The Call Of The Mimic

Chapter One!

Seven years later, age twenty five.

Summers and winters past quickly throughout the year, leaving its beauty in the center. I sat in my room staring out the window on my free times, watching as the seasons changed, along with the growing pack. Paperwork and following my father around our town was the only thing I did outside of my home life. My mother being the primary housekeeper and cook for the family and for my beta, Beckett Dahl. The only person that stayed in my personal life.

Today was different than the rest, I sat in my room with my black jacket that was lined with a grey fur. I stared out my window watching my people walk around with baskets in hand, children running around, and off in the distance my battle field. My bones longed to be on the training grounds, leading my soldiers like I did most days. Instead, I sat waiting for Beckett to show for our journey to begin.

One duffel bag full of my clothing for the next month on the floor next to the door. Rumbling of my parents dresser drawers in excitement for our travels to the Rudha pack home. I listened as they spoke of the last time we had been there, the last time I had seen the Volkov family. I could hear the fear in my mother’s voice that I may act out, attack others like I did long ago.

I could hear the pain that I had caused them all that time ago, the shame that I as their daughter. I closed my eyes focusing on the hushed voice of my father that responded in the same cynical fear. I had grown accustomed to their dislike of who I was, but it still hung in the back of my mind of the hate I would receive when I went back. The hate I was already hearing just below me.

“Tyra isn’t ready to go back,” I could hear my mother’s voice shaking as she threw clothing into her bag.

“She hasn’t had an incident since we’ve moved here, you don’t know, Sloane,” my father stayed quiet.

“Once she finds out what we are going there for-“ my mother quickly stopped talking, I’m sure that my father was shushing her.

“This is not the place to discuss this, she can hear you,” he seethed at her in disapproval.

I sighed with the shake of my head, twiddling my fingers in my lap. I was determined to prove my parents wrong, show them that I had changed into a different person than seven years ago. I ignored the voice in my head that was trying to guess what we could possibly be visiting for. Only the sound of my front door opening and closing could stop my mind from racing.

I jumped off my bed, slinging my bag over my back, and ran down my light wooded staircase. Beckett let out a loud sigh as he dropped his bag to the ground, wiping his curly brown hair from his face. I threw my bag next to his and jumped into his arms, catching him off guard as he stumbled back in surprise.

“Woah!” He wrapped his arms around my waist, steadying us both. “You excited for the trip?”

“Ugh,” I groaned into his hair as he set me onto the ground.

“Of course she is,” I turned to my mother and father walking behind us. “She’s known this pack for many years,” my father gave me a soft smile.

“In other words, she’s knows them, but dislikes them,” Beckett chuckled lightly as I shook my head in agreement.

“Let’s just give them a chance please, Tyra?” My mother rolled her eyes not even the least bit amused, while my father winked at me.

“Journee wasn’t mean to you,” my father went to grab my bag.

“I got it Elder,” Beckett quickly grabbed onto my bag before my father could get to it.

“And as far as I know, Tobias has changed quite a bit,” my father side glanced me with a raise of his brow. “Let’s please be civil with the Volkov family,” he walked out the door to the horse carriage.

“Tobias?” Beckett elbowed me slightly, earning himself a glare. “Was this a boyfriend?”

“No,” I scoffed walking off without Beckett.

“Was it something I said?” Beckett ran after me closing the door behind him.

I ran down our rickety old steps to climb into the back of the old carriage. The wheels so worn down that they looked as if they were becoming sharp edges. The dark colored door barely hung on the hinges as it squeaked open and slightly bending down with the weight. The seating was so small, smashing us shoulder to shoulder and knee to knee. The trip from Norway to Russia would be much longer than if we would have gone by boat. Another question I had for my father when the silence had subsided.

The coach whipped his reins as the horses neighed with a jolt of a start. Shifting in my seat uncomfortably as my knees shoved against Beckett’s and my Father’s in the side of my thigh. My mother faced towards the window, avoiding any contact with anyone around. She held her chin up with a loud sigh and closed her eyes to the surroundings.

It had been hour of us sitting in silence, barely moving to keep from bumping the others. My mother glaring at everyone every once in a while when she would get touched. Rocks pounded against the underside of the carriage, rocking our bodies back and forth. I looked out my window, admiring the trees that I had longed to venture into. The ferns growing from the ground with large leaves sprouting up together.

