Just One Bite

Chapter 18: Louise's POV

"I've got it!" I yell, practically falling through the farmhouse's front door, "I've got the Wolfsbane!"

"We're in the kitchen!" I hear Amy call back.

Using the last of my energy, I give the door a swift kick so it slams shut, before pulling down my hood. "Bloody hell," I wheeze.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," I reply, kicking off my boots. "A Hunter saw me while on patrol so I had to escape through Clynne Gardens and circle back around," I explain breathily, "I left him clueless at the bridge and came up through the tunnel by the waterfall." I ruffle my hair as I pass the pantry and turn the corner so the view of the table was clear. "Jesus fucking Christ!" I exclaim when my eyes fall onto Em. I yank down my snood, my mouth like the entrance to a cave. "You look awful!"

"Thanks," Em mutters in a strange hoarse voice, fingers tapping impatiently against her mug of hot chocolate; her long nails clink loudly on the china.

Wait.

I look closer.

Shit, those aren't nails. They're claws.

That's when I notice the darker hair on her arms, the broader shoulders and a slightly hunched spine. I realise her nose is a little larger and rounder than normal; my eyes can't help to glance a little further back to see longer, pointed ears.

Oh shit.

 "What happened?" I ask, taking a seat across the table. Then I look to Amy who's sitting silently to my right. "And why the fuck are you here?"

"Things didn't go exactly to plan," she replies in a short tone, "I thought you could see that."

"Didn't you call her?"

"Yes, I did," Amy replies, "And she got to Oak Ridge in time..."

"Just in time," Em corrects quickly, gently rubbing the bruise under her left eye.

"But there was a struggle," Amy states, giving Em another once over. Her muddy jacket was draped over the back of her chair and her boots thrown in front of the rayburn, the soles stretched and the laces ripped, probably due to the sudden change in foot size.

Or should I say paw size?

"I had to deal with a few Hunters so one of Lawson's brothers could escape," Em explains, "Once everyone knew it was an ambush, we all scattered for the cover of the woods..." she sighed, feeling her swollen lip with the edge of her tongue, "... there were more Hunters than we thought."

"So where's the Lunar Child now?"

"Home," Em answers, "She needed to get back before she was missed."

"Did anyone see you?"

"We all had our faces covered," Em replies, before taking the last sip of her hot chocolate, "And it was dark so they'll probably have a hard time trying to identify us."

"No one was caught," Amy assures before I could even ask the question.

"So where are your parents?" I ask, looking about me when I notice the seemingly empty house.

"When we escaped the ambush, my parents went South," Em explains, "There's a secret entrance two miles in that direction so I'm guessing that they've taken refuge at the Den and will be back around midnight; Iz has just gone to bed."

I nod once. "Speaking of the Den," I say, heaving my rucksack up onto the table, "I got the Wolfsbane you wanted."

"Good," Amy replies, immediately getting out of her seat and grabbing the first aid kit from the top cupboard, "The sooner we get this into your system, the better."

"Pass me the Anti-Animalide please," Em instructs, standing up too.

I'm almost taken aback by the abnormal length and shape of her legs; when I look down, I realise her human feet are almost gone. "Jesus," I comment.

 "One of the Hunters sliced me with a Lunarcin coated blade," Em explains, yanking the belt out of her jeans and wrapping it tightly around her upper left arm, "I'm struggling to shift back."

"Can you inject this yourself?" Amy asks, holding up the needle full and ready of the familiar pink liquid, "Or do you want me to do it?"

"No, I can't," Em replies with an irritated growl, glaring down at her claws.

"Are you sure this Wolfsbane will work?" I ask nervously as I unzip my rucksack and rummage around for the velvet pouch.

"Ginger Odell created the serum herself," Em replies with a shrug of her shoulders, "And it's worked for every Werewolf so far."

"It's called Masking Wolfsbane for a reason," Amy says with a light chuckle, "It temporarily disables the Wolferine in her DNA so it becomes undetectable when they test her tomorrow." Her eyes narrow in concentration as she inserts the needle, the veins in Em's forearm popping out a little. 

"No Wolferine. No Werewolves." 

I frown a little. "No wonder it's so fucking illegal."  

"Hold still," Amy orders as she carefully removes the needle from Em's arm.

She lets out a loud groan of discomfort, and soon enough, we hear the familiar sound of her bones cracking and flesh shifting, any wolfish remains changing back into human form.

I'll never get use to it.

"Where's that Wolfsbane, Louise?" Em asks, flexing her limbs a couple of times when everything's back to normal. 

"Here," I say, yanking a small green bottle out of the velvet pouch and placing it onto the table, "Ginger Odell told me you can't drink it like last time. If you're injecting it, it must be a maximum of 100 mml."

"And you can only do this once every 24 hours or you'll start falling ill,"  Amy informs, "Apparently, the side effects are quite recognisable."

"Yeah," Em grumbles, "Not to mention the 20 years of jail time on top of it."

"Not even Lauren can get her hands on this stuff," Amy says as she injects the Wolfsbane serum into Em's arm.

"I can't bloody wait to see Elinor's face when you walk out of that tent," I say excitedly, rubbing my hands together like a plotting villain, "You'll be registered as a human and no one can say shit anymore. Not even Lunarcin can trigger you now."

"What would happen to me if Lunarcin got into my system now?" Em asks, carefully placing a plaster over her puncture marks.

"It'll probably give you a fever," Amy replies, packing up the first aid kit, "But I doubt anyone else has the stupidity to repeat Steven's little stunt."

Em and I exchange glances.

"I wouldn't bet on it."

"He got into a lot of trouble," Amy states, shutting the cupboard and leaning against the counter, "That Lunarcin was pure - something only Hunters can get their hands on."

"Elinor," Em says, shaking her head in disgust before removing the belt from her arm.

"Come on," I say, getting out of my seat and slinging my rucksack over one shoulder, "It's past midnight and Ryan can only cover us for so long. Dad will notice we're gone."

Amy nods once in response. "We all need some rest. News about the ambush tonight will spread quickly and we can't have anyone suspecting," she says, giving Em a glance, "Especially you."

"Go," Em orders, following us to the door, "I need a shower."

"The only thing that could trigger the shift now, is you," Amy warns as we pull our snoods up and step outside, "Keep that temper under control, Em."

We give her a look when we see the smirk form on her lips.

"Oh please," she replies with a roll of her eyes, "Don't I always?"