Page 3 of Forget Me Not
Syve:
I’m not canceling.
Aimi:
You’re right, because we’re showing up regardless
See you at 6 <3
Syve huffed in amusement, setting her phone down to open the bag on the counter, noting once again, only raspberry jelly donuts inside. There were only so many times she could remind the man that she was, in fact, allergic to raspberries. She shook her head, shoving the bag to the side. At least she could give them to Cam to take home to her kids so they would not go to waste.
Bastien
Everyoneisfamiliarwiththe theory that twins have a special connection, one which transcends human understanding—twin telepathy, they call it. Bastien and Desiderio were a prime example of said connection, and the entire Yerovi family would be willing to agree.
There were multiple different occasions over the years in which the two men acted as one. Such as when they turned twelve and gifted each other the same video game, or when they were seventeen and had gotten in trouble at school—even though they were separated immediately for questioning, they had both told the exact same lie as a cover story.
This particular day had been no different. Bas had woken up justknowingDez was coming home. He had hit the floor running and ripped open the door just in time to see his brother turning his gaudy Jeep into the drive.
“Dez!” Bas called out, jogging across the concrete barefoot and in nothing but shorts.
“Hey, Brother,” Dez returned, stepping down out of his seat and reaching out to pull Bas in for a hug.
“Not that I’m complaining or anything, but uh…What the hell are you doing here?”
“I had some PTO to burn and instead of going to Cancun or some shit like a normal person, I decided to drive my happy ass all the way back here to this tiny little shit-hole town to see your ugly face.” He barked a laugh, smiling as he took a playful hit to the shoulder. “Nice scruff, by the way,” Dez teased, scratching Bastien’s lightly stubbled chin.
“Alright, smart ass,” Bas huffed, knocking his brother’s hand aside. “Let’s go wake Del and when she leaves for school—”
“We run?”
“We run.”
An hour later, after their mother screamed, cried and threw her slipper at Dez, and they had seen their little sister off to school, the twins were jumping down the back steps, tearing off their shirts—leaving them wherever they landed in the yard.
They both leapt as they hit the tree line, shifting with ease from years of practice, before they hit the ground and shook out their fur. Basstretched, sniffing the air and baring his teeth in a wolfish smile as the wind blew through his silver fur. A huff drew his attention down to his brother. Dez was prancing from paw to paw, his obsidian fur like a black hole, not glistening or reflecting any light at all. His copper eyes twinkled with mischief as he spun and bolted into the woods. It took only a split second before Bas was tearing through the brush after him.
Timberfall was nestled between Custer Gallatin National Forest and Yellowstone, just north of the Wyoming border. Bastien had been ecstatic when they found this little house tucked up against the trees, it was perfect for a family of shifters—protected lands with plenty of wildlife to provide cover, in case they were seen. Spotting a wolf outside a National Park was a lot easier to explain than say, Central Park. There were not many places left for them to live that they could hide in plain sight.
Dez had gotten lucky when he was accepted into Wesleyan University. While the red wolf population in North Carolina was devastatingly low, and his black wolf did not perfectly blend in, it was still easier to explain when a trail camera, or rather lucky photographer, managed to capture a photo.
Fifteen minutes later, the two spilled out of the trees, slowing to a stop on the southern edge of a small, oblong mountain lake. The trip had taken them three times as long as it would have if they’d run a straight line. Naturally, the brothers had taken turns tackling each other and wrestling playfully alongthe way. Aside from the occasional ripples caused by the wind or fish feeding, the water was calm, reflecting the clouds above perfectly—a window to a mirrored world. Small enough that Bas could see the entire surrounding shore, the lake could not have been more than two football fields across and was completely surrounded by tall, thin lodgepole pine trees.
An acrid smell blew in on the breeze, reminiscent of the old, cheap cigars their father used to smoke. Bas flinched, the hairs on the back of his neck rising and a sense of foreboding that he could not quite explain overtook him as he began to frantically scan the woods. He could see Dez out of the corner of his eye; he had moved further from the trees, obviously contemplating getting in the water. During his third pass of the trees around them, he noticed it—the quick glint of the sun off of…metal? Glass? Squinting, he searched for the source. His blood ran cold as his eyes landed on the shape of a man moving ever so slightly just inside the tree line.
A scope. The glint had come from the scope of a rifle the man had shouldered. Bas turned his head, following the line of the barrel, until his eyes met his brother's.
Time froze.
Dez cocked his head to the side, completely oblivious to the impending threat, and then thunder cracked through the clearing.
But it was not thunder.
Dez howled in pain as his body dropped, his rear leg bloody and twisting at an unnatural angle. Bas dove toward his twin, whining as he slipped his nose under Dez’ shoulder in anattempt to push him up. A second shot rang out, dirt flying up only a foot away from where the two wolves were, the bullet having gone just over their backs. Dez snapped at Bastien’s legs, growling while tossing his head toward the trees. The message was clear.
Go.
Run.
