Familial ties

...BELLE...

...This was how the world...

...ended....

...The king of wolves, the mythic...

...monster; the majestic man I'd...

...grown to love and lust for...

...with my every breath, he lay...

...there…bleeding out beside his...

...throne. Dying....

...Towering over him was a...

...grinning demon..the Demon...

...Lord. He pointed at me with a...

...long, black, spindly finger....

..."You're mine now,...

..."he...

...croaked, fire spitting from his...

...mouth....

...“Annabelle”...my...

...“princess of darkness..”...

...I fell to my knees and cried...

...out in anguish. But as the...

...tears trailed down my cheeks,...

...I felt them.....

...hubbling…....

...boiling…..melting through my...

...skin. I shrieked, tearing at my...

...face, trying to make it stop....

...But there was no stopping...

...what I was becoming now. I...

...heard the Demon King's...

...cackling laugh as my tears...

...became black scars, my eyes...

...voids, my lips….. that would...

...never know the taste of his...

...again.....

...the Werewolf King I...

...loved.....

...He was lost....

...I was lost....

...The world was lost.....

...Only...

...darkness ruled now....

...I woke up with ...

...shaking, hyperventilating, but...

...the world was still dark....

..."What?" I said, freaking out....

..."What's happening?"...

...I realized I was wearing an...

...eye mask, and as soon I...

...pulled it off, I could see I was...

...safe and sound in my...

...chambers. Phew....

...That damn dream again. It'd...

...been recurring for weeks. But...

...every time I woke up, I...

...couldn't remember a single...

...detail. Only the terror, the...

...dread, the feeling that...

...something big was coming....

...But what?...

...A heavy knock at the door...

...made me jump....

..."Honey?'...

...I turned to see my father. That...

...was all. Get a grip, Belle, I...

...scolded myself....

..."What is it, Dad?'...

...‘There's something important...

...we need to discuss…’...

...He came and sat down on my...

...bed. My father was the alpha...

...of our pack, built like a brick...

...wall, but with a quiet...

...kindness in his brown eyes...

...that couldn't be rivaled. He...

...was fiercely devoted to his...

...family, which is why what he...

...said next shocked me to my...

...core....

..."Anabelle;...

..." he said, eyes...

...lowering. "I don't know how...

...to say this, but it's time for...

...you to leave the pack...

...behind."...

...My eyes widened....

..."What??...

..."Your mother and I are...

...sending you somewhere.....

...safe. Warm. Far away from...

...here."...

..."What are you talking...

...about?" I said, standing up,...

...backing away....

..."This is my...

...home! I can't leave the pack....

...I belong_____...

..."You belong where I say you...

...belong!" he bellowed, and I...

...was struck quiet....

...My father rarely raised his...

...voice. That meant this was...

...serious. It meant that he, the...

...alpha of our pack, was scared...

...of something. But. what?...

..."Why... why are you doing...

...this?" I asked, and now tears...

...filled my eyes....

...I thought of my brother, Sean,...

...my best friends, Joshua and...

...Danny, and most of all, of...

...Gregory, the man I believed I...

...was destined to be with. How...

...was I ever going to live...

...without them? What was...

...happening? My world was...

...slipping from beneath my...

...feet....

...I can't explain,...

..."' Dad said....

..."But you must understand...

...Annabelle. It's for your own...

...protection."...

...Protection from what? Was...

...this related to that damn...

...dream? If only I could...

...remember the details. But I...

...wasn't scared of it... whatever...

...it was. No. This was my...

...home. And nothing, nobody,...

...was going to take that away...

...from me....

...«Annabelle,...

...» my father said,...

...seeing the wheels turning in...

...my head. "Don't___...

..."Try to stop me," I said....

...And before he knew what...

...was happening, I ran from the...

...room, out of the house, and...

...into the woods as fast as my...

...feet could take me....

...I was running for my life. In...

...the distance, I could hear my...

...father's booming voice....

..."Come back here,...

...Annabelle!?...

...But no way was I stopping...

...now. I shifted and felt the...

...familiar warmth seep into my...

...skin. My limbs stretching, a...

...pelt of reddish fur emerging...

...from my body, covering me...

...like a thick blanket....

...Now on all fours, I sped...

...toward my secret spot in the...

