by Sarah Elliot
Shaking his head, the white strands far outweighing the grey of age now, the elder wolf sighed. “If I had he would have just become another dim-witted fighter with no real understanding of how the world works.” A sly grin crossed Disreli’s features. “Plus he who should not be named in my little brother’s presence told me the best place for the boy would be here.”
Immediately a flash of distrust shot through Rosario’s eyes. “Why?”
“Something to do with the boy’s father, I’m led to believe.” A slight hunch of the shoulders came forth from Disreli but it was impossible to tell if it were a simple shrug or a shifting of body mass. “But even I was kept in the dark about what he knew. Don’t count yourself as the only one who lost his faith in that man. It was a dangerous card to play, even I’ll admit that in my old age, but insofar as I can see at this moment in time everything he lost, we have gained in ways unimaginable.”
The youngest wolf shifted a little in his sleep, murmuring and twisting his head to the side. Rosario moved quickly to his nephew and placed a reassuring hand on his head in order to settle the other down. “So you are saying that the girl is—” he started before a finger was placed as fast as lightning onto his lips.
“Not yet, little Roro, not yet,” Disreli said with a sigh, removing his finger from the man’s lips. “I don’t know enough about her yet but something stirs in this wood and if Jared brings back that flower which I already know he will… then maybe we have something far greater on our hands that either of us ever imagined.”
Rosario opted to stare at his nephew, wondering if his mother ever realised just how potentially precious he could turn out to be. A faint smile crossed his features, though it was laced with sadness and regret. Of course Meliva would have known about her son, she had been cursed with the life of a Seer and probably knew more about everything that was going on in the world than anyone would have ever suspected. He still missed his sister dearly but had tried to raise her one remaining son in loving memory of her so that she could live on in another form. Whilst he did not share the ability to predict the future like his mother, Fiero did have her strength and determination which tended to make him an over-protective zealot, but that was just the way the boy was.
“I don’t think it’s a case of not knowing, brother,” Rosario said, turning back to the old werewolf. “It’s a case of not having anything confirmed. Meliva sought to protect him best out of all of her cubs despite loving them all to the ends of the Earth and dying in that flaming mess for them.”
Nodding at that statement, knowing that his sister would never play favourites in that way, Disreli glanced at the boy whom he had watched grow from a timid and often terrified cub into a cheeky rascal with a strong heart and then finally into a young, able warrior searching for something that he could not possibly have any idea about. “Any word on the boy’s father?” he asked, not meaning to change subject so rashly but talk of Meliva made the question bump itself against the inside of his head.
“Not since his last birthday,” Rosario replied automatically with a frown. “Well, nothing directly to Fiero anyway. We did receive a package from him around two months ago but we haven’t opened it.” Lightly the alpha of the pack sighed, shaking his head. “It is addressed to him alone and has one of those locks upon it so that only he may open it. We were thinking it would be best to keep it until his First Moon Celebration, since it is on February 29th.”
A shiver of dread passed through Disreli and his eyes opened wide in fear for a second, like some evil thought had just struck him. “Two weeks from today? How can that be so?”
“His twenty-first birthday was just last month on the 29th, Disreli, you were there,” Rosario stated, not understanding the significance. “There will be his first full moon as an adult on that date. Stefina thought that it would be the best time for him to–”
The old wolf let out a very long sigh. “I know all of that, it is just that if things are as they appear then I dread to think…” Catching himself, the old wolf looked rather guiltily at Rosario before coughing gently. “Take me to see the girl, then I will know if my fears are justified or if they are just the misguided musings of one who is far too old to chew at the bones of life.”
Slowly the younger brother nodded and stepped up next to Disreli to help ease him up onto his old shaky legs. He did not know the significance of the date but something about the old man’s mannerisms suggested that it was a very important day.
However, before they could even begin to try and reach the door where the girl was currently being held, Stefina stepped directly in their path looking ever the protective mother. “Where do you two presume you are going?” she asked, her tone suggesting very clearly that right at this second, she was the one who was in charge and no amount of pleading or begging was going to get anyone out of trouble or for her to move out of the doorway.
Rosario couldn’t help but grin at recognising his mate’s protective tendencies just a fraction before coughing gently to steal his wife’s attention and also hopefully calm her wrath.
“Disreli wants to see the girl who was brought here, Stefina,” he spoke gently, hoping that she would just shrug in her usual manner and allow them passage.
Instead, her hands went straight to her hips. “I already told you no, and I will stick by that statement. She’s nowhere near even close to being awake, let alone having much of a chance to answer any of your questions.”
The eldest werewolf held up his hand. “My dear Stefina, I will not disturb the girl from her slumber, I merely wish to look in upon her for a few precious seconds just to see if I recognise her or not.”
“Recognise her?” The words echoed back though they were lost on Disreli’s ears who had used the single second of distraction to slip past his sister-in-law and push open the door that was just behind her. His speed amazed the two younger wolves enough for them both to remain stock still and forget to go after him.
