As she lathered up Alex touched her own skin as if to check that it was as it was before. The wolf hairs were gone and she looked the same, except that she did not feel tired at all despite the long run. She wrapped herself in the towel and dried herself slowly, to regain contact with herself, to make sure that everything was real. She sat cross-legged in the middle of the mattress and her gaze was lost outside, in the sky framed by the large window. She felt so confused. She bent her knees and brought them to her chest, hugging them. Inside her, too, she felt many conflicting sensations trying to overwhelm her: sadness, so deep that it dug a chasm inside her, but at the same time a strange excitement, bordering on exaltation. She rocked, trying to reassure herself and hold together the pieces that threatened to shatter her into an insoluble puzzle.
The knock on the door roused her. "One moment," she said. She took the clothes she had prepared on the bed and put them on. When she opened the door Michael was standing outside, stiff, with an indecipherable expression on his face.
"Christopher is waiting for us."
She nodded and followed him down the stairs.
Christopher was sitting with a laptop in front of him. He looked up at their entrance and invited them to sit down. Michael and Alex took a seat on two of the armchairs surrounding the large oval table and stood waiting.
Alex raised her gaze to meet the leader's, but was forced to lower it. Something inside her had compelled her to do so. "It's your wolf part." Christopher's voice was low and powerful. "It recognises my rank. Even for you I am now the alpha male, the leader of this pack."
Alex lifted her head and found that she could now look at him. Christopher was smiling reassuringly at her. "What does that entail?" he asked.
"That you will be a more obedient soldier," he replied, "should you wish to remain in our pack. In that case your loyalty will be to your comrades and your loyalty will be reciprocated in equal measure by the other members. A pack is a large family that takes care of the weakest and controls the strongest so that they cannot overpower the others. The universal werewolf laws, valid for all packs, are few: never reveal your existence to humans; never turn a human; never kill a human. Of course for each of these laws there are several exceptions, but for the time being you don't need to know them yet. Each pack then has its own internal laws and its own social organisation, although the basic one is the same: a pack leader - male or female - the so-called alpha; beta wolves, with a dominant character, who then generally constitute the warriors of the pack. In today's society there are also numerous lone wolves: werewolves who have decided to live without being part of a pack. They are, however, bound by our basic laws. Michael will guide you in this new life. As soon as you are ready, you can decide whether to stay with us or leave. But that will not happen until I believe you are ready to do so. For now, therefore, you are my responsibility. You must understand, Alex, that you could be a danger to yourself and others."
Alex nodded even though at that moment she felt like an animal that needed to be trained. "How long will it take?" she asked.
Christopher shrugged his shoulders. "It will depend on you, and on your wolf. The sooner you learn to master it, the sooner you will be free to decide your own life." Then he turned to his brother. "Later, I must speak with you."
Michael nodded and stood up, "See you later." Alex mimicked him and followed him out of the room. She sensed his awkwardness, but she knew why Christopher had acted so coldly towards her: it was her first meeting with him as pack leader, and it was necessary for her to understand early on who he represented and the power he had, even over her. Soon the bewilderment that now made her so submissive would disappear, and her feral side would come out into the open.
Alex had a strong character, and Michael hoped this would serve to dominate the beast, not make it more powerful. It sometimes happened that a man turned werewolf had to be put down because he was too fierce. He looked at Alex; that would not be the case. He was a dominant and would use his every potential to prevent that from happening.
"You could have stayed."
"What?"
"With your brother. I am not going to leave, if that is what you fear."
Michael stopped and looked at her, reflecting. He longed for space. It was still too early to grant him that, but perhaps he could grant her some probation. He nodded, "See you later." He waited until he saw her leave, then followed her.
Alex headed out almost in a hurry. As soon as he was in the open air he inhaled deeply, trying to calm his heart and ease the sense of oppression he felt.
While in the room with Christopher she had strongly felt his presence, his power. Something inside her had urged her to submit, but, at the same time, another part of her had pressed to rebel; she had wanted to raise her head and challenge him. Thank goodness she had managed to control this last instinct: she didn't know much about werewolves, but she imagined that challenging the pack leader wasn't exactly a winning move. She continued at a brisk pace in the direction of the woods, while in her head she tried to piece together all the information she had acquired from years of watching National Geographic documentaries on wolves.