...forest. I discovered it when I...

...was much younger. Sean, my...

...big brother, had teased me...

...relentlessly, leading me to...

...flee into the forest in tears....

..."You're not my sister!' he...

...shouted. "Go back where you...

...came from!' He was five...

...years my senior, and all I'd...

...ever wanted was to be loved...

...by him....

...That night, I stumbled...

...exhausted into the clearing,...

...but the full moon looked...

...down on me, blinding me...

...with its fluorescent majesty. It...

...spoke to me silently, soothing...

...my worries. It was my secret...

...friend when I was lost in the...

...darkness....

...I was running there now,...

...hoping to find the same...

...solace and comfort I first felt...

...those thirteen years ago....

...Being sent away meant I...

...would have to leave behind...

...my special clearing, too. I...

...couldn't bear the thought....

...Where could I turn? Where...

...could I be alone? Oh. dear...

...Moon Goddess, don't let this...

...be my fate. Don't let my...

...father send me away!...

..."Belle, stop! Wait for me,"...

...hollered Sean. Time had done...

...much to resolve our...

...differences, making us close...

...now. I knew he cared, but...

...something inside me refused...

...to let my legs stop running. I...

...needed to be away from...

...everyone....

...I heard him shift behind me,...

...his large six-foot-ten-inch...

...frame morphing into a...

...massive grey wolf that was...

...just as quick as it was strong....

...He would catch up with my...

...small. weak wolf at any...

...moment....

...When I first shifted at fifteen,...

...I thought my wolf would get...

...bigger, but it never did....

...Unlike the rest of my family,...

...my wolf remained small and...

...scrawny....

...I heard him shift behind me....

...his large six-foot-ten-inch...

...frame morphing into a...

...massive grey wolf that was...

...just as quick as it was strong....

...He would catch up with my...

...small, weak wolf at any...

...moment....

...When I first shifted at fifteen,...

...I thought my wolf would get...

...bigger, but it never did....

...Unlike the rest of my family,...

...my wolf remained small and...

...scrawny....

...Which made me easier to...

...catch....

...Sean's wolf jumped on my...

...back, pinning me to the dirt. I...

...tried to wriggle free, nipping...

...at his legs, but it was no use....

...Sean snarled and dug his nails...

...into my pelt....

...Relenting under the pain, I...

...morphed back to my human...

...form and he let me get up....

...One upside to being an...

...undersized wolf? I was the...

...only one in the pack who...

...could keep my clothes on...

...while shifting....

..."We need to talk?. Sean said....

...putting on his shirt....

..."I'm not going anywhere,...

... I spat....

..."If Dad sent you after__...

...me...

...You have to, Belle. It's the...

...only way."...

..."I can't believe you're on his...

...side,...

...» I shot back....

..."For the...

...Moon Goddess's sake, will...

...you tell me what the hell's...

...going on?"...

...Sean looked away. I knew it...

...must be something serious....

...He wasn't one to avoid...

...confrontation. In fact, he had...

...quite the reputation in the...

...pack for knocking out anyone...

...who looked at him wrong. Or...

...any poor guy who looked at...

...me, for that matter....

...He's coming for you, Belle,...

...Sean said quietly....

..."He knows...

...where you are. You can't be...

...here when you turn eighteen....

..."He? What are you talking...

...about? Who's he?'...

..."That's not for me to say. If...

...Dad didn't think you should...

...know..?...

..."It's my life, Sean!' I...

...shouted....

..."I deserve to know if...

...someone's after me. Please?...

...Tell me. Who is it? Who's...

...coming for me? Is it another...

...alpha?"...

..."No, he's not a werewolf....

...He's. he's something else.'...

..."Something else? What do...

...you mean? There isn't...

...anything else. Just humans...

...and werewolves."...

..."There's a lot you don't...

...know. Belle.....

...I felt like the world I knew...

...and loved was falling apart...

...and not even my secret...

...clearing could protect me...

...from what was coming next....

..."Look, do you remember that...

...day you ran away in the forest...

...because I was taunting you,...

...and no one could find you all...

...day, and Mom went...

...ballistic?”...

..."And then you were grounded...

...for a week?" I replied. "Yes,...

...of course. I hated you that...

...day....

..., 99...

