I am Wolf (The Wolfboy Chronicles) (18 page)

“We are looking for someone,” he said. “We think the
Guards might have her.”

As soon as the woman heard Caspian mention the Iron
Guards she was immediately struck by fear. It showed in her brown eyes. She
shook her head and lifted her hand like we were flies she wanted to remove.
Then she began to walk away from us.

“Please, just let us know if the Guards have a place
around here, maybe they keep it a secret. Maybe you have seen their cars or
something. Please help us. We want to help this poor girl that they have
taken.”

The woman froze. Her back was turned at us. Then she
turned. Her face was wrinkled like a walnut. Her eyes were kind. She reminded
me of my grandmother before she passed away.

“Please?” Caspian pleaded.

“We do see them a lot around here,” she said. “Their
black cars come at night.”

“Where do they go?” I asked.

The old woman pointed at a hill. A small forest rose
behind it. “Mogosia Mitr,” she said and pointed.

Caspian took her hand and shook it gently.
“Mulțumesc. Thank you so much.”

The old woman nodded, then pulled her scarf up to
cover her head before she continued walking.

“Come on,” Caspian said and began walking. “Mogosia
should be no more than an hour walk from here.”

I caught up with him. “What is Mogosia Mitr?”

“It’s an old castle. Named after the widow who died
and left no heirs in 1876. It has been empty ever since. The city used it as a
museum, but the last few years it has been closed up. No one goes to museums
when times are like these.”

W
e walked through the
small forest
and soon I picked up Catalina’s scent very strongly. It gave me hope and
energized me. I walked faster.

“She’s close now,” I said.

Caspian smiled yet his eyes remained concerned.
“That’s good,” he said. “That’s very good.”

We stayed away from the main road and took a path
through the dense pine forest hoping it would cover us just enough to not be
seen. Soon a huge fence rose in front of us.

“This marks where the property belonging to the castle
begins,” Caspian said. He searched the area with his wolf-eyes and scanned for
any danger. “It looks like it’s only guarded at the entrance,” he said. “It’s
miles to the east. They won’t be able to see us all the way in here. But
remember that once we get to the other side they will surely shoot us if they
see us.”

I shrugged. “They’ll try and kill us anyway. It
doesn’t matter where we are.”

“You are very right. But I have to let you know, that
being shot as the human is a lot more dangerous than if you are the wolf.
Especially when you are as young as you are. You grow stronger with age, the
longer you have been partly wolf.”

“I have been badly hurt even as the human but healed
easily. I’m not afraid,” I said.

“Okay. But remember the human body is fragile. I am
not running any risks with you ...”

“So what are you suggesting?”

“I say we climb the fence then hide at the property
until sunset. Then we hunt to satisfy and control the wolf and afterwards
attack the castle. As the wolf you can easier sustain being shot and hurt.”

I nodded. It made perfect sense to me. We had much
more strength as wolves even if we lost control.

“After you,” I said.

Caspian grabbed onto the fence and began climbing. I
followed him and soon we jumped to the other side. I felt anxious yet
determined and strong as we walked quietly across the snow. Caspian found a
branch with leaves that he used to cover up our tracks in the snow behind us. After
half an hour snow started to fall from the sky again and our tracks were easily
covered by a white layer. We walked deep into the forest surrounding the castle
and found a clearing where we stopped.

“We can’t go too close or they’ll know we are here.
They probably have dogs guarding the entrance,” Caspian said. “They sense the
presence of a wolf from a far distance. They might pick up our smell and warn
the Guards.”

“So what do we do now?” I asked.

Caspian sat on a small rock. He exhaled and looked at
me. “We wait.”

The wait almost tore me apart. I was so torn by the pain I was sensing
from Catalina. I kept getting up, walking around like a lion in a den, then
sitting down again. I couldn’t rest since I knew she was so close now. I could
spot the castle through the trees with my wolf-eyes. In there, right behind
those big walls. I felt fury and rage stirring me up, causing me to feel
uneasy.

“Anger will only blur your senses,” Caspian said
looking at me.

“I just can’t take it,” I said. “She could be right in
there, taking another beating right now and I am here, but still doing nothing.
I can’t stand it.”

“You need to remain calm,” Caspian continued. “For
Catalina’s sake. Fury only brings bad things. You might turn too soon and lose
control. A night attack will be best. It’s all in the timing. I need you to
stay focused.”

I inhaled deeply and looked at him. “What if they have
already killed her? What if we’re too late?”

Caspian nodded. “We have to keep faith. We cannot
afford to think like that.”

I closed my eyes and sighed. Then I sat down on a cold
rock. The wind was icy, but I was so filled with rage that it kept me warm. I
felt a tickling sensation on the top of my hand and realized that hairs had
begun growing out. The change was coming. I lifted my head and looked at
Caspian.

“You need to calm yourself down, right now,” he said.
“Take in a few more deep breaths. Think about something nice, something that
makes you happy and calm.”

“I might be able to control it,” I said. “I have done
it once before. The only time I have ever changed due to anger. I was able to
control myself and only kill the soldiers.”

Caspian nodded. “You are very strong, and you might be
able to control it, but do we dare to run the risk? Wouldn’t it be more
sensible to wait till the change came on its own? Plus you’re getting hungry. A
wolf that is both angry and hungry is a dangerous combination. Try and relax.
Maybe get some sleep? You haven’t slept at all today. Your human has needs too.
You can’t deprive it of sleep, or you’ll make it sick. I’ll keep an eye out
while you sleep.”

