Shadows Surround Us

Chapter 6

The next two weeks crawled by. For the first few days, none of the other hunters really engaged. Whether it was because of my quote-unquote betrayal or because they just didn't know what to say, I could feel the tension any time I walked into a room. Cyrus kept his distance as well. It hurt a little being that he was the closest thing to a best friend I had, but I couldn't blame him.

Training sessions with my brothers happened twice a day and to say they were slightly more intense was an understatement. My father watched over each session with unwavering eyes. His disappointment was evident and it rolled off of him in waves that I think would drown me. He had never been like that with me. He was always a little distant and not the warmest, but his demeanor towards me was much colder than ever.

"Swing around faster," I heard him yell from the back porch, as I swung my arm out to try to make contact with Marcus who I was sparring with. We had been at this for two hours with no stopping in sight. With a sweep of his leg, I crashed to the ground, hitting the ground hard on my back. I laid there looking up at the sky that was starting to dim with the lateness of the day. My breathing came harsh and loud as I tried to get it back under control.

"Get up Kena," I heard my dad state. A hand extended into my eye sight. I didn't need to look to know it was Marcus offering to help me stand. Begrudgingly, I took his hand and he hoisted me up. My muscles ached with the motion.

"Sir, I think I need a break," I said, placing my hands at my hips and leaning my shoulders backwards to stretch my muscles. When my dad was in training mode, I kept my responses more of that of a hunter than a daughter.

Some of the younger hunters stood around watching the sparring match. I noticed Cyrus leaned against the side of the house. Every once in a while, I'd see Faye's red hair sprint by as she played with the other kids. I didn't miss the brief glances she sent my way.

My dad looked around the group as he made his way off the porch. I kept my eyes on him as he came to a stop a few feet away. "It's time for patrols," he said loudly, effectively scattering the bystanders. I briefly shot my eyes at him before bringing them back to my dad. He took a breath and let it out with a sigh. "You will go back on patrols tonight," he stated. I slowly let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. There were times these two weeks where I thought there was a possibility he wouldn't let me go back on patrols ever.

"I won't let you down," I said with a small smile. These past two weeks had been anything but relaxing. My mind was plagued with thoughts of the incident and the black wolf. I hadn't gotten so close without being attacked. But he was distracting me and messing with my mind. I couldn't let my mind wander to him and outside of the two days after the incident, I had managed to do just that. Now I was being put back on patrol and if we happened to cross paths, there couldn't be any hesitation.

"Grab your things and head to the gate. You'll be with Damien and Cyrus tonight," he said with a tilt of his head. I gave a curt nod and walked briskly to the house to grab my items. Damien was waiting for me outside the front door when I emerged from the house.

"Ready to be back out there sis?" he asked with a slight nudge of my shoulder. I could feel the anxiety and excitement coursing through my body. I knew I had missed going out on patrols but I don't think I fully realized just how much until this moment as we walked towards the front gate of the compound.

I had kept up with what was going on with patrols as much as I could during my two week suspension. Damien would tell me the odds and ends of some of the activity and I even stooped so low as to try to eavesdrop on a meeting or two. The thick wooden door of my dad's office didn't help matters. From what I could gather, the shifters hadn't been spotted in the area for the full two weeks. Some of the hunters were getting frustrated that they were able to slip past us and we hadn't been able to locate them in the whole time we had been stationed here.

That wasn't so surprising I guess. Shifters have grown to go unnoticed. They are smart and use their wolf form to be stealthy. They would only be seen if they truly wanted their presence known.

Cyrus was waiting at the edge of the woods for us. He cast his eyes in our direction as we approached. "Damien....Kena," he said, momentarily hesitating before acknowledging me.

"Hi Cyrus," I said softly with a smile. The upturn of his mouth didn't go unnoticed but it didn't reach his eyes. He was still hurting from my lack of action and I would have to spend some time making up for it.

"You take the west Cyrus. I'll head to the east. Kena you can go to the backside of the property. You know the drill. Any movement or sighting at all, call it in," Damien commanded, waving his radio. Cyrus didn't say anything but just started heading in the direction Damien gave him. His silhouette blended into the tree line moments later. A clearing of Damien's throat brought my attention back to him.

"Don't make me regret not keeping you with me," he said with a pointed stare. He wasn't as strict as my father and Marcus when it comes to patrols and doing things easily by the book. For that I was grateful but I didn't miss the implication. He didn't want me to mess up again because this time, it would fall back on him as well. Even he was unsure of my ability.

"I got it," I replied, trying to keep the bite out of my voice. I wasn't necessarily mad at him, just the situation. I could only be mad at myself. I did this and I would have to correct it. With one more nod, he turned and headed east. I turned and followed the side of the wall around the compound. The wall lifted high above me and every once in a while, I caught a glimpse through the slivers in the wooden boards of the camp inside.

The moon was just rising above the treeline when I found myself at my entrance point. Gripping the gun with both hands, I took a quick, steadying breath before heading into the thick wall for trees to start the night.