Learning to Bow

Borders

I realized fairly quickly that I didn't need the jacket. The moisture in the air retained the day's heat throughout the night. Still, it wouldn't hurt. There were light sprinkles coming through the night's air. I was hoping it wouldn't rain.

Jack walked along side me, Cassidy, Joseph and Marilee to our front, and on all sides we were surrounded by semi recognizable werewolves sent by Jaha. Jaha was in the very front, leading our little band of misfits. To his right was the red-headed Jake that was seen around the house the last few days.

I had to step through weeds and in the lack of light I found myself tripping over branches, roots and the occasional sizable mound of dirt. Jack was constantly grabbing onto my upper arm to steady me. We had to cross the Kettle River, and at some point the back of my heal scraped against a large rock in the bank as I was stepping over it. I slipped and the same ankle that was mostly healed already from the river a week and a half prior throbbed, taking my attention from my nervousness for a moment. Jack noticed but said nothing as he helped me regain my footing. The group was going at a surprisingly slow pace, whether because of me (I had really hoped this wasn't the case), or because they wanted to be careful and scout before intentionally moving onto enemy territory, I wasn't sure. But as the sky began to brighten just a little bit, I was thankful to start being able to see and avoid obvious trip attacks. It was still painfully dark, but at least I could make out some shapes and outlines.

We stepped through some thicker trees and dawning upon us was a large oval clearing. From the edge of the trees I could see golden eyes reflecting back at me. Jack grabbed my wrist, stopping me from walking further.

I realized the eyes ahead of us were wolves. A sign of aggression as Cassidy had said before. I wondered what this could mean for us. But it was obvious that tensions were high. Our group was left standing half in the trees, half out, with Jack and I at the center.

Jack pulled me back slightly and maneuvered himself partially in front of me. His body crouched slightly, as if he was getting read to phase if need be. I knew he could shift quickly if he needed to. I'd seen him do it before.

Memories of that day flashed past my eyes. I held back a shutter, reminding myself that nothing should scare me anymore. I wasn't a weak little girl, waiting to be saved. But as my eyes trailed over all the people around me, a twinge of doubt started to grow. I wondered how quick they could phase. Jack said he was the fastest. How far behind were the others? Was it not instant like it was for Jack?

I wouldn't let myself be the weakest link here. I can't control the fact that I was human and or that physically, I was weak. But I'd be damned if Jaha was right and I was mentally weak as well. He didn't know me, and he didn't know what I'd been through in my life.

With a new sense of determination, I steadied myself, standing firmly next to Jack.

Then, three dark silhouettes exited from the trees, followed by over a dozen wolves. The man in the front of the trio was huge, intimidatingly built. They stood, several yards from us. As the sun started to peek over the horizon I could finally begin making out some more details.

The first face I looked at wasn't the large man in the center, the leader, no. The first person I noticed was a young man in dirty clothes, his arm held tightly in place behind him. It was Tim. He looked completely different from my memories of that night. A blonde police officer, hair soaked from the rain. His hair, dry now of course, was dirty and matted. There was something tied around his head, some kind of cloth between his teeth, restricting his ability to talk. He seemed a lot paler than before. The dirt on his face made his skin look ghostly underneath in comparison. He also looked exhausted and barely conscious. I kept my expression steal, not allowing myself to react. I wouldn't be weak minded.