The Wolf Heir

Chapter Six: Secrets

I had never kept something from my parents for so long. Well, not besides my experience with the wolves in the woods. The only difference was that the other secret I kept to protect the pack’s lives whereas my secret was definitely something I wouldn’t be able to explain.

The day after my first shift, I woke up feeling sore but energetic. I remember my parents eyeing me warily that morning, but when they saw I was fine, their worry started to fade, and the day continued like any other.

I had disposed of my dress in a fire that morning, earlier than any other time I had woken up. I was glad my mother hadn’t asked me for the dress to clean because I still hadn’t made up a decent excuse as to why I no longer had it.

The morning after my first shift, I had gone to the stables to clean and feed the animals and to take care of the horses as well, especially mine that needed a lot of work. I followed my routine like I usually did and to my surprise, the chickens and hens remained silent as I poured their food, in fact, they were standing at the far back of their den. Confused, I kept going on my routine, changing the hay and throwing out the dirty one and then I continued with the horses.

Storm was restless as well, he eyed me cautiously like the previous day. I opened his stable and let him walk out, he did so hesitantly, never losing sight of me. I raised an eyebrow but didn’t try to push my luck with Storm, I didn’t know what frightened him, but I didn’t want to make him even more uneasy and cause a disturbance.

 Once Storm was out of his stable and had gone over to the corral, I cleaned his place and replaced the hay and water, along with his food. When I was done, I walked dover to the black horse who was eyeing me in confusion. I knew he would need to wear his bridle since he was not used to his new home.

I walked over to the equipment closet and took out the bridle. The black horse neighed, as if recalling the piece of equipment, I was carrying, and he didn’t sound very happy about seeing it again. I walked closer to him and he began to stomp his feet on the ground, I nodded my head and placed the bridle on the ground before walking over to the restless horse.

Gently, I placed my right hand on his head, his coat was dirty and rough but that would change once he was cleaned up. “Hey boy, don’t worry, you’re going to be fine. I’m not going to hurt you, okay? Trust me,” I said softly, my eyes never leaving his. We needed to make a bond between us and he had to feel like he could trust me, otherwise, he would only be scared like he probably was with his last owner.

The horse let out a soft sound and he began to lean on my hand for me to pet him. I laughed and moved my hand through his thick coat and once he was relaxed, I pulled away and took the bridle in my hands again. The horse scoffed and I looked at him with a gentle expression on my face, “Trust me, I’m not going to hurt you,” I repeated. The horse eyed me but them seemed to nod at me.

Cautiously, I opened his stable and let him walk out, once he was out, I placed the bridle on his head and tied it around it. The whole time, the horse didn’t move but his eyes never left mine. I smiled at him and petted him once it was in place, “see? That wasn’t so bad. Come, let’s get you to the corral.” Gently I led him through the doors Storm had disappeared through and I let him loose, I did not believe he would jump out of the corral and I would only let him out of my sight for a couple of minutes.

The black horse trotted to join Storm and neighed at him a greeting. Storm looked at the other horse and soon, they looked as if they were having a conversation amongst themselves. I smiled as I watched the interaction and then returned back inside to clean the stable.

After I was finished, I took the brushes and shampoo for the horses outside before taking out two empty buckets and heading out to the well to get some water. I had always struggled getting the buckets to the barn, even though it wasn’t very far but this time, I took the buckets in my hands and lifted them up as if they were nothing more than a basket filled with feather. My eyes widened as I took in my new strength and I smiled, there were some perks about my situation after all.

Back in the corrals, I tied the black horse to a post and began washing him intently. Dirt dropped from his coat vigorously and the water was quickly tinted black, but the horse seemed to be enjoying getting bathed for the first time in a while.

After some hard scrubbing and a good brush, the black horse looked magnificent, big and strong. I stared at him in awe and he looked to be enjoying the attention, that’s when I realized what was missing. “You’re going to need a name, boy. How do you feel about,,, Night?” I asked as I waited for a reaction. To my amusement, the horse looked disgusted. I laughed and nodded, “okay, then… Shadow?” This time, he looked at me as if I had grown two heads and he neighed in objection. “You are a really picky horse. Okay how about Blaze?” I asked even though it was the first word that had come to my mind.

The horse thought about it and then neighed in excitement. “Blaze?” The horse nodded his head and started to dance on his place. I laughed and shook my head, he was unbelievable. “Alright, Blaze it is.”

…

But that had been only the first day after my birthday. The rest of the week, the secret started to weigh me down and I really wanted to tell my parents or someone, I wanted someone to tell me what was going on. I had no idea how to find the witch my wolf had told me about nor was she much help. I hadn’t talked to my wolf much, since I hadn’t shifted since my birthday, she kept her distance, probably wanting to give me space. But I didn’t need space, I needed answers.

I had tried to keep my anxious thoughts out of my mind, trying to stay busy but it became harder as the days passed. I had even gone over to Elizabeth’s house, but her mother had told me she wasn’t home for the day. I’m guessing her dinner with her future husband went well then. I sighed and nodded before saying goodbye and walking away.

