Night Watch

As I stand on the back deck looking out into the forrest, I find myself yearning to be amongst the trees, running without a care in the world. It seems as if I was a carefree child doing just that not so long ago. I have lost all semblence of time and realize as I am avoiding the throng of people inside my home, that I don't even know what the date is definitively. It must be the twentieth or so of January. Considering today was the funeral of my parents and they died the evening of my eighteenth birthday which was the fifteenth it seems about right. I sigh and take a deep breath of the cold January air, my eyes scanning the trees that overtake the back yard. I see the yellow eyes floating in the impending darkness night brings. We are obviously not strangers to wild life around our home but something about those golden yellow eyes shining in the night like a beacon has me transfixed, it has me wondering if that barn owl perched high in the trees sees my silver glowing eyes in the same way. I hear the sliding door before I smell the fruity perfume that follows my best friend Twyla around. She links her arm through mine and stands there silently looking out into the forrest with me. Always amazing at being present where words aren't needed, and I love her for it. "Im okay, Twyla, I promise. I just needed a minute away from all the people who are here to put themselves at ease rather than to support their supposed favourite peoples' daughter." I said. And I meant it, other than Twyla, since the sheriff showed up at the door to crumble my whole world, not one of those people reached out to me, to see if I was okay, to see if I needed something or someone. It was all just so... fake. The only person I cared to see was the lawyer, and only because he told me that once the lunch died down we would discuss the wills my parents had written just six months prior. Twyla squeezed my arm and looked over at me. "Kiana, I know this is hard, I know these people being here is just a slap in the face to you. But, I am here, always here girl. You aren't alone I promise!" she says, and I know she means it. I nod and squeeze her hand. "Well, shall we get back in their and close this shit show down?" I ask her with a wink. She laughs and we make our way back into the tall, rustic, beautiful A-frame I spent my whole life growing up in. I miss the huge deck off the back almost instanly once I am inside and all eyes are on me. I have had enough though, it is time for this circus to wrap up. "Thank you everyone, for coming today to pay your respects to my parents Jane and Steven. I know they would have been so happy to know so many people cared so much for them. I appreciate it so much, however now I must begin with the preparations for where we go from here." I say loudly, hoping that my little speech came across clear enough that these people understand that I am telling them to get the hell out. Twyla stands to my right and gives my arm a squeeze and when I look up there is a line of people with their jackets and bags all waiting to hug me and tell me how sorry they are for my loss. It's sickening really, but I paste the fake smile on my face and feel the effects of doing so all day long. shit show down?" I ask her with a wink. She laughs and we make our way back into the tall, rustic, beautiful A-frame I spent my whole life growing up in. I miss the huge deck off the back almost instantly once I am inside and all eyes are on me. I have had enough though, it is time for this circus to wrap up. "Thank you everyone, for coming today to pay your respects to my parents Jane and Steven. I know they would have been so happy to know so many people cared so much for them. I appreciate it so much, however now I must begin with the preparations for where we go from here." I say loudly, hoping that my little speech came across clear enough that these people understand that I am telling them to get the hell out. Twyla stands to my right and gives my arm a squeeze and when I look up there is a line of people with their jackets and bags all waiting to hug me and tell me how sorry they are for my loss. It's sickening really, but I paste the fake smile on my face and feel the effects of doing so all day long. shit show down?" I ask her with a wink. She laughs and we make our way back into the tall, rustic, beautiful A-frame I spent my whole life growing up in. I miss the huge deck off the back almost instantly once I am inside and all eyes are on me. I have had enough though, it is time for this circus to wrap up. "Thank you everyone, for coming today to pay your respects to my parents Jane and Steven. I know they would have been so happy to know so many people cared so much for them. I appreciate it so much, however now I must begin with the preparations for where we go from here." I say loudly, hoping that my little speech came across clear enough that these people understand that I am telling them to get the hell out. Twyla stands to my right and gives my arm a squeeze and when I look up there is a line of people with their jackets and bags all waiting to hug me and tell me how sorry they are for my loss. It's sickening really, but I paste the fake smile on my face and feel the effects of doing so all day long.

