Fate of the Wolf

Chapter 1

Naomi was no detective. She was not trained to profile potential suspects, or licensed to carry a weapon, or even had much of any detective experience whatsoever. Yet, she stuffed her empty cup of chamomile tea into the bin as she passed and pulled a cap to hide most of her dirty blond curls. After leaving the office she had already changed into sports clothes, because hell would run cold if she was expected to walk across town in heels. The sun was setting now, her soft green eyes squinted at the bright, attention seeking display of reds and oranges.

Naomi was a journalist for the local magazine. They were quickly becoming one of the most successful in the region for the gossip they posted. Her distant aunt in Tallahassee said it wasn't a "real job", and that she should work for a more respectable company. But fuck her anyway. And well, the company had enough business to earn mansions for its top dogs. Naomi could only hope she could climb that ladder. Sometimes what was printed was just silly things people dismissed as conspiracy theories, but entertaining all the while.

Naomi had went to school for journalism, and she was very close to minoring in criminology. But one day she had ran into Ross Tanner, one of the higher ups for the company, and he said he was so charmed by her he offered her a job. Naomi had been trying to prove herself ever since, and that was about 2 years ago now.

She always tried to look into the cases that people were ignoring, either because they were too dangerous or too much work. But Naomi loved to investigate, and even though she wasn't as outgoing as Cam, she loved the hunt for a good story and she loved writing. Most of all, she wanted to help people.

Her best friend Cameron said that it was because she watched too much Criminal Minds. No such thing. Even if the paper mostly printed celebrity drama or conspiracy theories, if Naomi could use what little drop of influence she could to actually, truly help someone then it was all worth it.

Her favorite piece last year didn't impress Ross, but it made a difference to the minority community in the local area, so Naomi was satisfied. Even though Ross didn't usually approve of her choice of material, he just let her....be. Maybe he had a soft spot for her somewhere, and she liked to think he kept her there because he saw potential in her.

It was tricky work sometimes, not everything was approved to be published, but everyone at the magazine LOVED Naomi. Everyone was so nice to her and she had met some of her closest friends. Other than Cameron of course.

She tried to channel some of her inner Cameron now, pulling her shoulders back and lifting up her chin so that she walked with confidence and indifference. She pretended to wave back voluminous strands of black shiny hair—like Cam's, and let out a little laugh at the gesture. She would find clues here about what happened to those poor missing girls. She knew she would.

The cops had really let the trail run cold, and from the reports she could access there wasn't much evidence to go on. Six girls have gone missing, and some of the DNA could be traced at the scene, left behind by mysterious blood spatters. Only three of the girls could be named by DNA.

All of the girls disappeared in alleys, but there had to be something in common with these locations. This one was slimy and dark just like any other alley, but it was sandwiched between two bars. She tried to tune out the distracting whirs of distant traffic and scramble of scavengers in the nearby trash bin. Naomi whipped out her phone to look over her notes about the other scenes. The previous three scenes with traceable blood belonged to blonde, white females in their 20s. The only evidence so far had been tracks that couldn't be made out because they were smeared. Weirdly enough bits of fur sometimes. The police were trying to argue there was a loose pack of wild wolves attacking women.

Well, those wild wolves had a type then. That was unlikely.

She froze when she heard the growl behind her, interrupting her thoughts.