Daughter of the Darkest Moon

Strange Girl

After a while, a trio appeared. Two large men trailed by a girl with a metal collar around her neck. Probably silver. If she’d heard me from that far away, she had to be a wolf herself.

The men were focused on deciding where they’d set up and she looked directly at me with a smirk. For a second, I was pretty sure it was a trap. She’d given me the warning to get me in a place where I couldn’t defend myself.

That would be a mistake. I was one of the best fighters in the region, no matter what the circumstances. They wouldn’t take me down without one hell of a fight.

The girl stumbled with a squeak and landed hard against one of the men. He stood her upright as she apologized. She was wearing a pale green sundress with leather flip-flop sandals, definitely not made for hiking. Her long, dark brown hair was pulled back into a braid. She looked young.

As the group settled behind a small rise, I started paying attention to more than the strangely amused she-wolf. The men knew the cabin was rented to a werewolf, somehow. They planned to use her to take me out.

“Now, you go over and knock on the door. Tell him your car broke down and ask him if you can use his phone. Tell him you left yours at home. Shake your tail at him for a bit and keep him distracted. Remember, we’ll let you go once you help us get him, and his Alpha.” One of the men growled.

The girl sighed. “I’m not stupid. You’re just going to kill me no matter what. But, helping you means I get to stay alive long enough to figure out how to kill you first, so… must needs and all.”

The men laughed.

“You can’t kill us. With that necklace on, you can’t change into a wolf and you can’t disobey. Just do what we say and stop dreaming.” The first one snorted. He seemed to be in charge.

“Of course.” She sighed, averting her eyes until the men went back to their planning.

Glancing up, the girl made eye contact with me again. She raised her eyebrows as if asking if I understood. This was a difficult situation.

“Got it. I’ll stay quiet.” I whispered. A small smile quirked on one side of her face and I grinned. Something about her smile made me want to smile. “Strange girl.”

The first man reached over and patted her thigh. “Go on, bitch.”

“Classy.” She snorted as she got up, dusted herself off, and headed to the cabin.

The girl knocked on the door and waited. She knocked again when there was no answer. After a little longer she tried the knob. I heard her enter the house.

-

“Sorry about this. You may need to stay up there for a while. I’m working on a plan. It’s just these two here. Are you able to contact your Alpha?” She asked softly.

“No, I left my cell on the counter. Mind link doesn’t reach this far.” I whispered.

“Where is the entry to the attic? I want to get your phone to you before they decide to come make sure I’m not running.”

I crawled over to the opening in the closet and pulled the cover off. She grabbed my phone and took it to the closet standing on tiptoe and reaching as high as she could. I took my phone from her hand and replaced the cover.

“Call your Alpha and Gamma,” She said as she closed the closet door. “There are eleven hunters headed to your territory. Five from the east, three from the north, three from the south. All males and loaded with silver shot. They plan to take out the whole pack house tonight. Every higher level wolf is on their hit list. They knew where you were, they know where your Alpha headed this afternoon.”

“Who are you?” I murmured.

“Liviana Drake. They’re getting antsy. I’m heading out. Be good.” She told me as she left the cabin.

I crawled back to the vent and watched her head back to the hunters. Drake was a familiar name, but I couldn’t place it. There was no way she could have known about Ben’s trip. It was only planned a couple days before I left. That meant someone in our pack must have been feeding them information.

“He’s not there. I checked the crawlspaces and everything. Maybe he went hunting or something. It’s about supper time.” She offered.

“We can wait then. Shouldn’t be long.” The second hunter said.

I moved away from the vent and dialed my phone. I decided to call Ben first. It would get me to someone who would listen the soonest.

“Ollie, why are you calling? Are you going to gloat about how much fun you’re having?” Ben laughed.

“There are hunters outside my cabin. They caught a she-wolf who warned me. They wanted her to draw me out. Instead, she told me they have eleven friends set to attack the pack house tonight. And they know where you’re traveling. They want her to help them get you, too.” I warned.

“s**t. Call Geri. I’ll call Mark and have him get double patrols on the territory borders. I’m changing my travel plans and I’ll head back in the morning. The Maiden’s Heart pack will just have to accept my apologies. I’ll call you later.” He said.

“No. I’ll call you. I don’t know what the girl’s plan is, but I don’t want to risk it with my phone going off.” I told him.

“Got it. Goddess watch over you, Ollie.”

“You too, Ben.” I answered and hung up.

I called Geri and gave him the same information. The pack house would be emptied, and the families who lived there would be sent to stay elsewhere until the all clear was given. I thanked the Goddess for Liviana’s warning.

“My pack is safe. Can I help you?”

“No. I’m almost done. Staying where you are will be the biggest help right now.” She responded.

I moved back to the vent grate and looked out. Liviana was sitting on a fallen tree trunk looking bored. The men were chatting quietly about the big payout for this job. She suddenly gasped and ducked down.

“Shush!” She told them quietly. “I just saw something. I think he’s back. What color did you way his wolf was? Gray, right?”

“Yeah. It’s gray. I didn’t see anything.” The second hunter whispered.

“I swear; I just saw it. Let’s give it a few so he can shift back and I’ll go in.” She said.

“Good. I wanna get back to the motel before the sun goes down.” The first hunter murmured.

The yearning in his voice made Liviana wince and audibly shudder. There was a disgusting quality to the way he was saying that. The look in her eye made my stomach turn. Those bastards had hurt her.

“How long have they had you?” I asked.

“Ignore it, Beta-boy. I don’t need help.” She responded.

-

She headed back to the cabin a few moments later and knocked again. I heard her move around a little, then heard the door open.

“I’m pretending you’re at the door and I’m trying to convince you to let me in.” She said softly. “Thank you so much!” Liviana exclaimed loudly and entered the cabin, closing the door.

I could hear some jingling like keys and a metallic rattle. She hissed like she’d burned herself and there was a clank. The back door opened.

“I’ll lead them away and come back as soon as I can. Careful. The collar on the counter is dangerous. Don’t touch it.” She warned.

A rustling of cloth was followed by the unmistakable sound of a werewolf changing. I heard her claws click as she ran out the back door. What an odd girl.

From the front, I heard shouting. The hunters saw her wolf dash out of the back of the cabin and into the heavy forest. I watched them rush off to chase after her.

I decided to stay up for a few more minutes as I heard gunshots in the distance. I asked the Moon Goddess to watch over the girl who tried to save me.