Chapter 12 - Day One

Chapter 12 – Day One

The sun came up.

—

Not strongly.

Just an orange line over the trees.

Cold light.

—

Terry opened the patio door.

Slow.

Without making noise.

—

Eliza was already there.

—

But she wasn't the Eliza from school.

—

No uniform.

No heels.

No jewelry.

—

Black pants.

Gray shirt.

Hair tied up.

Bare feet on the cold grass.

—For the first time she looked like what she was.

A warrior.

—

"You're late," she said.

—

Terry looked at the horizon.

"The sun just came up."

—

"Exactly."

Pause.

"You're late."

Terry closed the door.

—

"How long did you sleep?" she asked.

—

"None."

—

"Good."

—

"Good?"

—

"Yes."

Pause.

"If you'd slept, you'd have been useless today."

Pause."An alpha doesn't sleep when his pack is wounded."

—

Terry blinked.

"My pack?"

—

Eliza turned her head toward him.

"Lin Mei.

Sebastián.

Mateo.

Iván.

Me.

Paulina."

Pause.

"That's your pack."

Pause.

"Even if you haven't decided it yet."

—

Terry didn't answer.

But the word stayed in his chest.

Pack.

—

Heavy.

But not in a bad way.

"Today you're not going to fight," said Eliza.

—"No?"

—

"No."

Pause.

"Today you're going to feel."

—

She pulled something from her pocket.

A blindfold.

Thick fabric.

Black.

—

Handed it to him.

—

"Put this on."

—

Terry looked at her.

"Are you serious?"

—

"Do you have anything better to do right now?"

—

Pause.

—

Terry tied the blindfold.

The world disappeared.

—

"Good," said Eliza.Pause.

"Now tell me where I am."

Terry turned his head.

Listened.

—

Nothing.

—

Well.

Not nothing.

—

Distant birds.

Wind moving leaves.

His own breathing.

—

But Eliza?

—

"You're… in front?"

—

"Cold."

—

Pause.

—

"Behind?"

—

"Colder."—

Terry frowned.

"I can't hear you."

—

"I didn't tell you to listen."

Pause.

"I told you to feel me."

—

Pause.

—

"That's different."

Terry stayed still.

—

He tried another way.

—

Not with his ears.

With his skin.

—

The air was moving.

He felt it on his face.

But the air also hit things and came back.

—

To his left — a big tree.

To his right — a wall.

Behind — the house.Front — open space.

—

And somewhere in the open space—

—

Something.

A weight.

A temperature.

A scent that wasn't a scent.

—

"Two steps in front," said Terry.

Pause.

"A little to the right."

—

Silence.

—

"Good," said Eliza.

Her voice sounded exactly where Terry had said.

—

"Again."

Hours passed like that.

—

Eliza moved without warning.

Sometimes slow.

Sometimes fast.

Sometimes she stayed still for whole minutes.—

Terry failed.

A lot at first.

Less later.

—

By mid-morning he could place her in the entire patio without seeing her.

—

"You're not listening with your ears," said Eliza finally.

Pause.

"You're listening with the wolf."

—

"How does it feel?"

—

Terry took off the blindfold.

Blinked at the light.

—

"Like I have another organ I didn't know I had."

—

Eliza nodded.

"Good."

Pause.

"That's the first thing."

The interruption

The patio door opened.

—Paulina.

—

No makeup.

No composure.

—

"Lin Mei woke up," she said.

—

Terry ran inside.

Eliza behind him.

—

Paulina followed in silence.

But her silence said things.

The room

Lin Mei was sitting up.

—

Not lying down.

Sitting.

Back against the headboard.

Hands on her legs.

Still.

Too still.

—

The green mark had grown.

—

It wasn't just on her sternum anymore.It climbed up her neck.

Down her arms.

Thin lines.

Like painted veins.

But they glowed.

Faintly.

Pulsing.

—

"Lin Mei," said Terry.

—

She turned her head.

Slow.

Like moving cost her more than it should.

—

Her eyes were the same.

Almost.

—

There was something new in the center.

A point.

Small.

Green.

Like a seed.

—

"Hi," she said.

Her voice was hers.

