It was an unusually cold night the Sunday after the founders' party. Tina Montgomery was savouring the chilled air, breathing in deep huffs of it helped to clear her mind. It had been a good night; she had had a bit much to drink and had made out with Badger Malone. Her cheeks flushed red at the memory of Badger's warm embrace as they wandered through the trees the night before looking for somewhere quiet.
The school athletics track where Tina had been running was utterly deserted. The red ground beneath her feet made a satisfying thud with every step. Running always made Tina feel great, the rush of endorphins and the utterly clarity of her mind were in harmony. Soon she would graduate and leave Timber Falls on a full ride scholarship to college, never to return, she hoped. It wasn't that she despised the town; it was the commitment that came with it, family, friends, and the same people who you knew all your life and knew all your secrets. Yes a change would be good.
Her thoughts were interrupted when she sensed someone else. The soft thud of her shoes was now accompanied by another pair. A shiny silver blade erupted from the centre of Tina's chest, glistening in the lights and dripping with little jewels of ruby blood. Tina was confused at first and then everything went black.
Pulling out a pair of vicious looking silver pliers the Hunter bent down and dislodged the canine teeth of its victim. This was the closest thing the Hunter felt to happiness, the thrill of the hunt. He was expecting a bigger fight, but the girl had been lazy, believing she was safe in the confines of her territory. She was wrong.
I had spent the second half of the weekend in utter bliss, letting my fantasies run wild, some much naughtier than others. Carter Van Drouin had made out with me! I had spent the last half hour trying to bed water around me and freeze it to form a makeshift shield. So far I had barely moved the water out of the large iron bucket. As soon as I got it to move my mind would wander.
`Focus child! Focus!" Lucia yelled at me from the kitchen window. She had been getting progressively frustrated with me all morning. "Where is your mind today child?"
"Sorry Lucy, I must be having an off day." I chimed happily.
"Well you better not be having an off day if anyone comes looking for us." She huffed, retreating back into the house.
I figured it was pointless to keep practising, and it was far too cold to just stand around, so I decided to go for a walk in the woods, maybe up to that lake I saw the first weekend I arrived. Changing into some boots, I grabbed my thick coat and told Lucia I'd see her in a couple of hours. She said something unintelligible in reply, I wasn't sure I wanted to know what it was.
The forest looked like something out of another planet. Crystalline droplets of water had coated everything and thin wisps of mist were flowing through the trees. Everything was intensely green and alive, even the fallen trees and rocks seemed to be teeming with life. Birds whistled softly from the trees above, trying to bask in the sunlight for warmth. I short walk in I found a small creek that appeared to flow from the lake direction. With nowhere to be and nowhere to go I decided to follow it to the source. It was easy to get lost in these woods, trees and ferns obscured many of the paths, and you could get turned around without realising.
I was making the fog swirl around me, it was easier to manipulate fog and steam more so than water and especially easier than ice. The grey tendrils wrapped around my body, slowly curling and weaving until my sight was entirely obscured in grey.
Laughing, I let go of my hold on the fog and let it return to the forest floor.
"Ouch!" I yelled just as my sight cleared.
My knees had collided into something cold and hard, sending waves of pain up my legs. At first I thought I had run into a rock, but this rock was flat and protruded vertically out of the ground. About a hundred old gravestones dotted the clearing by the creek. Crumbling relics, many of the inscriptions were worn away. The headstone I had collided with was one of the newer ones, a pale grey granite square with intricate writing etched into its surface.
`Here lies the body of our beloved daughter. Isobel Van Drouin, 1883-1890. We will love you always.'
As I read the words on the stone my heart broke. I was standing at the resting place of one of Carter's relatives, not only that she was only seven years old when she died. Forcing back tears I continue to look around the small clearing for a path. A tall building could be just made out through the mist; its black spires disappearing into the boughs of the trees. The black stone church was old, very old. Moss was growing out of cracks and crevices in the stonework and a green vine snaked its way up the side of the building. I ran my hand over the cool iron door handle that was shaped like a snarling wolf debating whether to open the door or not. Eventually my curiosity got the better of me and I gave the handle a sharp turn. The large solid wooden door made an ominous creak as I inched it open causing dust motes to be cast into the air. I knew I was being ridiculous but this whole area gave me the creeps, I could feel my heart racing inside my chest.