In half an hour I hugged many sorry people, sorry enough for my loss that no one offered their help or further support. Thankfully, after the last of the grievers leave I am left with Twyla and Mr. Kranston, my parents lawyer. He looked between Twyla and myself almost unsure if she was going to leave so we could continue. I gestured to the large sectional sofa that took up most of the living area in the open concept home. "Mr. Kranston, we can begin now if you are ready, anything you need to say can be said in front of my closest friend Twyla." She smiled at me and took and sat in her favorite spot on the couch, the corner. I sat to her left and Mr. Kranston to her right. I grabbed a throw pillow and clutched it to my chest while I waited for the lawyer to begin. Mr Kranston cleared his throat, "Kiana, I have here your parents final will and testament. They were advised and took that advisement to do a joint will as in their marriage they were equals. They have left you a box of documents, the house which is paid off and roughly eight thousand dollars. The rest of the money they had in holdings or investments has been cashed out to pay for any outstanding debts they had and to pay for the funeral and taxes on the home. They also have noted here that everything you need to know is located in the file box of documents however they requested I not be present for you to read those. The box is located in the attic, and is labeled Kiana. Do you have any questions?" I appreciated his to-the-point attitude and shook my head no. He stood then, and put on his coat, so I stood to see him out. He shook my hand and bid me goodbye. As he was half out the door he turned back to me, "Kiana my card is on the will, if any questions should arise please don't hesitate to call me." I nodded and he was gone. I deflated in that moment, not because I was sad and broken, no, I was just so relieved to stop pretending. I finally felt like I could breathe. I turned back to Twyla and asked, "So shall we get a drink and find that box?" She laughed as she turned to face me with two glasses and a bottle of expensive wine. Twyla is my birthday twin so she also just turned eighteen. Together we head up to the attic to unearth all the family secrets.

Up in the attic I expect to find dust and grime but it is unnaturally clean. Twyla pulls to chairs into the centre of the rather large space. "Kiana, to be honest, I kind of expected this to be creepy and dusty. Whose attic is this clean! It's kinda weird right?" Twyla voices my thoughts. "Yea who knew my mom was up here dusting the attic. Maybe she spent a lot of time up here and I just never noticed. It is definitely not what I was expecting, I have never really been up here." I reply. She starts looking around and I feel such a sense of impending doom. Strange, I shake my head and take the opposite side of the room as Twyla. After about 10 minutes of sifting through boxes and trunks Twyla calls out to me from the other end of the attic. I come up behind her as she is pulling down a box with my name on it from a stack of boxes. "Damn Kiana, this box is heavy!" she huffs out as she brings it to her body. "Here Twyla, I got it." I say, taking the box from her. I haul it over to the chairs she set in the centre and put it between the two chairs. I take the top off expecting to find old papers or photos but everything is clean, white and organized in folders. I pull the one off the top out and read the label out to Twyla. "House papers" and she grabs the next one and reads out "Birth Records." We both flip through the pages in the folder and I'm reading about how my parents signed the house over to me and covered the costs of the property taxes for a long time. How the house has a trust set up for maintenance and utility costs. Finishing off with Mr. Kranstons' details as he is the executor of the trust, meaning I will have to go to him if the house needs repairs or things like that and he will arrange the funds. As I am about to close the folder up Twyla gasps and her folder and its papers scatter to the floor. I look over to her and her face is white as a ghost. "Twyla what the hell, you scared the shit out of me! Are you okay?" She doesnt speak, just points at the folder. I am starting to think my girl has had one two many glasses of wine, but I pick up the folder and its scattered papers and it takes me only one minute to see what has her so shocked. Before I know it, I am pacing, holding a piece of paper in my hand that just changed my whole world. Twyla is staring at me with concern written all over her face. And my brain is clearly trying to avoid what it just discovered because in that moment it is focussing on how the concern marring her face is so different from how my brown haired green eyed best friend normally looks. I never noticed how long her hair had gotten or how much of woman she looked like now rather than the kid face I so often associated with her. Twyla and I were growing up, turning into women, and our appearances showed it. She was always soft where I was toned and athletic looking, brown hair and green eyed where I had long jet-black hair and silver eyes. She was a good four inches shorter than my five foot six frame. We certainly weren't ugly, our bodies becoming shapely, more woman and less girl like. Yet neither of us had ever dated, at least I had never, Twyla may have and just never told me. Twyla speaking broke me from the rabbit hole my brain was going down trying to avoid what was currently happening. "Kiana, are you okay? Oh my god girl, I can't believe it." I snap out of my spiral, and lift the paper again. Adoption records for Kiana Harlow Bennett. I was adopted at 2 days old, discarded by some unknown woman or couple, unwanted. Which ok fine, people are adopted every single day, but my "parents" never once said a thing to