Noelle sat staring across the large grassed area that fronted Lucas’ home deep in the forest. She understood his reasons for leading a solitary life. It was a life Noelle could see her slipping into if she had access to her inner wolf. The chance to run for miles with no worry of being hunted —and away from the likes of Edmund, who wanted to turn all the wolves back into humankind. She sighed as her bottom lip curled over her top lip. We should all have a choice. That decision isn’t for Edmund or the hunters to decide. It’s supposed to be a free world for everyone. Noelle was sure that werewolves were roaming the earth before man, so, if anything, it was man who was encroaching onto something that wasn’t really theirs.

Noelle saw Lucas appear from the trees holding a couple of rabbits. He’d been hunting for dinner, and now that the sun had fallen, it’d be easier for him to pounce.

“I hope you’re gonna cook those suckers?” Noelle yelled across the space that separated them.

Lucas grinned as he neared the patio. “Sure, it’s not much for the last supper, yet it’ll make a change.”

Noelle’s heart sank as she heard the words “last supper.” It wasn’t the way she was thinking of it, and it wasn’t the way she wanted to think of it once she left. She knew where he lived, and deep in her heart of hearts, she knew that Lucas would invite her in with open arms, anytime that she arrived.

“I’ve never really thanked you, Lucas,” Noelle said as Lucas hung a rabbit on the side of the house.

He slid his hunting knife through the rabbit’s skin and turned to her. “You’ve got nothing to thank me for, it’s a good turn between wolves.”

Lucas slid the knife up the rabbit's belly and pulled the fur from its body. Noelle tore her gaze from the dark clouds that were pulling together high above them. Flashes of lightning struggled to bare themselves from the clouds. In the seconds it took to turn her head to Lucas (who was in the process of removing the rabbit’s head from its body), Noelle had flashes of Declan —and her family. She hadn’t thought of them much since she’d been out in the woods with Lucas, let alone while she was alone in the woods.

Noelle thought it strange no search parties had been sent out, and thinking back, she hadn’t even seen a plane overhead that might have been a search plane. Declan —she could understand him not searching, because he’d gone his own way. But her family, her mom? Her dad? They had, as far as Noelle could gather, never made an effort.

“You’ve never mentioned Declan much,” Lucas asked as he treated the second rabbit to the same ceremony as the first.

Noelle thought for a moment about how much she could remember and how much was a blur, and what she thought she could remember. All that time in the wilderness with only yourself to talk to has a strange effect on your memory.

“It’s a long story I think,” Noelle said.

Lucas speared the rabbits with the metal skewers and hung them over the grill he’d started at the side of the patio. “I’m not certain Noelle, but I have a good idea we have an empty evening in front of us. You have more than enough time to tell your story to me.”

Noelle would (on most occasions) shy away from spilling her guts about her relationships, yet it all felt a little surreal, as if she was telling a story, rather than recounting events that belonged to her past.

Lucas finished grilling the rabbits, and carried them into the house as the first drops of rain fell onto the patio. Noelle looked at the floor and watched the light gray slate darken, the wetter it got.

“Psst, you gonna come inside or sit there daydreaming?” Lucas said, now leaning against the large glass door.

“I was miles away, and nowhere in particular. My mind was blank.” Noelle stood as she took a final look at the sky. The clouds had merged with the dusky darkness of nighttime. “Yup, there sure is a storm coming, and not the usual type. I can feel it in my bones,” she said, stepping onto the stone floor in the living room.

Lucas cast his upturned hand to the table, and Noelle saw the meal Lucas had prepared without her even noticing. He smiled happily, hoping she would enjoy what he had prepared for them.

“Shit, I was dreaming quite a bit, wasn’t I?” she said as Lucas pulled a chair from under the table. “Why thank you, kind sir,” Noelle murmured, sitting.

Lucas rounded the table and sat in his own seat. He raised his glass of red wine. Noelle raised hers, and they both sipped together. Lucas put his glass on the table and leaned in to Noelle.

“Tell me, tell me from the beginning…”

* * *

It had taken Noelle the best part of four hours to tell the whole story to Lucas. He sat through it all and listened intently. For the first hour, they had been having dinner, and then they’d moved to the couch for the final three; hunched up in front of the log fire he had started. The logs had crackled and spat as Noelle had said how she fell for Declan before she knew he was a wolf, and how her family were hunters who’d sworn death to all werewolves.

Lucas never batted an eyelid, and nothing was a shock to him. He had interrupted a couple of times with something to add. The part where Edmund and Mr. Sanders came into the picture. That interested him as much as the hunters that were roaming the country.

All that talk had been last night, and now Noelle found herself standing at the side of the pickup truck that first carried her to Lucas’ house on the night he’d saved her.

“Lucas,” Noelle said, as Lucas pulled his truck onto the main road. “You do know my leaving has nothing to do with you. That doesn’t mean it’s none of your business, it means my decision’s not, um…” Noelle started to say.

