Bonded to the Pack (Born to be Were) (30 page)

    
Hope stared up at Hunter, uncertain what the outcome would be. She wanted him
to kiss her, had wanted it from the time she realized that boys were more
appealing than her Barbie dolls, but she knew if he did, he would later regret
it and find a way to blame her for it. He had been rude, distant, and angry
since she had raised his grandmother from the dead. He had refused her
apologies and distanced himself from her, despite the fact she had never used
her necromancy again after that night.

     
In fact, since that night she had done everything she could to forget about her
affinity with the dead, so she could be normal and fit in with the other kids
her age. His rejection back then was the very reason she was a straight-A
student, head cheerleader, and girlfriend of the captain of the football team.
Never again did she want to feel like she was pariah, an outcast, or a freak,
as he had called her that night. She worked hard to maintain her image so no
one would ever suspect she harbored such a dreadful secret, but still it had not
been enough for Hunter. Somehow, he always managed to make her feel as if she
were less than everyone else with hurtful words and a surely attitude toward
her.

    
With a heavy heart, she took a step back and let his hands fall to his sides,
confident she was doing the right thing. At first he looked startled by her
retreat, but relief quickly washed over his face, which only gave credence to
her earlier thoughts.  “I, ahh….” She bit her lip nervously; deciding the best
thing to do was ignore the tension between them. “I just wanted to see if your
mom was going to order anything from the catalog I left with her.”  It was a
lame excuse, she knew it, he knew it, but it was all she could think of. 

     
Hunter looked down on her five-foot-four frame with a frown, despising himself
for wanting to kiss her, angry at her for making him want her. “She isn’t home.
You’ll have to call her later.” 

    
“Okay…ah… tell her I will stop by later tonight if I have the chance,” she
murmured, hurt by the coolness of his tone despite having heard it often in the
past.

    
“Whatever,” he said agitatedly, wanting nothing more than to get away from her
and the feelings of longing, she evoked inside of him. Her large eyes met his
once again, innocent and trusting, making it easy to believe she was the same
young girl he had grown up with and worshiped as a child, but his moment of
insanity had passed. He reminded himself that she was not that girl, not
anymore. He knew that beneath her perky, adorable appearance was a person
capable of things no one should be able to do, things that were unnatural and
too horrifying to believe.

    
“So, are you going out with Kara tonight?” she asked, trying to make small
talk.

    
“Now you’re asking about my personal life?” he sneered, hoping his rudeness
would make her leave.

    
“No, of course not, it’s just…she’s really…um,” she mumbled, trying to find
something nice to say about the girl he currently dated, but finding it
difficult to come up with anything. Kara was not exactly likable, and she had
gone out of her way to be rude to Hope on many occasions.

    
“Don’t bother. I know you hate her, and for the record she really hates you
too,” he growled.

    
“I don’t hate her, I….”

    
He raised his hand to stop her, tired of the game they were playing, knowing he
had to find a way to end it so he could get away from her before common sense
fled him completely.  “I guess you’re going out with Jock-strap tonight after
the game?” Her face fell, and he knew he had succeeded in angering her. She
hated his pet name for her boyfriend, it was always a sure- fire way to get her
dander up, and at times like this he used it to maintain distance from her. 

    
“You
know
his name is Jake, and for your information I am coming home to
work on a Spanish project that’s due Monday,” she replied, her cheeks flushed
with rage.

    
“Wow, you really have become a goody-two-shoes, I bet Jock-strap finds that
appealing,” he sneered.

    
“It doesn’t matter what Jake thinks, I can do what I want.” In actuality, Jake
had totally ignored her when she told him that she was not going to the bonfire
after the game. He assumed, as he always did, that he could convince her to
forget her own plans and go along with his, but she was not going to tell
Hunter that. It would only give him more fuel to pick on her.

    
“Really? I thought you followed all of the other sheep who worship the football
god, but I guess I might have been wrong.” With that final insult he walked
away, leaving her sputtering for an answer, satisfied he had gotten the upper
hand. Once he reached his porch, though, he turned and watched her storm across
the lawn then up the steps to her house.  Instead of his normal feeling of
satisfaction, he felt only regret. Despite everything, he stilled cared for
her, still thought of her all the time, still wondered what it would be like to
kiss her and take her out on a date. Hope was special, different, and he had
yet to find another girl who made his heart beat as fast it did when she was
around, or make him so crazy for her attention that he purposely got into
fights just so she would notice him.

    
Her front door slammed, bringing him out of his musings, and he pulled his phone
from his pocket and dialed Kara to break their date, thankful her voice-mail
picked up so he would not have to argue with her. “Hey, Kara, I forgot I had
something to do tonight, you go on ahead and have fun without me, and we’ll
talk tomorrow.” He hung up, resigned to breaking up with her the next day, and
walked into his house.

*****

Hope
was furious as she entered her house after her encounter with Hunter. Her body
shook as she stormed through the foyer, then up the stairs, her feet stomping loudly
on the wood floors as she stalked toward her bedroom. How he so easily
manipulated her was beyond her comprehension. He had made it clear he wanted
nothing to do with her, but like a stupid fool, she kept praying he would
change his mind, that somehow they would return to the close friendship they
had shared as children.  It was entirely stupid; they were now two such very
different people. Where she was light and witty, he was dark and sullen; her
friends were popular, his were decidedly not; she was a cheerleader and role
model for other students, and he spent so much time in detention that he had
his own assigned seat. He was difficult, rude, and entirely too judgmental
where she was concerned, and yet despite all of that she still cared for him. He
was still the same boy who had given her a half-crushed daisy for Valentine’s
Day when they were six, helped her off the pavement when she fell off her first
bike, and held her hand in the hospital when she had broken her arm falling
from a tree that he had challenged her to climb. They shared a history and even
if he were willing to throw it all away, she was not.  Her heart just wouldn’t
let her.

