CHAPTER 6

Assistant

Samantha

Thank goodness it's finally the weekend. I can't believe I've managed to essentially live at our school for almost a full week. I am surprised to discover that there is no one at school after dark. The night guard leaves, REALLY LEAVES, from his job at 7 p. m. or 7:30 p. m. every night. He doesn't even bother to come back.

The cleaning crew always arrives at 5 a.m. sharp, and I need to make sure I'm completely invisible by then. I almost slipped up because I overslept after the brutal beating I received courtesy of Rianna, and they almost saw me, but I managed to disappear just in time, before they entered the girls' locker room.

This has been my bathroom and bedroom for the past few nights. I feel a little safer staying here instead of going to the teacher's lounge and sleeping there. Ming pointed out that since most of the teachers are wolves, they will be able to detect my scent and start investigating why my scent stays there. I definitely need and want to avoid that. So yeah, I'm feeling pretty optimistic at this point. I have these 2 days to regroup and start looking for a part time job or something that will help me in the long run. I definitely won't give up. I can do this, right Ming?

"Hell yes!" his voice echoes so loudly in my head, but I welcome the sound.

It might not be a good idea to go looking for work on the pack grounds. Not only because it might become uncomfortable, but I'm sure no pack member will even consider giving me a job.

In the last few days, I've heard a lot of rumors about me. And I don't just mean people laughing behind my back that I got Omega rank, because they can very well do that to my face, they've proven it on a daily basis. I heard strange things about me cheating to become a high ranking wolf in our pack, get this, killing the real Samantha Bailey when I was just a pup, how could that possibly work? I swear people are so stupid, although I think this rumor may have started because it must have become pretty obvious that I don't live at home anymore. That, and the fact that my 'parents' haven't gone crazy demanding an explanation of my rank.

Another rumor is that I am apparently obsessed with Marie and want to be with her. I love the girl, don't get me wrong, she has been my best friend for as long as I can remember, but that is NOT the kind of love I feel for her. Both Marie and Jen are like my sisters.

Fixing my hair in the mirror, I notice it's brown with a light blonde gradient effect. I have to be honest, it still looks cute like this, even if I miss the pink.

Deciding on the darker blue of the two pairs of jeans I have, I pair them with a light pink shirt and put on my trusty black boots. I have to be honest, I don't really have much choice in footwear. They are the tennis shoe boots I have in my PE locker.

I look in the mirror for a final glance and, thanking the Goddess for the ability to heal incredibly fast, I sneak out of the school and head to the bus stop, feeling happy that I have no bruises or anything that might lead a stranger to imagine that I'm actually a stray, just one step above a rogue.

I take the bus to human territory outside the border of our pack, and start looking around the small town for places that will hire me. I must have walked for over an hour before I see a large pub in the distance.

I know the pub is in neutral territory, but I also know it's very close to Silver Pack. Well, since it's technically not in their territory, I'm not trespassing and shouldn't get in any trouble.

My heart starts beating faster as I approach the pub and see a big sign that says 'Helper Wanted'.

Alright, here goes nothing. I take a deep breath and walk through the pub door, pretending not to notice the people watching me with curious eyes. I locate the bar and put a big smile on my face as I head over to talk to the barmaid.

She is an older woman, but probably still a little younger than my mother. She has shoulder-length brown hair that matches her olive green eyes beautifully. I instantly like this woman. I feel like a student who has just met her favorite teacher.

"Can I help you with that, love?" She looks me up and down with an amused smile on her face, and I realize I was just standing there observing how she looked. I could use a tip or two from this woman regarding my appearance and how to look fierce and confident. I quickly collect myself and look her in the eye.

"Hi, my name is Sam. I saw the sign outside, are you still looking for help around here?

I won't mention that even Ming crossed his paws for more good luck. I'm desperately praying that this position is still available and that the beautiful woman behind the bar will help me get the job.

"Sure, we could use the help. Are you offering?" she smiles at me with the same amusement dancing in her eyes.

When I nod and acknowledge that I am, in fact, looking for a job for myself, she asks the question I've been dreading since I walked into the pub.

"You're 18 already? You look very young."

"I'll take that as a compliment, I am 18, yes."

I'm surprised at how confident I was while lying about my age. I may not be 18 yet, but I will be in a couple of months. Well, 6 months to be exact, but I'll keep it to myself and hope he doesn't ask for more proof.

"Sounds good to me."

He looks at me suspiciously and laughs. Then he comes out from behind the bar and holds out his hand to me.

"I'm Carla, I own this place."

I respond by shaking her hand, not wanting to appear rude. She must have seen the lingering question in my eyes and adds the part that completely made my day and made that dim light at the end of the dark tunnel that is my life finally appear.

"Welcome to 'The Hound,' Sam. Here, take this and start clearing the tables on the right. We have an open mic tonight and we need to start setting up the stage."

"Thanks, I'll get right on it." Carla smiles warmly as she hands me the apron and explains how to start organizing the area. I am like a sponge, soaking up all the information she is giving me. In just a few hours, I helped Carla and Rudy set up a small stage on the right side of the pub, while all the left and center sections were set up as tables of 2 or 4. I'm actually having fun here helping Carla and Rudy. After listening to them tell me all about the open mic night, I am beyond excited to see everyone perform. I learned that most of the performers are regulars and apparently sound great.

I absolutely love the music and can't wait to hear them sing tonight. Carla told me that the only rule is for the audience to be polite, even if the singer sucks. I have always loved to sing, but I could never, would never do it in front of an audience. I once sang in front of Marie when we were in third grade. There was a talent contest at school, and I had decided that I would finally go out and sing. Luckily I practiced with Marie first and appreciated my friend's sincerity. It must have been very hard for her to be the one to tell me this, but apparently I don't sound as good as I imagined I would. Good thing she told me, and I never got to make a fool of myself by singing in front of the whole school.

Carla and Rudy's bickering takes me out of my trip down memory lane. It reminds me a bit of family. Rudy basically acts like he's Carla's cool dad and I can see how much they care about each other.

Rudy, as I learned, is not much of a talker, he's an absolute chatterbox. I swear I've never seen a person talk so much in my life. He's very old, as Carla said, but I found out he's actually over 50, and he's been working at this pub most of his life, even before Carla bought it, 5 years ago.

Although both are wolves, this pub welcomes both humans and werewolves, as long as neither creates any problems. Well, the rule is mainly for werewolves, as they must be careful not to be exposed to the human world. That would be a disaster that no one wants to be a part of.

Rudy asked me a lot about school and the times I could go to the pub and help them. I found it a little strange that neither he nor Carla had asked me about my family which pack I belong to, but I guess they must have sensed that I'm not at the best time of my life right now. I respect that they respect that. As confusing as it sounded, the point is that I don't need someone else asking me for explanations that I can't even give myself. We all agreed that I should come after school and, despite their protests, I told them I could stay until closing time, which during the week was midnight.