me about it. I never knew. How could I not know, my whole life was a damn lie. "Twyla, I just don't understand. How the hell could they keep this from me? Who am I even? God! Fuck!" I am shaking from the sheer frustration and weight of this on my shoulders. Twyla grabs me in a hug and just holds me while I finally break. "Kiana, your parents chose you, they loved you, they adopted an unnamed 2 day old baby, they gave you your name, your life, all of it. They were your parents, they were there every day of your life up until they couldn't be anymore. Don't cry girl, I know you are overwhelmed but you still aren't alone, you still have me." I hug my friend tighter. She is my family, the part of it that I chose. "Come on Twyla, let's drag this box downstairs, I need to sleep and I am sure your mom is wondering what's keeping you so long." space. "Kiana, to be honest, I kind of expected this to be creepy and dusty. Whose attic is this clean! It's kinda weird right?" Twyla voices my thoughts. "Yea who knew my mom was up here dusting the attic. Maybe she spent a lot of time up here and I just never noticed. It is definitely not what I was expecting, I have never really been up here." I reply. She starts looking around and I feel such a sense of impending doom. Strange, I shake my head and take the opposite side of the room as Twyla. After about 10 minutes of sifting through boxes and trunks Twyla calls out to me from the other end of the attic. I come up behind her as she is pulling down a box with my name on it from a stack of boxes. "Damn Kiana, this box is heavy!" she huffs out as she brings it to her body. "Here Twyla, I got it." I say, taking the box from her. I haul it over to the chairs she set in the centre and put it between the two chairs. I take the top off expecting to find old papers or photos but everything is clean, white and organized in folders. I pull the one off the top out and read the label out to Twyla. "House papers" and she grabs the next one and reads out "Birth Records." We both flip through the pages in the folder and I'm reading about how my parents signed the house over to me and covered the costs of the property taxes for a long time. How the house has a trust set up for maintenance and utility costs. Finishing off with Mr. Kranstons' details as he is the executor of the trust, meaning I will have to go to him if the house needs repairs or things like that and he will arrange the funds. As I am about to close the folder up Twyla gasps and her folder and its papers scatter to the floor. I look over to her and her face is white as a ghost. "Twyla what the hell, you scared the shit out of me! Are you okay?" She doesnt speak, just points at the folder. I am starting to think my girl has had one two many glasses of wine, but I pick up the folder and its scattered papers and it takes me only one minute to see what has her so shocked. Before I know it, I am pacing, holding a piece of paper in my hand that just changed my whole world. Twyla is staring at me with concern written all over her face. And my brain is clearly trying to avoid what it just discovered because in that moment it is focussing on how the concern marring her face is so different from how my brown haired green eyed best friend normally looks. I never noticed how long her hair had gotten or how much of woman she looked like now rather than the kid face I so often associated with her. Twyla and I were growing up, turning into women, and our appearances showed it. She was always soft where I was toned and athletic looking, brown hair and green eyed where I had long jet-black hair and silver eyes. She was a good four inches shorter than my five foot six frame. We certainly werent ugly, our bodies becoming shapely, more woman and less girl like. Yet neither of us had ever dated, at least I had never, Twyla may have and just never told me. Twyla speaking broke me from the rabbit hole my brain was going down trying to avoid what was currently happening. "Kiana, are you okay? Oh my god girl, I can't believe it." I snap out of my spiral, and lift the paper again. Adoption records for Kiana Harlow Bennett. I was adopted at 2 days old, discarded by some unknown woman or couple, unwanted. Which ok fine, people are adopted every single day, but my "parents" never once said a thing to me about it. I never knew. How could I not know, my whole life was a damn lie. "Twyla, I just don't understand. How the hell could they keep this from me? Who am I even? God! Fuck!" I am shaking from the sheer frustration and weight of this on my shoulders. Twyla grabs me in a hug and just holds me while I finally break. "Kiana, your parents chose you, they loved you, they adopted an unnamed 2 day old baby, they gave you your name, your life, all of it. They were your parents, they were there every day of your life up until they couldn't be anymore. Don't cry girl, I know you are overwhelmed but you still aren't alone, you still have me." I hug my friend tighter. She is my family, the part of it that I chose. "Come on Twyla, let's drag this box downstairs, I need to sleep and I am sure your mom is wondering what's keeping you so long." space. "Kiana, to be honest, I kind of expected this to be creepy and dusty. Whose attic is this clean! It's kinda weird right?" Twyla voices my thoughts. "Yea who knew my mom was up here dusting the attic. Maybe she spent a lot of time up here and I just never noticed. It is definitely not what I was expecting, I have never really been up here." I reply. She starts looking around and I feel such a sense of impending doom. Strange, I shake my head and take the opposite side of the room as Twyla. After about 10 minutes of sifting through boxes and trunks Twyla calls out to me from the other end of the attic. I come up behind her as she is pulling down a box with my name on it from a stack of