Chapter 3 Erick

On the night of the Claiming Ceremony; when Werewolves who had no mates were to meet their mates, everyone was meant to assemble at the Great hall in the mansion for the grand opening by Alpha Morris. The moon goddess gives everyone a fated mate whom they are meant to mark and mate with; it was considered a taboo for one to mate with another wolf while his or her mate was still alive except if the mate was rejected.

"You absolutely have no need to be at the Claiming ceremony; I am certain that the moon Goddess would never bestow you with the gift of a mate. No one would even want a timid mate who has not shifted even at nineteen."

 Loretta took a scornful look at me, her hands waving me off as she walked past me. Anne followed behind. They were fully dressed for the ceremony.

Looking at them dressed in lovely gowns reminded me so much of the beautiful cloths my father got me. Those five years with him before his disappearance were the most astonishing years of my life but all my valuable belongings were confiscated by Loretta; I wonder what she used them for. I only got two gowns which were almost rags.

"Here; wash these and make sure you scrub them properly. I know those bones are weak but make sure these cloths are sparkling clean."

I removed some of the cloths Loretta threw on me from my face to see clearly; I carried them on my hands. Clearly they were not dirty cloths; I remembered washing them few days earlier and they scented nicely.

"Make sure not to leave this house tonight; stay indoors lest you infest the entire town with your mangy look."

I dipped the cloths inside a bucket of water and headed for the line outside the house to spread them. They were neat and obviously didn't need to be washed; I knew Loretta didn't want me to be at the Ceremony.

I had never considered the thought of having a mate; her words always got to me and by the feelings of disinterest, I had never thought that I would be very fortunate to be given a mate by the moon goddess and even though I was to have one; I was certain that he would never want a feeble mate who had never shifted even at the age of nineteen. The only thing that characterized me as a werewolf were my golden eyes which always reflected rays of sunlight.

"No one really wants you; your mother must be really relieved not to have to deal with your excesses. Your existence reeks of worthlessness."

Loretta despised me with passion and would have gotten totally rid of me; luckily she still considered me to be a slave, I guess she was also afraid of what people were going to say; how she may be regarded as a cruel step-mother.

Suddenly, I heard a sharp sound coming from the garden; it felt like a twig was snapped. There was a whoosh, I could see the flowers in the garden moving from a touch.

"Who is there?" My voice was trembling; the darkness of the night dimed my vision but I was certain that something or someone was there.

For a moment there was silence and so I made my way to enter the house with the bucket in my hand.

"Hello there."

The voice was resonant, sending trembles into my heart. I turned abruptly searching widely for the owner of the voice; apprehension seized my entire body.

"Seems you are all alone. I guess they all left you to work while they went off for the Ceremony."

This time my heart started to hammer against my ribs. I still couldn't see who was talking.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

"Oh just a friendly passerby. I want us to play a game, a game of catch. It would really be fun."

My heart skipped several beats; fearful curiosity invaded my mind, the fact that I still didn't know who was speaking scared the shit out of me.

"Hello there! Are you scared?"

His face had several scars, his low snarl exposed sharp teeth ready to have a taste of me. The sight of the brawly man with blue eyes staring ferociously at me made me wheeze; the horror building inside of me made me dread for the outcome of the encounter with the man who stood over a foot taller than me.

Our faces were an inch away from each other; his breath reeked of deadly stench. Bringing out his tongue he moistened my right cheek.

"Hello little one, care for a snack?" With a sly he smiled exposing partly his ferocious teeth. My heart pounded as he gripped my neck and raised me gently above the ground.

Quickly alarmed, I managed to free myself from his grip and dropping the bucket I made my way towards the Mansion; there was light on my path but he double crossed me almost immediately extending his hands and in a bent posture as he appeared swiftly in front of me.

"Not so fast little one."

"What do you want with me?" My voice was still trembling; the little race had taken a toll of my strength. I looked sideways for an escape path but the only way clear was behind me.

"Oh don't be scared. I just want us to play a game. You run! I chase!" He approached fiercely, his pace increasing with each step he took.

"Now run! Run!"

The scary man shifted almost immediately ripping apart the trousers he had on revealing a red huge wolf, one of the biggest I had seen since my six years in the Pack. I turned and hastened towards an unknown destination behind me. That was one of the time I wished I had shifted but my strength failed me; I could only feel my eyes glowing, providing me with clear vision to navigate through the dark paths I ran into.

His growl enclosed behind me; he was catching up. I ran faster but my efforts were in vain; he soon caught up with me, dragging me down by my hair.

I fell to the ground in a thud whimpering in pain. "Who would come to my rescue?" I thought.

My assailant heaved me into a flat posture with my face towards the sky, then he put the weight of his leg upon me lacerating my chest with his stabbing claws. I could hear him speak in my mind.

"Daddy is no longer here to save you. Is he?"

He sneered as he positioned his face upon mine with so much satisfaction watching my face express feelings of pain. I tried to cry out for help but I was drained, my vital fluid gushing from my face and chest, I had gotten to the brink of my strength.

"Now I want a bite!" He growled, his canines gnashing as he leaned towards my neck to devour me. With my eyes shut and my energy drained I waited for him to sink his canines into my flesh; in a flash, my life was fading away.

For a while I waited but it seemed like my assailant had paused; I had been relieved of the weight of his heavy leg and the pain of his claws clutching my body. With a tender struggle, I widened my eyelids and behold, my assailant had been pounced upon by another wolf.

A huge black wolf had dragged him off my body and wrestled him to the ground with a force. My savior growled furiously; his red eyes burst into flames as he slit my assailant with a fierce velocity forcing him to whimper pathetically. He fled away with a limp.

My Savior howled loudly for a while before he started approaching me. That was the last vision that embraced my eyesight before I passed out.