My Fated One

LITTLE LEGS

THOMAS (POV)

As the hours ticked by and the sun began to paint the sky in vibrant hues of purple, pink, and navy blue, my temper and ego had transformed into nail-bitting worry. I had lost her. Lucas' baby sister, his pride and joy, and the single reason he would use to kill us all, was now missing.

How could this have happened? She had been right by my side, an arms reach away. How could she have escaped so quickly? Had something happened to her? Was she snatched in the square right under my nose? Could she be?

No, don’t think like that, I told myself as my feet carried me further from town and deeper into the dark forests that surrounded my once simple life.

Yet, as my hands pushed back branches and brambles that were set on holding me back from my search, something was gnawing at me. A fear, an anxiety about the after? After I found her, what then? Was I really going to get engaged to a child four years younger than I, and if so was I ok with that? Was I really alright with spending my entire life attached to someone I knew I would never love?

I could feel my stomach twisting up in knots as the pounding in my head shouted, screamed, one single word.

“No!”

No, I was not! But, even so, even if I hated it. Hated the very thought of having to live my life attached to her, what else was I supposed to do? Lucas demanded I protect her, treat her as my own. How was I supposed to do that with the minuscule amount of power a stupid teenage boy held?

“Why? Why is this happening?” I sighed, as I ran my hands through my blonde hair as I rested my head in the crook of my arm. I wanted to cry. I wanted to go home. Home to my mother, who was certainly going to wring my neck the minute she found out what I had done. But still, I wanted her, I wanted her embrace, her comfort, and for her to tell me it was going to be ok.

Yet if I was being honest, truly honest with myself, what I really wanted, more than anything, was for Lucas to come back. For him to come home. For him to sit on my window sill and laugh and tease me, to fight with me, learn with me, grow with me, but most importantly. I wanted him to come back and remove this ever-growing fear that our lives would never again be the same.

“Why? Why did you do this to me?” I whimpered, as my trembling legs crumpled under me.

“How could you do this?”

“How could you be so cruel to abandon, not only your sister, but me too? Your brother, your friend, your family. Did I not matter? Was I not important to you!”

I barked, I shouted, wanting to hear a response, wanting answers, but knowing none would come. For I already knew why he had done this. Why he had left me behind? It was because I was a pawn, a piece he could sacrifice the minute he believed it would no longer help him win the game.

I could feel the chill of the coming night as this devastating realization seep into my bones, as the slightly damp earth I sat upon began to soak the bottom of my trousers. It was cold, colder than I was prepared for. For here there were no welcoming fires, no piping-hot bowls of stew with chucks of beef that made your mouth water, and certainly no thick down comforters to wrap your body in to help combat the freeze. No, all that was here was pitch black darkness and abandonment.

“Excuse me, are you alright?” A tiny voice said above me, as I rubbed the tears out of my eyes and sniffed back the ones that were trying to form.

“Leave me alone. I’m fin…” But the minute I looked up and gazed into those big familiar golden eyes, I felt my heart stop. And before he could even say a word, I grabbed his arm and pulled him to me.

“I knew you would not leave!” I gasped, as his small body tensed in my embrace but then settled in. I could feel his hand pat my back in a gentle, calming way, removing my pent-up nerves.

“I am not sure what's wrong, but if this helps, I guess its alright” He mused softly with a hint of empathy and sarcasm that tickled my ears, while I nuzzled into his tiny frame.

“You have no idea. No clue what you have put me through!” I groaned, as I let it all out. The pain, the frustration, and the need to get answers. However, as I did, I began to be enveloped in a sweet intoxicating scent of vanilla, honey and something else that made me never want to let go. What was that? Why did he smell like a? Quickly, I pushed Lucas’ back realizing my grave mistake.

“A…Abelia.” I gasped, causing her to take a step back as she give me a confused look. Had I seriously just embraced Lucas' sister! Quickly, I shuffled to get away from her and from this humiliating moment.

“W..What are you doing here?” I said, as I watched as her eyebrows slant and her big doe eyes look at me as if she were going to cry.

