(Jedrek)

I lifted the window open and glanced at my brother. “Are you coming or staying?”

“Coming.” Ricky crept over so we wouldn’t wake up Jax. 

We could topple over a bookcase, and he wouldn’t wake up, so I wasn’t too worried. Ricky climbed out onto the roof, and I followed. I glanced inside to make sure Jax’s breathing hadn’t changed. We took the usual path along the roof line and climbed down the side of the house using an ivy ladder we had conveniently made for our mother.

“Where are they meeting?” asked Ricky.

“The woods,” I replied. “Down by the creek. Further in, since the mutts have guests. They’re putting on a show for them.”

Ricky bumped into me. “Don’t say that out here. They hear everything.” 

I rolled my eyes and pressed my lips together. I wasn’t going to argue about it, or he’d go home. We entered a cornfield and used it as cover as we headed for the tree line. 

“How are you feeling about the… you know?” Ricky cleared his throat.

“How should I feel about being sent away with the possibility of never coming back?” I muttered. “Wonderful, I guess. I’m so excited to work and die at a lumberyard.” I walked faster.

“Jed,” he breathed. “I don’t want to go either.” He caught up with me. “But I’m not going to fight a werewolf. There’s a chance we can come back, but fighting a werewolf is a quick death.”

Shaking my head, I felt more annoyed. I was just going to go because they said so. I’m not leaving my family because some dog told me to—fuck them.

We entered the forest and followed the creek to the clearing where we would hang out with some of the other humans our age. I dropped onto a blanket and grabbed a beer from a basket that someone had brought. Ricky went off to flirt. What was the point? We were going to be sent off to Northern Ridge. I fucking hated werewolves. I opened the can, trying not to crush the sides as my temper rose. 

“Hey, Jed.”

I nodded at the usual group that gathered around me. They chatted about mundane things while I drank. A joint was being passed around, and I took my turn. Maybe it would help me relax. Breathing out, I rolled my head back and exhaled. What a godawful day.

“You seem stressed.”

I shrugged. “I’m being reassigned. Fucking Northern Ridge.” I finished off the beer. 

“That sucks.”

The joint was handed back to me. 

I took another deep breath. “Yeah, I have to figure out a way to get out of it. Anyone got any ideas?”

The group shrugged.

“You might not have to go,” said a girl. “Have you been tested yet? If you test well, Midfield won’t risk sending you to another pack. It’s hard to bring you back if you get marked.”

“Marked,” I scoffed. “I’ll rip out their motherfucking teeth before I let them mark me.”

My neighbor started laughing. “I’d like to see that as you're seizing on the ground from toxins.”

“Fuck you.” I kicked his leg. “You can go and be a werewolf’s bitch. I’m going to pass.”

They shared amused glances. 

“Do you want to try?” asked a man with black hair that I had seen on occasion.

“Try what?” I muttered.

“I know where a blood tester is. It’s old, but it works.”

I scoffed. “How do you know that?”

“The Parker girl just got shipped off to the capital,” he replied. “The family followed soon after. Why do you think that is?”

I arched a brow. “An engagement?”

He nodded. “She did it. She tested so well that the moment she turned eighteen, she went to get officially tested herself.”

“Disgusting,” I muttered.

A couple of other people agreed. 

“Do you want to find out now or wait until you’re about to board a train? I heard they don’t even tell you. Your ticket gets changed, and you end up in the Central. Limits the chance of the person running.”

I sat up. “Where is it?”

“I want to try,” said a girl.

A couple of others also expressed interest. I should have already been tested, but Ricky and I had dodged it when the National Blood Registry team had stopped in our town. A group was gathering that wanted to follow this guy to some shady testing machine. What if he worked for the werewolves? This could all be a trap.

I glanced over my shoulder. Ricky was preoccupied with whatever girl had caught his eye—might as well live it up before we were reassigned. The group started to leave. I watched them for a moment, and then slowly stood. I tossed my empty can in the pile and glanced at them. The werewolves were going to test me eventually. What would it hurt to have an idea about how shitty of a werewolf I would make? 

Following them, I stayed toward the back. We headed through the corn field and walked along the dirt road to one of the abandoned houses. Half of it had collapsed from being hit during The Great War. No one had bothered to repair it.

We went around to the backyard to a metal shed. He untied the baling twine used to hold the door shut and disappeared inside. He placed it on the ground and plugged it into a portable battery.

“Where did you get this?” asked a girl.

He shrugged. “My brother found it in the trash when he was assigned to the Central for a couple of months. It needs a couple of tweaks to get it working. So who’s first?” He grinned at the people gathered around.

“What if it’s wrong?”

“Is this even legal?”

He shrugged. “It’s up to you. I don’t give a shit. But if you want to test your blood”—he took out a pocket knife—“put a drop on here.” He tapped on a little panel. “I have no idea what any of these mean.” He pointed to the larger screen. “But the greener the better. Red is shit, yellow is mid.”

A girl moved forward. I wandered around the edge of the house to examine the damage. Laughter came from the group along with more voices. By the look of the girl, the results weren’t promising—lucky. She wouldn’t have to worry about turning into a mutt. We might be slaves to werewolves, but it could be worse. I could be an abomination covered in fur. If only the humans had killed them all before their population exploded. 

“Mate material!” laughed a boy. “You’re fucking screwed. You’ll be sprouting fur.”

“Shut the fuck up. It’s one green out of like ten.” 

They started playfully pushing each other. I rolled my eyes. There was no point in being here. I should go back and check on Ricky and make sure he didn’t get in any trouble. 

“Get down, get down,” said a hushed voice.

They all dropped to the ground as a car approached. I sighed and moved out of view. If we got caught out after curfew, we’d be given extra work and spend the night in jail. My parents would be pissed if it happened again. 

The car passed without stopping. I watched the tail lights to make sure the vehicle didn’t turn around. I noticed movement and saw the group running off to the nearest field. The idiots were going to get us caught. Those dog bastards could also see better than us in the dark. I inched along the house and checked to make sure there weren’t any lights. I tripped over something. The machine was toppled onto its side. Stupid piece of junk; I doubted that it actually worked. I glanced around the shed. 

I think it was safe to head back to the woods. Glancing at the machine, I sighed.

“What the hell.” I knelt and put the machine back up right. 

I pulled my pocketknife out and flipped out the blade. I stared at the panel.

“This is so fucking gross.” I used the dirty rag to clean it off. 

After poking my finger, I squeezed a couple of drops onto it and closed the black cover. I sucked on my fingertip as I waited for it to process. I hope it was shit. Solid red—no temptation for one of those fucking dogs to even think about marking me.

My eyes grew wide as the glowing green light illuminated my face.

“What the hell?” I reset the machine. 

That had to be someone else’s results. Opening the panel, I used my shirt and scrubbed the screen. That couldn’t be right. I squeezed more blood into the slot and closed my eyes. It was wrong. I opened them to the same green glow. Every marker was in the green. The lowest had a slightly yellow tinge. Maybe that guy was wrong. Maybe red was good and green was bad. Shaking my head, I rubbed my face and pressed the reset button.

I cursed under my breath. No one could find out about this because if they did, I was screwed.