Moon Children

THE MARKED (1)

Ezra‘s POV

My mother and Darci’s mother, Loralie, are best friends. Have been for years, both of them growing up in Black Brook together. When Darci was just 3 days old, my mother and father took me and the twins, Clara and Maria, to meet her. Lyle and the youngest 3 siblings hadn’t been born yet. When we got to the living room, the 3 of us were set on the sofa, being only 2 years old myself at the time, and the girls both being 1. One at a time, the girls took turns holding Darci and giggling at her bouncy bright white-blond hair, and shimmering light blue eyes. When it came time for me to hold her, it changed the course of our futures in a way no one expected.

My wolf had not yet surfaced due to my age, but being born a lycanthrope, something incredibly rare happened. The room began to glow with a light, warm aura of orange hues. My mother tells me my eyes turned to a deep color of orange and I began reciting an ancient dialect only known by our first ancestors. Darci’s hair turned the same color as the aura around us, and flecks of that fire orange-red appeared in her eyes, and my eyes as well. A tiny red mark appeared behind her left ear where my thumb had laid when she was placed in my arms.

Mom told me that at only 2 years old, the Moon Goddess had specifically chosen Darcietta Charmane Moon as my soul mate, and I imprinted her the moment I touched her skin.

“What the hell is happening to her?!” I growled at Dr. Murray.

“Calm down Ezra, please. I think somehow, whoever bit her poisoned her with... maybe wolfsbane? It would explain her not healing fast, but it wouldn’t prevent her from healing at all, which is what appears to be happening here. I’m not sure what could be causing that. I need to get her to a bed and assess her shoulder.” He replies quietly.

Holding her so close to my body had memories exploding through my mind. Not only did I constantly follow her around when we were still little, needing to be near her just to breathe; we did absolutely everything together. We ate every meal, took every bath, played, spent every waking moment – with each other. Beneath one of the bricks in the fireplace of my bedroom, is a box I hid of pictures of the 2 of us as young pups, and a bracelet she made me just a few days before I turned 7. She will probably never remember that though, because I stopped interacting with her entirely after my 7th birthday. She was only 5 years old when my mother told me what she is to me.

I snap out of my haze and lift Darci’s pale, fragile body bridal style and follow the Doctor into an examination room. She looked so different laying on that table. She’s always full of light and warmth, now she looks dull and lifeless. Felix whimpers inside me, staring down at her like this and not being able to do anything to help her hurts. Charles has been prodding at Darci’s wound, when an unassuming “Hmm” escapes his lips. He prods a bit more and begins to pull something out of her flesh with some small tweezers. It resembles a wolf’s tooth.

“This looks like a tooth, but it isn’t. It’s hollow, and look closely at the tip.” The doctor holds the hollow shell towards the light.

“Is that a f*****g dart Charles?!” I roared, barely able to contain my anger. A massive rogue attack against a diplomatic pack using chemical weaponry? Someone was looking for a war.

“Disguised to appear as a tooth’s cap, and that’s not all. I don’t think she was poisoned with wolfsbane. The smell from the capsule of this resembles that of mercury. I haven’t seen mercury used in combat in decades. It is not well known, but mercury is fatal to Weres in larger doses. Whoever did this wanted to harm Darci, but not kill her. Luckily, we do have a remedy for mercury poisoning, but it will take hours for it to take effect. Until it starts coursing through her bloodstream, she will be in an incredible amount of pain, so let’s hope she sleeps through it until morning. Please go tell her family Ezra, as well as your parents, but do NOT mention anything about the mercury to anyone but the Alpha. We don’t know what we’re up against here, and we don’t know if they were specifically targeting Darci or if they wanted to send a message to the pack using her as the carrier owl.”

“Fine. I’ll be right back.” I grumbled reluctantly, not wanting to leave her side.

If she was to feel pain, I would too, and I wanted to be there to soothe it as much as I could. She just couldn’t know that.

“No need, I will have her taken care of so you can focus on your duties as future Alpha. You mustn't be concerned with such trivial matters.” The Doctor eyed me warily, gauging my response.

He earned a growl from Felix and took a step back.

“I will not leave her here to suffer by herself. I will be RIGHT back.” I tried to voice as calm as possible, I didn’t want to give away my secret.

Nobody knows that Darci is my mate aside from my parents and hers, and the elders that were consulted after the day I imprinted on her. Not even Darci knows, as they thought it’d be best that way. Mates may be sacred in our society, but we still have free will to choose. We had no way of knowing whether Darci even wanted to accept a mate into her life until she tells us herself. We couldn’t force a mate onto her before she could even feel her bond, that would just be cruel. I quickly run to Henry and Loralie’s home on the East side of the packhouse and inform them that their daughter would be staying overnight for observation, but that she would be fine. I walked in the front door to screaming, crying, and chaos.

“I can’t believe you let our little girl out there to fight, she’s only 17 Henry!” Loralie cries to her mate and then storms off towards one of the children’s bedrooms, no doubt to check on the little ones.

“I told her she couldn’t be out there fighting; I knew she wasn’t prepared. That one is so headstrong; she just won’t listen!” Henry vented angrily out loud; I was the only one left in the foyer.

“Darci is an excellent fighter, and it was not her fault she got hurt. She killed her first wolf tonight, and it just so happened his mate saw it and attacked her. Then, as Darci fought off that rogue she-wolf, she was blind-sided by another. My assumption is the other larger she-wolf was the younger one’s mother. Darci still managed to rip her throat out before the larger one attacked her again. I sensed Darci’s pain the second that b***h bit her, and took her out myself. Darci is good at what she does, she’s been trained well. Her first fight and she did not give up, she stood back up every single time she was knocked down. You may be the Delta now, but do not forget you were once our Lead Warrior, and that blood surges through her too. If it hadn’t been for the pois-” s**t. I shut my mouth but it was too late.

“She was poisoned?!” Henry’s voice billowed through the house, causing everyone to rush into the foyer.

Luca looked ready to kill. Stella, who was enamored with her big sister, came out with tear-filled eyes. She too had Darci’s bouncy ringlet curls, but hers are blue-black like her father and brother’s. Luca swept her up and balanced her on his hip as she nuzzled her face into his chest. Seeing them all together made me realize I had never noticed before, but Stella and Eve had Loralie’s large, warm, honey-brown eyes while all of the males in the family shared the same pale blue shade that Darci had. Although, Eve also shares the same curly white-blond hair that Darci once possessed. I’m beginning to wonder why she was the only female in her family with those piercing eyes. I knew why she had fiery hair and matching color in her eyes, since I caused it. I just don’t understand why she bares her father’s eyes while Stella and Eve don’t.

“Uh-y-yes. But the Doctor assured me everything will be okay; she will be fine come morning and the remedy has had it’s time to work. Just leave her be to rest until the morning, I’ll link you as soon as soon as she’s... as soon as I hear she’s awake.” I had no intentions of telling them I wasn’t leaving her side, but I’m sure Henry and Loralie would know, being mates themselves. By the murderous glare I was receiving from Luca, I sense he is forming his own suspicions. He is my best friend after all, and I’ve never so much as mentioned his sister directly. Now I'm personally conveying messages from the doctor about her. He was the only one of her siblings that was alive the day I met her, but being only 2, I doubt he remembers any more than I would... the look he’s giving me, though, makes me second-guess myself. I’ll have to speak with him privately, later.

“I’m sorry, but I need to tell my parents right away. Please do not mention the poison to anyone, we do not know what we’re dealing with yet.” And with that, I turned around and headed out the door.