Under the Skin

Chapter 17

It was a beautiful day. The sun shining bright in the blue sky, covered with soft white clouds here and there. Jonah closed his eyes and tilted his head upwards, letting the warm rays wash over his face. 

There had been several bad snow storms these past couple of weeks, so they hadn't been able to let the pups go outside and play in the snow. That's why the caretakers at the nursery decided to spend most of the day outside. The pups would have time and space to chase each other and release their pent up energy. 

Zoe and Jonah were watching the pups play with each other, talking with each other when a couple of them approached them with eager smiles. 

"Ms. Zoe, can we go explore in the woods? Please~" The little girl used a sweet tone, and the two boys behind her were almost jumping in trepidation. 

The two adults shared a look before Zoe bent down in front of them to get to their level.

"Alright, but me and Jonah will accompany you, and I want you to stay close to us." The three pups cheered and were quick to run towards the tree line, urging Jonah and Zoe to hurry after them.

"Dayna, I told you to wait!"

The two friends walked leisurely into the woods, while the children played a couple paces away from them. Jonah couldn't help but smile as he listened to them talk. They were pretending to be were warriors defending the pack from evil beasts. 

After some time, one of the boys started crying and ran back towards the adults. Jonah was slightly startled when Liam clutched his legs as he looked up to him with teary eyes. 

"Dayna's a meanie! She said I'm a bad warrior because I'm scared of the beast!" A fond smile appeared on the omega's lips as he crouched down and ruffled the boy's hair. 

"There's nothing wrong with being scared. Every warrior gets scared sometimes, but do you know what makes them brave?" Liam shook his head, looking at him with big eyes. Behind him, his two friends had come closer and were listening as well. 

"They confront what makes them scared, instead of running from it." The children gasped in awe, and their genuine reactions made his heart warm. Zoe chose this moment to take a few steps closer with a mischievous grin on her face.

"They have to be careful though, because sometimes the beast is much closer than they think." She then shifted in her wolf form and pounced after them. The children screamed in glee as they tried to escape her. Jonah simply laughed as he watched the scene unfold. 

They had been spending at least an hour into the forest when a piercing scream shattered the peaceful atmosphere. 

Zoe and Jonah immediately became alert as they took count of the kids, and noticed that seemed to have wondered off. They told the two remaining ones to stay there, and went ahead. The pushed away some underbrush and discovered the small boy cowering on the forest floor, tears flowing down his cheeks as he stared at what was in front of him. 

A wolf with mated fur was standing there, growling with its upper lip turned up to reveal his sharp teeth. It stepped closer and licked at its teeth as though it was hungry. With its size, there was no doubt that it was a werewolf turned feral. Its eyes were black and soulless, probably having lost its humanity after spending too much time wandering alone in its wolf form. 

By the time Jonah stepped in front of Samuel to shield him, Zoe had already shifted. She let out her own growl to warn the wolf to back off, but it remained unaffected by the threat as it got  into a defensive stance.