by Bella Colt
“I have done what you asked,” he finally says as I’m taking in his appearance.
“Yes, yes, you have. You’ve done well, would you like a drink?”
He looks at me with a raised eyebrow and then around the empty office room before answering.
“Sure, is my aunt around?” He asks, as I turn around to the liquor cabinet behind me and grab the decanter of scotch.
I pour myself a drink and grab the glass that I had filled earlier when I first heard him arrived.
“Umm. . . no, she’s detained at the moment,” I answer truthfully as I turn back around and hand him the prefilled glass.
After I raise my glass towards him in a toast, I drain the entire contents of mine in one swallow. He mimics my actions and promptly drains his drink, his eyes never leaving mine. We stare at each other, eyes locked for a few moments until he lowers his gaze, surrendering the battle.
“So she was really here all this time; in the very same state that we’ve been in since leaving home?” I say, not masking the anger and annoyance in my tone.
Furrowing his brows together, he bares his teeth at me in a low snarl.
“Don’t worry, pup. You’ll get to see your dear aunt soon enough!” I say, interrupting his snarl.
‘Muah ha ha ha!’ I laugh maniacally in my head.
I have always wanted to do that.
“What in the hell...,” Luther starts to say while he sways on his feet.
Within a few seconds, his eyes roll into the back of his head while he collapses to his knees and falls to the ground, unconscious.
“Wachen!” I yell and, instantly, the three guards that were outside in the hall run in.
“Nehmen ihn in die Zell emit seiner Tante!” I tell them, and they carry him out to fulfill my promise of reuniting him with his aunt.
Alone again with my thoughts, I can finally think about what I can do to entertain myself before the ‘opfer rituellen’ in a few days. A smile spreads across my face as I start thinking of the machines and devices that I have in my “special” room downstairs. I haven't used them in a very long time. I really shouldn’t neglect my toys this long.
Chapter 2: Amara
Linda and I are sleeping on the makeshift bed in the corner when the sound of the heavy door wakes us up. A guard enters immediately and blocks any opportunity to leave. Following him are two guards who are carrying an unconscious man who comes to the cell to drop the man face first on the floor.
Linda stands up and speaks in German for a minute to the guards. I pay close attention to her, even though I have no idea what they’re saying. I hear one of the guards say the words opfer rituellen. She gasps with a horrified look on her face while shaking her head. She points to the man on the floor questioningly.
I am able to understand the one word the guard in the room answers before leaving.
“Luther.” He says.
Linda gasps as she runs to him on the floor. She rolls him over and starts checking him for injuries. It’s almost like her behavior is habitual. How many people have been put in here with her? How many people has she comforted, knowing that they would soon die? I feel a pang of sympathy for her helplessness.
“Do you see a lot of people come through here?” I can’t stop myself from asking her.
She sighs heavily, still looking at the man.
“Yes, but it has been a long time since the last. I thought, or at least I hoped, that he had realized the error of his ways. Obviously, I was wrong. He will never change! You and Luther being here is enough proof of that!” She exclaims, sounding defeated.
“I am confused. Who is he, and why is he here?” I ask.
“Well, this is my nephew Luther. He was sent to live with us when he was eight years old after both of his parents died in a battle against an enemy pack. I took him in and raised him as my own alongside your father, even though Dierk didn’t want me to,” she says, looking down at the lump of man on the floor affectionately.
I can see the love for her family in her eyes. It is the same way she looks at me, I muse.
“It was the first time that I went against my husband. He wasn’t pleased about it. When your father died, Dierk seemed to resent Luther a little less. I thought he was starting to care for Luther because he missed our son. I realize now that he was just setting up the pieces for his next move!” Linda explains.
“Huh?” I say.
She speaks to me like I should understand, but I’m still reeling at all the information being thrown at me.
“Dierk views life from a strategic perspective. Chess is his favorite game; do you know why?”
She doesn’t wait for an answer, and I silently thank God while she continues.
“Because you have to be strategic and think in advance. If you’re good at the game, you’re able to know your opponent’s moves a couple steps ahead of them. That should give you some idea of what he is like. He always tries to anticipate his opponents' moves,” she pauses and then continues.
“Anyways, as I was saying, it seemed like Dierk had taken a mild interest in Luther. The last time I saw him was on the day that I was sent here. I was never able to find out what happened to him...until now. I’m certain that once I was locked away, Dierk used Luther to find you and bring you back here. For that, I’m truly sorry!” She says with her eyes closed, looking ashamed.
“Don’t worry, we’ll talk to Luther when he wakes up, and find out what he knows. Maybe it will help us, we have to try and get you out of here!” She adds quickly, with a pained expression on her face.
I lean back against the wall as I digest what she said about her mate Dierk. My psycho grandfather wants me dead. First, in his mind, I’m not good enough to live because I am a half-breed. Second I must die because he wants to keep his crown that he fears I’ll take with the help of his people. Take his crown? That is absurd. I don’t want his crown. Why me? I’ve never had a fabulous life, but I’ve always managed to get by mostly unscathed.
