The First Wolf's Moon by Savannah Turberville (thriller books to read TXT) 📕

Last year……..

The night was filled with the sound of rain and thunder. Me and my father, Jeffrey Banks, were in his midnight black Cadillac, which was broken down. We were miles away from any town.Dad took me bowling in Atmore and we were on our way back to Monroeville when suddenly Dad notice the line for the fuel was on E.

 "You should've stopped at a gas station." I said smiling as he got back in the car. He went to see if we had a gas jug in the trunk. His Crocodile Don ‘Dee hat was now soaked. Dad took it off and set beside him. His dark brown curly hair was damp but still had a little fluff to it and his dark brown eyes held nothing but joy. My dad was in his forties but looked as if he was in his thirties. The thing that aged him most was his laugh lines by his eyes. He wore  blue jeans that were stained with grease, along with an orange shirt and his wind- breaker jacket that had one or two holes in it. It was close to ten o'clock and we knew if we didn't get home soon, Mom would begin to worry.

 "What? And miss out on all of this." He gestured around us. His voice was husky and, at the same time, a melody to my ears. “No way." I laughed.

 "Dad, you’re so weird."

    "And that's a bad thing? Besides, I'm not the only one who's weird in this family."

 "I know I'm weird too."

 " That's right and there's nothing wrong with that."

  "I know. It makes me unique."

  "Unique and beautiful." Dad said giving me a hug. We stayed like that for a few minutes. He then pulled away and smiled. 

 "What?"

 "Today is your sixteenth birthday and your mom and I got you something." He paused as he reached into the back seat. Dad then pulled a little decorated bag out and handed it to me. “I know you love listening' to music and you only have a radio in your room. So, your mom and I, thought it would be a good idea if we got you something' to get you out of the house and let you still be able to listen to your music."

        "Oh, Dad, y'all didn't." I said taking' the gift paper out as quickly as I could. At the bottom was an iPod and headphones.

"Do you like it?" Dad asked shyly.

"Like it!?" I paused admiring my present. "I love it! Thank you so much Dad. I love you." I said given' him another hug.

"I love you too, baby girl. Now, don't forget to thank your mom when we get home." He said. I nodded. Someone then knocked on the window. "That must be the tow truck. Stay in here."

"Will do." I said as Dad got out into the rain. I was still admiring my iPod when I saw something move at the corner of my eye. I looked up to see a pistol aimed at my father's chest. There were two men. I couldn't see their faces but I could see that they had lean figures. Panic sored through me. I then heard three gunshots rang out into the night. My father collapsed.

"DAD!!!" I yelled. I then got out and ran to my father.

"She's not expose to be here!" One of the men said. The one who spoke had a plaid shirt on and blue jeans. He also had brown hair and red peircing eyes with a scar from his forehead down his right eye. He was the one who shot my father. The man looked familiar but I couldn't place him.

"Let's go." The other man said. The man had a authoriative vioce and it seems he was bigger then I thought. He had broad shoulders and chest.  His eyes were the color of bright emeralds.He wore a plain gray t-shirt with jeans.

"We have to kill her." The shooter urged. His excitement at the thought at killing another person was clear on his face.  I didn't know what to do so I began to put pressure on my father's wounds. I didn't know if they were going to shot me and I didn't care. All I cared about was making sure my Dad would live. Tears blurred my vision.

"No." The other one said. Giving the shooter a menacing stare. They stood there glaring at each other for I don't know how long before the shooter growled, mumbled something to himself, and got in a chevy red truck. The other man looked my way one last time before following his friend. They then left. 

"Dad! Dad!"

"April." He said nearly in a whisper. I took his hand in mine and rested his head on my folded up jacket.

"I'm here, Dad." I managed to say between sobs.

"April, are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry, I'm calling' for an ambulance." I said as I dug in my jean pocket and got my cell phone out. Dad stopped me.

"Don't. It's okay I'll be fine."

"No, you won't."

"Baby girl, I'll be fine as long as you are." He paused struggling to take a breath. "April, make me a promise. Promise me you'll take care of your mother and you'll always remember what I taught you. Can you promise me that?" I couldn't answer. "April?"

"Yes, I promise." I said barely able to get the words out.

