Chapter 4 ~ Line of defence

Okay. I'll admit it - I made a huge mistake. You might be thinking that whatever I had done, it can't be as bad as I'm making it out to be. You might also be wondering what's so bad that I'm delaying the story as much as possible and being as vague as I possibly can about the situation.

Well, it ends with me standing frozen like a dear caught in headlights on the school roof, five crumpled up werewolf bodies around me, Rhys and Scarlett unconscious and fighting for their lives at my feet and multiple police helicopters blocking off my every possible escape route.

Oh, and did I mention that Mr Grayson was currently 'cowering' in front of me while I held the sharp point of his cane at his neck.

Let's backtrack.

My legs carried me up the stairs with no game plan in mind. The only thing I could bare to think about was the eternal debate of 'were the wolves actually following me?' I glanced back again. Nothing. No noise, no footsteps, no scent. Nothing.

A feeling of dread swirled in the pit of my stomach. I don't know what would have scared me more - the fact that they weren't following me, or if they actually were.

Something was definitely wrong. It felt as if I was walking into a trap. Should I keep running or not? It would be better to save my breath so I could run longer when they decided to pop up.

I slowed my pace to a fast walk. My heart pounded as I finally allowed oxygen into my lungs. It felt like I had been holding my breath the whole time, giving a sense of drowning.

Swallowing uncomfortably, I decided to keep travelling upwards. It was probably a smarter idea to go to the ground floor and run as far away as possible, but it just didn't feel right. Where could I go, anyway? It wasn't like Atticus actually wanted me in the first place.

'Just keep going up,' my brain instructed. 'Stay focused.'

A shaky breath left my mouth, and I realised I had never felt like this before. Never once had I felt this scared, this conflicted. For once, I didn't know what to do. I was ... speechless.

Yes, it might be a little hard to believe. But I just didn't know what to do. I didn't know what I could do. There had always been a distinct line of right and wrong up until now. I always knew the good choice (even if I didn't always make it) and the bad choice.

Now? I just couldn't tell you.

I needed help, I realised. From someone wiser, older, more experienced. Because I got the feeling that if I survived this, I would face much harder challenges, and this day would just feel like a walk in the park.

I decided to try my luck. 'Hello?' I called into the deepest depths of my head. My legs carried me up another staircase, leading to the fourth floor. Only one more, and I'd be on the roof.

'Strange stalker guy begging for help? Possibly strange stalker guy's girlfriend, too? Or sister? You guys haven't exactly given me the rundown, so I'm gonna assume you're dating - '

'Oh, heaven's sake, just shut up.' The male voice snapped.

A flicker of anger washed over me, but I reminded myself to play cool. I had the upper hand here, not him or his potential girlfriend. He didn't have the right to snap at me whenever he pleased. I was saving him, after all. It wasn't the other way around.

I cleared my throat, squaring my shoulders and straightening my spine, as if they could see me. 'You're acting a little too cocky for someone who was crying like a baby for me to save him about five minutes ago.'

Cockiness flooded my brain, and, yes it was stupid, but I momentarily forgot about the three wolves chasing me. Instead, I focused all of my attention on trash talking an unknown man in my head.

For a split second, there was no response. Then, I heard the annoyed man sucking his teeth. A grin spread on my face.

'My gods,' the man seemed to be rolling his eyes. 'He's crazy.'

The female voice seemed to be laughing, although I couldn't tell who it was directed at. 'We need his help,' she reminded. 'I'd loosen up on the grouchiness if I were you.'

I decided then and there that I liked the female voice. I'd gladly save her instead of the grumpy stalker guy. Before the male voice could respond, I quickly interjected. 'I need help.'

Neither of the voices spoke. It was like they were trying to hide or pretend they weren't there, but it backfired on them because I could still feel their presence.

'Thanks,' I thought sarcastically. 'Great talk.'

For a second, I didn't think anyone would respond. But I guess the asshole just couldn't resist himself. A quiet, 'You're welcome,' sounded from the back of my mind, followed by a dry snickering sound.

My teeth clenched together hard. I didn't have time for this, I decided. If they wanted to play the silent game, I was gonna play the silent game the next time they asked for my help.

