Not Your Ordinary Wolf Girl (14 page)

He moved forward in a stealth crouch. I tried to mimic his movements. He leapt. I did, too. We sailed through the air toward the bush, smashed heads, and fell to the ground, whining in pain. The plump rabbit took the opportunity to hop off safely. I lay there, seeing stars.

Marlon recovered first, staggered to his feet, and growled at me to leave the hunting to him. Then he trotted away in a huff and led us to the rest of the pack, who were closer than I'd thought. Pierre waited attentively on a big rock in a clearing. When we approached he snapped his jaw at us, which I interpreted to mean “stay quiet.”

Marlon lowered his body and crept forward to where his mother lay half-hidden behind a tree trunk. She was almost entirely camouflaged by the thick ground covering. I couldn't see Owen, but I smelled him close by. My heart raced. I crawled after Marlon. I'd made it only a few feet when one of my front paws snapped a twig. Whoops. Marlon's head whipped around. Françoise's jaws vibrated in a silent growl.

What was going on? She sounded wary. I continued to pick my way through the foliage, choosing carefully where to place each paw so I wouldn't make any noise.
Up ahead was a bush big enough to hide me. I manoeuvred myself so that I was mostly underneath it. A whiff of something delicious reached me: a gamey scent I couldn't place.

I scrambled forward a couple more steps until my nose was lined up with Françoise's, as if we were waiting at a starting line. Finally, I could see what all the excitement was about. Directly in front of us was a young deer, stooping to drink from a stream. The wolves were poised to bring it down. I tried to prepare myself mentally, but I felt like a fake—I wanted to run in the other direction. I couldn't attack Bambi. Some all-powerful beast I was!

Owen appeared on the far side of the deer. His father crept out of the shadows beside him. How had they gotten all the way to the other side of the clearing without making a sound? The poor creature was oblivious.

Françoise growled loudly enough for the deer to hear her. It lifted its head, ears and nostrils twitching. Françoise feinted forward. The deer bolted, right into the path of Owen and Pierre, who lunged toward it, making it backtrack in our direction.

The deer was light and quick. It would have gained ground and escaped, but then Marlon leapt up, startling it just long enough for Owen to snap his teeth around
its short tail. The animal thrashed and kicked. It caught Owen squarely in the shoulder and he fell back. The deer was running again. Marlon jumped back and forth, like he was playing with it. Pierre rushed forward from behind and raked his claw down a hind leg.

That meat smelled so good. Blood filled my brain.

I charged, wanting to help my pack. I knew the Lebruns had deliberately set this up. They were letting me finish off the fawn—it would be my first conscious kill. And I was going to do it.

Then the deer made eye contact with me. I could see its terror. Suddenly, I remembered exactly how I felt when I was jumped by two ferocious wolves alone in the park. I skidded to a halt.

The deer took advantage of my confusion to butt me with its stubby antlers, which sent me flying into Marlon. The stunned animal stood there for a moment. I barked at it to run away, and it tried, but its injured leg wasn't working properly. Yowling in frustration, Owen circled around and clamped his jaws onto its neck. The deer went down without a fight. Owen snapped his head from side to side, cracking bones, then dragged the carcass back to my feet, offering me the fresh kill. The deer's unmoving eyes stared up at me.

I inched away. Owen yipped, jumped forward, and ripped out the deer's throat for me. Warm blood spread
across the undergrowth. Pierre dived and began to lap it up. Françoise put one paw on a deer leg and tore off some flesh. She backed up to make room for her two sons.

If there was any part of me that still doubted I was a real werewolf, watching them eat convinced me. Every fibre of my being urged me to join the feast. But I felt dizzy from the blow to the head and stumbled into the forest.

Once I was away from the smell, my skin began to prickle and my human side tried to surface. Damn! I had no clothes! My panic forced the rest of the change. I jumped behind a tree, just in time to avoid giving Marlon a free show. He barked questioningly.

“Turn around!” I yelled at him, unsure if he understood what I was saying. He must have, because he swung his head back. I began to make my way through the woods toward the house, trying to stay out of sight. The sky was lightening, so even my human eyes could see several feet in front of me.

