Wolves by Ash Faith (ebook reader 7 inch .TXT) 📖

dug my right-hand nails into the dents of the key lock that held the sheet of metal between me and a bunch of coins.

Now I just needed to remember the right twisting motions. Lefty Lucy, right Tighty. The lock made a satisfying click as it bounced off the metal door, landing in my waiting left hand as my right pried the miniature safe open. There had to be at least $60 worth of $1 and $2 dollar coins. I tucked a bunch into the pockets of my jeans and grabbed one last one before reversing my previous actions and putting the lock back on like nothing happened. Righty tighty, lefty Lucy. It made a pop as it locked back into place. I quickly popped the last dollar coin I took into the tin coin insert making the phone buttons digits come alive with electricity. I quickly snatched it out of its rusty hold and dialled in the familiar number. It rung one time, two times, three, four, fi-

“Hello?” A familiar grumbly voice

“Franky! How are you going brother?” I leaned, twirling the coil the phone had holding between it and the metal payphone stand.

“Is this who I think it is?” Franky said, excitement lacing his booming deep voice.

“Is that our snow white on the phone?” I heard Lan in the background,

“I told you she’d need us,” Mongo’s over-confident voice piped up,

“She made a promise, she never breaks a promise, remember? Don’t be such a dumbass Mongo.” I heard Hue snap back at Mongo’s egotistical comment.

So, the old gang are still together. I couldn’t help myself, I laughed, and hard.

“I missed you numbskulls so much,” I laughed, but seriousness washed over as I realised there was one voice missing. “I can’t hear Jye. Is he there?” Sudden silence. I checked to make sure the payphone was still working, but it wasn’t the phone that caused the silence. “Guys?” I asked the silence, worried about what it meant.

“He’s out on an errand, boy gets busy after a few years without you y’know” Franky replied wearily, something’s wrong.

“Don’t lie to a liar, Franky. Where’s Jye.” I meant it to be a question, but it came out more like an order, only leaving me and the still silence once again.

“We’ll tell you where he is, but first just give me a few more seconds…” Lan’s voice interrupted the stillness. “Okay, now that we know your location,” that smart bastard, Lan still hasn’t changed.

“Tell me what’s going on, I don’t like being in the dark you know that Lan.” I tried to sound kind, knowing that the aggressiveness I held in my sentence before was too much. Too much for people I cared about and trusted.

“It’s best we chat in private, I’m picking up the vibe that there’s someone else on the line.”

So Lan felt it too, the feeling I couldn’t shake since the time I woke up in the forest. Like someone else was there.

Before anything else could be said, the line cut off. From what I remember, last place they were was back in Australia, but considering Lan tracking the call, I had a feeling they wouldn’t be far away. A few days at most. The first time I’d seen those guys, I was about 18, they took me in despite the fact that I was a thief. A nobody. A low-life child that deserved nothing.

The last time I’d seen them, I was verging on 22 and had been offered a new place to stay. With a girl named Julie-Anne Baker. Hell it seemed so long ago that we were normal people, living normal lives. It lasted so short. It’s been 2 years since then, I needed to make myself understand that no matter what, I could never go back to that. Despite how much I wanted to.

“Who was that?” a child-like voice asked from behind me, again. I grumbled a curse under my breath, turning to be met with a child. An adorable child. Weirdly adorable child. There was something even more wrong with this kid than the average miniature demon.

“The Bogey-man, he’s on his way to come kill you before the big bad wolf can.” I said, moving off, pushing the child out of my way as I headed around the corner to the street full of bars. I needed a drink. And to think I thought I could stop drinking on my tour a la americano, hah well I guess that road closed off the moment I met a flying vampire and an Alpha on a full moon.

“Where are you goin? Not anywhere without me, I hope.” I heard the voice and small feet patter along behind me.

“A place for adults,” I said, “Especially without you, and without your hope. Scat, before I call the bogey-man to come get you even quicker.” I made a flick of my hand, venom in my voice. The patter disappeared and I dared to look back this time. There was nothing there, no child, nothing on the pathway other than the payphone and myself. Though the sudden disappearance worried me into thinking I was going slightly insane, I pushed the feeling away, crossing the empty road and into the first bar on the street, that just screamed cheap drinks. And considering the few dollars I had, it practically beckoned me. pushing the door open I was met with an Irish dancing songs ending, coming from the jukebox in the corner, the bell rang above me as I took a step into the stinking place. It smelt like cigarettes and testosterone. I found the bar stools filled with men, as they man-spread, covering as many seats as possible. The long silence of the jukebox changing songs and the lingering eyes reminded me of my old stealing teen days. Drunks like these were always the easiest to trick. Except for ones with amethyst eyes.

