Chapter Twenty-One

“So, you are heading back to your clan?” Lucy asks with a hint of sadness.

Gabi turns to look at Lucy and smiles. She lets go of Renn’s hand and walks over to Lucy. She reaches out for her hand and says, “I would like for you to come with us too. But only if you want to. I think this will give us a chance to get to know each other.”

Lucy smiles and nods. “Yes, I would really like that.”

Lucy turns to her parents. Both Steven and Eve looked worried about letting their daughter go into a territory filled with werewolves, the very creatures that they have been taught to hate and want dead their entire lives.

Gabi looks at both the parents and knew exactly how they were feeling. It went against everything they were brought up to live by. She grew up in the same atmosphere and yet this whole trip she has had to step out of her comfort zone and try new things, whether she was comfortable with it or not. And in doing that, look at everything that she and Renn have experienced. There was so much more to this world then they could ever imagine. Their pack has become somewhat of a recluse not accepting change or new things. They were living in the past and now was the time to give them a taste of the present and what their future could be like.

“Steven and Eve, I understand that this is a lot to ask: trusting your daughter in the hands of the people you were taught to hate. I give you my word, in the name of the moon, that I won’t let anything happen to her. I would also …”

Gabi was interrupted by a bit of noise that was happening outside of the village.

“You three stay here; we’ll go see what’s happening and let you know if it is safe to come out,” Steven says to them as he grabs Eve’s hand, and they make their way out the door.

Una walks over to them and ushers them back to the couch for them to sit on and wait to hear what the commotion is all about.

Gabi ponders all the things that can be going on out there. She hopes that it doesn’t have anything to do with them being there. But when has she ever been lucky and the drama not been about her.

Lucy is getting a little anxious herself. Ever since finding out that she is a wolf, she hasn’t really figured out how to act. When training as a Luminar, she had confidence in everything she did, and now? She was constantly second guessing everything she did because she didn’t know if it would set off the wolf inside her and force her to shift.

Gabi, sensing Lucy’s uneasiness, puts her hand over her sister’s. Lucy looks up at Gabi and smiles. Gabi nods her head, knowing that sometimes people need to know that someone is there for them.

“I’m sorry, Lucy.” Gabi says to her.

Lucy looks at her with confusion on her face. “Why are you sorry?” she asks.

“Because this whole time I’ve made this all about me and everything that I have learned about not being a wolf. But you’re going through the same process just the other way. I feel that you’re having an inner struggle with yourself.”

Lucy nods. “I’m going crazy inside because I have no clue how to act. I’m afraid I’ll cause myself to shift at the wrong moment or not at all. I have always been confident and sure of myself. But now? I have no idea who I am.”

“You’re still Lucy; you can still be that confident person that you know yourself to be. And in time, you’ll learn to work with your wolf, and you two will become one.”

“Gabi, how are you so sure about all of this?”

Gabi shrugs. “Honestly, I have no clue. But it feels right and so I’m going with it.”

They both laugh.

“Thank you, Gabi. I feel a little bit better.”

“Once you meet everyone in the clan, you’ll start to feel different about yourself. There’s just something about being with others that are like you,” Renn explains to Lucy.

Gabi drops her shoulders a bit. That’s how it was supposed to be for her, but now she’ll never get that feeling with the clan. But that didn’t matter—she cared about the clan no matter how they felt about her, and she knew it was her duty to tell them what she learned.

Steven and Eve come rushing back inside.

“They captured one of the wolves from the house,” Steven tells them.

“I have to go out there and do something,” Gabi says as she gets up to head out the door.

Renn grabs Gabi by the arm and spins her back around to look at him before saying, “What do you think you’re doing? Are you crazy? I’m not going to let you go out there alone. I’m coming with you.”

“No, Renn. You can’t. They’ll be able to sense you’re a wolf. You and Lucy need to stay in here, where I know you’re safe,” she tells him.

“I’ll go with her and make sure she’s safe,” Steven offers.

“How can I trust that you’ll keep her safe?” Renn asks him.

“The same way I’m trusting you my daughter,” he says to him.

Renn looks at Gabi for a moment, nods, and steps back.

“I’ll be going out there as well. It’s time we make a change,” Una says as she starts to make her way out the door.

“I’ll stay with the two of them and make sure no one comes in,” Eve informs them as she wraps her arm around Lucy.

Gabi nods and smiles. Steven and Gabi walk out the door, making their way to where everyone is.

There is quite a few people that are outside wanting to see what is happening.

“Is this the whole group?” Gabi asks.

Steven shakes his head. “No, this is just one of the communities that we have set up. The Luminars are spread out pretty far.”

This makes Gabi surprised. She hadn’t realized how big the enemy at the time truly was.

“How am I going to get them all to listen and believe what I have to say?” Gabi questions herself out loud.

“Luckily, we have Una here to help us with the group. But how do we know if that wolf is worth saving?” Steven asks.

“From what the scrolls said, the mark of the crescent sits on the forehead of the evil wolf. Which means they would also bear the mark in their human form. The MoonFangs have crescents, but most of them are burned onto them during the Moonrite, and as far as I know, it has never been placed on the forehead. Usually, it’s either placed on the back, hand, or foot,” she explains.

They start to make their way closer to the crowd, and Gabi starts to recognize who the wolf is. He has shifted back into his human form and is sitting with his knees close to his chest and his arms wrapped around them.

Carl.

“Yep, that’s Carl. He’s one of the wolves that was trying to kill us,” Gabi confirmed.

“Is he even worth saving then?” Steven asks.

Gabi answers, “Well, there’s only one way to find out. We see if he bears the mark of the evil wolf.”

“And if he does?”

She lets out a sigh before answering, “Then you kill him.”