Chapter 40: The Visit and The Hunt.

CALEB. 'I know she's not just a friend. So tell me, who is she?" Aunt Georgina questioned the moment we steered clear of Helena. 'She's just a friend. Get rid of those thoughts." I muttered. Even the lie felt heavy as it rolled off my tongue. She wasn't a friend, she was my lover. My girlfriend. I may not have her anymore, but she's always mine. Always. 'Her expression told me otherwise." I was about to retort when she shrieked. 'Oh dear!" I slammed the brakes. 'What happened? Are you okay?" I asked, panic in my voice. 'I left my flask with her. How do I make hot chocolate now?" She looked visibly distressed. You have got to be kidding me. 'That's why you yelled like that?" I relaxed into my chair, my tense muscles loosening with relief. 'Don't blame me. I love making hot chocolate for everyone." She sulked, looking out the window. Oh brother. 'How about I get you another one? Or Helena could just get it back for you tomorrow." I put the car in gear, steering back onto the road. A faint tune hummed from the radio, and for a brief moment, I enjoyed the silence. That was until she disrupted it, again. 'No, I don't want another flask. Your grandma gave me that. Let's go to Helena's house and get it." She crossed her arms. 'Aunt, it's late. We can't go to her house now." I didn't want to go to her house now. I wasn't prepared for goodness sake. 'You don't like my hot chocolate? You don't want me to make it for you anymore? What about the others?" She whined. Why were old women similar to young women? 'I didn't say that, aunt. I'm just saying it's a bit late to go there. Her house is a little far." 'So you do know where it is. And you're just friends." She giggled mischievously. 'Can't friends know where their friend's house is? Jeez ma." I ran my hands through my hair. She was really acting like Brielle. 'It's just 8pm, let's go. Come on, turn around." 'You know what you wanna get out of this." I grumbled and turned the car around, towards Helena's house. AARON. The house was filled with warmth and happiness, as we were all elated at Veronica's achievement. She could finally walk again. The look on Helena's face when she saw her was priceless. My heart squeezed tightly in my chest. Luna said she'd gotten a signal from the orb, which meant we'd be getting a response soon. I could only hope it'd be good. Who am I even kidding?. It's not gonna be good. For now, I focused on enjoying my time here. As much as I could. Helena proposed we have a barbecue to celebrate the miracle, and who better to find the meat than me? 'Back off baby boy. I got this." Luna growled behind me. 'Can you let me do something for once? I don't need your gloating. Besides, we both know that I'd do better if you don't show off." I retorted, slipping into my werewolf form. She smiled, but didn't say anything else. Helena set the markings for us. A long line, indicating our starting point. We would both run into the woods, and whoever could bring back the biggest haul of meat, would win. What were we winning? The bragging rights. I shifted into my form completely, determination and huskiness dripping from my appearance. This was gonna be fun. I hadn't had a challenge like this since my time in Lunaville. 'Are you guys ready?" Helena said loudly. She looked so happy and it made me smile. I could see her stiffen a bit, and I remembered I just bared razor sharp teeth at her. Awkward. 'We're ready Helena." Luna said, scratching her claws on the ground. 'Yeah we are." I echoed, equally scratching my claws. 'Ready…" 'Steady…" 'Go!" We sped off, the night wind brushing against my fur. These woods were full of surprises, but I didn't mind. I was gonna get through every one of them and come out victorious. Luna had taken another path towards the west, and I went north. As it should be. I ran through the thickness, before slowing down. My nose sniffed a fairly good amount of warm blood. I followed the scent, foam forming at my mouth. My teeth were razor sharp, and my claws extended further than they usually were. I wanted to kill. I saw an antelope grazing towards my east, and aimed for it. I moved stealthily, calculating the animal's response time to danger. My steps were concise, carefully planned. The animal was unsuspecting. I took in a deep breath, and lunged. Loud growls and the cries of the animal split the air for a split second, before I snapped its neck in half. I licked my lips. One down, nine more to go. I hunted for around 45 minutes, before deciding my catches were enough. I ran back to the farmhouse. I could taste Luna's scent in the air. Wild, ravaging. She had a pretty good night of her own. We both arrived at the farmhouse simultaneously, breathing hard. I was tired, but not exhausted. I wanted to know the winner. I hauled my catches towards the front door, placing them on the porch. I noticed a black car parked in front of the house. 'Do you know who that is?" I turned to Luna, as she dropped her own haul. She narrowed her blue eyes at the car, before shaking her head slowly. 'No, I don't. There's two unfamiliar scents too." I sniffed the air again. I couldn't recognize one, but the other one seemed too familiar. I raised my eyebrows. My mind only went to one person. Caleb. 'Aaron. Wait here." Her voice stopped me in my tracks. I glared at her. 'You're gonna do something impulsive. Just wait." She turned back to her human form, grabbing a blanket from her bag. She walked inside the house, and I went to inspect the car. The passenger's window was lowered, and I peered inside. A small purse, and a bottle of water. I found a small note on the lower compartment in the middle of the dashboard, but I ignored it. Caleb's scent was more prominent here, and the thought of him being anywhere around Helena made my blood boil.