Chapter five

The day of the incident

This was my first time leaving Europe and was excited. United States seemed huge from the maps I'd seen and couldn't wait to meet new people and run freely on new planes. It felt as if I was going to an alien place.

As a werewolf, I lived secluded from the human world with my family and the pack, which made me feel a little bit isolated. I wanted to travel, I wanted to explore the lands around the world, I wanted an adventure, but my parents were very protective of me as the youngest sibling and their only daughter.

My father never stopped reminding me that humans were evil creatures when it comes to new and unexplored things, and if they knew about us, we would become tortured lab rats. That scared me enough to ease my hunger for new and unknown things. But now, I got to convince my father to let me go with them on this alpha business trip, because I thought I needed to know how things worked in a pack, even though I would never lead a pack myself. It wasn't a job that thrilled me. Besides, I have three older brothers so there was no chance for me to inherit the pack.

He accepted me tagging along, but I was to be by his or my older brother's side at all cost. Ugh, sometimes they made me feel as if I was a six-year-old instead of a twelve-year-old. I wanted to be treated as an adult, or something like that, but my mother kept saying I needed to start acting responsible for that, starting with my grades at school.

I guess I was screwed in that matter. I was a Gemini, I couldn't stay still for so long and I get bored easily. Besides, I wanted to be out there, in nature, leaving life, not solving useless maths problems I would never going to use in my life. Anyway, I wasn't planning on going to college after graduating high school, I felt that would only limit my experiences. Having spent my whole life in the same place, I felt like I had little time to enjoy things, and studying a career would make that time even more little.

***

"Stay by my side at all cost, and never go to the forest alone, I've been said that there's been an increase of rouge sighting, and they could attack at any moment. Did I make myself clear?" says my father, again. How am I supposed to run freely now? The adults here were such pussies.

I growl as a response while Mark, my dad's beta, parked the car outside the packhouse of this American pack.

"Don't growl at me, young lady" he warns right before leaving the car to go to the pack's alpha.

He was always on edge when we were out of our pack's territory and knew he couldn't keep an eye on me at all times.

Noah nudges me to get out of the car and I do annoyed. One day, they will regret treating me like this. I felt like that bag of groceries no one wanted to carry because it was too heavy or had things that smelled awful. I just wanted to be appreciated. Was that too much to ask?

The alpha of the pack greets us and one woman that seemed to be a maid, leads us to the guest rooms. I got a whole room all to myself, for which I was grateful. I needed some alone time.

Once I unpacked the little things I brought for our short visit, I leave the room closing the door behind me and start heading to the stairs, walking the path that the maid took us when guiding us to our rooms.

Once downstairs I look around, feeling a little bit shy. I didn't feel comfortable being in a place that wasn't mine, a place that belonged to someone I didn't know. I didn't even know if I was allowed to walk around the house.

"Can I help you?"

I jump in my place at the unknown voice coming behind me. I turn and make myself smaller, feeling intimidated by the large man that was standing in front of me.

"Uh, hi, yes" I mumble and clear my throat to get out a more clear and more confident voice. "I'm looking for my father, alpha of Silver Moon pack, from Russia".

He nods with his head understanding what I was saying and smiled, which looked odd on a rough-looking face.

"They are outside. Here, I'll guide you" he says putting a big hand over my shoulder and we start walking through the packhouse until we reach the gardens where my dad was sitting with the alpha of this pack smoking a cigar. Beside them were Noah and another guy that looked the same age as Noah.

The four of them stopped talking when they spotted me and suddenly, I felt nervous.

"Alpha" says the big bear of a man bowing his head and turning to leave the scene. I wanted to yell for him to come back, as if I needed some backup or something. His demeanor just inspired me trust and warmth. He being a big rough-looking man, with how soft he was toward me, just made me feel secure.

"I want to join" I say with as much confidence as I could muster, but me fidgeting with my fingers betrayed me.

"Not now, Riley, we are discussing pack matters" says my dad dismissing me.

My heart compressed and exploded at the same time, my cheeks turning red from anger and disbelief.

"But you said I could come to get to know about pack's business" I say, my voice coming out a bit squeaky.

He sighs, as if I were a pain in the butthole.

"Riley, that was your excuse for coming, but we both know that you just wanted to come to America with me. You don't care about this stuff" he says with a calm demeanor.

He was right in one thing, I didn't exactly care about pack stuff because I knew I would never lead a pack, but I wanted to know about it, to have some basic knowledge because I was curious. And, as an alpha's daughter, I should know the basics. And it wasn't just that, I wanted to be taken seriously, and engaging with adult subjects seemed a good way to go, and the fact that they took me for someone that didn't think pack's business was important offended me greatly.

"Fine. Whatever you say, father" I say turning to leave them to their stuff, knowing damn well how unsettling was for him when I called him "father" because for me, that word didn't hold love, it was a cold word. I would always call him 'dad' because it was more personal in my opinion. So whenever I called him that, he knew he messed up, that I was upset with him.

I was fuming and my wolf was uneasy. She was young and just wanted to run freely, just as much as I did, and that was what I was going to do.

I walk out of the packhouse and walk toward the forest, the top of the trees visible from afar. I walk as if I was owning my own business. Though being a twelve-year-old, I didn't have much business to own, to be honest.

Once I was in front of it, making sure no one was in sight, I walk deeper into the woods and stripped once I found a good place where to lay my clothes. And then I shift, feeling the energy running through my veins. I loved being a wolf, it gave me some sense of control in this life of mine. Because my dad being an alpha, his instincts were being protective and bossy, even with his family, especially with me, with the little girl, with the baby of the family, with the one that is oblivious to everything.

I growl while my thoughts rush in my head. I was so mad. I felt trapped, suffocated. I wanted freedom! I wanted to be taken seriously! Not like I was some dumb baby that couldn't clean her own butt.

Ugh!

I growl.

But the growl I hear wasn't mine.

With my heart gaining speed, I turn, just to see a silver-haired wolf with red wild eyes, growling at me threateningly, ready to pounce on me.

Oh fuck. The rouges! In my angry daze, I completely forgot about my dad's warning!

I whimper and I dash fast away from him, though I knew I couldn't outrun an adult wolf, especially a rabid one.

I still run, my will to survive stronger than ever. I howl loudly, pleading for help. And I don't stop until the path cuts out in front of me. I halt abruptly, feeling how the edge of the cliff gave under my weight.

I turn, not wanting to give my back to the enemy, to the threat at hand. The wolf growled at me, baring its fangs toward me and I tremble. I hear a howl answering my cry, but I doubt they would arrive on time.

My thoughts are cut out short when the wolf pounce on me.

On instinct, I jump back, wanting to escape the bite and death altogether, but there was no more land under my paws and I fall the big height. I change mid-air to my human form to be able to swim and breathe, but at that moment I felt like touching the surface of the raging river at the bottom of the cliff, I feel huge pain embracing my head right after darkness engulf me.

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Hey! It's me... again!

I'd like to know if you are enjoying the story so far? Hope you do! I worked hard on this one and it's almost finished! So vote and comment to know you like it and maybe I can publish more frequently!

Lots of love! - J