Alpha's Wish

Further into the Night

"Zephra," my foster mother yelled to me. I wondered what I had done this time. Even if one of the other foster children had done something, it was going to be me that got the blame. I didn't mind taking the blame for the younger ones as they didn't need to be punished for the small things that happened, but some of the older ones liked to see me get in trouble and would do things.

I walked out to the kitchen where my foster mother, Kara, was and saw her with her hands on her hips. A scowl on her face told me she was mad about something.

"Zephra, why is this dishwasher loaded like this?" It hadn't been my day to do the dishes but it was my job to teach all the others how they liked the dishwasher loaded. She had a certain way she liked it and it was definitely not done the way it was supposed to be.

"I am not sure. I will fix it though." I stated as I walked towards the dishwasher. The pans were on the top and the glasses were on the bottom. As I started to take things out of the dishwasher and restack it she started smacking me with a hand towel.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you are in charge of training the others to keep up on their chores? Have I not told you that many times?" she continued in her tirade as I was trying to dodge the towel and restack the dishwasher at the same time.

"I am sorry. I will make sure to teach them. I have tried to tell them but some of them don't want to listen." I explained between swipes.

"That is not my concern. You know how I like things done here.You are the oldest of the children and I expect you to be more responsible. You have been here for three months and should know your duties here." she stopped with the hand towel and walked into the living room where my foster father was sitting. He was watching TV as he always was. They had no other jobs but to take care of the 6 foster children that were in this house. The state paid for them to take care of us and this was what they relied on.

I could hear them talking about how worthless all of us were and if it wasn't for the money they were receiving they wouldn't have any children in this house. They really hated children. If one of the younger ones got sick it was up to me to take care of them and clean up as Kara would get mad at them for being sick.

I have been in and out of foster homes since my adoptive family died in a car accident. They were wonderful. I remember her braiding my hair and buying me clothes. We all went on picnics together and took trips together. I had been 10 when they died. They told me how I was found outside a hospital in a wheelchair and taken to the nursery. My parents just had my sister Trish. They went to the nursery to see her and I was on a bassinet next to her with a tag saying unknown on it. They talked to the hospital staff and were told my story. My father went to his lawyers and they adopted me.

It was horrible when they died. We were all in the car going to dinner when there was a bright light that shined in front of us and then there was a crash. I was told that a semi had veered into oncoming traffic and hit our car. I was the only one to survive.

I was put into a foster home as there was no other family to take me. In that foster home, the house started on fire and three of us foster children got out. The next one, the man in the house used to beat all of us and finally he got caught and we were put into this home.

I come out of my thoughts when Kara comes back into the kitchen. The dishwasher has been restacked and started. I knew this wasn't the end of it, so I started to walk to my room. I share it with two other girls. We all seem to get along. But we have had our fights over different things just like any other family. But this isn't really a family. This is a place to house us until we either age out or someone wants to adopt us.With me being 17, I am on the age out side as no one really wants to adopt a teenager that has been in the system as long a I have. I don't even know my real birth date. I just always used the date I was adopted.

"Zephra, you need to go to the store. I have a list for you.Be sure to only buy what is on the list. I will know if you bought anything else." I take the list she is handing to me and I know the rules. The store is only two blocks away and they have an account set up, so we just buy the items and they pay for it later. There is always a receipt tacked to the bill so they know exactly what we are getting.

I got my jacket as it had started to turn cold and it was starting to get dark.

I walked down the block and it felt like someone was watching me. I kept turning around but I didn't see anyone behind me. I started walking faster to get to the store so I would be in a public place in case someone was trying to catch me. As I turned down the next block, I ran into a large man. He is quite a bit taller than I am. I am 5'11 and he has to be well over 6 ft. He is muscled and has a very broad chest. It was like running into a brick wall. I fell backwards and sat on the sidewalk.

He looks down at me and goes to grab my arm. I jerked away and started to get up. A car pulled up next to us and the driver yelled at the other man.

"Hurry up before someone sees us." As I look back at the large man, he is going to grab me.

"Let me help you." He says, smiling at me.

"No I am fine." I stated as I started to move past him.

He grabs me around the waist and starts to turn towards the car. I kicked him in the knee and took my fist up into his nose. He growled and dropped me. I started running. I ran down the street and kept going into the woods. I always take my foster brothers and sisters here to play hide and seek, so I felt safe in the woods. I was sure I could lose him here.

I could hear both of them coming behind me. I thought about climbing into a tree but they were right behind me. Before I knew it, I was running further into the forest where it was really dark. All I knew was I needed to get away.

I didn't turn around but it sounded like there were many of them behind me. But it was strange. It sounded like paws. Like dogs were chasing me.