Beyond The River

6

The closer to the cabin the group got, the more alert the twin males became. They came to the final dirt road that led to the cabin, and Jason finally spoke up. "You live awfully close to the border of the pack, Evelyn." Evelyn didn't respond as his words hung in the air of the SUV. Pulling up to the cabin, the lights were on all around the first floor. The cabin acted almost as a lighthouse as the forest around was pitch black, the moonlight from above the only other light peeking through the trees in the clearing around the cabin.

Evelyn felt on edge being next to Jason. She still had not responded to him, and the tension increased the longer the silence continued. When Jason put the car in park, Evelyn instantly jumped out of her side, walking quickly over to the front door of the cabin, Jason jumped out to follow her, "Evelyn." He called out to her, wanting her to stop. She didn't. "Evelyn, I'm sorry. Did I say something wrong?" he caught up to her just as she was at the door, pulling out her key to unlock it. He grabbed her wrist, preventing her from opening the door as he gently turned her around to lean against it.

She was angry, but not with Jason. She was angry at herself. That she didn't have the courage to talk about her situation, that her living situation was something she struggled to change due to her own internal struggle. She sighed long and stressed, "No, I'm sorry. I'm not mad at you. It's just-" she huffed an annoyed breath. "I know where I live isn't exactly ideal." She waved her hand to gesture to the house behind her. "My parents built this cabin before I was born, and it's a place I can't seem to let go of."

He nodded slowly, absorbing her words, but not understanding fully. "Well, you can tell me all about it, if you're comfortable." "That's the issue." She said, "We literally just met tonight, and I don't want to ruin tonight with my past, or present. Can we just- I don't know- enjoy tonight before you ask me about this?" she pleaded, not knowing if he understood what she was asking, but pleading with him anyways.

Jason smiled at her, moving his hand on her wrist to take both of her hands. "Okay." He said softly. He clearly wanted to ask her more about it, considering her reaction, but he also didn't want to ruin the night by making her upset or uncomfortable. "Do you want to show me around the house?" he asked. She smiled and nodded, and he gave her room to turn around and open the now unlocked door.

Evelyn gasped as soon as she entered the front door. The entryway was a mess, mud all over the floor, and clothes hanging up on the upstairs railing at the bottom. Some were even strung about on the floor, mixed with the mud on the floor. Her body went rigid for a moment, letting her wolf come forward to increase her senses.

The scent of mud mixed with her family was all around her. No unfamiliar scent was mixed, allowing her shoulders to relax slightly, but she swiftly began to move through the house, sniffing the air to detect if an unfamiliar scent was in the house.

While she moved around, Evelyn found that the kitchen was also a complete mess. Dirty dishes were scattered on the kitchen counters, food still on them, much of it dry at a glance. The living room was also messy, toys scattered around, which wasn't unusual, but it looked much worse than it usually was. "What the heck?" she said as she kept walking through the house, Jason not saying anything, but following behind her.

Eventually they came to the bottom of the stairs again, and there an unfamiliar scent drifted to her. Her body instantly went on alert, wolf coming forward much stronger, and her eyes instantly moved to look upstairs. "Evelyn," Jason grabbed her arm in alarm at her change. "What is it?"

"An intruder." She growled. Jason let his own wolf come forward and smelled the scent. It wasn't sick or rotted, like a rogue would be, but it wasn't like any of the other scents he had caught of the Feather pack members. "You go back outside, link your father, and let my brother know what's up."