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Chapter 5- Alana
I never thought that I’d be friends with someone other than Kim.
Wesley, Kim, and I are looking towards the sky as we lay on our backs in the clearing. It’s a short way from camp, and someone could easily find us and tell us to find something to do. It’s not like anyone here wants to see me happy.
I turn to my right, where Wesley is lying underneath the sun. His eyes are closed but I know from our most recent training session, that he’s aware of every breath we take, every animal in the area, and the scent that the wind carries. The sunlight caresses the sharp bones that make up his angular, amazing bone structure and I want to reach out to him and trail my fingers along the hardened edge of his face. I might even want to run my tongue along it.
The thought of touching Wesley has occurred to me more than a few times over the last week. I’ve considered leaning against him a second too long, just to see if he would stop me. I’ve never kissed anyone before. As I gaze at him, I wonder what he would do if I leaned over and pressed my lips against his cheek. Would he push me away?
He makes a heat boil in my lower belly. I want to take his hand and guide it between my legs. I want him to ease my ache.
I turn my head to the other side. Kim’s eyes are wide open and she’s staring directly into the side of my head. My eyes widen from their sleepy state, and she flashes me a knowing smile. God, I hope she doesn’t say anything embarrassing.
I sit up and pull my legs against my chest. “I’ve been thinking.”
My voice cuts through the gentle silence like an axe through wood. Wesley’s eyes open and he turns his sleepy gaze towards me. “I was enjoying the break. Jenna has kept me on her tail all week, she wants me in on all the pack dealings.”
Kim snorts, “Must be nice to not have Jenna hate you. She hates everyone.” Kim points a lazy finger at me. “She especially hates Alana.”
Wesley rolls his eyes. “Whatever.”
“Guys, focus. I’ve been thinking about those missing girls. I think that we should do something. I think that we should try and find them.”
Kim frowns and says, “What makes you think that we can control that? Girls are going missing. It’s probably some human’s fault.”
“We can’t just leave it at that! How long before it’s you, or me, Kim? What if they come after us too?”
My question hangs in the air and Wesley declares, “I want to find them too.”
I turn my hopeful glance onto him and nod. “It’s our responsibility.”
Kim sighs and says, “You know what? I’m in. If the pack leaders don’t want to save the day on this one, then the three of us will just have to.”
I grin and I look between the both of them. For once, I feel like I have friends, like someone can stand me. My teeth sink into my bottom lip as Wesley gets to his feet, the muscles in his biceps flex as he presses his palms into the earth to steady himself.
For once, I might have something more.
The sun is rising overhead when Kim and I gather outside of Wesley’s cabin. No one has shuffled out of their cabin yet, eager to go on this morning’s hunt to gather some food for a couple of days.
Kim stretches her arms over her head and says, “God, I hope we won’t have to get up early for this every day.”
I roll my eyes. “Small price to pay to get these girls back home. Back to their packs.”
The door to Wesley’s cabin creaks as he steps outside. I expect to find sleep in the corners of his eyes, but he’s wide awake, as if he went for a run before we arrived. He blinks, as if shaking himself loose, and says, “Let’s get going! I need to be back by this afternoon, so that I can go on a hunt with Harrison.”
Harrison is checking him out. Harrison wants Wesley to be more involved with the pack. Does he want him to be a leader? Would Wesley still look at me the same if he ascended to pack leadership?
I pull myself out of my thoughts, and we head towards the woods. I clear my throat. “I thought we’d start in the next town over, Cosmos. Someone there has to know something.”
Wesley nods. “I’ll lead the way!”
He transforms, then bounds off towards the path that will take us out of the woods. Kim transforms after him, then I follow.
We run for a couple of hours, and by the time we make it to the edge of Cosmos, it’s mid-morning.
Sweat is gathering on my temples as I transform. My legs burn from the run, but I ignore the pain as the three of us walk into town.
I don’t wait for Wesley’s natural charm to lead us into our quest for answers. I don’t have the patience to wait for him to schmooze, not when there are lives on the line.