boxes. "Damn Kiana, this box is heavy!" she huffs out as she brings it to her body. "Here Twyla, I got it." I say, taking the box from her. I haul it over to the chairs she set in the centre and put it between the two chairs. I take the top off expecting to find old papers or photos but everything is clean, white and organized in folders. I pull the one off the top out and read the label out to Twyla. "House papers" and she grabs the next one and reads out "Birth Records." We both flip through the pages in the folder and I'm reading about how my parents signed the house over to me and covered the costs of the property taxes for a long time. How the house has a trust set up for maintenance and utility costs. Finishing off with Mr. Kranstons' details as he is the executor of the trust, meaning I will have to go to him if the house needs repairs or things like that and he will arrange the funds. As I am about to close the folder up Twyla gasps and her folder and its papers scatter to the floor. I look over to her and her face is white as a ghost. "Twyla what the hell, you scared the shit out of me! Are you okay?" She doesn't speak, just points at the folder. I am starting to think my girl has had one two many glasses of wine, but I pick up the folder and its scattered papers and it takes me only one minute to see what has her so shocked. Before I know it, I am pacing, holding a piece of paper in my hand that just changed my whole world. Twyla is staring at me with concern written all over her face. And my brain is clearly trying to avoid what it just discovered because in that moment it is focussing on how the concern marring her face is so different from how my brown haired green eyed best friend normally looks. I never noticed how long her hair had gotten or how much of woman she looked like now rather than the kid face I so often associated with her. Twyla and I were growing up, turning into women, and our appearances showed it. She was always soft where I was toned and athletic looking, brown hair and green eyed where I had long jet-black hair and silver eyes. She was a good four inches shorter than my five foot six frame. We certainly werent ugly, our bodies becoming shapely, more woman and less girl like. Yet neither of us had ever dated, at least I had never, Twyla may have and just never told me. Twyla speaking broke me from the rabbit hole my brain was going down trying to avoid what was currently happening. "Kiana, are you okay? Oh my god girl, I can't believe it." I snap out of my spiral, and lift the paper again. Adoption records for Kiana Harlow Bennett. I was adopted at 2 days old, discarded by some unknown woman or couple, unwanted. Which ok fine, people are adopted every single day, but my "parents" never once said a thing to me about it. I never knew. How could I not know, my whole life was a damn lie. "Twyla, I just don't understand. How the hell could they keep this from me? Who am I even? God! Fuck!" I am shaking from the sheer frustration and weight of this on my shoulders. Twyla grabs me in a hug and just holds me while I finally break. "Kiana, your parents chose you, they loved you, they adopted an unnamed 2 day old baby, they gave you your name, your life, all of it. They were your parents, they were there every day of your life up until they couldn't be anymore. Don't cry girl, I know you are overwhelmed but you still aren't alone, you still have me." I hug my friend tighter. She is my family, the part of it that I chose. "Come on Twyla, let's drag this box downstairs, I need to sleep and I am sure your mom is wondering what's keeping you so long." space. "Kiana, to be honest, I kind of expected this to be creepy and dusty. Whose attic is this clean! It's kinda weird right?" Twyla voices my thoughts. "Yea who knew my mom was up here dusting the attic. Maybe she spent a lot of time up here and I just never noticed. It is definitely not what I was expecting, I have never really been up here." I reply. She starts looking around and I feel such a sense of impending doom. Strange, I shake my head and take the opposite side of the room as Twyla. After about 10 minutes of sifting through boxes and trunks Twyla calls out to me from the other end of the attic. I come up behind her as she is pulling down a box with my name on it from a stack of boxes. "Damn Kiana, this box is heavy!" she huffs out as she brings it to her body. "Here Twyla, I got it." I say, taking the box from her. I haul it over to the chairs she set in the centre and put it between the two chairs. I take the top off expecting to find old papers or photos but everything is clean, white and organized in folders. I pull the one off the top out and read the label out to Twyla. "House papers" and she grabs the next one and reads out "Birth Records." We both flip through the pages in the folder and I'm reading about how my parents signed the house over to me and covered the costs of the property taxes for a long time. How the house has a trust set up for maintenance and utility costs. Finishing off with Mr. Kranstons' details as he is the executor of the trust, meaning I will have to go to him if the house needs repairs or things like that and he will arrange the funds. As I am about to close the folder up Twyla gasps and her folder and its papers scatter to the floor. I look over to her and her face is white as a ghost. "Twyla what the hell, you scared the shit out of me! Are you okay?" She doesn't speak, just points at the folder. I am starting to think my girl has had one two many glasses of wine, but I pick up the folder and its scattered papers and it takes me only one minute to see what has her so shocked. Before I know it, I am pacing, holding a piece of paper in my hand that just changed my whole world. Twyla is staring at me with concern written all over her face. And my brain is clearly