Just as I rounded the corner to go up another staircase, I froze. A million curses raced through my brain, yet none of them left my mouth. My feet were rooted to the ground.

"I must say," the alpha wiped the drool from his mouth with the back of his paw, slowly leaning off of the wall. "I'm a little surprised that you're this dense. Did you not pay attention to your senses? You should've been able to smell us the second you stepped on the first staircase."

The two other wolves pounced down and landed just in front of him, the one that I'd decked with a chair snarling menacingly. Oh, dear. He wanted revenge.

A cold sweat covered my whole body, giving me goosebumps. I tried to take a step back, but my ankle twisted at an uncomfortable angle, and I almost fell backwards down the staircase.

I realised I couldn't take all three of them. That meant I'd have to run again. There was no perfect moment now. All three wolves were slowly advancing in their arrowhead formation and would clean me out with one swipe. I had to run now.

Sending a silent prayer, I spun on my heel, charging blindly back the way I came ... only to slam into someone's chest and fall flat on my back.

How heroic.

Painfully slowly, I raised my gaze up from the carpeted floor. Thick leather boots were right in front of my face, along with the golden end of a cane. As I raised my head further up, I felt the colour draining off of my face more and more.

Mr Grayson glowered down at me, his cold grey eyes glinting in the light. "Mr Wolfe, you've been irritating me a lot more than you should have, considering you've been here less than a month. I think ... " he paused, glancing up at the wolves. "It's time me and my friends get rid of you for good."

From the top step, the alpha scowled. "I'm in charge of this mission, not you, Elsa. My boys wouldn't fight with your sorry excuse of a swordsman willingly."

Rolling his eyes, Mr Grayson rolled up his cuffed sleeves. "Hush now, Gregory. You're making us look unprofessional in front of our client."

Gregory?

Despite the danger I was in, I couldn't help but snort at the highly intimidating name for a top-quality alpha wolf.

I immediately regretted it when Mr Grayson's cane slammed down on my temple. Wincing, I tried to move my head, but Mr Grayson pressed down harder.

"How intriguing." Mr Grayson squinted down at me, and I tried hard not to flinch under his gaze. "Your eyes ..." He seemed to be lost in thought.

Gregory continued rambling in the background, clearly annoyed about him not being the main bad guy. After a couple of seconds, Mr Grayson turned to the wolf with an irritated glare. "I suggest you keep those fangs closed unless you want me to rip them out - "

I stole my chance. The second Mr Grayson's eyes left me, I lunged for his cane, yanking hard with both hands. Obviously startled, Mr Grayson didn't have much time to react.

Scrambling to my feet, I tightly held the cane in both hands and swung at my English teacher. But something strange happened.

As I swung, the bottom of the cane seemed to click off like some kind of cap. A sharp edge sprouted out, glinting bronze before my eyes. I realised, with a start, that it was a concealed blade.

The point of the cane-sword thing sliced Mr Grayson's left eye, leaving a thick, bloody line. The man howled in pain, clutching his eye with both hands.

Still holding the cane, I spun around, narrowly avoiding one of the wolves' claws. I rose my right hand, slicing upwards with the cane. The blade passed through him in one clean strike, dropping him to the floor instantly.

I lept up the stairs towards the remaining two wolves, using the cane to propell myself forward.

You might be wondering why I didn't just run down the stairs instead of going up towards my attackers. You'd think it would be the safer option, but I knew I wouldn't stand a chance trying to run from the alpha now.

I had a sinking feeling that they had been going easy on me the whole time, playing with their prey before they killed it.

And I was the prey.

The orange-eyed wolf lunged. I ducked, spearing the blade into his chest, only just missing the heart.

A scowl appeared on my face, but I knew if I got angry, my attacks would get less and less precise to the point where I'd just be blindly swinging.

I rolled to the right, using the railing to steady myself. My knees crashed hard on the two different steps that I had dropped onto, but I brushed off the pain.

The alpha, Gregory, rolled his neck. ''You've done well, pup. Despite that, I'm afraid your journey ends here."