After waiting a few seconds, Marlon barrelled after me. I couldn't let him see me like this! I started to run and tripped over a fallen branch. He easily caught up, but passed right by without looking and loped along slightly ahead.

When we reached the house, Marlon jumped
onto the back steps while I hovered behind a bush. He howled to inform the other wolves we were home. Then he quickly changed shape and bent over to pull on his jeans, causing me to blush from my hiding spot. He picked up the rest of his clothes and opened the door.

“You can get dressed now, Sam.”

I hurried around to the side of the house where I'd left my clothes.

Before I could finish dressing, Marlon peeked around the corner.

“Can't you give me a little privacy?” I yanked down my shirt and walked over to the door.

“What's going on?” he asked.

“That animal! Its terror … all the blood. It brought back that night when you and Owen attacked me. How
could
you?”

He winced. “Yeah, I figured— I'm sorry, Sam. I couldn't stop my brother.”

Owen hurtled out of the bushes, transforming in mid-stride. I glanced down at my feet as soon as I saw the edges of his body shudder, but I was too late. I saw it all. Thankfully, Pierre and Françoise grabbed their clothes between their teeth, peered at me in a disturbingly intelligent way, and discreetly headed around the corner.

When Françoise returned, she looked at me with concern. “Is everything all right?”

“Sam's fine,” said Marlon. “She just got spooked.”

“
Spooked?
The other day, your brother almost murdered
me
like that deer.”

Marlon looked at the ground guiltily.

Owen didn't. He rolled his eyes. “Oh, please.”

“The hunt was too much,” said their mother sympathetically. “We were trying to help you adjust.”

“Too much, too fast!” I told her. “Definitely.”

Owen's gaze moved rapidly from his mother to me. He made a face that said he was fed up with all of us. “We thought you'd been injured. You almost made us lose our prey.”

I crossed my arms and glared at him.

He turned and stalked back into the woods, calling over his shoulder, “I'm still hungry!”

The other three Lebruns stared longingly in Owen's direction for a few moments, then entered the kitchen.

As soon as I stepped inside, I felt how tired I was. Exhausted. I mumbled something about needing a ride home and dragged myself toward the front door. When I passed the living room, I noticed that their sofa looked incredibly comfortable. My intention was only to sit down for a minute before getting Marlon to
drive me back into the city, but he didn't follow me into the room fast enough.

There were a few books lying on the coffee table. I flipped them over. The one that looked the most interesting was by an animal psychologist who'd studied the characteristics shared by particularly violent species. Rather than blaming the animals for their natural urges, he advocated for nature preserves where humans weren't allowed. The author was Armando Rojas. Rojas—that name again, like the guy in Words of Wonder … But I was too tired to read. I put down the book, laid my head on the armrest, and was immediately asleep.

At some point, Marlon showed up carrying a plate with four meat sandwiches and a jug of water. When I awoke fully the plate was on the coffee table and he'd pushed my legs aside so he could sit next to me. It wasn't a big couch, more like a loveseat. His arm was up against mine, and whenever he moved, it was distracting. He seemed to be moving quite a bit, picking up sandwiches, holding them up to my mouth until I took bites, pouring glass after glass of water, lifting those for me, too. I didn't have the energy to fight.

“It takes a lot out of you—the change,” he said. “Plus, your body's probably still adjusting to the demands of your inner wolf. Eating will help.”

I opened my mouth to refuse, but he stuffed a sandwich in it. I tried to bat his hand away but was too weak. The meat was really raw. Wait. Was it deer?! Before I could demand to know what I was inhaling, Marlon shoved another glass of water to my mouth. I gulped it down.

“Want more?” he asked, between mouthfuls of his own sandwich.

“What's this?” I mumbled.

“Beef.”

He was lying. I considered protesting, but he gave me the last sandwich, along with a fresh glass of water, and I ended up munching instead. So good. And I did feel stronger. I lowered my head to the armrest again.

Sometime later I awoke with a jolt when my cellphone beeped in my pocket. It was a text from Vinnie saying he'd booked me a slot on
The Wanda
Show
for tomorrow. She'd had a last-minute cancellation, and the leaked photo made me big news. I groaned and responded with two letters: OK.

