The Fated Curse

Chapter 1

"Val! You are home!" my younger brother, Anthony, yelled as he ran up to me and engulfed me in a giant bear hug, or wolf hug?

"Hey little bro, been giving mom and dad any trouble?"

"Me? Never," he said facetiously.

I rolled my eyes at him. He was younger than me by 2 years. I am currently 24 years old and he is 22. He had just met his fated mate a few weeks ago, so I came home to visit and to meet my new sister-in-law. When he called to tell me about her, he couldn't stop chatting my ear off. He then apologized and realized how cruel he was to rub his mate in my face. I tried to tell him it didn't bother me, but he didn't believe me. I made a point to come home and reassure him.

I was cursed, you see, by a bloodline curse spanning four generations. The firstborn was destined to die by 25 unless they were marked by their fated mate without the presence of the mate bond. I would never feel my mate. That is what my brother is sorry about. I made my peace with it a long time ago though. He had nothing to be sorry for.

"Come on sis, mom and dad will be so happy to see you."

I followed him to the dining hall. The guard at the door greeted us, "Good day your highness, and good to see you, miss Kavanaugh."

It was a secret that I was actually a princess. The only ones who knew my real identity were my parents and my brother. Too many generations had firstborns that had 'mysteriously died' at the age of 25 that we had to divert peoples attentions. They created a story that the child my mother had carried was stillborn. Then a trusted warrior's family had just been killed, leaving behind a baby girl. The queen, feeling the loss of her child, decided to adopt the girl to 'fill the void in her heart.' That way I could still be their 'daughter' but someone people wouldn't think too hard about when I died young. I had an amulet made by a witch to block my royal energy, so I was perceived as a regular wolf.

I am known as Miss Valencia Kavanaugh, ward of the King and Queen. When my brother was born 2 years later, he was viewed as the firstborn child that I could still call my brother. My parents couldn't keep my fate from me for long. When I was a small child I told my mother how I couldn't wait to be grown up and meet my mate, fall in love, and have lots of babies. She burst into tears and wouldn't let go of me. My father had to come pry her arms from me, and then they sat me down and explained my future. I didn't quite understand what it meant then, but they said I couldn't tell anyone about the curse. If anyone knew the royal family had a bloodline curse, we could be viewed as weak and susceptible to attack.

Anthony and I entered into the dining hall. Upon seeing me, mother came running towards me and squeezed me so tight that I struggled to breathe.

"Eleanor, let Valencia breathe." My father, King Harold, said.

"Oh, I am just so excited to see her. Let a mother smother their baby girl!"

I couldn't help but laugh at my mother. I knew my fate caused her a great deal of pain, but she made sure I spent every day being loved, so that even if my life was short, it was full.

"I am happy to see you too, mother." This time I pulled her into a hug. She was going to lose me soon, and I wanted to reciprocate the love she had given me. She relaxed into me. I could sense her sadness, but she then pulled away and swallowed it down. We didn't talk about what was only 8 months away. I know my mother was praying for a miracle, but I knew they didn't exist.

"Come on, dinner is about to be served," She said. We settled down at the table before Anthony returned with his new mate, Emily. She looked at me then the color drained from her face. She quickly recovered and greeted me with a smile.

"It is nice to finally meet you, Val. Anthony has told me so much about you."

"My brother has told me a lot about you as well. He couldn't stop talking about you, so I figured I should come home and meet you for myself." She smiled but didn't meet my eyes. I looked at my brother quizzically.

We told her about the curse, and about you. Anthony mind linked me.

I take it that didn't go over well?

She accepted it, but there were a lot of tears. She doesn't know how to talk with you, knowing you won't be here for much longer.

I don't blame her. I will have to talk with her late and tell her it is okay.

"So Val, where has the SARF taken you recently?" my father asked.

SARF, Supernatural Aid and Relief Foundation. Knowing I didn't have much of a future ahead of me, I wanted to make as much a difference in the world as I could with the little time I had left. When I turned 18, I joined the foundation, traveling across the globe to provide relief and medical treatment to supernaturals in need. I knew I would never feel my mate, but it hurt watching everyone my age finding their other half. I would be lying if I said I didn't envy them. I needed to get away and my family understood. I also didn't want them to see me every day counting down the end. It was rewarding work and made me feel like my life had some kind of meaning other than dying.

"There was an outbreak of Red Fever in several bear shifter territories. Spent the past several months in the north keeping it contained and treating the ill."

"Has it been contained now?"

"Yes, there are only a handful still undergoing treatment that the local hospitals can handle. It has stopped spreading."

"That's good to hear. I know wolves can't catch Red Fever, but the bears are vital trading partners."

Dinner continued on with retelling of my recent adventures and mild small talk. At the end of the night, everyone left to retire to their rooms and I made sure to catch Emily before she left.

"Can we talk?"

"Sure," she replied, uncertain.

I walked her out to the garden away from prying ears. I sat down on a bench and patted next to me, gesturing for her to sit with me. She paused for a moment then decided to take a seat.

"My brother told me that you know."

"Yes," she said, lowering her head.

"You need not get to know me, so that you don't have to lose me. My brother will need you to lean on when my time comes. You will be able to comfort him more easily if you are not mourning yourself."

She looked at me like a deer in headlights. She didn't know what to say.

"Had we met earlier, I might have felt differently, wanting us to be friends and sisters. But there are only a few months left, and I will likely be somewhere else in the world for most of them. I know the curse is hard to accept. You can give yourself this one reprieve. Because you will have to bear it for your future child. You should not have to mourn twice at the expense of the curse."

"Thank you. I feel terrible saying it. But thank you for savin me from this."

"Of course. I will tell my brother it was my decision, so you won't get any blow back for not trying to get to know me."

She squeezed my hand and nodded before she left.

I sat in the garden for a while longer. I soaked up the moonlight. I had promised myself that I would never spoil my remaining time by being bitter about a fate forced on me by my great-great grandfather. But damn, sometimes it is hard.