THE BEGINNING

CHAPTER 1

THE BEGINNING

~~~~~

"Ahh... Not this criminal again. It's already the 10th of this month," he said.

Ben is a detective living in Union City. Every day he faced criminals, drug dealers, and others. One time, he enters the forest where he believes the criminal he's searching for fled to.

When walking through, Ben stumbles into a campfire. A shivering man wearing a patchwork jacket and wielding a flintlock sits there, apparently freezing.

"You need to get off the road," he says.

"These woods are filled with werewolves."

"Werewolves?" Ben asks incredulously.

"I haven't seen a single werewolf in my entire life."

Ben didn't believe in werewolves, but he knows a little bit about it from his close friend, Mara. For Ben, Mara is just like his own sister. She always telling him about werewolves and stuff, but Ben still doesn't believe it.

"I'm serious," he says, pulling Ben into the darkness of the forest with him.

"Werewolves, feral humans that change into mutated wolves. They're real."

"..."

"Unless you want to die in here."

"...I'll be careful."

"Good," he says,

"Now follow me."

He takes him into the darkness of the forest, deeper and deeper.

The trees around him are getting thicker, becoming impenetrable. Ben feels as if he's going in a circle.

"How long have we been walking?" He asks.

"I can't tell," the man says. "We must be miles in."

Suddenly, he stops. Through the trees, Ben sees the fire and the camp. He also sees a beautiful girl running around, acting in a playful matter.

"What do you think about our daughter, Detective?" the man says.

"Isn't she a beauty?" The man is biased.

Ben doesn't care for the dad's choice of words, though.

"I'll say, but where is she?"

"She just ran off into the woods."

"What are you talking about? How long we've been walking already?" Ben ask.

"About four."

Ben doesn't believe him.

"It's been nearly six." The man shrugs.

"Maybe six. Maybe five. I've been distracted."

The trees are getting thicker and thicker, making it hard to breathe. Ben begins to panic.

"Why didn't you follow her?"

"It's safe???"

"Don't worry, you can keep walking," he says.

"I'll catch up."

Ben walks through the thicket. Suddenly, he trips over a root and falls forward. He feels sharp teeth sink into his shoulder. Ben takes out his pocket flashlight and shine it on his shoulder and see a bite mark. And the bite mark doesn't look like any animal bite mark. Then, he realizes.

"Maybe he's right... There is a werewolf in this forest."

He feels a slight sting. The bite was deep enough to cause a tiny drop of blood to form at the wound. Ben shakes his head, trying to get rid of the bloodlust.

Meanwhile, the girl runs through the camp unharmed. Ben begins running towards her. Ben decides to speed up and jump over the trees so that he may catch up with the girl. He sees her, right ahead of him. She runs towards a cave. Ben runs after her as she enters the cave. He follows her inside.

Suddenly, a man runs out of the darkness. Ben cried out in surprise. The man grins.

"I thought that was someone else, running into my arms," he says. "I've been waiting for hours." Ben takes out his gun and points it at him.

"What do you want?"

He smiles. "I want to be inside you."

"What!? No!"

He shakes his head. "I'm not a man. I'm a beast."

"No, I don't..."

Suddenly, his eyes flash gold as he snarls and charges towards him. He cries out, raising his gun to shoot. He leaps high, landing on Ben, knocks him to the ground. His hands grip Ben's arms as his mouth goes to Ben's neck.

"STOP, STOP, I don't want to hurt you..."

His teeth sink into Ben's neck, sucking out blood bit by bit.

"Hey! Get away from him!" A voice says.

He snarls but paused. Ben pulls the trigger and shoots him in the head, killing him instantly. Ben sigh as the beast falls off of him. He sighs and sits up while the girl lies on the ground, unconscious. He stands.

