Blood Reckoning

Chapter 2.

"Annoyed?" she asked. unable to talk, I shook my head. She let out a gasp and started crying along with the other kids. The grownups watched the struggle with trepidation, wondering how it would end. "It's your fault," Ellie muttered to me as I turned to face the shocked woman. "If she hadn't been trying to save you, she never would have died."

I would be plagued by those remarks for the remainder of my life. I was to blame. She had endeavoured to preserve me. At that moment, I detested myself. I burst down in tears, realising that I was the reason of my own mother's demise.

My head bowed. "I'm sorry father" He snarled at me as I muttered, "I'm sorry."

I nodded as he growled, "Go and get dinner ready, you useless, pathetic b***h." I winced as he raised his hand once more, but he laughed and lowered it again. With a sly smile on my face, I rushed into the kitchen and started preparing dinner while Ellie entered with a beaming expression of satisfaction. I averted my gaze. I had discovered the hard way that I shouldn't respond to her.

"Do you really want to spend one more night in the hole?" She chuckled.

I trembled. It was just an abandoned well on the land, that was the hole. My father would make me climb a ladder until I got to the bottom, at which point he would draw it up and leave me inside for the night. I had a claustrophobia and was terrified of small places. I would pray to be allowed outside the next morning and weep myself to sleep. It was a tiny consolation that the well was hidden, protecting me from the rain and my fear of drowning. Every time I had to leave for school or there would be questions, dad would always let me out.

After chuckling once again, Ellie left the kitchen. I concentrated on my work, taking extra care to avoid burning anything. How I detest her, God. Even if we were related by blood, we could never truly be sisters again. We had turned into sworn enemies, and she took great pleasure in upsetting me.

When Mother saw what this family had devolved into, she would have been devastated. She served as the glue that kept the rest of us together.

Cindy Reo is my name, and I'm seventeen years old. Not only am I my father's and sister's servant, but the Alpha and Luna are unaware of the daily cruelty I endure because I reside in the Blood Moon Pack. Being the Gamma in our pack, my father has never been authentic in front of others. Loneliness is slowly killing me on the inside, Ellie joins in. I have no one to turn to, and the other kids despise me. Not able to turn to another family. I believe my father when he says that if I ever get near the Alpha, he will murder me. He's been this close before. This is my torment on earth and my reality. Since I was a young child, my father has blamed me for the death of the love of his life, and he is becoming angrier by the day. It is harder and harder to get through each day, and occasionally the dejection is so overwhelming that I start to question whether life is truly worth living. Before breaking, how much can one individual take? When the time comes for me to be free at last, I hope to exact retribution on everyone who has wronged me. This is my journey, my story.

AJ's perspective

I arouse sleepily, turning off my alarm before it goes off to avoid upsetting Ellie or my father Homa. Stretching, I yawn as I feel the kinks in my back from the worn-out mattress's springs that pressed into me all night and left their traces. I fold the one blanket I own and place it carefully on top of the floor-mounted mattress before heading into the dark, basement-level lavatory where I sleep.

I'm in and out of the shower quickly, not having time to daydream when the water is icy cold. I detest taking cold showers so much, but as part of my ongoing punishments, my father has turned off the hot water down here. After brushing my teeth, I turn off the water in the shower, get out, and wrap a towel over me. My size makes it almost impossible to fit around my body. With a shiver, I return to my bedroom, if I have one, and hastily put on my regular clothing. Trousers, a pullover, and a large sweater. I was aware that it wouldn't make a difference because the students would still make fun of me for not being comfortable in skin-tight clothes and for preferring to cover up whenever possible.

After getting dressed, I proceed upstairs and towards the kitchen. As I quickly finish my breakfast, my father enters the room wearing a severe frown. He wakes up early to train as the Gamma, therefore it's my job to make sure breakfast is ready every morning. He lets out a grunt and settles down at the table, relaxing a little as he inhales the scent of bacon in the air.

I greeted him formally and gently, "Good morning, father."

He looked down at the table, hardly acknowledging me. In a hurry, I brought him a plate full of bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, and bread. I also slid a cup of coffee in front of him after fetching it. He started to eat as soon as I filled another plate with bread and fresh fruit, eating rapidly and discreetly. I had made some bacon and other tasty meals, but Ellie would not touch it since she thought it was too fattening for her body. The leftover meal was sitting there, and I could feel my stomach growling and my mouth watering.

Ellie entered the room grinning, her makeup applied flawlessly as always, and she was dressed in chic, current attire. Her tight stomach was flaunted by her short skirt and cut t-shirt. It was difficult not to feel enormous in contrast to her, and based on the smile on her face, she was aware of the exact impact she was having on me: Just as father was devouring the last of his dinner, she arched an eyebrow and sat down at the table.

She glared at me and waved her hand impatiently, "Hurry up, you know. I have to get to school." With a sneer, she said, "My friends are waiting for me, unlike you who has nobody at school." Shaking her head, she uttered the word "pathetic."