CHAPTER THREE
963 Words
Back at the gathering, Diego had searched everywhere for his sister, but Alison was nowhere to be found.
At first, he assumed she had simply wandered off to find somewhere quiet. But as the minutes passed, worry began to creep into his heart. The gathering was crowded, yet somehow he couldn't find her anywhere.
Still searching, he spotted Calista standing with Nicole and another friend. He immediately walked over to them.
“Have you seen Alison?” he asked.
Calista raised an eyebrow, a smug smile spreading across her face.
“Oh! You mean Alison?” she asked innocently.
“Yes. Where did she go?”
“I saw her heading towards the woods.”
Diego's expression changed.
“How long ago was that?”
Calista shrugged. “Ages ago.”
“Ages ago?” Diego repeated, his concern growing.
“Go look for her somewhere else and stop bothering me. I'm not her keeper,” Calista replied dismissively.
Diego ignored her attitude and turned toward the woods.
“You'd better hurry,” Calista called after him. “We all know she won't last long out there. Remember, she can't wolf-shift.”
Diego stopped for a moment but didn't look back.
Behind him, Nicole glanced nervously toward the dark forest.
“Do you think she's still out there?” she asked.
“I don't know,” Calista replied coldly. “It's not like I care what happens to her.”
“Let's go.”
The girls laughed as they walked away, leaving Diego to disappear into the darkness of the woods.
The forest was unusually quiet.
Diego moved quickly between the trees, calling his sister's name every few moments.
“Alison!”
No answer.
He continued deeper into the woods, his eyes scanning every shadow.
What could she possibly be doing out here at this time of night? he wondered.
He knew Alison couldn't shift like the others. That made the forest even more dangerous for her.
I just hope she's okay.
After what seemed like forever, Diego finally spotted a figure moving between the trees.
His heart leapt.
“There you are!”
He hurried toward her, relief washing over him.
When the figure stepped into the moonlight, he realized it was Alison.
“What in the world were you doing in the woods at this time of night?” he demanded, though his voice was softened by relief. “I was worried sick about you!”
Alison lowered her gaze.
“Nowhere. I just went for a brief walk.”
“A brief walk?” Diego repeated incredulously. “I've been looking everywhere for you!”
“I'm sorry,” she said quietly.
Diego sighed.
“Just don't disappear like that again. You scared me.”
Alison nodded.
“But something happened,” she added.
Diego frowned.
“What happened?”
Alison hesitated, as though she wasn't sure how to explain it.
“I met someone.”
“Someone?”
“A girl.”
Diego's eyebrows rose.
“A girl? Out here?”
“Yes.”
He looked around the dark forest.
“Who is she?”
“Alicia.”
"Alicia?”
Alison shook her head.
“But that's not the strange part.”
“Then what is?”
Alison looked directly at him.
“She looked like me.”
Diego stared at her.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean she looked almost exactly like me. She was around my age. She had the same deep blue eyes... and her hair was almost identical to mine.”
Diego's expression slowly changed from confusion to disbelief.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Maybe you just saw someone who looked similar.”
“I thought that too at first,” Alison replied. “But there was something about her. It felt different.”
“What was different?”
Alison paused.
“I can't explain it. When I looked at her, it felt like I was looking at myself.”
A cold breeze swept through the trees.
Diego glanced around uneasily.
“Where is she now?”
“She left.”
“When?”
“Just before I heard you calling my name.”
Diego studied his sister's face.
“Did she tell you anything?”
Alison shook her head.
“Not much.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Alison suddenly remembered something.
“Wait.”
“What?”
“She is just like me, no wolf.”
Diego looked at her curiously.
“And if I had ever wondered why I looked different from everyone else.”
Diego's expression hardened.
“And what did you tell her?”
“Nothing.”
Diego looked toward the direction Alison had pointed.
Something about the whole situation didn't feel right.
“Come on,” he said. “We're going back.”
Alison nodded, but before they could leave, a faint rustling came from behind them.
Both of them froze.
Diego slowly turned around.
The forest stood still.
“Did you hear that?” Alison whispered.
“Yes.”
Another sound came from deeper among the trees.
A soft crack.
As if someone had stepped on a branch.
Diego instinctively moved in front of Alison.
“Stay behind me.”
They waited.
Nothing.
Then, from somewhere in the darkness, a faint voice whispered:
“Alison…”
Alison's eyes widened.
She knew that voice.
It was the girl.
“Diego…” she whispered.
“What?”
“That was her.”
Diego stared into the darkness.
But there was no one there.
Only the trees.
Only the wind.
And somewhere beyond the shadows, two deep blue eyes watched them silently before disappearing into the night.
Neither Alison nor Diego noticed.
But someone else had been watching them all along.
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