Without realising it, she found herself at the edge of the forest. Inside she could feel the blood rushing wildly through her veins. She looked around and seeing no one, she decided. She took off her clothes and closed her eyes. The transformation happened quickly and simply. As her pads became aware of the grass beneath them and her truffle was invaded by the smells of vegetation, a rainbow of colours and an irrepressible euphoria exploded in Alex's mind. His paws began to grind the ground. He quickly crossed the forest and threw himself headlong down the expanse of pastureland.
The wind whistled in her ears, but she could at the same time hear the rustling of the grass, the sound of a distant car and a closer animal. She froze instantly. Her sense of smell had recognised the prey: a rabbit. His keen eyes spotted it, standing on its hind legs and ears outstretched, in the middle of the grass. Alex crouched for a while, then leapt forward, his paws seemingly not touching the ground. The rabbit became aware of the predator and began to flee, zigzagging across the ground, then hiding in a burrow. Alex's snout sniffed the hole in the ground and a howl of frustration came out of his throat. Next time you have to keep yourself in the wind. The voice reached her head, but she raised her muzzle and pricked up her ears. Her eyes searched for him and finally found him, on top of the nearby hill, coming towards her.
Did you have fun? At that moment she felt particularly stupid: she had chased a rabbit! Was her brain already failing her? Was she even howling at the moon in a while?
It is a galvanising feeling, I recommend you try it.
Alex uncovered her teeth and let out a slight growl: she hated that he read her mind.
He bared his teeth, and the growl was much more convincing. Alex clenched his jaws and lowered his ears defensively.
Respect rank. Hierarchy is fundamental in a herd, otherwise chaos and violence would reign. Then he relaxed, and so did Alex. And it is not me who reads your thoughts, it is you who transmits them to me, or rather, you do not screen them: you are like a radio that transmits on the werewolf frequency.
Oh, shit! Everyone could know his thoughts! He had to figure out how to stop as soon as possible.
Do you want me to teach you how to hunt?
Yes.
Follow me! And Michael set off up the hill again. When he reached the top, his eyes scanned the valley below and his sense of smell sifted with odours and information. Over there, he finally said, at the edge of the right pasture, near the fifth fence post.
Alex's eyes spotted his prey: another rabbit. Standing in the field he was quietly gnawing on clover and did not seem to notice them.
Stand behind me. And without waiting for her he walked quickly down the hill. He stopped to check the wind, then began to head towards his prey. We'll close in on its flanks. You right, me left. Be fast and silent. He waited for her nod of assent then set off to hunt.
The rabbit noticed them when it was too late. It saw Alex when it already had its jaws ready to grab him, but it jumped to the side and tried to escape. Michael, however, barred his way and when he leapt to the side, this time Alex was ready: his jaws closed on his prey's neck, breaking the bone and tearing the skin. Alex felt the blood rush into her mouth and let the rabbit go to the ground. She looked at the inert body, amazed: she would never have killed an animal before, a man yes, but an animal no, she was against hunting, and she even liked rabbits! She tried to spit out the blood in her mouth but only managed to spread it more on her tongue. Salivation increased, and her stomach growled in response. Michael sat on his hind legs a few paces away and watched her.
Alex brought his snout close to the rabbit and pushed it. It was definitely dead. The smell made her mouth water. But she turned away. She would not allow the new tenant with whom she shared her body to take over and make her do things she would never have done before. She also sat down on her hind legs and waited, while the smell of her succulent, perfumed prey continued to haunt her. Shall we go? she finally asked.
Michael nodded and led the way. Alex followed close behind, moving as fast as possible away from the coniglicide he had just committed.
"You already have good control over your wolf," he told her after they had donned their clothes. "Usually newbies can't resist the smell and taste of blood. You have done very well."
She raised an eyebrow. "Do I deserve a biscuit as a prize?"
Michael stopped, blocking her way. "I am not mocking you, and I hope you also take what we are doing seriously: if you allow the wolf to take over you will kill people, instead of animals, before you can even think about it. Its instinct is strong, very strong; and your will must be even stronger to control it. A werewolf without discipline is a lethal beast without remorse."
He waited for Alex to nod silently, then resumed his walk towards the villa.