The place looked like it had been abandoned for some time. Dust had settled on all of the furniture and I could hear birds nesting in the roof. The place felt cold and empty, an unlike any church I had seen before. Sure there were the pews and the architecture but that was where the similarities ceased. On the very back wall covering its entirety was a painting of a large oak tree. Approaching it I could make out the details of names scribbled onto the branches in ornate silver script. At the base of the tree was an incredible lifelike painted wolf with the name `Walter Ascot Van Drouin 1786-1852' inscribed next to it.
`Wow' I mouthed to myself.
The tree branched off into a million smaller branches, each with different family names. This must have been some kind of family tree I figured; some of the surnames on the tree were those of the kids in school. Tracing the Van Drouin name through the centre of the tree I reached the name `Carter Ascot Van Drouin'. My heart skipped a beat reading his name and my mind wandered uncontrollably to out intimate moment the night before. The church must have been made some time during the founding of Timber Falls, tracing the histories of the original founders of the city and all their offspring.
Looking around the vaulted room I noticed coloured light shining above the main door where I originally entered the building. A large stain glass window depicted a forest scene with a man and a wolf walking together. The wolf was nearly as tall as the man and had little ruby coloured glass eyes that sparkled in the sunlight. The words `Dignissim ac et tellus' were written on the black stone just below the window. The window was almost as weird as the large painted tree; I couldn't imagine any modern church allowing such original furnishings.
The sound of wheels on gravel drew me away from my investigation. A car was quickly approaching the church ground and I was sure if I was found I would be in trouble. This place certainly didn't feel public. Exiting the building I could just make out the head lights weaving through the trees towards my location. I quickly called the mist to my location, making it substantially thicker so that I could escape without being seen. It was quite difficult running back trough the graveyard half blind in the mist trying to avoid the grave stones. I really didn't want to cripple myself this time.
I didn't let the mist go until I was nearly a mile away from the grave yard. I was covered in lots of little scrapes, and I was sure I was going to get a least a few bruises tomorrow. My phone vibrated in my pocket causing me to jump a foot.
Opening the text message I smiled to myself.
Can't stop thinking about last night.' It read. And can't wait until tomorrow. -Carter'
"Dallas! Are you awake?" Tara's voice had an edge of hysteria.
"I am now." I mumbled back whilst trying to shake off the grogginess of sleep. I had been having vivid dreams of big black castles shrouded in mists and a knight in shining armour saving me from a horde of wild savage wolves. However when I turned to the knight his eyes were glowing a deep shade of red and there was menace in his eyes.
"Dallas you have to get to school, Tina Montgomery has been killed!" Shock ran through my body. "They just found her body at the athletics track this morning. It's horrible, there is blood everywhere and Kelly Reynolds is saying her head was cut off!" I could hear Tara choking back tears.
"Oh my God! I'll be there shortly."
I quickly through on some jeans and a tee shirt, I didn't bother to have a shower. Lucia was busily cooking something over a big pot, for once it actually smelled rather good.
"Come see what I've been cooking." She chimed. Her smile was quickly cut off by the look on my face. "What is it?"
"A girl at school has been murdered." Her face went a pale grey.
"How bad?" she questioned.
"Bad I think. Tara said word was she was decapitated. I'm going to school to find out more information."
Lucia gave me a stern look and took me by the shoulders.
"You are growing up so fast. Be careful." A lifetime of wisdom and maturity echoed from Lucia's eyes as she spoke. I was starting to get scared for what was to come.
The school was alive with people, vans and police cars. A line of reporters had set up camp along the east side of the school hoping to get a glimpse of the poor girl's body and police lights were reflecting blue and red around the yard. Tara was sitting next to me in the grass sobbing quietly.