"Thanks," a voice replies.

Ben looks up, sees a woman with long black hair and purple eyes. He gasps.

"Mara? is that you?"

Mara stands, staring at him. She stares at Ben for a second too long before smiling.

"Yes, it's me." She frowns. "You're bleeding."

"I..." Ben paused, looking down.

He realizes that he has a large wound on his shoulder. It's bleeding profusely.

"I was fighting a werewolf," Ben says, "It'll heal."

"Are you sure? It's bleeding a lot."

"Yes, I'm... God, that's hurt..."

"Sit tight. I'll heal that."

Mara starts cleaning Ben's wound.

"I'm sorry I haven't contacted you," Mara says, "I... Couldn't."

"Couldn't?"

Mara nods. "I was taken."

"Taken?"

"Yes, by the vampires," Mara says. "I escaped, though." "I've been dealing with the aftermath of the virus, as well as fighting off the pack."

"Fighting the pack? Your own pack?" Ben ask. "What's going on? What's the last thing you know?"

She explains the last few days, her fight with Lucas, Alison's betrayal, and everything else she remembers. Mara takes a shotgun, keeping it ready in her hands.

"Where did you get that?"

"This? I took it from the armory. I don't know why, but maybe it will be useful."

"So, you're telling me that Lucas is betraying the pack?"

"Not just that, Lucas wants to fight us," She says. "He's trying to incite a war. But he needs the werewolves' help."

"But what are you going to do?" Ben asks. "Fight them?"

"I don't know," Mara says. "He's lead the vampires to this area and is trying to make it his own. Lucas's pack is the only other major threat to us. We can't let him do that. Alison is helping Lucas too."

"I'm not surprised," Ben says, "She betrayed the pack. Why would expect her to stay loyal?"

"She's a psychopath," Mara says. "But I'm not sure what to do about her. She is an outcast."

Mara finishes wrapping Ben's arm with a bandage.

"Is that better?"

"Yes, thanks."

"You're welcome. How about your neck?"

"Not a big deal. It's only a bite."

Ben sigh, leaning back. He pauses, looking up.

"Hey, do you remember your sister?"

Mara pause. "Yes, I do. What about it?"

"Maybe we could use that to our advantage. If Sarah was alone, we could maybe talk her into switching sides again."

"I think it's worth a try."

He shrugging his shoulders. "Well, only one way to find out."

Mara takes out her phone, pressing a few buttons. She puts it to her ear.

"Hello, sis," she says. "It's me."

A moment of silence passes. Then, a voice answers.

"Who is this?"

"You know who I am. Sarah. Your little sister."

"You betrayed the pack! We left you be!" the voice says. "You got no sisterly love. None."

Mara's face hardens. "You're right. I don't. But that's not what this is about. I need a favor."

"I told you not to contact me!" the voice hisses.

"Can you do something for me? Something private? Something between siblings?"

There's a pause. "I suppose."

"Can you meet me... Somewhere?" Mara asks.

"At... At night?" the voice asks. "Where you used to live? That place? It's ruined..."

"But where can we meet? There's no safe place to meet."

"Fine... We'll meet there."

"When?"

"In an hour," the voice answers. "I'll be at the old... Where you used to live. There's a window in the roof."

"Alright," Mara says. "I'll see you then."

Mara hangs up, looking at Ben. "I've got her to meet us there."

"Well, let's go there."

They walk through the forest to the place where Mara used to live. After several minutes of walking, they arrived at a small and sturdy shack with a window on its roof. Inside, there's only a bed, a table, and a chair. Ben lies on the bed while Mara sitting next to him.

"Do you think it'll work?" Ben ask.

"We'll find out in an hour."

Mara shrugs, lying down. She's running on little sleep.

"Ah, we should be safe now. I'm so tired, I need to sleep." Ben says to himself.

Been closes his eyes, putting a pillow under his head. And then, they both fall asleep.

