Deserted But Not Alone

Chapter 9

We ran back to the house and met Uncle Travis and Aunt Meghan waiting for us in the clearing.

"Shift back." She ordered.

I wondered how I was supposed to tell her I didn't know how to.

Salem came to my rescue and guided me, "Close your eyes and imagine this wolf form bending and molding to transform into your human body. That'll do it."

I followed her instructions and soon enough, I was back in my human body. The transformation was not as hard as the first one, but it was painful nheless.

A cold wind hit me and I realised I was naked from head to toe. My hands immediately went to cover my breasts and my womanhood and my eyes wandered around the clearing, looking for my sports bra and booty shorts. I found them, but I realized they were shredded to pieces. Must be why we were told to wear as little clothing as possible.

Aunt Meghan threw a towel at me and I rushed to wrap it around my freezing body. Uncle Travis did the same to Adam and within a few seconds, we were all walking into the house.

I had a lot of questions for them, especially concerning my parents. But I kept mute, knowing it was the right and safest thing to do.

"Your flight leaves by 11 AM today, so pack your bags as soon as you wake up." Aunt Meghan said, turning to speak to us.

Adam and I looked at each other, bewildered.

Adam said, "You're not going to talk to us about what just happened out there?"

Uncle Travis growled and in the blink of an eye, he had his hand around my brother's neck in a tight grip. His eyes flashed amber and his teeth elongated into large fangs. I could feel my twin's terror mixed with mine.

"What the fuck did I say about questioning us, mutt?" He snarled.

"I-I'm sor-sorry s-sir." Adam stuttered, trying to fight against the hand squeezing his windpipes.

Uncle Travis kept his iron grip in my brother's neck, and I could see Adam's face start to turn red, "I don't know what your little wolves may have told you and neither do I care, but understand one thing." he looked at me to make sure I realised he was talking to both of us, "I am still the Alpha. You are both beneath me. If I tell you 'jump', you are to ask me 'how high'. Don't think that because you got your wolves, you're stronger or more powerful. No! I could kill you both right now if I wanted to, but it would just be a hassle. Remember that. Remember that you are both still breathing because I simply don't want to be inconvenienced. Are we clear?"

I don't think I've ever been this scared in my life. I could even hear Salem whimper in my mind with her ears flat against her head in submission.

"Yes sir."

He finally released Adam, who fell to the ground coughing and heaving. I was too paralysed by fear to even think of helping my brother up. All aunt Meghan did was smile wickedly and follow her husband up the stairs and into their room.

Adam and I silently walked to our rooms, only speaking when we wished each other happy birthday with wry smiles on our faces, before parting to go to our respective rooms.

I tossed and turned all night, only falling asleep when the sun was just rising and all too soon my alarm rang at 8 AM.

I sighed, "Happy 18th birthday to me I guess."

I got up, brushed my teeth and showered, trying to think positive thoughts and not think about the freak show that happened a few hours ago. I put on my black tank top, tucked into a pair of boyfriend jeans ripped at the knees and selected a deep red cardigan to wear on the outfit because of the cold. I wore patent black loafers and used four silver rings and earrings to accessorise. I then packed my suitcase and prepared to go home. By 9:30, I had gotten all my things together. I went downstairs to have breakfast and I ran into Adam on the way.

"Morning Garden Gnome." He smirked.

It was good to see him in good spirits after the hell we went through early today. If my brother could be positive, so could I.

I didn't miss a beat, "Morning leprechaun. How are you doing?"

We walked together to the kitchen. Adam was wearing black jeans with a large forest green T shirt and patent black loafers like mine. The only jewelry he had on was a wristwatch and our mother's necklace You would have expected the necklace to be in my possession since I'm a girl, but Adam wanted the necklace after their deaths, and I was more than happy to keep their rings as a memento. My parents' rings were very similar. They were both silver rings with a single line of their birthstones going round the wedding bands. My father's birthstone was Aquamarine while my mother's was Ruby. In fact I was wearing them today. I usually wear them around my neck on a chain, but I decided to wear them on my fingers today.