I looked at him defiantly.

He sighed. He stared into my eyes and I sensed the
urgency. “It’s important Sami. You need to be in balance within.”

I exhaled in irritation before I finally obeyed.

W
hen nightfall came Caspian
woke
me up with a gentle push. “Wake up, Sami,” he whispered.

I rose to my feet and looked at the sky. It had
stopped snowing and the heavy clouds had moved out. A thin layer still covered
the sun while it slowly set and left the forest in complete darkness. I
welcomed the change as it sneaked over me, then turned and looked at Caspian
who was already the wolf.

The almost white eyes smiled. Then he led me through
the forest to find food. We didn’t have to go far before we found a flock of
deer. We threw ourselves at them and each of us caught one that we feasted
upon. My wolf was starved and I ate for a long time to make sure it was
completely satisfied.

When the wolf was sated, I rose and stared at Caspian
whose white fur almost blended in with the snow.

It looked like he smiled. He spoke to me in my
thoughts:

It’s time.

We ran side by side towards the castle. I enjoyed the feeling of my
powerful wolf-body running across the snow, the sight of my paws touching the
ground, causing the snow to scatter. I enjoyed the strength, the supernatural
supremacy underneath my fur as my muscles moved and pushed me forward. Caspian
guided us, zigzagging through the trees. I had my eyes set on the castle in the
distance. I pictured Catalina inside, I pictured Alexandru’s face when he saw
me. Would he recognize me? Would he recognize my eyes?

I looked forward to getting back at him for what he
had done to Catalina, for the pain he inflicted on her. I wanted him to pay, I
wanted him to suffer.

“We are here to get Catalina and nothing else,” I
heard Caspian say in my thoughts. “Hatred and revenge are not good emotions.
You should keep those out of your mind. They are like poison to your soul. They
will eat you up.”

I growled while running. Caspian stopped. I stood next
to him. There it was. Right in front of us rose the enormous castle out of the
forest. Its many towers looked like they were reaching for the sky.

Two black cars much like the one Catalina had been
taken away in were parked in the gravel outside. Soldiers were patrolling
outside with their dogs.

The wind is in the east, Caspian whispered in my mind.
Stay down wind so the dogs won’t smell you too soon. It needs to be a surprise.
There are four soldiers and two dogs. You take the two soldiers on the right.
I’ll take the ones to the left. Make it fast so they won’t have time to alert
people inside of the house.

Part of me wanted Alexandru to know I was coming for
him. I wanted him to shiver in fear like he had made Catalina tremble.

“Stay focused,” Caspian said. “Don’t open a door for
those thoughts. You are better than that. Control it, keep your mind at peace.”

I didn’t respond, only looked at Caspian as he said
the word.

Now.

We ran as quietly as we could. Like a predator sneaking
up on its prey before the final kill. I ran towards the first soldier on the
right. He had no dog, so I knew he would be the easiest. I jumped him from the
back and without him knowing what hit him, I ripped him open with my claws. He
barely made a sound. Then I ran towards the second soldier and just as I came
close enough the German Shepard sensed I was there and started barking. I
leaped through the air and jumped its back, then bit its neck. The soldier
yelled and screamed as his dog went quiet and fell to the ground. He pulled out
his gun and pointed it at me. I growled and he whimpered. Then I crouched on my
hind legs before I flew through the air and jumped him. He fell into the
gravel, I rose above him, then lifted my claws and killed him.

I turned my head and looked at Caspian. He was
standing next to his two kills, almost enthroning over them. I ran closer. He
didn’t move, he didn’t even look in my direction. He was growling, snarling
while staring at the two corpses. Coming closer I soon realized what he really
was looking at. It was the blood running from the body of the soldier lying
closest to him. His eyes were fixated, his body almost paralyzed. The smell of
the blood hit my nostrils as well and I suddenly knew exactly how he felt. He
wanted to taste it, he wanted to sink his teeth into the human flesh, just to
try and see what it was like. I pushed a thought at him:

“Let’s move on.”

He didn’t answer. He hardly even moved. He growled.
The sound came from deep within him. It frightened me. Was he going to lose
control over his wolf?

“Come on,” I thought. “We need to go before it’s too
late.”

Still Caspian didn’t answer. His eyes looked maddened
by desire for the human flesh. I was beginning to panic now. What if they had
heard us inside the castle and were coming for us now? We had to hurry. The
smell of the human blood was interfering and messing with my mind and thoughts,
and given my history I didn’t want to come too close.

Caspian lifted his head then growled again that deep
growl. Then he walked closer to the body. He sniffed it.

“Stop, Caspian!” I yelled through his thoughts. My
heart was racing with fear. Caspian’s breathing became heavier like he was
fighting this but not for long anymore.

I knew I had to do something, so I walked in front of
him, between him and the body and growled as fiercely as I could manage.

It worked. Caspian lifted his head. I stared into his
white eyes. I saw nothing but desperation. He needed my help to pull out of
this I thought. There was only one way. I had to attack him. I had to pull him
away from the smell and the source of this strong desire. So I jumped him. With
open mouth I bit onto his fur and began dragging him across the gravel. It was
hard since he was much stronger and heavier than I, but I wasn’t going to give
up, not here, not this close. I pulled and pulled while Caspian tried to fight
me off by tossing and turning his body, when finally I managed to get him close
to the stairs of the castle and out of reach from the smell. It was like letting
air out of a balloon. He fell to the ground with a hissing sound. Gone was the
resistance; gone was the madness in the eyes. He looked up at me.