Chapter 3 - A way out
1334 Words
Megan
I put my hand in front of my mouth to stop myself from screaming out loud. The guy standing no more than three feet away from me was growling at a cat running down the alley. I had lost my concentration for a second and needed to find a proper place to lie low.
I heard someone on his radio saying, “Guys, we have been all over town. She was trained by Alpha Phillip. With the state of mind she was in, she probably went straight for the mountains. Let us all meet back at the pack house. Alpha Henry will give us further instructions.”
“Alpha Henry … ! Since when … ? I wasn’t even gone 24 hours yet?! And he was already Alpha Henry!!!”
I jumped up, not thinking, and grabbed the guy in the alley from behind. I was fuming, and he was too close. Without a second thought and without him having a chance, I snapped his neck in my fit of rage. I might be only sixteen years old, but I was still a purebred Alpha-born lycanthrope. I was stronger than the average werewolf, thanks to my lineage.
I sat there next to his dead body, sucking in air as if I had been deprived for a while. I took deep breaths, trying to calm down my racing pulse. What had I just done? I had taken the life of another. Mother and father had told me that it would happen, and I always vehemently disagreed with them. It was the destiny of all Lycan. We would take a life as soon as it was time. Some believed it would activate the curse.
My parents believed it was destiny and not a curse. I could never see myself taking the life of another, but here I was, sitting next to the body of the man I just killed. Everything was going wrong! Why was everything going so utterly wrong in such a short time? None of it made any sense. When was it decided by the moon goddess that I would have to walk this road? Why did she not just take my life with the lives of my parents? Why leave me here alone? Tears started running, and I could not stop them this time ...
I heard voices around the corner and hid behind the dumpster again. They noticed the dead guy and soon after, the alley looked like a regular CSI episode. I had disappeared by then. I had to move between the city and the forest if I was to keep hiding from the pack. I no longer knew who I could trust. If I was spotted, even by chance, that would be the end of me. I had to deal with the change at the next full moon.
I was not looking forward to going through the change all on my own, but I guess that was all I had left. My wolf and now my Lycan as a companion, were the only good things that came out of all of this. I would finally meet my Lycan. I made my way out of town and into the forest. I always loved the forest. It felt natural to run and play barefoot. Father said it was because I was meant to be a wolf. The grass was soft underneath my feet.
The shade from the trees kept everything cool. I loved the way the breeze blew through my hair and how it would caress my cheek. Mother always said she thought the forest was my mate, because of the way I would talk about it. I could not help it. I was in love with the feel of it, the smells, and the freedom it allowed me. Staying to protect the pack was no longer an option. If I were killed by my uncle, they would have no hope for a better future.
I spent months hiding between the forest and the town. I would sneak into the shops just before closing time, buy what I needed and get out as quickly as possible, always wearing a different hoodie or cap. I started wearing black eye shadow to cover the dark bags under my eyes. I made sure to change my scent as often as I possibly could. I was walking down the street one late afternoon on my way to grab a sandwich before making my way back to the forest when I saw my reflection in the window of the bookstore. I did not recognize myself.
The girl staring back at me was a stranger, a Gothic skeleton wearing clothes. I might even have been mistaken for a vampire, I thought to myself. My money was running out, and although I could change and hunt for myself, I needed more food since I found my Lycan. I was about to turn away when I saw a notice in the window concerning a contest for writers. I was desperate and would try anything to get out of town. I took a picture with my phone because I could not hang around the same spot for too long. I moved out of sight and went back into hiding.
That night, all I could think about was the competition. I have always done well in school with essays. I wanted to be the Alpha, but I didn’t want to die. I spent the rest of the night planning how I would get some paper and pens early the next morning, so I could start writing. It would have to be written in longhand, which meant it would take me longer, and I still had to find a genre, characters, plot. Oh, boy!
*A couple of months later*
“Well, that is that then, Sam. Our entry is in, and now we wait.” The bond between me and my wolf has grown strong since my first change. My Lycan was a different story! Storm preferred to remain silent most of the time. The competition entries all had to be in on that day and the results would be released two weeks later. Two weeks … I had to wait another two weeks, and that was if I was lucky enough to get picked for a place. Two weeks … I could do this … I could wait another two weeks. I tried convincing myself as I disappeared into the shadows again.
“We can do this” Samantha said with more confidence than we felt. Storm just growled as usual. For two weeks, we hung around closer to town than normal. I knew it was dangerous and that I could have spent the time in the forest and come back, but I just could not help myself. This was my chance. This was going to possibly be our life changer.
“What if our idea wasn’t good enough?” I thought to myself.
“Then we will find another.”
Samantha replied.
“Or we will just kill Henry.” Storm stated matter-of-factly.
“What if we win?” Sam asked, and she felt Sam’s excitement boil up from inside her.
“What if we just kill Henry?” The internal conversation between the three of us was a bit scary sometimes, especially when Storm did speak up. Finally, the day arrived.
Today we would find out what our fate was going to be. The publishers were about to announce the name of the winner. Would they call the author on stage? There were many of my pack members standing around. Would they even recognize me? Suddenly, fear gripped me by the shoulders, and I was frozen in place. I couldn’t move or think. This was such a bad idea. I should run! I should hide! Even if they pick me, I should not accept. I should never have entered this stupid competition!
“And our winning author is Samantha Storm,” The publisher announced.
“NOW WHAT … "
- Writer