"I'm good. I didn't get much sleep, but talking to Faxon helped a lot." I nodded in understanding. Salem had been a great help too. I had come to understand quite a lot about the ways of werewolves from what she told me. The concepts of mates, packs, marks, rouges, the moon goddess and all sorts of rituals. We spoke about everything all night long Though it was a bit weird discussing mating with my wolf, she still managed to make it as straightforward as possible. But knowing Salem and her quirky

character, you can be sure she

found ways to tease me. But I wonder what my mate would be like. It's almost impossible for me to imagine that there's someone out there who was tailor-made for me, someone who I'm destined to spend the rest of my life with. It's even crazier than finding out that I'm a werewolf. Soulmates exist, guys! And I have one out there!

Soon enough we arrived at the dining table and were relieved to see that our uncle and aunt weren't down yet. We wolfed down our breakfast which consisted of waffles, bacon and scrambled eggs.

After eating, we sat in the livingroom, waiting for them to come downstairs and tell us what was going to happen next, and besides, our plane tickets were with them. It's not like we could leave even if we wanted to.

"You're up, good." Aunt Meghan's voice came from behind us and immediately my spine straightened in reflex. Her and her husband came to sit on the sofa in front of us like the day we arrived here.

"Have your wolves explained everything to you?" She asked.

Adam and I shared a look. What exactly did she mean by 'everything'?

"I don't understand." I replied.

She rolled her eyes in annoyance like we were supposed to know what she was talking about.

"Packs, shifts, the moon goddess, mates, rougues, marks- the whole story. Have you been informed about all of that?"

I nodded. "Salem told me about it last night."

She rubbed her hands together and rested against the sofa, "Okay. That would make this easier then. Since you both don't have a pack, you're rouges. And until you find a pack to join, werewolves from all over will be hunting you whenever you step on their territory."

My eyes widened, "What?! Rouges?! That's like a death sentence." I tried

to recall all that Salem had told me. Rouges were lone wolves without a pack. They were usually ousted from a pack after doing something horrendous, and tend to live without morals. They have no sense of

betonging and are feral, so packs typically hunt them down to avoid future trouble whenever they step on their territory. How could they make us rouges? I just found out that I'm part of a mythical community a few hours ago, and now their making us outcasts? This is totally insane.

"B-But you have a pack right? Can't w-we join your pack? We're going to be hunted if we become rouges. We don't even know how to differentiate territories. Please let us be part of your pack." Adam pleaded and tried to reason with them.

Aunt Meghan laughed like he had just cracked the funniest joke she'd ever heard. "Part of our pack?!" She said incredulously, "Over my dead, rotting, six feet deep body. You think we're going to let filthy and spineless mutts like you join our pack? The Gauntlett pack? One of the most powerful packs in America? You're even more daft than I thought you were."

I couldn't believe what was happening.

"But the Gauntlett pack is our parents' pack right? So why can't we join? You can't leave us to be rouges! We barely know anything about being a werewolf and you feeding us to the wolves! Literally!" Adam couldn't even say a word. He was glued to his seat in shock, his jaw hanging open in complete disbelief at the crazy words this woman was spouting.

Aunt Meghan had a feral grin on her face. "And where are your poor parents now Abby? Last time I checked, they were six feet in the ground." I gasped at her audacity before I heard what she whispered next, "Right where I put them."

Blood drained from my face and I paled immediately. I could hear my heart pounding loudly. 'I put them, I put them, I put them...' kept ringing in my ears. Did these monsters really kill my parents? Are they truly that vile and evil? I refused to believe it. It was simply impossible.

"What?" Slipped past my lips in a whisper without me even knowing.

"Yes my dear. Daddy and Mommy dearest are gone forever and I'm proud to say that I had a hand in their journey from this Earth." She said with a

sinister glint in her eyes.

I turned to my uncle, waiting for him to debunk her claims, but all I saw was the same sinister smile and wicked eyes. Fear gripped my body and my hand immediately found Adam's and squeezed tight.

Uncle Travis decided to speak just then, "If you know what's good for you, take those tickets and leave this instant. I never want to see you or speak with you again. In fact I hope you're both shredded to pieces by a pack who didn't know better. Get the hell out of my house and never come back."

He threw the plane tickets on the floor and left the living room, his wife trailing behind him.

I looked at Adam who had a look that mirrored mine etched on his face.

What the fuck just happened?