Commander

Chapter 1

"Commander Nella”.

Janella spun around as Captain Richard walked through the door to her private living room. She gave him a questioning look. And who on earth let you in?

“The wolf attacked again at dawn,”the captain said grimly. “Nancy’s little daughter was injured.”

Nella kept a straight face. “Is this why you deem it fit to barge into the manor unannounced, Captain?” She tilted her head. “Surely, you know better than that.”

Captain Richard bowed his head and clasped his hands in front of her. “My apologies. It will not happen again.”

Nella folded her arms. “So how is Phoebe holding up?”

Richard shifted on his feet. “The physician has stitched all her cuts, but she’s down with a fever.”

“She’ll be fine,”Nella said, almost dismissively. “She should not have been out by the woods at dawn. Everyone in Fresno knows of the dangers. Nancy should have kept a closer eye on her daughter. I will speak to her about that.” She cleared her throat. “I need you and your men to move around the tribe and make sure there were no other casualties.”

“The people are worried that the wolf will never be killed,”Richard said. “The beast has done a lot of damage in the last ten years. Your people want to know when it will be killed.”

“I’m the Commander, not a soothsayer,”Nella replied firmly. “If the people need a prophecy, they can go to Elder Yareth. Go and do as I say. I’ll pay Nancy a visit.”

With that dismissal, Richard bowed again. “Yes, Commander.”

When he left, the silence pressed in.

Nella let out a loud, exasperated breath. Her father had died when she was fourteen, and command of Fresno had fallen to her before she was ready. Her brother Kael had been too sickly to inherit, and her father had trained her as best he could before his death.

It had been enough to rule. But not enough to stop this.

Nella exhaled slowly, bracing one hand against the polished table.

Ten years.

Ten years of fear, blood, and whispered prayers to a forest that answered only when it pleased.

And this time, it had hurt a child.

She took the stairs two at a time, her boots thudding heavily against the wood. The manor was too quiet, every corner echoing with ghosts she preferred not to acknowledge. She stopped before the mirror in her chamber, gripping the edge of the dresser as she met her own reflection.

Her hands were steady. That frightened her more than if they’d shaken.

The wolf had struck again, and somewhere deep beneath her skin, something stirred - slow, satisfied, awake.

You were careless, it seemed to murmur.

Nella turned away sharply and reached for her sword. She strapped it on out of habit more than need, the familiar weight grounding her. The knife followed, secured to her thigh, the dark hilt blending beautifully with the brown of her leather breeches.

She did not look back.

She closed the door behind her and ran down the short flight of wooden stairs. She paused for a while, examining the vast spread of land before her. Most of the houses were far away from the Brighton manor, which was the largest building in the whole of Fresno. She walked to the side of the manor where she’d tied Ranger. Ranger had been her horse since she was ten. They’d practically grown up together.

Nella untied Ranger and saddled him. She put her left foot in the stirrup and swung her right foot over. She grabbed the reins and pulled. Ranger broke out in a run. Nella’s long blonde hair was blowing wildly behind her, her eyes set and focused in the direction she was headed.

The Fresno lands stretched wide and green beneath the morning light. Flowers dotted the fields in bright defiance of the fear that lingered beneath the surface of the tribe. Prosperity, they called it.

If only they knew the price.

The forest watched in silence, as it always seemed to Nella. She had grown up with Nancy Thorne, who’d been her lady's maid. She never got attached to any of the workers, and she’d kept them at arm’s length, but over the years, she’d developed a soft spot for Nancy. The fact that Nancy’s daughter had been hurt sent shame and guilt coursing through her. This had to stop.

Nancy’s house came into view far too quickly. Nella dismounted and tied Ranger to the oak tree, her hand resting briefly against the hilt of her sword as she approached the door. She knocked once.

Nancy answered almost immediately. Her eyes were red and swollen, her usual warmth dimmed by exhaustion and fear. She bowed her head. “Commander. Please.”

The throaty sound of her voice broke Nella’s heart, but her face betrayed nothing of her emotions. Nella stepped inside, the warmth of the room closing in around her. “I heard about Phoebe,” she said. “I’m sorry.”

Nancy swallowed. “Francis says she’ll recover.”

Good. At least the wolf had not taken more than it needed.

“I came to see how you were faring,” Nella continued, her voice level. “You are not to report to the manor until Phoebe is well.”

“I’ll be there, Commander,”Nancy said. “I just have to-“.

Nella’s hard voice cut her short. “It’s an order, Nancy. Do not come at all until Phoebe is up on her feet.”

Nancy nodded in submission. As Nella turned to leave, something sharp twisted in her chest.

She walked out of Nancy’s house and mounted Ranger, riding east with the image of Nancy’s tear-streaked face burning behind her eyes. The forest around her seemed to pulse in response to her thoughts.

Her people trusted her. Respected her. Feared her enemies because of her.

If they knew the truth - if they knew the monster that stalked their nights had the same blood, bore the same name -

Nella tightened her grip on the reins.

She was the Commander of Fresno.

And she was the wolf that haunted them.