Born and Bred

Chapter 6: No Way Out

Jock awoke from his deep slumber after hearing an alarm clock blaring away down the hall. He opens his eyes as he listens to see if anyone will turn it off, that most horrendous sound. He tenses his face as it sounds and rings louder and faster, basically making it more annoying. "Cole! Turn it off!" He yells down the corridor. Seconds later, the alarm stops and is replaced with silence. But what followed he wasn't expecting to hear, more silence. That alarm was made to get him out of bed for work, so he should be hearing footsteps, but he wasn't hearing anything. Jock knew Cole had a nasty habit of falling asleep again, but he needed to be up or else they never get paid. He sighed. "Cole! Get out of bed!" He said in a normal voice as he rolled over onto his front and burying his face into the cushion. Still he didn't' hear anything. He slammed his fist down into the bed and yelled now irritated. "Damn it Cole!" He jumped out of his bed and walked out his bedroom to head towards Cole's. He stomped across the landing and crashed open the door and into his room. "For goodness sake get the hell out of bed." He yelled as he hit the lump under the sheets. The lump made a noise and shifted around to knock the sheets off. Jock sighed against at what he saw. "Cole you turned in your sleep again. Now get up!" The black wolf in the bed groaned again and pushed himself up just as Jock walked back out and slamming the door in irritation.

He looks himself in the mirrored wardrobe across his room at his reflection. This was becoming an accidental habit. This is the second time this week he's turned in his sleep, unknown to Jock, caused by nightmares of the SSRC and what happened on that day. He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment as he let himself become attuned to the world of reality. When he opened them again, he was how he should be, human. After he changed, he headed downstairs to grab something quick to eat; he was late enough as it was. While he dashed around, Jock sleepily came plodding downstairs and into the kitchen wiping the sleep away from his eyes.

"Sorry I woke you." Cole said as the toaster popped.

"Don't be, we didn't exactly sleep much yesterday night." Jock yawned with closed eyes. Cole took one piece of toast and threw it blindly behind in, but in Jocks direction. He opened his eyes after yawning just in time to catch the slice and sit opposite at the table.

"What time do you finish today?"

"2:00pm, but then I've got a few things to get from Biggleswade, so I won't be back until at least 5:00pm." Biggleswade, one of a few other larger towns only a few miles away. But neither of the two drives, not legally anyway. So they travel by public transport most of the time.

"Gotcha." Jock replied with a nod. Cole grabbed his coat and took the second slice of toast in his mouth before saying his final goodbyes and leaving. The walk to town was splendid, a good way to fully wake himself up. Besides, the morning due kept down the scents of nature that flooded his nose as he walked through the woods. The scents of rain, prey animals, the scents of nature. Another footpath that led across the outskirts of the woodland made the journey shorter as it was a more direct path, plus it allowed him to be in wilderness for longer. It was nicer out here, he preferred staying out here compared to being in the town. Jock was lucky that this was his day off, but it didn't mean he was getting a chance to relax; he had his jobs to do around the house. Cutting firewood, cleaning inside, care for the plants outside the front, just preparing for the cold night and making the place look acceptable.

He passed people he knew, bidding them a good morning on this trip into town. As usual, it was packed, it was well known across the town as a warm and friendly place. This was a job he didn't want to be doing more then for the next few years; he wanted to do other things in his life other then stand behind a bar. His shift wasn't long, and sometimes he found it a little hard when carrying plate of meat across the restaurant to a table, but it was all in the mind over matter training he and Jock and done. His shit was over in five hours and ended just after mid-day. The town square was just outside, before this place was an olden day coach house back in the back, then it became a restaurant and now it's a refurbished inn/restaurant/bar run by some friends of his. He took driving lessons with Jock, but they never took their tests, it was something they were planning on doing soon, it would make their lives much easier.

