1/10/16
Chapter 3
Maddy shuffled behind her parents, the cold biting at her extremities. Sniffling from the extreme temperatures outside, she wiped her nose with the back of her hand. She regretted having forgotten her gloves in her bedroom, her fingers starting to turn numb from the harsh mountain environment. Given her room was a mess, it wasn't farfetched to believe she couldn't keep track of her clothes, such as her gloves. Maddy hugged herself as the wind pushed her toward the direction her parents were moving. The woods.
They had traveled about half hour, maybe forty-five minutes, away from town. They parked at the bottom lot in a discreet location that hid their car from the Elk Ridge Resort's security team while they performed their drive-by sweeps of the property. Inside the compact, royal blue Chevy Malibu was a tripod and telescope. They also had some duffle bags stuffed with old newspaper to look full, and paperwork with maps of the stars piled behind the driver's seat. That was one thing Maddy often laughed about while sitting in the backseat; her parents adjusting to driving on the right of the road with the steering wheel on the left side.
It was all a ruse, though. Much like her life at school. Her parents were meticulous, having a reason for everything they did. It was overwhelming to continuously lie to all the townspeople and generate stories to justify their behavior. Maddy has secretly started recording them in a notebook and reading them every few days to ensure she was still able to remember all the details.
As one of the Segolia agents, Dacia, advised them the day she dropped them off at the freighter, "The best alias is one that is detailed enough to be believable, but not so detailed that you are able to be tangled in your own web."
Once inside the forest's dense coverage, Maddy felt warmer . . . safer. Her father planned the trip so they could travel deep into the woods before the full moon appeared that night. Her parents explained to the landlord, who had once inquired where they were heading out at such an hour, that Emma was taking a sabbatical from teaching at a university to help Maddy straighten her life out. They claimed Emma was a professor in Astronomy and so to continue her research, she would use the opportunity of no light pollution to collect data. Emma's false career bought them some time until they could figure out something else to describe their need to leave late at night and not return until morning.
When the landlord questioned why Maddy was tagging along, Dan explained that it was an interest of Maddy's, and while they didn't agree with her staying out all night long, given the academic interest, they acquiesced.
The down side to this fabrication, is to draw attention away from the real night they had to leave, the Smiths would travel to a hotel every other week or so and stay the night. To not arouse suspicion, they chose a few different hotels to shuffle through. And yes, Dan and Emma had also created stories for their hotel stays too. Hence, the significance of the notebook.
Careful to move parallel to the ski trails, they crept through the snow covered woods. "Eh, what's wrong?" Emma asked.
"Ah, it's nothing. I . . ." Maddy scrunched up her face, debating with herself is she should say anything or not. "I got in a fight with this guy, Robert."
Immediately, Emma touch her daughter's arm so she would look at her. "Does he know or suspect – "
"No, it's not about that." Maddy shook her head and grimaced. A small part of her regretted saying anything. "I yelled at him because he wouldn't leave me alone."
"What do you mean?"
Maddy looked closely at her mom and could see Emma was having difficulty following Maddy's logic. "I . . . he . . . he was just always around and asked a bunch of questions – like small talk stuff, and then he stopped this girl from starting a fight with me over something so stupid . . . I could have taken care of it myself." Maddy looked at her mom and still received a confused look back.
"Sounds like he was just trying to be friendly."
"No! He was being . . . he was being a pain!" Maddy defended. "I don't need friends. I have friends."
"Friends that are thousands of miles away and that you can't see or talk to," Emma pointed out, hugging herself tightly as a cool wind moved passed them. Emma had elected to grow out her hair to help bring some "newness" to her image, help further personify their family goal of a clean slate. Her shoulder length hair was spilling from the confines of her coat's hood, impairing her ability to see her daughter.
"They're still my friends!" Maddy huffed, failing to come up with further points to support her claim that she didn't need friends.
"I'm not saying they're not your friends. But, you don't have to punish yourself. You can have friends here too. Just keep some healthy distance." Emma tilted her head a little to see Maddy better from the faux fur edges of her hood.
Maddy was quiet. "I'm not . . ." The rest of her thought died on her tongue, mostly because she couldn't deny her mother's words. Maddy was punishing herself for what happened. For weeks, she had spent the minutes right before falling asleep to replay all her careless actions that inevitably led to her family fleeing from England. For starters, she should have stayed away from the old tunnel system and Liam. She should have let Rydian stay with his family and Jana . . . let them return to the wild where he could be safe. And she should have accepted that Wolfbloods are meant to keep hidden and never told Tom or Shannon about her and Rhydian. In spite of her parents' constant reminding that it wasn't her fault, Maddy hung tight to the guilt and self-blame.
"So, what am I supposed to do? Robert hates me."
"Apologize. People – even Wolfbloods – make mistakes." Emma trudged ahead to catch up to her husband who had stopped to double check his navigation. They needed to be far enough away to be safe from humans (essentially people staying at the resort).
As she watched Emma point to a map that Dan had unfolded from the back of his jean pocket, she turned over her mother's words, especially the last part. 'Yeah, even Wolfbloods make mistakes,' she thought.
