EIGHT - Urban Wolves

I scan the shelves as I walk past them. I don’t know exactly where I’ll find the painkiller, but I see a fridge with drinks and grab a water bottle.

“Oh, hi,” I hear as I close the fridge door. I turn and see the woman from the toilets, Fiona, who’s now wearing a name badge.

“Hi,” I reply.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” she asks, looking at me.

“Pain killer?” I ask. She gives me a smile and nods.

“Follow me,” she says. I follow her as she walks down another aisle, grabbing a box from the shelf before heading for the counter.

I watch as she places the box she grabbed from the shelf and reads the label: Calendula Balm.

“How strong of a painkiller do you need?” she asks me.

“Uh,” I say, looking at her. Fiona smiles and turns, grabbing a box from the shelf behind her.

“Ibuprofen Forte. It’s stronger,” she smiles, and I nod as she scans the painkiller, water bottle and cream. Then she types something on the register, and the price of the balm comes off.

“For the bruises, it’s on the house,” she says.

“Thanks, oh, I also, um, need pads,” I say, remembering. Fiona smiles, telling me to wait. She returns with a pack of pads and does the same thing to it as she did with the balm.

“Oh goddess, thank you,” I say, watching her place my pads in the plastic bag with the other stuff.

“Blessed be,” she winks. I thank her again.

She must be a witch, I think as I leave the chemist. That makes sense. Witches are excellent healers; they have a way of mixing natural ingredients together for their spells, potions and healing recipes. Because of this innate ability, they also make good chefs.

I pull out the calendula balm, interested to see who made it. Avonlea Tree, the manufactures name reads. Avondale must be the main township of Avonlea Coven, I reason. My knowledge of witch’s covens could be better, Redwood deals mainly with fairies, so I’m more knowledgeable about them.

I walk back down to the public toilets and check that it is quiet before moving in front of the mirror and applying the balm to my face. I then walk into a stall and strip, holding back my tears as I use the cream to the rest of my bruises. Satisfied, I open the water bottle and take two ibuprofen forte pills. I know, not precisely hygienic to do so in a public toilet, but I don’t care.

I walk out of the public toilets and notice the main strip of Avondale is much busier than when I arrived. I have no idea what time it is now, but I’m sure I’ve missed the bus. I continue down to the bottom of the hill, where the cafés and restaurants are strategically placed across the road from the train and bus station and walk into one randomly.

After eating and revisiting the bathroom, I head across the road towards the bus station, walking up to the ticketing booth.

“Has the bus to Haven Falls left already?” I ask the man in the booth.

“Yeah, it left half an hour ago,” he says, giving me a quizzical look.

“When’s the next bus to Sefton?” I ask. There’s something about Sefton that calls me. I feel like I would be safe if I went there. Again, the man in the booth gives me a quizzical look.

“Buses to Sefton go twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and you still have to stop at Haven Falls,” he advises.

“Okay, well, can you tell me when the next bus out of here leaves then?” I ask him.

“Adventurer, huh?” he asks, smiling at me. I tug at my hood, pulling it forward to cover my face.

“Something like that,” I murmur as I watch him type into his computer.

“The next bus out of here leaves in twenty minutes and goes to Frio, but if you want to get out of here quickly, there’s a train that leaves in ten minutes to City State, stopping at Grand City, Matraville, Titan and Megapolis.”

“One way to Megapolis,” I say after quickly thinking. Going to Frio would mean going back north. If I couldn’t go South, then going west it is. The man prints me off a ticket, and I thank him, running into the station towards the platform before I miss my train.

//\\//\\//\\//\\

So, I finally know what day it is. I didn’t think of looking at my bus ticket; I know, stupid, right? Today is Thursday. I left Worthington last night, Wednesday, which means I was out for a week after Hailey beat me. I wonder what excuse she told Danni about me and what she told dad. I know you can’t have your period longer than seven days.

Anyway, if I had wanted to go to Sefton, I would have had to stay at Avondale for another four nights? Five nights? Having a wolf stay that long in witch territory alone would cause some suspicion, so no matter how friendly that witch Fiona was, it’s good that I left. At least, that’s what I tell myself.

I sigh. I should have stopped for a magazine or something to read on the train—anything to keep me occupied. I haven’t spoken to Calla, she’s there, but I can’t reach her in the further parts of my mind. I have two choices, look out the window or sleep.

The train jostles to a stop, and I open my eyes. I’ve been resting my head on the window, which is quite uncomfortable, my neck is arched, and my back isn’t straight.

“Matraville. Stopping at Matraville for ten minutes,” the train conductor calls over the speaker. I stretch and yawn, getting out of my seat. I’ve booked the ticket to Megapolis, but getting off here is as good as any. It’s not like I have anywhere better to go.

I check the large analogue clock that hangs over the station thoroughfare, it’s ten o’clock, and by the people and daylight, I know it’s morning again.

I buy a magazine, then stop at the Train Café for coffee and breakfast. I don’t know my plan, but I guess I could look around, find the local pack and see if I can join. Or I could just find a job and my own place and live like a human. I’m not too sure yet.

I walk through the streets of Matraville. The station was in the city’s business district, and those walking around were in suits or were tourists. I scan the shops but don’t bother walking in. If I see a job offer on the window, I might walk in and apply, but if not, I’ll keep walking.

