All Chapters of Marked: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

As I flew with Caleb in the cold air, gripping him tightly, my hunger pangs started to dissipate, and my head finally started to clear. I looked down and saw the blood all over Caleb, all over both of us, and tried to remember what had happened.I remembered leaving Hawthorne’s house. Then the police, then losing control. Then there was a gunshot. Yes, now I remembered. As I had aimed her teeth for the officer’s neck, I had suddenly been pulled off him by Caleb. With lightning speed, he had yanked me off, had spared me from attacking another human.But he had suffered for it. That cop had fired, and had hit Caleb in the arm. His blood had been all over both of us, but it never seemed to slow him down. Instead, he somehow managed to knock out all three policemen before they could react, to pick me up in the same motion, and to take off into the air. I marveled at his sense of control, in every situation. He had managed to get us out of there without seriously hurting anyone but himsel

As we walked towards it, leaves rustling, getting closer, I felt encouraged. It was a huge thicket of tangled branches and thorns. It almost looked like a wall. We circled it, and it must’ve been 100 feet deep in every direction. It was impenetrable. If anything fit his description, this was it. No one could get anywhere near this thing, unless they had a thick machete, and were willing to spend days chopping. Whatever was at its center—if anything—would likely be untouched.But then again, maybe this was just a huge thicket of branches and thorns, and all that we would find for their trouble was more thorns.Caleb nodded slowly. “Yes,” he said. “This could be it.”He studied it for a while, the finally said, “Stand back.”I took several steps back, wondering what he would do.Caleb pulled his sleeves down, over his hands, shielding them, then reached in, and with his incredible strength, tore at the thicket of branches. It was incredible, like watching a chainsaw attack the pile.

At the same moment, we both hurried to the spot on the floor where the log landed, as Caleb smoothed it over with his hand. Centuries of dust were wiped away, revealing the bare wood. He rapped hard on it with his knuckles, and there was, again, a hollow sound.“Stand back,” he said, and I leaned back against the wall.As I did, he pulled his arm back and punched the floorboard. There was cracking wood, as he punched a hole right through it, and reached in and tore up several floorboards.I grabbed a candle, and put it inside the hole. There was not much space, and we could see the dirt on the ground. I moved the candle. At first, it revealed nothing. But as I moved the candle to the corner, I suddenly saw something. “There.”I reached in and slowly extracted it. I held it up, and wiped away an inch of dust.It was a small, red satin pouch. Tied shut by a string.I handed Caleb the candle, and began opening it. I wondered what on earth it could be. A coin? A piece of jewelry? My

{SAMANTHA’S POV}Samantha looked out to see a car door open. Out came a human, poorly dressed in a cheap suit, carrying a “for-sale” sign beneath his arm. He walked towards the front door of the house.She was so relieved, that she laughed out loud. It was just another pathetic human. And this one, a real estate broker. The worst of them all.Of course. Now it made sense. He was probably preparing to show the house, probably had an open house scheduled, and was here bright and early to make sure everything was fine. Overzealous. And desperate.As she watched him approach, she saw his brow furrow in confusion and then concern, as he began to notice the signs that the house was occupied. Sam’s pickup truck in the driveway. A light on.He seemed utterly confused, as if racking his brain to remember if he’d left a light on, or whose car that could be. Then, as he seemed to realize that it was something more, his expression turned to annoyance.Samantha smiled. She loved how annoy

Although I myself had turned into a wolf, I had never seen another wolf before, and had no idea how to react. Oddly enough, I wasn’t afraid. I was intrigued, mesmerized. In fact, as I watched them, I almost felt a strange sort of kinship.While watching, I reached over and placed a hand on Caleb, shaking him.He suddenly sat up beside me, alert. The two of us stared together as the pack came in close, only feet away, sniffing and circling.“Don’t be afraid,” Caleb said softly. “I can feel their thoughts. They are just curious. Remain still.”I sat very still, watching as their leader came up close to me, inches from my face, putting its nose right up to my cheek.Several tense moments followed, as I wondered what to do. My heart was pounding, and I felt like pushing him away. But instead, I followed Caleb’s direction and sat very still.Suddenly, he turned and walked away.As he left, the pack followed.Except for one. A small wolf, a pup, hardly bigger than a small dog, ling