Chapter Nine

The walk doesn't do me any good. Icy wind lashes at my cheeks. I think about brown and golden leaves crunching under my feet a week or so ago, how much I hate the cold, and how it's only going to get worse.

So many questions burn through my skull, and I want answers. I don't even make it to the end of the driveway, when I whip around and barrel toward the front door.

“Okay, give it to me. I want to know everything,” I demand, as I barge into the living room. Randy and Beth are seated on the loveseat. I plop down on the couch, sinking into the worn-out cushion. “Straight up. No bullshit. Let’s hear it.”

Beth wrings her hands, while watching me. “It’s a lot to take in all at once, Candra.”

“I know. But I want to know why these guys hate me for no reason. I want to know why I’m a werewolf, of all things. Why did my parents hide this from me, like they’re ashamed of what they—” I suck in a huge breath, “—what we are. How many of us exist? There are so many things…” I trail off.

Beth purses her lips and gives her next words consideration. A nervous laugh escapes her and she says, “First of all, we want you to keep your distance from the Conways, if possible. They’re a dangerous bunch. They don’t consort well with others. We need you to stay safe.”

“But—” I begin to protest.

“Please, let me finish. Once I’m through, then you can ask as many questions as your heart desires.”

I bite my tongue so hard I can taste the sickening metallic flavor, and my hands are clenched so tightly I’m afraid they might snap under pressure. My silence is taken as affirmation for her to continue.

“The Conways came to live here many, many years ago. One hundred and twelve, to be exact. They were very pleasant people, at first. We knew what they were. They said they wanted to start fresh, never giving details about their past. We learned their true nature not long after.

“They’re Hunters. Vicious, controlling creatures. Unlike us, they were out for blood. Banned from their last residence. When humans in this area came up missing or dead, we knew who it was. But the rest of us weren’t powerful enough to stop them. Over the years, factions have formed. Either you’re on their side, or you’re not. There’s only two.”

Images of innocent people dying, being slain by the hands of monsters, flash repeatedly across my mind.

I gulp, but my saliva seems to hitch itself in my throat. “And what happens if you’re not on their side?”

Beth smoothes her skirt with her hands and glances up at the ceiling, exhaling a tiny sigh. “They’ve done horrible things to people who know, yet don’t pick a side. Humans who are aware of the Conways—what they are—don’t get away so easily, and have to choose a side. If they don’t comply, well, they’re never heard from again.” Her eyes are distant, looking at the ugly brown carpet.

I shake my head. I don’t know what to say, what to tell her. My mind whirls with questions—mainly if everything is going to be all right.

“That’s…so…awful.” I manage to speak.

Beth finally glances my way. “Yes.”

“It’s either our side or theirs,” I murmur to myself.

Randy and Beth watch me intently. 

Beth speaks again. “We’re among the few who stood up against them. A war brews, Candra—one that’s gone on for generations between our family and theirs.”

“So, that’s why they hate me?”

“You have Lowell blood. They’ll never like anybody with that name.”

“But Ben—” I start.

“Do not be deceived. Remember that he’s on their side, not ours.”

“He’s so nice to me, though. He apologizes for the way Cameron and Ethan treat me. I think he’s just scared of his parents.” I silently wonder why I’m sticking up for him. It’s not like we’re dating.

“Could be true,” Beth says, bobbing her head back and forth, weighing the options, “but I’d still be leery. He might have an ulterior motive.”

I shake my head. There’s no way.

“Principal Garrison…he…” I don’t know how to finish. Is he a werewolf too?

“He’s good friends with Randy and me, and he got you out of loads of trouble that you might otherwise be in if he was anybody else.”

“So, others know what I am?”

“They acquire the sense of heightened smell once they transform on their eighteenth birthday. I imagine that word has spread quickly among the werewolf community about your arrival.”

“Ben knows,” I whisper.

“Hmm?”

“If all of these people know, why hasn’t anyone said anything?”

“Maybe, in so many words, they have and you weren’t listening.”

I ignore her. “My having Lowell blood shouldn’t be enough reason for them to hate me. There’s something I’m missing, isn’t there?”

Beth watches me intently for a moment before saying, “You will receive powers on your eighteenth birthday. They are already too powerful as it is, but they want yours.”

“Powers?” I snort. “Since when do werewolves have powers?”

“We suspect these…abilities pre-date our time. No one knows for sure who the first werewolf was or how it was handed down, but we’ve evolved since then. Now we each gain a unique ability on our eighteenth birthday.”

I open my mouth to speak, but Beth talks over me.

“However, the only way to keep your powers is to wear a trinket to which the power can be bestowed.”

“A trinket?”

Beth nods toward my chest. I look down, picking up the locket and twisting it around to face me.

“We each have something. I have a ring. Randy has a watch. You have the necklace. If you lose it, your power can be contained in another trinket. The only possible way for them to take it is to use dark magic, something I’m not even remotely familiar with.”

“They can take my power?”

“With you being a young werewolf, it’ll be easier for them to steal your power. You won’t be guarded in your new form, and you definitely won’t be used to using your ability.”

“What’ll happen if they get it?”

“If they do get their hands on it somehow, they can extract the power and use it for their benefit. In essence, you won’t have your power any longer, and we’d have to take extra measures to retrieve it.”

Tears pool in my eyes. I keep my head down, pretending to stare at my locket. All this time I thought it was just a stupid necklace. I didn’t know it held my power. I didn’t know my parents were looking out for me.

“How does it work?” I choke out.

“The trinket has to have a spell cast upon it for it to hold the power correctly. If you were to lose your necklace once your power is active, then you would lose the power. As long as that locket stays around your neck, you’ll be fine,” she says.

I nod and twist it between my fingers again. “What ability will I have?”

“We don’t know. Even you may not understand it or release it for awhile. You might be out and about two months after your birthday and then it happens.” Beth shrugs. “We can’t tell you for sure.”

“What powers do you two have?” I finally redirect my gaze from the locket to them.

“Randy has the gift of creating things.”

“Like…”

“Anything,” Randy says, “from food to furniture.”

“Can you show me?”

Randy nods. He extends his hand, palm up, and a green apple appears out of thin air. He tosses it to me. I take a bite, crunching into the surface. It’s real as the ones sitting in the fruit bowl on the kitchen counter.

“Whoa. That’s awesome.” I look at Beth. “What about you?”

“I have the ability of persuasion.”

“Nice. I hope I get something really cool,” I mumble.

“You will, dear. And I wish you’d find out quickly what your gift is.”

I bow my head, staring at the locket again. “Yeah, me too.”

“Tomorrow I’ll take you to visit a friend of mine. She can help you understand things, put them into perspective, if you want,” says Beth. Deep crevices form on her forehead, as she waits for my response.

“Yeah, that uh…that sounds cool.” I nod my head, trying to convince her and myself.