The Lycan Queen

Chapter Six

We stayed up for half an hour after our talk. The tea was finally kicking in, and I went to lie down. Laramie told me she was going to stay up, as she had things on her mind, and couldn’t get back to sleep.

“Go ahead,” Summer told me. “I’ll stay up with her.” I gave both of them hugs and went back to bed. Once I got to sleep, the dream didn’t come back. But I still didn’t have the answers I wanted. Who am I, and why do I keep on having the same dreams?

The next morning after training class, I went down to the barn. My horse, Tribute, was still inside, munching on his hay. He nickered when I walked up to the stall, poking his head out of the stall.

“Wanna go on a ride?” I asked him, scratching behind his ear. I brushed him down, saddled him up, got on him outside, and headed to the north. We rode along the ridge, overlooking the pack and the valley we lived in. I stopped Tribute and looked down at the pack, watching as everyone went about their day. Mothers chasing after toddlers, fathers working to provide for their families, and the shop owners opening up their stores for the day. I wonder if any of them knew what Laramie and I actually are. Then, I looked towards the north, where the witches have their village. I wonder if Sienna has any answers I seek.

I turned Tribute on the trail, towards the coven, when Tribute stopped, and snorted. He tossed his head up and pranced.

“Easy, boy,” I said calmly to him, patting his neck. “There is nothing out here.” He pulled against my reins, wanting to go. Then, I heard a twig snap, and I froze.

“Who’s out there?” I shouted, waiting for an answer. There was no sound, then the bushes moved, as if something was running from me.

“Okay, I think it is time to get the f**k out of here,” I thought to myself. I nudged Tribute with my heels, and without hesitation, he took off running down the trail, heading back to the barn. He galloped as fast as he could and didn’t stop until we got back to the barn. Mom was outside with her horse, Champ, when I rode up. She looked up at me in fear, afraid there was a rogue attack.

“Laken, what’s wrong?” She asked, coming up to me once I got Tribute stopped. He snorted and tossed his head, wanting to get inside.

“I was up on the ridge, and I heard a twig snap, like someone was watching me,” I told her. “When I asked who was out there, the bushes moved, like something big was running from me. It kind of freaked me out, because I had never experienced something like that before.” Mom’s look made me question she knew something. “Mom, what is it?” I asked her, getting off Tribute, handing him to Oliver, who came rushing out of the barn.

Mom looked around, making sure we were alone. She took my hand and led me to a nearby bench, forcing me to sit with her.

“There is something you need to know,” she started, keeping her voice low. “Remember several years ago when we went riding, and I made you and your sisters head down the trail?”

“Yes,” I answered her, unsure where she was going with this.

“That day, I encountered a Lycan,” she said, trying to keep calm. “But he wasn’t interested in hurting any of us, Laken. He was interested in you, calling you his mate. I figured he would have left the pack, knowing I would keep you safe. But I guess that is not good enough for him. He probably has been back to the pack, checking on you. With your eighteenth birthday drawing near, I think he is here to claim you as soon as midnight hits.”

“Are you saying that I could be a Lycan?” I asked her, hoping that is the answer I have been searching for. Mom sighed and looked at me.

“I don’t know, sweetheart,” she answered me, unsure of what I was for sure. “The only way to find out is to find Rypere.”

“Who is Rypere?” I asked her.

“He is your Lycan mate,” she answered me. “He would know exactly who you are.” I gave my mom a confused look, thinking we would have to risk my life for a creature that we thought had been destroyed. I stood up and walked over to Tribute’s paddock, watching him as Oliver turned him out. He tossed his head, trotted across the paddock, and then went into a bucking frenzy, happy to be out of the confines of the barn.

“I thought they were all gone?” I said, getting more confused about what is going on. Mom walked over and placed her arm around my shoulders.

“Apparently, they are not,” she answered me. “I will do some digging, and maybe we can find the answers you girls have been desperately searching for.”

“That is what Summer told me, too,” I told mom. I finally told her about the dreams I had been having, the memories. She sat there and listened as I described them, and what Aunt Summer and I concluded about them.

“So, Summer thinks you might be royalty?” Mom asked me when I was done.

“That is what she thinks.” Mom stood there, staring at my horse as she was thinking about something.

“Let me talk to your grandmother,” she said. “She might have some answers. Talk to Sienna. She might have some information for you, too.” She kissed my temple and walked back into the barn so she could take Champ out for a ride. I was going to talk to Sienna, see if she had some answers for me. Mom came walking out with Champ and mounted him. She rode over to me.

“Since your eighteenth birthday is coming, prepare yourself for the Mating Ball,” she told me. “I am going to find Rypere and get some answers from him.” She nudged Champ, and rode up towards the ridge, where I last knew of his whereabouts.

I shrugged my shoulders and walked up to the pack house. I am going to get my Jeep and drive over to the coven. Perhaps Sienna might have some answers for me. The drive only took ten minutes, and when I arrived, all the witches were working in their community garden, growing their herbs for their potions, and vegetables for the winter.

Sienna was watching from the side and smiled when I pulled up. She ambled up to my Jeep, hugging me when I got out.

“Laken, this is a surprise!” she exclaimed, with a smile across her face. “What are you doing here?” I looked around and saw all the other witches watching us, smiling in my direction.

“Is there somewhere we can talk privately?” I asked her, looking into her beautiful, aging brown eyes. She nodded, threaded her arm through mine, and we slowly walked to her hut so we could talk. Once we got inside, she went over to start some tea and got everything ready. I went over to help her, so she wouldn’t wear herself out as much.

When the tea was ready, and I set the tray on the table for her, she got herself settled in her favorite chair. I handed her a cup and sat down across from her.

She sighed, looking into her cup. “I never thought the day would come that I would have to rely on someone for the tea,” she said sadly. “The years are slowly catching up with me. This year, I will be one hundred and eighty years old.” She sat back in her chair and looked over the table at me.

“So, child, tell me the reason you are here,” she said point-blank. “I know you are not here to keep an old lady company.” I sighed, fidgeting with my hands. She c****d her head, as she knew it was something serious.

“Tell me what you know about Lycans,” I finally told her.

“Why are you so interested in them?” She asked curiously, leaning forward in her chair. She knew it was something serious as I tried to find the words to explain my visit.

“Because I think Laramie and I are one.”