~~~~~

Dawn is breaking, Ben awakens to the roars of a multitude of animals. He looks to the left and see Mara fast asleep, curled up like an animal. Ben smile, looking forward to the day. Then, Ben hears a scratching sound outside. He looks around, hearing it again. It's coming from the roof. Then, he sees them. Dozens of eyes looking straight at him.

"Oh, dear God," Ben whisper. "What do we do?"

Mara opens her eyes and sits up, staring around the room. Her eyes fall on the many eyes looking in at her. She sighs, stands, and goes to the roof. Mara stands on the chair, staring at the creatures outside. She raises a hand, scratching at her head. The light brown wolf stares at her, clearly frustrated.

Ben hears a scratching noise again. He looks around. There's a table next to the window, and the scratch marks lead there. Ben walks over, lifting the table and sliding it away from the wall. Then, he grabs a chair and slides it against the wall. The scratching noise stops. Mara looks at him.

"What are you doing?" she asks.

"Scaring them off," He says.

Ben grabs the wooden chair and slide it against the window while the scratching noise starts up again. Ben stares outside, feeling a cold breeze on his back.

The creatures finally back off. Mara sighs with relief. Then, he notices something. The window is too small for a werewolf to fit through.

Mara stands, staring out the window. She seems to be considering options. Then, she looks at the table.

"What's that for?" Ben asks.

"So we can climb out of the window and escape."

Mara looks out the window before looking down at the table. Her eyes dart to the roof before she walks over and nudges the bed. Mara pushes the table against the wall before climbing onto it and leaping off. She hits the window with a thud and then looks back at Ben.

"Give me a hand," she says.

He jumps off the bed and grabs her arm, helping her pull herself up onto the window. Ben lifts her onto the window. She grabs the window sash and opens it, leaning out and shifts into her human form, and offers her hand to Ben.

"Come on," she says. "Let's go."

He takes it and stands up. Ben jumps off the table and pulls himself up onto the roof. Ben looks around. The creatures have retreated to the trees. Ben feels the sun on his back.

Mara stands there, staring up at the sun. Ben walked over to her and put an arm around her. They stare up at the sun together.

"The sun is so beautiful," Mara says.

"Don't you think it's beautiful?"

"Yes," he says. "It is."

Ben stared up at the sun for a moment in silence, just taking in the warmth on his grey fur.

"Wait, fur?! Why did I have fur?"

"Maybe because from the bite, the werewolf did bite you remember?"

"Oh yeah... now I'm a werewolf too." Ben said, "How do I look?"

"You look great." She giggles.

Both of them smile at each other.

After a few minutes of enjoying the sun, Mara's phone rings. She answers, and it was Sarah.

"Hey sis, I cant meet you there."

"What? I've been waiting for you for hours." Mara said with little anger.

"Sorry, but I've been guarded since you left the pack. I can't get out of this place."

"Aw c'mon, we're waiting here!"

"I've told you, sis! I can't get out of this crooked place!"

"So, where can I meet you?"

"Uh, I'll tell you later. I have to go sis. Bye." Sarah hangs up the phone in a hurry.

Mara hang up and smashed her phone to the ground with anger. Then, Ben hears a snarl behind him. Ben turns around.

"Mara!"

Mara stands there, her feline eyes filled with an animalistic rage. She runs towards Ben, pouncing. Mara knocks him to the ground, her teeth sinking into his throat. She tears it out, bit by bit, as blood spurts out and onto the grass.

"I'll make sure you burn in hell for this," he choked out.

Mara doesn't respond, her face forms a mixture of pain and ecstasy. She nuzzles her head against his neck, kissing the wounds. She turns her head, flicking her tongue out to lick some of the blood of Ben's fur. She licks her lips, smiling at him.

"I'll miss you," she says.

She leans forward, kissing Ben on the lips. Ben feels his soul being destroyed as her lips press against him. Then, she turns, leaping up. She begins to run towards the trees. Ben stares at her, trying to tell her to come back.

He tries to stand before collapsing onto His side. Ben groans in pain as he sees her sprinting off into the trees. Ben feels a wave of nausea hit him before he vomits.

He dry heave, his soul-shattering as Ben left weak, frail, and bloody. He looks up at the sky and howl.

Then, Ben feels himself fading. He's still weak and in terrible pain, but he able to feel once more. The numbness is gone, so his ability to care. Ben howl one last time as the world goes dark.

•••••

"Hello again, Ben ."

Ben opens his eyes to find himself in a white void. He looks around and finds that he was eye to eye with a wolf's eye. Ben looked up and staring at a massive creature. Ben notices its black, pupils-shuttered eyes. It stares back at him, snarling.

It raises a clawed hand, slamming it into the wall. The sound of shattering glass fills the air.

"It's him," a voice says. "The werewolf."

Ben looks to his left and sees a massive black wolf. It looks at him, wagging its tail.

"Good boy," the voice says. "You're a good boy. A loyal wolf. I'm proud of you."

And then Ben looks to his right and sees a white wolf. It looks at him, whimpering.

"What about you, dear wolf?" the voice asks. "Do you want to be a good girl? Do you want to be a loyal wolf?"

The white wolf's eyes shine as if it's trying to tell Ben something.

"I have an idea," the voice says. "But I need you to listen very carefully. Do you think you're up to this?"

The white wolf nods furiously.

"Excellent," the voice says. "I need you to find someone for me. Do you think you can do that?"

The wolf nods once more.

"I need you to find someone for me. Can you do that?"

