Moonlit Fur Chronicles: Rising Moon
Chapter 12 Road Trip

Peyton and Sawyer decided to embrace the road trip. They stopped at all the goofy tourist attractions. They saw the world’s biggest ball of yarn, they stopped at a museum dedicated to peculiarities. They found a wax museum of historical and fictional characters. Sawyer really enjoyed it, but Peyton found it a bit creepy. The wax figures looked vaguely realistic but just artificial enough for someone to know it was fake. She actually laughed at the Halloween exhibit. There was a long nosed witch with green skin, a ghost that looked more yellow than white, and a comical werewolf that stood on two legs like a human.

Peyton and Sawyer found a nature preserve on the road as well. There was a drive through tour to see all the prairie creatures. They saw buffalo, deer, prairie dogs that looked more like gophers than dogs, and some pronghorns which kinda looked like deer but had crazy shaped horns. Peyton’s wolf threw itself against her ribcage, it wanted to hunt and devour these animals. She put her head between her knees and fought the wolf. She told Sawyer to drive as fast as he safely could because she didn’t know how long she could hold the wolf back. He rubbed her back with one hand and drove with the other. His touch helped her remain calm and human. Finally they were out of the preserve and far enough away that Peyton’s wolf pouted and whined at her. A victorious wry smile curled on her lips.

They found a quaint motel to spend the night before they got back on the road. Peyton decided to let her wolf out for a few hours that night, all the prairie animals really got it worked up. She slipped out of their motel room under the cover of darkness. There wasn’t much tree cover so she hid behind the maintenance shed to transform. Peyton ran around and followed different scents, most of them were new. Most of the scents intrigued her but turned out to be dull small animals.

She caught a whiff of something that smelled like prey. She lowered herself to the ground and stalked the animal. She finally saw it, the straight angled antlers meant she had found a deer. Peyton caught it and tore into it. She hoped it wouldn’t draw too much attention. She would be gone in the morning, so it didn’t bother her too much. Peyton finished with the deer and made it back to the maintenance shed. She phased back into her human form, dressed quickly, and returned to her room.

Early the next morning, Sawyer and Peyton pulled themselves out of bed and got back on the road. The sensation that burned in Peyton’s chest guided her toward the silver haired woman, it continued to pull her westward. As Peyton got closer, the sensation mushroomed into her arms and legs, it was not painful though. Peyton’s mind wandered as they rolled down the highway. She drifted off to sleep. Peyton dreamed of the silver haired woman, she beckoned to Peyton. “Peyton, does that truck look familiar,” Sawyer said and woke her.

Peyton rubbed her eyes and looked into the distance. She saw her father’s truck parked at a rest stop. “Pull over, I want to say hi,” Peyton told Sawyer. Sawyer pulled off the highway and parked next to Chance’s truck. He walked out of the bathroom and noticed Sawyer and Peyton climb out of their car. “Hey Darlin, Sawyer, what are y’all doing out here?” Sawyer glanced at Peyton, “We are out on a road trip. We needed to get away for a little while.” Chance had a feeling that Peyton and Sawyer weren’t being completely honest, he raised his eyebrow at Peyton. “It’s true, Daddy, we are on a road trip. I needed to get out and go on an adventure.”

Chance’s eyes narrowed, “You picked a bad place Darlin, you’re too close to the hunting area.” “Oh really,” Peyton replied, “How goes the hunt?” “We are wrapping it up. Basically done. It was an odd one,” Chance’s voice trailed off. Peyton had the sudden urge to press him for details. She motioned to a picnic table a dozen feet away. Chance shrugged his shoulders and walked with her to the table. Sawyer ventured to a nearby snack and drink machine to grab drinks for Chance, Peyton, and himself.

Once everyone was settled and had refreshments, Chance began his tale. They had captured a huge wolf, presumably the one who bit Peyton, and locked it up. Somehow it had broken free and escaped. Chance mobilized his men and gave chase. They heard sounds of combat and wolf growls. The hunters almost reached a clearing when their quarry, badly beaten, nearly plowed into them. Their guns sang out and the wolf fell dead. They surged forward and explored the clearing, they found a massive house and several young people in the backyard, including a young woman with silver hair.

Peyton’s ears perked up. Her father had seen the silver haired woman, he could tell Peyton where to replace her. Her heart leapt to her throat. Chance told them how the silver haired lady came and brokered a tentative peace between him and ‘her kind’. Sawyer and Peyton looked at each other. “What is going on with you two? You seem to know something you aren’t telling me,” Chance proclaimed gruffly. Sawyer looked at Peyton, shrugged and gestured with his chin towards Chance, “I mean he already knows half of it.” Peyton’s eyes widened, “Yeah but does he need to know the rest?” “Peyton,” Chance’s voice was low and dangerous. He never used her name unless she was in trouble.

“Daddy, I don’t know where to start…” Peyton complained. “Why not start from the beginning,” Chance prompted. Peyton took a deep breath. “You know I was bitten, but my arm healed in a few short weeks instead of the twelve weeks the Doc thought it would take.” Chance nodded. “And then you asked about getting a giant dog instead of a small dog to replace Princess,” Chance asked. Peyton nodded once, “Daddy, something happened to me that night….the night I was bitten.” Her heart beat so fast and hard she thought it would burst. “You’re one of them, aren’t you?” Chance’s question blew Peyton out of the water. Her jaw dropped open and Sawyer’s eyebrows raised. “How did you know?” Her words were breathy and anxious.

Chance chuckled, “I’m old, Darlin, not dumb. I pieced it together after talking to the silver haired lady. She reminded me of you, that’s why I didn’t wipe her and her wolves out, and she promised to keep them on a short leash.” Peyton’s voice was full of urgency, “Daddy, I need you to tell me where she is! I need to replace her!” Chance’s grin disappeared. She read the look in her father’s eyes, “She has answers to all the questions. I need to replace her and have her explain!” Chance took a deep breath and sighed.