-Wolfblood-
It felt good to be able to run and let the wind carry away the human burdens of school, friendships, and lies. Maddy jumped over a rotting log. She happily tossed up some snow with her muzzle, watching it rise in a cloud of white dust. Maddy barked with excitement, flexing her toes and feeling the earth's natural energy flow. She felt more alive – more aware of her surroundings – every strand of fur seemed to tingle. Maddy considered this the result of tonight being a blue moon. Her first blue moon. But her parents didn't seem impacted by the blue moon, so Maddy retracted her original thought. It must be the freedom of being in wolf form. Changing always felt natural and cathartic. Wolves didn't face the same type of trivial matters humans did.
Maddy looked both ways, searching for any signs of animal activity. Nothing. A small whimper slipped from her lips. It was soon replaced with the cries of playfulness as Dan rolled his daughter, inciting a small sparring match.
The fun didn't last long as Maddy grew restless and drove further up the mountain. She had been warned to stay within a small radius until they could investigate more, but Maddy kept moving up the hill, weaving between the hefty trunks of the large spruce trees and burly shrubs.
At last, she found what she had been looking for, a small peak that overlooked a good portion of the woods on the other side of the ski trails. Maddy cut through the silence with a long, wailing howl. Quiet. Maddy breathed heavy, her eyes scouring for any signs of other Wolfbloods. Maddy turned her head to see her parents come behind her.
Dan snarled, commanding Maddy to be quiet. This was neither the place nor time. Emma watched uncomfortably as the two had a standoff of sorts. The pack order had changed since Maddy and her family had fled. Dan had become the Alpha and Maddy was following as their cub again. Maddy looked at her father, knowing she needed to turn back and retreat from her current spot. But what if . . .
Maddy howled again. It was sad and desperate. It was also cut short. Dan roughly shoved Maddy, knocking her off balance and to the ground. As shocked as Maddy was, she could see the hurt in her father's eyes as Maddy had disobeyed a direct order. Not only as her father, but as the Alpha. In a large pack, her disobedience could have her ostracized from the pack. To be the Omega, ostracized Wolfblood, was to bring shame to the immediate family, be supplied less rations, lose rank title, and be a dependant. Except for the elderly and very young, to depend on others to survive was a horrible fate to have bestowed on any Wolfblood. It was a sign of weakness. Dan snapped at Maddy to get moving and head back down the hill.
Maddy hung her head, padding down the hill as Dan led the way with Emma in tow. Maddy twirled around and stopped. She narrowed her eyes trying to see what her ears could hear racing toward them. The scent she soon discovered brought to light the horrific truth. Rustling of the bushes could have been easily mistaken as the wind or small critter if the individual was human, but not for a Wolfblood. Before she could react, Maddy was wrestled to the ground. Her small frame was overshadowed by a large Wolfblood, snarling down at her. His teeth were bared and Maddy could see the bubbles of foam pooling at the edges of his bottom lip. Dan leapt forward, the fur on his neck sticking up. Emma was by his side barking for them to let their daughter go. Maddy's howl had been heard, but not welcomed by any means.
-Wolfblood-
Time stood still as two more wolves came into sight and flanked the one who had pinned Maddy to the ground. Maddy could barely breathe, or think for that matter. The adult male was enraged to find three Wolfbloods encroaching on their territory. The Smiths were at the mercy of the native Wolfbloods. It was a violation of Wolfblood law to trespass on another pack's territory. Some would let you go, some would fine you, and some gave the ultimate sentence . . .death. Though, killing a Wolfblood for trespassing was very rare. Segolia might interfere if they learned about it and felt it was unjustified, so many packs did not pursue that avenue of punishment.
Segolia, however, was hundreds of miles away, and may not even be seen as a viable authority to these Wolfbloods. Segolia was not a formal representation of all Wolfbloods, mostly tame ones.
Maddy whimpered, trying to wriggle free. Finally, the leader stepped back for Maddy to crawl to her family. The Smiths were warned to never return or the highest level of punishment would be enacted. This was their territory and they were not welcoming strays.
-Wolfblood-
The sun rose slowly over the trees, like the ones on holiday greeting cards. Yet, it was anything but peaceful. The Smiths emerged from the woods and walked across the empty parking lot to their car. The entire walk back through the forest was silent. The youngest Wolfblood followed quietly behind her parents. As they stepped on the pavement of the empty parking lot, Emma turned around and faced Maddy.
"What were you thinking?" Emma pulled the hood of her coat back. For once, it wasn't snowing outside and there was nothing to distort the pain and betrayal her mother's face expressed.
"I just . . ." Maddy looked away, she had been scolding herself the entire return trip down the mountain.
Dan had been always the one to mediate between the two females, but not this time. Maddy watched her father continue to the car, never once turning around to understand the situation unfolding behind him. Maddy and her father had a very strong bond, and now she had jeopardized that for something that didn't exist – a pack to belong.
"Maddy, you could have been severely injured, or possibly killed." Emma's voice was teetering on crying. The shock of that night's events starting to dissipate, Maddy realized the true severity of the situation she placed herself and her family in. And worst, no one would even know what happened to them. They would become like her Great Uncle William, a lost Wolfblood spirit.