The wolf whimpers as if it doesn't know.

"Excellent," the voice says. "Now, listen very carefully. I need you to find out where they sleep. Can you do that?"

The wolf nods slowly.

"Good," the voice says. "Now, I need you to guard that person. Can you do that?"

The wolf nods slowly.

"Perfect," the voice says. "Now, I need you to stay there. Can you do that?"

The wolf whimpers as if it doesn't want to leave Ben.

"You have your orders, dear wolf. If they try to get you, wake me. I need my beauty sleep."

The wolf whimpers before nodding. It turns, walking out of Ben's bedroom. It walks towards his brother's bedroom, where it lays down by his bed. Ben waits patiently, staring at the void.

He waits for nearly an hour before he hears giggling. Ben looks over to see a being that looks like a less mutated version of Mara. She lies in bed with Connor, hugging him tightly and kissing him.

"Ah, there you are, honey," she says, grinning at Ben. "Sorry, but it's our little secret."

She leans over, grabbing Connor's hand.

"Come on, darling. Let's get some sleep. You did well today. You got a girlfriend, didn't you?"

Connor nods as Mara grins and laughs, lying back down. Ben sigh, looking away.

He hears Connor get under the covers and wait patiently for him to fall asleep. Ben waits for nearly an hour before he hears the sound of footsteps.

Ben turn, finding Mara standing in the doorway.

"Hi," she says, grinning.

"Hi."

"You're not mad? I wanted to talk to you about this," she says.

"About what?"

"Connor and me. You know, like, together," she says.

"What about it?"

"Well, I just wanted to talk. You seem so mad all the time. Why don't you ever smile?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing? You seem mad about everything. I think you should smile more."

"You're right." Mara smiles before laughing.

"You're a funny one, aren't you? Why are you so mad, then?"

"Who said I was mad? I wasn't, I just..."

"What?"

"Nothing, but wait... I want to ask you something."

"Go ahead."

"You are the white wolf, right?"

A moment of silence passes.

"Yes, I am the white wolf. And I see that you've met the great alpha."

"Who?"

"You'll see later."

"... Good night."

"Good night," Mara says, closing the door.

Ben sigh, laying down his head.

"Who is the great alpha??"

He waits patiently for Connor to fall asleep before sneaking out of his bed. Ben finds his way back to his bed and lay down. He tries to sleep while remembering the past when he meets Mara for the first time.

===

One day in 1990, in the playground somewhere near Union City.

"Hello, my name is Mara" Mara smiles.

"Hello, I'm Ben," he replies.

"How are you?"

"I'm good."

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing."

"Oh, perfect. Let's go on the swings!"

Ben looked at her, nodding slowly. He stands up and follows her as she walks towards the swings. She looks at him, smiling.

"Do you want to push me?" she asks.

"Well yeah," he replies.

Mara sits down and holds onto the chains that hang over the swings. She smiles at him, holding out a hand.

"Come on, push me," she says.

"Okay," Ben reply, grabbing her hand.

Ben lifted her before letting go. She falls forward, landing her face into the grass.

"Ah, I'm sorry!" Ben says as she stands back up.

"It's fine," she smiles.

"Come on, let's go on the slide."

Ben leads her to the slide, which is covered in mud.

"It's all muddy," she says.

"It is?" he asks.

"Yeah," she replies.

"Well, I want to try out the slide. It's just mud," He said while stepping on the slide.

Ben sits down on the slide and lowers down. He goes down on his knees before standing up and walking down. He stops at the end and looks down.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" Mara ask.

"Yeah, it's fun," Ben says, not entirely sure.

Mara seems not sure enough.

"Alright, I'll go first," Ben said while walking down the slide.

Ben walks down the slide, landing at the end. He crouches down and rolls down. He lands, stopping at the bottom. Ben looked up, seeing Mara leaning over the top. A look of panic on her face.

"You better come out of that or else," Ben says.

Mara looks at him and begins laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"You. You were so funny. I kept expecting you to fall off the end,"

Ben laughs before climbs up the slide. He uses it as a shortcut to get up to the top, standing up. Ben walks up to Mara, who is still leaning over the top of the slide.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine... I just..."

"Don't tell me that you afraid of heights."

"What? Me? No no... Maybe..."

Ben laughs, "It's fine, just slide down. There's nothing to worry about."

Mara slides down and lands on the ground.

