Wolfsbane and Wallflowers

The Sarcasm

“Let’s have a look at that shoulder, first.” Flynn didn’t really give me a choice in the matter as he ran his fingers over the joint. “I’m surprised you managed to throw a punch with your arm like this.”

“I’m pissed off.” Jackass. I wasn’t about to admit that I had forgotten. He didn’t give any warning before yanking my arm with enough force that I lost my balance. There was a satisfying pop, followed by a little wave of relief.

“You are going to be fine. Everything should heal by tomorrow. Are there any other more serious injuries I should check over?” Nope, I don’t need your help. My stubbornness was much louder in my head.

“I’m pretty sure I broke a bone in my thigh and have a concussion.” Why am I telling him? Shut up and be difficult. He doesn’t deserve cooperation.

“Well, the concussion will heal on its own. If your leg is broken, it will heal but if it isn’t set, it might be off till you transform. When you shift back, it will set itself.”

“Good to know.” I was being catty. To be honest, I was already starting to feel better. My head hurt but it wasn’t the massive throbbing pain it was originally. My thigh felt more bruised than broken.

“Anyways, let's get this over with.” He motioned to the living room.

“Yes, I can’t wait.” I wonder if he noticed the sarcasm. He would have had to be a moron to not notice.

“I’m sorry, I’m not really the best at this, you know… explaining and stuff.” Flynn sounded very confident. It was a great sign.

“Just get it out. Rip the band aid off and say what you need to say.” Please, dear God, don’t be one of those people who has to give a long winded explanation. Is there anything worse than someone who chooses the longest possible way to say something? Short, sweet and to the point. Then, I can go home and return to my life. I checked my watch and it was getting late. Mrs. Lewis was probably freaking out that I didn’t return from my run.

We had situated ourselves in the living room. It was lovely, the smell of Goodwill and mildew hung in the air and we were surrounded by Great Aunt Mildred’s knicknacks. There was a wonderful, vintage sofa from the 1970s with that same crocheted throw on the back of it that every Great Aunt had. I took the recliner and prayed no one had died in it. What had happened to the previous owners? Maybe it was best to not dwell on that. I didn’t need to imagine Great Aunt Mildred’s gruesome death.

“I’ve been hunting my brother, Forest, across the country for several months. Unfortunately, he found you before I found him.” Found was a bit of an understatement, but I let Flynn continue.

“Forest never displayed emotions like empathy or remorse as a child. He could be very charming, however, there was something that was off about him. On the surface he was likable. However, in private there were violent outbursts and this sense of entitlement. Forest expected the world to bow down at his feet. If he felt anyone had disrespected him, he would go through ornate planning in order to get his revenge in disturbing ways that were rarely traced back to him.

We were born into a wolf pack in Arizona and Forest should have inherited the Alpha position considering he is the oldest. That did not happen. When he came of age, he did not exhibit any alpha characteristics and I thank god every day for that. I can’t imagine him with the ability to use alpha commands.” Flynn paused for a moment. Maybe he wanted to make sure I was keeping up or maybe he was haunted by his own fears of what his brother might do. Obviously, craziness runs in his family.

“When I came of age and had the authority of an alpha, his mask slipped and his true nature was revealed to everyone. Forest felt like I had deliberately stolen what was rightfully his. He went on a rampage, killing our father and many of the pack. Then, he just vanished. I took over running things and there were no traces of Forest. I was so overwhelmed trying to figure out how to lead and helping those who were dealing with the deaths of their loved ones, I didn’t look for Forest. I should have. Part of me wanted to believe he was gone for good. Of course, that was a fantasy.” It seemed like the guilt of his negligence was a heavy burden. His shoulders kind of slumped and his expression shifted. In that moment, he aged several years.

“About six months ago, a freshly turned, female wolf showed up dead, just outside of pack territory. It was a message. She was murdered during her first full moon. Her corpse had been violated and drained of blood. There were several organs missing. It was bad and his scent was all over it. Every full moon, a new wolf turned up in the same condition. The first, on the border of our territory and then they left a path across the country. He was leaving a grisly crumb trail. I finally caught up with him, but you had already been turned. The full moon is in two days.”

Listening to him talk, I heard the words… but it was like watching a show on t.v. or reading a book. It wasn’t real. Werewolves don’t really exist. I mean sure, I listened to his command blindly… but that didn’t mean I was going to shift into a wolf and howl at the full moon. Despite not really believing the wolf aspects, it was real that girls were being murdered and I might be at risk of the same fate. My mind was already diving into the information and looking for patterns. If Flynn had been truthful, Forest was playing a game and I was a pawn in it. It would only benefit me to try to figure it out.