trying to avoid what it just discovered because in that moment it is focussing on how the concern marring her face is so different from how my brown haired green eyed best friend normally looks. I never noticed how long her hair had gotten or how much of woman she looked like now rather than the kid face I so often associated with her. Twyla and I were growing up, turning into women, and our appearances showed it. She was always soft where I was toned and athletic looking, brown hair and green eyed where I had long jet-black hair and silver eyes. She was a good four inches shorter than my five foot six frame. We certainly weren't ugly, our bodies becoming shapely, more woman and less girl like. Yet neither of us had ever dated, at least I had never, Twyla may have and just never told me. Twyla speaking broke me from the rabbit hole my brain was going down trying to avoid what was currently happening. "Kiana, are you okay? Oh my god girl, I can't believe it." I snap out of my spiral, and lift the paper again. Adoption records for Kiana Harlow Bennett. I was adopted at 2 days old, discarded by some unknown woman or couple, unwanted. Which ok fine, people are adopted every single day, but my "parents" never once said a thing to me about it. I never knew. How could I not know, my whole life was a damn lie. "Twyla, I just don't understand. How the hell could they keep this from me? Who am I even? God! Fuck!" I am shaking from the sheer frustration and weight of this on my shoulders. Twyla grabs me in a hug and just holds me while I finally break. "Kiana, your parents chose you, they loved you, they adopted an unnamed 2 day old baby, they gave you your name, your life, all of it. They were your parents, they were there every day of your life up until they couldn't be anymore. Don't cry girl, I know you are overwhelmed but you still aren't alone, you still have me." I hug my friend tighter. She is my family, the part of it that I chose. "Come on Twyla, let's drag this box downstairs, I need to sleep and I am sure your mom is wondering what's keeping you so long."

When we end up back in the living room Twyla looks unsure as she puts her coat on and finds her purse. I smile at her and say "Twyla, I promise I am totally fine. Get home safe, and text me when you're home. I will call you tomorrow and we will plan something fun." I hug her and give her a reassuring smile. "Ok Kiana, if you're sure you will be fine. I will text as soon as I'm in the door! Please, text me if you need anything! I am only a call or text away! Love you girl!" She says as she is walking out the door. I blow her a kiss and wave. As soon as the door closes the crushing weight of being alone almost smothers me. I sit on the couch and pick up the papers resting on the top of the pile. Adopted... I still don't even know what to do with that yet. I need air, that is for certain. I grab my wine glass and pull the sliding door to open it. When I step out into the moonlight I feel my whole being settle, almost as if I have scratched an itch. I hear the owl from earlier before I find its glowing eyes in the forrest. Hooting increases in volume and it would almost seem like it was right beside me, but those eyes haven't moved from where it appears to be perched. It's weird, I don't hear any return calls to the owl, it's almost as if they're trying to talk to me. As I'm lost in pondering that I hear a deep low growl. I scan the tree line but come up empty, finding the not quite full moon not much help this early in the evening. I hear the growl again, closer, almost as if I was brave enough to look over the edge of the deck railing there would be a large wolf ready to pounce. I shiver and decide it's time to lock up and try to sleep. I knew it would be hard with everything going on recently, and the fact that I always had trouble sleeping right before a full moon.

Once everything is locked up tight and all the lights on the main level are off I climb the stairs to the second floor. I stop for a brief moment and take in the family pictures on the wall. Of course losing my parents is extremely painful, especially how I lost them. To be the kindest people and be gunned down in a gas station, come on. I look at my mom and dad both with their arms around me, both with a little more grey in their hair than they would have liked. My moms amazing blue eyes and my dads stunning green eyes stare back at me. They looked so happy, I looked happy, now they were gone and they were never really mine in the true sense. It hurts like a bitch. I focus on myself, long black hair, silver grey eyes, and a tan that I only wish didn't exist. Compared to my parents much paler complexions I wonder how I never questioned it before. I was shorter than both of them, me being 5'6" and them being both 5'10". Not that I had ever chalked that up to anything. Shaking my head I know I need to sleep on it, figure out what this all means tomorrow. When I reach the landing I look to the right where my parents master suite sits empty, dark, cold, and so quiet. They were always laughing and their room was just an inviting, warm, comforting space, well it used to be. I turn left and head to my own suite. I was pretty lucky, having my own half of the second story, my own huge bathroom, walk in closet, seating/tv area all in my room. I turn on the lamp, light a few candles and decide to take a bath before calling it a night, anything to help soothe me into dreamland. I run the water into the deep jacuzzi tub and pour some lavender oil in and chuck a sleepy time bath bomb in for good measure. Grabbing pajamas from my closet and setting them on the counter, and I'm finally ready. I undress quickly and lower myself in the molten lava water slowly, moaning the whole way down. I didn't realize how tense I've been all day but feeling my muscles relax is pure heaven.