But softer.As if she spoke from farther away.

—

"How do you feel?"

—

Long pause.

—

"I'm hungry."

The doctor came in behind.

—

Terry turned.

"Did you feed her?"

—

"Two hours ago," said the doctor.

Pause.

"She ate everything."

Pause.

"And asked for more."

—

"Did you give her more?"

—

"Yes."

Pause.

"And she asked again."

—

Terry frowned."How much did she eat?"

—

The doctor looked at him.

Uncomfortable silence.

—

"More than three grown men."

Pause.

"In two hours."

Lin Mei lowered her head.

Looked at her hands.

—

"I can't stop," she said.

Her voice cracked a little.

Pause.

"I eat and eat and I'm still hungry."

Pause.

"I'm hungry like I've never been hungry."

Pause.

"It hurts."

—

She looked up.

At Terry.

—

"And I smell things."

—"What things?"

—

"You."

—

Silence.

—

"You smell different," she continued.

Pause.

"Not bad."

Pause.

"The opposite."

—

Eliza took a step forward.

Just one.

But enough to put herself between Lin Mei and Terry.

—

"Lin Mei," said Eliza, voice controlled.

Pause.

"What exactly do you smell?"

—

Lin Mei looked at her.

And for a second the green point in her eyes grew bigger.

—

"Alive."

Pause.

"He smells alive."Terry felt something cold on the back of his neck.

—

Not fear.

Something older than fear.

—

Eliza turned to the doctor.

Her voice was low.

"Doctor."

Pause.

"Meat."

—

"We have chicken in the—"

—

"Raw."

—

The doctor blinked.

—

"Now," said Eliza.

—

The doctor left.

Fast.

Meanwhile

Terry didn't understand.

But Eliza did.

And that was enough.—

She approached Lin Mei slowly.

Like approaching something that could break.

Or break her.

—

"Lin Mei," she said.

Pause.

"Look at me."

—

She raised her head.

—

"Are you still in there?"

—

Lin Mei took time to answer.

—

"Almost."

Pause.

"But not all of me."

—

"Is there something else?"

—

She nodded.

Slow.

—

"Inside?"

—Another nod.

—

"Does it talk to you?"

—

"Not in words."

Pause.

"But it tells me things."

—

"Like what?"

—

Lin Mei swallowed.

And for the first time all morning, her eyes filled with something human.

Fear.

—

"It tells me you smell like food."

The silence dropped.

—

Terry didn't move.

—

Eliza didn't either.

But her hand closed imperceptibly around Terry's wrist.

Ready.

Just in case.

—

"But I don't want to," said Lin Mei quickly.Pause.

"I don't want to, Terry."

Pause.

"I swear I don't want to."

—

"I know."

—

"I mean it!"

—

"Lin Mei."

Pause.

"I believe you."

—

She covered her face with her hands.

—

Her shoulders trembled.

—

But she didn't cry.

As if her tears were also blocked.

—

"What am I?" she murmured.

Pause.

"Tell me what I am."

Eliza looked at Paulina.

Paulina looked at Eliza.—

Something passed between them.

A decision without words.

—

Eliza sat on the edge of the bed.

—

"I'm not sure," she said.

Pause.

"But I have suspicions."

—

"Tell me."

—

"Lin Mei…"

Pause.

"What touched you that night wasn't human.

And it wasn't a wolf."

—

"I know."

—

"It was something older.

Something my mother called Skin Walkers.

Skinwalkers."

—

Lin Mei didn't blink.

—

"And when they infect someone," Eliza continued, "that person doesn't become one of

them."Pause.

"They become something… smaller."

Pause.

"A variant."

—

"What variant?"

—

Eliza hesitated.

For the first time Terry saw her really hesitate.

—

"I didn't know the name when I was a child."

Pause.

"But I heard it later.

A word the elders said when they thought no one was listening."

Pause.

"Indigo."

The word fell.

—

And something in Lin Mei reacted.

—

Her eyes closed for an instant.

When she opened them, the green point had grown more.

—

As if the word had given a name to something already there.

—"Indigo," she repeated.

Soft.

—

"Yes."

—

"What does an Indigo do?"