“Are you excited to visit your old home?” My father broke the silence after four hours.

“It’s not my home,” I barely glanced over my shoulder.

“Well, it was at one point before you came back to Norway,” my father shrugged with a soft chuckle. “I think you’ll like the changes they’ve made there, a new ruling, new way of teaching, they even train different.”

“That happens when a new person comes in everywhere,” I murmured. “It’s still the same Volkov family.”

“The Volkov boys are much different than before,” my father’s fingers tapped on his leg in nerves.

“Oh, I’m sure they are,” I grumbled in resistance to accept such things. “It’s only been seven years, I’m sure they haven’t changed much.”

“Why haven’t I ever heard of this Volkov family?” Beckett chimed in, leaning forward in excitement.

“Tyra doesn’t like that family,” my mother whispered with poison. “A boy used to pick on her and now she has a permanent hate towards the whole family.”

“Awe, Tobias,” Beckett clicked the two pieces together as I shot a glare at him. “He could have changed, or he could still be the same,” Beckett put his hands up in defense.

“Tobias didn’t pick on me, he mocked me,” my jaw was clenched closed at the thought of how quiet he was, yet had more affect than the others around. “He would push people to keep poking at me until I would snap-“

“Tyra,” my father set a gentle hand on my leg noticing the veins popping out of my neck from just pure thought of the man.

“Why are we going there?” I rubbed at my forehead to stop the stress from building up.

“We have business we need to go over with them, it’s important that you are there,” he rubbed at the back of his neck.

“What business?” I poked trying to squeeze out more information. “Beckett?” I glanced over at my beta that shrugged his shoulders in confusion as well.

“Tyra, can you please not make this trip hell?” My mother leaned her head against the carriage. “You will see when we get there, can we all be quiet now?”

“Of course, anything for you, mother,” I scoffed at her in annoyance with her outstanding attitude.

“I don’t want there to be an argument,” her head came forward looking at me. “Why are you even wearing that? It’s in the middle of summer, they can’t even see your face,” she reached over to grab my face wrap.

“Sloane,” my father pushed my mother’s hand away as her fingers barely grazed my wrap.

I looked pulled my head away from her, flinging my hand at her’s. My fingers slapped against her wrist the same time my father pushed her away. Beckett sunk back in his seat, cheeks flaming red in embarrassment. I grabbed my wrap and flung it around my face, tucking in all the edges of my white hair. Staring at my mother, watching the regret slowly fade into her glossy blue eyes.

“Don’t touch me,” my voice was almost as if I growled at her with my warning.

“I’m, I’m sorry,” she looked down at her hands. “I just don’t understand why you would want to hide your beautiful face,” I could see the corners of her lips turn down.

“It doesn’t matter,” I turned away from her, never liking to see her so solemn. “Don’t do it again,” I whispered turning my knees away from everyone.

The next week of travels was minimal talk of the time we would be arriving to our destination. Beckett made conversation with my father of what the formalities would be. Getting only the basic run down of how the dinner would go, a dinner that was automatically assumed when visiting another packs land. My mother would give small comments on how beautiful it was in the kingdom, the kingdom that let their people live in poverty to keep their money. It only made me sick to think of how much worse it could have gotten with the new ruling. An alliance that I had only kept because it was my father’s closed friend, one that I was willing to let drown if need be.

The silence of the carriage only really started when we could see the edging of the pack lands. Wolves lines the forest trees, snarling their teeth at the wheels. I could see different shades of fur dashing through the trees in a blur. Howling broke through the stillness of the forest as birds flew from the branches. Black eyes stared into the cart with questioning like oks of who was crossing into their lands.

I inched closer to the carriage windows, looking down at the wolves below us. I watched as they peered up at me with their muzzles pulled back in snarls. I squinted my eyes at them, tilting my head to the side curious if these were people that I knew. A black shade shot in front of a carriage catching my eye as I moved forward almost climbing on top of Beckett to get a better look.

Just up ahead I could see the massive black castle moving into view just above the trees. A long dirt path lined the way to the round-about driveway with a giant wolf head with a spear through the top of his head. Five people stood out front of the castle as if they were waiting for us to arrive, the alpha and his counsel. There was no Tobias, leaving my body relax to the introductions to come.