"I can't believe this is happening." She made out between bouts of crying. "We only saw her on Saturday night, and now she's dead!"
The whole front yard of the school was packed with students and teachers keeping vigil over the proceedings, even some parents were there to support their children. As far as I could make out between the whispers, Tina had been found early that morning by the grounds keeper. Her body was naked and spread out across the athletics track, and her head was found a few meters from her body. There were also whispers of stab wounds and sexual misconduct, but as far as I could tell these were gossip.
The reporters went wild when the trolley came wheeling up the path. Light bulbs flashed and reporters began talking animatedly about the young girl who had everything going for her and how her life was suddenly cut short. I found it barbaric; these people were feeding on the tragedy like vultures. A couple came bursting out of the crowd, diving between the police barricade.
"No!" The woman cried. "Don't take my baby away!"
The couple must have been the Montgomery's. The woman was hysterical, screaming at the coroner and trying to grab hold of the gurney. The whole situation was incredibly sad; the reporters were having a field day taking photos of the distraught family. Tara, along with most of the student population were crying, or trying to hold back tears. I had seen enough death in my day to manage my emotions, but it was still horrible just the same.
Spencer Van Drouin broke away from the crowd and approached Tina's parents. The spoke to them shortly and embraced each of them. None of the police tried to stop him as he walked with the Montgomery's and climbed into the back of the ambulance with Tina's body. I could see him shout something at the policeman in charge who replied with a nod of his head. With that the ambulance sped off. Over the next half an hour we watched the remaining vehicles and press pack up and leave. The teachers said we could go home if we wanted but classes would still be running and councillors would be brought in if we wanted to talk to someone.
"Did you want to stay?" I asked Tara.
She nodded her head whilst wiping away the tears from her eyes.
"Yeah I don't think I can go home and be alone right now."
"Ok." I replied.
As the crowd slowly made their way into the school I was searching the faces for Carter's lopsided smile and brown hair. I couldn't see him but it was hard to pick anyone out in the mass of people.
Falling down on the bed that night I was utterly exhausted. Every class had been one sombre vigil after another. Many of the students didn't come back to school, and of the ones that remained they would often break down into hysterics in the middle of class. Melinda Chow, who was in the track team with Tina, burst into tears during chemistry class, singing her hair badly on the Bunsen burner.
I hadn't seen Carter all day, nor any of his friends.
`I hope you are ok? I didn't see you today.' I sent a quick text message after school.
My phone vibrated in my pocket shortly after.
`Sorry, Dad made me stay home. I'll see you tomorrow little man. Stay safe x.'
I didn't hear anymore from him after that. I remembered seeing the Montgomery name written in silver ink on the tree in the church. I wondered if Carter's family and they were close. I figured they must be after the way Spencer Van Drouin comforted them today.
Carter sighed as he closed the lid on his phone. He was worried for Dallas, after what happened last night and they way the elders had been acting recently was enough to set anyone on edge.
His father had got the call at 5am and had called an emergency meeting before 6. By midday most of the clan had arrived at the estate, confusion and fear was written across most of their faces. It had been more than 30 years since a meeting of this magnitude had been called into order. Carter was worried, very worried.
Badger was inconsolable, he had had a crush on Tina for years now and they had finally got together at the founders party only to have it all taken from him. Carter and Seth had only just managed to calm him enough to transform back to human form. He had been so emotionally burdened his wolf had taken over and gone wild. Now he was huddled on a log quietly weeping to himself.
Carter's father was alpha of the Timber Falls pack, like every first born male Van Drouin before him. One day Carter would gain the alpha power and relieve his father of the position. It was not something he particularly looked forward to. "What do you think happened to Tina?" Seth whispered in Carter's ear, so as not to upset Badger.
"I really don't know Seth, but my Dad seems really worried."
"It must be something big though. I mean how long has it been since the whole pack has been called in? It would have been when you Dad took over Alpha."
"I guess so. Do you think he's going to be alright?" Carter said indicating Badger.
"I really don't know man. Badge has been in love with Tina for years and to finally hook up with her and all. It's just wrong."
