Bound To My Father’s Foe

Chapter 6

Five Years later,

Elaina

The early morning fog rolled lazily across the forest, adding soft edges to the world. Dew clung to the hem of my dress, and the air carried that earthy scent that only ever came before sunrise.

A tiny chill surged through my skin, but the woods were alive. The atmosphere was filled with birds calling, branches creaking and a faint snap of rabbit traps not too far away.

“Stay close!” I called over my shoulder, but I knew I was talking to empty air.

A tiny giggle answered my warning, followed by the sound of twigs snapping.

“Raven! Ryker!” I sighed, placing my hand on my hip as I scanned my surroundings. “I swear one of these days I’ll leave you two out here with nature if you don’t start listening.”

Two small heads pop out from behind a bush. Raven with her wild black curls and mischievous grin, and Ryker, his emerald green eyes that reminded me too much of his father, whoever he truly was.

“But mama,” Raven pouted, her tiny hands cupping something. “Look what I found! It’s a ladybug!”

Ryker, ever the quiet and slightly disinterested one, leaned against the nearest tree, his arms crossed like a grownup he wished he’d be sooner than later. “It’s not even rare, Raven.”

“It’s still pretty,” she shot back. “Pretty just like mama.”

I shook my head, half smiling despite the fact that I should be scolding them for wandering too far. “You two will be the death of me. Come on now, those traps won’t check themselves.”

My kids began trailing behind me, and I tried to focus on the path, but my thoughts started to wander as they often did these days.

It’s been five years. Five long, quiet years—not too quiet now that I have these little beauties—since I fell off that cliff and woke to a new life.

Orloff, the shaman, had said I was lucky, blessed even. But sometimes I wonder if that blessing came with a curse. Living in the woods with Orloff gave me peace, no doubt, but it also gives me too much time to think about my past. About my father. About creekwood. About the man whose touch I could still feel in my dreams.

“Mama, look!” Raven’s voice snapped me out of my daze.

My attention is brought to a rabbit, wriggling violently to free its leg from the trap.

Ryker clapped his palm together, rubbing them in amusement as he watched the creature try to break free. “I can imagine it in the fire already,” he said, licking his lips.

I shook my head and tried not to laugh at his silliness, then I loosened the trap to hold the rabbit in my hands. The creature quivered but didn’t struggle anymore as it had lost too much blood from its broken hind leg. Watching life slowly drain from it shifted something inside me.

Instead of me snapping its neck and shoving it into my basket, I reached for its broken leg and began stroking it with my thumb. My kids watched with their mouths wide as my thumb glows faintly, instantly healing the furry creature’s leg. As soon as its energy was revived, it wiggled itself free from my hands. I let it go, watching with satisfaction as it hopped away from us.

“Mama?” Raven gasped almost as if she couldn’t believe her eyes.

“And there goes our dinner,” Ryker shrugs with disappointment.

A smile tugged on my lips and I turned to explain the reason for my action to them, but just then, a loud thudding sound rattled the ground around us.

I whipped my head to the source of the sound, and to my greatest horror, a terrifying figure loomed over us. It was a huge bulky warrior, clad in armor and thick gears. The thudding sound continued as a few other warriors jumped out from their hiding places up in the trees.

My chest tightened, fear rattling through me as I instinctively shielded my children behind me. It wasn’t just his size or sudden appearance of the others that terrified me the most, but the familiar symbol engraved on his armor breastplate.

Smeared with blood and mud was the symbol of home. The symbol of the same place I wouldn’t dare to set my foot back in. Creekwood.

“Finally, we find you, forsaken princess,” the warrior snickered, unsheathing his blade.

“Why are you here?” I snapped, my voice sharp as a growl escaped me. “Who sent you, and how did you find me?”

The warrior laughed. “That’s too many questions, princess, or should I say queen, now that you have a mini version of yourself?” He grinned at Raven.

I could feel my daughter’s trembling hands clutch my dress. And that was enough to make another wave of rage surge through me. For the first time in five years, I was considering letting my wolf out.

“Our mission here should be obvious to you at this point. Melissa, your stepmother, sent us to finish the job your father couldn’t,” he paused and took a peek at my children, then he shook his head. “You shouldn’t have brought them.”

“Let me out!” My wolf pleaded. And without hesitation, I did.

A growl split from my throat, so wild and thunderous that it startled the warriors. The shift started, and my kids were forced to watch the disturbing scene. Being my first time, the process was rather slow and these warriors decided to use the advantage.

While I was gritting from the pain of my bones snapping and reshaping, one of them lunged forward with a blade drawn. I stumbled to the front of my babies, eyes shut as I braced for impact. But nothing happened.

I opened my eyes to find a raging Orloff—already in wolf form—thrashing the warriors. At this point, I have already shifted fully.

“Run!” Orloff warned, “take the pups and get out of here.”

I didn’t want to listen. Every fiber in my body screamed for me to stay and fight at Orloff’s side—to tear these bastards from creekwood apart and make them pay for ever coming near my children. My claws dug into the dirt as my wolf’s rage began pulsing through every vein.

“We can take them all,” she snarled inside my mind. “They won’t touch our pups.”

The urge to listen to her was there, but as I turned and saw Raven crying, clutching her brother's hand as they both trembled like leaves in a storm, I knew I had to do things differently.

With a broken growl, I gently held Raven with my jaw before nestling Ryker between my shoulders, his tiny fists gripping my fur. Their position wasn’t perfect, but it will keep them safe.

“Run!” Orloff growled again, and this time the warriors—now in their wolf forms—were outnumbering him.

We made eye contact, and I gave him a final nod before dashing further through the woods. My paws thundered against the ground, branches tearing at my fur as I pushed forward. The sound of the battle grew fainter each minute until I heard Orloff’s final growl fade into an echo.

I took everything in me not to burst into a sob as I ran, and again, I didn’t want to make my babies scared. I ran until the scent of the Creekwood warriors vanished from the wind and the trees also changed around me. Until the air itself felt different.

And just then, I stopped, panting and trembling, every muscle inside me quivering. I gently lowered Raven to the ground. Ryker slid off my back, and a sigh of relief escapes me when I see both of them breathing and alive.

Suddenly, I noticed it.

The soil beneath my paws was carrying the scent of another pack’s border. My wolf lifted her head, drawing a lungful of air.

Our body went still, a strange energy rippling through us.

“He’s here.”

I froze, heart slamming against my ribs. “Who?”

“Our mate,” she whispered.