Fated Mate

“That son of a bitch changed you!” she yelled, and then a loud growl followed. She crouched, mimicking Lee’s current stance. Lee felt her muscles tightened, her fingers curled at the tip.

“I was fine fighting a ghost. I was irritated having been lowered to fight a human, but now I’m pissed off that I have to fight my own kind!” Sabrina leaped knocking her onto the floor.

Lee hadn’t seen her coming. She cringed holding her knees to her chest as a searing pain tore through her belly. Sabrina rose leaving her on the ground breathless. She moved over her toward the girls.

“Lee!” She heard Maria’s frantic shrill behind her.

Lee turned on her side and looked up. Maria was holding Ann against herself, her back toward Lee. Sabrina was standing over her; she reached down to grab her hair. The rage was back, hotter than it was twenty seconds ago. Lee sprang to her feet and rushed toward them. She grabbed Sabrina by her hair and flung her backward. She flew, hitting the fireplace. She went down, taking much of it with her. Before she recovered Lee attacked again, she kicked her in the stomach then picked her up and threw her out the door.

Lee stood there for a few seconds waiting to see if she’d flash through the door. When nothing happened, she turned and went to her sisters. Maria looked at her stunned. She didn’t know what shocked her more, the yellow eyes or Lee’s new strength. Lee was still debating on what shocked her most about herself. She could feel so much going on inside her, physically and emotionally, but she knew she didn’t have time to ponder over it.

“Maria, come on.” She put Ann’s arm around her neck and pulled her to her feet, leaning Ann against her. Lee couldn’t feel her weight. Maria tried to help her but she stopped her. “I can carry her just fine, you go ahead. Get into the kitchen.”

They had barely taken three steps before a whole wall came into the living room. They fell on the ground, shielding themselves from the shattered glass and splinters of wood. A loud growl and raged heavy breathing made Lee look up.

There was a six-foot, brown furred wolf in the living room. Its eyes were a deeper grey. Its lips were drawn back, exposing its razor sharp teeth that were bared at her.

Lee scrambled to her feet. She took Ann’s arms and dragged her into the kitchen Maria ran in front of them. She managed to pull her as far as the kitchen closet before the wall separating the living room and the kitchen came crashing in. There was nowhere else to run. Maria went down on her knees and cradled Ann against her. Lee moved in front of them shielding them as much as she possibly could from it.

She stood there too shocked to move. She stared at it waiting for it to attack. The images of her family being killed flashed into her mind; she was going to die just as they did. And then Ash’s beautiful face was there. Her chest tightened, she didn’t want to die before she saw his face again. She wanted to be in his arms one last time, to feel his kiss, his touch. She wasn’t ready to die yet, but death was ready for her.

The wolf lunged at them. Lee raised her hand to cover her face, expecting to be dead in the next second.

“I told you I wouldn’t think twice about killing you!” An angry voice snarled out the words. It was Ash!Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

She moved her hand and stared at him. He had the wolf’s neck in his hand. He held it up as if it was a stuffed doll. The wolf’s hind legs were on the ground but its fore feet kicked around, its tongue hanging out of its mouth. The dangerous growl was replaced by a scared breathless whimper. Ash hurled it out of the kitchen bringing the whole wall down. He then moved into the living room where the wolf lay moaning on the floor. Lee followed quickly behind. Ash raised its head and crushed it into the floor several times making the whole house shake. He then picked it up and hurled it through hole it had made in the wall; it went flying out into the darkness, Ash dashed after it without even glimpsing in Lee’s direction. It was just like the diner, a raging bull after its target.

Lee stood next to the crater in the floor, relieved that he came, but surprised he was alone. She turned to her sisters behind her. Maria’s wet eyes stared at her, and then out through the hole in the wall. Then Ann stirred in her arms. Maria looked down at her, her face more relaxed. Lee felt a cool breeze on the back of her neck. Before she could turn to see what it was, Billy and Joe were next to them.

Billy crouched down and picked up Ann who was awake but disoriented. Maria hesitated staring at Joe’s open hand, stiff, silently debating whether or not to go to him. After a minute, her shoulders drooped. She stood up and walked into Joe’s open arms. He held her tight and buried his head in her tousled hair. Maria broke down crying, what happened was going to haunt her more than it would Lee or Ann-Ann was unconscious when everything went down, and Lee was already screwed up.

Lee walked behind the guys as they carried her sisters to the living room. When she stepped through the huge hole a pair of arms went around her. It was her dad. He held her tight in a bear hug, and then stepped back to look her over. “Are you okay?”

Lee held her breath and waited for him to react to her new eyeshade just like he did at the apartment, but he didn’t. He kept checking her for cuts and bruises. She exhaled. “I’m fine.” She was relieved her eyes were back to their original hazel. “Where is Ash?” She broke his hold and walked around him to the other gaping hole.

“He’s taking care of Sabrina.” Billy’s voice came from behind Lee. He had Ann on his lap on the couch, holding a cold towel to her head. Joe and Maria were at the other end of the couch. Joe was in his vest, gently wrapping Maria’s hand with a cloth. It was his shirt. Maria’s hysterias were gone and she was calm. She sipped at a glass of whisky as she watched Joe tend to her hand.

“She almost killed you.” Dave was standing closer to Lee. He said it like he was informing her of what had happened. His words hit home. She looked at Ann and Maria again, finally acknowledging how badly hurt they were. They were almost killed because of her. Because a psycho wolf thought it was the best way to punish her. And a wolf that big shouldn’t exist. And since when did people turn into wolves? She almost lost another family. She almost died.

She rocked back, feeling light on her feet. The room was spinning and she could feel herself go down slowly.

“Lee!”

Someone shouted, but her vision was too hazy to see who it was. She was turned to face the hole. The cool air hit her but it didn’t help get her out of the spinning hole she was falling into. Out of her half-closed eyes; she saw big silver eyes look at her. They moved closer, and then something wet gently nudge her head. She lifted her hand to touch it. As soon as her hand rested on it, she was wrapped in pitch-black darkness.