Fifteen

Zane watched the two females play around with each other for an hour, regretting letting them spend time with each other. He couldn't complain though because she now had someone she could go to when he wasn't there. This only made him think of earlier and he lied down in contemplation.

Her panic attack was different than usual. She instantly ran into the bathroom to hide instead of going still as statue. Her eyes still glazed over, but not with a hallucination, just fear. Wren told him he did look scary when entering the shelter, and Whisper was scared before he showed up. When he heard that, he followed Whisper up to the bathroom and tried to get her to tell him what was wrong. She didn't say a word to him, only moving her head and looking at him with something akin to betrayal and fear.

Later, when she was getting ready and shifting, Wren said she had a dream, and that Whisper heard a voice. She didn't get much farther because Whisper appeared. Wren promised they'd talk later, so he acted as if nothing had happened and went along with the happy mood Whisper was in.

Now, after the females have been going at it for over an hour now, Whisper finally tired out and ran over to Zane, panting heavily. She yipped at Wren that she was resting then laid down beside the Alpha, resting her head on her paws. Zane licked her cheek and rested his head on the back of her neck, a sign of protection.

Nico came up and sat before them, gazing at them in curiosity before barking at Zane, who looked at him in annoyance. Nico's head gestured towards the woods beyond, and the Beta growled lowly. Whisper was unaware of the warning and moved her head over to Zane's paws, her eyes closed.

Zane didn't want to move, but he couldn't let Whisper get hurt either. Nuzzling her, her got up and nodded to Wren to take Whisper home. He looked back at the female who had grown to trust him to see her with her tail between her legs. His heart broke to see her thinking the worst. So, he shifted. "Whisper, Wren is going to take you home. Nico and I need to check something. We'll be there soon, okay?"

She whined, keeping her eyes on his face and nudged his abdomen. He knelt and pet her, breathing in all of her.

Go on, girl. I'll be fine. Go with Wren." Giving him one last lick on the face, Whisper obeyed and left, Wren close beside her. Nico growled again, warning Zane to shift. He did and followed Nico in the opposite direction of the females.

It was a few minutes before they found tracks from another wolf, smaller than both of them. It smelled of male and something else Zane couldn't put his paw on. They followed the tracks out of the forest and into town where street lamps have been turned on and car lights were on. It was fully dark now and within all of the humans, they'd never be able to track the male intruder. Zane growled, then turned around to go home.

He heard cracking before Nico was human beside him. "Hold on, Zane."

Zane cocked his head to one side, questioning.

"Stay here, I'm going to get a newspaper." Nico grabbed shorts and some shoes, then jogged to a newsstand. When he came back a few moments later, he held up a picture of Whisper. Beneath it read: WANTED!

Zane growled, grabbed the paper in his teeth then ran back home where he could read the article about whatever it was the police was talking about.

He didn't instantly read the paper though because when he got inside, his breath was knocked out by a body and arms around his furry neck. "Zane!"

Zane relaxed and sat down, letting Whisper hug him for comfort as Wren stood up from the couch and took the paper from his mouth. He nuzzled her neck, his snout in her hair, as she relaxed and knelt in front of him, energy used up. His right paw went out to encircle her back so she had some safety from hitting her head if she fell asleep.

Wren set the paper down and came over. "Whisper, we need to let him shift and dress. He's just going to the bathroom."

Slowly, Whisper pulled away, but didn't let Zane go. She looked him over, brushing her hands over his fur and checking his paws before looking into his eyes. He watched with soft fascination as she did all this, then licked her cheek and nudged her towards Wren. Whisper nodded and stood, walking away. When Wren had her seated on the couch, he went upstairs and dressed in the clothes someone laid out for him. He chuckled when he saw the sweatshirt and boxers she had worn earlier, then put on shorts and headed back down.

Upon seeing him, Whisper's eyes lit up once again. He went over and sat beside her, pulling her closer and engulfing her in his arms. She snuggled against him, her hands once again roaming his body over the shirt. He buried his nose in her hair and breathed in. "Relax, little wolf. It was only something to check out. No fight. Nothing worth worrying over."