"It's just . . ." Maddy blinked back the tears. "I thought, maybe, we could find others like us."Emma shook her head as if pushing aside her current desire to reprimand her daugther, and pulled Maddy into a hug. For the first time, Maddy cried, truly cried; letting the feeling of abandonment and loss purge themselves with each passing sob. Dan rubbed his hand down his face, seeing the two females take solace in each other. Dan sighed and waltzed over to his family. He closed his arms around his wife and daughter and squeezed gently.
"I'm sorry, Dad," she apologized, her voice muffled as she had her face pressed into her mother's coat. The family stayed that way for a while.
Dan finally released his family. Maddy and Emma separated to all look at each other. "It's all right, Maddy. I know it's hard. I feel it too. But, you need to understand that we're the strangers, the wanderers," her father explained. Dan had crossed his arms over his chest and looked sternly at his daughter.
Maddy nodded and wiped a few trailing tears from her face. Maddy also knew her father placed a lot of the responsibility on his own shoulders. He believed that his carelessness led to becoming complacent and feeling that no one would find out about them in England. The chew that he left in their den was the nail in the coffin and Dan never let that go.
"Come on, you still have school." Dan was heading back to the car already, eager to get home and eat.
Emma held Maddy back from leaving. "You are not to return here. We will work to find different grounds to change. This place is off limits. Do you hear me?"
Maddy's chest tightened. She had found other Wolfbloods. Since that moment, she had been formulating ways to be part of the pack. Now her mother was telling her to lock them up and keep them as nothing more than ideas. "What about friends, though? We could – "
"Maddy, no." Her mother pointed commandingly with her finger at her daughter. "This is not like Stonybridge. They are not going to accept us like we did Rhydian." Maddy squirmed a little at the mention of his name. "Make your pack at school – with the humans. Understood?"
Maddy furrowed her eyebrows, clearly not in agreement with her mother's rules, but she knew that arguing would get her nowhere. They were protecting her and that meant keeping her away from here. Maddy nodded, "Yah, I understand."
Emma release her grip on Maddy. "Yah? Okay." She started walking toward her husband, the wind picking up again. "Oh, and knock it off with all the detentions! This is supposed to be a new start." She warned. Dan started the car, letting the heat fill the small vehicle as he waited for the two women to catch up.
Maddy kicked a small pebble as she made her way across the empty lot. "Right. Make a pack with humans. Humans, that I don't get along with, except for two of them. And one of them isn't talking to me right now. Oh, and stop being my new self, and be more like my old self without being my old self all together. Could this get any worse?"
-Wolf Blood-
Maddy walked through the halls in a stupor, having been mentally preparing herself all night to talk to Robert. She rehearsed responses and different ways the conversation could meander, just in case. The halls at school seemed more crowded than usual, which meant that failure would only present an opportunity for bigger humiliation.
Maddy finally found the person she was looking for and stopped beside his locker. It had been a week since they had last talked and the aloneness she felt all week culminated in that one moment.
Robert stopped piling books on the top shelf of his locker and raised a single eyebrow at her. No greeting or cheeky comment for her. Maddy closed her eyes and collected her thoughts. "I'm sorry." She exhaled and looked for a reaction.
Robert leaned against his locker and stared at her expectantly. He wasn't going to make this easy. Maddy gulped. She wasn't sure how to continue. She hadn't practiced apologizing to him, and his not responding at all. This type of reaction most definitely threw her.
Maddy looked down at the speckled tile floor and then back up at him. She was the epitome of a puppy with her tail between her legs. And sadly, she really had all the apologizing to do. "I was a world class jerk and I'm sorry."
Robert pushed himself off the wall of lockers and roughly dropped a couple of books into his satchel. Maddy could feel her heartbeat rising and a knot tightening in her stomach. She was starting to feel sick and woozy. She should have chosen a day that wasn't a Dark Moon to ask his forgiveness. "Maddy, I want to forgive you, but I need to know why you just freaked out like that. What's up? I mean . . ."
Before he could continue, Veronica appeared beside him, her hand delicately perched on his shoulder. "Let's go Robert. We've got gym class next. Walk with me?" It was disguised as a question that was really more a command. She hooked her arm with his and swept him away. Maddy closed his locker for him and watched them leave.
She nearly jumped out of her skin when Ling walked up beside her so quietly that it was as if she just appeared from nowhere. "Ready?" she inquired. Ling was dressed in black and yellow plaid dress slacks, a yellow sweater with a yellow bow perched on her head. Maddy was dressed in black jeans with rips at the knees, a grey hoodie with a wolf howling at the moon, and matching fake eyebrow ring. Maddy's low rise converse that were dirty at the toe part and the laces sloppily tied was a stark difference to the well polished black flats Ling wore. They looked out of place standing next to each other, and everyone treated them as outcasts, so why did Robert thinks she was so special?
-WolfBlood-
"Smith, could you at least pretend to give a damn about my class!" Ms. Dupree hollered from across the gym. Ms. Dupree was a tall, thin woman that was unmarried and seemed uninterested in the idea. She was dressed in a baggy sweat suit that provided no indication to the well-toned body hidden underneath.
Maddy rolled her eyes. She wanted to call Ms. Dupree several unsavory names, but given the lecture she received from her parents a few days prior, she rescinded the thought. "I really wasn't into sports at my old school," she respond with instead.