Marlon was lounging beside me with his eyes closed, one hand resting on my thigh. I shoved it away and jabbed him in the ribs with my elbow. Morning light came through the window. Passing out in a house filled with werewolves wasn't the safest move I'd ever made.

“I need you to drive me home,” I said.

Marlon opened his eyes a crack and yawned. “My parents made up the guest room for you. I'll drive you back to the city this afternoon, when I go to meet with a prof.”

“Thanks, but I want my own bed.” Except that my Brooklyn apartment seemed so far away, and I was
still
tired. Marlon didn't look like he was in any shape to be driving, either. “All right. Where's the room? And does the door lock?”

He waved a hand toward the kitchen. “It locks. I can carry you if you want.”

“Maybe in an alternate universe. But in this one, I've got a shred of dignity left.”

He grinned saucily. “I wouldn't mind meeting Alternate Universe Sam someday.”

I stood up quickly and almost toppled over. Going back to sleep as soon as possible was the
only
safe thing I could do at that moment. There was so much to learn about being a werewolf, like how long I needed to recharge my internal batteries. The side of the sofa kept me upright until the world stopped spinning. Then I took a couple of steps and passed out.

This time when I opened my eyes, Marlon was putting me on a king bed. Apparently I was the fainting daisy kind of werewolf. So much for dignity.

My cellphone beeped again: a text from Jules. She was pissed about the photo and accused me of hogging the spotlight with the Wanda interview. An important band meeting was now scheduled at Mali's for this afternoon. I'd better not miss it or Jules would make sure I got voted off the island.

The guest room was extravagantly decorated with plush carpeting, matching furniture, and every convenience, including a mini fridge. A home entertainment system took up one whole wall, and picture windows made up another one. The view was of the spot where Françoise had taken me to change. I slumped into the pillows and shivered as I peered out at the tree trunks and bushes. Maybe somewhere out there Owen was eating the remains of the deer, all by himself. I could almost hear the sound of tearing flesh.

Marlon walked around the bed, blocking my line of sight. “Bathroom's through there.” He pointed. “I recommend the hot tub.”

“Just don't sneak in and take any pictures,” I said. He frowned. “Sorry. Never mind.”

“Well, the bathroom locks, too. We almost never have people stay over now that Grandma's passed away, so it kind of goes to waste.”

That got my attention. “This was your dead grandmother's room?”

“She didn't
die
in here, Sam. We didn't even see her much as I got older.”

“Did your grandma know what you are?”

“She may have suspected because of the legends,” he said. “But my parents were afraid to tell her. I like to think she would have accepted me.”

I only nodded. How would my mother react? Could I ever tell her what had happened to me?

Of course assuming that his grandmother had died here was stupid, but I was thrown off by him standing there at the foot of the bed, staring at me, all concerned for my well-being. He'd just carried me into bed! And he seemed to be saving me a lot lately. It crossed my mind that he might be hoping for an invitation to join me under the sheets. Two guys in less than twenty-four hours.

“I'm going to sleep now,” I said.

Marlon didn't move. “That's a really big bed.”

“Out!”

He smothered another grin and crossed to the door. “Don't worry, I'm locking this for you. You're safe and sound.”

I held my breath until I heard the click of the lock.

TWELVE

O
nce I was alone in the room, I went over to the windows and shut the blackout blinds, then I went into the bathroom. My reflection in the mirror looked wild and haggard. My clothes were a disaster, there were smudges of dirt on my cheek, and my hair was poking out in all directions. I tugged open the cabinet and discovered a stack of toothbrushes still in their packaging. A soak in the Jacuzzi would feel incredible, but I didn't want to risk passing out in there. I washed my face and hands, wrapped myself in a fluffy white robe I found hanging on the back of the door, and brushed my teeth. Then I climbed into the ridiculously huge bed. The room was pitch-black from the blinds. As I lay there, I couldn't help picturing all the
creepy-crawly things lurking outside those windows. I missed the sounds and streets of the city.