I had even urged my mother to let me make her deliveries or to let me get things from the local store. She didn’t seem to mind, she probably thought I was only trying to spend more time with Blaze and wanting to get to know him more. Which wasn’t technically a lie, I did want to spend more time with my horse, but I also needed a distraction and now that he had new horseshoes, he was more confident of his steps and I had learnt he was a lightning bolt of energy, he loved to run.

A week after my first shift, I was finishing up my chores and taking a bath when I heard my mother approach the bathroom door. She knocked on the door, “Katherine, Elizabeth is here to see you.”

My eyes widened, “okay mother, I will be right out.” When I had gone to see Elizabeth a couple of days back, I had wanted to tell her about my secret but now, that boldness had vanished and for the first time, I felt nervous and restless. I was no longer sure if I should tell her.

When I was washed and dressed, I stepped out of the bathroom and headed over to my room to get my hairbrush. As soon as I was presentable, I walked out of my room and towards the living room where I imagined Elizabeth was waiting.

To my surprise, she wasn’t. There was a moment of relief when I thought she had gone back home and I wouldn’t have to face her, but then, I heard the sound of people in the kitchen; talking and laughing. Hesitantly, I walked into the kitchen and saw Elizabeth helping my mother with lunch.

When my best friend saw me, she smiled at me and was quickly hugging me tightly. “Happy birthday, Katherine. I meant to come sooner but between getting sick and postponing the dinner and then scheduling another meeting with my fiancée, I had no chance to come until now. My mother told me you stopped by though, it’s a shame I wasn’t there and actually kind of sad because less than an hour later, I was back home. We almost coincided.”

“If I had known I would have stayed,” I said teasingly. She rolled her eyes because there was no way I would have known.

“Have you eaten, dear? Or would you like a plate of food?” My mother asked, interrupting the conversation and looking at Elizabeth intently.

“I’ll have a plate, thank you Mrs. Greenwood,” Elizabeth said sweetly. My mother nodded and turned her attention back to the stove.

“Do you need any help, mother?” I asked, starting to feel like an obstacle in the kitchen instead of helping. My mother handed me a piece of bread,

“Please cut these, dear,” she said.

…

Minutes later, the three of us were seated at the table. My mother did most of the talking, over the years she had come to know Elizabeth and she enjoyed talking to her. It never bothered me and much less that day that I wasn’t feeling good about talking, I was still debating whether or not I should tell Elizabeth my secret.

I was playing with the food on my plate I was no longer going to eat when I heard my mother call my name, “Katherine, are you feeling okay? You’re not getting a headache again, are you?” Her voice was filled with worry as she eyed me cautiously. In front of me, Elizabeth was also looking at me, both confused and wary. She hadn’t known I had gotten sick the same day she had. Now that I thought about it, something about it sent an uncomfortable shiver down my spine.

I quickly nodded my head and looked at my mother, “no mother, I am not getting a headache today. It’s just I’m not feeling really hungry today.” My mother nodded her head and didn’t push me, but I knew that once Elizabeth went home, I was going to be questioned by her.

“I’ll help you clean up, Mrs. Greenwood,” was the next thing I heard as Elizabeth got up and started to clear the table, following my mother’s moves. My mother thanked her and both of them disappeared inside the kitchen.

“I’ll go get water,” I called from the door as I took the empty bucket and headed out towards the well.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Blaze looking towards my direction, he was neighing excitedly. Since I always took him out for a run, he had become used to it and today I hadn’t done so which explained why he was so restless.

I shared a look with him as if trying to tell him that today we weren’t going to go for a run. He seemed to feel my energy and I watched as his posture changed and his neighs became defeated and low.

After retrieving the water from the well, I pretended I was struggling with the bucket like I used to. My mother knew how I used to struggle with its weight and if she saw me carrying it as if it were a feather, she would become suspicious. My mother was like that, she always could guess when things had changed, she was very alert and slightly anxious woman.

Inside our home, Elizabeth and my mother had cleared all the table and were waiting for me at the sink where my mother washed all the dishes. We worked in silence and in just a few minutes, we were done cleaning the dishes and the table. “Is there anything else we can help you with, mother?” I asked trying to sound normal. I didn’t want Elizabeth to pick up on my nervousness of being with her alone, I still hadn’t come up with a decision.

My mother quickly shook her head and waved us off, “no sweetie, take the rest of the day to be with Elizabeth. You should catch up,” my mother responded nonchalantly, and I tried to give her a convincing smile.

I turned to look at my friend who was smiling at me and already pointing towards the door. I nodded and followed her out as I thanked my mother.

Outside, the sun was still on its peak and the weather was clear and sunny, perfect for a walk. “Should we go down to the river?” I suggested, pretending that my heart wasn’t racing.

My friend nodded and a smile reached her lips, “let’s go. I have so much to tell you. A lot of things have happened since the last time I saw you.” Her tone was filled with excitement and… another tone I couldn’t place my finger on. Was it uneasiness? Was it fear? I didn’t know, but I could pick up there was something in her voice.

Her heart had jumped when she finished her sentence and she started to shift her weight uncomfortably. “You have no idea,” I whispered under my breath as I followed after her towards the woods. I picked up the pace to catch up and both of us walked to the river like we had done many times before, only something about this time was going to be different, I could feel it.