The Choosing

Plans

It had been weeks since the meeting and preparations were being made at such a haphazard pace that Sophie was unsure how much work had been accomplished. Every day more men arrived, the town was full of more strangers than pack members. There was no system, instead panic lay beneath the surface. They were unsure when the Bitten would be coming back, so in the meantime they were trying to get as much done to protect themselves as possible. They were getting no where. Sophie walked through the town,  she was being escorted by three of her pack members. One was Brett, who led the group whilst the others tailed behind her. She recognised the other two from the basement, from the night Thaddeus interrogated and then killed the Bitten man. They were his most trusted men. Nothing but the best, Thaddeus has assured. Although Sophie was sure that it was overkill, that these men may have been needed elsewhere. They were essentially glorified babysitters. Escorting her from place to place. 

Thaddeus had his duties and she had hers. They barely saw each other. Thaddeus was often up until he fell asleep at his desk in a pile of papers, detailing the extensive plans being put in place for our protection. Some nights she would go down to his office, wrap a blanket around his shoulders and curl up on the couch, listening to his soft breathing fill the room until she fell asleep.

He was burdened with preparing those that had been through the change for the fight that was to come, Sophie's was prepare everyone else, give them a safety plan, what to do where to go. They looked to her and Sophie couldn't fathom as to why, women with decades of experience and knowledge looked at her as if she held the answers, as if she would be able to hold the Bitten back with sharp words and a well laid plan. She kept a brave face for them, even though under the surface she was just as frightened as they were. Although not for herself, but for those who would not make it to the bunker. She had gone over the maps and routes hundreds of times, tested them. She knew that if they were not given enough warning, those furthest from the main house would not make it in time. So, she was laying out other plans. Strategies to keep everyone safe. 

"Luna," Brett murmured, shaking her from her thoughts. She miss the concerned look he shot her way. 

"We're here" Sophie finished for him, clasping her hands together, ignoring just how clammy her palms were. They were right at the edge of town, the houses here backed directly onto the woods, they were on the opposite side of town to the house. These people were the ones most at risk, they were also the ones she cared for the most. The door to the house they stood in front of opened, revealing a tall dark woman with a newborn wrapped firmly in her arms.  

Sophie sat in Ruby's dining room, fingers tracing the rim of the coffee she had been given. She could hear Sebastian playing in the next room over, toy cars sliding against the linoleum. Ruby sat across from her, rocking newborn Indira absentmindedly. They were alone inside the house, Sophie had forced the others to stay outside. She enjoyed not having a shadow. 

"I'm sorry I haven't come to visit you." Sophie apologised.

"It's okay Sophie," she reassured, placing her hand over Sophie's. It was just as soft and warm as she remembered. "This life is an adjustment, even so more for you and with everything that has been going on lately," she paused shaking her head "you always have been stronger than me." 

Sophie's forehead crinkled in confusion before she laughed "you have it the wrong way around." 

"Do you remember Brody Finnigan?" Ruby asked coyly, chocolate eyes glinting. The name was one Sophie hadn't heard in a long time but it was one she recognised nonetheless. When they were in high school he had been a beefy boy, with a crooked nose and mop of dirty blond hair, he had tormented them relentlessly until his parents sent him to boarding school.