Mistakenly Mated by Sonnet O'Dell Page A

Caleb’s back as he snored away. Kerry stifled a giggle, listening to him breathe in and out like some slumbering beast.
    She slipped out of the bed, tugging on her shorts and pulling one of Caleb T-shirts before dashing across to the bathroom.
    She’d soaked her bra in cold water to get the blood out. It was now a nasty brown color. Kerry didn’t think her momma and a ton of bicarbonate of soda could save it. She sighed.
    Kerry binned it and decided to check out the kitchen for some eats. When she looked around, she found the fridge mostly stocked with meat—all wolves need to eat a lot of protein. The crisper drawer was full of hodgepodge of vegetables to make one interesting salad. Kerry took out a section of Italian sausage, chewing on it while she searched the cupboard.
    She came up with a box of crackers. She swallowed it down with a big glass of ice tea from in a big bottle in the fridge door. She was making a plan. Caleb was sure someone was out to get her and she knew the best place to find out information about a mystery shooter.
    Kerry searched out a pad and paper and wrote a note for Caleb. She left it tucked under the lamp on the bedside table as she retrieved her shoes. She found the keys for his car on a neat little hook in a box on the hallway wall. There were several and it took her a minute to match the symbols on the keys to the car sitting in the driveway.
    Once outside with the car, she pressed the little pad on the chain. The key shot out and the car beeped, unlocking. Kerry smiled to herself. Technology. She climbed in the driver’s side and adjusted the seat to her smaller height before staring at the dash in confusion. So many dials. Once she worked out which was the gas gauge and the speedometer ,she figured she could monitor how fast she was going and if the car was about to run out of gas. She put the car into drive and started at a gentle pace down the drive, hitting the brakes as she reached the big iron gate.
    Kerry was puzzled. How do I get out? She looked around the car for something else—a button or switch to flick. The second chunky fob on the keychain caught her eye. It has a button on it. She pressed it and the gate slowly slid open. Quickly she pulled forward and out, watching the gate close again in the review mirror as she headed for town.
    * * * *
    There was one guns and ammo store in town. Kerry parked Caleb’s sleek, cobalt grey car across the street. It was a stark contrast with the pick up in front of her and the one parked behind.
    She got out, making the car beep again as it locked. She walked over to the door and looked up at the faded sign and bars on the windows. The open sign was turned towards the glass so she turned the door handle and pushed it in.
    A little cow bell rang out as she stepped into the dimly lit store. A glass fronted counter ran around the entire store in the shape a square horseshoe. In the cases sat ammunition, scopes, cleaning kits, and all manner of extras any avid hunter or gun enthusiast could want. Smaller guns were displayed on one side. There was a rack of rifles in the middle of the store. Shotguns and more scary looking automatic rifles were on the walls in racks. Kerry could only recognize the basic guns that she’d been around for her entire life: a pistol, a shotgun, a Winchester.
    She didn’t know the difference between bullets other than some were bigger than others or had different colored ends. Kerry was the last person to expect to walk into a gun store which was the reason Willard fell off his stool behind the counter. He hit the floor with a loud thwack and a moan.
    Kerry rushed over, leaning over the counter. He looked dazed and his eyes were bloodshot but that could be because of the lit joint that fell from his hand.
    “K…Kerry. Hi? What are you doing here?” Willard was wooly-haired and simple; completely different from his cousin. He wore denim overalls over a white T-shirt and big, heavy work boots.
    Kerry looked at