Dawning

The sound of wood being chopped apart, with boys obnoxiously shouting and hollering at one another, woke Lowena at dawn.

  "Lowena?" a female's voice called with a gentle knock on the door.

  "C-come in," Lowena croaked, her throat dry from the burning fireplace.

  A stunning young girl came into the room. With her flawless copper skin, long midnight-black hair, and perfect smile, the sight of her made Myrna jealous. She was beautiful and held a bundle of clean white towels.

  "Hi, I'm Aiyana," she introduced. I'm sorry if you wanted to shower last night; we just finished the laundry."

  "It's okay," Lowena replied. "How, how?"

  "Did I come to live here?" Aiyana finished.

  "Yes, sorry not to be intrusive," Lowena deviated. "I always came up to visit and never saw any of you. It was only my aunt and uncle; now there's nine of you from the looks of it-"

  "Twelve," she corrected. "There are others you've yet to meet."

  "Wow," Lowena gasped in shock. She thought her uncle and aunt didn't like people, but they were taking twelve male and female young adults into their homes.

  "Anyhow, there's leftover breakfast in the kitchen if you're hungry," Aiyana completed before leaving Lowena's room.

  Trying not to think too hard about it, Lowena skipped showering and went to the kitchen to see what was left to eat. After scouring the fridge, she decided to fry up a steak. There wasn't much available but meat and a lot of milk. Luckily for her, those were the two things she'd been craving the most lately.

  "Something smells good," the blond boy spoke to Lowena.

  "Oh, I was hungry. I hope this didn't belong to one of you," Lowena panicked.

  The boy looked me up and down with a cocky chuckle, "I'm Cade."

  "I'm-"

  "Lowena, I know," he interrupted.

  "Right," she sighed while removing her food from the hob.

  "You're beautiful," he commented.

  Lowena's cheeks flushed red. She thought he was handsome, too, but she couldn't find the courage to tell him that.

  "But that's what's expected of a Luna," he added.

  "Luna?" Lowena repeated.

  "Cade!" Kieran barked from the hallway. "We need you in the field to gather the firewood."

  "I came inside for some water," Cade defended.

  Kieran looked back and forth between Lowena and Cane. Annoyance settled in.

  "Looks more than just drinking water." Kieran approached Cade.

  Even though both men were tall, Kieran was still more dominant in stature. His jaw clenched in unison with his fist as if to strike Cade.

  "I'm going," Cade conceded while leaving the kitchen.  

  "What did he do?" Lowena asked.

  "What did you do?" Kieran snarled while approaching Myrna.

  Kieran seized her wrist, jerking her angrily towards him. He leaned down to her, the growl in his throat rumbled his chest.

  "Nothing!" she defended, trying to break free from his grasp.

  "Didn't look like nothing!" Kieran argued.

  "Well, well, what do we have here?" a female's voice approached them both.

  Kieran reluctantly released Lowena. "Cara, I didn't know you'd be back so soon."

  "We didn't plan to leave for longer than two nights. I told you this," Cara sauntered to Kieran, seductively rolling her hips. She placed her lips on Kieran's, marking her territory before Lowena. Lowena, uncomfortable, looked away and continued eating her medium-rare steak.

  "This must be Eli's niece," Cara commented.

  Lowena nodded with a mouthful of meat. Cara walked over, looking her up and down as if examining Lowena.

  "Well, aren't you pretty," Cara snarkily stated.

  Lowena swallowed down her steak. "Thanks?"

  "Hmm," Cara scoffed, "He only needs you for breeding."

  Cara snatched the strap of Lowena's tank top, yanked her onto her feet, and tore the fabric apart.

  "If you for a second think he'll ever love you like he does me, I'll kill you!" Cara snarled. Her voice echoed with a deep, animalistic growl.

  "Lowena!" Eli announced while walking into the kitchen.

