Ocean Mutation (COMPLETED!)

Chapter 9

The ride was a long and silent one. Hunter smelled like blood and dirt so the top went off the jeep as we bounced down off roads in some Florida woodlands for miles after getting off the interstate. My furry towards him too strong to let me have any normal conversation. Not to mention fear and worry for her was so strong I was completely choked up. I swallowed the lump in my throat and tried to steady my breathing. I felt Hunter look over at me.

"Have you changed yet?" He tried to speak softly not to upset me farther.

"Yes." My response curt and simple.

"Good because you might not be have been able to see them otherwise." His silence was final as if he wouldn't explain more.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I snapped.

"Fairies have wards up, placed by warlocks to hide them from human eyes. Sometimes even we have issues seeing them. Damn tricksters." He glared at the windshield.

"Your angry with Serene. Why?" I watched his tan jaw work.

"Because now I think my feelings were a trick."

"What?!" I exclaimed.

"They can do that. Manipulate emotions. What I feel for her isn't normal. It's like an obsession. I think she knows what she's doing and using it to feel better about herself. I think she has it on you too." His eyes darted my way.

"Your absolutely nuts you know that?"

"Am I? Think about it Alayna. There's a world at stake and you're going to save her from her own kind."

"They aren't her own kind... She's my friend, it's what friends do. Don't you werewolves believe in that?"

"Of course!" He exclaimed. "The entire pack would go to bat for one of their own but Alayna I'm telling you something is off about this."

"Well your instincts are horribly wrong." I snap. His eyes narrowed on the road ahead as I turned away disgusted by his attitude. I should have gone alone.

We finally came to a stop in a small grassy field with a small lake. One you could probably walk across if there weren't alligators. I saw many of them. Way too many. In such a small area of water it was unnatural. We stepped out slamming shut the doors. The humidity instantly clinging to my skin. I removed a rubber band off of my wrist and pulled my hair up into a not.

All the gators turned and looked our way. We froze. They started to swim towards us. The ones in the front crawled out of the water. We backed up slowly.

"What the hell, I've never seen gators act like this." I breathed.

"Fairy magic. They can control animals." A gator ran forward then chomping its jaws at Hunter. Hunter pulled a dagger out of nowhere and threw it right between the gators eyes. It stilled instantly. Hunter ran forward grabbed the dagger then tossed it at the next lunging at us. I was so distracted by his skill I almost missed the gator that had gone under the jeep. I screamed and jumped back tripping and falling on my butt like an idiot as it jumped on me. Teeth, and the smell of death and reptile overwhelmed me as I screamed. After everything I go down, death by alligator. The gator stilled and Hunter tossed it from off of me and held out a hand. I took it firmly as he pulled me up I said,

"Surprised you bothered. My death would be the end of your worries."

"Don't be so naive Alayna." He scoffed turning ready for another attack when a voice yelled from across the lake.

"Stop! Good lord please stop!" Serene came from the wood on the other side of the water. I barely recognized her. She wasn't the super thin, dainty girl I knew anymore. She had solid arm muscles, her legs that of an avid runners. She wore flowers braided in her brown hair and a nature made skimpy brown dress that swooped off one shoulder down and around her breasts under the other arm. She wore sandals that laced all the way up to her thighs and a bow and arrow slung around her back.