The Lycan Claimed Her Fate

1

With shaking fingers I stroked the white, silky material that clung perfectly to my body. The image that presented itself to me in the mirror was still unrealistic for me. A beautiful girl looked back at me in the mirror with tears in her eyes and dark circles under her eyes. Even the make-up hadn't been able to do much.

The girl had put her long, black hair up. Only a small strand hung down and lay gently on her shoulder before falling in waves over her chest. The white dress was made of fine lace and had long sleeves. She held the bouquet of flowers in her hand, trembling. Her dead mother's small heart-shaped necklace adorned her neck. I swallowed hard the lump in my throat. It took me a while to realise that it was me in the mirror. I felt strange and strange.

Today was supposed to be the best day of my life, but I felt strangely restless, as if I was going to do the bottle. It was probably just a few isolated panic attacks that you sometimes feel before a wedding, because it was such a huge step. It was particularly difficult for me.

My mother would surely calm me down now and tell me that I didn't have to have any doubts, but she wasn't here. I hadn't seen my father for a long time. It was as if the earth had swallowed him up. I couldn't say whether my mother would be proud of me. But she would be happy that I was wearing her dress. It fit me perfectly.

As if it had been made for me. Once again, tears came into my brown eyes. I tried desperately to blink them away. I should laugh, not cry. Today I was going to get married. To the man of my life. The man who had pulled me out of the black hole when my mother had died and when my father had simply left me alone.

A soft knock tore me from my thoughts. In the mirror I saw the large door of the room open and my aunt enter the room. Aunt May looked at me for a moment, then she went to me and took me in her arms. A weight fell from me and I pressed myself against her.

"Everything will be fine, July. She would be proud of you. As would I. You are beautiful and have a wonderful fiancé who will soon be your husband. Don't forget that," she whispered and stroked my back. Her words calmed me down. Almost, anyway. The feeling remained, though. It had taken hold and wouldn't go away.

"Thank you, Aunt May. For everything," I breathed gratefully and pulled away so that I could smile at her. Her hands cupped my cheeks and she gave me a warm, honest smile. Tears glittered in her blue eyes. Tears of joy. "You don't have to thank me, Jules. I'm just glad you've found happiness." Every word warmed my heart, but her last sentence made my stomach rumble as if it didn't want to accept that fact.

As if it wasn't true that I had found happiness. Just as I was about to say something, the music started. I expected my heart to beat twice as fast with excitement, but it actually only beat faster because a strange restlessness was being ignited within me. Sweat formed on the back of my neck and on the palms of my hands. Aunt May seemed to interpret this as simple excitement.

"Come on, Josh is probably already waiting," she said and offered me her arm. I gratefully accepted it and held on to her. Every step I took became heavier and heavier. As if weights were trying to keep me on the ground.

The door to the garden opened and I looked into the rows of guests who turned to face me. My heart immediately started pounding even faster and my chest tightened. I walked slowly forward with my aunt and felt heat rising. Everything inside me screamed to turn around. It was a strange feeling.

A lump formed in my throat and made it difficult for me to breathe. Aunt May led me on. I looked into the faces of the hopeful guests. Josh's friends, Josh's family. They had all told me what a great couple we were. Now these sentences suddenly seemed wrong to me and I didn't even know why. It was probably just the excitement. But I couldn't look my friends in the face either. I looked away and fixed my gaze on Josh.

His blue eyes were watching me, alert. As if he could sense that something was wrong. I kept my gaze fixed on his eyes. I thought about all the moments we had had. A quiet smile played around my lips and for a moment all doubts and oppressive feelings vanished. We had reached the second row. I would soon be standing opposite him and all my doubts would vanish into thin air. But then I felt a strange tingling in the back of my neck while my heart started beating twice as fast as before.

My feet remained in one place. A tingling sensation arose in my stomach that I had never felt before. I looked to my right in surprise. Then I literally froze. Dark brown, almost black eyes looked straight into mine. My breathing caught while the world seemed to stand still. Confused, I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.

The guy from my dream, it flashed through my mind. Only at the edge of my consciousness did I notice Aunt May saying something to me. But no matter how much I wanted to look away, I couldn't. As if an invisible bond was holding me to him.

I had never seen this man before. Only in my dream. He was certainly not one of Josh's friends, or anyone else's either. Confused, I frowned as he suddenly stood up and walked towards me. I should have just ignored him, kept walking and left him standing there, but my feet didn't move. Only Aunt May was able to pull me out of my trance when she pulled me behind her and stood in front of me.

Curious like a small child, I peered over her shoulder and examined the young man who was walking towards us with such self-assurance that I almost lost my footing. The power and authority he exuded was overwhelming.His posture indicated that he didn't let anyone tell him what to do and that he wasn't afraid. I clung to Aunt May's shoulder for support. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Josh come over to us and take my hand in his.

This used to have a calming effect on me, but now it felt wrong. As if my hand was burning under his touch. And not in a good way. I slowly removed his hand from mine and looked at the stranger more closely.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Josh asked, deliberately calm. The man didn't look away from me as he spoke. No, he just seemed to look at me more intensely. Heat rose in my cheeks, but I couldn't look away. "I'm Kane Bennett. And I want her. She belongs only to me. Not to you." His voice left no room for contradiction, and yet Josh took a step closer to him. Now he looked away and it felt as if the bond between us had been broken. I could think clearly again and I recognized reality again. As if the fog had just disappeared.

"You can't have her and she's definitely not yours. She wants to marry me," Josh said, still deliberately calm, but he was already more than tense. Kane stepped closer to him. He was a good head taller than Josh and had a lot more muscle.

"She doesn't quite know it yet, but she doesn't want you. Not anymore. She belongs to me and I belong to her. And I don't care what you think. I'm going to take her with me. We're meant for each other." His voice was threateningly calm and stern.

A shiver ran down my spine. What was he talking about? Me and him? Meant for each other? I would know that. Josh snorted. "Jules loves me, Mr. Bennett. I'm asking you to leave now before I have to take other measures." Kane raised an eyebrow and then looked back at me.

My heart skipped a beat before I looked away so he couldn't cast his spell over me again.

"And what other measures would those be, Mr. Monatrio?" Kane asked, not looking the least bit scared. No, he was just brimming with confidence and self-assurance. And then I gasped in shock when I realized he knew Josh's last name. My skin went cold.

"How do you know my last name, Mr. Bennett?" Josh asked the question that was also running through my head. Kane studied Josh for a moment before he fixed his gaze on me again. This time his gaze was even more intense and I couldn't look away. He held me captive.

Without even thinking about taking his eyes off me, he said firmly: "I know everything about the people who try to take my property, Mr. Patrick. And you've been trying to steal it from me since May 4 years ago. Starting with a friendship, ending with a marriage proposal in April of this year." I was left breathless. My eyes widened.

He knew everything. Everything! I felt sick. How long had he been following us? But actually, I wasn't afraid at that moment. Something inside me told me that I didn't have to be. Maybe it was the look in his brown eyes that told me I was safe. Or the fact that he looked at me with such love, the way every woman wants to be looked at. In a way that could only make every woman weak.

Now Josh's face turned pale and he swallowed. Shortly afterwards he cleared his throat and looked at Kane darkly. "I ask you to leave one last time, Mr. Bennett." Now his voice had a threatening undertone.