“Bloody hell,” I cursed under my breath, avoiding eye contact with him, walking straight at the bartender cleaning a table.

“May I help you miss? I believe the tea parties happen on the other side of town.” He snickered,

“Yes you can help me, you sexist pig, I need a table for six.” I replied, still avoiding eye contact from the pair of eyes that haunted and blessed my dreams.

“Ouch, fiery gal, are you? Table for six’ll come right up, if you got the payment that is.” He stood from wiping the table meeting eye to eye with me, he may have been taller but he was wary of my anger. Good,

“I do, have a payment that is,” a smile crept up on my face that deterred him, “My payment will be shoving my foot so far up your tiny nuts they’ll come out your mouth. Now if you wouldn’t mind, I prefer the dark corner of this musty old pub, if you could set it up there while I go run some… errands”

I left his mouth open and his eyes full of shock, knowing full well that my spacing between the word errand made him understand I wasn’t some pushover. And that if I wanted, I would hurt him.

“Toodles, ladies” I waved my hand in the air like a posh lady, off to my tea party, ya dick.

I turned suddenly as I quickly left the pub, turning the corner into the little alleyway that Jack’s first battle here had been. It was clean, well it was shitty alleyway so it wasn’t actually clean, but it was clean of the blood and bodies that once lie in the dark strip. I whipped out the map from my sleeve, glad it was still there, and I wasn’t actually crazy. Unfolding it, I saw the glowing red dot, now in between two familiar dark buildings. I sighed, the stress of whether I’d just pulled the boys into my mess weighing down on my decision to call them. Do not worry about them, they know what they signed up for. My wolf spoke, for the first time in what seemed like forever. That was enough to de-stress me for the moment. I rolled the map back up, sliding it back into my sleeve that seemed to be its new home. Flipping my hair around as I walked out of the alleyway and back into the now busy street. That’s strange, I thought as I tried to fight my way back through the crowd on the small pathway, I swear this place was like a ghost town just seconds ago. I needed to wake myself up more, I was clearly not taking everything completely in. I felt the shudder, of the same feeling I’d had all morning. Someone’s watching. And it didn’t mean the obvious crowd. Someone else, Something else.

I decided to ignore it for the moment, to focus on other things, like who was wearing the easiest steal.

I tapped a man with a Rolex on the shoulder, pulling him from the sides.

“I’m so sorry, I seem to have forgotten my watch today and need to get to work soon. Could you tell me the time I have a meeting I have to go to and-“ I pretended to be in a stressful situation, the man nodding his understanding, I’d hit the right target. Rich office worker. Nice.

“I completely understand, office life am I right?” He scoffed, looking at his watch, “It’s 11:57am, hope you’re not late” He said, his voice understanding to a woman of a fake life. I pretended a smile of thankfulness.

“Thank you so much, I must get going thought, you know how the bosses are about being on time,” I took a step towards him, giving him a friendly pat on the chest, “Thanks so much buddy” I smiled as I walked away, his money clip in my hand. The rich are always more blind. I smiled at my success, the guy just casually turned his way back into the crowd, not a care in the world. What an idiot. I snapped off the engraved clip, as it made it too obvious to other people if I walked around with a rich man’s engraved money clip. dropping it on the ground and stuffing the wad of cash into my bra, I remembered the small cheap all-in-one store that sat sadly behind the café a street down. I saw compartments selling all kinds of things, from cheap clothes to camping supplies. Basically all I needed.

As I made my way through the street, I tuned into the casual conversations of the towns people.

“Lovely day isn’t it?”

“Absolutely beautiful.”

“Oh, hey Margaret – from across the street!”

I felt a tinge from under my sleeve, surprising me, I realised it came from the map. What now? I was standing outside the café, not exactly the safest place to open my map but I had to know what had just happened. Flipping it open I saw a small burning happening over in the woods where I’d once been on the map, the flame then burned out leaving a detailed cottage shaped spot. Is it telling me a house just… appeared? Worried about my sanity, I rolled the map up , placing it gently back into my sleeve and pacing faster past the Café’s beautiful exterior and into the cheapo store. Taking a step in, with the creaking door welcoming me along with the smell of cheap plastic and fragrances you’d smell in a retirement home.

“Can I help you with anything today?” A cheerful clerk said, rushing from behind her counter, clearly, I was the only customer here right now. Good,

“Actually yes, I’m going on a trip with the family, and we’ll be camping out in a woods similar to this one. Do you have a little camping pack or something that I could buy? Along with some clothes, I seem to have switched bags with someone else on my trip here. You know how family trips are right?” I asked, she was clearly the family person. Nodding and smiling with the same understanding innocence as the man before. Nailed it once again.

“Yes, I