Disreli took a few faltering steps into the room, feeling harsh and bitter tears sting at the corner of his eyes. The young woman who lay on the bed was fairly plain and simple to look at with skin that was just a little too far past the point of pale covering a thin, petite frame. Her hair was a dirty black, in desperate need of a wash and dry through to make it shimmer like silk. If truth be told a bath would do her the world of good, removing the layers upon layers of dirt and grime which clung to the fair skin and took away the effect of her soft, pleasing lines. Reaching forth, his old fingers brushed along her arm, cracking a small piece of dried mud and blood off in the process so that it cascaded to the floor below. His old eyes focused on the patch of newly exposed skin and the glow which issued forth.
It was a faint white light, more of a reflection than an actual glow but shimmering beautifully in the strangeness of this plain setting. The glow came from the end of an elegant swirl that traced its way up her arm and around her face, he remembered them so well for they had always shone so brightly in the darkest part of the long, horrible nights spent trying to survive under the oppressive forces of Cresta Du Winter’s ever-present watchful eye. It had been many, many long years since he had seen those beautiful swirls and even when covered with a blanket, the old wolf knew exactly where each one began and ended. He sighed, long and hard, a sigh filled with so much love and so much regret that it was hard to believe anything could be corrected in this man’s life ever again.
Disreli leaned close, pressing his lips to her forehead and lightly closed his eyes. “You are safe now, my little one, I will make up for all the time that I left you behind in the hands of that monstrous woman.”
Gently he pulled away from the still slumbering figure, choosing not to elaborate on his words as he turned back to the silent watchers at the door. “A necklace?”
Stefina rallied first. “Pardon?”
“A necklace,” Disreli repeated himself. “Did she have a necklace about her person?”
Silently nodding, the alpha female scurried qu
ickly away down the corridor to the airing cupboard to pull out a folded towel. “It was caked in mud, blood and a thousand other substances. I cleaned it to the best of my ability and placed it in here to dry so the metal wouldn’t corrode.”
Opening the layers with expert fingers, the gold and diamond-set cross pendant shimmered in the halogen of the light above their heads. It was a Celtic cross, woven delicately in gold and set with small shimmering diamonds that almost bloomed like flowers.
“Isn’t that…?” Rosario turned to glance at Disreli who nodded solemnly before lifting the pendant and chain from the towel.
Carefully he turned it over in his fingers and murmured an inscription on the back before placing the cross back on the towel. “Once the girl is awake, I will send for her after a time. She will be confused and distrusting at first as is to be expected by all those who wake up in the kindness of strangers but I know that she will not wish to leave this place. For now, I must retire. Good day to you both.”
Watching the old wolf as he shuffled his way along the corridor, husband and wife turned their attention to one another after he had rounded the corridor and presumed that he had headed towards his own large room towards the back of the Den.
“What is going on, Rosario?” Stefina asked her voice low and quiet with intrigue but also a tinge of fear as it was not usual for the elder wolf to speak of such things in the way that he just did, “and what is this?”
Rosario swallowed gently, purely to make sure that his voice was still fully-functioning. “It’s a pendant that once belonged to a priest by the name of Father Tuxbury. He was a member of the Hunters.”
“Was?”
“He left on good terms in order to raise a child.” Carefully Rosario reached out and also took the pendant, flipping it over to read the inscription on the back. “The moon and sun bear you no ill, my dearest daughter.”
Stefina felt a shudder go through her system. “Just who have we taken into our Den, Rosario?”
For a few seconds, the alpha male was silent as if forming the words in his head or trying to make a very difficult decision. His blue eyes narrowed and the stump of his left ear twitched in very high concern. “Possibly a child who could remake the world into a much greater place or be the start of its total destruction.”
Chapter 4
Maiden and Knight
The hills stretched out as far as the eye could see, great towering pinnacles of dark greens, browns and that strange blue colour that the natural darkness of night time brought to the world. Fiero had the strangest feeling that he knew these hills and valleys exceptionally well but could not recall from where. But what was more disconcerting at that moment in time was the fact that the well-trodden path before and behind him was also well known to him, not once had he found himself inexplicably lost since setting out from the Inn despite there only being a few stars to direct his way in the darkness. Not even the moon was showing itself tonight, which was strange as he was sure it had been nearly full yesterday but the werewolf brushed it off as simply one of his many mistaken observations that frequently occurred.
Reaching the pinnacle of the climb, the dark-haired boy stopped once again to stare across the land and found himself thinking just how magnificently empty it all felt during the long slumber. How much longer would he have to endure the silent beauty of the night without that special someone beside him, calling forth the sweet harmonies that brought a new kind of vibrant life into the world around him. Yes, there were many beautiful views to see in the world, many dazzling creations of man and creature alike that dominated the scenery and gave it a purpose and meaning but they held little of the old times, the history that created them nor the gentleness of the thousands of lives that had sculpted the landscape over the vast number of generations. It was all locked away, hidden in the midst of long-forgotten memories and withered old documents.
