house to get her ride. He could have run the entire distance, but it would have been uncomfortable for her to ride on his back. Soon he heard, or smelled her rather, approaching him and he went down to the side of the road. She scooted over and he took the wheels, and gunned the car down the long strip of road. They drove for hours, through winding turns and dense overgrowth until they came upon a turning to the left. He pulled off the dirt track and made his way to the shack where other cars were bound to be parked. He saw Wes’ car and suddenly he became nervous.
“What’s the matter?” she asked, sensing his tension and reading through his silence.
“Nothing,” he said. “Let’s go. It is a little walk from here.”
He held her hand and proceeded to clear his way through the thick bushes. Her father was right. She couldn’t have found this place again even if she had tried. It was too well hidden. They had not gone far when Luke stiffened and spun around sharply. He could sense another presence close by. He sniffed the air and waited, and then relaxed. By the time he turned around again their path was blocked.
“Where do you think you are going?” asked Saul.
“Get out of the way,” demanded Luke, but Saul had no intention of doing that. He had already assumed a fighting position and Luke saw that the only way to get through him was to fight. He let go of Chrissie’s hand and ground his foot in the dirt, already beginning to transform, when they both turned, almost in slow motion.
“Someone else is coming. Who did you bring here?” he accused, looking at Chrissie all the while.
“No one. We didn’t carry any one with us.”
“He is right,” joined Luke. “And it isn’t just someone. There are several scents approaching us from the right.”
He could almost slap himself, but Saul did it for him. “This is your doing,” he fired. Luke was too frightened and embarrassed to retaliate. Right now they were in very real danger and they had to signal the others. Luke shoved Chrissie behind a tree as he and Saul transformed before her eyes, but by now, she was too frightened to be impressed.
They ground their heels into the dirt and stood forward, waiting for the attack. Saul rang out a loud howl, and before anyone could blink the wolves had descended, but so too had Derek and his henchmen. It had taken the shape of a showdown, and it wasn’t even noon.
CHAPTER TEN
Wes emerged from behind the pack of wolves, now standing only a few feet away from Derek. “Please take your men and go. This does not have to end like this. We have had enough bloodshed. You almost died the last time, and rest assured, you will not be so lucky this time.”
“Don’t be too sure of that,” spat Derek. “I have always wanted to find where you called home, and now thanks to my daughter I have. I intend to kill every last one of you.” The madness could be seen in his eyes now.
A low growl was heard now as the wolves bared their fangs, dying to taste human blood. Wes spun around to face Chrissie, who was screaming vehemently now. “No, no, no, I did not do this.” She turned to Luke now. “You have to believe me. Remember I wasn’t the one who asked to come here this time,” she pleaded frantically from behind the tree she stood partially hidden.
“Would you stop being so pathetic? How many times will you side with these beasts? I knew you could get him to show you where they come from, so I had a tracking device installed on your car. All it took was one phone call to realize you were headed into unknown parts. A few calculations