When I met Declan, everything seemed like it was going to get better. I didn’t even realize that I was merely just existing until I met him, and now I’m stuck in this room.
This is most likely the last place I’ll ever see. Linda has been here for a long time and has seen so many people come through here. I wonder how the king is going to do it. Quickly, I hope. I can feel goosebumps on my arms as I start shivering in fear of the unknown.
I will never see Declan again. As that thought enters my head, what is left of my heart shatters, and I crumple down to the floor, feeling the wetness tumble down my cheeks. As I close my eyes, I find that I regret being too shy to tell Declan how he truly made me feel.
Chapter 3: Luther
As I struggle to escape the deep darkness, I feel a slap against one cheek and then again on my other. My senses are slowly starting to come back. Once I begin to feel and hear better, I immediately feel the hot stinging sensation on my cheeks, followed by a loud ‘whack.’
“UGH,” I groan out, hoping whoever it is will stop.
My body starts to finally listen to me as I demand it to try and get up.
Damn, I don’t remember going to sleep. The last thing I remember was... going to the study to meet Uncle Dierk! Memories flood back to me all at once, and I start to growl. I assume it’s him assaulting me.
The slapping ceases, and I hear him step away. I continue to force my body to respond in an attempt to stand up, but it’s too soon. The result is a half-crouching position. I decided to focus on forcing my eyes open. I have to blink rapidly for a minute before my eyes adjust. I can tell it’s too dark and smells wrong, this place to be my uncle’s study. As I look around, I notice a small framed person against the wall on a blanket in the corner.
In the opposite corner, another person is standing with his back turned to me, peering through a small barred square window. This must be one of King Dierk’s lackies.
“Who are you?” I demand.
This is most likely the culprit who wa
s just slapping me. He makes no movement or gesture in response, which irritates me immensely. I stalk over to the person and grab him by the shoulder, forcibly turning him around. As the person turns around a fist connects with my cheek, catching me off guard.
I growl as I swing my head back around to look this dead man in the face. My growl gets stuck in my throat.
“Aunt Amelinda?” I look at her, confused.
“Why? Why did you help him bring her here, Luther?” She asks, low and angrily.
“What? I thought it was what you wanted? I wasn’t allowed to see you before I left, and I wasn’t allowed to return without her!” I explain with tears in my eyes.
I can’t handle the look on my aunt’s face. She’s my only family, the only person who cared about me after my parents died. My heart is breaking to see the disappointment in her eyes.
“My dear child,” she sighs.
“Amara needs to live. She is my granddaughter and your cousin. Your uncle is batshit crazy; he always has been... I guess I can’t blame you too much I was just as blind to it as you were. I realized my mistake many years ago, and this room has been my home ever since,” she says.
“He never told me where you were,” I say, still shocked that I was not acting with her blessing.
The tears cascade down my face as she embraces me tightly in a hug. It is the best feeling. I thought I had forgotten the feeling of her arms around me, sheltering me, loving me. I am confused by the myriad feelings that are coursing through me. Anger, fear, shame, relief…I am having a hard time separating them.
“Shh, it’s alright honey,” she comforts me.
“I’m glad you were just misguided and that you were not loyal to him. You can still make amends. We can try to fix it now with your help!” She says.
I am comforted to know that I have a shot at redemption. Looking back at the last several years, I am not even sure I recognize myself. I am viewing my uncle in a different light. He is dangerous, manipulative, and evil. How could I have followed his orders so blindly?
“How?” I ask. I am willing to do anything to make my aunt happy and hopefully take some sort of revenge on the man who ordered me to waste the last seventeen years of my life.
“We need to get Amara out of here. She’s so depressed from being separated from her mate. I fear that she won’t have any will to fight by the time she’ll need to. From what the guards told me we have three days before his council arrives and he’ll want to perform the opfer rituellen right away! We may only have four days after the council arrives while they get ready for the ritual. We have some time to prepare thankfully. When she wakes up, we need to talk to her and come up with a plan,” she explains hopefully.
Chapter 4: Declan
I found the coldest darkest spot in my house, which happens to be in the basement. A slow leaking pipe makes the air musky and wet. I’ve been facing down on an old worn out army cot in the furthest corner since talking to my father. I haven’t changed or showered, so I probably stink. Someone in my family comes down every two hours to check on me and asks if I need anything. I can’t even bring myself to acknowledge them. I don’t even know if it is the same person or someone different each time, I don’t really care. The voices don’t even penetrate my thoughts. Everyone is still looking for her, doing everything they can, but, as of now, we have no real leads.
The only thing that grants me any relief is focusing on the few memories I have of Amara. The memories help me get through this until I can find her. Like how she furrows her brows together in an adorable way or when she answers my questions with her simple nods.
Wolf still won’t talk to me, and I’ve tried everything I can to get a response from him. He is worse off than I am, I can feel his pain at her loss. Wolf is pissed and confused. All he knows is that we need Amara. I don’t think he will come back to me without her.
It’s been two days! Two of the longest heart-wrenching days of my existence. I feel like I want to die now that half of my soul is missing. With Amara gone, there is no life for me, nothing. No one could ever make me feel how she makes me feel.