"See, I told you."

"Let's go on the swing," she replies.

Ben nod and begin walking towards the swing. He stands by it as Mara sits down before pushing her. She flies forward, laughing as she goes past the tree. He watches her as she gets further and further away before she stops and turns around.

"Come on, It's your turn!" she says.

Ben nods, walking after her. Ben sits down, holding onto the chains. Ben pushes himself forward, going up as far as he can. Ben pulls his legs back, letting gravity do the work as he goes back down. He keeps going until he reaches the bottom, then does it again, and again, and again...

"Hello!"

Ben turns his head, seeing a young, pretty girl with long blond hair and a skimpy black dress. She walks up to Ben, smiling.

"Hello," she says.

"Hello,"

"What's your name?"

"Ben."

"I'm Georgia."

Ben looked at her, noticing her skimpy, almost see-through dress. Her eyes are big and blue, and her face is cute. He looks at her legs, which are long and slim.

"You look hungry," she says, licking her lips. "Do you need some food?"

"I'm not hungry," Ben replied. "I have some bread. You want some?"

"Sure," she replies.

Ben takes a piece of bread from his pocket and offers it to her. She smiles, leaning forward and taking it from him.

"Thank you," she says.

"You're welcome," Ben replied.

Mara walks to the swing, sitting down next to Ben.

"Are you okay?" she asks.

"Yeah, I'm good. Why?"

"Nothing, let's go back to the slide. It's fun."

Ben nod and begin walking. He gets to the top of the slide before Georgia appears in front of him.

"Hi Ben, who is that?" she says, smiling sweetly.

"Oh, it's my friend."

"Hi, I'm Georgia. What's yours?"

"Mara," Mara says, walking up.

"What are you doing, Georgia?"

"I'm just offering Ben some food, that's all."

"Thanks, but we don't want any," Ben replied.

"OK," Georgia says, turning and walking off.

"She's weird," Mara says.

"You can say that again." Ben continuing to walk.

After playing all day, Ben decided to go home. But he seems too far away from his home and it's getting dark. He starts walking.

"Hey Ben, where are you going?" Mara said, stopping him

"I'm going home, don't you go home too? Your parents will search for you," he replies.

"I don't have parents. My parents were dead because of the plane crash. I used to live with my aunt. But I escape because my aunt is so cruel to me. Now I live here." Mara says with a sad voice.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Do you want to come with me to my home?" Ben ask.

"Really? I'd love to come with you!" Mara replies happily.

They start walking in the dark. Passing some crossroads, bridges, and farms.

"Um, I think we're lost. It's too dark to see," Ben said while looking around.

"What are we going to do?" Mara asks.

"Let's find someplace to sleep. It's easier to see in the morning," he replies.

After a few minutes' walk, Ben stopped. He saw a large barn on the horizon.

"Look, a barn. That's where we're going to sleep tonight," Ben says. "It looks big enough."

"Do you think they'll let us sleep there?" Mara asks.

"I don't see why not," he replies.

Ben walks into the barn, spotting the beds at the far end.

A couple of adults are loading hay into their trucks, and none of them are paying any attention to him or Mara. Ben walks over, grabbing a couple of handfuls of hay, and places them on each of the beds.

"Hey kid, thanks." The man says.

"Sure. Oh, can we sleep here for one night? We're lost and can't find our way back."

"Of course, come here." The man replies.

They walk to the back of the barn.

"There you go, kid," the man says, "There's a blanket in the bottom of the wardrobe. It's winter, so you'll be fine to sleep in just a T-shirt and shorts."

"Thank you, sir,"

"No problem." The man replies while closing the Barn door.

Ben quickly finding the blanket and wrapping it around him. He lay down, as Mara follows. Putting his hands under his head.