..."Sure, I would have, too,...

...Sean said impatiently, as if I...

...was keeping him from...

...making his point....

..."But, do...

...you remember what I was...

...saying before you took off?"...

..."You said.. you said that no...

...one loved me, and Mom and...

...Dad were lying to me. You...

...were a real jerk back then,...

...you know that? You made my...

...life a living hell."...

..."I also said, you were found...

...at the Pack border....

..."Whatever. That's the same...

...stupid joke every older...

...brother makes. What does it...

...matter?" But my body...

...betrayed my true feelings. I...

...could feel my heart pounding...

...fiercely in my ribcage. A...

...revelation was coming....

...I could feel it....

...Sean looked at me with heavy...

...eves and let out a deep sigh....

..."That wasn't a joke, Belle."...

...I silently pleaded for him to...

...smirk or wink, anything to...

...indicate he was just pulling...

...my leg. Instead, his face...

...remained solemn....

..."I remember one night, Dad...

...came back with a bundle in...

...his arms, and he and Mom...

...argued. I had never heard...

...them argue like that. So, I got...

...closer and started to...

...eavesdrop. Mom wanted to...

...keep you, but Dad was...

...worried....

..."He kept saying, there must...

...be more to the story. He said...

...somebody was going to come...

...back for you one day. I...

...rushed downstairs to see what...

...they were talking about. And...

...that's when I first saw you,...

...bundled in that blanket. You...

...were so small and fragile,...

...Belle....

..."That's why I was angry for...

...so long. I was scared to love...

...you because I thought you...

...might be taken from us, and I...

...couldn't bear the thought of...

...losing my little sister. It took...

...me a while to realize, it didn't...

...matter if someone came,...

...because they weren't your...

...family. We were your family."...

...It was too much to process all...

...at once. I didn't know where...

...to begin. I looked at my...

...brother, my protector, my...

...friend. This was tearing him...

...apart from the inside....

..."That's why you're so over-...

...protective?" I asked....

..."I can't help it," he said,...

...nodding....

..."I promised I'd...

...never let anything bad happen...

...to you. That's why you have...

...to come back home with me,...

...all right?"...

..."First. tell me,...

...I demanded.”...

..."Who is he? Who's after...

...me?”...

...Sean sighed, looking down. I...

...knew the answers were...

...imminent, though, I...

...suspected, they weren't going...

...to make anything clearer....

..."Last week, an ultimatum...

...was issued to the King. It said...

...to hand you over or else war...

...would be declared on all...

...werewolves."...

..."The King? A war?' ...

...I...

...stammered....

..."What could that...

...possibly have to do with...

...me?”...

...*Belle," Sean said, holding...

...me firmly....

..."We don't know...

...much. But we know he's a...

...ruler of all his kind. We know...

...he's called…. the Demon...

...Lord."...

...A flash of horrifying imagery...

...struck me silent. A black....

...spindly finger pointed right at...

...me. A fiery, cackling mouth....

...The dream....

...That was who I'd dreamt of....

...The Demon Lord....

..."I wish I knew more,...

...» Sean...

...said....

..."All we know is, he...

...incredibly dangerous. And...

...he's willing to go to war if it...

...means getting you back."...

...I choked for breath, my hands...

...clammy. I felt like I was...

...suffocating....

..."Why? Why me? What could...

...he want with me??'...

..."Belle…Sean said, looking...

...into my eyes....

...I think...

...you're…I think that's where...

...you came from. You belong...

...to him."...

...I took a shaky step back, eyes...

...widening, hyperventilating....

...Everything started to blur,...

...and it felt like my body was...

...weightless. I was falling....

...And now, I could hear his...

...voice again…the voice from...

...my dream.....

..."Annabelle, my princess of...

...darkness.....

...Sean's voice was screaming;...

...he was trying to reach me....

...But he was too far. It was too...

...late. My secret clearing,...

...illuminated by the moon, was...

...drowning in darkness, the...

...stars blinking out, one by one....

...And as all went black.. as the...

...world ended around me…all I...

...could see was the other man...

...from my dream, the Werewolf...

...King, lying in a pool of his...

...own blood....

..."Belle," I watched his lips...

...silently mouth....

..."I love you."...

...And then there was nothing...

...but darkness....

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