Suddenly a voice shouted out breaking the tense silence, “Come out, come out wherever you are Feral Born! No one else needs to get hurt!”

“Lying piece of deer shit!” Candice shouted back.

Shocked, everyone looked her way to which she just shrugged back at us. Moving through the trees, I got closer to the edge of the treeline and everybody else. Ryan, who was next to Otis, gave me a warning look that I completely ignored.

“She’s here, isn’t she? You idiots! Do you even know the monster you have behind your own borders? Give her to us, we’ll save you from her and her from herself!”

The rage that had calmed slightly came raging back at this person’s words.

“The one you call Kaiya, is an abomination! Her kind is a current stain on shifter history!”

My hands shook in rage at the words this man was spewing out of his ignorant mouth. Looking over at Candice her eyes went wide at whatever she saw on my face. Making a ‘keep him going’ motion with my clawed hands, she nodded in agreement.

“Says the one that shot at pups! You worthless scum!” She screamed back.

Tilting my head back, I gave a smile when I noticed a branch that jutted out just a little over the border. Time to come down, little preacher. Bending down, I unlaced my boots and quickly slipped them and my socks off. Wiggling my toes, I felt the familiar burn of my claws pushing through my nail beds but this time it was coming from my feet. Claws a little shorter than the ones I sported on my fingers extended from my toes. A weird perk that Feral Born’s never really talked about but all valued.

“I wouldn’t have hurt them! I was talking pot shots! Look, goddamn it! Stop calling me names! The Feral Born needs to come to us sooner rather than later!”

“Why, asshole!”

“WELL IF SHE HADN’T OF KILLED THE MESSENGER RIGHT AWAY LIKE AN ANIMAL, YOU’D KNOW WHY! Honestly, you people are making this a lot harder than it needs to be! I’m trying to save you all! Where is your Alpha?”

Sinking my claws into the bark, I had just pulled myself up and went to dig my foot in when a hand clasped my arm. Short brown hair flung in a wide arc over my shoulder from the force I used to look back at whoever was holding my arm. Meeting chocolate brown eyes and a pale face, I rolled my red ones in exasperation.

“Yes, Ryan?”

“What in the moonless hell do you think you’re doing?” He glared at me.

How adorable he seemed upset, “Going to kill him.”

“By giving him exactly what he wants? And since when do you have toe claws?” That last question was asked with a pointed look at my feet.

I pulled my arm free of his grip, “Since, I was born. Look, can you ask questions after I kill this guy?”

He gave a low snarl, “Can you just listen to me for once?”

“No. I don’t have time for this.” I stated, before climbing further up the tree.

He latched onto my ankle, “Kai! He has a-”

“Shhhh.” Tilting my head I focused my hearing on the other side of the border. Something’s changed.

“Kai-”

“Shhh!” There was no third shifter heartbeat coming from the other side of the border but I couldn’t be sure with Ryan still running his mouth.

“Stop shhing-”

Frustrated, I broke his hold on my ankle and spun around as I let go of the tree. Wrapping my legs around his red sweater clad chest, I slapped a hand over his mouth and looked down into his wide brown eyes. “Ryan. Stop. Talking.” I hissed.

Looking shocked beyond belief, he quickly nodded his head and placed his hands on the sides of my thighs. Choosing to ignore that, I focused in on the other side again. Fucking hell.

“He got away!” Growling I pushed at Ryan to set me down before taking off for the tree the shooter was in. Skitting to a stop beside it, I found the two missing warriors on patrol knocked out in wolf form. Dismissing them, I scaled to the top of the tree where the shooter had been at. No scents besides the heavy smell of pine stood out to me making the only thing I found in his perch, a note. Vaguely I could hear Otis and Ryan barking orders down below as I unfolded the dirtied sheet of paper, it read:

Dear Kaiya,

What my messenger had been trying to tell you before you so rudely murdered him, is this. We can cure you! You no longer have to be a beast of primal intelligence! Come to us and we will cure you like we have others of your kind! You can be a regular shifter like the moon intended! You wouldn’t have to hide your shifted form! You could even have an inner wolf! Come to us before the blood moon to save your monstrous soul before it is too late!

P.S. You will receive this cure, Kaiya. Willingly or not, make the choice while I am still so graciously giving you one.

See you soon,

The Savior

I gripped the branch to steady myself, they went from death threats to wanting to cure me? To cure Feral Borns? A tendril of raw terror curled around my chest. What changed? How could you cure something that was a birthright? The moon created my kind herself and nothing she does is a mistake. This ‘cure’ wasn’t a cure at all but a more devastating form of death.

“Kai! What’d you find?” Otis yelled up at me.

Folding up the note, I stuffed it into the side pocket of my cargo pants. Climbing down the tree, I fell the last ten feet to the ground and landed in a crouch. Standing up, I looked around at the people I had been protecting for the past seven years.

“Well?” Otis questioned as he helped pick up the unconscious warriors, “What’d you find?”

Without hesitation, I replied, “Nothing, not even a scent. Just a burn mark from his rifle on the branch.”

Everyone seemed to accept my answer with a nod and started heading back to the territory talking about new security measures. All except for Ryan who stood there staring at me a little longer than normal. Breaking eye contact, I started walking back to where I had left my shoes. The note felt like a stone in my pocket but it was one that I needed to carry alone until I knew who I could trust. If certain people in this pack thought I could be cured? Let’s just say some of them would jump at the chance to ‘save me’ and I’d rather have my throat ripped out again then be ‘cured’.

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Mmmmmmmmm, looks like things are getting tricky for Kai. Is she wrong or right for keeping the new note a secret? Also, It looks like Ryan might know Kai a little better than she thinks he does.....

If you’re enjoying Kai’s story so far, let me know by commenting or liking!

Smooches, Verbage💋