Save Me

THIRTYONE

Werewolves don't get their wolfs until their sixteenth birthday usually, but we don't shift until we're eighteen. That was different for me too.

"I woke up one morning and Aurora was there. I could hear her and I was so confused. My brother's wolf had appeared too." I took a deep breath. "We were twins," I whispered. I heard Rhydian gasp. We carried on walking and even though I could tell Rhydian had questions, he never spoke and I was glad. "Our parents didn't say much about it, they took us to see our Elders who had an idea of what was happening," I explained.

"They say there's a legend about our packs name. One of my ancestors had a rare wolf. They called it the Dark Wolf. They didn't possess any abilities or anything like the legend of the White Wolf. They were stronger and faster than a normal wolf. Their temper and aggressiveness was something to be afraid of." I explained. "But because it was a legend, no one knew much."

"We were told not to tell anyone we had our wolfs. Things were good for the next year, we were getting stronger each day." I smiled, remembering the memory. "One day at school, Aurora told me she sensed danger so I ran to find my brother. I told him and someone overheard me tell him." I took a shaky breath and stopped walking. "Are you ok? Do you want to stop?" Rhydian questioned, turning to me.

I shook my head and looked around the area. "Let's go sit on that bench?" I offered. He nodded, we went and strolled over to the bench. I was feeling anxious, I hate talking about this. 

"My dad came to pick us up straight away. When we got home, my mum was angry with me for speaking about my wolf in such a public place. I mean really angry. I was sent up to my room, my brother came up a few hours later telling me it wasn't my fault." I sighed, staring ahead at the trees.

"A couple of days after, we were waiting outside of school for my mum. A van pulled up and a guy got out. He was a werewolf, I could smell him. But he was a rogue and I knew he was dangerous. I grabbed hold of my brother and we tried to run. The guy grabbed us and shoved us in the van." I said as my bottom lip trembled. I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself down. Rhydian took hold of my hand, brushing his fingers over my knuckles.

"I didn't know who they were or why they took us. My brother said it could be someone with a grudge against my dad... It wasn't until we were taken out of the van that we know why." I shivered, wrapping my arms around myself protectively. "We were pushed out of the van, a scruffy looking old guy caught me before I fell to the floor. He said... So, this is the young pup that has her wolf." I closed my eyes, trying my hardest not to relive the memory.

"I didn't speak to him, he kept asking me if it was true. The more I ignored him, the angrier he got. We were locked up in a basement for what felt like forever. Our wolfs told us to remain quiet, not to speak. A few days past before we saw anyone. We were weak, tired and hungry." Rhydian edged closer to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulder and holding me close to him.

"Someone came down, said we had to follow them and be quiet. So we did. We were led onto the front of this building. There was a guy in front that let us out and a guy walking next to us. I heard voices and smelt other wolves and thought we were saved but no one came." I took a deep breath and gasped for air, trying to force the feelings back down. 

"I'm here. You've got this." Aurora reassured me.

"We were questioned again about our wolfs, when we didn't answer we were beaten." Rhydian's body vibrated as a low growl escaped him. "They would put us against each other, they'd question me and if I didn't answer, they'd hurt him and vice versa." I started shaking and my eyes filled up with tears.

"We couldn't take it anymore, we were both hurt and we could feel each other's pain. He told them he had his wolf, they could do whatever they wanted with him but they had to let me go." I choked. "They dragged him out of the room. I was so scared, I didn't know what they were going to do." I whimpered, Rhydian moved his hand to my head and started stroking my hair.

"They took me back to the basement. I don't know how long I was there before they brought my brother back. He looked awful, Rhydian." I cried. "We can have a break, don't force yourself to relive this." He offered, wrapping both arms securely around me. I buried my head into Rhydian's chest, inhaling his scent to calm me down.

Once the tears had stopped, I shook my head, "No, I need to tell you. There's a lot more but I need to get this out first." I said, gasping. "It was the beginning of everything that happened to me. I haven't spoken about this for 9 years." I muttered. I felt him go rigid next to me, I glanced up at him and the realization dawned on me... Our pasts happened 9 years ago.

"They tortured him for answers, answers he couldn't give. When he realised I was still here, he changed. Something snapped in him." I took a deep breath, pulled away from Rhydian and faced him. "His eyes turned red. I had never seen it happen before. He was so angry. I tried reaching out to him but it was like he was possessed. He went crazy, the rogues who were guarding us came in, my brother killed them both. I was frozen. I'd never seen him like that, I couldn't believe a 14-year-old could do such a thing." I let out a breath and hung my head low.

"All he kept chanting was, keep Amaris safe." I wheezed, struggling to breathe. I started dragging in long breaths, willing the pain to go away. "Ok, that's enough for now," Rhydian grumbled, standing up. He dragged me up with him and enveloped his arms around my back.