Today was no different, other then he felt as though his shift was shorter then usual. But he put that down to the fact it was a rather enjoyable day, he did enjoy his job, but today was faster then usual. So a few minutes after his shift finished, he was on the first bus to the next town over to get a few things. He had his rucksack he slung over one shoulder. He enjoyed the buses; it helped take his mind of things. He'd stare out the window at nature as it went by in the fifteen minutes it took. But one thing about his shift that made him feel a little on edge. For the six hours he was there, three men sat in the corner seemingly minding their own business, but that was the thing, who sits there for six hours?

Jock liked his days off, he worked five days a week, but on those days that he didn't work, he either forcibly or willingly found work around the house to do. After he ate, he went back to bed, but not to sleep, just to get over Cole's lay in and completely come back from the world of dreams. Besides, it wasn't just his human that wanted to rest; his wolf demanded it as well. So after he was able to see things clearly and walk straight, he dressed himself in grey baggy (A.K.A to long for him yet he still wore them) trousers, a white T-shirt and another grey thin and baggy jumper over that. It maybe getting to the cold seasons, but his inner wolf kept him and Cole warmer then everyone else. He had a second breakfast, seeing as the slice of toast was more of an appetiser before heading downstairs and letting some natural light into home which Cole never did. He made tea, downed that quickly seeing as he never had any when Cole did and then stepped outside. He breathed in the mornings scents; nothing was different or had changed, it was the scents of nature and very little of the inner town that contained car exhausts and loud noises, out here was much more peaceful. He walked around to the shed in which after he unlocked it pulled out his gun case to give the rifle inside a good clean. He cleaned inside the barrel, within the scope and inside the chamber to make it work perfectly. This was the only gun he had, it was vital it worked as a part of his job. What game keeper doesn't own a gun to shoot the animals he's supposed to be keeping? His job made him feel good, the wolf as a wild animal anyway is one of the greatest hunters around, so with one of them inside him, it only seemed natural that he become one. He didn't see what Cole got out of being a waiter? Maybe the fact he was around meat a lot of the day so he was able to control himself around it better.

So after he did tat, he set to work on indoor work, so cleaning the dishes that the two had left out from pervious meals after they couldn't be bothered to clean and put away at the time. After that, he stood in his corridor and scented the air without using his inner wolf; everything smelt fine using a human's sense of smell. So after he focused a little more and his sense of smell became more sensitive, he smelt the bins in the kitchen, and they stank. Even though they were only half full, that scent was enough to drive him crazy after only ten minutes, so he took them out and scented the air again afterwards. This time the smell of dirt came flooding to his nostrils and after looking very carefully, or not so after looking through the eyes of the wolf, he could see specks and minor dirt stains no-one else would have noticed. So he hovered and mopped. As much fun as they could and did have with their abilities, it always brought it's curse in the form of seeing and smelling every dirty thing in the house and it bothered them until they cleared it up due to it being in their minds for a long while that their home was dirty. He took this moment to relax; he found a good movie, made another tea and set about relaxing while he could.

A little over two hours later, he was up again, this time he went for a pleasant walk through his garden, and by garden, that was the woodland outside the small fenced off area in front of their home. Soon the desire to run became too great, the need to feel free, so it turned into a run that lasted nearly two more hours. He had a check-in with Cole around the time he ended it, Cole shift had finished just as he was approaching the house and Cole was already on the bus to the next town over and would be back in nearly two house time.

So he spent the next few minutes just relaxing by the glow of the fire and reading a book to pass the time. The fire, one of the greatest feelings to lie besides for a dog, the same applied to him and Cole, only he sat in a chair opposite it. It was when he saw it was dying and there were no more logs to put on. At least no he had something else to do; he didn't like to be kept still for long. So he jumped to his feet and stepped back outside after grabbing a jacket. He headed back to the shed and removed a large axe and headed around to the front of the house to where the wood pile was, there he used the largest and flattest one as a chopping block, the same one he usually used so this one had many of marks, slices and chucks missing on it. He used this to stand the smaller chucks on and slice them vertically down into small and thinner slices to use later. It was four days until the next full moon, so they had to stock it up to at least make the change more pleasurable if they couldn't run around.

