Chapter 22

Many rooms had dead or dying people in them. Ariel had to push her emotions down so they could clear the rooms and get out anyone who was still trapped. Jole had killed one of the arms guards and they were able to get a set of master keys. This made their job easier and faster. They were able to clear the rooms faster and release more and more of those captured. Though the more they released, the more chaotic the sounds that were coming from outside. It had started as shouting and the sounds of gunfire, and had escilated into the sounds of explosions and sirens. It was chaos outside, but they went through the building methodically.

As they got back to the second floor, blood and bodies were now obsticales in the hallway. Ariel did her best not to look at them as they passed, not wanting to see familuar faces. They opened the rest of the doors, and once the floor was cleared, they ditched the key and all three of them transformed, racing out of the building to join the others in their flight from the town.

Outside was chaos and the air smelled of fire and blood. The trio races across the broken, spattered ground toward the gates of the compound, not bothering to onder if the gates had been breached. There was enough going on that someone would have had to break them down. Either to get out, or get in. They didn't have time to stop and ponder the bodies laying on the ground. They could to stop to see if someone was alive or dead, if they were a wolf or a hunter. All they could rely on in that moment were their own paws and eachother. It felt like a betrayal to force the escape plan like this, but it was all they could do just to get out with their lives.

They sprinted down the road and had to veer off when a car came careening toward them. They moved as one, as if they knew what the others were thinking and they could all agree on what they were doing. Their path took them through a short patch of woods where they used to play as children, Ariel forcing the memories out as they ran. They could not let anything distract them. They had to get out of there.

Screams, shouting, cries and howls filled the air. Gun shots cracked, and smoke hung heavy, choking out the smell of blood. The further they ran, the more chaotic things seemed to get. Now that they were skirting the edge of town, they could hear bullets whizzing past them, and hear fighting happening closer to the center. Cars flew down the roads or were left abandoned where they had crashed or came to a stop. Even from close to the edge of town, they could see a few buildings on fire. It felt like a scene from a horror movie. This was not how this was suposed to happen, but they didn't have a choice. The longer they all remained, the more of them would die. 

The gun fire got louder as they neared the eastern edge of town. Ahead of them she could see hunters and wolves locked in battle. The larger wolves were engaging the hunters directly and allowing anyone that didn't wish to fight the chance to get out. They were putting their own lives on the line so that as many could escape as possible. She could make out shapes closer to the edge of town, a set of matching wolves headed more north than they were. The twins. They had both gotten here. Ariel had hoped they would be out before now, but if Ally was as tire dna dbeat up as she had looked, they might have taken some time to hide and heal. Ariel was sure they were home free, but a sudden explosion and a shower of smoke and dirt obscured their forms from view. Grenades. Where the hell had they gotten granades from? This all seemed far too unreal and Ariel wanted nothing more than to wake up from this nightmare.

Jole let out a strangled grunt and Ariel looked back in time to see him go down. She slid to a stop as he shifted and pulled up his left arm. A bear trap. All she could do was stare as he pried the trap open, having to roll to one side to avoid being shot. Once he was free, he shifted and barked at her, urging her on. She spun and took off again, Jane having pulled ahead when she had stopped. 

They were close now, almost into the thick forest at the edge of town. Even with his wound, Jole was keeping pace and they soon cought up with Jane. They passed the first trees and Ariel felt almost releived. They had made it! They were past the worst part of the danger.

Jane yelped beside her and went down. Aiel slid to a stop and looked back, expecting that, like Jole, she had stepped into a trap. Except, that is not what happened. Jane lay on the ground, no longer a wolf. She was back in her human shape. She was not moving. Red stained her light colored hair. All at once it felt like Ariel had been dropped into freezing darkness. Jane. Who had been her friend for her whole life. Who had been there for her through everything, even when Becca abandoned her and Oscar ghosted her. Jane had been a constant in her life for so long. In an instant she was gone.

Jole shoulder her hard and forced her to start running again. Broiling anger and crushing dispair mixed inside of her like molten lava and frozen gasoline. The two of them sped away from town, the sounds of death and gun fire, the smell of blood and smopke, all fading the further in they ran. No dirction and no destination they ran on, long after the sun had risen and set again, they kept going until they could no longer.