Rivalry for the mate

Chapter 1 "This is all your fault! " Lyra yelled at the tomboy whose stamina was already failing her "Oh really? " The tomboy scoffed dodging a tree she would've rammed into if she wasn't paying attention "This is my fault now? " " Whose idea was it going into the haunted house, all yours. You said this would be the greatest adventure of all time but I never thought this would be an adventure of me running for my dear life !" She yelled, her heart almost leaping out of her chest when she heard the feral growl getting closer by each passing second "Sorry for disrupting your blame time but we have to part ways here. There's a much greater chance of us surviving if we go different ways than staying and dying together" The tomboy pointed out and disappeared before Lyra could oppose. "You coward! " Lyra cursed, adding more speed even though her chest felt like it was on fire. No!, she wasn't going to die. There was no way she was going to die in this eerie-looking wood. It would be days or probably weeks before they find her body. If such a disaster happens, moreover becoming a wolf's dinner is quite an embarrassing reason to be sent to the afterlife. No, she refuses to die this way Gathering courage, she stopped and grabbed a nearby branch trying to climb a tree. At least wolves can't climb trees, she thought, when she felt something grab her leg. Lyra shrieked and tried kicking its hold on her feet but instead, its claws dug into her skin as she let out a sharp cry. Distracted, she lost her balance and slipped from the tree landing on the ground with a loud thud. Ground? No, no, no. Lyra sat up at once wincing at the pain in her leg but that was nothing compared to the fear that crept into her heart when her eyes met glowing brown eyes. Oh God I'm dead meat Forty - Eight hours Ago "Sleepy sleepy sleepy, wake up from the bed " Ben in a rhythmic, singsong voice, hopping up and down her bed ultimately woke her up. "Ugh, get out! " She snapped slamming him off her bed with a pillow which he dogged effortlessly. Damn, why are kids so flexible? "You missed " Ben mocked making faces at her as Lyra chased after him, with him releasing a torrent of screams as he ran for his life. "I'll skin you alive, you little obnoxious specimen called ..." "Language, young lady " Her mother warned with a displeased frown on her face " And why are you not dressed yet, you know we're leaving in two hours " She complained carrying Ben off his feet as he giggled excitedly. "Leaving? " Lyra asked confused " Don't tell me you forgot already? Seriously Lyra? " Mom asked, with a brow raised A mocking laugh from behind made Lyra roll her eyes " Yelp, told you she's a birdbrain " Her brother Harry taunted "Thanks d*ckhead " Lyra goaded, fighting the urge to give him the middle finger. Her mom would kill her if she does that. "Fine, I'll prepare " She sighed making her way back to her room. Once inside, she took a deep breath with her back resting on her door, she just couldn't understand why her mom was adamant about returning to her dad's hometown. The so-called father never contributed anything to her life aside from donating his sperm that led to her creation and finance but yet her mom loved him like crazy. Love? What a joke Even in death, he still couldn't let go of them. Well, there was no harm in a change of environment. What's the worst that can happen anyway? Lyra sat in the backseat of her mom's sedan watching the rain drizzle down the windscreen, lost in her world. It's been four hours since they left for Little Town and she was already restless. Though she was a bit claustrophobic, she could tell that wasn't the whole reason, for some strange reasons she felt restless, as if something big was coming her way. "Let's just hope it's something good " She mumbled beneath her breath, resting her head against the windscreen, her eyes languidly resting on her siblings Her brother Ben was busy playing video games on his iPhone. For a nine-year-old, he was extremely fast and nimble with his fingers and she had to admit, he's really talented in gaming. She turned to face Harry who was sitting beside her in the backseat and was busy chatting with some girl he met on f*******:. She sighed once more looking out, the rain was seriously not helping her mood. "Does it always rain here? " Lyra asked her mom who gave her a momentarily side glance before gluing her eyes back on the road. "Don't know, I'm as clueless as you. Guess we have to live there to find out " Great! Lyra groaned mentally, it was obvious her mom didn't know a clue about her husband. They just met, fell in love, F*cked and then he left when she gave birth to her, and then the whole routine kept repeating