He was into his twentieth log, he raised that axe and slammed it down and slit the log in two, the pieces flying off to the left and right. He slammed down the axe once more and embedded it into the block while he picked up the two pieces and threw them into the pile before placing another on the block and readying to cut it. But as he placed it down and raised the axe, a sense, sound and smell placed him on edge. His ears twitched at the sound of a car driving alone the road towards his house, the smell of clean and car polished flooded his nostrils and the sense that something was out of the ordinary. He looked around while the axe was over his head; a black, shining B.M.W came down the one way road towards the house. He sighed and turned back to split the log and throw the pieces on the pile. Three men stepped out of the car wearing casual looking clothes, but their tidiness and fancy car proved otherwise. Jock picked up another log and as he made his way back to the block and one of the three men approached him he spoke.

"Whatever you're selling I don't want it." He said not even looking at them. "So turn back to wherever it is you came from."

"Oh we're not selling anything." The man closest to him spoke as the other shut the doors to the car and started to come closer. He saw them out the corner of his eye looking around as if observing the area, but he didn't pay much attention to them. He shook his head a little and cut the log and two and once again threw them into the pile.

"Then what are you here for?" Jock asked as he turned to face them and resting on the axe.

"We're looking for a Jock Haythem and a Cole Anderson."

"Well you've found one of them, I'm Jock." He replied. The three men looked at one another for a moment before turning back to him and the same man spoke.

"We've come here to find you about a job." The man said as he and the other two men stepped another step closer. Jock stood up a little straighter, sensing that something here wasn't right, it out him on edge the way they were acting. But what did they mean by job? He hasn't offered anyone a job, he doesn't run an employment agency and he was sure Cole didn't either. So he voiced his thoughts.

"What job?" He asked.

"You're the job." Suddenly and as quick as a bullet, the man reached into his open jacket and pulled out a gun. But even faster, Jock spun the axe around and faced the side to him as the man aimed the gun directly at his face. He fired, but the bullet hit the metal side of the axe and ricocheted off in another direction. He used the swing as he brought the axe up and time around him felt as though it had slowed marginally, giving him more time to react. The momentum he gathered brought it around as he twisted it and hit the first man in the side of the head with the none lethal end. He looked at the other two as they were pulling out pistols of their own. He threw the large axe at the one on the right, hitting him in the abdomen with the handle with precision and ran at them while he was winded and the second was distracted. He ran at the second one and when he was close enough, he jumped in the air and somersaulted over him. He reached back and took a hold of the man's head and threw him over his own head and slammed him into the ground. He heard a click, a look out of the corner of his showed the last man with regained breath holding the gun centimetres away from his head and readying to pull the trigger. He ducked the small second the trigger was pulled and reached up and around the mans arm, bending it back and up, causing it to make a disgusting cracking sound and the man yelling in pain and dropping the weapon. Using his spare hand, he grabbed the gun by the barrel and using the butt of it, smacked him around the head and rendering the last of the unconscious.

He breathed heavily as he looked at the three men, but while he did that, his ears, nose and eyes were alert to the slightest change to the area. He didn't hear anything out of the ordinary, nothing smelt different other then the car and nothing caught his eye. He looked back down at the bodies in panic. Who are they?

Cole purchased the things he needed; really all he needed were tools. Jock and he knew DIY crazy ruined his, so then he decided that Cole's were in good condition, but then those were ruined. So now he was replacing his own, Jock could buy his own things, he wasn't paying for his mistakes. So now he was on the bus home, he sat in his seat and stared blankly out of the window as he waited for the bus to move away. As it did, he saw a flash of blonde and brown and the bus come to a sudden and abrupt stop. Two more people came on board after paying for their ticket. The two people sat in the chair in front of him as he spoke. "Ten years later and you're still nearly missing the bus." He chuckled into their ears. Shaun and Emily looked back at him with a smile.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Shaun asked as the two recognise their friend.

"Jock ruined my tools, what about you?" He responded as the bus pulled away again.

"Well, funny story really." Emily said and beginning to flush with embarrassment. "My car ran out of diesel in the town after I went to see my parents, I called Shaun who came in his, but then his broke down a few minutes later, so now we're here."

