Taken By A Werewolf

IX

The rest of the week, Indy tried to avoid Ares and his friends as best she could. However, every lesson she shared with him, he'd come sit next to her in silence. She had no idea why, especially since Jamie or Eloy would also be in that class and end up sitting alone or with one of the drooling girls that seemed to follow them around everywhere. Indy didn't mind sitting alone. If she did, she would've attempted to make a friend or two. Sitting by herself kept her focused on the subject matter, but now he was sitting next to her, she found her mind wandering off to his calming scent of pine cones and deep seas, his strong hands with long, slender fingers and even the deadly stare she was met with every time she faced him. Because he would already be looking at her. For the first time in her life, Indy felt like the stupid, hormonal teenager she despised her other classmates to be. But strangely enough, it made her feel somewhat normal. And normal was something Indy hadn't felt like since her parents had died almost a year ago.

When Friday came around, Indy knew she had to make up an excuse to have Ares think she wouldn't be in her dorm later that day. She knew the boys would have another of their 'secret' meetings in Ares' room, and Indy was planning on eavesdropping once again. So far with her rule of no distractions. But it would be Friday night, she was on schedule with her homework assignments and even though most of her peers would be looking forward to some party, Indy was looking forward to overhearing the guys' secret meeting. Pathetic, yes. But who cares? No one had to find out.

So when the bell rung, signaling the end of the school day, Indy turned to Ares, who she found was already glaring at her.

"Not that I anticipate your help or anything, but I'll be in the library for the rest of the day, finishing off our assignment, which has actually become my assignment, but I'll allow for you to sign your name on it, since we're great friends and such."

Indy looked at Ares drily, but he just stared at her unimpressed.

"Glad we had this conversation."

She waved at him and walked away in the direction of the library. Once she turned the corner, she took the Northern stairs up to the first floor, then walked down the hall taking the Southern stairs down, all the while making sure none of the boys saw her. She crossed the school grounds, hurried to her dorm room in ninja style and closed her door quickly. She didn't know how late they were supposed to meet up, but she couldn't be too late. Chances were they'd blow off the whole thing if they knew she was there. She shoved open her window just a little bit and hoped for the best. Let the waiting game begin.

-^-^-

Indy woke up from a knocking on the door. Not her door, she quickly established, but the one next to hers. She rubbed her eyes. It was already dark in her room, but she refrained from putting on a light. No one could know she was here. How on earth could she have fallen asleep? What time was it? 10:12 PM, her watch pointed out. She had been waiting for hours before dozing off, apparently. She went over to the window, but heard nothing. Ares must have kept his shut tonight. Thinking fast, she grabbed an empty glass and held it against the wall, pressing her ear against the bottom.

"... find in Indiana?" she heard Ares' deep voice. Thank the stars, it was working.

"Not much." She assumed it was Colt who spoke, for she didn't recognize his voice.

"Except that all roads lead us here. Whoever was behind the attack, they are no longer in Fort Wayne."

Attack? Indy thought. Fort Wayne? She could feel the color drain from her face. This was just a little bit too coincidental for her liking.

Indy had lived in Fort Wayne before her life went to hell. She was born and raised on the outskirts of that city and now these guys were talking about it? One of them went there because of some attack. Indy tried to calm herself down. Their conversation had already continued and she needed to focus. Taking a deep breath, she placed the glass back against the wall with shaky fingers.

"... right decision to come to this school."

"We traced the information back to the school's servers, and someone erased it not long after. Chances are, it's still hidden somewhere, but even our best hackers aren't able to get to it," Ares said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Hackers? These guys were up to something serious.

"You think it might be one of the faculty members?" Eloy asked.

"It's possible. It could also be a student," Ares pointed out.

"Aren't students a bit young to plan a m******e?" Jamie asked. Indy's eyes widened in shock.

"Aren't we a bit young to investigate one?" Eloy countered.

"I guess you're right... So, basically, everyone in this school is a suspect?"

"We can trust no one," Ares stated. Of course he would say something like that.

"What about your feisty neighbor? I think she needs some up-close investigation," Eloy went off-topic, "and I'd be willing to volunteer, of course, but it appears that she's got the hots for you, so I'm starting to think I should back off."

Indy appreciated the end of that sentence, but not so much the beginning. She felt her face heat up.

"Can we focus on our mission?" Ares sounded a bit uncomfortable.

"We can in a minute. As soon as you admit that you like her," Eloy pressed. Did he like her?

"You are such an immature i***t at times," Ares sighed.

"Unlike you, I am not distracted by something as trivial as girls. We only have three more weeks to get to the bottom of this, and it's a full moon in six days, so we have to be careful and stay under the radar. We don't have time for distractions."

"And that's why you're sitting next to her every chance you get?" Jamie teased him. Indy found herself holding her breath.

"I get tired of sitting next to you assholes all the time," Ares replied curtly.

"There are other people to sit next to," Eloy pressed.

"She doesn't ask, alright?" Ares surrendered.

"You of all people should know I'm not looking for anyone right now. Not after what happened with ... Never mind. I'm not getting into this. She had to show me around because I'm the one living here on the school's campus when you would't, and she is quiet most of the time, which I appreciate. That's it."

"Okay, but even if you don't like her like that, you might still want to use her to blow off some st-"

"Shut up, Eloy. If I have to blow off steam, I'll come to your house and kick your ass. Go now, you're giving me a headache and this meeting sucks. Try to have a normal weekend, make some friends and dig up dirt. I'll see you on Monday after school."

Indy laid awake in bed that night, tossing and turning. She was scared. She had heard things that she was definitely not supposed to hear, and now she didn't know what to do. These boys could be dangerous. Were they part of some intelligence agency? The FBI or the CIA maybe? They looked like stuck-up skater boys, but Indy was no longer fooled. And on top of it all, they went to her former home town. She hadn't been in Fort Wayne for over a year, but it felt like too much of a coincidence to her.

When dawn was breaking, and Indy still hadn't slept one bit, she had come up with a plan. She'd stay clear of those boys for the next three weeks, and by then, they'd be long gone and this would be nothing more than a weird memory she would try her best to forget.