"Shocker." Ms. Dupree turned away, almost twirling on her toes like a ballerina, and faced the rest of the class gathered. Due to the small class sizes, lack of faculty, and most of all, small amount of space within the school, girls and guys were not separated for physical education (P.E.) class. This meant that unless you were at the level of a pro athlete as a girl, you didn't play much. Maddy moseyed over to where Ling was standing with her lacrosse stick held in front of her like she was able to hide behind it.
"And just when I thought Mr. Nevalle hated me, Ms. Dupree is able to outshine him." Maddy smiled when she heard Ling stifle a laugh. Maddy looked over at Robert and his friends passing the ball to each other as they made their way down the gymnasium floor. She didn't watch for long. No need to punish herself more than she was for screwing up her friendship with him.
"Goal!" Ms. Dupree yelled, blowing her whistle. The point had just been made by Robert and the two teams were back in the center ready to go another round. Ms. Dupree waved the two girls over. "You want a good grade then let's go."
Ling immediately looked concerned and scurried to the centerline. Maddy trudged over to the area everyone else was standing. Robert and she locked eyes for a brief moment before Ms. Dupree blew the whistle. Maddy stood there as her classmates rushed passed her to chase the small, yellow, hard rubber ball. It was a Dark Moon day and all Maddy wanted to do was to go home and sleep. Just changing into her gym clothes felt like a workout. Maddy turned around to see what was happening, and caught Ms. Dupree's glare. She wasn't sure if the woman was mad at her for not playing or mad at herself for not being able to intimidate Maddy into playing.
As the Wolfblood watched different students scramble to get the ball, she was surprised to spot Ling in the middle trying to help their team. Poor Ling, trying to play, like a fish swimming with sharks. Just as Maddy was about to move to a empty corner, she watched Veronica smash into Ling. The petite girl knocked Ling to the ground without any mercy. Maddy looked up to see Ms. Dupree also watching, but nothing was called. No flag. No whistle. Maddy then remembered that Veronica was the captain of the girls' lacrosse team. The very same one that Ms. Dupree coached and led to be district champions. Of course Ms. Dupree wasn't going to position herself to lose the game later that week by disciplining Veronica.
In spite of Veronica's small stature, it was like being hit by a locomotive when you collided with her. Maddy watched Ling on her hands and knees struggling to find her glasses. Ling was blind without them, and looked like she had been banged up pretty good by Veronica. Maddy walked over and slowly dropped down to pick up Ling's glasses for her. Maddy grasped Ling's arm and helped her to her feet. It was clear as Ling rubbed her knees and the one side of her hip that she was hurting from the fall.
Maddy could hear her mother's words floating about in her head. This was her new pack. She needed to be more like her old self. Well, her old self would never let someone push her friends around.
Maddy looked over her shoulder as Veronica scored another point and her team cheered as the continued to decimate their opponent. The young Wolfblood felt her blood rise. She swallowed trying to suppress the anger bubbling within her, but it was like her senses became clouded and floated away from her reach. Maddy growled, the sound reverberating in her throat long and deep.
She was tired, it felt like weights had been tied to her legs, but she continued to move to the centerline. "Move," she ordered one of her classmates. The young man with thick rimmed glasses and retro head band quickly darted to the back of the group, allowing Maddy to step in for the face off. Now Maddy stood face to face with Veronica. The girl smirked, expecting to gain control of the ball immediately and deliver a quick defeat.
Unbeknownst to the lacrosse captain, Maddy didn't care about the ball, the game, or winning. She was taking more than that. She was challenging Veronica for her rank. Maddy flinched for a second at the piercing sound of Ms. Dupree's whistle then watched as Veronica touched back down onto the floor with the ball cradled in her stick's net. Veronica's heels flattened, resulting in the perfect time to act.
Maddy tapped the ball out of its cradle and chucked it to a teammate across the gym. She didn't watch to see if it was caught, her attention had returned completely on her prey. Veronica looked mildly surprised but moved to go after the ball. Maddy grunted through the fatigue and kept pace with Veronica, shuffling to the side and blocking the lacrosse player from passing her.
Everyone else had become stagnant, so entranced by Maddy's sudden talent at lacrosse. The smell of overpowered citrus fruit changed to fear, Maddy picked up on it, causing her to smile. Veronica was afraid. Maddy turned around on her toes like a professional and swiveled passed a student standing between them, and stopped Veronica who thought she had found an escape. Stopping short, Veronica lost her footing.
At that point, an opportunity presented itself to the Wolfblood. Maddy surged forward, dropping her stick. Veronica was no novice, though. She made an effort, connecting a solid punch with Maddy's right cheek. It was painful as the class ring Veronica refused to take off scratched open Maddy's face. The gash was large enough to see, but not painful enough to slow the Wolfblood.
Her wolf howled deep inside, ready to claim her rightful position as Alpha. The girls crashed to the floor, Maddy spread her fingers and scratched Veronica's face, she then curled them back in and connected two punches before she could feel resistance. Ms. Dupree was the inadvertent victim of Maddy's third punch as she tried to separate them. Maddy could feel a knee slam into her left side, and she coughed. Her right hand being held by Doogan, she made a last effort and barely connected with her left hand as Robert forced her to stand, pulling her away. She could hear girls screaming and the boys chanting 'fight, fight, fight!' in the background. A few phones appeared like torches amongst the crowd, recording every second.