"How did you not see you were running out of diesel?" Cole laughed.

"I don't know, I was sure it was fully when I left." Emily replied.

"And I had mine serviced yesterday, they told me everything was fine."

"Ever heard of a bad mechanic?" Cole questioned.

"He's a friend, he wouldn't sabotage my car." Cole only gave him an "oh really face" as his reply. They didn't really talk much on the rest of the journey, a few things every now and then.

Cole's stopped was fast approaching, he had a few more stop before his came in town. The bus's drivers never pull in softly, always with a hard and violent stop; it's the same with all drivers. Two men stepped onto the bus, and it was those two men that made his inner wolf growl. His nostrils flared as he scented danger and his eyes looked at them menacingly. Seats were full, so they stood at the front of the bus with a few others that boarded. He could sense that something about them wasn't right, and it was blatantly obvious they were watching him. Shaun and Emily sensed some thing was wrong and looked back at him to see he wasn't looking too great.

The next stop was coming, and the wolf was beginning to scrap at the doors as the growls from within grew louder. He had to get out of here, something really wasn't right. He pressed the button and the bus started to pull over. "Guys I'm getting off here, I'll see you later." He said getting up.

"But this isn't your stop; you live on the other side of town." Emily replied.

"Are you ok?" Shaun asks worried.

"I'm fine, I'll see you later." He said patting his shoulder and walking down the aisle. He scented the men as he passed and sensed they were still watching him keenly as he did. They smelt of tobacco, car fumes and cleanliness, all signs of someone who wasn't from around here and from somewhere like a city. He jumped off the bus, trying to stick to a casual walk but it turned into a brisk one. He looked back out of the corner of his eye; those two men followed him off and walked after him while talking. That's how he saw it anyway, but how else would it seem? They only got on down the road and now they've gotten off only two minutes later, either they are the laziest people ever, or they really are up to something.

He turns his attention back in front him and heads towards a shortcut, a wide alley that led out of the town centre. He glanced back once more; they were still following but keeping their distance and faking to be genuinely following. He rounded a corner, but soon came to a sudden stop when seeing a blockage. A black car stupidly parked in the middle of the ally made him think something serious was happening. He turned to walk back, but those two men block his exit. The car door open, and a man stepped out and much to his surprise called out something.

"Cole." He looked back at the man just as two other stepped out of the drivers and passengers doors. He couldn't believe his eyes, it was the man he thought he'd never see again, the name that made his life the way it is today.

"Whitewood…" Cole gasped and staring wide eyed at the senior.

"I see you haven't forgotten me." He chuckled as he shut the door and stepped around to the front of the car. He heard a click, a look out of the corner of his eye came to show one of the men following cocking a gun but keeping it to his side. "How's the old dog been these days?"

"What do you want?"

"You have something that belongs to me and I'd very much like it back." He replied as he stood in-between the two other men either side of him, both reaching into their coats and grasping something. It didn't take a genius to work out what it was. Cole looked at him in fear but confusion, what does he have that belongs to them? It was him; he was what they were after. These people created him; whitewood said he and the others were property of that dreadful place; they were coming back for him.

"I'm not going with you." He growled as he lowered himself a little into a defensive position. His eyes changed into a bright yellow to add to the threatening look.

"We thought you'd say that." He grinned. He waved his hand and one of the men behind him raised his hand to fire. Suddenly, the loud revving of a car came screeching around a corner, crashing into the two men behind him and crushing them against a brick wall. Whitewood fled back and covering his head while the remaining to fire at Cole and the vehicle. He ran back and vaulted over the car and hid behind it. He looked through the window to see Jock slunk low in the driving seat as to avoid the bullets that crashed and whizzed through the window. As quick as it started, the firing ended and all that was to be heard was the revving of another car, the sound of it screech and driving away onto the road. He looked through the window; Jock was fine and sat up in the car while the two looked through the window as the other car disappeared back around the corner.

"Get in." Jock ordered. "They're back."