"It must be horrible, I mean I've only known Dallas for a couple of weeks but if anything ever happened I would go mad."
"I know how you feel." Seth let his gaze wander over to a small pup who was a year below us at school. Tommy was a cute boy with rusty coloured hair, and it was common knowledge that Seth was smitten with him. He was just too piss scared to ask him out.
"Excuse me everyone." Badger's father's voice echoed out among the crowd, quieting everyone. Patrick Malone was the pack's Beta, or second in command, having moved to Timber Falls from Ireland when he was young he quickly moved up the ranks. "I thank you for all coming today and wish it was on better circumstances. As many of you know Tina Montgomery's body was found early this morning and a pack investigation has ensued. The crowd began to whisper between one another, speculating who the murderer may be. "I know many of you have questions so Alpha Van Drouin is here to answer them as best he can."
Carter's father took over from his Beta. He looked like he had been awake for a week; his suit wasn't its usual crisp clean self and the bags under his eyes made him look much older than his 48 years of age. Spencer Van Drouin had seen enough to last him a life time and now he feared a predator had breached the packs border and was hunting them from the inside.
"Friends, Family, Pack. Last night one of our young was taken from us. Tina Montgomery, a descendant of our founding fathers, was found slain at the high school. I believe this occurrence to be an inward attack against our people."
At this the crowd erupted in shouts of anger and cries of fear.
"No one has breached our borders in 150 years!" A woman cried out.
"What do you mean attack? We would have sensed something!" Another declared.
"If one of the children were killed so easily how can we protect the rest?"
"SILENCE!" Patrick Malone yelled.
The noise instantly vanished.
"I understand your anger and concern." Spencer stated. "I believe this to be an attack against our people because on further investigation of the girl's remains we found evidence of silver burn around the incision sites and her canine teeth had been removed."
"But The Order has been extinct for over a hundred years." Badger suddenly spoke.
Carter was unsure what Badger meant by The Order, but by the looks on some of the elders faces he knew it must have meant something big. Patrick Malone glared at his son.
"No one is saying this has anything to do with The Order. As far as we are concerned The Order dies out during the time of the Great Uprising. We will however set up a task force to investigate this murder further and make sure the proper steps are put in place for everyone's protection. Now I will not hold you for any longer because I all know you have other commitments. So on parting I will leave you with these words, be safe, be vigilant and keep your senses keen."
These words didn't soothe Carter. He could see straight through his father's facade, he was scared. The crowd dwindled down until only the locals resided. Small groups were huddled together talking and gossiping, everyone's face showing anxiety.
"What is The Order Badger?" Seth asked.
Badger looked up from the log he was sitting on. His eyes were red from when he had been crying. "I don't really know to be honest."
"What do you mean you don't know?" Seth protested. "You clearly know something to recognise the signs. I saw the looks on the elders' faces. They were scared."
Carter agreed with Seth, something unusual was definitely up.
Badger sighed. "When I was younger I remember my father mentioning something about The Order. You see the wolf clans of Europe were decimated when The Order came through and wiped them out. The Malone clan were one of the few to survive, but because of the small numbers my father decided to relocate to America when he was younger."
"Well what is The Order, and if the practically destroyed the clans of Europe why didn't they attack here?" Carter questioned.
"I don't know what they are." Badger looked about ready to burst into tears again. For someone who looked incredibly tough he sure wasn't holding himself together well. "And they did attack the New World clans, but they didn't know the environment like we did. My father said it was the worst war our people had seen for centuries but in the end we won and The Order has been thought to be extinct, until now."
"What makes you think that this attack was them?" Seth looked worried.
"The silver burns, and the removal of the teeth and, and because her head was removed." Badger started sobbing. "The Order used large silver swords to decapitate the clans, and removed the canine teeth as trophies."
"Dear god!" Seth gasped, he looked very pale.
"Dad was right, just because one person has been tragically killed doesn't mean an ancient enemy is back to annihilate us." Carter spoke with authority. "The last thing the pack needs is mass hysteria."