    
With a sigh, she tossed her things on the bed, and walked to the vanity table
to do her hair and makeup for the game that night. A crystal necklace hanging
on the side of the mirror gained her attention as the last rays of sunlight
filtering through the window hit its facets, creating a rainbow of light around
the room.  Instantly she was reminded of the vibrant woman who had once worn
it. Her grandmother had been her favorite person in the world. She had been
loving, caring, and always ready to give a hug or a word of encouragement when
warranted and sometimes even when it wasn’t.  She had been a wonderful
grandparent and her ability to communicate with the dead had made her the
perfect ally for a child who didn’t understand why she could see what other
people did not. From the time Hope could talk, spirits would come to her for
help or just to have someone they could talk to.  Her parents laughed it off as
childish imagination when she had told them about their visits, but her
grandmother secretly encouraged her to listen and help the spirits that came to
her.

    
After the incident with Hunter’s grandmother, though, everything changed. Her
grandmother, although upset she had used her necromancy in such a careless
manner, had hugged her close when she had arrived at the cemetery that night
and told her that she would take care of everything. After settling Hunter’s
grandmother back into her grave, she made her promise never to use her gifts
for her own selfish reasons again, and after what had happened, she had
willingly agreed.

    
Shortly afterward, her grandmother had a stroke and had to be placed in a
hospital. For days, she babbled on about demons and vampires incoherently,
experiencing violent seizures that depleted her body of life and led to her
eventual death. Her last words to Hope had been an apology for not protecting
her. She counseled her to let go of the past and claim her destiny as a
Necromancer when the time was right, but Hope had yet to find the courage to
accept her abilities and doubted she ever would. Letting the crystal go, she
turned away, wondering if her grandmother was disappointed in her. Looking
toward the heavens, she mouthed, “I’m sorry” before turning away to get ready
for the game.

*****

    
By the time the buzzer sounded ending the football game later that night,
Hope’s throat hurt from cheering, her head ached from the loudness of the fans,
and she just wanted to get home. The entire night she had felt anxious and
uneasy. Her body became chilled, and her heart rate had picked up considerably
the moment she had walked onto the field, signs that made her aware of a paranormal
presence in the area. With so many people in attendance, though, she had a hard
time trying to find the source of her unease, which to her was a good thing,
since she tried to avoid spirits like the plague.

    
With trembling hands she packed her gear, keeping a sharp eye for any of the
deceased who might be lurking nearby. Thankfully none of her friends seemed to
notice her distracted state. The fact they had won the game and everyone was
loudly celebrating helped to hide her unusual quietness, for which she was
extremely thankful.

    
“Hey, babe, you ready to go to the lake?” Jake asked, throwing his arm around
her shoulders as she turned to walk off the field. He nuzzled her neck despite
the large crowd around them.

    
He had become more demanding of late, wanting more from their relationship than
she was willing to give, and when his hand dropped down to squeeze her butt
under her skirt she knew she had to break up with him, the sooner, the better.
She slapped his hand away with a dark look, but he just smiled as if he did
nothing wrong and pulled her closer.  “I told you this afternoon that I have a
project to work on this weekend,” she said with a frustrated sigh.

    
“Work on the project tomorrow, tonight we need to celebrate.” He pulled her
close and she wrinkled her nose, the smell of the dirt and sweat from his
uniform making her ill. “Come on, babe, what’s a party without the captain of
the football team and the cheerleading squad?”

    
“I think everyone would survive it if I didn’t show up. Besides, you are the
hero of the moment, you don’t need me there.” 

    
“That is true, but I thought maybe we could go to the boat house later and
spend some time alone.” He pushed her against the wall outside of the girls’
locker room, his muscular arms on either side of her blocking her in as he
lowered his head to kiss her. 

    
“Sorry, you’ll have to go it alone,” she murmured, ducking quickly under one
beefy arm, slipping into the girls’ dressing room, ignoring his pleas to come
back.

    
Once inside she quickly grabbed her bag from her locker, peeked out of the back
entrance, found no one there, and slipped outside. She ran behind the school
and across the empty soccer field to the main street through town, then allowed
herself to slow down and set a slower pace.   

      
It was an enjoyable walk.  The moon overhead was full, giving her ample light
to see by and the soft fall breeze felt good on her skin after a long night of
cheering. It wasn't until she got close to the local cemetery that she felt the
first stirrings of misgiving about her plan. Sensing her presence, as the dead
always did when she was near; the graveyard came to life beside her. Ghosts of
varying sizes and ages appeared, hovering over gravesites and watching her closely,
looking for any sign of recognition. Hope was used to it: she had learned long
before that if she ignored them they would usually leave her alone, but one
particular spirit dressed in a long wedding gown was not so easily deterred.

    
The tragic young female followed her progress steadily, pleading with Hope to
find her husband, appearing in front of her, waving her misty hands in her face
trying to get her attention despite Hope's continued silence. Hope forced
herself to walk through the spirit’s cool ectoplasm instead of skirting it,
which would assure the spirit she had seen it. The woman screamed in defeat
then turned away, slipping inside of the fence, her loud sobs filling the night
air.

    
Guilt immediately washed over Hope as it always did when she denied her ability
with the dead, but she lifted her shoulders and kept walking, assuring herself
that she was doing the right thing. She had no idea how to help the spirits
that haunted the world around her; it wasn't as if she had a handbook on how to
ease their suffering and her old fears kept her from trying, anyway. Still the
guilt ate at her as she moved swiftly past the old stone wall and wrought-iron
barrier that enclosed the cemetery. She prayed silently that they would go
away, that her powers would just disappear, but as always they remained, and
the power she possessed drew them to her, whether she acknowledged them or not.