Luna Grey (5 page)

Eric followed
just as Craig shouted through the locked door as he clawed at the
handle.

Eric’s heart
beat a hundred miles an hour as he fell to the ground and tore
after Luna into the forest. The angry shouts behind them spurred
them on and Eric dashed madly through the ensnaring bushes.

Luna’s body
morphed and cracked in the dim moonlight, and Eric took in the lean
grey-white wolf racing before him. He drew in quick breaths as his
legs pumped hard as he flew after her, and he shuddered as his body
underwent the same transformation. His red-brown fur sprouted from
his skin as his jaw lengthened and his ears grew. His legs twisted
and stretched as did his arms, being replaced by lengthy canine
legs and paws.

The pair of
wolves tore through the undergrowth, their tongues lolling out as
they fled.

Eric growled as
the howls and snarls of his pursuing family rose up behind
them.

Luna whimpered
and laid her ears flat against her head as Eric nudged her side to
keep her moving.

The moon lit
their way and Eric had no time to take it the usually reassuring
and peaceful night air and scents of the forest.

Luna whimpered
softly as another howl rose up behind them, having gained on them a
bit.

Eric snarled
angrily, his paws pounding on the soft earth as they barrelled on.
He’d been stupid to think they could escape his family. They were
older, therefore stronger and faster than them. But their youth
gave them a slight head start, but he hadn’t thought further ahead
than getting away from the house.

They should
head for a road, but he’d lost his heading when they’d started
fleeing, and he slapped himself inwardly for not keeping focused on
where they were going. They had hundreds of acres of land to get
through, and with his family hot on their tail; they needed to
think of something.

Luna yelped as
a brown streak shot out from the trees to their left and dragged
her to the forest floor.

Eric snarled
and rammed into her attacker, catching the scent of Brent. But he
was certainly no match for the brute wolf who snapped his jaws onto
Eric’s shoulder and dragged him to the ground.

Brent tore at
him with tooth and fang as Eric yelped and struggled. Luna had
pulled herself to her feet but cowered down as both Craig and his
father burst into the clearing. The leaner grey wolf flattened his
ears and stepped aside as the large brown wolf growled and trotted
up to Luna. He stood over her menacingly, and Eric kicked out with
his hind legs to escape from under his brother.

He wouldn’t let
his father hurt her; he had to protect her.

He leapt at the
large brown wolf, but was knocked aside with ease as his father
snarled and snapped as he towered over him.

Eric froze on
the ground, his heart pounding at the look of disappointment and
anger swirling in his father’s brown eyes.

He grunted and
stepped back, glaring at Eric as his body slowly morphed back to
that of a naked man.

“You’ve
dishonoured our family boy,” he spat and turned on Luna. “Shift
back now and no harm will come to you. We’ll escort you back.”

Brent had
shifted back too and crossed his arms, proud of his manhood that
hung out. Craig remained in his wolf form though, knowing they
could potentially still need an agile four-legged beast if they
made a run for it.

Luna whimpered
as her body cracked and shifted, and Eric whined as the blonde
woman cowered on the ground. Her hair hung in her face as she tried
to shield her body from their eyes, but his father grabbed her by
the arm and hefted her to her feet.

“She does look
good,” Brent whistled as he took in her full naked body, from her
ample breasts that were only half covered by her free arm to the
blonde hair that covered her nether region.

Eric fumed and
growled, wanting to tear into his brother and hide Luna away. He
could smell the helplessness and fear on her, and the look she shot
Eric pained him like nothing else. She thought she’d found freedom,
but now it was vanishing from her eyes.

“Eric, shift
back and come, we’ll deal with you later,” his father snapped as he
began dragging Luna back. She didn’t struggle, knowing she was no
match for all the males, even if Eric were to fight.

Eric gritted
his teeth, hating how he ha failed her, hating his family. He had
wanted to rescue Luna so badly, but he feared he’d only made it
worse now. Why didn’t he think?

His body
shifted and his limbs snapped as his fur withdrew and he stood up
on human legs once more.

