The Runaway Luna's Daughter

New Wolf

“Jenine, come on.”

“Almost done,” she croaked.

Something clattered on the floor.

“You alright there?”

“Yeah, coming.”

She appeared through the door. The sports bra and joggers she wore gave her a highschool athlete look. Her hair was tied into a neat bun over her head. She held a red book and a pen.

Laura's gaze swept over her.

“What's that in your hand?”

“My diary?”

Laura's eyes flicked from Jenine's face to the book in her hand and back to her face.

“Why do you need a diary for…” she sighed. “You know what? I'm not even going to ask. Let's just go. You have a lot to learn.”

Their feet thudded the wooden floor board as they walked down. Laura wore the same thing as Jenine—sports bra, joggers, hiking boots. Only her hair wasn't tied in a bun. A headband passed around her short hair keeping them in place.

It was still morning. The heat from the sun—warm and soothing—caressed rather than burned against their skins. They came up to the wide expanse of grassland. The perfect place.

“Take a deep breath, Jenine. Tell me what you scent.”

Jenine slipped the pen through her hair, onto her right ear. She inhaled deeply. “Ummm… the smell of leaves?”

“Anyone can scent the leaves. Here.” Laura raised her chin. “Close your eyes. Feel the sun against your skin. Clear your mind.”

Jenine closed her eyes.

“Now, try it again,” Laura said.

Jenine inhaled deeply again. The sun reflected on her hair and face as her head tilted upwards. Her fingers tremored.

“Lavender. I can smell the lavender in your hair. I can scent the water in those leaves,” she pointed. “I can scent the flowers too.” She paused. “And oh, the sweat on your brows.” She opened her eyes turning to Laura. “How did I do?”

Laura clapped slowly, her lips quirked up in a grin. “Impressive. Really impressive. You learn fast.” She wiped the sweat from her brows with the back of her hand.

“A werewolf's ability to catch scents is very important if not the most important of all our senses. Where your hearing doesn't help you, your scent will go a long way. Trust your nose more than you trust your ears. Will save you a lot of hassle.”

“You’re really good at this. How did you learn all this?”

“My mum.” The light in Laura's eyes dimmed. “She taught me.”

“You never talk about her. Is she… you know…”

“Dead? She's very much alive. Doesn't make much difference though. She's dead to me.”

Jenine's brows raised. “That's a really harsh thing to say about one's mum, don't you think?”

“I had the most traumatic childhood any wolf could ever ask of, thanks to her. She could go to hell if she wanted. I'll never care.”

“You don't miss her? Sometimes?”

“How do you miss someone that said to your face that she wished you were never born?”

“Oh. That's… bad. I never should have brought it up.”

“It's fine,” Laura purred. “Enough small talk. Let's get back to it.”

“One more question…”

“What?” Laura rolled her eyes.

“Have you asked Zonda about me yet?”

Her brows raised, then furrowed. She squinted her eyes.

“I heard when you mentioned it the other night.” Jenine shrugged.

“I'm pretty sure I didn't say it out loud. Don't tell me you're reading minds now.”

“You muttered it,” Jenine laughed. “How's it feel to be in my shoes now? To be the one talking to oneself?”

“Oh, shut up,” Laura's voice cracked like a twig. She could have sworn she never said that out. She couldn't have been mistaken.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

“Huh?,” Laura replied to Jenine who peered into her face.

“You zoned out. Are we done here?”

“Do you have someplace to be?”

“Not at all,” Jenine cooed. “I was just concerned about you. You seemed lost… in thought.”

“I'm good.”

Jenine wrung her fingers. “So… when do I get to… to shift?”

Laura's brows furrowed. “Not now. Not ever. Until you learn to control yourself.”

“How am I gonna learn if I don't shift?”

“Patience, new wolf. Patience,” Laura chirped. “Youre not shifting. At least not until I talk to the wizard. It's for your own good, trust me.”

Jenine's gaze was on her.

“Come on, don't look so smug. I don't want you hurting anyone or yourself. You couldn't even remember what happened that night. What if you did something more? Something drastic?”

Jenine sighed. Laura was right. She needed to lay low. For now.

“What do we do next?” Jenine asked, her face brightening a bit.

“Hearing exercises. Tell me what you hear.”

The darkness embraced Jenine as she closed her eyes.

“Remember,” Laura chipped in, “deep breaths, clear mind… you know the drill.”

Jenine heaved a sigh. Her brows quivered as she concentrated.

“I hear birds. Insects chirping. I hear the sound of water crashing against rocks. I hear… I hear…” she opened her eyes. “Laura we need to get out of here.” The fear creeped into her eyes.

Laura stood, her body taut. Her feet looked like they'd been rooted to the ground.

“LAURA!” Jenine shook her. “Come on, we need to go. NOW!”

“Jenine, we… we can't run. We can't. We're surrounded already,” her voice quivered. She has heard it too. The sound of running feet thudding the ground furiously towards them.

“I don't care!” Jenine screeched. “We have to try!” She swallowed hard as she looked around.

“This way,” Laura croaked. Jenine raced after her immediately, her long hair flailing behind her. They could hear the footsteps closing in on them very quickly.

“Here,” Laura grunted, dragging Jenine with her behind a rock.

“We're… we're not… safe here,” Jenine panted breathlessly, her voice a low, hoarse whisper. “They'd scent us out.”

“I know,” Laura panted back. “Trust me, I know.”

“So what do we do?”

“I don't know.” Her chest heaved as she rested her back against the rock. Jenine slipped away, moving to the edge of the rock.

