The Night Children

Chapter 18

Edited. 

Immediately the Deputy shoved open the car door, his phone slipping to shatter on the bitumen.

He didn't pay any regard.

"Help!" I yelled again, my voice cracking against the unforgiving wind. The Deputy's fingers instantly moved to his weapons belt, his pupils narrowing as I ran forward. I could tell he was calculating the scenario, his eyes on not only me but our surroundings.

I could feel the blood cascade down my legs from punctures in my skin. I was sure my face was as equally bruised. I stumbled through the snow, refusing to look behind me. To look backwards was to acknowledge the truth. My wolf was dead.

A loud rumble broke through the whistling wind, pinning me down. I let out a terrified cry just as the policeman reached me. He caught me by the elbows as I stumbled again, his grip firm.

I sucked in a huge breath, attempting to speak but all that came out was a gasp.

"Miss, what's the problem? Is everything okay?" the Deputy asked, his voice loud in my ear. I wanted to cringe away, to snarl at him for yelling. It took a moment or two to register it was because my ears were ringing that caused his voice amplify.

A flash illuminated the sky, painting his face with a streak of silver. It made the white in his eyes stand out and his shocked expression stand out against his pale face. The thunder followed after, loud enough to tremble the ground.

I quickly put my thoughts together. I couldn't tell him about my wolf. He was too foreign, too beastly. His size would gift him a life in a science lab.

I swallowed and met his brown eyes. "My friend," I said, my voice surprisingly toneless. "I heard her scream in the forest but I couldn't find her."

He regarded me, his brown eyes taking in my bloodied face. It hit me that I was looking into the face of Brookefield's justice system. This man, completed with scars, ginger hair and soft fingers protected our town.

It was hard to believe he could do anything more than spit in someone's direction.

"Why were you in the forest?" he asked, his lips tightening. I stood, momentarily frozen. Why was I in the forest? To discover a forgotten body? To look for clues? To see my wolf again? Every answer would grant me more questions.

Before I could come up with a hasty reply, a loud howl tore through the storm, cutting away into my ear drums like a knife. I cringed away from the sound, wincing. The Deputy's hands fell away from my shoulder to grasp his weapons belt. His fingers lightly touched the hilt of a loaded gun, his eyes scanning the tree line.

"What was that?" His question wasn't directed at me. It was a generic question that escaped someone's mouth when their thoughts were riddled with fear. I swallowed soundlessly and turned to the source of the noise.

A figure burst from the trees, snow sliding off them in cascades. I instantly recognised the blonde hair.

"Renee!" Aleena yelled. She began to near us, a slight limp to her stride. I spun on my heel and bolted towards her. The wind stung my face, numbing it until the blood in my cheeks grew cold.

As I reached her, she buckled, letting out a noise of pain. I only just managed to catch her, ignoring the sound of the Deputy running towards us.

"Aleena? What happened?" I gripped her shoulders, but she attempted to shrug me off.

"Nothing, I just got clipped by a branch," her legs trembled. Her honey eyes strayed away from mine, trailing to look down at herself. It was only at that moment that the smell of blood hit my nose.