sneakers and let my head hang. Alex was sitting at my dining room table with a phone stuck to his ear, and Stu was standing beside him clicking keys on a laptop. They were all staring at me intently.
“What?” I snapped. “I forgot my umbrella. And what are you doing here?” I asked Alex. “Aren’t you supposed to be watching Lyn?”
“I … They aren’t … I’m calling the bus company now,” he sputtered.
Flo stuck her face next to my chest and inhaled. “That’s your blood.”
“Stop smelling me.” I made a circle in the air with my finger. “Personal space.”
“Kaden, what—” Stu started.
I held my hand up to stop him. I wasn’t ready for questions yet. I needed a hot shower, and I had to replenish my blood supply. Then I would answer them. I was sure I would have a few questions of my own once the fog lifted. I focused on walking up the stairs as normally as possible. It was hard but necessary. I didn’t want their help.
Once in the privacy of my own room, I latched onto a bag of blood, shivering as the cool liquid made its way through my body. My shoulders relaxed, and I could breathe a little easier. But the more I drank, the more aware I became of how uncomfortable my clothes were.
I unzipped my sweater and pulled it off, one clingy sleeve at a time. It hit the floor with a heavy slosh, and I peeled off my soggy socks. I shed the itchy jeans and gathered all of the clothes under my arm. With two strides I was at the window, tossing the sodden pile into the backyard. That took care of that for the time being. I grabbed a set of clean clothes from my dresser and walked to the bathroom feeling a little more like myself.
The hot water steamed up the room within seconds. I removed the rest of my clothes and stepped under the showerhead. The water was hot enough to blister normal skin, but I scrubbed myself with a bar of soap until the water swirling down the drain was clear. I stood there, soaking up the heat, for countless minutes.
My mind slowly sorted the jumbled mess. Jessica was dead. Merv was dead. Lyn was a target, and I had no idea what side Sid stood on.
Sid.
I turned the water off and grabbed a towel from the rack. I threw my dry clothes on and hurried back downstairs. Francesca said she had wolves on the bus along with mine.
“Where’s Sid?” I asked before anyone could utter a single word.
“His cell goes straight to voice mail,” Alex replied. “The bus was due back over two hours ago, so the company is trying to get ahold of the driver. I can call back in a little while to see what they find out.”
I pulled up a seat at the dining room table across from Alex and rested my head on the smooth table. “Jessica’s dead. So is Merv.”
“What?” Flo slammed her palms onto the table. “You killed them?”
I lifted my head again. “No, Francesca and the Marquis did.”
“This night keeps getting better and better,” Stu groaned.
“Did you try to call anyone else?” I asked. “Sid can’t be the only one with a cell phone.”
Alex blushed and nodded. “No one is answering.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Sid had either orchestrated this or was a victim. The results were the same. My werewolf pack had just become a pack of one. One young, naive wolf that hadn’t seen a day of battle in his life.
Wonderful.
I pushed away from the table. “I’m going to bed.”
I felt like Atlas with the world sitting on my shoulders. I couldn’t understand how so much had gone wrong in such a short amount of time. I would make it right again. It was time to start fighting back.
When I woke up the next morning, the first thing I thought of was Jessica. They would have found her body already. I wondered if I could say the same about Merv. I reached over and felt around the table for my phone. I dialed his number and waited. It went to voice mail, and I ended the call. He always answered. They must have been telling the truth.
There was a text
“What?” I snapped. “I forgot my umbrella. And what are you doing here?” I asked Alex. “Aren’t you supposed to be watching Lyn?”
“I … They aren’t … I’m calling the bus company now,” he sputtered.
Flo stuck her face next to my chest and inhaled. “That’s your blood.”
“Stop smelling me.” I made a circle in the air with my finger. “Personal space.”
“Kaden, what—” Stu started.
I held my hand up to stop him. I wasn’t ready for questions yet. I needed a hot shower, and I had to replenish my blood supply. Then I would answer them. I was sure I would have a few questions of my own once the fog lifted. I focused on walking up the stairs as normally as possible. It was hard but necessary. I didn’t want their help.
Once in the privacy of my own room, I latched onto a bag of blood, shivering as the cool liquid made its way through my body. My shoulders relaxed, and I could breathe a little easier. But the more I drank, the more aware I became of how uncomfortable my clothes were.
I unzipped my sweater and pulled it off, one clingy sleeve at a time. It hit the floor with a heavy slosh, and I peeled off my soggy socks. I shed the itchy jeans and gathered all of the clothes under my arm. With two strides I was at the window, tossing the sodden pile into the backyard. That took care of that for the time being. I grabbed a set of clean clothes from my dresser and walked to the bathroom feeling a little more like myself.
The hot water steamed up the room within seconds. I removed the rest of my clothes and stepped under the showerhead. The water was hot enough to blister normal skin, but I scrubbed myself with a bar of soap until the water swirling down the drain was clear. I stood there, soaking up the heat, for countless minutes.
My mind slowly sorted the jumbled mess. Jessica was dead. Merv was dead. Lyn was a target, and I had no idea what side Sid stood on.
Sid.
I turned the water off and grabbed a towel from the rack. I threw my dry clothes on and hurried back downstairs. Francesca said she had wolves on the bus along with mine.
“Where’s Sid?” I asked before anyone could utter a single word.
“His cell goes straight to voice mail,” Alex replied. “The bus was due back over two hours ago, so the company is trying to get ahold of the driver. I can call back in a little while to see what they find out.”
I pulled up a seat at the dining room table across from Alex and rested my head on the smooth table. “Jessica’s dead. So is Merv.”
“What?” Flo slammed her palms onto the table. “You killed them?”
I lifted my head again. “No, Francesca and the Marquis did.”
“This night keeps getting better and better,” Stu groaned.
“Did you try to call anyone else?” I asked. “Sid can’t be the only one with a cell phone.”
Alex blushed and nodded. “No one is answering.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Sid had either orchestrated this or was a victim. The results were the same. My werewolf pack had just become a pack of one. One young, naive wolf that hadn’t seen a day of battle in his life.
Wonderful.
I pushed away from the table. “I’m going to bed.”
I felt like Atlas with the world sitting on my shoulders. I couldn’t understand how so much had gone wrong in such a short amount of time. I would make it right again. It was time to start fighting back.
When I woke up the next morning, the first thing I thought of was Jessica. They would have found her body already. I wondered if I could say the same about Merv. I reached over and felt around the table for my phone. I dialed his number and waited. It went to voice mail, and I ended the call. He always answered. They must have been telling the truth.
There was a text
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