The Moon's Pack Book 1: A Girl Among Wolves

Chapter 2 - Avery

Branches slide across and latch onto my vest, sweater and jeans, almost like the forest is trying to keep me from going further. I keep moving though, that heartbreaking howl ringing through my mind even though I haven’t heard another. I wasn’t hearing things though; I know I heard that wolf. My legs seem to be running without me having told them to do so.

“Don’t worry little pup, I am coming!” I whisper to the woods, hoping that I can make it to help the wolf if it truly is in some kind of danger. I could be working myself up for nothing, but something tells me I’m right. I can’t explain it, but I have never felt so strongly about being right before.

I stop sprinting when I hear gruff voices ahead. I take a moment to catch my breath so I can sneak closer without being noticed. When I finally get my breathing under control, I begin moving closer to the voices, readying my camera to capture these assholes in whatever illegal activity they are up to.

“We got one of the smaller ones, Boss. They seem to be doubling their patrols though, and it is difficult to get closer.” I hear a hacking sound followed by spit. I creep off the path, using trees as my cover to get closer to get a shot.

“Unfortunately, we knew their defenses would be harder to pierce through than everyone else’s.” The man talking now had a strong accent, still American, but from somewhere northeast maybe. “We will have to come back for more. Even this little she-wolf is worth more than the average she-wolf, but I want one of the stronger ones. The rarer ones. We get one of them, and we will be sitting real pretty.” There are a few chuckles in response, meaning there are more than just the two men I initially heard.

“Should we load her up then before the whole pack comes looking this way for her?” I hear a thud, my heart racing. When I peak around the tree, a man seems to have kicked whatever they captured, and not lightly. I hide back behind my tree again, steadying my breathing so I can listen.

“Yea, give her a second dose of the bane as soon as you get her loaded. We don’t want her waking up until she is in her cage. After that, the silver should keep her from escaping.”

I calm my breathing as I peek out from behind my tree. If they were loading the poor wolf up, and this was the only one they were getting today, then I needed proof for the proper authorities. I line up the shot, focusing my lens, and my heart lurches. That’s not a wolf! That’s a girl! And so young, maybe late teens, definitely not older than my twenty-five. I bite my lip and snap a few shots of them lifting and carrying her. She looks like she is out cold, wrapped in a tarp. She doesn’t appear to be wearing any clothes either. A tear slips down my cheek as I watch a few men walk away with her, I assume to load her into a van. I grit my teeth. I need to see what vehicle they are driving, and hopefully get a shot of it and the license plate.

I look back once more at the remaining group. The other grunts seem to be cleaning up the area and clearing their tracks. The boss just monitoring them, a gun in hand with a shotgun strapped to his back. I stand there frozen, just staring, unsure of not the what, but the how. I could get killed. There are guns and big, burly men who are kidnapping out here in the middle of nowhere. Would they take me too or just leave me for dead? The girl though, she needs someone to help her. I need more so that I can help. I want a picture of the boss’s face too, but he won’t turn where I can get one. Get closer, Avery. You have to get closer.

I step out quietly from behind my tree and sneak over to the next. I have a bit of his profile from this angle. Just line up the shot, steady hands, zoom in and… click! f**k. Why does my camera sound so loud to me now. The boss seems to have sensed something. Maybe he also heard my camera click. I decide I need to move. Trying to be as quiet as possible, I begin moving in the direction that the others were taking the girl.

“I am going to go check something out. You guys finish up here and get ready to move out on my command. Leave no trace that we were here, or someone will pay.” The boss calls out to his men. s**t. He is moving this way too. I can’t let him see me. I can’t get caught. I don’t know what will happen to me if he gets to me.

I begin moving deeper into the wood. No longer focused on the direction of the van. Hoping the proof I have captured will be enough. Trying to keep my breathing even, not daring to run just yet, I try to keep myself from giving away exactly where I am. He follows my path at a steady pace. I can hear him behind me for about ten minutes. When I no longer hear him is when I get worried. That’s when I decide it is time to run.

The sting of the cold makes running difficult on my lungs. My vest may make carrying easier, but I can still feel the weight of it all slowing me down. My ears seem to pick up a snap of a twig, a crunch of snow, a rustle of leaves from all directions, uncertain if it is him or not. I am making myself more paranoid as I run, my breaths coming in more and more shallow. I need to stay calm so that I can get away. I try steadying my breathing, running as fast as I can while still attempting stealth.

“You can’t run forever little b***h!” I hear him call out from somewhere behind me. I can’t tell how close he is, so I just run faster. “You’ll tire or fall, and we are in the middle of nowhere.” He states matter-of-factly. He is right. And I am sure the trail I am leaving in the snow now is pretty damn clear. I make a sharp left turn before swerving back another way, just to hopefully throw him off.

I don’t know if he saw me, or if he has eyes on me now. Somehow, he knows I’m a girl. So, he must have glimpsed me at least once. I feel like I can hear my own heartbeat in my ears. My lungs burning as they gasp for air, the anxiety of the situation certainly not helping my breathing.

I get to a small clearing and curse under my breath. Just an open area with nothing but snow before getting to the next tree line. I can’t stand here long. He could be on me any moment, or already here. I will have to just sprint and hope he doesn’t have a clear shot. I take off, daring to look behind me when I hit something hard. It is furry and warm and big. Stumbling, I look up and see the largest wolf I have ever laid my eyes on.