Claimed By The Killer's Heir

I hid behind a big tree, shaking with fear. The forest was filled with loud, scary noises. Wolves were growling, snarling, and fighting each other. The air smelled strange, sharp, and heavy, and it made me feel sick. I looked out from behind the tree. Everything was chaos. Wolves were everywhere, biting and clawing, rolling on the ground as they fought. Our pack the Ravenstone pack had suddenly been attacked by a rival pack and my mother had gone to fight. She had hidden me in the food basket before she left. I waited for her to come back but she was taking too long and I was getting more scared. I had to come out to look for her. When I came out, I noticed that the pack was a bit too quiet for a place under attack. I thought everything was settled until I heard a pack member say that my mother and the rest of the warriors had chased the attackers to their territory. I quietly followed from behind and then I finally got to where my mother was. The bright moon made their fur shine, and the ground looked dark where it was wet. My heart beat faster. I knew I shouldn’t be here. My mother had told me to stay hidden, but I knew that I had to know what was happening. Then I saw her. My mother. My mother, Lila, was in the middle of the clearing. She was fast and strong, moving like a blur. My mother was different from other omegas. She was a fighter who doesn’t see a need to end a battery until it's all over. Her gray fur shone as she dodged and attacked. But from the look of things, my mother was fighting someone much bigger. He was a huge black wolf, towering over her. I felt my stomach twist. “That’s Darius,” I whispered to myself. I knew him because of the stories we have been told about him. Scary stories to put the younger ones in order. His name alone brought fear as everyone knew of his evil exploits and now my mother was fighting him and I could not help but shudder and pray to the moon goddess to help my mother. Darius was the leader of the rival pack so he had the advantage of an Alpha. His red eyes glowed in the moonlight, and his sharp teeth flashed as he grinned. “Give up, Lila,” I heard Darius say. His voice was deep and cold. “Your pack is finished. Stop wasting your energy.” But my mother didn’t back down. “I will never give up!” she shouted, her voice steady and brave. My hands trembled as I watched. My mother was so strong, but Darius was bigger. I wanted to run to her, to help somehow, but my feet wouldn’t move. My mother leaped forward, snapping her jaws at Darius. But he was too fast. He dodged to the side and knocked her down with a powerful shove. “Stay down,” Darius said, walking toward her slowly. His voice was mocking. My mother tried to push herself up. Her fur was stained with blood, but she stood tall. “You’ll regret this, Darius,” she said firmly. "You betrayed me first!" I heard Darius say. In my little mind, I wondered what Darius meant by my mother betraying him but I was too young to understand. "No Darius, you did!" My mother yelled as Darius raised his hand. My chest hurt as tears rolled down my face. I knew that Darius was about to give my mother the final hit that would end her life and I should not watch but I could not look away. “Aria, run!” my mother shouted suddenly. Her voice was loud and clear, cutting through the noise. I froze. My mother’s eyes found mine for just a moment, full of love and worry. Then Darius moved. “No!” I cried out, my voice breaking. Before I could do anything, it was over. My mother fell, her body still and quiet. I felt frozen, my whole world shattering. I wanted to scream, to fight, but I couldn’t move. “Aria! We have to go!” A familiar voice said to me. I heard the voice but I was too shocked to move. Strong hands grabbed me. It was Caleb, one of our pack mates. His face was scratched, and his eyes were serious. “Let me go!” I sobbed. “We can’t leave her!” “Your mom would have preferred your safety,” Caleb said, his voice full of sadness. “We have to go now, or we’ll all be in danger.” He pulled me away, deeper into the forest. I kept looking back, my heart breaking with every step. The last thing I saw was Darius, standing tall in the clearing. His red eyes shone, and his sharp grin was forever etched in my memory. "Don't worry Aria, you will be fine." Caleb tried to console me as we sped through the forest but nothing he said could stop the tears flowing down my face. I was just seven years old and I was already an orphan. I remembered all the promises my mother had made to me and yet she could not even watch me undergo my first shift. After running for what seemed like an eternity, Caleb finally stopped. "I think we have gone far away enough, so we can rest here and wait for the other pack members." He said to me. "We could have stayed back, now nobody will bury her." I cried. Caleb knelt in front of me and held my hands. "Don't worry, we will go back after everything is settled and we will give your mother the befitting burial she deserves as the hero of our pack," Caleb assured me. I nodded my head and closed my eyes. My mother's last moments flashed through my mind. I cried all through the night because I could not sleep. When I close my eyes, I would always see her face. Her eyes as she looked at me one last time with love and worry. "Aria! Run!" She would scream and I would open my eyes shivering with fear. That night, as tears dried on my face, I made a promise. One day, I would become stronger than Darius and I would make him pay for what he had done.