“I, I don’t know.” She said frightened, as her hands clung tightly to the sides of her white lacy dress that I could now see was sopping wet. My heart jumped into my throat as I struggled to get up. Why was she wet?

“Why are you wet? What happened” I shouted, as I reached for her, causing her to back away as a little ring of water ran off her dress. She was not just wet, she was drenched from head to toe as if she had fallen into the river.

"Did you jump into the river?" I barked, causing her to flinch as I grabbed her arms and shook her. "Did you hate the idea of being my mate so much that you actually tried to.."

“NO!!!!” She shouted, in such an angry insulted way that I was slightly taken aback by the power that was radiating off of her, until she let out a tiny sneeze.

It was clear she did not have an answer or was unwilling to give me one. Meaning, this was getting us nowhere. Carefully I walked over to her, as I removed my dark red cloak and prepared to drape it around her shoulders. This time she did not resist me and seemed to welcome the warmth.

“Thank you.” She muttered softly.

“It's not worth a thank you. I just don't want your brother to think I am mistreating you.” I said, as I turned from her and began to walk towards the exit, but soon had to stop when I realized she was not following me. Instead, she looked lost and frightened, as her eyes wandered and looked at the world as if she had never seen it before in her life. Had she really been held prisoner in that house? Was the reason my father was so mad because she was supposed to always stay hidden? But why? She was just a kid. What harm could she really do? “Hey are you coming or...”

Yet, my words never made it out. All I could do was watch as she removed her black hooded cloak, the same cloak Lucas insisted she never take off, while she struggled to replace it with mine. I could feel my throat go dry and my heart race. I now knew why. Why Lucas had been so certain Abelia would cause unrest in the land? Why my Father wanted her gone and why the Nanny warned me that the minute I really saw her, I would be caught in her web.

The wet silver ringlets that glowed in the moonlight that fell about her face gave her an otherworldly look. Her rosy cheeks and lips deepened in color due to the cold were curtained by those ethereal locks. While her golden eyes appeared to be such a rich color that I was certain the luxurious metal could never compare. How? How could something like this exist? A creature so angelic and lovely that it appeared as if it had fallen from the heavens. And I, I had the audacity to say she was mine? Was I crazy, was I a madman.

Forget about Lucas killing me, it would be sin worse than death if anything befell this tiny pure child.

“Sorry.” She said, as she ran towards me on her tip toes. “I figured I should take it off, or I would catch a cold.”

“Yes. Yes, that’s a good idea.” I said, as I tried to relax, but the grin on her face as she looked up at me was making it hard to do so.

“I can’t believe how young you are.” She giggled.

“What? What did you say? Young?” I could hardly control my outrage. What did she mean by that? Yes, I was barely a teenage wolf, but still, I was taller than most of my peers due to my Alpha blood. Meaning, I had not been called young in a number of years. Even at ten, I was already being groomed and respected as a man, a leader of this pack. How dare she call me young, her a child barely the height of my waist.

“Oh.” She gasped, as she covered her mouth with her tiny little hand. “That was rude of me, wasn't it." She said, as I tried not to growl out a yes. "I'm sorry. It's just, you look so much like someone I used to know.” She said, as her golden eyes roamed around my face, causing my cheeks to burn red.

"You used to know? What in the world does that..." Yet, my words barely got out before she was attacked with a fit of sneezing, making me realize maybe it was best to save my questions for another time. Quickly, before she could let out a protest, I wrapped her up in my arms.

“You're too damn slow. "I can't wait for you all night." I growled, as I felt her head rest on my shoulder as her body accepted it was too tired to go on.

“Thank you, Thomas.” She whispered in my ear, as she let out a yawn and fell fast asleep. "These little legs are truly hard to get used to."

Use to? Little Legs? What was she mumbling about now? Was it possible she had not just fallen into the river but had hit her head in the process? It might be best to get the pack healer to check her out once we got back to the house. The last thing I needed was for Lucas to come home and see his sister was missing brain cells. I began to wonder how many I would lose if Abelia lost even one. If Lucas was the one doing the hitting, my guess it would be all of them.