“Well, hello there,” a voice in front of me says. I stop and look up. A tall man in a suit is looking down at me. He smells of wolf.

“Are you a tourist? Just visiting?” he asks, smiling at me.

“Kind of,” I reply, shrugging my shoulders. He looks at me, and I can tell he’s thinking.

“I’m Hayden. Shall we talk?” he says. I look at him, and I can feel some power radiate off him, but not much. He must be a gamma or have some beta or alpha blood in his family.

“Sure,” I sigh; it’s not like I have anything better to do, anyway. Hayden smiles, sure of himself, and tells me to come with him.

He walks into a diner and finds a booth in a dark corner. I feel weary towards Hayden, but I’m not afraid. I know that even without Calla, I can hold my own.

“What brings you to Matraville?” he asks, cutting to the chase.

“Uh, needed an escape,” I reply. Hayden just nods and hands me a menu.

“I’ll pay if you answer my questions,” he advises when I look at him.

“I’ll answer your questions if I think you need to know,” I reply, which makes him smile.

“Good attitude. There are a few packs in Matraville. Are you from a pack around here?”

“No.”

“Will you tell me which pack you’re from?” he asks. I look at him.

“Nope.”

“Would you like to join my pack? We’re a small pack in the outer suburbs of the city. We’d be happy to bring you in,” he suggests. I shrug. I mean, I have nothing better to do.

“If I don’t want to stay, can I leave?”

“Of course,” he says, smiling. His eyes glaze over, and I know that he’s linking someone.

After eating, I walk Hayden to a parking lot and get into his car.

“Aren’t you scared I’ll take advantage of you?” he asks. I look at him, with his ash blonde hair and green eyes. Hayden is good-looking. He has a crooked nose that looks like it’s been punched too many times, and I know that as a wolf of high status, he’s probably got a great torso, but he does nothing for me.

“No,” I reply, finally smiling. I won’t tell Hayden I’m the daughter of an alpha and that, if need be, I can hold my own. If I’m going to join his pack, I’ll be an omega, and if that means I’m hidden from Hailey, I’m happy with that.

It takes a little while for Hayden to drive out of the city. He tells me about what he was doing there. Apparently, his pack owns a few businesses in the city, and he met with the managers who run them.

I nod, listening. Hayden is obviously proud of his pack. As gamma, he’s in charge of pack finances. Owning businesses outside the pack is a lucrative avenue, and many packs are starting to do this to fund their pack’s needs.

We’ve just hit the outer city. There are fewer skyscrapers and more townhouses and high-rises where we are when Hayden heads down a street of shops and pulls behind them to a gravel carpark and a prominent section of caravans parked.

“As I said, our pack is small,” Hayden smiles, getting out of the car.

“Most of our pack members live in the caravan park here or in the nearby apartment buildings,” Hayden explains, taking me through the caravan park towards the back of the buildings on the main road. I follow him through a double door, which leads down a hallway towards some stairs.

“We own the restaurant out the front and the stores in this building. Upstairs is the main pack house, where our Alpha family live. We have some guest rooms, a large dining room, two games room, and a theatre room. There’s also a room for training, but we usually go to the gym down the road to work out,” Hayden explains.

“Do you own the gym as well?” I ask.

“No. We have memberships,” he says, leading me to the third floor.

“The guest rooms are here, and so are the Alpha’s rooms, but our offices are here too,” Hayden adds. I nod and follow, taking it all in as we walk. It’s not what I’m used to, that’s for sure.

Hayden comes to a door and knocks.

“Come in,” a voice on the other side calls out. Hayden nods to me, and I follow him into the office.

“You must be Aviary. Welcome to Urban Wolves. Hayden says you’re looking for a new pack, is that right?” the Alpha, who hasn’t introduced himself, asks.

“Yes, Alpha…”

“Marcus. Alpha Marcus. My Luna is shopping now. Come, come, sit down.”

I sit in the chair opposite Marcus and watch as Hayden stands to the side. Marcus, I mean Alpha Marcus, is a lanky man with long shoulder-length wavy black hair and a thick moustache. He has brown eyes, and he looks okay. I feel I can trust him; he doesn’t give off any bad vibes.

“Tell me about yourself, Aviary,” he says. I look at him and begin my story. I don’t tell him about my rank or what Hailey did to me. I give him a very G-rated account and lie, saying that I ran away because I was being bullied by my pack. Which I feel bad about saying. I mean, I was being bullied, but by the pack’s Luna, and it was done in secret.

“Would you like to join our pack, Aviary? We are only small, about two hundred of us, but I see potential in you. What did you do at your old pack?” he asks.

“I was meant to finish high school this year but enjoyed working in the kitchens. I would help our chefs prepare the pack’s meals. It’s what I wanted to do,” I say, smiling. This is all true; I spent much time in the pack kitchens. It’s what I hoped I could continue to do as my side thing when I became Luna. I wanted to do something other than the administrative stuff of the Alpha role.

“We are always in need of some great cooks. Would you like to join our pack, Urban Wolves, Aviary?”

“What do I need to do?” I ask, smiling at Alpha Marcus.