Chapter 5

I rushed about the kitchen attempting to prepare the food before our parents got in, once I had finished making it I dished the pasta, chicken and sauce into the bowls, putting a bowl of salad and a bowl of cheese in the middle of the table. I turned around to leave but pain fired through my side as i was shoved against the wall. "What the hell was that!" Kyle screamed angrily. I stared at him void of emotion, unable to speak. "How dare you embarass me like that? How the hell did you find yourself a boyfriend on your first day." He slapped me and threw me onto the floor digging his heel into my arm as he stepped on it kicking my stomach with his other, he wouldn't stop kicking. He dragged me to my feet punching me in the ribs and face a few times before throwing me out the back door. I scratched my knee on the patio, taring a hole in my jeans. If I kept my brother out of the house he wouldn't get hurt and thats what I intended to do. Keep him safe. I wiped away the tears before I walked into our bedroom in the backgarden shed. 

"Hunter." I called and he rushed over to me, my brother sat at the small table doing his homework. "I'm just going to walk Hunter, I'll be back in a while, keep the door locked. I have the key." I said to him, keeping my voice as normal as I could. I picked up my sketchbook and a pencil.

He gave me a hug before returning back to his work. Once I was outside I let the tears fall silently. Hearing the car pull up on the drive I climbed over the back fence and called for Hunter to jump it. We ran up through the woods until the house was out of sight. We had been walking for a while before I decided to sit down by a tree, Hunter sitting beside me. We were near a small clearing, and I thought I could sketch the landscape. 

I sang softly to the song that I asked them to play at my fathers funeral, "Yelling at the sky, Screaming at the world. Baby, why'd you go away? I’m still your girl, Holding on too tight, Head up in the clouds, Heaven only knows where you are now..." Hunter laid across my legs, as I drew in my book. "How do I love? How do I love again? How do I trust, How do I trust again? I stay up all night, tell myself I'm alright. Baby, you're just harder to see than most, I put the record on, wait ’til I hear our song. Every night, I'm dancing with your ghost. Every night, I'm dancing with your ghost..." I pulled out the unopened envelope from the back of the sketch book, they gave me it at his funeral, the last letter he would every write to me and I was too scared to open it. "Never got the chance, To say your last goodbye. I gotta move on. But it hurts to try." I looked up seeing a small gimpse of the darkning sky, it was still bright enough to read his writing my name on the envelope. Skylar E Henderaon. I forced in a breath, and carefully opened the envelope with my shaking hands, ensuring that it didn't rip in the process. I unfolded the paper.

Hi Sky, 

Honey I know it's been a while, and I know that you won't be able to open this yet but when you do. I need you to know, I know about your mum and the affair, I need you to do me a favour sweetheart. Get your stuff, yours and your brothers, I need you to go to our place. Someone will be waiting for you there, and they will look after you until I can come home.

Sky. I need you to run. You're in danger, get your brother and run. Hunter will protect you where I can't. If you're not there, I'll send someone to find you. I will find you, I will come home.

All my love,

Dad x

The tears flowed freely down my cheeks, my mind went back to yesterday the man in the woods. Had my father sent him? Your dad wants you to come home.But that man seemed dangerous, Hunter didn't like him and neither did I. I heard multiple howls in the distance and panic sweapt through me, just because my wolf was friendly didn't mean that they all would be. I stood up feeling the pain from the beating in my legs as I struggled to my feet. Hunter stood infront of me tilting his head sideways as if he were trying to hear. I rubbed my tears away with my sleeve of my fathers old army hoodie, it was baggy on me but I only wore it to sleep in or lounge about, when I missed him the most. "Sky." My brothers voice called out behind me. I spung to see him stumble on a fallen branch. The howls sounding closer and he jumped to his feet panic in his eyes. A small gasp leaving his lips as three wolves emerged on the other side of the clearing. "Sky." He whispered, creeping closer to me. 

A low growl filled the air as the golden brown coloured smaller wolf caught our scent. The huge black wolf looked at the the other wolf with curiousity, then sniffed the air turning in our direction. There was a large grey wolf next to the black one, larger than the golden brown wolf but smaller than the black one. Then the golden one started sprinting towards us, a louder growl rippled through the air and it froze, starring at the black one as it stepped forward, walking towards us. "Sky, we need to get out of here." He reached for my hand. The black wolf gave him a warning growl to back away from me. I grabbed his hand and pulled him over so he was hidden behind me. Hunter stood firmly infront of me his teeth barred. The black wolf looked up at me and began walking at a faster pace until he stood next to me. The other two wolves darted off into the trees. The feel of his fur on my hand as he rubbed up against my side made me relax instantly the panic vanishing into a distant memory.

"So this is your secret place?" My brother asked raising an eyebrow as he looked at  picking my notebook up from the floor, he flicked through it stopping at the drawing of the wolf. He looked at the wolf then back at the sketch. "So this is your wolf?" He asked, "You know you've been talking in your sleep about a black wolf." He smirked, his bluish-green eyes, the wolf rubbed his head into me knocking me down as I was struggling to stand. The wolf whipbered slightly nudging my leg, the blood was leaking through the hole in my jeans at my knee. Suddenly his tongue was licking my injury. "Did he do that?" My brother asked referring to my step-father, I shook my head. 

"Kyle. He was pretty pissed that I sat with some people that weren't him at lunch." I shrugged. 

"You know it wouldn't be so bad if you let me help." Matt whined, he didn't like seeing me in pain but I refused to let him take a beating, I wanted him as far away from them as possible if that meant taking twice as long to do something then so be it. 

"And you know, I can take anything they throw at me." I folded my arms, my brothers eyes flickered to the letter in my hand.

He quirked an eyebrow, "You opened it?" He asked in shock. "I didn't think you'd ever..."

"It's confusing." I shrugged, handing him the paper. He scanned it, starring in a daze. 

His eyes lit up. "He's not dead." He smiled, "He's not dead." 

I paused the wolf nudged me again, looking from me to my brother, "I don't know." I raised a hand to my face and sighed out, "He always had a plan he would have survived, but if he did. He would be here. He would have come home." The tears stung my eyes.

His eyes held tears too. "He's alive." He huffed out.

"Then where is he?" I asked looking around.

"He might have been captured or something. He'll find us." My brother answered raising his voice. 

"Face it Matt. He's not coming back, even if he is alive. If he's alive, he's probably forgotten about us. We live with mum and lord knows she has." I snapped back. 

"But you didn't even read it, we didn't go. He could have been there-"

"Matthew that's enough. If he is alive, he will find us like he said. If not, our plan remains the same. When I'm eighteen we will get out of here. Together."