Chapter 1
Xenia
My room was hot and muggy, and I just couldn’t fall asleep. Kneeling, I opened the window and slipped onto the roof, dragging my pillow and duvet with me. My mom would freak out when she saw the state of my duvet, the roof wasn’t exactly clean, but I loved sleeping under the stars and out in the open.
I folded the duvet double and lay down with a sigh, adjusting the pillow so I could look over the pack lands. There was no breeze tonight, but the night air was a little cooler than the temperature in my room. I could hear my parents snoring in tandem and giggled softly.
School had been an absolute drag, but in two weeks I was done. No idea what I’d do then…
My mate wasn’t in this pack, which hadn’t surprised me in the least. I had a feeling he would have rejected me anyway.
Don’t know why you harp on that, Cleo huffed.
Because I want a male who can sweep me off my feet, and even Alpha David is only a smidge taller than me. It’s embarrassing.
But he’s still taller than you. I don’t have the same issues; I like that I’m taller than all the she-wolves.
So, you don’t mind if our mate is shorter?
It’s all the same when you’re lying down, Cleo quipped.
Is that all you can think of?
No, maybe, but I just know our mate will be tall and big. She cackled.
I rolled my eyes. We haven’t even kissed anyone! And then there are the other little issues…We stand a better than average chance of being rejected and to add to that we won’t even know because our sense of smell is non-existent!
It’s not non-existent! Cleo said, defensively.
As good as! I had a human grandfather, and although both my parents were wolves, my sense of smell was that of a human, which meant I couldn’t scent my mate.
We'll feel the tingles, and we can hear better than anyone… ! Cleo smirked.
I sighed, it was true, my hearing was so acute that I often wore earplugs, I managed to get some flesh-colored ones that weren't so noticeable.
When I was younger, the thunder drove me crazy, I would scream in pain. I caused a lot of tension in the pack, unintentionally overhearing conversations which were not meant for my ears. I spoke out of turn, confronting people with their lies.
My father was the first to realize that I wasn’t making up stories, he took me into the forest and tested the range of my hearing. I was able to hear him just shy of half a mile away.
He explained that wolves and humans didn’t always have the courage to be truthful and often said different things when they thought we were out of earshot. Wolves have excellent hearing but mine was exceptional.
I learnt to disregard many things I overheard, even if they rankled. Tuning out conversations became second nature. Brick walls and doors were a blessing, muting the conversations so I had to concentrate to hear them. It seemed every gift came with a downside and mine was my sense of smell.
I tapped my phone and groaned... 2.43 am.
It was a moonless night, the darkness absolute. I pricked my ears, hearing the distant sounds of paws padding over forest foliage. Squinting in the direction of the forest I saw eyes. Not just one pair, many pairs. I froze in fright, what was this? And then I saw them, dark shapes moving across the training grounds, I couldn’t discern how many, they were too close together. Rogues? I couldn’t smell them, but they looked too organized to be rogues.
Everything happened in slow motion, they spread out, moving purposefully. I saw a wolf shift and walk towards our house, disappearing from my line of sight and I knew this was an attack!
Mom! Dad! I linked them.
What’s wrong, Xen? My father's sleepy voice linked back.
We’re being attacked!
What?
I’m on the roof and I saw wolves, or rogues, there’s lots of them!
Listen to me, sweetheart, stay up there, you hear me? Stay up there! We’ll take care of this!
I heard my dad run to my room and slam my window shut, the door got the same treatment. I was shaking in fear and moved closer to the chimney, hugging my knees. And then the fighting began.
I heard my mother’s gurgle and my dad’s furious growl. Furniture breaking in the room below me, punctuated by yelps and growls.
Screams and shouts reverberated through the pack. Horror and anguish rocketed through me, too scared to move.
My dad linked me. Love you so much angel girl, stay alive and find out who did this...
I knew in my soul my mother was dead, but shock kept the sobs from exploding out of my chest.
That was the last time I heard my dad.
For hours I sat in the same position not daring to move, hating myself for being so weak. I would not let them get away with this, whoever they were. My heart was screaming for justice.
The sun rose and still I sat unmoving, shocked to the core. Everything was quiet, deathly quiet. The attacking wolves had left, but I could not face what my mind conjured up. The tears had dried up hours ago but still I sat like a statue.
Xen, we have to check, maybe there’s someone alive, Cleo encouraged me.
Reluctantly I shimmied to the edge and pulled my window open. The door to my room stood open, detecting a slight scent, whoever killed my parents had come into my room.
I walked down the passage in a daze, my parent’s room looked like a tornado had been through it, furniture upended and broken. The bedspread was dripping blood onto the floor, my eyes riveted on my mother’s feet. I couldn’t look at her face, I just couldn’t. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw my dad’s arm stretched out to her and that’s when all reasoning fled, and I ran from the house screaming in agony and despair.
This could not be happening! Where the fuck was the Goddess, how could she allow something like this? I walked around the pack and shouted names at random until I found the guards dead in front of the pack house, their throats torn out. I didn’t have the guts to go into the houses, I didn’t want to see more bodies...
Stormy Creek pack had become a ghost pack.
I wandered aimlessly for hours completely disoriented, sometimes crying, and sometimes screaming but the vice around my heart just kept tightening.
What was I supposed to do now?