Five minutes later, they were coming towards the outskirts of town and nearing the road that led to the dead end that brought them to their home. The car was shot up, dented severely at the front and the windscreen smashed to smithereens, not to mention that fact that the blood of those men Jock rammed into the wall smeared on the front of the car. They sat in silence as Jock drove illegally seeing as neither of them had a licence when Jock reached into his pocket and threw an illuminated badge onto Cole's lap. He picked it up and looked closely at it and seeing four letters he wished and thought he'd never see again, "SSRC".

"Whitewood was back there." Cole muttered as he looked blankly at the badge. Jock looked at him in fear and shock. "He know where we live, we can't go home."

"If he's coming for us then I'm not going anywhere without my gun." Jock replied as he skidded around the corner and started going down the road that led to their home.

"What do we do, where do we go?"

"We run, we run and we don't stop." Jock replied.

"But where?"

"Anywhere, anywhere is better then here." They pulled into the leaf covered driveway, but were in for a shock. Not only were the bodies of the three men Jock made unconscious still there, but Shaun and Emily stood over them with him in the phone.

"Oh shit!" Cole seethed as he and Jock jumped out the car and ran over to the two.

"Yes, hello? We need an ambulance…" Shaun wasn't able to finish as Cole pulled the phone out of his hand and hung up before handing it back to him.

"What the hell, these guys need help." Shaun exclaimed.

"What happened here?" Emily asked in near tears and going towards one of them. Jock simply grabbed her arm and pulled her back to keep her away from them.

"They attacked me." He answered. "And when I went to find Cole he was being mugged as well."

"They still need help." Emily said trying to push him off and help them, but Jock's grip was firm and tight. He let her go as his and Cole's senses tingled again and their ears twitched as they looked back down the road. They didn't see anything coming around the slight corner, but they did hear another car coming. They both looked at on another with frantic faces.

"We've got to get out of here." Cole said.

"Get in the car." Jock ordered as he stood at the drivers do. Cole took a few steps towards it, but looked back when the two were still stood there. "Please get in the car." Jock said as he ran back around and lightly pushed them towards the car. But then Emily saw the blood on the front and she scream, her voice bouncing off the trees around her and echoing across the forest. It was silenced when that car rounded the corner and she was forcibly shoved into the back of the car with Shaun putting up less of a fight and he and Cole jumped in the front. The wheels spun as it searched for grip, and when it did it pulled away quickly. They spun around and headed towards the other car, Emily crying and pleading for them to stop in Shaun's arms. They turned violently and skimmed the car as they drove passed; only just avoiding a head on collision. But that car U-turned as was right behind them again in seconds. Cole looked back at the car to see a man poking out of the window and pulling out a machine gun.

"Get down!" He roared and slinking low in his chair. The back window smashed as volley after volley of bullets flew into it and through the car. Jock had trouble maintaining his speed and keeping the car under control. They reached the end of the road and skidded around onto the main road and out of the town, the back roads. Cole looked back again as the firing stopped, they were still following them, but then Emily screamed again, this time at Cole. He turned quickly back around and looked at his reflection in the wing mirror; his eyes were yellow with fear and adrenaline. Not only that, the arteries on his neck and a look at his necks showed them to be turning black as that chemical that made them this way began to get the better of them. But he didn't have time to explain, even if the two in the back were pleading and demanding to be let out, but it was ether death from the ones chasing them or life with monsters. But the chemical grew and spread over their bodies, Jock was fairing no better, he too looked fearfully at Jock with his glowing yellow eyes and black veins creeping up his neck. So either the chasers would kill them, or they'd be killed in a crash after the driver has paws.

Dun dun dun, what's going to happen? Will they crash thanks to a driver with paws or will they get on top of it and get away safely? Or will they be caught? What will their plan be? What will Shaun and Emily think about their friends eye change? Will you ever get the answer to these questions? Will my writers block go? On that subject, i'm writing another story which I've spoken about before called "The Seeker Among Us". If you haven't guessed already, it's not about wolves, but werewolves, my favourite mythical beasty. I might stick to that a bit, it's something i really want to do for personal reasons. But then again, i'm known for doing one story at a time, so i'll stick to this. Until next time. :D