"Good, good." He paused looking' past me. "It's time for me to go. Good-bye baby girl." Dad said. He then took one last breath and became still in my arms. His tan skin began to grow cold and his liquid, dark brown eyes became glassy. His body no longer a vessel for his soul.

"No," I shoke my head in disbelief," no, Dad, stay with me. Don't leave me alone! Stay with me! Dad!" There was no response. "Someone help!" I yelled, but I knew no one could hear me. With a shaky hand I closed his eyes. A few minutes later the tow truck pulled up and carried us to the hospital. On that night I vowed to never count on anyone for help. My name is April Banks and this is the beginning of my story.

Today I begin my new life, in a new town with new people . I had to leave my home, friends, school and a little part of myself behind, and today is the day I start again, making new mistakes and new beginnings. In a town filled with strangers and natives that I do not know or want to know. I could tell by the town's layout and the way my new house looked that things would never be the same. It's been almost a year since I lost my father. After he died my mother decided to move me from place to place so I wouldn't be able to dwell on the past. Unfortunatly her good intentions were in vain because I am still haunted by the memories and nightmares of that night.If only she knew.

"April, come help me unpack these boxes, please?" My mom, Maria Banks, yelled from the stuffy living room. It was filled with boxes that held the memories of my old life. I shook my head as I put on my gray, plaid fedora. My jeans were loose and my shirt, nearly matched my fedora, except it was red and plaid, my sneakers looked as if I took a knife to them.

"Sorry, Mom, but if you want me to have a normal life then I have to go to school." I said bored and hopeless as I came to a stop in the door way. I leaned on the right side of it, watching my mother shuffled through and move boxes. Her sandy blonde hair was pulled into a messy ponytail. Her, nearly black, brown eyes had dark circles around them. She hasn't got a lot of sleep ever since we moved here, I thought studying her. She wore blue jeans with a lime green ruffled shirt.

"Oh yeah, I forgot. Today's your first day at your new school. Are you excited?"

"Yep, nothing like starting' a new semester in a new town. Not knowing' any one is exactly how I wanted to start the year. Thanks Mom." I said sarcastically. I then pushed off and headed to the door.

"We've already had this conversation, April. We had to move here."

"Oh yeah and why is that exactly?"

 "Because I need to find a job and you need to talk to someone." Mom covered her mouth as soon as she said it. She knew she slipped. I gritted my teeth.

"Talk to someone about what?" I asked turning toward her and crossing my arms across my chest. She fell silent. "Oh, I forgot. I need help to forget what happened on the night Dad died." I grimaced at the memory.

"April-"

"I need to get going. I don't want to be late on my first day. See ya when I get home." I snapped, cutting her off before she could say anything else. She was already digging herself a hole she couldn't get out of. I then grabbed my satchel and backpack, which were by the door, and hurried out to my black 2010 ford truck. On the way to South Coast High School, my new school, one question filled my head. What would I have to put up with today and until I graduate? With every mile I drove, I was getting closer and closer to my answer. It wasn't long until I pulled into the school's parking lot.

 "Here we go." I whispered to myself as I shut off my truck and got out. Immediately, when my foot hit the ground everyone's eyes were on me. As if I was a new species that needed to be analyzed and experimented on. I put my earphones in ignoring people and avoiding eye contact. If I can just make sure that I draw no attention to myself. If I can do that then I won't have to take my medicine, I thought as I scanned the grounds. It was like every other school: the preps in one area, the misfits in the other, geeks  studying and having intellectual conversations and so on and so forth. Great. Someone tapped me on my shoulder. I turned to come face to face with a girl who had curly, light brown hair, hazel green eyes, and a tannish complexion. She wore a purple and red striped shirt with black leggings and slip on shoes. I took out one earphone out.

"Hi, I'm Clara Simmons." The girl said. Her voice was filled with kindness and her eyes were filled with excitement. It was strangely familiar to me. She stretched out her hand. "You must be the new student?" I took her hand.

"April Banks, nice to meet you." I said letting' go. I then began to scan the crowd again. I saw a boy with icy blue eyes, dark brown hair, and tan skin headed our way. He was cute but not my type. He wore blue jeans that had holes at