—

Eliza swallowed.

"Not much that's good."

Pause.

"What I know for sure is this."

Pause.

"They have psychic powers.

They can hear their creator.

Sometimes others too."

Pause.

"They eat raw meat to survive.

Animal.

Any animal."

—

Long pause.

—

"But there's another thing."

—

"What?"

—Eliza didn't answer right away.

—

Paulina did it for her.

Her voice was flat.

Without emotion.

—

"They can't taste human flesh."

Pause.

"Ever."

Pause.

"If they taste it, they become addicted.

They don't stop.

And if they stop, they go mad."

The silence in the room was so dense Terry felt it on his shoulders.

—

Lin Mei lowered her hands slowly.

—

Her face was empty.

—

Not of emotion.

Of decision.

—

"Then it's simple," she said.

—

"What?"—

"If I lose control."

Pause.

"You kill me."

—

"Lin Mei—" Terry started.

—

"No."

Pause.

"Listen to me."

Pause.

"If I become something that eats people, I'm not me."

Pause.

"And I don't want that thing to exist."

Pause.

"Promise."

—

Terry didn't answer.

—

"Promise me, Terry."

—

"I can't."

—

"Yes you can."

—

"Lin Mei—"—

"Promise!"

The green mark glowed brighter.

—

Just a second.

But everyone saw it.

—

Lin Mei calmed immediately.

Closed her eyes.

Breathed.

—

"I'm sorry," she murmured.

Pause.

"I didn't mean to shout."

—

Terry approached.

Slowly.

—

He touched her arm.

Barely.

Where the green mark hadn't reached yet.

—

Her skin was warmer than normal.

But she was still her.

—"I'm going to fix it," said Terry.

Pause.

"The one who did this to you, I'm going to find him."

—

"And if you don't find him in time?"

—

Terry didn't answer.

—

Because the truth was he didn't know.

The doctor came back

With a tray.

—

Five steaks.

Raw.

Red.

Blood draining onto the plate.

—

Lin Mei looked at the tray.

And the green point in her eyes widened until it covered them.

—

For two whole seconds.

—

Then it contracted again.

Barely.

—"I need…" her voice was different—

"To eat alone."

—

"Lin Mei—"

—

"Get out."

Pause.

"Please."

Pause.

"I don't want you to see me like this."

—

Eliza placed the tray on the bed.

Without speaking.

Took Terry by the arm.

—

"Let's go."

—

Terry didn't want to.

But he left.

—

Before closing the door, he looked back.

—

Lin Mei already had a steak in her hand.

And her eyes closed.

As if praying before tasting it.

—Or as if asking for forgiveness.

Outside

Terry leaned against the hallway wall.

—

Closed his eyes.

—

"I'm not going to let her get lost."

—

"I know," said Eliza.

—

"But I don't know how to stop it."

—

"That's why we train."

Pause.

"The sooner you find the skinwalker who marked her, the sooner we can take it from her."

—

"Can it be taken away?"

—

Eliza hesitated.

—

"The legend says yes."

Pause.

"If you kill the original, the mark dies with him."

Pause.

"But…"—

"But what?"

—

"But the addiction doesn't die."

Pause.

"If she has tasted human flesh before you kill the skinwalker—"

—

Pause.

—

"Terry.

Lin Mei is going to have to live with that forever.

And forever is a very long word for someone like her."

Sebastián

He was awake.

—

Sitting in the living room.

Bandaged from the torso up.

Drinking water.

—

When he saw Terry, he stood up.

More stable than he should have been.

Faster too.

—

"How do you feel?" Terry asked.

—Sebastián took time to answer.

—

"Different."

Pause.

"Better than I should."

Pause.

"Stronger."

Pause.

"But also more… I don't know."

—

"More what?"

—

"More obedient."

Pause.

"When you're nearby, there's a part of me that calms down."

Pause.

"Without me wanting it to."

—

Terry looked at him.

"That's new."

—

"Yes."

Pause.

"It doesn't bother me."

Pause.

"That's what bothers me."Eliza intervened.

"It's because you're a wolf, not Indigo."

Pause.

"When an alpha is nearby, the wolves of his blood calm down.

It's protection.