Let me tell you one thing : fighting on the stairs is not ideal. Not only is it an uneven surface, but you're also in serious danger of falling over the edge of the railing. And, considering the door to the roof was about ten steps away, we were pretty high up. I knew I wouldn't survive that fall.

The alpha lunged, claws extended. He was faster than the others, and I wasn't expecting that. His claws scraped my cheek, his little finger only just missing my eye.

I tried to swing with the cane, but he anticipated it. His large paw grabbed hold of the cane, ripping it from my hands and tossing it elsewhere.

This was the point that I knew I was screwed. Weaponless and alone, facing an alpha wolf.

Get to the roof, the male voice ordered.

I resisted the urge to say, 'Look who decided to show up,' and instead tried to follow his instructions. It was starting to annoy me how he just suddenly pops in, orders me around, and then vanishes when I tried to ask questions.

A pair of claws almost took my head off. Not giving me a chance to react, the other hand swiped at my neck. I launched myself forward, trying to grab the top step with my hand.

My fingertips brushed against the side, only millimetres away from pulling me to safety. Sharp claws dug into my calf, slowly dragging me back down the stairs.

It reminded me of a scene from a horror movie, although I couldn't quite remember which one. All I knew was that the character died in exactly the same position I was in now.

The cold snickering from the wolf prevented me from thinking of an escape plan. I couldn't think straight with his cackling from behind me as he pulled me right into my awaiting doom.

On your left, the female voice advised.

Huh? I struggled to look to the left as my body continued to be dragged down the stairs. My head smacked up and down against the stairs as I was roughly being pulled. My eyes scanned the left side, which looked nothing more than a plain wall.

Look up, genius.

I really didn't have time to snap back at the male voice. My eyes travelled just above the hand-railing to see my ticket out of here.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye, pup." The alpha tightened his hold on my leg. "Maybe you'll reunite with your friends in the afterlife."

"Maybe you'll be the one figuring that one out." I told him.

With my spare leg, I pushed off of the step, stretching forward with my arms as far as I could. My left hand firmly grabbed hold of the railing.

It was a straight battle between strengths as the alpha tried to pull me downwards and I tried to keep hold of the banister and pull my body the slightest bit upwards.

"Give up, pup. You'll never beat me."

My muscles trembled as I pushed them to their absolute limits. It felt like they were getting stretched and torn apart from multiple directions, which was not a very comfortable experience.

Gregory pulled harder. I thought for sure that he'd yank my leg out of its socket before either of us got anywhere. For some strange reason, I was matching him in strength.

I clenched my teeth together. C'mon, I thought. Do you really want to die in this place? They wouldn't even care to bury your body, not like anyone would attend your funeral anyway.

The calluses on my palm started to burn. My grip loosened the slightest, but it was enough for the wolf to gain the upper hand.

"They really were wrong about you." Gregory seemed to be smirking, although I couldn't be a hundred percent sure as my back was turned on him. ''You really are just a sad little orphan. If I were your Mommy or daddy, I'd leave you, too."

White rage filled my body. I lost all sense of rationality in my brain. I saw red. My body went numb. A rage-filled scream left my mouth, however as the sound reached my ears, it sounded more like a howl.

My bones creaked, and a newfound strength flooded my body. My eyes burned. Another howl left my mouth. I could feel my lower jaw jutting out, my teeth growing sharper and longer.

I could suddenly hear the creaky first-floor supply closet door opening. The sound of my classmates moving around to their next class felt louder now, almost closer to me. I turned my gaze, looking downwards.

Just like before, my eyes seemed to zoom in. I saw the cafeteria on the ground floor. Someone had ripped the door straight off of the wall, leaving me with a clear view.

Serenity and Rhys stood close together, obviously scared and panicking as the other two wolves closed in on them.

Somehow, I got even angrier. I snapped my attention back to escaping. My hands had grown slightly, and my fingernails had extended to sharp claws.

But I couldn't bare myself to think about any of that now. I stretched upwards, my left hand scraping the protective glass of my escape ticket.

Retracting my fist, I slammed it as hard as I could onto the fire alarm.

The sound deafened my ears, but I pushed through it. My eardrums vibrated as I slipped from Gregory's grip and charged towards the roof.

This fight was far from over.