I wake with a splash, realizing fast I fell asleep in the tub, and must have slept for a bit since the water now seems frigid. My candles have burned out and my heart is racing. I was dreaming of that barn owl I saw earlier out back. It was screeching almost as if trying to warn me of something, but I never saw what. I pop the drain and stand, still uneasy from the nightmare. This full moon is really making me go crazy. I yank on my pajamas and wish immediately that I'd dried off better than I did, and go crawl into my king size canopy bed. Before I can even worry about not being able to fall back asleep, I am back in the dream. I am running through the woods with the owl screeching above me and I feel like I am supposed to follow it. Its yellow eyes glow in the night and I feel absolute fear coursing through my veins. I trip on a fallen branch and that's when I hear it. The howl, the pounding of paws in the earth. Whatever nightmare demon wolf is chasing me, it is BIG. I scramble back to my feet while a thought crosses my mind that nothing is scarier than a nightmare where you're seemingly aware. You know you're dreaming but your mind is aware of everything and still scared. It feels so real, the cold biting at me through my thin pajamas, the snow on my feet, the way my breath fogs on exhale. My attention snaps back when the owl screeches again almost deafeningly. I'm running as fast as I can in the dark forrest where the canopy of trees blocks out any light the moon would give. My panic is rising as I scan my surroundings trying to decipher which direction I need to go to escape. I see them then, two sets of glowing eyes too close to the ground to be the owl flying above me. My heart feels like it stops, but not before I collide with something and my head explodes with pain, and then darkness slips over me and right before I black out I wonder two things; why am I feeling this pain so much if this is a dream, and why can't I just wake up?

My consciousness fades in and out forever it feels like, but for whatever reason, my eyelids won't open. I heard people talking off and on, but never really made out what was being said. I knew I must be inside somewhere because I was warm, but wherever I was, I wasn't in my comfy ass bed. Whatever I was laying on was hard and something dug into my skin. My head throbbed, my throat was dry, and I would kill for some water and maybe an aspirin. "Did you catch that stupid owl?" I hear a gruff voice break through the fog my brain is in. I don't recognize it, and I am hoping if I stay still enough, they might say more and give me a clue as to where I am. I need to be smart, obviously this isn't a dream, no one is going to look for me other than maybe Twyla, it is on me and only me to get out of this situation. "No boss, it almost clawed Cassius' eyes out before it flew the hell out of there. I am sure if she stays we will see it again. It was clearly sent to make sure that the girl doesn't learn what she really is. Unless she does, maybe she already had her first shift. Who knows but the troops have been told to keep their eyes peeled for that flying shit." Another new voice says in a whiney tone. "Fuck! Get me my beta and get the fuck out of here. Now!" the first voice booms. Ok, so there were two of them but judging by the shuffling sound, the second guy got out of here in a hurry, now if only I could figure out where here is. I hear shuffling somewhere behind me and I decide it is now or never. Trying to be as sneaky as I can I slowly crack my right eye, I bite my lip to stop myself from groaning in pain from the dull light hitting my eye. It makes me head throb and I'm scared I'm going to vomit. "You can quit pretending you're sleeping, I know you're awake." That gruff voice says, sounding as if he is almost right behind me. I slowly open both eyes and realize I'm on the floor in a musty smelling basement and then I'm sputtering, choking to get air into my lungs because I realize I am in what can only be a jail cell. "Who are you? And where the hell am I?" I wheeze out. I slowly turn as something hits my back and realize that he has tossed clothes from the dark corner where he sits. I am confused at first and then horrified when I realize that my pajamas are in tatters. I grab the too big shirt and hold it over my front as I try to stand. I am weak and unsteady on my feet and before I know what is happening I'm falling. "Fuck!" the stranger grumbles and in the next second he is in my cell catching me. I have a death grip on the shirt I'm covering myself with as this stranger comes into view. He is huge, like has to be well over six feet tall. He is tanned, covered in tattoos, and definitely knows what a gym is. His hair is shorter and Jet black like mine and he is as hot as they come. I realize I am staring only when he says "Are you done looking or need another minute to check me out?" with a dumb smirk on his face. I all but shove myself out of his arms and mutter "Thanks". He turns around and stands like that for a minute before I realize he's trying to give me privacy. Shoving myself into this huge shirt, I'm grateful for it, it acts like a dress, covering me past my knees. The sleeves are too long but at least I'm covered. I turn back towards him and clear my throat, letting him know he can turn around now. When he does, I feel my whole body flush hot, this man is insanely good looking, it's honestly not