As she was being shoved into the girls rooms, the wolf settled and Maddy hit the wall of the girls' locker room like a sack of bricks. The room faded in and out, teetering from side to side. Maddy guided herself to the sinks and splashed some cold water onto her face. She looked into the mirrors, no change in her eyes.
"What happened?" she asked herself. Maddy flexed her fingers as if trying out new gloves. She took an unsteady breath. "I think I'm going to be sick."
The locker room door slammed against the peach colored concrete walls, almost dislocating it from its hinges. "Smith!" Ms. Dupree stared down at her student in absolute fury. Maddy backed herself up against the steel sinks as Ms. Dupree rushed at her and firmly grabbed her arm and dragged her from the privacy of the locker room.
Maddy was on her tip toes the entire trip to the office, Ms. Dupree holding her up slightly. She was released harshly onto the wooden bench outside the administrative office and instructed not to move. Ms. Dupree paced back and forth and then stood in front of Maddy.
Maddy's head was pounding, her hands and gums hurt like the night before her first transformation. Her side from where Veronica connected her knee throbbed. Maddy tried to focus, she felt her teeth press into each other, changing into sharp fangs. 'This is impossible, you can't change on Dark Moon days,' she kept reminding pressed her lips together, the room started to tip to the left and then to the right. The halls felt like a sauna, the vents suddenly pumping immense amounts of steam. Maddy knew she needed to calm down, Ms. Dupree had been talking the entire time, but Maddy couldn't hear a word. It felt as if wads of cotton had been jammed into her ears. She gripped the bench seat trying to prevent herself from tipping forward.
Just as she was about to surrender to the whatever it was clawing to come out, she heard his voice. She was back in Stonybridge. The fire alarm had been pulled and the shuffling of feet could be heard as students moved to the designated safe spot outside. Next to her was Rhydian, his green tie hanging loosely because he refused to use the clip Mrs. Vaughn bought him or contain it inside the vest his adoptive father gave him. "Maddy, it's over. Okay? Keep calm. Deep breaths."
Maddy took comfort in his voice and eventually his words became true. Though, when she opened her eyes, she found Ms. Dupree staring back at her and not him. Ms. Dupree was balancing on the balls of her toes, squatting like a catcher ready for a the baseball game to start. She didn't look angry. Instead she looked mischievously at her. Maddy was confused. She didn't remember anything her gym teacher had said. Maddy knew that asking Ms. Dupree to paraphrase the long diatribe would probably make things worse, so she just stared back.
"I said, you are looking at being expelled from Tall Skies High. You're done . . . What? No reaction." Ms. Dupree stopped, letting the words sink in.
Maddy looked down at the tips of her white generic gym sneakers. She couldn't believe her family would need to move again because of her. The idea of having to tell her parents this started to make the room spin again. "Ms. Dupree . . ."
"There is a way to save yourself, though." Ms. Dupree smiled, but Maddy had seen that smile before on the children's programs she used to watch on Saturday mornings. It was the smile that villains would glean before explaining their insidious plot to their captive. "For someone who's never played school sports, you're very talented. Able to keep up and take out my captain – my best player. I want that talent on my team. The other schools are improving against all my wishes. With you, I can bring home districts, maybe even states."
"Oh, I'm not – " Maddy wanted to use her hands to emphasize her declining the offer, but was afraid to let go of the bench.
"I'm not asking. Expelled or lacrosse." Ms. Dupree stood slowly and rolled her ankles. The length of staying that way in disagreement with her joints.
"That's . . . that's not fair!" Maddy was horrified. She was caught between a rock and hard place. They both knew it.
"I like to think of it as suggestive initiative." Ms. Dupree smiled and handed her a lacrosse jersey she had been holding behind her back. "Be smart about this, Smith."
Ms. Dupree walked inside the office, leaving Maddy to ruminate on the options given her. Maddy sat there for awhile, swaying slightly back and forth. She couldn't make her mom and dad uproot again. Segolia may not be able or want to relocate them. This technically had nothing to do with exposing their Wolfblood secret. Not anything Maddy could prove anyway.
"Just take it." Maddy looked up to see Robert leaning against the wall. "She's offering you a way out."
"I . . ." Maddy couldn't form a thought, let alone a sentence. She rested her head in the hands and breathed loudly. When hinted by her queasy stomach to return her hands to the bench for support, she found Robert sitting next to her.
"Maddy, you're in serious trouble. Fighting . . . You knocked some of her teeth loose and scratched her face like a ravenous animal. Maddy pointed to her left side that were still stinging from Veronica's knee, but she never was able to do more as Robert stopped her. "Veronica may not be as wealthy as me, but she has enough money to make trouble for you. Just – "
The office door opened, and the secretary Maddy remembered from her first day poked her head out. She curled her pointer finger in a way of requesting the Wolfblood to follow inside. Maddy carefully rose and when she felt steady, walked inside to the principal's office.
