Chapter 1 - Aurelia

Today’s the day. My parents pull into the parking lot in dad’s old beat-up truck. “I can’t believe you are going to leave me alone all summer,” Alex groaned in the truck bed next to me, leaning his head against my shoulder, pouting like it would make me change my mind.

He’s cute, and I won’t deny that, with his shamrock green eyes, shaggy sandy blonde hair, and the subtle farmer’s tan from all the hours he spends outside helping my dad with our family ranch. 

My life would be so much easier if I could develop romantic feelings for him. But I can’t seem to do it. He’s my best friend and as good as a brother in my heart. I rolled my eyes and shoved him off my shoulder. “You’ll live. Dad will pile so much work on you that you’ll not even notice I’m gone,” I teased, standing up in the truck bed.

“No amount of work could distract me from feeling your absence,” he frowned up at me. We were both startled as dad hit his fist against the side of the faded green truck. 

“Alright, that’s enough of that, Romeo. You insisted on tagging along to say goodbye. So, say goodbye,” dad grumbled, reaching into the truck bed grabbing my duffle bag. “Thank you, Dad,” I laughed, hopping down from the truck.

“Yeah, thanks, pop,” Alex grumbled, hopping down after me. He had a recent growth spurt that now gave him five inches on me, which I don’t like. I liked being taller than him.

“You two play nice,” mom scolded, getting out of the truck. “Of course, ma,” Alex bowed his head, helping me get my other duffle bag out of the truck bed. 

“I’m going to miss you,” mom frowned, pulling me into a tight hug. I laughed and hugged her back. She came just under my chin since my last growth spurt—no clue where I got my tall genes from. I’m taller than dad too. Much like my red hair, I can only assume it’s from a distant relative from a recessive gene.

“I’ll miss you too, mom. And it’s just a couple of months. I’ll be back before you know it,” I assured her. “I know, but this will be the longest you’ve been away from home,” mom sighed, letting me go.

“Just call if you need anything,” dad added, hugging me as well. “I will. Don’t worry,” I smiled, hugging him back.

I turned to Alex, who looked like someone had just shot his dog. “Jesus. Alex, I’m just going to camp. I’m not leaving forever,” I rolled my eyes, pulling him into a hug. “I’ll write to you when I have the time, and otherwise, I’ll see you when I get back,” I smiled.

“I know. Just be careful. Don’t go falling for any of the boys at your dumb camp,” he grumbled, glancing at the bus where other campers were loading up.

It was a coed camp, so several guys were getting on the bus and, of course, some male counselors. I looked over and scanned the crowd. They weren’t all ugly or anything, but no one had sparked my interest.

“I’ll be fine. Bye, everyone,” I waved to Alex and my parents, grabbing my bags, and headed for the bus. 

Three hours of a bumpy bus ride sitting next to a very energetic girl named Elyse. She was a petite brunette girl that’s my age. Her older brother Darien is one of the counselors for the boys, and her dad runs the camp. She seems nice enough. And I lucked out that we were in the same cabin.

Unlike some of the kids here, I didn’t grow up in the city. My family owns a horse ranch, so I always have fresh air. But fresh ranch air is different from this.

Something about being here in the middle of the forest eases me. My body relaxes as I feel more at home than I ever have at the ranch.

As I walked to my cabin with the group of girls I’d be bunking with all summer, I came to a sudden stop. My eyes were looking to the tree line. I furrowed my brow as I could have sworn I saw a set of blood-red eyes watching me.

I must be seeing things. I rubbed my eyes, thinking they were playing tricks on me, but now red eyes were watching me. My heart started to beat faster as I looked into those eyes. 

I don’t know why but I felt drawn to those eyes. I should be afraid, right? A pair of red eyes watching me from the forest should make me run in terror. Yet, I wanted to get closer like something was pulling me closer. “Aurelia!?" Elyse called out. I stopped and looked over at her. “Where are you going?" she asked, confused.

I looked back to the forest, and the eyes were gone, and I realized I had gone from the trail to the tree line. How did I get this close to the forest? “Sorry, I thought I saw something. I’m coming,” I called over as I turned around to catch up to her. 

That night as I laid in my bunk, I found myself thinking of those red eyes again. The pull of them was so strange. I may not be the most cautious person, but I wouldn’t be dumb enough to risk getting hurt to know whatever those eyes belonged to.

I tossed and turned before grabbing my flashlight and sneaking out of the bunk. I figured I’d just go to the bathroom, maybe splash some water on my face. But I found myself drawn to the forest again.

My feet moved on their own, taking me back to where I’d seen those red eyes. Without hesitation, I went into the unknown forest. I ignored how the brush scraped my bare legs as I was in my green pajama shorts that hit mid-thigh and a white tank top with the camp logo on it.

I didn’t even care that I was barefoot as I tried to navigate the forest. I’m not even sure how far from camp I had gone when I heard a gunshot. “What the?!" I blinked, turning my head in the direction of the shot.

This was private property and part of a nature preserve. No one should be hunting here. I should be running back to camp. That was the logical thing to do. Instead, I found myself running in the direction of the shot.

I ran faster than I ever have. I wasn’t even out of breath as I reached a small clearing. My eyes widened, and I felt tears start to well as I saw the mangled body of a gray wolf. “Oh no…" I gasped in horror. 

Gray wolves only recently were taken off the endangered species list, but they are still protected. Who could do something like this? I found myself looking around for the perpetrator but saw no one.

Across the clearing from me, I saw the red eyes again. Could whatever or whoever those eyes belong to had done this? No, this was done by a person with a rifle. And no person could have red eyes like those.

So then it must be some animal that lives here. I had the feeling those eyes belonged to a predator. Was it here to take the carcass? My stomach turned at the idea of some animal scavenging the remains of this poor fallen wolf.

I found myself taking two steps forward. To my surprise, so did the creature. The clouds had moved enough for the moon to shine down to reveal a dark brown, nearly black wolf stepping out of the tree line. 

This was no wolf, at least not one I’ve ever seen. It's massive; it looks double the size of a normal wolf. And those blood-red eyes are not natural. The way it looked at me. There was so much in those eyes than any animal would have. There were so many emotions in those eyes.

How could an animal be so expressive? Unconsciously I took two more steps forward, drawn to this wolf, and saw it took tentative steps closer to me in turn.

The gap between us was nearly gone. “H... hello,” I nervously greeted, extending my hand. I wondered how soft its fur would be. Would it let me touch it? I was crazy to try and handle a wild animal.