Memoirs of a Girl Wolf by Xandra Lawrence Page A

ran over to the bed and jumped on me, embracing me into a hug then pushing me away and scolding me and then hugging me again.
    “I don’t know what I’m more upset about. That you lied to me, disobeyed me, or didn’t come home. I-what-where,” she clamped her lips shut and rubbed her forehead with her fingers.
    “I’m sorry,” I said as sincere as possible. I really was. I hugged her again and hid my face, ashamed, in her shoulder. Guilty and scared tears rolled down my face. My crying melted her exterior a little and she stroked my hair and rested her chin on top of my head.
    “What happened? Did someone get hurt?” she asked.
    I quieted and wiped my face with my hands. “No.”
    “Well, where did you go?” she asked. She licked her thumb and wiped a smudge of dirt from my cheek.
    “I met Max at the beach.” I said, avoiding her eyes. “But it was awful.”
    “Why,” she asked. Her voice rose with worry.
    “He’s a jerk,” I spat, “and I got so mad that I left.”
    “Where did you go?” she asked. “Did you hurt someone?”
    “No,” I said, slowly, surprised by her question, but then I thought about her question. I actually didn’t know if I had hurt anyone or not. “I can’t remember I blacked out,” I said and realizing how suspicious this sounded I added, “But I wasn’t drinking. I promise I wasn’t or doing drugs. I just can’t remember. I woke up back there.” I pointed toward the woods that could be seen through my open bedroom window.
    “I believe you,” Mom said.
    “Are you mad?” I asked.
    Mom nodded. “Furious. First you throw away one of my pillows and now you sneak out of the house and don’t return until morning. I think, Mickey, I think a curfew would be best.”
    “A curfew?” I protested. I was six-teen, and I had never had a curfew before. What I did was wrong, but I couldn’t believe Mom would enforce a curfew.
    “I want you home by dusk every night.”
    “What?” I breathed.
    “And you’re grounded for the time being. No leaving the perimeters of the house except for school.”
    I would have rather of been grounded from school. I never wanted to see Max again. His yellow sweatshirt crumpled in the corner of my room caught my eyes. I still had yet to return it to him. Just looking at the sweatshirt made my heart sink.
    Mom pulled a leaf out of my hair and held it up for an explanation which I was unable to provide and too tired to try, so she stood from my bed and patting my leg she said, “Get some rest. I know I could use some.”
    Her comment punched the air out of me. I knew she was up all night because of me. I felt guilty enough without her comments. Once she left my room, I heard her scold my brothers who must have been listening from the hallway.
    Alone in the dark room, in the comfort of my bed, I turned on my side and closed my eyes eager for some sleep.
     
    Hours later, I woke up to find Kristen sitting cross legged at the end of my bed staring at me.
    “Finally,” she said.
    I sat up, rubbing my eyes. “How long have you been here?”
    “Only five minutes or so.” She tossed a magazine that she had been flipping through to the floor, and sighed sympathetically as she reached over and took hold of my hand.
    “What’s wrong?” I asked. She looked as if someone had died.
    “It’s not good,” she said.
    I raised my eyebrows. “What?”
    Slowly, she released hold of my hand and reached into her large tan purse on the floor. Pulling out her cell phone, she turned it on and handed it to me.
    A video played.

I took the phone and sat up a little more squinting down at the video. I could hear Max’s laughter, but he wasn’t on the screen instead it was just me with bright green, glowing eyes. I stood feet away shaking and growling. Then Reign’s voice interrupted Max’s laughter, and the phone was knocked to the ground, but I could be seen in the distance dropping to all fours before jumping into the woods.
    The video stopped and so did