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Taken
Chapter 4
What is expected of a man whose name has been tarnished like a bark of wood in a roaring inferno.
After many centuries his name is that of a wild barbarian whose only goal is to seek a pool of warm blood in his cold hands.
Nothing has ever stood between him, and the enemy he was after.
Nothing could ever change his sight of the hierarchy that was set in stone since the dark ages.
He was the top predator.
Every other were comes directly after him.
The so-called Alpha’s, and their Beta’s.
Then came the rest of the werewolves that held no title, but lived under their ‘rulers’.
“Alpha, today I have received more news upon your request of a ‘Regina.’ I do not know if you wish to hear them or not, but she should reside in this pack we are visiting.”
“Restate your statement Rettacus, he did not request a ‘Regina,’ the council that supposedly believes are above him did. Due to the glare he is giving you, he clearly does not wish to hear your news, they are pointless to say the least. The only reason we are visiting the Eastern pack is the same as for the rest of them, to reassign a new Alpha…”
“Welcome everyone. I hope you all had an amazing morning. Today, as I have already told you yesterday, we will be visited by our King. I expect all of you to be on your greatest behavior, and to give him nothing but respect once he steps foot onto our grounds.”
Everybody was silent as they listened to their Alpha, who also had a slight storm in his eyes – he was uneasy, seeing as this visit and what the King thinks of his pack will all fall onto him.
“I can tell that you are all uneasy, and nervous, but don’t be. You will all carry on with your day as usual, even when the King arrives. I want you all to show him that we are a working pack, a strong pack,” he continued, eyeing all of his people vehemently.
Clarice stood directly beside her father, who had both of his hands in tight fists.
Greta and her family were standing directly behind them, also worried and nervous – but, nobody was allowed to show how they felt, the Alpha wanted them to act normal.
“Alpha, how do we address him? Do we call him Alpha, King, your Majesty, Alpha King, or does he have a name to add after Alpha?” A pack member asked curiously, their Alpha sighed – even he had no answer to that.
“We call him King respectfully, unless told otherwise.” That was all their Alpha said before he flicked his hand and they all dispersed and went their own ways.
“Wow, that was intense. Are you scared? Because I definitely am. My mother is still a little bit under the weather, and I think all this turmoil is making her worse.”
Greta broke the silence around Clarice and Claire couldn’t help but flinch at the suddenness of Greta’s voice before she chuckled at how her best friend rambled senselessly.
“Yes, it is all very nerve-racking but what can we do? We must do as our Alpha told us, we must act normal and carry on with our life as we would any other day. Even though we are unimaginably worried.”
Clarice had mumbled that last part to herself but her best friend heard her and gave her a small yet subtle nod.
“Alright girls, I think it’s best if you both just go back to the house and stay there for the time being,” Nathaniel stated as Greta’s parents, and Clarice’s mother made way toward them.
“Why? Can’t we just go walk around the grounds? Or go by the stream?” Greta asked, her brows were furrowed as were Clarice’s and their parents all just sighed.
“Sweetheart, all the kids are going to stay inside. Only the adults are allowed on the grounds,” Greta’s father, George, stated – not an ounce of softness in his eyes as he spoke.
“But the Alpha said we can go about our day as normal. Also, Greta and I are seventeen, that makes us almost adults. We are not babies, so we should be allowed to at least walk around.” This time it was Clarice that spoke and everyone’s attention fell onto her.
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She was tiny. Even her best friend knew that, seeing as she reached just above her shoulders. Her auburn hair was pulled back, showcasing her emerald colored eyes, and her flushed cheeks.
Her voice could be described as therapeutic and soft, almost like a breathless whisper, even when she tried to sound strong – which was why it was shocking for them to hear her try to stand her ground.
“Sweetie, baby. Listen to your father, you can not be walking around the grounds today. Yes, any other day you can, but today you can’t,” Kim tried to reason with her daughter, but Clarice did not want to hear it as she pushed her mother’s arm away from her gently.
“I am not a baby! I do not need to be sheltered, and protected all my life. I understand that you guys are scared, I understand that our King is a very bad man, but that does not mean that he will kill Greta and I just for walking around our grounds.”
Before anyone could react to Clarice’s sudden outburst, she took Greta’s hand suddenly and began to pull her out of the pack house and run to the stream.
“Where are we going?” Greta asked breathlessly as she tried to keep up with Clarice’s impulsive pacing.
“To the stream.” Clarice’s voice was a tad bit deeper, due to the presence of her offended wolf.
Wolves, young or not, do not like to be babied or treated like they can not handle anything. They are wild and feral, and they need to be let loose or else their anger will be very dangerous.
“You need to calm down, Claire. I understand you are annoyed with your parents, but you need to calm down or else you will shift impulsively and that won’t be good for either of us. You know this.”
Clarice did not hear her best friend’s words, not even as they reached the long, never-ending stream that was located near the pack border and blocked by several thick trees.
“Clarice!” Greta yelled out, pulling her best friend’s hand and trying to stop her.
Greta was scared, scared of her best friend shifting uncontrollably and eating her head off – but the sight of Clarice’s eyes set her off completely.
They weren’t dark. They were insanely light, almost like a pale green if that color were to exist.
Werewolves’ eyes only had the ability to shift into a darker color during the presence of their wolf, also if they are feeling any kind of feeling like anger, lust, uneasiness or fear.
The only time a werewolves’ eyes shifted into a lighter color is when they find or hold hands with their soulmate.
But what was odd for Greta was – Clarice did not have a soulmate in this pack, no werewolf could ever have a soulmate in their own pack – the werewolf must come from another pack, or be of a different breed.
So why was Clarice being so restless, and why was her wolf taking over her actions?
“Must shift. I must shift. Everything aches Greta. I do not know what’s going on. My wolf is pushing as hard as she can through every barrier I have learned to put up, and it burns. It burns.”
Clarice cried out, her voice still slightly deeper and her hands trembling as her legs began to give out.
“Calm down, Claire. Breathe. You need to calm down. All impulsive shifts hurt, so you must come to a reasoning with your wolf and try to calm her. Reassure her that her anger is unreasonable,” Greta told her, eyeing her pale green eyes in confusion.
She had no way to call for help, the pack house was at least a mile away, and the stream made a loud sound as the current pulled water down every miniature waterfall.
“Clarice, please,” Greta begged worriedly, the sight of her best friend tugging her auburn hair out of her bun with glossy eyes scared her.
“Run,” Clarice told her, her eyes almost matching the color of her irises which resulted in Greta’s eyes widening into saucers and her lips making an ‘o’ shape.
“Run!” Clarice repeated before screaming out in pain as her ankle twisted and a bone popped out of its place – initiating a forced shift.
Greta had no time to say anything as she turned around and swiftly began running away from her best friend who was about to shift, with absolutely no control over her wolf or any idea of how to shift back.
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