Man Or Wolf by Jade EverStar (best black authors .TXT) 📕

  A pack of wolves dart in and out around trees, and over downed stumps. The large wolf in front is missing an eye and a long ugly scar runs from his left ear,down his left eye socket, to dissapear amoung the mass of thick fur at his throat. Tonight, he and his pack are hunting, but not for food. Hunters have been sighted and they fear for their females back home. Pregnant females, who hold their furture offspring within their bodies. The wolf turns his head to the right to see his pack with his good eye. They are panting and scenting the air for any signs of the hunters off of the nearby cliff. One of the wolves split from the pack and began to move off down the right side of the cliff it's nose planted to the ground. It stops, sniffs,doubles back to retrace its steps, then lifts its head twoards the sky and howls. The scent had been found! The large wolf, Baine, trotted twoards the howling wolf. His mawl opened as if to snap the wolfs neck but instead, in a half human half animalistic voice it spoke.

    " Thank you Brother Thaalen. Now we shall find this hunter of Were's and show him what it is like to be the hunted." Baine lifted his muzzle to the sky and howled. His howl shook the trees and sent birds flying into the air screaming. Lose rocks clattered over the cliffs edge and into its dark depths. The pack and their leader took of to the right off the cliff to further pursue their enemy. This would be Baines last hunt.

   Zane Calloway was approaching his 16th birthday and he was finding himself a bit more depressed than usual. His muscles constantly hurt and he began having nightmares and migraines that seemed to never end. He lent back at his desk in his room and rubbed at his eyes. The fan in his laptop was the only sound in his room today. He usued to attend a normal school but his mother and father pulled him out of public school almost a year ago to date, and forced him into the loneliness of home schooling. His hand went from rubbing his eyes to shoving back his mane of unruly black hair. He'd considered cutting it this summer and wasn't sure why he had put it off so long. He pushed his chair back and took one last look at the laptops glowing blue screen to double check his work, the logged off and shut the lid and stood. He gripped his left wrist with his right and streatched, his back and arms popping as he did. He felt that all too familliar ache in the front of his forhead. Another migraine. Time to go see Nana Callie and drink one of her foul tasting remidies. 

    He turned and made sure his bed was made,then turned off the light.He heaved a sigh and headed down to the kitchen. His mother had been cooking up a storm today, prepairing for Zane's birthday party of just family. He entered the kitchen as she set a large spiral ham onto the counter next to three others previously cooked hours ago. His family was a rather large one. He went around the counter and helped her hoist the last ham onto the counter and then gave her a quick kiss on her cheek.

    " You cook to much Mother. You know I don't want a large party. Just us would have been fine." She smiled and turned to shut the oven door. He thought she looked rather beautiful when she smiled. 

    " Yes Zane, we've all heard darling. But you only turn 16 once and who better to spend it with than family? Oh and Miss Erica from the city is coming to. She wants to see your school progress. I told her you were doing rather well." He smiled. Erica was a rather nice lady. She and his father seemed like good friends, but he wasn't sure what it had to do with him. Erica was the woman sheriff he had lived with off and on during the school year. Well, until last year anyway. She was rather nice and all the family memebers even got along with her, which was rare. They didn't like anyone outside the family. Ever. Miss Erica had become,so far, the only exception to this rule.

       " I have to so see Nana. I've got another migraine." He patted her on the shoulder,offered her a small smile and tunred to leave out the back door. His mothers eye brows knit together in worry.

        " I'll be fine mom. Nana will get rid of it." he called out as he went down the back stairs. It wasn't his migraine she was worried about, but he didn't know that.

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          Marie Calloway checked her cell phone and then dialed her husband Marcus. Their son was having one to many headaches and he needed to explain to his son why. BEFORE his birthday party tomarrow night. Marcus answered on the thrid ring.

         " Yeah Marie. What's up?" It was his normal way of answering his cell, but today it seemed to unerve her.

          " He's having another migraine Marcus. You need to tell him." The silence on the other end of the phone told her he was thinking again.

            " Send him to Nana Callie. She'll give him another dose of meds and he will be fine again in a few hours." She was pacing the kitchen floor.

             " Marcus. Nothing Nana has will cure him of what may or may not happen to him on his birthday if you don't warn the boy. Now, I knew what you were when we got together and even when we got married, you had someone there for you, now you need to be there for him. I may not be able to give him ALL the information he needs, but if you don't tell him I most certainly will. Then what Marcus? What will you tell him when he comes to YOU asking for help? Asking you why you hadn't told him sooner. He has a right to know Marcus." He was quite. He knew she was right. She heard him take a deep breath and let it out slowly.

            " Your right Marie. You know I hate it when your right, but your right. I will tell him tomarrow, BEFORE nightfall. I know it's not much of a warning and he won't have long till the moons pull will weigh on him, but at least I will have the male members of the pack their to help me if he gets out of control. If he turns at all. YOu know my line is called the Dead Line for a reason. I'm sure you don't want to hear our history all over again." this time he was right and she knew it. He was right about it not being much of a warning, but this is why they had agreed to have the party here at the ranch and not in public. All the pack members would be here for him as support and aid. Gods forbid they had to restrain him.

               " Okay Marcus. I can see where your coming from. But I still think he should have been told sooner." with that she ended the call and turned back to the stove. 

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    Zane knocked on  his grandmothers door and waited.

Publication Date: 01-01-2015

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
I want to thank my husband. He has been there through my doubts and wanting to quit.... He made me go on and become better. Thanks sweetheart, without your constant pushing and encouraging, I wouldn't have made it this far.