Date: Thu, 24 May 2012 01:57:12 +1000
From: jack daley <mmjasd@hotmail.com>
Subject: Running with the Pack Chapter 3

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