bike and mounted up. She reached the end of the hospital drive and stopped as emotion overtook her. She looked at the highway that stretched on and on forever before her. She was supposed to be alone. God had told her as much the day he’d stolen her family from her and she couldn’t stop the pain. She couldn’t die herself. She was supposed to carry this pain on and on. Eight years. It had only been eight years since her world was snatched from her. It was both distant and fresh at the same time. Sometimes she feared that Thomas’s eye color was disappearing from her mind. Not so much the eye color. She knew that his eyes were brown. But what shape were they? How did his eyes crinkle at the sides when he was happy or sad? What did he smell like? Beeswax and honey? Or was it powder and honey. No. It was Beeswax. He always used Beeswax lip balm. He tasted like honey all the time because of the honey drops he kept in a jar on his desk. She tried to tune everything else out to focus on his eyes but the only eyes she could see were Jerry’s deep chocolate penetrating gaze. He had eyes like a Native Warrior. If they had been born in a different time he would have been a Chief or a warrior on the planes. He had that silent strength about him. She growled at herself. She had to leave. She had no choice, but it felt like a physical rope tied them together. It was at that moment that she felt it. Shock coursed through her at the suddenness of it. It came from her left side and hit her so hard that both her and her motorcycle went flying into the tree line. She jumped to her feet, her claws fully extended and the glass plate on her helmet missing half its glass. “You bitch. This is my favorite helmet,” Al raged as she ripped the helmet from her head and faced the wolf. She could tell it was a female because of the size. Also certain body parts were barely covered up by the fur that covered her body. Al couldn’t believe her eyes. She was a young one. Usually the young one’s, newly turned, wouldn’t be allowed to hunt so soon. Her body still looked so much like a human’s that Al dreaded having to kill her. The younger they were, the harder they were to burn. The female came at her and just when Al was going to attack her , another one grabbed her from behind, and bit down into her shoulder. She felt the tendon separate from the bone and she screamed out loud before she could stop herself. She turned, put one finger in each of the beast’s eye sockets, and pushed until there was a gushy popping sound. It howled in pain as it released its hold on her. This one was a male and he raised her above his head and threw her through the woods so hard that a few trees snapped as she cleared a path, and finally came to a stop. He was a strong one. Much older than the female. He must have been the one that turned the younger wolf. How had she not felt these wolves coming? She supposed that her feeling s for Officer Cayman had put her system out of whack. She attempted to get up but realized that she couldn’t move her arms or legs. She cursed. They must have snapped her neck. She closed her eyes to concentrate on repairing the damaged area. She heard the animals enter the clearing and concentrated a little harder. The male picked her up by one leg and began to drag her off into the woods, the female following behind. Why did they have to smell like rotting flesh? It was worse than road kill. Her head banged over dirt, sticks, and rocks and she was hard pressed to concentrate. It was at that moment that she happened to look over and see two creatures approaching the hospital. They were headed towards the room where Jerry was. One of them smashed out the window and she watched in horror as they both disappeared inside. * Jerry was about to pull on his pants, smiling at Nurse Watkins blushing face, when he saw the last thing in the world he thought he’d see out his window. Al made it sound like he would never see those