White Wolves

WHITEWOLVES-A Short StoryIN THE COMPANY OF KILLERS—J.A. REDMERSKI This book is a work of fiction. Any references to real people, historical events, businesses, companies, products, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events, locales, persons living or deceased, is entirely coincidental.Copyright © 2023 Jessica Ann RedmerskiAll rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole, or in part, and in any form.In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, the scanning, uploading, and electronic sharing of any part of this book without prior written permission is unlawful piracy and theft of the author’s intellectual property.---This book contains adult themes that may not be suitable for persons under eighteen.---Cover design by J.A. RedmerskiCover photo by Korionov | Shutterstock---J.A. Redmerski | THE DARKEST HALFFiction – New Adult Crime & Suspense ContentsIzabel FaustAbout 1 year agoThree days laterBoston, MassachusettsNiklas fleischerBoston, MassachusettsNew York City, New York This is a SHORT STORY & only an ALTERNATE ENDING, only 32 pages long; it is not a full-length novel. Please understand that before purchasing.Thank You.-J.A. Redmerski Izabel Faust About 1 year ago…“Not that I agree with it, but I can understand Vonnegut, that he can be useful as a decoy,” I said. “But why her? Why in the hell would you keep that bitch alive? She killed Niklas’ mother and his friend, Jackie—an innocent—right in front of him.”“And I’d do it all over again,” Lysandra said, her voice muffled through the transparent wall; she glared at us, her eyes feral and dangerous.“She is alive for my brother,” Victor said. “Nothing more.”“What do you mean?”“It is Niklas’ job, his honor, to be the one to kill her for what she did.”“Does he know you have her down here? Does he know she’s still alive?”“No,” Victor said. “I was going to tell him, but at the last minute, when I saw that he looked at peace with the world for the first time, I changed my mind.”“So, you kept her alive? For what? For the day he comes back? You said so yourself, Victor, that Niklas won’t be coming back—not this time.”Victor appeared to think on it a moment.“Just in case,” he said. “Regardless, she is for Niklas to kill, and no one else may have that privilege.”Lysandra laughed manically and then slapped her hands against the wall again. She continued to scream through the glass, and we turned our backs on her, ignoring her as best we could.“Well?” Vonnegut asked once more. “Are you shutting the breeding program down?”Victor took my hand, and we slipped down the hall away from their prison.Victor never answered Vonnegut.“And the breeding program?” I asked once we were in the elevator again.Victor took me into an aggressive kiss and pushed me against the elevator wall. “No, I will not be shutting down the breeding program,” he said hotly onto my mouth.He stripped off my clothes, and I wrapped my arms and legs around him, feeling him hard and full inside me.I wondered if he meant something more by his answer than expected, but I never asked; I just let him have his way with me all the way up to the top floor again. Three days later…After snapping the ponytail into place, I tighten two halves of my hair and then grab my keys from the counter.“Where are you going?” Yana Moroz, my unit right-hand, asks as I head for the door.“I—.” I stop abruptly, my fingers touching the doorknob, and I turn slowly to see her.“Yana,” I say, “I want to tell you something in confidence, not as your unit leader, but as a friend.”“Friend? You haven’t known me long enough to trust me as a friend.”“Yeah, but…” I sigh because I know she’s right, and already I’m questioning my decision to tell her. Damn, I wish Nora was still alive.“Izabel, what is it?” Yana asks, and she seems genuinely concerned. “As your right-hand I—”“No, you’re right,” I say, turning away from the door. “I haven’t known you long enough to trust you. But if I’ve learned anything in the past few years, it doesn’t matter how long or how well you know someone, you can never fully trust them anyway.”I step toward her.“So, I’m going to tell you this in confidence as your leader and order you not to speak of it to anyone. Ever. Is that understood?”She nods. “Of course—you’re the boss.”“Not even Victor,” I add quickly. “Especially not Victor…”Yana smiles. “I had a feeling it was especially not Victor the moment you wanted to call me your friend.”She moves closer.“If it’s that secretive,” she says, “why tell me at all?”“Because I know that being in your position beside me, you’d follow me anyway without my knowing. You’d find out anyway. And you’d tell Victor anyway.”“Unless you ordered me not to,” she adds.“Exactly. That’s why I’m getting ahead of things.”She glances at the door; her blond bangs fall across her right eye.“Then what are we waiting for?”I shake my head. “No, you’re not going with me,” I say. “And I don’t want you following me, either. This is me telling you that I don’t need backup, I’m not in any danger, and I want you to wait until you hear from me.”“You’re going to find him, aren’t you?” Yana assumes.I don’t answer. I can’t because I still can’t even believe I’m doing it. I still haven’t come to terms with these strange feelings that, no matter how fucking hard I try, will not go away.I’ve tried so hard and for so long—ever since Italy. But the feelings only grew stronger. They eat away at me every second of every single day, even though I’ve done everything I can to suppress them. And I can’t do this anymore. I can’t just ignore whatever is going on inside of me and expect it to go away on its own. Because I know it’s not going to.I look at the floor, ashamed and confused, and a