-Wolfblood-
Mr. Larson wore a sports coat with patches at the elbows. It was old and a little faded in places that showed constant wear: the edges of the sleeves, the collar, and crease at the elbows. He was creeping towards middle age, but he looked at least ten years younger. No reconstructive surgery, just genetics. He had a full head of hair that was more pepper than salt, and cream colored teeth from someone who cares enough to brush but not enough to whiten them. He was very nice, actually. Maddy had been ordered to his office a handful of times and each time, Mr. Larson welcomed her like it was her first visit. After the third time, Maddy figured it was a combination of his unbending will to see the best in people and the education systems' determination to put forth the philosophy of nurture over nature.
Maddy dropped into one of the two chairs sitting in front of his metal desk with the faux wood top. The wooden chair she chose had uneven leg so it constantly tilted forward and back as a student would shift uncomfortably. Discovering this fun fact, Maddy placed her toe in position to keep it from doing that. No need to annoy the man that was her judge, jury, and executioner.
"Maddy, Maddy, Maddy. I want to understand your trouble with the students of this school. I have no doubt that moving is stressful. Leaving your family and friends in England I'm sure was heartbreaking, but with today's technology and travel, it will not be forever. I promise." He clasped his hands together and then brought them to his mouth as if almost praying for a solution to her behavior problems. "I know you are better than this. I know that you are secretly very smart, too. So, why are you getting into fights at school?"
Maddy opened her mouth but she couldn't form any words. What was she to tell him? She couldn't even really explain it herself. On a Dark Moon day, she was inexplicably able to access her wolf-self and do things that would normally force her to pass out from exhaustion.
Maddy just sat there and looked down. While it felt satisfying to put the lacrosse captain in her place, Maddy also clearly understood she may have jeopardized everything her parents worked to set up for them.
"Since Veronica was immediately sent home to attended to the . . . consequences of your confrontation . . ." Maddy knew he was sugarcoating it. Veronica had been swept up by her mother and father in a fashion that almost seemed like she was hanging on to life by a thread. Maddy knocked a few of those perfect teeth loose and made a few bruises and scratches. She didn't dismember her.
"I tried contacting your father and mother, but I was not able to reach them." Maddy rolled her eyes. No one could reach her parents, they were probably sleeping. "Before I make any decisions, I want to give you an opportunity to explain your side of the story." Maddy looked at him perplexed. She knew in most any school that fighting was not tolerated and was often punishable by suspension for first time offenders and expulsion for repeat offenders.
What is he trying to get at? It's like he's fishing for something. Maddy looked to the right of Mr. Larson and spotted Ms. Dupree eyeing her expectantly. Were they both in on this?
As if sensing her apprehension, Mr. Larson spoke, "I understand from speaking with Ms. Dupree that this was not started by you and was a result of some sport related jealousy?"
Maddy looked up, her jaw slightly slack in shock. She couldn't couldn't be sure if Mr. Larson was a willing participate Ms. Dupree's scheme or just a pawn, but Maddy suddenly understood what had happened between the fight and her entering the principal's office. Ms. Dupree took the opportunity of Veronica insisting she need to be taken to urgent care and not speaking to Mr. Larson first, to make up a story that shined a favorable light on Maddy. She was willing to sacrifice the ability to have her captain play at the big game this week to gain Maddy as a player in the long run.
Maddy could feel her heart racing and her palms start to sweat. This was it . . . be expelled or be a lacrosse player. Maddy held the lacrosse jersey Ms. Dupree had given her minutes ago, and showed Mr. Larson the red short sleeved shirt that had the number 01 on the back. Ironic, she was number one on the team – the Alpha – but this time she didn't want it.
She laid the uniform top on her lap, and swallowed loudly to keep from screaming in frustration. "I joined the lacrosse team today and Veronica felt threatened. We butted heads over being on the team and our positions. End of story." Maddy felt like she wanted to vomit. She placed her hand over her mouth to hold her disgust down. Ms. Dupree smiled and suggested their punishment each be a week of out of school suspension. This was perfect – for Ms. Dupree. The team would only have to sacrifice two games without their star players and still be able to fit in some practice before the playoffs started.
-Wolfblood-
Maddy was sitting on her bed holding the jersey in her lap, replaying the day's events in her mind. She sighed. She showed her parents the sports jersey at dinner after being lectured for fighting in school and the resulting suspension. She kept up the charade of Ms. Dupree's version of the fight, since that was the version relayed to them by Mr. Larson. It also made Maddy seem the victim instead of the instigator. A part of her felt a wave of guilt wash over her, she hadn't lied to her family often and if she did, it was harmless; usually to sneak away with Rhydian and Jana. She moved to the wall length mirror and pulled the sports jersey over her head. Maddy turned from side to side. It felt wrong.
"Hey." Maddy stopped spinning and looked about the room. The voice was just slightly over a whisper. She thought it was coming from the television set in the living room that her parents were watching.
"Hey!" Maddy walked over to her bedroom window that led to the terrace. She pressed her ear to the cold window pane, wincing at the icy sting of the freezing glass.
"Hey!" It was easy to believe the person was trying to be discreet as it was a yell without being one. Maddy opened her window and climbed onto the terrace. Maddy stepped out cautiously and walked to the edge where the metal escape ladder was anchored. The young Wolfblood looked over the side of the wall and spotted Robert standing below. Robert was standing with his hands in his pockets. It was bitterly cold, their breath proof as it swirled up into the night sky with each exhale.
