Flashback to Ava's First Birthday
1066 Words
Ava was playing in the kitchen, drumming the pots and pans while her mother was baking a cake. Her mother was beautiful. Long curly red hair, just like Ava. Beautiful green eyes just like Ava. Her mother looked to her and smiled, “My baby girl, you have grown so much in just one year of life. You are everything I could have ever hoped for.”
Ava turned and looked at her. Almost as if she knew what she was saying. Ava’s father walked in. Ava’s father wasn’t around much, but they would see him about once a month. He was tall, muscular, with a dazzling smile and blonde hair. He picked Ava up and kissed her on the cheek. “Oh my Ava, how can you already be one?”
Ava’s mother, Sarah, turned to Ava’s dad, Archie. “You look nice today.”
“It’s my baby girl’s birthday. Of course, I would dress for the occasion.”
“Come here, I need to talk to you about something.” Sarah spoke softly.
Archie set Ava down to play with her pots and pans. He followed Sarah into the further part of the kitchen. “Archie, Ava’s powers have been manifesting already. She can move things and levitate. This shouldn’t be happening. Usually, a witch’s power doesn’t come until her 18th birthday.”
“Sarah, she is also a werewolf. That has to have something to do with her accelerated powers. We can’t let anyone find out about this or she will be taken. I know for a fact that werewolf-witch hybrids are highly sought after. I have been searching while I have been a way to see how we can protect her.”
“What can we do? Have you found anything?”
“Sarah, our best option is to spell her with a Salem Witch present. We can stop her powers from growing and her werewolf from coming out. The catch is that once she finds her mate and completes the mating ritual, the spell will disappear. Her powers will come out at full strength, as will her wolf.”
“Archie, I hope that she never minds her mate then. “
“Sarah, there is one more thing. If she spends time with us, the spell will fade because of our mate bond. She comes from both of our souls and it can make the spell weak. We have to hide her away with good parents and a werewolf playmate. I have been talking to our human friends Emma and Dan. They have been struggling to have a child of their own. I told them that you and I have no other family. I asked them to take Ava if anything were to happen to us.”
Emma and Dan only knew Archie because Dan was their dry cleaner. After, a few visits from Archie, because he just liked things the way he did. They became quick friends. It was safe for Sarah, Archie, Dan, and Emma to spend time together. They were isolated and they never had to talk shop.
“I can’t let my baby go. I know this will be the best for her to stay safe. I am too selfish. She can’t go.”
“Sarah, we can’t protect her by ourselves. She needs to be able to live a semi-normal life.”
“How is she going to have a werewolf playmate?”
“Our friends Jenny and Harold have Marla. She can be with Ava. They will do anything I ask because I am their alpha. They wanted to leave the pack because of Harold’s mother. She has been harassing Jenny. They can still be pack members, but also live outside the pack as spies.”
“Archie, Are you sure? Your pack doesn’t even know that Ava exists.”
“That is how I will keep it.”
“Jenny and Harold will think Ava is my cousin’s daughter. They will be assigned to protect her. They will raise Marla to protect her as well.”
They went on to celebrate Ava’s birthday. Their last day as a family together. In the morning, Sarah and Archie awoke. They took Ava to Emma and Dan’s so they could watch her while Archie and Sarah ran errands.
It was getting late. Sarah and Archie said that Ava was only staying for a couple of hours. The phone rang. “Hello, Is this Dan and Emma?”
“This is Dan. How can I help you?
“I need you to come down to the river. I need you to identify a vehicle.”
“I will be there shortly.”
Dan rushed to the river. He saw a green car being pulled out of the river. He knew instantly it was Sarah and Archie's. He ran to the police officer. “I am Dan. I am here to identify the vehicle?”
“Yes sir, do you know who this vehicle belongs to?”
“Yes, my dear friends Sarah and Archie. Where are they?”
“Unfortunately, we don’t know. The current was so fast. Even if they did get out, they would have surely been swept away.”
“When will we know? How will we know?”
“We won’t know until the bodies are discovered.”
“What should we do with Ava? We can keep her, but…”
Dan remembered signing some documents about Ava. He had called Emma to get them from the draw. Emma read the first sentence “If Sarah and I were to go missing or die, Ava would be placed in the care of Emma Johnson and Dan Johnson.”
Dan looked at the officer. Please let me know when you find anything else. Dan returned home and proceeded to look over the document. They were gifted 4 million dollars to take care of Ava and give her what she needed. That was plenty for them to take care of her and give her more than she needed. They were also instructed not to tell Ava she was adopted until she was 21. Dan and Emma respected their wishes.
They were heart-broken that their friends disappeared, but they had always wanted a child. Ava would grow up in the most loving, caring home with two parents. That’s all Sarah and Archie could have asked for.
- Writer