fair. "Are you going to tell me who you are, where I am or why I'm here now?" I say, utterly annoyed with my head still pounding. He gestures for me to sit on the bench in the cell and I do. He then hands me a bottle of water and some aspirin. I inspect the water bottle for holes and to make sure it's still sealed. He laughs and says, "I think we are passed me drugging you, drink the water Kiana, slowly, and take the aspirin, your head looks awful." I glare at him but do as he says. It only seems right that karma would bring this gorgeous giant to me when I'm looking like a train wreck. I pull my knees to my chest and raise a brow to him and finally he starts talking. "My name is Luc Moonwood, I am the alpha here. You are on Moon Wolf land, we uh.. found you in the forrest and brought you here." I cut him off. "You found me.. right. You were probably the one chasing me, did you see the owl. What the hell?" When I look back up to him he looks confused and angry. "Kiana, do you know what you are? Do you feel weird everytime a full or new moon crests?" he says deadly serious. I laugh, like slap my knee, snort, ugly laugh. Maybe he hit his head too. "I am a human? Duh... And I just have trouble sleeping, restless, you know, like normal people." He just stares at me, then he takes a big breath and blows it out before he says. "Kiana, you are a wolf shifter. And if you didn't know that before, you will come tomorrow night whent he first full moon after your eighteenth birthday happens." ass bed. Whatever I was laying on was hard and something dug into my skin. My head throbbed, my throat was dry, and I would kill for some water and maybe an aspirin. "Did you catch that stupid owl?" I hear a gruff voice break through the fog my brain is in. I don't recognize it, and I am hoping if I stay still enough, they might say more and give me a clue as to where I am. I need to be smart, obviously this isn't a dream, no one is going to look for me other than maybe Twyla, it is on me and only me to get out of this situation. "No boss, it almost clawed Cassius' eyes out before it flew the hell out of there. I am sure if she stays we will see it again. It was clearly sent to make sure that the girl doesn't learn what she really is. Unless she does, maybe she already had her first shift. Who knows but the troops have been told to keep their eyes peeled for that flying shit." Another new voice says in a whiney tone. "Fuck! Get me my beta and get the fuck out of here. Now!" the first voice booms. Ok, so there were two of them but judging by the shuffling sound, the second guy got out of here in a hurry, now if only I could figure out where here is. I hear shuffling somewhere behind me and I decide it is now or never. Trying to be as sneaky as I can I slowly crack my right eye, I bite my lip to stop myself from groaning in pain from the dull light hitting my eye. It makes me head throb and I'm scared I'm going to vomit. "You can quit pretending you're sleeping, I know you're awake." That gruff voice says, sounding as if he is almost right behind me. I slowly open both eyes and realize I'm on the floor in a musty smelling basement and then I'm sputtering, choking to get air into my lungs because I realize I am in what can only be a jail cell. "Who are you? And where the hell am I?" I wheeze out. I slowly turn as something hits my back and realize that he has tossed clothes from the dark corner where he sits. I am confused at first and then horrified when I realize that my pajamas are in tatters. I grab the too big shirt and hold it over my front as I try to stand. I am weak and unsteady on my feet and before I know what is happening I'm falling. "Fuck!" the stranger grumbles and in the next second he is in my cell catching me. I have a death grip on the shirt I'm covering myself with as this stranger comes into view. He is huge, like has to be well over six feet tall. He is tanned, covered in tattoos, and definitely knows what a gym is. His hair is shorter and Jet black like mine and he is as hot as they come. I realize I am staring only when he says "Are you done looking or need another minute to check me out?" with a dumb smirk on his face. I all but shove myself out of his arms and mutter "Thanks". He turns around and stands like that for a minute before I realize he's trying to give me privacy. Shoving myself into this huge shirt, I'm grateful for it, it acts like a dress, covering me past my knees. The sleeves are too long but at least I'm covered. I turn back towards him and clear my throat, letting him know he can turn around now. When he does, I feel my whole body flush hot, this man is insanely good looking, it's honestly not fair. "Are you going to tell me who you are, where I am or why I'm here now?" I say, utterly annoyed with my head still pounding. He gestures for me to sit on the bench in the cell and I do. He then hands me a bottle of water and some aspirin. I inspect the water bottle for holes and to make sure it's still sealed. He laughs and says, "I think we are passed me drugging you, drink the water Kiana, slowly, and take the aspirin, your head looks awful." I glare at him but do as he says. It only seems right that karma would bring this gorgeous giant to me when I'm looking like a train wreck. I pull my knees to my chest and raise a brow to him and finally he starts talking. "My name is Luc Moonwood, I am the alpha here. You are on Moon Wolf land, we uh.. found