I SIT around the bar at 1 AM nursing my Heineken in one hand and my cigarette in the other. For the sole purpose of not being bothered by strangers trying to get a conversation out of me. Sutton always has me in a shitty mood, I don't even know why I've been here for long. But, then again this town keeps me from not being found by recognizable faces. Even though it's been six years since I left that pack. 

Pack.

The word leaves a bitter taste in my mouth and I end up taking another drag from my cigarette. My mind starts to get a bit hazy after my ninth or tenth Heineken and the bartender starts to stop my beer flow. I get up from the bar stool, put on my leather jacket, and head out. I tie my dark brown hair back into a ponytail and climb my motorcycle and make it back home in a breeze. I climb off once I park into the driveway and knock my kickstand into place. I find my keys in my left jacket pocket and use the porch light to identify which exact key is the front door one. I enter the foyer taking off my boots, jacket and place my keys on the small table. I leave my jacket on the closest chair and head upstairs for a shower. I strip off my clothes and adjust the water temperature. When I step out wrapped in a towel, I reach for the remote for the t.v. only to hear a 'ding' sound come from my iPhone. I pick my jeans up from off the floor and grab my phone. Only to realize that it's just the realtor whose trying to sell me a bigger space for my tattoo shop. Rolling my eyes, I put my phone on my bed. I've already told the lady no yesterday. Her tenaciousness is starting to grate on my fucking nerves. I get dressed and get comfy in the bed. I flick through the channels mindlessly and drift off into sleep. I wake up in a groggy state and roll out of bed to head for the bathroom. I rub at my eyes and wipe away the drool stain around my mouth. My phone rings and realize that it's Leah calling. 

"Hello!"

"Why do you sound that way? Did you drink your sorrows away again last night?" She questions in a chirpy mood.

"Possibly. What do you want?"

"Can I come over? I need to tell you something, it's super urgent!."

"See you then!" 

"Ok, bye."

And I hang up.

I get ready to hunt and grab my gear. I retie my messy hair and place my switchblade under my boot. Just as I'm about to open the patio door the doorbell chimes. I open the front door and find Leah standing at my door with a bottle of red wine and a wide-ass grin. 

"Hunting?" She inquires. 

"Yep!"

She closes the door behind her and places the bottle on the island. 

"You do know that it's 10 in the morning, right?"

"I know!"

She takes up a switchblade to examine its sharp and sleek shape. 

I shake my head at the absurdity that is Leah herself. I lift my crossbow from off the table and step out. She follows in behind me and we go down by the creek area behind my home.

I drop my things once I reach and sit down on a log filled with green thick algae on the opposite side. Through my many years of experience, I can definitely  say that hunting requires the skill of patience. Unfortunately for Leah, it's the skill she lacks.

As we sit for twelve minutes, she gets fidgety. She opens a bag of chips and munches away. As soon as, she bites into her fifth chip I see a deer. The deer takes its sweet-ass time just to move in the trap I'd laid out a few days back. Just a few more steps and she'll be in. She does exactly what I expect and is caught in the net. I fling my blade right into her head and she stops moving. 

I eat my breakfast in peace, sorta. It would've been if Leah wasn't in my house rearranging my kitchen. Her OCD makes me want to rip at my hair sometimes. I just keep quiet and act like I'm unbothered but, it doesn't last very long. 

"Leah, what'd you want to talk about?" I question as a means of distraction. 

"Uhm! Well I had a nightmare last night. I swear Mel,  the depth of it was so surreal and vivid. I wasn't sure if I should tell you this but, I'm convinced Jimmy wasn't killed." 

"What did you see?" I ask in mere shock. 

"I felt pain, anger, the loss of control in a confined place. I don't know where but, I heard someone refer to him as Commander J and him answering,"

"Why would he be rounding up other wolves?" I ask aloud.

"I honestly don't know" I hear her in the distance. 

I shake my head at the fact. I trying my hardest to deny the hard truth but Leah's visions never ever lie. 

I reminisce to the time when I left my pack for good. I met Jimmy, a great father figure and wolf. He taught me how to hunt, drive, shoot and fight. He taught me how to develop a thicker skin and to not tolerate people's bullshit. Although I wasn't his biological daughter, he still treated me as such. I greatly appreciate all things he's taught me about people and their motives. Unfortunately, he went hunting down past the riverbank in the backyard and never came back. It's been three years since but, I still think I've done quite well for myself up until now. 

The one thing that is constantly ringing in my ear is why.