until Ben came along. Maybe if he didn't die, another would've come along The only reason Lyra agreed to come over to Little Town was because of the school. Back in her old school, she was so bullied that one time she skipped school for a whole week until her mom caught wind of everything. But it just got worse after that, the kids weren't merciful at all. They just hated her because she was just beautiful. So much proving the point that pretty "Hurts " Lyra has brown hair she inherited from her mom that cascades down her shoulder in waves, and her eyes a rapturous shade of cerulean blue which she inherited from her dad along with her tall height. Her height deceives people so much that sometimes they mistake her for a twenty-year-old when in reality she's actually seventeen. Ben has the same eyes as her but with blonde hair, he took from his father's side but the little guy was insanely handsome, he was surely going to be a chick magnet in the future. While Harry was the exact copy of her mother, with the same hazel colored eyes and brown wavy hair. Suddenly something caught her attention, She saw a signpost with the words "Welcome to Little Town " written in bold Italics. Lyra let out a sigh she didn't know she was holding in, they're here at last. As if the weather knew her mood, the rain stopped abruptly. At Least that's a good sign. "What's that? " Ben's tiny childish voice resonated, drawing her attention as she turned to sight what Ben was pointing at. It was a worn-out bungalow that was sitting in the wood that one could miss out if not looked at properly. But what was more eye-catching to the house was its appearance, the house was so eerie looking that it would be a perfect place to shoot a horror movie. " Probably an old house on the verge of collapse " Harry whose attention was attracted by the scene also answered nonchalantly "We could go check it out," Ben said, a mischievous glint in his eyes "You ain't checking anything out, young man...!" Their Mom had yet to finish her statement when she suddenly swerved to the left while they screamed. Thankfully their mom wasn't speeding so she successfully took control of her brakes while the kids suffered from a minor whiplash. "Are you guys OK? " She asked concerned as she parked the car to the side to check on her kid's injuries. "Aside from the fact I have a throbbing headache and a backache, I'm good " Lyra moaned, rubbing her temple " What was that? " Harry whined, rubbing his neck while my mom checked on Ben who looked fine. Curiously Lyra's eyes went to the road as she tried to figure out what came out of the woods that her mom had to dodge, risking their lives in the process. As if the figure knew what she was thinking, just before it disappeared into the wood it turned around and Lyra gasped. It wasn't a human but an animal. Suddenly, their eyes met and she felt her blood run cold. What the f*ck "Is that a wolf?!" Lyra blurted out Lyra had a feeling moving to Little Town was a bad idea, but she never thought it was this bad. Barely accepting the fact that she almost lost her life moments ago, she now had to come to terms that she's about to live in a town where wolves are constant strollers on the road. Thankfully they happened to come across a drug store so their mom had to go get some pain relievers and food to go along. Feeling stuffed inside, she walked out of the car, the cold air hitting her skin making her shiver. The air was moist and cold but she liked it, it made her sober, she just had a lot going on in her head right now. "I know that look on your face " A voice said from behind but she didn't need a prophet to tell her who it belonged to. "Thank God you know " She retorted , running her hands through her now slightly damp hair. "I know, but you know I have no choice. The bungalow is your father's property " Lyra scoffed at her mom's comment "Atlest you had a choice of selling it which you clearly didn't considering we're on her way to go live in it " " How can you say that? " Her mom asked , disbelief clearly written on her face. " You know that's the last thing your father left for us, it's the last reminder of his existence here on earth. So sorry to disappoint you , but I can't just go ahead and sell something he told us as a matter of fact in his will to occupy ! " She snapped, gritting her teeth. She was on the edge of losing control which she couldn't afford at the moment. It was unfair transferring her aggression on her daughter. Her brown eyes met Lyra's and she saw the anger there. Lyra sniffed, a blushy tone on her nose probably as a result of the cold but that didn't stop her from rubbing it as she sassed back "Maybe if he had being a good father, I would've complied