Chapter 7: Animal Control

Nessie

I stood standing there for a few seconds feeling numb. I was scared and didn't know what to do. I shook my head. I had to act normal. If I didn't go soon Jacob would come looking for me and know something was up.

So I started walking in the direction that our theater was located. Right away I spotted Jacob and Valerie. Both of them carrying a trays full of popcorn, soda, and candy. How Jacob was able to hold all of that plus Dylan's carrier was a mystery to me. Something seemed off about Jacob and he looked upset.

"Is something wrong?" I asked him.

He shook his head. "Not at all. Come on. Let's go watch the movie,"

I didn't really believe him but I decided not to press the matter further. I hesitated for a second as I remembered David's warning about spending more time with Jacob.

No. I had to act normal. The truth was I wanted to be around Jacob. I felt drawn to him in a way that I could not understand. I knew it sounded crazy since we'd only just met but I couldn't explain it.

When Jacob grabbed my hand my heart all but melted. Again though I was taken aback by how hot his hand was. His skin was scorching hot. Earlier I'd asked him if he had a fever but he quickly denied it. I was even more surprised to discover that Valerie's skin was just as hot as her father's. Jacob wasn't the least bit worried about it when I brought it up to him.

Despite my earlier encounter with David I was able to enjoy the movie. My heart skipped a beat when Jacob grabbed my arm. It felt as if an electric current passed between us. An effect that was amplified when the theater got dark.

Even when the movie was over Jacob didn't say much. After the movie was over we headed home together. As soon as he saw Elsa I could see the look of absolute shock appear on his face.

I shook my head. These people. I may not have been the smartest girl around since I never had much formal schooling. But even I knew about the existence of identical twins. Everyone bought the story until now that is. No logical person would see two people who look alike and automatically think clone.

I was tired from the morning and decided to go upstairs and take a nap. I took Dylan up with me. My son was already fast asleep. My poor baby was also tired from the morning.

I fell asleep with my son at my side. I didn't wake up until I heard him crying. I changed his diaper. It was still a nice day out and I wanted to spend some more time outside.

I got Dylan and decided to go for a walk outside. It was very quiet out there in the woods. So when a wolf appeared out of nowhere I was startled. It was the same abnormally large gray wolf pup that I had seen this morning. She was alone this time. The reddish brown wolf was nowhere to be seen.

The wolf walked up to us. Her tail was wagging. I couldn't resist the urge to pet her. She licked Dylan and he laughed. It was then that I heard a bullet headed our way. It struck the wolf pup on the side. She squealed but other than that she didn't appear to be in much pain.

Then another one hit her and another one. "Get away from that animal!" a man with a uniform that read animal control appeared.

"What?"

"Back away from that animal!"

The gray wolf pup was walking funny now. It had been a tranquilizer dart that she'd been hit with then. Not a regular bullet.

"What did you do to her?!" I panicked. I began to run toward the wolf. Although deep down I knew that there wasn't anything I could do to help her.

"She was about to attack you and your baby!"

"No she wasn't!"

"We've been receiving reports of huge wolves in the area. Now this one was about to attack-"

"She wasn't going to attack anyone!"

"you and your baby," he continued as if he hadn't said anything at all. "So we have to take her into the shelter where this will be dealt with appropriately,"

"What does that mean exactly?" I asked her.

"She will be put to sleep upon arrival,"

No. This couldn't happen. I couldn't let them destroy this beautiful animal. She looked at me pleasingly. I wanted to cry. I felt hopless as several animal control officers lifted the poor animal and carried her away. I followed them and saw her being loaded into a vehicle.

I just stood there for a few minutes unable to move. Then I finally found the strength to walk again. Jacob was there when I got home again. I overheard him talking to Bella but I wasn't paying much attention to what he was saying.

"Nessie have you seen Valerie? She's been gone for the last hour,"

"No I haven't seen her,"

He looked worried. "It's not like her to just disappear like that,"

"I'm sure you'll find her Jacob," Bella said. "Maybe she's just taking a walk through the woods,"

"I was just there and I didn't see her. I only saw animal control,"

"What would animal control be doing in the woods?" Bella asked.

"They got reports of large wolves in the area. They got one of them. A gray wolf pup,"

"What?" Jacob asked suddenly alarmed.

"They shot a gray wolf pup with a tranquilizer dart right in front of me. They thought she was going to attack Dylan and I. They took her away. Said they were going to put her to sleep as soon as they got to the shelter,"

"WHAT?!" Jacob roared so loudly that the house seemed to shake. Jacob's whole body shook uncontrollably.