. The engine started, and Morgan fell silent.

  Skylar and Haley followed her lead and ceased their wild outcries.

  As the SUV drive vanished around the bend the officers forced the crowd to disperse. Skylar overheard one saying that she and Haley belonged in the cage with Morgan.

  “She’s gone,” Haley whispered.

  “I know.”

  “You two need obedience training. Were you raised in the wild, or something?” Samantha’s voice shrilled. “That bitch got what she deserved!”

  Skylar whipped around to attack, but Samantha and Brad were already being ushered away. Skylar hoped they realized how lucky they were—she’d been prepared to rip into Samantha’s throat and feed her own cartilage to her.

  One day, Samantha and her clique would pay.

  An ambulance arrived and the hurt officer was loaded inside. Skylar and Haley were ushered aside and they sat on the ground in silence.

  “Hey. Your name’s Colt, correct?” an EMT asked.

  “Yeah, Skylar. Why?”

  “I was at your house less than an hour ago. Took your dad to the hospital.”

  “Is he okay?” She really didn’t need any more bad news.

  “He’ll be fine, took a tumble down the stairs. Clumsy goof,” he said returning to his patient.

  Though she was relieved, Skylar faced a dilemma. A decision that she hoped would change her life forever if she chose it.

  With Morgan gone and normal life to look forward to for her and Haley, the choice should have been easy.

  But it wasn’t.

  Skylar could go back to therapy and rid herself of her feral life for good. Or, she could continue living like Haley, a hybrid, always battling her wild side for control.

  Looking at Haley and then the direction Morgan was taken, Skylar knew the answer.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Both of their parents had tried to keep them from returning to school. Haley should have been on board, but a part of her had changed.

  Skylar liked the change.

  With her mom on the mend from her poisoning, it was Skyler’s turn to take care of her dad. His fall down the stairs had resulted in broken ribs, a concussion, and a broken nose.

  The girls compromised with a two-week reprieve from school, completing their assignments at home. They were also forced to resume therapy. Debra wanted them to attend hypnotherapy sessions to block out their memories of Morgan and any resurfacing feral behavior.

  They both refused.

  Skylar was sure she’d be kicked off of the yearbook staff. Although Carly had been at the park the day Morgan was on the news—and heard with her own ears the wild howls from Skylar and Haley—she remained their friend. Skylar and Carly spent time alone as well as time with Haley and Abbey. Carly never brought up Morgan or the odd behavior. The only thing Skylar mention was wishing bad will toward Samantha.

  According to a news report, firefighters discovered remnants of animal bones but nothing human. Neither was there mention of a cell phone found. The whereabouts of both Skylar and Haley’s phone along with Trevor remained a mystery.

  Trevor weighed heavily on her mind.

  The Father was dead, or so she hoped. Skylar still had the claw. She researched how to extract DNA as it would be the only way to uncover his identity.

  Neither she nor Haley were ever given updates about Morgan. No matter how hard Skylar had tried, she was unable to reach Debra or Jake, her attempts to get information ignored.

  In the months following Morgan’s capture, Skylar and Haley became closer than ever. At first, the other students whispered and pointed, while some teased with howls and crude gestures. But slowly, most of them moved on. Threatened with expulsion, Samantha and Brad left them alone.

  With two months until summer break, Skylar and Haley walked down the halls toward their lockers.

  “Skye . . .” Haley said, sniffing her locker.

  “Mine as well,” Skylar whispered with crawling skin, knowing what they would find inside.

  The odor of chipmunk and deer would be faint to most passersby, but not to Skylar and Haley. The sweet, mouthwatering aroma was tantalizing. Her hand shook as Skylar began to dial the combination on her locker. Haley held the lock on her own locker but didn’t move. On the final number, gasps sounded from passing students. Skylar looked behind her expecting their attention to be on her and Haley, but the crowd was staring and pointing down the hallway.

  Samantha, Brad, and their posse were huddled, whispering.

  Haley crashed to the floor and hugged Skyler’s leg. “Skye . . .” Haley pointed down the hallway as tears streamed down her face.

  Skylar peered down the hall.

  A girl strutted toward them holding a red leather bag. She oozed confidence in a pair of black high-heeled shoes and slacks. A blue business jacket covered a white lace undershirt. Bright red lips and matching shoulder length red hair would rival any woman.

  Girlfriends slapped their ogling boyfriends. The girl stopped twenty feet from Skylar and Haley. Even her grin caused people to take notice.

  “So, what’s your name, new girl?” A boy blurted.

  Ignoring him, she stared at Skylar and Haley.

  Recognition slowly dawned, and Skylar could do no more than stare.

  The girl broke her gaze, turned and swept her eyes over the students gathered in the hall, even winking at Samantha and Brad.

  “My name is—” the girl began to speak.

&
nbsp; Skylar finished the sentence in a hushed, stunned voice.

  “Morgan Brood.”

  HOMECOMING

  THE FERAL GIRLS, BOOK 2

  COMING SOON!

  About the Author

  Craig MacLachlan is an author, screenwriter and producer. His first published novel is Summer’s Shadow, a YA fantasy. Craig has written and produced several short films including Roger, Fired, John #3, Feral, and Isolation. He is currently writing a feature screenplay to be filmed in the near future. Craig’s stories are fast-paced and exciting and they will leave you wanting more!

  Craig was born in Thompson Falls, MT, but spent the majority of his youth and teen years in the state of WA where he met his wife, Christina in 9th grade. Craig asked her out in a letter Febraury 18th, 1989 and they married July 22nd, 1995. On October 29th, 2018 the day after Craig’s birthday, his beautiful and loving wife lost her battle with stage 4 breast cancer, the second cancer battle in her life, the first being stage 4 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at age 13.

  Craig enjoys hiking, camping, fishing, gold panning and exploring the mountains. He is an avid horror fan, can only whistle by sucking in air and can name all fifty states in alphabetical order. He also enjoys cooking and spending time with friends and family.