Fiero was just about to start questioning himself in regards to these strange and complicated thoughts, which were running around his head when sharply his ear flicked to the side and he snapped his head to the left as a horse came galloping by. The rider apparently did not see his attempt to get out of the way, nor heard his angry yell of frustration in his general direction but a mere four seconds after he had passed Fiero saw why. An arrow, hawthorn shafted with an entwining black string whistled through the air and slammed neatly into the back of the man whom Fiero now noted was dressed in the garbs of a priest. Watching the man fall as if in slow motion, the werewolf barely noticed the approach of the group of vampires until they were almost on top of him but they ignored his presence.
“We know you are there,” said the one who must have fired the arrow as he was carrying a bow made out of the same material which quite frankly looked so out of place by his side that Fiero couldn’t help but feel annoyed with his mere presence. “Step out quietly and we will not harm you.”
Turning his murky blue eyes onto the scene, feeling just the slightest pinprick of pain in the corner of each one, Fiero blinked upon seeing a child, no more than six-years-old at best, slowly pick herself up out of the arms of the man who had fallen. She looked so desperately thin and ailing that he immediately felt sorry for her but it was a greater sorrow of understanding the pain in her eyes that stared levelly at the vampires in front of her. “You will not hold your word,” the girl said, her voice straining because of the tears in her eyes and a trickle of blood, which was rolling down from the corner of her mouth, “for my mother has forbidden such a thing. I will not come with you willingly; never shall I come to you bidding.”
The vampires chuckled, the one with the bow smirking to himself before striding towards the girl he towered over. “Then unwillingly it shall be, little freak. Come here and let’s see what you’re made of.”
It was at that second that the child’s amber eyes fell directly onto Fiero’s and anger boiled over in the werewolf. “You get away from her!” he yelled, lunging for the vampire with all of his strength and a growl which would have outdone the earliest wolf howls in the night. The vampires reacted to him in a panic, like they were unable to see him despite their supernatural abilities and Fiero fully used that to his advantage. Five in all were they strong and within a minute of leaping into the fray, only the bow wielder still remained alive having moved faster than the others in order to grab the girl in an attempt to flee.
But a sharp whistle from the enraged werewolf saw the horse which the man had been riding charge at the vampire and send him flying backwards straight into the all too willing claws. “When you meet your maker, vampire,” Fiero hissed in the man’s ear, “tell him that there is only one in the mortal lands who can ever hurt her and it shall never come to pass whilst I stand by her side!” His claws ripped through flesh and bones, tearing the monster apart in a shower of blood and dust which was carried away on a sharp wind. Breathing heavily, Fiero paused finally to try and work out what had just occurred before feeling a small hand rest in his own before the world was filled with ash and smoke.
Ekata stared up at the large country house with its sandy-coloured walls and plain white windows and wondered vaguely how she had gotten to such a place. Her feet ached with pain and she was breathing heavily but it seemed almost impossible that she had walked any great distance. The house gave off a warm feeling, the kind of place where a strong and closely knit family lived all together enjoying one another’s company. It was unlike any other home she had seen on her long travels, there were few secrets and hardly any malicious lies kept in this house she could see all too easily but her instincts were also telling her that this was no human household. It smelt distinctly of wolves.
The stars above twinkled faintly in the sky, but there was no moon to guide by, not that the gentle glow of lights hadn’t been hard to trace of course. Carefully pushing open the little wooden gate, her tired body pushed its way towards the house, noting that the garden whilst plain and simple, was kept beautifully with just the right amount of flowers and vegetable
patches to balance the huge expanses of playing areas that young cubs would inevitably need. There were even flowers around the doorway, growing together in a thick clump of intertwining branches that shimmered gently in the light from the nearest windows. Some part of her heart felt at home here, like this was a place where she could truly belong but the thought of such a thing made next to no sense to her in the slightest. She was a Volf, something unlovable that would never be accepted anywhere by anyone as she had been told many times.
Just thinking that it would be best to leave, Ekata nearly jumped out of her skin when the front door opened, showering the warm light onto the pathway and herself to reveal a very handsome, if slightly rough around the edges, werewolf alpha with dark brown hair and stunning blue eyes who strode out onto the flagstones followed by his mate. “Please, Germaine, don’t go. I fear the worst,” the woman said with tears in her eyes, her dark blond hair and misty grey eyes almost a shocking contrast but the watching Volf felt a certain familiarity about the pair which stopped her from apologising and running away.
The alpha sighed and turned back. “If I don’t go then we run the greater risk of losing everything, I will not roll over and be treated like a dog by the likes of them.”
“I’m not asking you to do anything like that at all.” The woman despite showing a fragility that was clearly unusual for her, was strong and determined with a fierce understanding of the world. “I just want to know that you will come back in one piece. Please, my brothers will be here before tomorrow’s nightfall.”
Germaine turned his attention back to her, placing a kiss on her lips. “By tomorrow we could have lost everything. I will come back for you, I promise.”