It's hierarchy."

—

Sebastián nodded slowly.

—

"Then I can help."

—

"How?"

—

"I don't have a mark."

Pause.

"The hunters don't know me.

If you need information somewhere you can't go—"

Pause.

"I can."

—

Terry looked at him for a long moment.

—

"Why do you want to help?"

—

Sebastián shrugged.

—"Because you saved me when you didn't have to."

Pause.

"And because the girl in the bed is also my fault."

Pause.

"If I hadn't gone to the karaoke that night with twelve men, none of this—"

—

"Sebastián."

—

"No.

Let me say it."

Pause.

"I started this."

—

Terry didn't answer.

But he nodded.

Just once.

Enough.

That night

Eliza took Terry to the patio again.

—

The sky was dark now.

Clear stars.

The moon at half.

—

"Last lesson of the day," she said.—

"I'm already tired."

—

"Good."

Pause.

"This one only learns tired."

—

She sat him on the grass.

Sat across from him.

—

"Close your eyes."

—

Terry closed them.

—

"Don't listen with your ears.

Don't feel with your skin."

Pause.

"Listen inward."

—

"What am I looking for?"

—

"A voice."

Pause.

"But not yours."

Terry tried.—

At first there was nothing.

Just his own breathing.

His heart.

—

Then something else.

Deeper.

—

Like an echo.

—

A word.

Not in Spanish.

Not in any language he knew.

—

But he understood it.

—

Korr.

—

And with the word, an image.

—

A moon.

Splitting in the sky.

Two pieces falling.

One red.

One blue.

—And below, a battlefield.

Enormous wolves.

Things with bodies too long.

Blood on snow.

—

And a scream.

—

Not his.

From someone who lived a long time ago.

And was inside him.

—

Terry opened his eyes.

—

He had blood in his nose.

Blood in his ears.

—

Eliza didn't seem worried.

—

"Good," she said.

Pause.

"You heard it."

—

"What was that?"

—

"Memory."

Pause."Not yours.

From those who came before."

Pause.

"Every broken moon alpha inherits what the others lived."

Pause.

"But you have to be willing to listen to it."

—

"Who was Korr?"

—

Eliza didn't answer.

Her face changed for an instant.

Something between sadness and respect.

—

"Tomorrow."

Pause.

"You've received enough today."

Before sleeping

Terry passed by Lin Mei's room.

—

The tray was empty.

—

Lin Mei was sleeping.

Calmer than in the morning.

—

But the green mark had grown another centimeter.—

Terry sat on the edge of the bed.

—

He spoke to her low.

"Day one."

Pause.

"Six left."

Pause.

"I swear I'll get there."

—

He took her hand.

Barely.

—

And for an instant, he felt something.

—

It didn't come from Lin Mei.

It came from inside her.

—

Another presence.

Looking back at him.

—

Without blinking.

—

And that presence—

—

Smiled.—

Not with Lin Mei's face.

—

With its own.

—

Inside her.

—

Terry let go of her hand.

Slowly.

Without sudden movement.

—

He left the room.

—

Closed the door.

—

And for the first time since the karaoke—

He was truly afraid.

—

Because he understood something Eliza hadn't told him yet.

—

The skinwalker who marked Lin Mei—

—

Already knew where they were.

Outside

Paulina was on the porch.Looking at the woods.

—

Terry sat next to her.

Without asking permission.

—

They were silent for a while.

—

"Paulina."

—

"Yes?"

—

"Why are you helping me?"

—

She didn't turn her head.

—

"Because someone asked me to."

—

"Who?"

—

Long pause.

—

"It wasn't Eliza."

Pause.

"That's the only thing I can tell you today."

—

Terry looked at her."Will you ever tell me more?"

—

Paulina smiled.

Barely.

—

"When you're ready."

Pause.

"And you're not ready yet."

—

She stood up.

"Good night, alpha."

—

And went inside.

—

Leaving him there.

—

Alone.

—

With an ancient name in his head.

A green mark growing in a nearby room.

A new brother sleeping in the living room.

A warrior who asked him to help.

And another who wouldn't say who had sent her.

—

Day one.

—Done.

—

Six more.