you in the forrest and brought you here." I cut him off. "You found me.. right. You were probably the one chasing me, did you see the owl. What the hell?" When I look back up to him he looks confused and angry. "Kiana, do you know what you are? Do you feel weird everytime a full or new moon crests?" he says deadly serious. I laugh, like slap my knee, snort, ugly laugh. Maybe he hit his head too. "I am a human? Duh... And I just have trouble sleeping, restless, you know, like normal people." He just stares at me, then he takes a big breath and blows it out before he says. "Kiana, you are a wolf shifter. And if you didn't know that before, you will come tomorrow night when the first full moon after your eighteenth birthday happens." ass bed. Whatever I was laying on was hard and something dug into my skin. My head throbbed, my throat was dry, and I would kill for some water and maybe an aspirin. "Did you catch that stupid owl?" I hear a gruff voice break through the fog my brain is in. I don't recognize it, and I am hoping if I stay still enough, they might say more and give me a clue as to where I am. I need to be smart, obviously this isn't a dream, no one is going to look for me other than maybe Twyla, it is on me and only me to get out of this situation. "No boss, it almost clawed Cassius' eyes out before it flew the hell out of there. I am sure if she stays we will see it again. It was clearly sent to make sure that the girl doesn't learn what she really is. Unless she does, maybe she already had her first shift. Who knows but the troops have been told to keep their eyes peeled for that flying shit." Another new voice says in a whiney tone. "Fuck! Get me my beta and get the fuck out of here. Now!" the first voice booms. Ok, so there were two of them but judging by the shuffling sound, the second guy got out of here in a hurry, now if only I could figure out where here is. I hear shuffling somewhere behind me and I decide it is now or never. Trying to be as sneaky as I can I slowly crack my right eye, I bite my lip to stop myself from groaning in pain from the dull light hitting my eye. It makes me head throb and I'm scared I'm going to vomit. "You can quit pretending you're sleeping, I know you're awake." That gruff voice says, sounding as if he is almost right behind me. I slowly open both eyes and realize I'm on the floor in a musty smelling basement and then I'm sputtering, choking to get air into my lungs because I realize I am in what can only be a jail cell. "Who are you? And where the hell am I?" I wheeze out. I slowly turn as something hits my back and realize that he has tossed clothes from the dark corner where he sits. I am confused at first and then horrified when I realize that my pajamas are in tatters. I grab the too big shirt and hold it over my front as I try to stand. I am weak and unsteady on my feet and before I know what is happening I'm falling. "Fuck!" the stranger grumbles and in the next second he is in my cell catching me. I have a death grip on the shirt I'm covering myself with as this stranger comes into view. He is huge, like has to be well over six feet tall. He is tanned, covered in tattoos, and definitely knows what a gym is. His hair is shorter and Jet black like mine and he is as hot as they come. I realize I am staring only when he says "Are you done looking or need another minute to check me out?" with a dumb smirk on his face. I all but shove myself out of his arms and mutter "Thanks". He turns around and stands like that for a minute before I realize he's trying to give me privacy. Shoving myself into this huge shirt, I'm grateful for it, it acts like a dress, covering me past my knees. The sleeves are too long but at least I'm covered. I turn back towards him and clear my throat, letting him know he can turn around now. When he does, I feel my whole body flush hot, this man is insanely good looking, it's honestly not fair. "Are you going to tell me who you are, where I am or why I'm here now?" I say, utterly annoyed with my head still pounding. He gestures for me to sit on the bench in the cell and I do. He then hands me a bottle of water and some aspirin. I inspect the water bottle for holes and to make sure it's still sealed. He laughs and says, "I think we are passed me drugging you, drink the water Kiana, slowly, and take the aspirin, your head looks awful." I glare at him but do as he says. It only seems right that karma would bring this gorgeous giant to me when I'm looking like a train wreck. I pull my knees to my chest and raise a brow to him and finally he starts talking. "My name is Luc Moonwood, I am the alpha here. You are on Moon Wolf land, we uh.. found you in the forrest and brought you here." I cut him off. "You found me.. right. You were probably the one chasing me, did you see the owl. What the hell?" When I look back up to him he looks confused and angry. "Kiana, do you know what you are? Do you feel weird everytime a full or new moon crests?" he says deadly serious. I laugh, like slap my knee, snort, ugly laugh. Maybe he hit his head too. "I am a human? Duh... And I just have trouble sleeping, resltess, you know, like normal people." He just stares at me, then he takes a big breath and blows it out before he says. "Kiana, you are a wolf shifter. And if you didn't know that before, you will come tomorrow night whent he first full moon after your eighteenth birthday happens."

End of Part 1