“What are you doing?” Laura whispered, her eyes widening. “Hey! Don't,” she cautioned as Jenine moved farther.

She saw Jenine's eyes widen. Her eyelids batted furiously as she returned to her position.

“What is it?” Laura whispered again.

“I saw the man. It was him.”

“What man?”

“The one who came after me the night I arrived Lupestone.”

“Vlarr. Oh Goddess,” Laura's lips trembled. “It's the Triad. We're fucked.”

“You absolutely have no idea how f****d you really are,” a soft feminine voice purred.

Their heads snapped around quickly.

“Hello, girls,” she purred again walking towards them. Her eyes shone under the sunlight. The colour of the rainbow.

Laura's heart dropped. “It's her, Jenine. It's Braden, the she-wolf that hurt those boys.”

“Wha… what do we do?” Jenine's voice came in a whimper. A pathetic, fearful whimper. Her eyes flicked back to the lady.

Braden had stopped walking. Her eyes fluttered close, hands balling into fists, inhaling deeply.

“Ah, fear,” she drawled. “The delicious scent. I'd almost forgotten what it smelled like.” She exhaled, her eyes opening and burning with mischief. “I love it.” Her lips curled into a smirk.

“Run, girls. Go on. Run. I'll give you a headstart,” she growled, her fingers snapping. Claws pointed out their edges—long. Crude. Twisted. The harbinger of evil and death.

“Go on, make a go for it,” she goaded.

Laura's eyes—dark with fear—caught Jenine's. Her fingers clung tightly to her joggers.

Jenine shook her head. “Don't, Laura.”

Her last experience had taught her something. They were hunters. They loved it when their preys ran, scrambling away from them to safety.

“It's now or never Jenine,” Laura whispered. She pushed herself off the rock.

“No, wait,” Jenine tried to hold her back but she slipped through her hand, sprinting away.

“Now that's more like it,” Braden growled, her lips curling back. “Now, it's a hunt.”

A lump formed in Jenine's throat. Her heart hammered hard against her chest as the lady sped by fast. She hadn't seen anyone move that fast before. She pushed herself off the rock just in time to see her s***h against Laura's exposed back.

A roar—a mix of pain and anguish—ripped through her lips as the blood spurted. She crashed heavily to the ground, her body quivering as the blood gushed.

Braden's hand raised again to strike, her eyes lighted up with glee.

Jenine darted towards her, all caution thrown to the wind. She couldn't let her do it. She couldn't. Laura was her friend. The only friend she had in Lupestone and she wasn't going to let this lady take that away from her. She lunged at Braden.

“Leave her alone!” She grabbed her hand, holding on tightly.

“You little fly,” Braden cursed flinging her away like a weightless piece of paper. “Wait your turn. I'll attend to you shortly,” the words left her lips in a drawl.

Jenine sniffled as she stood, her eyes blurry with tears. Her eyes strayed to Laura. Her body shook a little as the blood dripped down her back, turning her joggers into a red, sticky mess.

“Don't touch her. Stay away from her!”

“Aww, don't cry,” Braden's lips puckered up. “You'll join your friend soon enough.”

“Well, what do we have here?”

Vlarr. His brows furrowed when he saw Jenine.

“I know you,” he pointed at her. “Ah, yes. The girl from the other night. We meet again. Fate has a way of reuniting people, don't you think?”

“The girl you wanted to kill?” Braden asked, her eyes flicking to Jenine. “She's mine, Vlarr. I found her. She's mine to kill.”

“Not anymore,” Vlarr growled. “You've had your fun with that one,” he pointed to Laura. “Make the most of it.”

Jenine shuddered. Fear rooted her body to the spot. They killed for fun. It was a hobby.

“Now, darling,” he slurred. “How do you want to do it? The way we did it the last time? Would you love to… maybe, RUN?” he snarled.

A wolf sprinted into view. He shifted immediately into his human form.

“Boris,” Braden cooed running to him, arms outstretched.

“Hey baby,” his lips locked with hers. He pulled away almost immediately.

“Vlarr, we need to go.” Urgency was heavy in his voice.

“What do you mean?” Braden whined. “We only just got here.”

“The Alpha is coming this way. We need to leave.”

“The Alpha? We could take him. Let's end this once and for all,” Vlarr growled. “Ready yourselves.”

“You are not getting me, Vlarr. He's not alone. The warriors are with him. We don't stand a chance. We have to go.”

Vlarr turned to Jenine. “Once again you escape my claws. We are not done. I will find you again, little girl.”

He turned to Braden. She had gone back to Laura, her hand raised again to strike. “Leave her. We'll come back for them later. Let's go.”

His clothes turned to shreds as he shifted. Braden and Boris towed him, darting away quickly, out of sight.

Jenine rushed to Laura's side. She shook her. “Laura. Laura. Stay with me.”

Her hands trembled as she held onto her. The tears streamed down her face. She heard the cracking of twigs behind her. She turned.

“What happened here?” Ferguson asked.

His beta, Karl eased beside him. His gaze swept over Jenine as his warriors joined him. It settled on Laura's bloodied body.

“Were you attacked?” He turned around to the warriors not waiting for her answer. “Scout around. Find who did this.”

Karl walked up to her, holding her by the shoulders and taking her away from Laura. “We'll take it from her. Tell us what happened.”

Ferguson's brows furrowed as his eyes settled on her face. “Get the girl to a healer first lest she bleeds out.”

Jenine sniffled. “It… it was–” her eyes glanced over Karl. “Elisha?”