effortlessly with his will. " "Lyra ? " Her mom warned, an edge to her voice Lyra grimaced, "You know what mom, I'm not having this discussion with you. So can we leave for the grand palace already? " Her mom knew she was mocking her but she couldn't do anything at all. Renard was a good lover but he was never a good father nor husband so she couldn't exactly blame her. Lyra had every right to be angry, she practically forced the whole packing out thing on the kids. "Get in the car " Mom said to Ben who apparently snuck his head out the car window hoping to get a piece of the juicy argument. "Oww" Ben whined, "Guess I'm late " He said, dissapointed he didn't get any of the juicy gossip . Lyra ignored him and got in . Thankfully, Harry discovering the ugly scowl on his sister's face didn't bother her, he knew better than to push her button at the moment. After a lot of inquiries and directions from the locals, they finally arrived. Ben was the first to jump out excitedly, followed by their mom and Harry. Lyra , taking a deep breath reluctantly stepped out of the car looking around. "This should be it " Her mom muttered starring at some papers in her hand. Lyra stared at the house, it was a two storey bungalow with it's second storey built into a sloping roof and surrounded by wide verandas. It's painted a deep brown and white on the windowsill while the driveway was surrounded with carpet level greenery. Lyra couldn't help but gape at the huge trees and shrubs surrounding the building, obviously lack of care had weed growing all over. Eventhough she was still angry at this whole relocating thing but she got to admit, this place was awesome. "I guess we're gonna do, weeding? " Harry asked , his voice etched with uncertainty as he glanced at the grasses. "Obviously " Their mom commented as they chuckled oblivious to the eyes watching them from the shadow. It took them four hours to tidy the entire house and move their properties, they apparently cleaned till evening. Even though every one was stressed out but the end result was quite satisfying. The bungalow had five bedrooms, a living room, a basement and a kitchen. It was obvious the house was built before her dad married her mom or atlest her dad had plans of increasing the family had he not died. Five bedrooms? Lyra choose to believe he intended increasing the family atlest that's what he does best, plant a seed and then vanish. But the lack of family pictures downstairs proved the fact he built this house before he started a family or maybe he's that ashamed of his family he never bothered putting up their pictures on the wall. Exhausted,Lyra climbed up the stairs sluggishly. She choose the room upstairs cause it had the best view of outside moreover there was a large tree outside which thankfully was close enough to grab from her verandah. That would definitely come in handy whenever her mom grounds her. Her room painted a pale green was already coming off, she would need to redo the painting but everything else was OK. Atlest her dad had the sense to furnish the house. The only thing She loved about this new home was the fact that everyone had their bathrooms and toilets unlike their old home where they had to share one and Ben had a weird fetish of playing games whenever he's in the toilet and could be stucked there for about an hour. So much misery. walking into her balcony, she inhaled the sweet smell of nature. Thankfully the house nearby was a duplex so she didn't have to worry about a peeping Tom while undressing. But it was quite strange that no one had come in nor move out of the house since they packed in. Was the owner absent? It would be nice to have a neighbor, a nice goodlooking neighbor. Suddenly Lyra felt the hairs on her arm stand on edge, she frowned. She knew this feeling a lot, Someone was watching her. She searched around but couldn't find anyone but she couldn't just ignore the feeling of being watched. It wasn't a day yet but she had a stalker already on her tail. Great! Heart pounding, She cautiously returned to her room closing the French doors to the balcony.Her stalker was still out there, she could feel it "Lyra" Her mom's voice rang from downstairs startling her . "Yes, mom " "Go take out the waste, it's an eyesore " "Alright " She answered with her heart pounding furiously. Outside? Maybe this wasn't a bad idea, she could try finding out who was stalking her outside. Nervously, she rushed downstairs and grabbed the waste bag, leaving before her mom could suspect a thing. Thankfully the Recycle bin was just a few meters away from the house moreover she had a 110ml pepper spray in the pocket of her jacket and a taser for additional protection incase the first option fails.