“It doesn’t make sense, they were all killed while transformed, but they weren’t killed by a wolf. It wasn’t claws and fangs that left marks, it was surgical. We don’t know if he has other people working with him. He should have been transformed during the full moon, but there wasn’t anyone else’s scent on the corpses. All I know is, he flew under the radar for seven years. He resurfaced for a reason. This is just the beginning.”

I’m not sure if he was saying this bit for my benefit or more so because it was a mystery he had yet to solve. Speaking out loud had a way of making things a bit easier to digest. I couldn’t help it, I was trying to connect dots. Red strings traced paths to the information he had shared in a tangled web in my mind.

“What can werewolf organs and blood be used for? If it was one organ, that would maybe be a souvenir but to take the time to remove multiple organs and drain them of their blood. There is a reason for that. He is doing something with them. I would start figuring out what that might be. If he is just getting started, there is more to his plan than killing these girls. If he wants revenge on you, why would he be targeting girls you do not even know? You don’t have an emotional attachment to me, so my death, while it would bother you… it wouldn’t destroy you. Is there any significance during someone’s first transition that would make it different than later transformation? What about the difference between females and males?” My mind was spiraling down the rabbit hole and all the random thoughts came out of my mouth in whichever way they formed.

“ Obviously, I don’t know your brother, but you do. I’m not an expert but most serial killers, they chose their victims for a reason. It would make more sense if he was targeting alphas or someone who shared traits with you. There has to be a reason he is picking freshly turned females. I can just feel it.”

“You might be right. Actually, you could be feeling it in a very real way. He changed you, so, you are linked to him. I haven’t ever turned anyone, so I don’t know the actual depth of the bond you two share. It is very uncommon for us to actually turn someone. Normally, it is done when a wolf falls in love with a human, and that is a bit different. I know myths like to say that we attack humans, but humans aren’t all that desirable to consume. In fact, most apex predators don't attack humans unless they are threatened. I think the only one who will actively hunt humans is polar bears, and that's only because their food source is diminished. I mean, obviously, werewolves still pose a threat to humans. But, we don’t attack unless we are startled or feel threatened.”

“So if a human were to, say, run straight towards a werewolf with her arms raised in the air, yelling nonsense at the top of her lungs…. That might trigger an attack?” I blushed slightly at my rhetorical question that wasn’t exactly all that rhetorical

“Yes, that probably would have triggered an attack.” He laughed at me, just a little hint of a smile paired with a chuckle.

“That night, I hadn’t planned to go running. I don’t normally run and it is not part of my routine. I was frustrated, and decided at the last minute to go for a run. It is highly unlikely that he was deliberately stalking me. If he was actively looking for a girl to turn and I was who he was hunting for, he would have attacked me on my walk home from work. Forest had no idea I would leave my apartment again. Not to mention, I never run the same route. I don’t even know where I am running to when I run. He couldn’t have been waiting for me. I, most likely, crossed paths with him by chance. “ I may have been experiencing verbal diarrhea, but I continued on trying to get all my thoughts out. Maybe it could help.

“It was fairly late into the night when I was attacked. Wait, I looked at my watch when my leg cramped up. It was a little after three because I remember it being the devil’s hour. What time does a werewolf normally turn?”

“Well, normally, we turn at sunset and we stay in wolf form till sunrise. I’ve never heard of anyone not following that.”

“So, based on the last few months he has to bite someone so he will have a victim for the next full moon and then murder and perform surgery on the new wolf. Do you think he would leave it up to chance and just run about till he found someone or would he have a target in mind? Could he have attacked another girl the same night he bit me?” I ran my fingers through my hair. The pain in my shoulder had subsided, but that could have been the fact that my mind was spinning too fast to register the inconvenience of pain.

“Forest, he wouldn’t leave it up to chance. He would fully be prepared.” Flynn was supposed to be explaining things to me and I had hijacked the whole conversation.

“If it were me, I would have already kidn*pped my victim and had her stashed somewhere, that way it saved time and energy. I’d have both in the same place, bite one and kill the other, then drop off the body. However, he has to be human to perform surgery and in wolf form to transform someone. Not to mention, how does he leave the victim where he leaves them? He wouldn’t really be able to move a corpse in wolf form.” I got strung up on trying to figure out when he was a wolf and when he was human and how he could get everything done.

“Forest tried to kidnap you today.”