“You’re so
screwed,” Brent snickered as he pushed his brother forward after
their father.

Craig followed
along silently, watching everything with interest.

Eric hung his
head as he walked, ignoring the scratches on his body as branches
and twigs dragged across bare flesh.

He avoided
looking at Luna, not wanting to make her even more uncomfortable
while she walked naked before him. His blood boiled though as he
glanced at his brother, who was smirking as he stared at her
backside.

He raked his
brain for a new plan; a way to escape his family before they
reached the cabin, but he knew inwardly it was useless. He couldn’t
take on his family; he’d been stupid to go against them in the
first place. He just wanted to set Luna free.

“Dad’s going to
have your ass,” Brent chuckled quietly, and Eric gave him a dark
look.

He was right
though; Eric could only imagine what his father was going to do to
him for going against him.

Luna cried out
as she was flung onto the cold stone floor of her cell. Eric’s
father muttered under his breath as he slammed the door shut and
stormed upstairs.

She whimpered
as she climbed onto her bed and wrapped the blanket around her. Her
body shivered in the cold, musty basement and she closed her eyes,
not wanting to think of what they’d do to Eric for aiding her.

She felt stupid
for accepting his help, she should’ve known it wouldn’t work, and
she didn’t want him to get hurt.

She trembled
and sobbed as her throat tightened at the sound of Eric’s arguing
upstairs. He was trying to argue that what they were doing was
wrong, but then she heard the unmistakeable thud as something hit
him hard and he fell to the floor.

She wrapped her
arms around her body and tried to block out the sounds of Eric’s
body being beaten above her. She covered her ears and ground her
teeth as tears streaked down her face. Why would they hurt him?
What sort of family was this? Eric had told her so much, but what
sort of father could beat his own son?

She wasn’t sure
when it ended, but a length of time passed before her sobbing
stopped and she slowly uncovered her ears. No sound greeted her,
and she lay down on her bed, exhausted and scared of what lay in
store. She worried about Eric, about what his father had done to
him. Images of his body broken and bloody shot into her mind and
she shoved them away as she hissed. No, they wouldn’t kill him,
surely. But her heart plummeted and she closed her eyes as more
tears found their way out.

She prayed he
was alive.

Eric groaned as
he blinked after having blacked out. The room swam as it slowly
came into focus and he closed his eyes as the pain became obvious.
His body throbbed and ached all over, his ribs hurt like nothing
else and he took a few shuddering gulps of air. His father had
shoved him into his room and exploded, calling him all sorts of
names. He’d tried to argue, but his father had punched him in the
side of the head, which sent him sprawling on the floor. Spots
danced behind his eyes as he struggled to get to his knees in an
attempt to either fight back or get away. He wasn’t sure of which
one as his head had spun. Brent had stood in the doorway as he
watched the whole thing, and Eric had curled himself into a
protective ball as his father kicked him repeatedly.

He’d never seen
this kind of anger on his father, but then again he’d never gone so
against him before.

Kick after each
excruciating kick sent waves of pain through his body as his ribs
creaked and he held his head protectively. But his feeble attempt
to protect himself proved futile when his dad struck him again in
the head and darkness spiralled down on him.

The last thing
he remembered seeing was Craig’s face behind Brent with a pained
and upset look. Whether it was at his brother’s betrayal or his
beating he wouldn’t know.

Eric dragged in
another painful breath and pulled himself upright, hissing as pain
rolled through his aching body. Bruises marred his skin already,
but he tested all his limbs and did a rundown, thankful to find
that his werewolf frame had suffered no broken bones. Had he been
human, it would’ve been another story.

He groaned as
he dragged himself across the floor and clambered into his bed. He
didn’t need to try the door to know it had been locked from the
outside.

He lay wearily
on his bed, his body aching and his head pounding with a splitting
headache. At least he was alive. His mind flew to Luna but he
relaxed, knowing his father wouldn’t dare risk their ‘hunt’ by
harming her. They wanted a decent hunt, and a wounded female would
prove little fun.

