"Strange, other than the other voice in my head, I don't feel any different," she says, with a huge grin on her face, and it takes me a minute to get what she means.
"So you got your wolf?" I ask, and she nods in response. "OH MY GODDESS, I'm so happy for you. What's her name? Is she sweet? Does she like you? Oh, I guess that was a stupid question. Of course, she likes you, sorry!"
"Hahaha, I love you, Rainie bug. Her name is Shina. She's very nice. And she said she likes you and me both. oh, and she also said she needs more of your cooking." She says with the brightest smile on her face.
"She even likes me and my cooking?" I ask, shocked that she even noticed my existence.
"Of course, sis, your cooking is amazing, and you're the sweetest person I know. What's not to like?" she says, making me smile.
"I love you, Jess," I say as I pull her into a hug. "And Shina too!"
Today is a bittersweet day. Not only is it my best friends' birthday, but she also got her wolf, so she will be able to scent out her mate if he's close enough, she can shift into her wolf, and she will be able to move into her own room in the pack house in a few days. But she'll officially not be an orphan anymore. Don't get me wrong, I'm so happy for her, and if anyone deserves to be happy and find her place in the world, it's her. But that leaves me alone again. But today isn't about me. It's about her. So I shake my lonely and depressing thoughts from my mind and start my morning routine before heading down to the kitchen to start breakfast. Since it's Saturday and there's no school. That means the kids don't have to be up early, which also means I don't have to rush for everything.
After the food is finished cooking, beds are made, and dirty clothes have been put in the wash, I went to the room that in a few days, I'll no longer share with my best friend. I'll be losing my best friend. Even when I move into the pack house as the pack slave, I won't be permitted to speak to her. Slaves aren't allowed to be seen or heard. Im so stuck in my thoughts that I don't even hear Jess come in and walk up behind me.
"Let's run away.." she says
"WHAT? You've lost your mind! They are full-grown wolves. They're faster than us, not to mention they could easily scent us out." I protest. "They would kill us both, not just me. I won't allow you to put yourself in danger for me. Not after you finally got your wolf and have your whole life ahead of you."
"Actually, I have a masking spray for me, and you have no scent at all, strangely. And Shina is the one who suggested it. She says the fact that you have no scent means you are important, and we need to get you out of this pack!" She states as she starts packing a big black duffle bag with our clothes.
"Im definitely not important. My own parents dumped me here because I wasn't even important to them. I'm a nobody." I say, slowly getting more depressed about my life before Jess smacks me in the back of my head.
"Don't you dare say that!! If you stay here, you'll die, you are my best friend, and I need you to stay alive and with me. You're my only family." she says, shocking me. What did she mean by that?
"What do you mean by 'if I stay, I'll die'?" I ask as I meet her gaze.
"I'm not supposed to tell you, but Alpha Max has decided on your seventeenth birthday you are to be executed. He refuses to have a witch as a pack slave in the packhouse." She says, her voice barely above a whisper and eyes on the verge of overflowing with tears. "He's scared you turn on the pack once you get your powers."
"But I wouldn't... Jess, you have to believe me." I say, panic laced in my voice. "I wouldn't... I couldn't."
"I know that Rainie bug..." She says as she wraps me up in a tight embrace. "But the Alpha has made his decision. That's why I need to get you out of here now!"
"Okay, I'll leave, but I can't let you leave your pack. This pack is your home. I'll leave tonight, but I'm going alone. I won't take anything else from you." I say, prepared to stand my ground.
"Sorry, but my sister isn't leaving alone. And if you try, Shina and I have already decided we will follow you!" Jess said defiantly, and I get the feeling she wasn't joking around. "Plus, this isn't my home anymore. Family is what makes a home. Plus, all those beatings and lashes Ms.Leana has given you over the years, the Alpha knew about them. Why do you think she got those bonuses? He was paying her to break you..."
"Okay," I say, absolutely defeated by all the information she just threw at me. "Where do we go? What do we do?"
"We will wait till 2 am when they are changing out patrols. Dress in all black and make sure you cover your hair. That bright red hair of yours will give us away instantly. When we get to the border of the pack's territory, I'll denounce the pack, and we'll run like hell south." She says, looking confident.
"Okay, let's get dinner and everything ready so the kids will at least be taken care of till Ms.Leana realizes we're gone," I say, putting the last of what I own into the duffle bag Jess hands me.
"Sounds like a plan!" She said, walking out of the room.