She nods and truly relaxes against him. Wren and Nico brought some hot chocolate for Whisper and coffee for Zane, then sat across from them. As Whisper drank her hot sweetness Nico started in on conversation. "I need to talk to Anton. Something is not right."

"Double patrol on that side of the border as well," Zane ordered.

"What did you smell?" Wren asked.

They looked at her. "A male, but with a familiar scent. We're not sure."

"Nico found this as well," Zane held up the paper so the picture faced away from Whisper and him. "Whatever they want, it doesn't add up."

Wren read the article a couple of times, glancing at Whisper every now and then. Whisper, who wasn't really paying attention, played with Zane's shirt pocket, finding it fascinating. Zane gave Wren a look that said not here, then kissed Whisper's head. Nico said, "We should go see that one girl tomorrow. See if she can tell us anything important."

The Alpha nodded his agreement. "We will. Wren, you stay with Whisper. I don't want her going to this place." Wren nodded.

"We'll leave around noon, and hopefully return by sundown. It should give us enough of a time frame to do what is necessary," Nico explained then nodded to Zane and left the shelter.

Wren got up and knelt in front of Whisper, grabbing her hands. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Can we go to the glen tomorrow?" Whisper asked hopefully.

"We'll see," Wren answered, then hugged her sister and left as well.

Zane and Whisper were left alone as it got later in the night. Zane still hadn't heard what Whisper dreamed about and wondered about it now. He held whisper beside him for a while, listening to the ticking of the clock and the rhythmic breaths that the female made.

Soon though, he heard her first yawn and decided it was time for bed. "Come on, little wolf." He stood and she followed, eyes half closed. He guided her with a hand on her back up the stairs and into the bedroom where he laid her on the bed gently and tucked her in. Zane pushed a lock of hair from her face and sighed. "What am I going to do with you?"

The next morning, Wren met Zane early to talk, handing him some clothes that might fit Whisper better than his own. He took them upstairs and set them on the edge of the bed for her to see, then went down to Wren again.

She explained everything Whisper said, then told of their conversation before all four of them went on a run last night. Zane was glad Whisper wouldn't run away, but was unnerved by the fact that now she was being harassed through dreams along with the occasional hallucination. It explained why her actions were different, at least. It just didn't explain why she was getting them. Zane wanted to push Whisper to tell him more, to tell him what exactly happened before she was put into the facility. He needed to know who to blame, because going off assumptions that it was Will Beda was not going to work.

Zane thanked Wren for the information and walked over to the pack house. He sat down at his desk in his office and started searching on his laptop for any crimes committed fourteen years ago.

He saw a link explaining an animal kill and clicked on it. The first thing that popped up was a picture of some area of forest where it had been savagely torn apart. On the ground was a black bag long enough to fit a body with different official looking supplies scattered about it. Underneath the picture it read:

June 27th 2005,

Police are investigating an animal attack on a woman that looked to be in her early to mid-thirties. We do not know the identification and there was none with her. She is about 5'2", hazel eyes, and long, brown hair. She was sighted early this morning by a young man in his late teens, distraught over how he knew the woman to be his mother. He kept his name anonymous, but claimed to have been looking for her when she had left them unexpectedly after an argument with his little sister. Police have yet to uncover much more evidence, but one says that whatever animal did this could not have been in its right mind, therefore, anyone who goes camping should stay alert and carry protection at all times.

Zane swept his eyes over the picture again as the phone rang. "Hello?"

"Is this Alpha Zane?" asked a familiar voice.

Zane straightened up and minimized the document so he could concentrate. "Yes, I am Alpha Zane."

"Good morning, Alpha. This is Will Beda. I believe we spoke a few days ago on the note of my sister, Whisper."

"What about her?"

There was a dramatic sigh before Will said, "Maybe we should meet in person? I would rather not break the news over the phone. Where should I meet you?"