Chapter 40

AURORA

“So, the prophecy is why the Golden Queen knew to find me when I arrived,” I concluded.

“Partly,” Lady Flora replied, rising from her seat and moving towards me. As she drew closer, I could see her face beneath her veil. She was surprisingly young and beautiful, despite the disarray of her hair and the severe scarring on the left side of her face, as if she’d been burned long ago. “The Golden Queen didn’t stumble upon you by accident. She manipulated the prophecy to her advantage, and she’s the reason you’re here in this world.”

“What?”

Lady Flora chuckled, moving to a nearby shelf and retrieving a book. She placed it on the table next to her. I moved closer, intrigued by the elegant script on the pages.

“Let me tell you a story,” she began. “Once upon a time, the Golden Queen was banished along with her followers after a failed attempt to usurp the Northern throne. She remained in exile, nursing her grudges and plotting revenge against Jekia, the luna dog, and his family. One day, she discovered that one of Lord Jekia’s sons was not his own. The child, born at the same time as his son, was the offspring of the powerful silver fox, Sage. From that moment, the queen hatched a wicked plan to destroy Jekia and his family.

“It took time, but she sent out spies to monitor the young heirs and their extraordinary mother. She even used the lycans to test them. She believed the fox to be the weakest link, impulsive and resentful of his place among them. So, she began searching the human world for a woman who could be used to manipulate him.”

I could see where this was going. “She chose me.”

“Yes, she did. And she manipulated events in your life to ensure you would end up here. It worked to her advantage when you stopped speaking, and even more so when you nearly gave up on life. This made it easier for you to form a bond with Rin, and for him to find a way to help you speak. Then she could use you to sow discord among the brothers, leading to the downfall of Jekia’s kingdom,” Lady Flora explained.

This was worse than I’d imagined. I sank into a nearby chair, my hand instinctively going to my throat. Even as a child, I’d been a pawn in the queen’s wicked game. She was the real reason I was here.

“What do I do?” I asked. “How can I stop her?”

“You need to figure out how to break the ties that bind you, them, and her. If you can do that, then the door will be open for her ultimate defeat and death.”

“But how? How do I break them?” I asked.

“That’s something you’ll have to figure out on your own. I know a lot about her spells, but I don’t know how to break one like this. You may have to make a great sacrifice to do it,” Lady Flora warned.

“Great sacrifice,” I echoed.

Lady Flora moved closer, her long fingers lightly touching my bandages. “You must also be careful,” she said. “What happened recently was part of her plan. She wanted to open your womb to further drive a wedge between the brothers, possibly to the point of no return. Even now, that could still happen if you’re not closed off again.”

“You mean she wanted Rin to remove the implant so he could get me pregnant that night?” I asked.

“Not him. She wanted Lord Rayne to impregnate you and drive his brother into a rage.”

The thought horrified me, and it brought back the memory of my night with Rayne. I’d been afraid of him releasing inside me, but I’d thought it was because I only wanted Rin to do it. Was it because I knew the queen was going to bypass the implant to allow him to get me pregnant?

“What should I do? If I go back and things keep happening like they have been, I’m going to end up pregnant. It’s ridiculous, but even now I feel like I want to be with both of them,” I admitted.

“That’s her influence on your body and mind, but it’s also not unusual for a beta to want to bear children for her alpha. But there is a way to ensure her plans don’t come to fruition,” Lady Flora assured me.

She moved to a cabinet nearby, opened the door, and pulled out a small green vial, which she handed to me.

“This is a special elixir that will close off your womb for as long as necessary. Only you can reverse it, and it must be of your own free will. No control in the world can override it, and it will ensure that you can’t conceive until you’re ready.”

I hesitated, looking at the small vial. Could I trust her? I’d already been deceived about the stone that helped me speak. What if she was working for the queen and this was another trick to ensure I got pregnant?

“Why are you…?”

I didn’t get to finish my question. A loud snap echoed from outside. Lady Flora stood up straight, her eyes wide with fear beneath her veil. I felt it too. Something dark and dangerous was approaching the cabin.

“You must hide! It will kill you if you don’t!” Lady Flora cried, pulling me to my feet.

“What is that?! What’s out there?!” I demanded, though I hated that I could only communicate through the tablet.

“Another pawn of the queen, but far more dangerous!” Lady Flora pulled me towards the back room of the cabin. “Hurry! We must hide, or we’ll both be killed!”

The heavy footfalls were drawing nearer to the cabin, stirring up a fear in me that felt almost primal. I quickly slipped into one of the large cabinets, making sure to shut the door and sit down. The door had small slats in it, which allowed me to see out if I positioned myself just right. I saw Lady Flora dart into another cabinet, shutting her door too. It was just in time. Loud thuds were now echoing from the front door, growing in intensity until it was finally kicked open.

I clamped my hands over my mouth to stifle any sounds and stayed as still as I could. The heavy footfalls entered, moving around as if they were slowly searching. A strange growl echoed from the main room, accompanied by a terrible stench.

What on earth was this thing? The Forest troll had smelled bad, but this thing smelled like pure decay.

I had to fight the urge to gag as the thing moved closer to the room where we were hiding. Finally, I spotted a massive black hand with incredibly long, sharp fingers curling around the doorframe. A head slowly peeked in. It was one of the most bizarre and terrifying things I’d ever seen.

