Chapter Eight
Baine nods to Dyrk, and a menacing smile creeps onto his face before he turns to leave.
He turns and makes his way out of the house. Once outside, he closes his eyes to gain control of his senses and takes a deep breath. His eyes turn amber as his wolf takes control to track Gabi.
Baine first makes his way to her cottage; he opens the door and notices that the place is vacant and resumes his search elsewhere.
He stops for a moment, trying to get his bearings on where to look. He thought about the waterfall where he found her with those disgusting humans. He lets out a growl, remembering how humiliated he was when Mori had pushed him into the water instead of allowing him to kill that whiny, human boy that was cowering by the water.
Baine starts to make his way to the waterfall when something catches his eye on the ground. He recognized them has the wooden cuffs that are put on for the Moonkeeper Rite ceremony. But why would they be down here?
They are broken, so obviously, she must have transitioned into her wolf, he thought to himself. He lifts them to his nose to see if there are any other scents that he can get off of it.
Renn.
Baine should have known that he would likely get his scent off of them. It was almost impossible to see one without the other. Renn always follows Gabi like a lovesick pup.
Baine rolls his eyes at the thought of them always together.
After searching the whole village asking everyone that he passed if they had seen Gabi, Baine returns to Dyrk empty-handed.
***
After walking for what seemed like forever, Renn has them stop for a rest. He opens his backpack and hands Gabi some food and water.
Gabi smiles as she takes them from him, almost forgetting that she has not eaten in quite some time. She moves over by a tree, lowers herself to the ground, and leans against the tree for support.
Renn does a perimeter check to make sure they have not been followed. When he comes back, he sits next to Gabi, leaning his back on the tree as well rubbing his knee and stretching it before resting it on the ground.
“How far do you think we have gotten?” Gabi asks after she takes a drink.
“Definitely out of the clan territory. We still have a bit of a ways to go before we get to where we need to be.”
Gabi nods her head as she looks up into the sky and lets out a sigh.
“What are you thinking about?” Renn asks.
“I was just thinking about Mori and Oka. I wish they could be here with us,” Gabi says with a shrug.
Renn nods. “It does feel weird being away from the clan. This is my first time outside of the territory.”
“Renn, has it always been like this for the clan?”
“What do you mean?”
“Has it always been this strict, not allowing the clan to venture out and see other packs or new things?”
Renn shakes his head. “No, from what I have been told from the MoonFang lore, eighteen years ago, they made a pact to protect the lineage, so no werewolf was allowed to leave the clan or mate with anyone else but a wolf from the clan.”
“Eighteen years ago. Do you think this pact was made because of my mother?”
“Could be, but it could also be to protect the plan from being killed by the Luminars. Not long after that pact was made, a group of Luminars ambushed my father and killed him. I think a lot of things are in place to protect the clan.”
“Yes, but do you agree with it all?”
Renn sighs. “Gabi, you know as well as I do that I do not get along nor agree with a lot of things your father does. But he is the chief, and as long as he is chief, we have to respect him and the laws that he has put into place.”
Gabi nods and lays her head against the tree. She closes her eyes and continues to wish that Mori and Oka were with them.
***
Mori gently knocks on the door to Oka’s cottage.
“Come in,” a voice from the behind her says.
Mori opens the door and sees Oka working away on something. She looks up from her station, and her face fills with concern.
“What have you heard, Mori?”
Mori comes inside and closes the door behind him before making his way to the table.
“Gabi and Renn are nowhere to be found.”
Oka closes her eyes, concerned and relieved at the same time. She is concerned that Dyrk will have them caught and killed for their betrayal but relieved that she is not here to answer to her father about her Moonkeeping Rite.
“Oka, you don’t think they left the clan, do you?”
“Mori, Gabi was not able to transition into her wolf during her Moonkeeping Rite. So, I did the only thing I felt I could do. I told her about her mother and how she was taken from her.”
“Did you tell her everything?”
Oka shakes her head. “No, I told her enough she will learn what she needs to know when they find the house.”
“You sent her to the house? You know the pact that was made. I bet Renn went with her too. How are they going to get through all this?”
Mori paces back and forth in front of the table.
Oka continues to stir the ingredients together before pouring them into a large boiling pot that is over the fire.
“With a little faith and a bit of magic, I think they will get through it all just fine.”
Oka grabs the final ingredient and drops it into the pot. A purple mist starts to flow from the pot rising to meet with Oka.
“Go to the child. Protect and guide her until her mission is complete.”
The purple mist moves toward the open window and disappears from sight.
It always impresses Mori at how magical Oka truly is. From the outside, she is old and always looks like she could break if you squeezed her too tight. But when she wis performing her spells and doing magic, you can feel the power radiate off her. She is one elder he never wants to get on her bad side with.
“So, what do we do while we wait?” Mori asks her.
“We continue with our normal routine and act as if we know nothing.”
Mori nods his head, walks over to the door, and leaves.
***
Baine ducks from a chair being thrown at his head and hears it crash into the wall.
He knew that Dyrk was not going to take the news lightly about not being able to find Gabi.
“Go find that excuse for a brother Renn and find out if he knows where she is. He usually tends to always stay close to her.”
“I have tried to look for him as well and have found nothing,” Baine says with his head down, looking at the ground.
Baine peeks up just in time to see Dyrk stalk towards him and slam him up against the wall.
“Then grab a couple of wolves and head out of the clan territory. They can’t have gone far.”
“Yes, sir,” Baine says, trying to loosen the grip that Dyrk has on him.
Dyrk only smirks at his failed attempts.
He drops Baine to the floor, and Baine quickly scrambles to get back on his feet. He nods his head towards Dyrk and makes his way out quickly.
Once outside, he catches his breath. He hates being on the end of Dyrk’s wrath especially when it’s not his fault.
Oh, but he is going to enjoy dragging Gabi and Renn back to the clan. Everyone will get to watch them get their punishment from Dyrk, and Baine is going to have front row seats for the main event.
Baine starts making his way to where his brother Dane and his friend Carl usually hang out at. Dane is just as loyal and strong as Baine, so there is no doubt that he will be taking him on the hunt. But Carl is a different story. Yes, he is strong and a great fighter in wolf form, but he is dumber than a box a rocks when it comes to doing things in human form, and his attention span is shorter than a fuse.
“Pack up. We have been called to go on the hunt,” he tells him as he makes his way to his cottage.
“Who’s the kill?” Dane asks.
Baine stops, looks over his shoulder, and says, “Renn and Gabi.”