  Cara released Lowena and went back to Kieran. Shocked, Lowena fell back into her seat, uncertain what had happened between her and Cara.

  "Uncle, Eli!" Lowena rushed over to her uncle and embraced him.

  "Lowena! You're shaking like a leaf," Eli commented.

  "I'm fine," Lowena lied. "Can we go to your study? Please?!"

  "Oh- of course!" he beamed while taking Lowena's arm and walking up the stairs.

  Once safe inside, Lowena sat beside the warm, roaring fireplace. "Uncle, Eli, Cara just attacked me!"

  "She what?" he questioned, unable to believe Lowena.

  "She did. Look at what she did to my shirt!" Lowena whimpered.

  "I think she's just jealous because of you and Kieran," Eli commented.

  "What are you talking about?" Lowena shivered. "I don't even know the guy."

  "He's your alpha," Eli answered.

  "What the Hell is that supposed to mean? Like my betrothed? Isn't that something the world doesn't do anymore?" Lowena commented.

  "Your father never told you any of this?" Eli gasped.

  "What are you talking about?" Lowena sighed, "You sound ridiculous."

  "You're a werewolf," Eli stated.

  Lowena burst into laughter. "You're funny."

  "I'm not joking, Lowena." Eli's eyes flicked to a fiery blue, silencing Lowena.. "I was part of your father's pack before I had one of my own."

  "Wait, you're not my uncle?" Lowena whispered in shock.

  "Not necessarily," Eli confessed. "We loved on one another like brothers. We're in a pack. It's more than just brotherhood; it's blood and family."

  Lowena shook her head in disbelief. "No, you're lying!"

  "On your twenty-first birthday, you will turn," Eli continued, "and you will be Kieran's."

  "Be Kieran's for what?!" Lowena cried.

  "As his mate," he finished.

  "No!" she denied, fleeing the room and running outside.

  Lowena ran out back through the vast green fields into the cobwebbing forest. She had been coming out here every summer since she was a child. Of course, the forest was too massive for her to have scoured every inch of it, but she knew where she could run to and still be safe. Once her legs could no longer continue, she sat on a thick, mossy root to catch her breath. Something about the birds singing and leaves rustling in the wind and the loud silence that followed had been a way of soothing Lowena ever since she was a little girl.

  "How long do you plan to be out here?" Kieran's voice interrupted Lowena's thought process.

  Lowena blinked back to reality, seeing that the sun was already setting. "How long have I been sitting here?"

  "Hours," he answered.

  "How did you find me?" she asked. "No one knows these woods better than I do."

  "Mayen, you're wrong about that," he cockily replied, "Plus, I can smell you from anywhere."

  "Smell me?" she repeated.

  Kieran ran a hand through his thick locks of hair, groaning. "I assume Eli told you everything?"

  "Just a few things," she replied.

  "Well, Eli is the alpha of his pack, but soon, I will become alpha, and a few men and their women will come with you and me to start a new pack," Kieran explained.

  "You must have all lost your minds," Lowena cackled. "You sound crazy."

  "You don't believe?" Keiran asked.

  He approached Lowena slowly, his pitch-black eyes piercing her soul.

  "Why would I? It's all a myth. Next, you're going to tell me that fairies and vampires are real," she scoffed.

  Soon, Keiran and Lowena were toe-to-toe. He leaned down to her and said, "Deep down, you know it's true."

  "How would I know that?' she reasoned.

  "You feel it," he hummed while placing his massive hand over her heart, only it covered her breast as well, "Your heart beats in unison with mine. You're my Luna."

  The snapping of a twig caused Lowena to step back.

  "There you are," Cara grumbled.

  Cara's walk shows confidence, but her voice displays her distrust of the situation. Just as before, Cara seized Keiran's head and began to kiss him passionately. Myrna rolled her eyes and walked away from the scene as quickly as her legs could. She wasn't sure why, but seeing Keiran with Cara made her heart ache a little.