He was thankful
despite the twisted thinking of his father.

He lay on his
bed as his head thumped, wanting to try to come up with a new plan.
But the pain in his head was too much and eventually darkness
engulfed him once more.

Luna’s heart
sped up as the basement door opened and she narrowed her eyes as
Craig descended down the stairs and approached the cell. He held a
steaming bowl of porridge, and Luna watched as he slid it into her
cell.

She’d dreamt of
the horrific torture and terror Eric’s family had in store, and
she’d woken sweating and terrified, wanting to cry out for him and
hold him close as she made sure he was okay. But she knew he
wasn’t, not after the beating she’d heard. She feared for him, and
she found herself sitting upright as she glared at Craig.

“He’s alive,”
Craig seemed to read to her face as he looked at her. She couldn’t
read his expression though; he was masking any emotions he may have
had about the whole thing.

“Why…” she
started but her eyes dropped. She knew why. She knew why she was
here, why Eric was beaten. She wasn’t even sure what she had wanted
to ask.

“Eat, you’ll
need your strength. The other’s arrive in two days,” Craig informed
her as he turned and left.

Luna stared at
the bowl on the floor, not even slightly hungry. She wanted to see
Eric, but at least now she knew he was alive.

It was little
consolation though since she knew he must be hurt and in pain.

Eric spent the
day in bed, his body too weak and sore to do anything else. Craig
had visited him with food and told him if he needed toilet visits
to yell out and he’d come help him. He’d been relieved of his
caring duties obviously and Craig had taken over.

Craig had
hesitated before leaving, letting Eric know Luna was okay and that
Trevor and the boys would arrive in two days.

Eric wasn’t
sure why his brother bothered to tell him this, but he ignored it
as he drifted off again, wanting his body to recover enough so that
he could concoct a new plan.

He listened to
his family move throughout the house as his mind struggled to come
up with a decent plan. He could attempt to overpower Craig during a
toilet trip, but then he’d have to get the key from his father, and
he knew he couldn’t take him on.

He gritted his
teeth and swore as he fisted his hands, furious with himself. How
had he failed? Why hadn’t he thought ahead?

Luna spent the
afternoon drawing a detailed picture of Eric in wolf form. He sat
with his head cocked, his eyes swallowing her in as she added
detail to his fur.

She hid her art
book away as Craig came down and slid her a plate of crumbed
chicken and veggies. He hadn’t said anything as he glanced at her
toothbrush and toothpaste with a soft smile.

He vanished
back upstairs and Luna slowly ate her meal, her mind whirling as
thoughts of the upcoming hunt plagued her mind. Her only hope was
that Eric would come up with a plan before then. She could do
nothing from her cell, but he had more chance.

She heard the
voices from overhead and was thankful to hear that Eric had only
suffered some bruising.

She decided to
hide away in her artwork, knowing if she let her mind continue
she’d break and cry, terrified of her fate. The delicate artwork
she carefully drew was a distraction she was grateful for.

Eric sat on the
edge of his bed cracking his knuckles. Craig was the only person
he’d seen since his attempt to free Luna, and the day that Trevor
and the boys were due was upon them. He hung his head in his hands
and grinded his teeth in frustration.

He’d considered
escape from his window but was mortified to find that when his
father had knocked him out the other night, Brent had installed
some welded bars across his window. They really didn’t trust him at
all.

The only way in
and out of the room was through the locked door that Craig came
through.

He listened
quietly as he heard the voices below him. It seemed Brent and their
father were going to meet Trevor and the boys in town. They’d park
the cars down the track to the cabin and go for a hunt. They knew
where to begin tracking some deer thanks to Eric’s scouting. Craig
would be stuck with his caring duties, and Brent sniggered saying
it was all Eric’s fault and if it pissed off Craig he’d have to
take it up with him.

Eric threw
himself back on his bed, his body still aching in some places as he
wondered if now was a good time to try to bust out. His father and
Brent would be away and he might be able to overpower Craig, but
that wouldn’t help with opening Luna’s cell.