The Exception

Chapter 28

*Jake's POV*

A group of wolves and I set out to track down some of the stray intruders. I wish I could say that I was focused on the task at hand, but I wasn't. Something didn't feel right. Something told me I should check on Selena, but I ignored my overly protective instincts.

Now, I wish I had listened.

The more I continued to fight, the more I felt that I was becoming more of a hindrance than a help. I couldn't help but be paranoid, so against my better judgment, I reached out to her.

'Selena? Where are you?' 

Waiting for a response seemed like an eternity, yet I tried to remain positive. Although it had only been a few seconds, I was already starting to panic.

'Selena, are you there?' I called again.

There seemed to be an eerie silence that followed which was unnatural, even for Selena.

'Selena I-'

I started again, but was cut short by some strange interference I had never encountered before. And what scared me more than the silence earlier, was the silence that now followed. It was as if I wasn't reaching out to anyone anymore. 

Having been caught up in this strange activity, I didn't notice that I had altogether stopped moving. Not realizing that I had left myself open to attack, a wolf was heading straight towards my neck. Only at the last minute did I turn to face my attacker, however by then, it was too late.

Seconds before his fangs reached me, a gust of wind rustled my fur. Suddenly my eyes followed Ulric who had lunged himself towards the other wolf. In one swift motion he brought him down to the ground, wrestled with him for a few moments, and successfully defeated him.

Turning to me, Ric protectively admonished me, 'What are you doing, Jake? Quit spacing out on me.'

Not bothering to answer him, I just stared back at him absentmindedly. 

Looking into my eyes, Ric could tell that something was wrong.

Reacting to my inward panic, he questioned,'What's wrong?' 

'Ric, something doesn't feel right. I feel like something terrible is going to happen to Selena.'

'If it eases your mind, I can send a few wolves to go back and check on them'

Shaking my head, I began again, 'That would only waste more time. I can get back to the pack house if I go now.'

'Jake we have a job to do-'

'I will not lose her!'  I cried out.

'And you won't. We are wasting time arguing.'

'Agreed.' 

Taking a quick look around, it was clear that the other wolves didn't really need our help as they seemed to be doing fine without me or Ric.

'I'll be back soon, Ric.'  I reassured him.

'Be safe' he nodded, accepting that I wasn't about to negotiate on this.

'I will be' I nodded in return and raced back towards the pack house as fast as I could.

The pitch black darkness of the outside made it hard to make out which way I was headed even with werewolf night vision. Thankfully, it seemed that muscle memory was taking over. I had been this way several times before.

'Please be ok...'  I silently prayed.

***

Slowing my pace I could see the pack house just a few feet from me. Not bothering to shift back into my human form, I circled the house sniffing along the way for any evidence. I didn't  have to search for long. It was clear someone had been here. And I knew it was some one I had encountered before. 

'The red wolf...'  

Glancing around, I tried looking for any evidence that there was a struggle, but there wasn't really too much evidence. There were small places were footprints seemed to kick up some grass, but aside from that, there was nothing to be seen. 

Shifting into my human form, I quickly ran into the house. Thankfully, there was a robe hanging on the coat rack. Taking a hold of it, I wrapped it around myself just for the time being. I looked around but I couldn't see anyone at all. However, making my way down one of the hallways seemed to contradict my previous thoughts. 

Several wolves were racing around in a seemingly panicked state. Suddenly my eye caught Sarah, Selena's sister.

"Sarah! Where's Selena?"

"I don't know. She's missing. We can't seem to find Amy either. A few wolves ran off to find the Alpha because they saw something."

"Saw what?" I questioned.

"I heard one of them mention a 'Wielder'." Sarah began to look more and more worried by the second.

'A Wielder? I thought those crossbreed abominations died off centuries ago...' My mind drifted.

"You know what they are?" Sarah's eyes grew wider.

Oh great, I forgot to block my thoughts...

"Please tell me, Jake. No one will explain anything to me."

Well, she deserves to know...

"Ok, I tell you quickly." I sighed.

*Selena's POV*

Soft rumbles filled my ears, yet my eyes remained motionless. I focused on nothing in particular as it felt as if I had no will to move. I couldn't even think of anything but the ever constant roar of something I had heard before, yet I had no desire to figure out what it was. Just as my mind began to drift away into utter nothingness, something unnatural broke through my ears.

It started out softly, however, it gradually grew louder and more in a rhythmic fashion. Unable to stop my curiosity, I allowed my eyes to drift to the direction of the sound. I caught sight of a figure rocking back and forth as their back continued to beat against the side of a metal wall. 

As my eyes blurred in and out of focus, I soon mustered enough strength to take in what my eyes were seeing. Amy was sluggishly banging on the side of the van. It seemed that she too was under the same effect that I was, however, she seemed to be overcoming it a lot more than I was.

"Amyyy..." I attempted to speak, although it barely rose above a whisper. 

A slow hissing sound filled my ears before I realized that Amy was shushing me.

"We need to get out of here." She soon responded.

Nodding my head slightly, I continued to watch her work. She shifted from banging on the side to scratching at the floor beneath us. I wasn't sure if it was my mind messing with me, but it looked as though Amy's hand was in wolf form, but not the rest of her body.

If I had the energy to open my eyes wide, I would have. To be able to concentrate all your energy into transforming one part of your body takes a lot of practice in and of itself. Not only that, but it is extremely painful to accomplish successfully. It was even more incredible knowing that Amy was also under the effect of whatever that guy did to us.

Slightly rolling my eyes downward, I could see that she was making some progress as a small dip was beginning to form, but wondered if it would even be enough to get us out of here.

Amy is an incredibly strong wolf, but I was worried that she would overdo it and waste all of her energy. Not being able to retain focus any longer, I felt myself drift back into nothingness. All I could do now was wait and hope she's able to get us out of here.