"I'm going to sleep now," Ben says. "Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine,"

Ben lay his head and fall asleep quickly.

~~~~~

Ben sleeps for a few hours before woken by Mara.

"Hey Ben, wake up!" she says.

Ben opens his eyes, staring at the white walls in front of him. He looks over to the side, seeing Mara stand there.

"It's morning," she says. "We have to get up now."

He nods, getting up and grabbing the blanket. He wraps it around him before walking outside. Ben spotted two girls chatting.

"We're going to miss the first few days," one says. "The school's closed due to a bad case of measles."

Ben stared at her before looking at Mara.

"Measles?"

"Yeah," she replies. "You sure you're fine?"

"I'm fine," Ben said, walks away.

"Ben, I'm hungry."

Ben stopped, looking at Mara.

"Me too, let's ask the old man last night. Maybe he had something for us to eat." He replies.

They walk to the house that the old couple lives on. Ben knocks at the door

"Hello? I'm Ben, from last night,"

There's a pause before the door opens.

"I'm Grace," the girl says. "You scared me. What do you need?"

"Were lost and hungry," he says. "Maybe you have something for us to eat?"

"Yeah, come on in," Grace says.

Ben walks inside, walking into a living room.

"Can you help my mother in the kitchen?" Grace asks.

"Sure,"

"Mara, stay here. I'm going to look for some food."

"Okay."

Ben turns and walking away. He heads down a hallway, to the back of the house, to the kitchen. He finds Grace's mother at the stove.

"Can I help you?" she asks.

"I'm Ben," he replies. " Grace sent me to help you, and can I have some food for me and my friend there?"

"Sure," she says. "Do you know what you want?"

"Um.... some bread, if you have," Ben said. "Do you want anything?"

"I'm good," she says.

Ben nods, looking around. The house is quite nice though slightly messy. There are pictures of Grace and her family on the fridge and some awards on the wall.

He spends the next few minutes talking to Grace's mother and helping her cook. She sets the food on the table before grabbing a few knives and cutting the loaf of bread.

"Can I try some?" Ben ask.

"Of course," she replies.

Ben grabs the knife, stabbing it into the piece of bread. He tears it off, quickly jamming it into his mouth. He manages to cut the slice of bread before it gets caught in his throat.

Ben cough and splutter as he tries to breathe before he cut his mouth on the knife.

Ben collapse backward as Grace's mom and Mara runs over.

"Oh my god, I killed him!" He hears Grace's mom shout.

"BEN, NOO!"

Ben grab for the knife with his hand and letting out a stream of blood from his throat. Ben stared at the woman and Mara before closing his eyes and letting darkness take him.

===

Ben awakes with a heart beating so fast, lying on the couch in an abandoned house. He realizes it was a nightmare. Ben shakes his head, trying to remember what happened. The only thing he remembers was only being bitten by Mara in the forest and been in a strange void.

Ben head to the kitchen, finding it empty. He looks at the various food items scattered around before heading back out. Ben went outside and see his car, parked with the key still in the ignition.

"Wait, how did my car appear here? It's supposed to park on the edge of the forest..."

He pulls out the key and went upstairs, finding Mara sleeping on the bed. Ben walked over to her, shaking her gently.

"Wake up,"

Mara opens her eyes, staring at him.

"What?" she asks.

"Time to go."

"Go where?" she asks.

Ben pulled the keys from his pocket, walking over to her, and offering her the car keys.

"The car's waiting outside. We need to go."

Mara stares at the keys before grabbing them and standing.

"Coming," she says, heading out of the door.

Ben walked over to the door, opening it and walking outside. The car's waiting for him and the keys in the ignition.

"You drove?" he asks, surprised.

"Yeah."

Ben climbs in the passenger seat as Mara gets into the car and starts the engine.

"Where to next?" she asks.

"I don't know," he replies.

"Let's go to the beach," Mara says. "My dad's got a house on the beach."

"Perfect," Ben says.

Mara changes gear, driving down the road.

"So... your dad and my dad used to know each other?" Ben ask.

"Yeah. My great-grandpa knew your great-grandpa. At least, I think that's why."

Ben shrug, looking out the window.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I don't know. I mean, what's there to talk about?

"Barely anything, I guess."

Mara smiles. Ben looked over at her, smiling back. She reaches over, touching his hand with her cold fingers. After a few minute's drive, Mara pulls into the driveway of a house, pulling up to the front and stopping. She turns off the car, looking over at Ben.

"This used to be my dad's house," she says. "I hope you don't mind staying here."

"No, of course not."

Ben opens the car door, grabbing his bag. Mara stands behind him, extending her hand to help out. He grabs it, letting her pull him. He walks to the front of the door, opening the door and collapsing onto the sofa.

"Thanks for the ride."

Mara sitting next to Ben.

"You're welcome, Ben."

Ben smiles, leaning back against the sofa. Ben closes his eyes, putting down his bag, and then falls asleep...

~~~~~

Continue Chapter 2, "Escaping From Friend" ...