Lucas laughed as he turned the truck to head across the old wooden bridge that spanned the ravine. Noelle peered from her window and saw the river crashing against large rocks. It was no wonder she was lost in the forest; this part of the state was like nothing she recognized. She’d never even heard of the Arapaho National Forest until Lucas had told her where she was. It was even easier to see why she could never find her way out. Edmund had dumped her in the middle of seven-hundred-thousand acres. That son of a bitch has a lot to answer for.

Lucas pulled his truck into the lot of the hospital, then he opened the door for Noelle and helped her out. They crossed over to the hospital doors and stepped inside. Noelle scanned the front of the hospital. A few patients sat waiting as they leaned on walking canes or sat in wheelchairs. No nurses were dashing here and there with cries of emergency, or prepare the theater. It was all calm and relaxed.

Lucas walked back to where Noelle sat. “I have good health insurance, I’ve managed to jump the queue.”

Noelle leaned forward in her chair and looked left before looking right. Her head turned to face Lucas. “What queue? There are only five or six people here.” Lucas grinned and shrugged his shoulders.

“Lucas, are you sure this leg was broken when you found Noelle?” the doctor asked.

Lucas played a little ignorant with the answer. Noelle stared off into space and ignored the conversation Lucas was having with the doctor. In fact, she was busy looking at all the diplomas and certificates on the walls that showed this doctor really knew his shit.

“When did you say you found Noelle?”

Lucas made a wild guess and stated almost three weeks, because he wasn’t really that sure. Time had blurred since he’d been with Noelle. He had been acting as nurse, provider, and on the odd occasion, someone to share a bed with —or the pasture, or the couch, or the...

The doctor let go of Noelle’s leg and stared back at the x-rays that were clipped to the wall lights. He peered to see if there were any signs her leg had been broken.

“You’re clear to go, there’s nothing wrong with you. Nothing at all.”

* * *

Declan stood to wait for the force of Judy’s claws as they sliced through his skin somewhere on his body. He heard the whoosh of air yet felt nothing. He peered through one eye as Judy stood looking at the ground.

“Today’s your lucky day Declan,” she said stamping on the snake that gave its final squirms of life a few inches from his feet.

“Judy, you scared the crap out of me. I thought you’d tricked me and were about to kill me.”

Judy’s wolf-formed head shook before she turned back down the path. “You better climb aboard, we’ve still got quite a way to go.” Declan sidled up to Judy and dug his hand into the fur on her neck. His fist clenched. “Nice grip you have,” Judy mumbled. Declan ignored her comment and threw his leg over her body. His legs dug into her ribs as he held her fur with both hands.

“Yeehaw,” Declan yelled into the night air.

Judy threw her head upward and howled into the night sky. A distant howl responded and was followed by scattered howls all over the everglades.

Judy tilted her head back before she set off. “They all know something big is gonna happen,” Judy commented, bowing her head and sprinting back into the bushes.

Declan leaned on his forearms and closed his eyes. It had been a long time since he’d felt the wind across his face like this. He breathed deeply and embraced the feeling of being free. They got that right, something big is gonna happen. I’m coming back.

Judy dug her paws into the earth as she neared the water. Her shoulders dipped, and Declan’s body flew over her and rolled across the ground. Declan stood and glanced back to Judy as her body morphed back into her human form. Her shoulders writhed as her arms that were raised to the sky twisted and curled, and then she beautifully turned back to the fair skin of her human form.

“I see you weren’t paying attention, did you have your eyes closed or something?” Judy asked as Declan stood dusting himself off.

They stood at the water’s edge. The moon rose above them and lit the path they had to follow. “I can’t see a mangrove tree that’s bigger than any of the others,” Declan commented.

Judy peered further into the dark and shook her head. “Me neither. We have taken the right directions, haven’t we?” Declan nodded, they had followed them exactly as Martha had given them.

“Well, we might as well start wading through the water and see where we end up,” he said, now holding his backpack above his head.

Judy pulled a knife from her sheath and followed Declan into the muddy waters of the everglades. The water rose higher up Declan’s legs, and it passed his waist and paused between his chest and his neck. He looked at Judy, then he saw that the water was touching her chin.

Declan walked forward and screamed. His arms flailed as he tried to balance. Judy snatched his backpack and held it aloft. Declan took in a huge lungful of air, a second before his head vanished under the surface of the water. Judy stared at the calm water around her. There was no sign of Declan.

She waved her hands through the water trying to feel for him. “Declan!” she shouted. She waited. “Declan,” she said again.

Seconds turned into what seemed like minutes. Judy panicked and looked around the surface of the water. Bubbles broke the surface. Declan’s head pushed its way up and through the water, and he gasped for breath as he waded to the large mangrove tree that was a little in front of them. He climbed to the shore and fell flat on his back. Judy threw his backpack up and out of the water and climbed out to meet him.

