Late Night Drive
Thunder and lightning crashed and crackled as rain poured down from the sky.
"Dad, it's two a.m. where are you going?" asked a teenage girl, roughly seventeen years old, with long blonde hair and hazel eyes. She wore a dark blue tank top and black shorts, and her hair pulled into a low ponytail.
"Just work sweetheart." her father answered. "Your uncle and I have business in Beacon Hills, which is where we're moving to."
"Can't it wait till morning?" the teen girl, Calla, asked.
"Afraid it can't." her father, Gabriel, replied.
"Let's go Gabe." Chris called, holding two dark green duffle bags in hand.
The two brother walked out of their San Francisco house, into the storm.
"What do we do now?" Calla asked her aunt Victoria, Chris' wife.
"You and Allison are going to head out to the new house." Victoria answered. "I'll be behind you with the movers. Take my SUV."
Allison, a sixteen year old girl with long brown hair, groaned. "I'll get dressed."
"And both of you, pack your suitcases before you leave." Victoria added.
"Yeah." Calla sighed, walking to her bedroom.
The seventeen year old threw on a long sleeved grey t-shirt that said 'Hollister Cheer-Leader' in pink, felt letters and a pair of black sweatpants. She threw her hair into a high ponytail and threw her clothes into a brown and blue polka-dotted suitcase.
"Calla, I need to talk to you before you leave." Victoria said, standing in the doorway.
"Are you going to tell me why my dad and uncle Chris just left the house with duffle bags full of automatic weapons?" Calla asked, folding her arms over her chest.
"You know that both Chris and Gabriel are federally licensed firearms dealers for local law enforcement." Victoria answered, stepping into the room.
"Which is why we move all the time." Calla added, scoffing. "It's my senior year aunt Victoria, and I hate that I have to start it at a completely new school." she pushed her pillows and cheetah print blanket into a black and gold duffle bag with a small yellow jacket on the side.
"I know, but your father and uncle grew up in Beacon Hills, so did your mother." the redheaded woman placed a hand on her nieces shoulder.
"If you're implying that we'll find my mom, I gave up on that six years ago." Calla stated, slinging her duffle over her shoulder and gripping her suitcase handle.
Victoria sighed and held out the keys to her SUV, "Drive safe, it's a really heavy storm out there."
Calla took the car keys and nodded, "I will. See you soon aunt Victoria."
Both teenage girls tossed their bags into the red SUV, Calla climbed into the driver's seat and Allison into the passenger seat.
"Bye mom." Allison called, waving.
Victoria stood in the front entryway and waved as she watched her niece and daughter disappear into the rain.
"Yet another new town to get used to." Allison sighed once the girls were well into their drive.
"I know what you mean." Calla agreed. "My senior year at yet another new school." she tapped the steering wheel of the SUV.
The windshield wipers were moving at a moderate pace as the rain continued to pour down. According to the GPS in the SUV, the girls still had an estimated forty-five minutes until they reached their new house.
Calla reached down to turn the radio station when Allison suddenly screamed, "Calla, watch out!" she screeched.
Calla swerved and avoided hitting a teenage boy who was standing right in the middle of the road. Both girls gasped.
"You could've killed him." Allison noted.
"Well hey, he ran out in the middle of the road, I didn't see him before then." Calla defended.
"We have to go back, to see if he's okay." Allison suggested. "Turn around Calla."
Calla sighed heavily, "Fine, but only because I love ya." she spun the wheel and turned the car around, driving back the way they came.
The SUV came to a stop and Allison jumped out, running to the forest edge. Calla followed her cousin.
"He's gone." Allison noted.
"Maybe he either went home, or we saw a ghost." Calla added, folding her arms tightly across her chest.
"Really cous? You jump to that?" Allison asked, rubbing her arms to keep warm.
Calla shrugged her shoulders, that's when she noticed something by her feet. "Hey look, it's an inhaler." she noted looking around.
Both girls heard an echoing howl in the distance, just as a crash of thunder sounded. Calla threw in the inhaler deep into the woods.
"Was that a wolf?" Allison asked, gripping her cousin's arm.
Calla shook her head, "Couldn't be." she rebuked. "There are no wolves in California."
More thunder crashed in the distance.
"Come on Cal, let's get out of here." Allison begged.
"Agreed." Calla replied, running back to the SUV.
Both girls buckled up and Calla drove back down the road, following the GPS instructions to their new home.
A figure stood by the roadside, and all that really discernable were a pair of bright, blue eyes, watching the red SUV drive down the road.