The Protector

Chapter 14

For the first six months, I was kept in a makeshift cage that seemed ready to fall apart any day with nothing but a thin mattress, a calendar that they had thrown in here as a cruel joke, a bucket for my business and a deck of cards to keep me from losing most of my mind. They fed me scraps of food twice a day that tasted weeks old but I scarfed them down anyway to keep my strength. Day in and day out I always kept one eye open to watch for any opportunity to escape. The opportunity never seemed to show itself since the cage was never opened because they were too afraid of me, despite the collar around my neck that drained my energy. I was never tortured physically which I believed was because I was very powerful and well trained, but that didn’t stop them from draining the life and hope out of me bit by bit. I stayed in that tiny, filthy cage for six months, waiting and praying for my opportunity to escape. Finally the day came when they decided that they would test their luck. It was their mistake.

Let it be put on the record that after six months in a cage with minimal contact with anyone, I wasn’t quite myself. I didn’t regret what happened after they had let me out because I was trying to protect myself. At least that’s what I whispered to myself each night before going to bed after the incident.

“I’ll kill you all,” I growled as I lashed out against one of the men that surrounded me as though I was some wild animal that had escaped from its cage. Actually that description was pretty accurate. He jumped away from my fist just as another guy lunged at me, but I was faster as I caught his throat and slammed him to the ground. I was above the guy in a split second, throwing punches before I felt the others grab onto me a try to pull me away, but it was too late. My rage blurred my vision as my malnourished body was fueled with pent up adrenaline. I threw punches faster than I could count, not stopping even as I heard the sickening crack and felt warm blood coat my hands and my hands being scratched.

Finally when the adrenaline started wearing off, the other men were able to pull me away from the smashed skull. They dropped me on the ground and took a step back but still remained around me. Before I could stand and attack again, I felt a sharp pinch in my left shoulder and looked over to see a bright green feather like object sticking out of my arm. The last thing I could see as I fell into the darkness was a familiar looking man walking towards me.

I woke up slowly, my eyes opening to see the stone wall of my cell. I heard voices and slowly, their conversation started to make sense in my scrambled thoughts. 

“... out of control. We never suspected she would have so much power and strength after all this time.” I knew the voice. It was the dirty scumbag Alpha that ran this miserable excuse for a pack. 

“I told you to not underestimate her,” a much deeper and more powerful voice said. That voice sounded familiar to me, but I couldn’t quite put my tongue on who it was as my thoughts were still dazes as I awoke. 

“You said the collar would weaken her though.” The man with the deeper voice laughed at Alpha's statement. As if one que I reached a hand up to feel the collar around my neck that I had worn since I arrived here. It wasn’t so tight as it was heavy, the weight of it reminded me of my situation every waking moment. It not only physically drained me of my energy but also seemed to be a plausible cause for me coughing up blood every now and again. I never knew that silver would do this to a wolf, but I was experiencing side effects first hand.

“The collar is only preventing the homicide of you and your pack. For her to obey, you’ll need something a little more special…” A loud ringing filled my ears from metal banging against metal. I shot up from my spot and prepared to run again even as my vision was still hazy. Outside of the cell stood the Alpha and the man that had brought me here in the first place. I hadn’t seen him since that day six months ago, but would never forget his face.

“You,” I growled, showing my canines despite how the action weakened my body. 

“Nice to see you too, Helena,” he smiled though there was nothing but hostility in the way he looked at me.

“Why don’t you come in here and let me show you how much I’ve missed you,” I smirked, aware that I must have looked like a madwoman at the moment with my disheveled hair and dirty clothes. I had lost all hope for my personal appearance the moment I found out that cleaning myself involved a bucket of water and a sponge.

“I would, but I’m a busy man,” he laughed. “Lots of things to do.” He turned around and started to unlock a rather large chest sitting behind him. I watched carefully, waiting for my chance to attack. “Unlock and open the door,” the man commanded much to my surprise. 

“But-”

“Now,” he growled slowly, reminding me again of the natural authority he held in his voice. The Alpha did as the man had said while keeping his eyes glued to my every movement as if he knew that I was waiting for the right opportunity to run. The man stood up and turned around with something in his arms. He walked near the entrance of the cell, allowing me to see that he was holding onto a child. The boy that was the size of a five year old was covered in dirt and what looked to be ash. Anyone could tell from his matted brown hair, his torn clothes, and from how thin he was that he hadn’t properly been taken care of in quite some time. I felt an instinct to protect and try to help the small child in the man’s arms, even though I had never seen this child before. My opportunity to escape was getting slimmer by the second but just as I was about to run for it, without the boy, the man tossed the kid into the cage as though he was no more than a bag of potatoes. I jumped into action, throwing my body forward to catch the small child just in time and busting my elbows on the concrete floor in the process. Once he was in my arms I pulled him protectively against my body while feeling for his faint pulse with two fingers. I looked back at the man who carelessly threw the small boy into my cage and scowled at my hatred for him.

“There is your leverage,” he smirked as though he had me all figured out, which he really did. I glared at him, knowing that he had me cornered. I hated that he had studied me and found a way to turn my empathy into a weakness. My chances for escaping were getting slimmer and slimmer. 

The little boy who I had come to know as Gabriel was not five but in fact seven years old and clearly not cared for. I had never seen a werewolf child so tiny and weak and quickly took pity on him. His hair was brown and long enough that it was covering his eyes and his skin was so pale that I wondered if he had ever seen the sun. When he first opened his eyes, I noticed that they were a dark blue that reminded me of my own. But what surprised me most about him was his relentless smile. From the week I had spent with him in that cell, I had come to see his beautiful smile so often that it started to make me forget where we were. For a child who had nothing he had such a beautiful smile. 

“Where are your parents?” I asked shortly after he woke a day after the man had thrown him into my cell. 

“They’re gone.” 

“Like, dead?” I cringed at how I had asked him so bluntly.

“No. They left,” he frowned.

“Oh.” That was all I could say. After all, what else could I say to that? I didn’t have any words that could comfort him so I simply moved to sit next to him, noting how brave he was to not run away even as he shook from fear.

“Are you going to eat me?” He asked, looking up at me with his big blue eyes. 

“No,” I smiled softly at him as I tried to keep from laughing. The kid had one heck of an imagination.

“Oh. That’s good,” he murmured though he didn’t sound too convinced. I nodded in agreement though my mind was already on my next move of escape after my most recent failed attempt. 

“Are you an alpha too?” He asked, likely feeling my bloodline in the air around me. 

“Sort of.” 

“Then why are you in here? Why don’t you just bust out of here and run?” He asked as he put his small hands on his knees. He was so tiny and fragile that it suddenly made me nervous to be so close to him. It felt like if I even so much as looked at him for too long, he would tumble over and shatter into a million pieces.

“It’s not that simple,” I laughed though it was not filled with humor but bitter defeat.

“Oh,” he said, his cheeks turning red. I could smell his werewolf scent, but wondered nonetheless if he was just a human child. I was curious as to how much kindness this boy was shown in his lifetime, but from the looks of his tattered clothes and plentiful bruises I knew it wasn’t much. Before I could stop myself, my next thought tumbled out of my mouth.

“I couldn’t just bust out and run without you, could I?” I asked. He looked up at me with his doe like blue eyes which were filled with a mixture of curiosity and hope. I realized, as I looked back at him, that I would kill or die for the little creature sitting next to me.