The creature’s head resembled the skull of a large deer or moose, stark white with massive antlers. Yet it had very sharp teeth lining its wide mouth, which seemed to be smeared with dried blood. It slithered in slowly and methodically, with very long arms and legs that had knees bent the wrong way. Its entire lean body was completely black, and I could see its ribs and backbone clearly.

The creature growled as it stood there, looking around with glowing red eyes. It seemed to be searching, sniffing the air, and tossing furniture out of its way as it moved around the room. I did my best to remain as still as I could, although the smell was starting to make me feel sick. I closed my eyes as tears began to roll down my cheeks.

I couldn’t fight this thing, and I didn’t want to die there. But what could I do? This thing was going to kill us if it found us!

The glint of my ring caught my attention through my blurred vision when I opened my eyes. I used one hand to hold the stone, curling up tighter.

~Please Rin~, I prayed silently, ~please help me!~

To my horror, the creature’s head slowly turned in the direction of the cabinet I was hiding in.

I had to muster all my strength not to scream in terror as it slowly lumbered toward where I was. It reached out a long arm, and its fingers scraped the outside of the door, scratching deeply into the wood of the slats. It slowly did it again, and those slats began to break.

But before the creature could spot me, there was a sudden loud bang and running footsteps. Then I heard Lady Flora’s voice shouting from the front door as she ran.

“I am here! Come after me!”

I couldn’t believe it. She was distracting this monster to save me?!

The creature reacted immediately, turning and sprinting out of the room. I listened as it left the house, then slowly opened the door and came out. This was my only chance. I needed to get away from there and find a safe place.

I just prayed that Lady Flora could do the same before it caught up with her.

I moved as quickly and quietly as I could through the debris around the cabin, then peeked out of the broken front door. Everything outside was quiet, and I didn’t see a sign of that creature anywhere around.

My heart pounded as I stepped out of the doorway, then began to sprint toward the direction I’d come from. Hopefully, I could get far enough away to call for help, even though that meant that I’d have to use my voice.

But as I was running, something suddenly caught my eye, making me skid to a stop. There was something yellow floating toward me.

No, wait. Not yellow.

~Gold~.

I stared in shock at the golden butterfly that was floating in the air in front of me. Its wings fluttered, and it whisked by me, leaving a trail of golden sparkles behind it. As it did, that familiar female voice sounded in my mind.

“~You’re becoming a nuisance, so be gone with you.~”

The loud roar frightened me, and I spun around to see the creature sitting about fifteen feet behind me. It opened its sharp jaws, roaring again as it stalked toward me. I felt like I couldn’t move as this monstrosity came closer and closer.

My heart was pounding so hard that it hurt, and tears of terror were streaming down my face as I fell to the ground.

“Please, no…,” I whispered. “Rin!”

The creature raised its arm to swing its claws at me, but the blow never came. Instead, there was this sudden gust of wind from my left side. It took me a few seconds to register that the creature had let out a painful screech and reeled back.

I looked up and realized that someone was now standing in front of me; a very familiar figure with red hair and a red tail.

“Rin?” I whispered.

“It would have to be a damned Wendigo. I really hate these things! They’re so damned nasty!” Rin muttered.

The creature, which was something called a Wendigo, was crouching about ten feet from us now, growling as its missing arm dripped dark blood.

“Back off and go to your domain, or I’ll cut you down completely!” Rin warned it.

But it wasn’t backing off, instead slowly getting up as its arm regenerated. Rin looked shocked as this happened but stood his ground in front of me.

“Rin…,” I started.

“Just stay here. I won’t let it hurt you,” he promised.

As he said this, two more forms suddenly jumped out, standing on both sides of him. It was Rayne and Jekia. All three had shown up there.

“It would have to be close enough for one of these,” Rayne growled.

“It’s easy enough to take care of. Just make sure it doesn’t get to Aurora,” Jekia told them.

Rin turned around and picked me up, letting me hold onto him as he backed off, jumping to a thick branch in one of the nearby trees. It was only then that I noticed blood on him that hadn’t come from that creature. It was from a jagged cut on his right shoulder.

“Are you okay? Your shoulder…,” I started.

“It’s fine. It’s not that deep,” Rin assured me.

The Wendigo’s screech yanked my attention back to the scene. I watched, wide-eyed, as it lunged at Jekia and Rayne. But it never reached them. Jekia moved with a speed that was almost blinding. Before I knew it, he was holding the severed head of the creature.

“Since we’re all here, let me give you a quick lesson,” he said to Rin and Rayne. “Wendigos are some of the toughest creatures to kill in this world. Always aim for the head first, because their bodies can regenerate fast. And don’t forget to burn them immediately.”

I watched, stunned, as he snapped his fingers. The head and body of the Wendigo burst into blue flames, turning to ash within seconds.

Rin let out a laugh that sounded more like a wince. “That’s our dad for you. Always efficient.” He turned to me, his eyes filled with concern. “Are you okay? It didn’t hurt you, did it?”

I shook my head. “No, I’m fine. But what about you?”

“I’ll be okay. This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. I’m tougher than I look,” Rin assured me.

Jekia’s voice cut through our conversation, drawing our attention back to him and Rayne. He was staring at the mountain, his face hard. His voice was low, but we could hear his words clearly.

“I’ve figured out all your tricks, Lila. I won’t let you destroy my family or take my throne. Your time is coming, and we’ll be the ones to end your miserable existence.”