The tears start falling unchecked. They leave trails down to my hair and ears because I’ve finally turned over. I don’t recall moving, but I’m now lying on my back looking at the ceiling, wishing she would contact me. I need to know that she is alive and okay. Light briefly flits in from the top of the stairs catching my eye.
Damn, time goes so slow when you’re wallowing in complete misery. The footsteps are loud as whoever is entering the basement stomps on every stair and continues to stomp to the wall where the light switches are. I immediately have to close my eyes from the bright light burning my retinas.
“UGH!” I groan.
My throat is dry and raspy since it is the first noise I’ve made since coming down here.
“It lives!” Brianna yells brutishly, walking to my cot and turning it over which dups me face first onto the ground.
“What in the hell is your problem?” I snarl at her while picking myself up off the ground.
I don’t really care to fight, especially not my baby sister, but I am seriously not in the mood.
“My problem?” She asks, incredulously. “What in the hell is your problem? Your mate is gone, and you’re just lying around here like a useless piece of crap! And damn, you smell like crap too! Get your head out of your ass and do something about it!” She berates.
“I-” Is all I manage to get out, as she raises her hand out palm up to silence me.
I raise an eyebrow at her, but I listen.
“Mom came in here all day yesterday telling you that dad wanted to see you. You wouldn’t listen to anybody. You were so lost in your grief that you didn’t notice that dad even tried to come down himself and talk to you.” Brianna says.
Damn, I don’t remember him coming down or anybody else. Shit, what if he had news that could help me locate Amara. I’m such an idiot. The realization hits me that I’m not just dealing with my depression and grief I am also feeling Amara’s too. I instantly feel a little relief for the first time since she was taken. If she’s feeling, then she’s alive, and that gives me hope.
I don’t say anything as I run past Brianna and up the stairs two at a time to the kitchen. I continue to run down the hall until I reach my father’s study and open the doors without knocking. I know this is a huge disrespect to the Alpha, but I can’t bring myself to care. When I enter, my eyes fall to my father’s desk, where he is speaking to a tall man in glasses and a pinstriped grey suit.
“It’s okay” My father amends, to the man.
“Shall we continue?” The man in the suit asks.
“Yes,” my father says, looking at me.
“Sit down son,” he says as he nods towards the open chair next to the man in the suit.
Not knowing who this man is, irritates me so I take a deep sniff and can tell he isn’t human or wolf.
“Who is this?” I demand.
“This is our lawyer; he was successful in emancipating Amara. He's also here to give us what Amara’s original guardian, Natalie I believe, had intended to give her,” he says, looking to the lawyer for confirmation.
“Yes, her name was Natalie and in here are the contents of what she has left for Amara,” he explains while handing my dad a large manila envelope.
“I got it from her caseworker. Natalie had it written in her will that Amara would be given this letter. The will was specific that she should not receive it any earlier or later than two weeks before her eighteenth birthday. I apologize, but I must be going now; I have other appointments to see to,” he says, offering us both he had to shake.
I watch him walk out the double doors and closing them behind him, leaving us alone with the large envelope.
“Well, I’m glad you finally decided to come out of the basement,” he says, looking me up and down taking in my haggard appearance.
“The doctor called yesterday morning with the results of the blood test...”
“Well?” I ask impatiently.
“They were inconclusive,” He says in a rush as he lets out a huge breath of air.
“What?! What does that mean, how can they be inconclusive?” I growl.
“Take a breath... Dr. Adams explained that the only reason we know that her other-half isn’t human is because our werewolf' senses detect that her scent isn’t quite right. He said that whatever her other half is, it isn’t something we can detect in her blood right now. Her blood currently shows as human, we can’t even detect her wereblood. He speculates that after she shifts for the first time, her blood may change because of the transformation. He might be able to tell more then.”
“THAT DOESN’T HELP ME NOW!” I yell, gripping the sides of my head in my hands.
I stand up and start pacing his office, not knowing what else to do. I depended on that blood test to help me figure out her heritage, hoping that would give me a clue that could help. As of right now, I don’t have any idea who would want to take or harm her.
“Calm down! You need to stop and think about our options!” He pleads.
“What do you mean? We have no options!” I say in a defeated whisper.
“You’re wrong. What about this envelope? It’s obvious that it holds some answers if not all of them. The question is… how do you feel about reading something addressed to your mate?” He asks calmly as he watches me consider.
I don’t need to think about it. If there is anything in that envelope that will help, then that is all I need to know.
“Give me the envelope,” I tell him.
I open my hand for it, and I experience a powerful sting going down my back, causing me to hunch over his desk. Then again, and again, there’s a searing pain to my back causing me to grunt and bow over from the pain.
“AMARA!” I scream through the pain.
Chapter 5: Amara
We have been left alone for two days in this cell. At least I have been able to get to know my grandmother and my cousin/abductor Luther. I don’t really hold it against him anymore. Linda has explained to me why he took the actions that he did, and I feel sorry for him. He’s been utterly alone for the last eighteen years. I can’t even imagine it. Even with my crappy life in the foster system, at least I had a home and people around me.