“What happened?” she yelled. Declan sucked in a huge lungful of air as his chest rose and fell, and then he wiped his hand over his face looking up.

“Tree root, I had my damned foot caught in a tree root. It was lucky I had your knife,” he explained as he sat on the muddy bank.

Judy pointed at Declan’s arms. “What’s that?”

Declan looked at his arms, he had things stuck to him, dark blobs. “Leeches, shit —get them off,” he screamed out. Judy stepped forward and was about to pull at the leeches when they heard a voice appear out of nowhere.

“Don’t pull them, you’ll get infected.”

Declan and Judy turned to see a girl in her twenties approaching them, she had a knife in her hand. The blade glowed orange as she bowed and touched the leeches on Declan’s arms one by one. Declan heard a hiss as the leeches fell to the ground. The girl picked one up and kicked the rest back toward the water before she walked back to the large tree and then vanished from sight.

“Where did she come from?” Judy asked.

Declan stood covered in mud and looked at Judy. “Why don’t you have leeches on you?” he asked. Judy shrugged her shoulders and bent to pick up the backpack. She tossed the bag to Declan.

“Maybe it’s the wolf blood in me.”

Declan shrugged and walked to follow the path where the young girl had come from. They rounded the large tree and saw a cabin that was built into the trunk. Things were hanging from branches. Dreamcatchers and large teeth. The girl stepped from the cabin and sat cross-legged by the fire.

“Thanks for that with the leeches, we’ve come to see your mother or grandmother, Marina, she’s the sister of Martha,” Declan said, unzipping his backpack and fumbling for the cookies.

The girl looked up and sighed. She didn’t really seem bothered.

“Can you speak?” Declan asked. “It’s a matter of importance.” The girl looked up and sighed again as Declan pulled his hand from his backpack. “I have cookies for Marina, Martha said Marina loved cookies when they were kids,” Declan said sitting next to the fire. Judy perched herself on a large log and held her hands close to the dancing flames to dry.

The girl looked at Declan. “Martha told you to bring cookies for Marina?”

Declan nodded and removed the paper bag from the Ziploc, and then he handed them to the girl. “Do you know where Marina is?” he asked.

The girl opened the bag and reached her hand inside. “It’s okay, these cookies are for me.”

Declan and Judy stared at the girl who was sat opposite them across from the fire. Declan thought it must be some joke. Martha was at death's door when he arrived at the hospital and only lasted long enough to give him directions to where he now sat.

“I thought Marina would be the same age —or as good as the same age as Martha, and she was what? Eighty or something?”

The girl placed the paper bag on the log where she sat and leaned forward. The fire cast a golden glow over her fair cheeks and her golden hair. “Martha was my younger sister,” she said as Declan scratched his head. “You don’t think a witch would let herself age to that extent, do you?”

You’ve got a point there, pretty much the same as wolves.

“What happens now then?” Declan asked. “Do you cast a spell on me and I’m back to normal?” He rubbed his hands together in anticipation of his transformation back into a wolf. Declan was ready to embrace his inner wolf again and set everything right that had gone wrong.

“Declan, I’m a witch, not a magician. I can help you on your way, but I’m not in a position to change the things that nature does. You are as much a part of what I can do, as I am.”

Declan shifted in his seat. “I’m not going to be changed back tonight then?” he asked.

“Not tonight, but once it starts you have seventy-two hours to get it done,” Marina explained as she picked up a wooden bowl and began mixing herbs and leaves.

Marina reached into another bowl and pulled out a leech she had picked up from the ground. Declan heaved as Marina bit its head and squeezed it into the bowl. Marina smeared the mixture into a large leaf and handed it over to Declan.

“There you go, it’s done,” she said.

Declan looked puzzled as he took the leaf from Marina’s fingers. He looked at the bundle. “Now what do I have to do?”

Marina wiped her fingers on her faded dress and looked through the flames. “What happens now is, you take that and wipe it on the teeth of the wolf who turned you, and if he bites you again…” she said.

Declan shook his head. “Nah, that’s not possible. Dustin’s dead, he got killed with the rest of his pack,” he replied. Marina glared through the flames, her eyes never glinted, in fact, they looked as dead as the night that surrounded them.

“Declan, are you doubting me?”

Declan shook his head. “Of course not, I was told he was killed.”

“Trust me Declan, Dustin’s alive. You know where to find him, you have seventy-two hours from the moment you step back in the water.”

Declan placed the poultice into the Ziploc and put it in his backpack. Judy walked from around the fire. “One more thing,” Declan said.

Marina looked up from her side of the fire. “What’s that then?”

“Martha told me to tell you she loves you.”

Marina nodded, not showing any emotion at all. “I have one more thing to tell you; you won’t be the same as before, you’ll be bigger, faster and way stronger.”

“The road home can be just as tricky.”