"Hey." He was bouncing on his toes, trying to keep warm. "Can we talk?" Maddy looked behind her to see if any lights had been switched in her parents' bedroom as it also shared access to the terrace. It was safe.
Maddy nodded and then jerked her head in a manner that he should follow. She hopped back inside her room, holding herself close. Robert was soon seen climbing over the edge of the balcony wall and tip-toeing to her window. Once inside, Robert gently closed the window to stop any further heat from leaking to the outside. Maddy and Robert stood in complete silence for several moments.
She had clothes strewn all about the cream colored rug in her bedroom, some pieces hung carelessly from the corners of the bed posts. Since the Smiths couldn't properly pack, Maddy had no pictures or memorabilia of her friends to decorate her walls. In place of those things, she haphazardly positioned a few posters around the space. Each poster was slightly lopsided with one or more of the corners curling into themselves.
"Cold, huh?" He smiled nervously, still wearing his coat and gloves. Maddy could see flecks of snow still holding to the tips of his hair. She smiled and then started to laugh. "I heard you made the lacrosse team. Looks nice." Maddy looked down at the sports jersey and then shot Robert a dirty look. "Hey, you didn't have much of a choice, right? What did you parents say?"
"They think it's great, you know? They think this will be a positive step in the right direction, and stop me from getting into trouble." Maddy leaned against her desk. She looked down at the floor as she spoke. "I kind of feel bad. It's a complete lie."
Robert nodded, understanding the complex situation Maddy worked herself into. "Right . . .well . . . make it a truth. Give a little bit of damn and then it's not really a lie, right?" In a twisted way, his logic made sense. Maddy was touched that he was trying to help her . . . again. He coughed, "You asked if I could forgive you. I can. I just want to know why you were so mad at me?"
"I wasn't. I mean, I was. It's hard to explain." She flopped on her bed, and suddenly noticing how crowded it was with homework and clothes. She closed the books and grabbed the dirty clothes and tossed them on the floor so he had a place to sit. Robert shook his head at the disregard she had for her school work and her personal stuff, and eased himself next to her.
"Okay, I won't push. I'm just glad you had a change of heart. I was really disappointed to find I may lose out on the opportunity to hang out with someone as unique as you."
Maddy tensed and slowly turned to see Robert as cool and collected as he usually was. "Wh-what do you mean? I'm about as ordinary as you get."
"That's not true," he answered, standing to mill about her room. Robert carefully sidestepped different piles of clothes, some discarded dishes, and the collision of school laying at the foot of her bed. He eyed the posters and the different nose rings resting on top of her dresser. "I can just tell that you have some real power behind you – compassion, maybe it's more passion, I guess. You actually do care about others, though." Maddy released the tension that was building in her shoulders and exhaled. She understood that Robert was referring to her persona she showed at school. "You wouldn't have gone after Veronica after she knocked down Ling if you really didn't care," he finished.
"Oh," Maddy said quietly. She contemplated telling Robert more. If they were to be friends, she had to make some type of gesture that she was willing to share with him a little more than outward appearance. "I'm the reason we left England. I messed up. I kept pushing things and I put my friends and Rhydian in danger, and I just . . . I don't want to go through that again." It wasn't the entire truth, but it was enough that it felt genuine both in her head and when she was speaking.
"Whose Rhydian?"
"What?" The questions caught her off guard. She was anticipating him focusing on her blaming herself. Somehow, all he seemed to notice was Rhydian. "Uh, he's . . . um . . . he's a friend." That was the truth – in a way, they had never dated or had the chance to be an "official" couple. They loved each other, but was that enough? Was it enough to surpass all the normal routes of being called a couple? Of not being able to see or talk to each other? She wasn't certain and so she didn't elaborate.
Robert snorted, "No, he's not." He playfully nudged her with his hand. "You wouldn't have singled him out if he was just a friend." He sat sideways in the desk chair facing her. He had his hands in his pockets again, and Maddy surmised it was a nervous habit. "I had one of those. Her name was Samantha. I remember she had a great smile and loved animals." He sighed at his own recollection of an old flame. "It's hard to move forward, but I found after my third time moving when my father bought out a bed and breakfast in Chesapeake that if you shut people out, it will only make things worse."
Maddy fell silent. It seemed to be apparent to everyone – her parents and Mr. Larson – and now Robert, that it was time to accept her new life and move on. It's hard when you know that the people and relationships you are mourning are not really gone, just very far away.
"What's this?" Robert picked up Maddy's journal with all her notes of the different lies she told. It had been left open on her small desk as she had been writing in it earlier.
Maddy snapped out of her reverie and rushed over, snatching it from his hands. She snapped it shut after quickly seeing what page he was reading from. It was the first page, the part where her parents and she had created their back story. "It's nothing," she quickly responded, tossing the notebook aside to feign that she cared very little about it.
"Really? Because it feels like something. It had notes inside. Chem lab explosion?" Robert queried. He stood again, only a couple feet away from her.
"It's my journal." Girls' diaries – journals – whatever, were private and it was a complete violation to read them. Saying it was her diary would dissuade Robert from trying to look at it again.
"Who writes shorthand in their diary?" he asked. He seemed more relaxed, which was the complete opposite of Maddy who could feel sweat starting to form at her hairline.
