Kidnapped

Chapter 8 (Ending)

Five days later, after the full moon had come and gone, Thorne led the group back toward Refuge. Unlike Ash and Fern, Thorne stuck to wolf form. He'd said it was because he didn't know how to ride horses, and after seeing how he made a wide circle around them, Fern believed him.

"They're not going to take us back," Ash said. He rode one of the horses they'd taken from the kidnappers. It had taken a few days for him to shift to his human form, but he'd finally done it.

Fern sighed, her mind flashing back to the bloodlust she'd felt, first taking down the huge werewolf, and then hunting and eating a deer. I didn't even feel guilty about killing that werewolf. If she turned around humans, could she control the bloodlust, stop herself from killing innocent people? Thorne thought so, but the legends told differently. There was a reason people feared werewolves.

Thorne stopped, his tail upraised. "Someone's coming."

A man on horseback trotted toward them, a huge dog at his side.

"Robiel!" Fern urged the mare to a faster speed.

The horses met.

Robiel examined Fern. "You shift?"

"Both of us," Fern said. "Wasn't your ankle broken?"

Robiel shrugged. "Werewolves heal fast."

Thorne smiled. "I suspected it."

"You're a werewolf?" Ash stared, his eyes wide.

"It's a long story." Robiel turned his horse toward Refuge. "Follow me, your mom's waiting."

Fern glanced at Thorne. "Did you smell wolf on him?"

"No, but humans generally don't threaten to rip people's throats out. He's probably no more than a halfblood."

"Someday, I'm going to get that story out of him," Fern said.

"Is Refuge letting us back in?" Ash asked.

Robiel frowned. "No. They're not friendly to shifters, which is the reason I've kept my situation under wraps. We'll be headed for one of the southern packs. Zatari's got a lot of halfbloods in her pack. She'd even take in your mother."

"But Mom's human. She'll get bitten." Fern shivered. Mom couldn't live with werewolves. The second one lost control, she'd be dead. What if I lost control? Would I kill Mom?

"Thorne and I can teach you to control your instinct. You'll both be fine," Robiel said. "By the way, what were those guys up to, kidnapping you?"

"Experiments," Ash hissed. "They want to use the werewolf powers to make soldiers, and they wanted to see what happened with half-breeds."

Robiel stiffened. "I'll warn the packs to be vigilant."

Thorne paused. "I won't be coming with you. I'm going back to my pack." He sat on the road.

Fern pulled her horse to a stop. "But you're an outcast."

Thorne gazed at the sky. "The new moon's coming. I think, even as an outcast, I'll have enough support from the pack to challenge Frost. If that doesn't work, I'll join you."

Robiel nodded to Thorne. "Good luck."

Fern dismounted and wrapped her arms around Thorne. "I'll miss you."

Thorne placed one huge paw on her shoulder. "I'll miss you too." He stepped away and met her gaze. "You're strong enough to control yourself. Remember that."

"Thanks."

Thorne loped through the forest. A few minutes later, his howl echoed through the trees.

Fern threw her head back and howled in answer.