Rain's P.O.V. Opening my eyes, I look around to find someone has laid me down in our bed next to Zion. He's covered in bruises and has bandages wrapped around his chest and down his left arm. I try to reach over, but I realize my body is sore and stiff, and I can barely move. "Oh, thank Goddess, you're awake." Jess gasps, walking through the door. "How are the pups?" I ask the first thing that crosses my mind. "All three are safe and sleeping. Lady Ezmerelda is in the nursery with the twins, and Odett fell asleep watching a movie with Sam in the living room." She answered while walking over to my side of the bed. "Is Douglas dead?" I ask, slowly starting to remember everything that happened. "You leveled everything in the area. Orian found you unconscious, covered in blood, but he didn't think it was yours. He said it smelled like Douglas and his minions. You didn't even have a scratch on you." She said with a smile, helping me to sit up. "How is everyone?" I ask
Rain's P.O.V. After recovering from whatever hit me, I turned to see a female who looked so much like Lady Lena that it threw me off. Zion is just as surprised as I am, his face mirroring my surprised expression. Then I realized that the restraints that held Douglas in place were released, letting him recover and stand beside the lookalike as a group of his rogue army stood behind them. "Who the hell are you, and why do you look eerily similar to a dead woman?" Zion asks after he shifts back to his human form and takes his place beside me. "You must be talking about my twin. That foolish bitch refused to leave that weak coven and decided to go against me. She got what was coming to her." She said with a cackel. "I even offered to take her with me after I kidnapped you, but she refused and even tried to fight me. She might have been our parent's favorite, but she was weak, always letting everyone fight her battles for her." "You're
Zion's P.O.V. After Rain's speech, Mia suggested opening gifts, so Jessica and I helped her up and started walking towards the chair designed like her throne where all the gifts were. Midway through the walk, Rain started feeling some pain and leaned over on me. When I asked if she was okay, she said she was. I knew she wasn't telling me the truth, but I decided to ignore it and keep walking. Unfortunately, she doubled over before we could reach the chair, grabbing her side. I quickly picked her up and noticed liquid running down between her legs as Odett called for her in a panic. I yell for Doctor Jameson, knowing he's here somewhere. He tells me to get her to the suite when he reaches us, but I know he wants her in the makeshift delivery room. I rush through the crowd in a panic, thankful that they made a path for us, and up the stairs to our suite where I lay her down on the bed, only now noticing that our friends followed. Do
Rain's P.O.V. I stood quietly in the peaceful darkness that I'd become accustomed to and waited patiently, thankfully not feeling any pain. I didn't have to wait long as soon the brilliant silver light erupted, and Dosha and Selene emerged as the light dimmed, and I could feel their warmth radiating off of them. But soon, I notice the grim look on her face, and the peacefulness I had felt melts and gives way to caution. "Hello, my dear daughter," Selene says. "I have come to bring you a warning." "A warning about what?" I ask, my stomach in knots as panic sets in. My first thought is that something is wrong with the twins. "The twins will be fine, do not worry, my dear. I will watch over them as I did with Odett. I came with a warning about Douglas." She says, and my heart stops for a moment. "He knows that you are about to give birth and thinks that you will be in a vulnerable state. He is planning to make his move now." "S
Rain's P.O.V. When Zion opened the double doors to the Banquet Hall, I was shocked, to say the least. Everyone was talking, speculating what this gathering was all about, and then complete silence followed by gasps as everyone's gaze met Zion and me as the doors opened. I place my hand on my belly as Zion leads us into the crowded room. Everyone now has faces of relief and tears of joy streaming down their faces as they bow while we make our way past them and to a table set up for us. I feel an overwhelming sense of love and confusion pouring off of everyone in the room. As we reached our table, we were joined by the others in our group, including Morgan, Mia, and Nick, as well as King Arnald and Beta Mark. Zion pulls out a chair for me and helps me lower myself into it before he addresses the crowd. He goes into detail about the reasons for my disappearance while also apologizing to everyone for keeping them in the dark about the
Zion's P.O.V. I woke up this morning and felt something different in the air like something would happen soon, but I wasn't sure what that would be. I asked Ryker about it, but he wasn't sure either. Orian linked me to let me know that everything was ready and that everyone would start showing up in about an hour or so, but that he needed to see me in my office for an important matter. I told him that I would be down soon and quickly linked Jessica and Lady Ezmerelda to ask them to help get Rain ready while I went to handle a few things before the shower and celebrations began. As soon as I told Rain that we needed to get moving and that her sister and mother would be helping her get dressed, she started getting emotional, which I know is from the hormones. Thankfully, I saved myself by explaining that she wasn't fat, just very pregnant. That worked, and just in time, since Jessica and Lady Ezmerelda arrived the next second,