Short Stories

The Forbidden Red Hood

I was on a mission, an important task bestowed on me by the secret society called the Enforcers. They were aware of my reputation and they thought my skills were right for the job. They wanted me to kill her, for reasons unknown. I never met any of them. I didn't deal with anyone directly but they had no trouble finding me and they were very persistent. Scary persistent. I had eyes on me every where I went, letters, notes on the windshield of the taxi I would take, even on my car. This continued until I finally gave in and took the job. My skills were much different from any other, the truth was I was a werewolf but I much like the life I led and didn't want to give into my animalistic instincts. This time I was forced to. The Enforcers had a way of making people suffer then disappear without a trace, dispite my abilities i still couldn't face them.
I accepted the job. All I had to do was kill the girl, easy task or so I thought. Shortly after verbally accepting, instructions were delivered and left on my door step. Step 1: gather intel. Step 2: make contact; don't get to close. Step 3: kill her and anyone who got in your way. Payment will be delivered after the deed is done. Do as instructed and you'll live. That was all that was written on the paper. This plan took time, but I was up for it. My mission took me to the countryside in a little village off the mountain side. This is where my target resided. She was a brunette, with piercing blue
eyes and rose pink lips, sadly I had to kill her. She was quite beautiful though. The first step from my instruction was to gather Intel so that's just what I did.
She lived with her parents and she had a big family. From what I gathered, she was the only girl and the youngest of four. Her older brothers all worked in their father's large business. She led a more simpler, free life, not confined to a strenuous job like her brothers. She was an artist and a writer who painted lovely pieces for the local villagers. I nicknamed her little red riding hood cause she often wore this red hoodie. I think she was quite fond of it. She was well-known and liked by many of the villagers, which would make it harder for her to go unnoticed if I kill her, great! Just to make things harder. She visited her grandmother twice a week on the other side of the forest. I watched her, observed her routine even the people she interacted with. Her father was a very successful business man, who managed to have mysterious shipments coming in each day. The girl was my target so I focused on her.
After weeks of gathering Intel it was time to make contact. I waited until she was on the edge of the forest painting. When she packed up to move further into the forest I notice her book fell out of her bag and she didn't realize. This was a perfect opportunity. I trailed behind her, following her. I was at her heel when she spun around and with all her might punched me in the face. I stifled a growl and just stared at her.
"Why the hell are you following me?" She asked with pain and fury in her eyes.
The blow she landed managed to hurt her more than it hurt me. She held her wrist tightly, she may have broken her finger as she had improper form when she landed the blow.
"Your book fell and I saw you left it,"I said hiding my true intentions masking it with concern.
"Are you okay,"
Her eyes were wild, she was in pain.
"Do you need medical help,"
She tilted her head and nodded. Under her breath I heard an apology as I carried her out of the forest. The girl I was to murder in my grasp, I could of killed her then and there but for some reason my inner beast hesitated.
She was vulnerable, easy prey, easy kill yet I still hesitated, why. Little red riding hood had no choice but to trust me. I carried her out of the forest and to the local medical center. A doctor examined her and took a x-ray of her hand. She had broken her thumb finger. It was the wolf in me, despite me being in my human form I was still different from a regular human. My skeletal structure would be denser, hence the reason her finger broke added to the fact that her form was off. I stayed there with her until she was discharged. She shyed away from looking at me, maybe she was embarrassed but that didn't bother me I like the silence. After awhile she let her guard down an introduced herself.
"My name is Madelyn by the way,"she said coyly with her good arm extended.
I stared at her for a while I didn't want to give her my name just in case things didn't go well, but I did any way.
"And I'm Trevor,"I said as I shoke her hand.
I couldn't be rude, besides in a week she will soon be dead. She thanked me then she did the strangest thing, she hugged me. I never felt the warmth of a hug before. Her hug was tight, warming, meaningful. I never felt that before. I quickly ran off so she wouldn't see my true feelings.
That night I needed to clear my head, inorder to keep focused. I could finally transform into my wolf form as the cloak of night made it hard to be seen by any of the villagers. Muscles stiffen and relaxed, bones crackled and fell into place, gold rings formed around my brown eyes. My beautiful dark fur appeared and I started to take form. I was full blown wolf now and my wolf was free. I ran through the forest. The fresh forest breeze against my fur and the moist forest floor at my paws, it was magnificent. I moved swiftly through the forest with ease. As a wolf the sky looked so different at night, closer ,the stars shined brighter. It was so beautiful. I had a strong feeling, something pulling me, demanding me to follow. My instincts took me to a familiar house, the home of Madelyn, little red riding hood. I sat looking up at her window in wonder, admiring her silhouette at a nearby window. A strange feeling engulfed me, a feeling that I never felt before. I stayed there for hours unable to move until all the lights in her house went out. I regained my self-control over my wolf and I was able to return to my human form. I then returned to where I was staying.
For the past few nights I transformed and my wolf did the same thing each night, stared at Madelyn's house. I couldn't help it, I couldn't control him (my inner wolf). Days had gone by and I continued to interact with Madelyn. It got so frequent that she longed for my presence. I tagged along on her errands and observed how she interacted with the village folk. She had a kind heart, yet she was bold and head strong. She continued to amaze me with her knowledge of the world and her artistic talent. I shook my head, I was blinded I had many opportunities to kill her but I didn't. She took me to the edge of the forest to paint with her, here is my chance. She sat up her stuff and turned her back to me, her mistake. She was about to meet her demise. I retained my human form allowing only my large wolf canines to show. I was about to bury them into her flesh but both the man and wolf hesitated then returned to my regular form. Why. Maybe I've grown fond of her. She taught me to paint. She stared at me with wonder as I painted. Her eyes studying my height, my muscular build, my jaw line then I turned to face her. My brown eyes drowned in her blue ones. Her eyes continued to stare and strayed to my lips and I stared at hers, mesmerized. I drew near her not knowing what my actions was going to be. She also drew near me then her pink lips caressed mine. My body felt a warmth as my heart rate sped up I can sense hers did the same when our lips met.
Time past yet I couldn't get that kiss out of my head and how I felt. I was usually a focused person but I couldn't think straight when I was near Madelyn. I tried to keep my distance, knowing that I was only making it harder for myself getting close to her, when I had to kill her. I spent days away from seeing her or being near her. I tried with all my might to control the urge my inner wolf had for being near her. Unfortunately fighting it was to painful, when I transformed at night I still find myself looking up at her window. When I found that my thoughts was alined I pursued the mission. I met up with her at the edge of the forest, she was on her way to deliver goods to her grandmother.
"Where are you off too little red riding hood," I asked knowing the answer.
She was glad to see me as I was greeted with a smile and a hug. I was still getting use to the feeling I got when she did that. She drew near me as we walked. Then unknowingly my arm was around her and our hands locked as we walked. The awkward feeling subsided and I gave into the warm feeling. I felt a heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach but I tried my best to not let her see my nervousness. She looked beautiful, more than usual. Her dark hair dropped down her shoulder and her lovely blue eyes seem to sparkle under the forest light. Not to mention her rose pink lips. As my eyes strayed to her lips, I felt weak in my knees.My heart melted and I continued to gaze at her beauty which captured my entire attention.