The rest of the day was spent consoling Badger and discussing different theories. At the back of Carter's mind he was worried for his little man. The last thing he wanted was to drag him into the middle of this mess, but at the same time he couldn't let him go. He had promised Dallas no one would hurt him ever again and he was going to live up to that promise.
I sat on my bed listening to music and reading through my mother's books. I found the books dedicated to healing fascinating but the method seemed downright foreign to me. It seemed so clinical and text book, not like I used my powers. I had taught myself to do things by the way it feels, not by steps; it seemed more natural that way. But I suppose I would have to figure it out one day since I could barely heal a scratch. I was practising on my new bruises that adorned my legs from my collision with the headstone, although I still hadn't even managed to turn it from a deep shade of purple to a lighter yellow. All that I had noticed was a dull ache forming behind my knees.
`Tap, tap, tap.'
The pebbles hitting my window made a soft tapping noise. I could tell it was Carter before I even got off the bed. His heart always beat a little faster than everyone else's. I could feel the blood pumping through his body much like I could feel the water pumping through the pipes in the house. A smile spread across my lips as I got up off the bed and crossed the space to the window. Carter was looking up at me from beneath an old oak. His lopsided grin sent shivers down my spine. I had never felt like this about someone before, I had always avoided making connections.
"Hey Dallas, can I come up?"
"Sure." I stammered.
Carter scaled the wall of my house unbelievably fast, climbing up the drain pipe and then shimmying across the window sills. `Gee he really is a muscle god.' I thought to myself, my cheeks going red.
"Now what has my pup been up today?" Carter said with a grin.
"Pup?"
Carter's eyes glanced down at my briefs that had little dogs dotted on them. `Oh shit.' I had forgotten that I was only wearing underwear and a tank top as I had been planning on going to bed. My face turned a violent shade of scarlet as I quickly pulled on a pair of running shorts. Carter didn't even bother to hide the fact he was watching me.
"Are you ok?" I asked tentatively when I sat down again.
"It's been a long day. I grew up with the Montgomery's, our families have been friends for generations. Plus Badger had a thing for Tina."
"I'm so sorry." I said. "It's good you didn't come today. The school was a circus. The way the press came in and took over was disgusting."
Carter pulled me down onto the bed and cuddled up next to me. His fingers traced delicate little lines up my arms that sent shivers down my spine. "That feels good." I smiled.
"I'm glad." He slowly got up on one elbow and leant in for a kiss. His delicate lips brushed along my neck as he moved up towards my mouth. Parting my lips with his tongue he kissed me deeply and longingly like he had been waiting his entire life for it.
"I've never felt like this about someone before." He whispered. "Emotions like these don't come easy for me, but ever since I saw you I knew I had to have you, to know you were mine."
I could sense the force and longing in his voice as I reached up to run my fingers through his hair.
"I want to be yours." I replied.
"You already are."
With that he leant down and kissed me again. His hands explored my body, touching and feeling everything.
"Carter." I whispered.
He growled a noise of satisfaction into the nape of my neck, his breathing deep and hoarse.
It was over far too soon.
"I'm sorry little man, but I really have to go. Besides if we went any further I wouldn't have been able to stop."
I giggled.
"Until tomorrow?" I said.
"I'll pick you up at 8." He replied. "In the mean time stay safe." His hand brushed along the side of my face before he leapt out the window disappearing into the night.
That night I dreamed I was totally exposed in front of a million cameras. Their flashing bulbs illuminated my naked body as reporters covered in a ridiculous amount of makeup squealed and laughed pointing at me. The funny thing was I didn't feel embarrassed, in fact I felt elated, because I wasn't alone. Standing next to me, as naked as the day he was born was Carter, smiling his lopsided grin and telling me everything would be fine.
Thanks guys for the great feedback and imput into the series. It was great to have such a positive response, especially as this is the first time I've done this. Keep those messages coming. Let me know if I wasn't clear on something or anything else about the story you would like to share. I plan on finishing this story so I'll try and churn out the chapters as fast as i can type. Cheers Jack. mmjasd@hotmail.com