"I like jotting down thoughts. But . . . I'm not the type of girl . . . to, you know, cry her heart out . . . You said it before, I'm different. Special." She needed him to believe her. He had obviously seen enough to read some of it. Robert leaned against her desk, completely in control of the conversation and knowing it.
"Chem lab explosion?" he pressed, stepping just slightly closer.
Maddy sighed, arching her eyebrow to show her disdain at his persistence. "It was the final straw. What got me expelled from school and essentially condemned to this place. I mixed some chemicals in class when I was warned not to . . . and boom." Robert's eyes grew wide, so Maddy quickly filled in. "No one was really hurt . . . but it did enough damage to the classroom to warrant my getting kicked out."
Robert whistled long and drawn out. "Damn." The room was silent again for a little. "I like this Maddy better. I think others would too." He started to unbutton his coat, the heat in her room starting to overwhelm him.
"What are you talking about?" She crinkled her face like she would when Rhydian would ask her something she should already know. It was adorable, as her mom put one morning back in England, reminding her of a pup learning how to do things for the first time.
"Natural Maddy. The Maddy that doesn't wear dark make up and piercings, or clothes that essentially say "keep away". You take a great deal of effort to cover up something that is beautiful by itself." Maddy pulled a loose strand of hair being her right ear and examined her attire. She had changed into a pair of baggy, comfortable flannels earlier that night and was still wearing the sport jersey. All her make up was removed and piercings off. Her attire was not fashion forward by any means, or even flattering to her body. She was going to question him, but stopped as the door opened.
Emma walked in and stopped as she laid eyes on their house guest. "Oh . . . hello?" she greeted. Maddy wasn't able to determine if her mother genuinely came upon them or if she heard them and had come to investigate. Maddy and Robert created some more distance between each other, suddenly cognizant of the close proximity the two were sharing. Emma fully entered the room, her arms comfortably folded over her chest. Maddy recognized that whether or not her mother came in to see who her daughter was speaking to, she was not pleased there was a boy in her room . . . alone . . . with the bedroom door shut.
"Mum, this is Robert. Robert, this is my mum," Maddy introduced, feeling awkward. Robert tried to be as formal and polite as possible, stepping forward and shaking Emma's hand, bowing his head slightly.
"How are you, Robert?" Emma was cordial as ever, having been raised to be proper in front of company and reprimand in child in private.
Robert started to side step around Emma, moving towards the door. "Perhaps, I should be going." Maddy quickly glanced at her digital alarm sitting on the floor by her bed. It showed it was nearly half past eleven at night. It was late for a school night. Even though, she technically had no school as she was suspended.
Robert made an 'oomph' sound as he backed into Daniel, who was standing in the doorframe. He had followed behind Emma after hearing a group of people talking. Robert turned carefully, and ungracefully stammered a 'hello' and offered his hand. Daniel stood about a few inches taller than Robert and overshadowed him in the light coming from the hall. The overall effect was exactly how any dad would have wanted. Intimidating.
"Hello, Robert." Daniel accepted Robert's hand and shook it firmly. Robert winced for a second as Daniel briefly tightened his grip. Maddy brought her hand to her forehead in exasperation. This was humiliating. "Leaving so soon?"
"Uh, well . . ." Robert made a hand gesture to the digital clock.
"You know we have a door?" It wasn't too difficult for her parents to surmise that Robert had come through the terrace as the front door leads directly into the living room. There would have been no way for Robert to have used the door without being noticed by her parents first.
Robert nervously laughed, clasping his hands together. He quickly placed his gloves on, and began buttoning his coat. "Uh, yes, your door, no I . . ." The rest of his explanation died with his courage. "It's a school night, sir. I – we – should be getting ready for bed – our bed – separately speaking, you know." Robert was inching his way closer to the hall, but it seemed almost like he was pushing through some type of force field and unable to proceed. He turned to Maddy, who cringed as her friend tried to work his way out of a sticky situation. She wanted to help, but anything she said would only be used against him. "I will see you later," he told her. Robert smiled at Maddy and then turned and faced the doorway in which Daniel was still blocking.
"Oh, well let me walk you out." Daniel placed his arm around Robert and guided him down the hall. Maddy could hear her dad still talking to Robert. "I'll even show you the doorbell and how it works," Daniel jested.
As the two female Wolfbloods hung back in Maddy's room, Emma burst with laughter. Maddy shifted her weight to one side and crossed her arms over her chest like her mother did when Maddy was caught sneaking junk food from the pantry. "That's not funny."
Emma brought the back of her hand to her mouth to calm her laughter. "What's not funny is the amount of trouble you are in when your father returns."
Maddy flopped back on her bed and groaned. It was just one thing after another, she thought.
-End Chapter 3
*Thank you for reading. Please leave feedback.*
Side note: thanks to everyone who reviewed and added my story to their favorites/watch list. Not everyone has an account, so unfortunately, I cannot thank you personally. I did want to address some questions left by reviews from last chapter. Please see below.
Guest (12/24/15) - Enarmonios brought to light a very valid point, if Robert were a Wolfblood, Maddy would have smelled him. But I promise, Robert is no ordinary person. More will be revealed about him in upcoming chapters.
I'm still formulating how I want to move forward and reach the next character milestone, but I will make every effort to post something new.
Thanks, Harley