Mark of the Beast

*Hezzlie*

I have magical powers!
It’s insane–but then so is the fact that I can also turn into a wolf and run around whenever I’d like to.
For the last few days since I discovered my abilities, I’ve been practicing in my room whenever I get a chance. I have to be careful because part of my skills involve making a big, bright ball of light, which can get hot if I’m not careful. It never burns me, but I’m afraid I might set something on fire. I wish I had someone I could confide in, but the last person on earth who needs to know about this is that fucking Alistair bastard. I don’t know what he’d do if he found out I actually do have magic, but I have a feeling it wouldn’t be good.
So I practice on my own. I can also bring items to me–which is a lot harder and leaves me tired and sweating, but I’m starting to get the hang of it–and maybe coolest of all, I can levitate!
It’s not the same as flying, but I can float up into the air. The furthest I’ve gotten is about halfway up to my ceiling. Then, I got afraid I might fall and put myself back down, but I plan on continuing to try when I can.
With three meals a day being served in the dining room with everyone who lives here in attendance most of the time, that makes it hard to have enough time to myself.
And then there’s Alistair. He does come and get me every day and then sends me out when I am unable to do what he asks of me. It’s honestly getting a little difficult to pretend I can’t do magic, but so far, he hasn’t caught on that I really can.
When he sends me out of his office, I get lost. Thankfully, most days, Abby finds me and brings me to lunch or my room, depending upon how long it takes her to find me.
Everyday, I hear my brother playing that same haunting song on the violin. I’ve asked Abby what it is, and she says it’s a tragic song about a couple who want to be together but can’t. That’s all she knows. It makes me question why my brother has chosen that particular song, but he is still unbelievably rude to me, so I can’t ask him. All Abby says is that men are complicated, but I think she knows something more than she’s willing to tell me.
One afternoon, after lunch but before dinner, I decide my wolf needs to run. I’ve never asked if it’s permissible for me to go outside, but as long as no one is around to stop me, I figure I may as well. So… I make my way to the nearest exterior door and walk through it like I own the place. I mean, my father is the king, so shouldn’t I be able to do such a thing?
Outside, I see a few guards standing around, but they don’t question me as I walk to the woods. As soon as I am behind the cover of trees, I strip down and set my clothes atop a low tree branch where I can get them again. Then, I leap into the air and let my wolf take over. Shifting is easier now than it was the first time I did it. In a heartbeat, my black wolf takes over, and I let her do what she’s been longing to do–other than fuck Rowan–run.
We glide between trees, over low shrubs, leaping over rocks and dodging around wide cedars in our quest for freedom. The forest here isn’t as beautiful as the one in Rowan’s kingdom, but it’s still fun. Eventually, we run into a large iron fence that wraps around in both directions as far as I can see. The bars are too close together for my wolf to get through. They would be too close for me to squeeze through in my human form, too, even at my thinnest, when I was all but starving at Peripheral, so we turn and keep going. I assume this is the edge of the castle property, and I am likely prohibited from going beyond the barrier anyway.
Sure enough, within a hundred yards of me running along the fence line, a couple of large gray wolves show up and gesture for me to go back toward the castle with their heads. I growl at them, but they will not be moved. They obviously don’t want me to continue to tread so close to escape.
Where would I go anyway?”
‘Back to our mate,’ my wolf replies without missing a beat. But I’ve learned my lesson about jumping fences and heading for distant lands. Instead, I do as I’m told, not wanting to end up in a situation where I am barred from leaving the castle, and turn back toward the thicker forest.
We run along for several more minutes, dodging rocks and shrubbery, making a wide loop because I’m not ready to go back inside yet when I come across another wolf and screech to a halt so that I don’t accidentally run into him.
I assume it’s a him–the wolf is much bigger than mine–with dark fur, though not as dark as mine is, and he’s moving very fast. He blows by me, only looking at me over his shoulder for a second before he disappears into the denser trees.
For a moment, I stand and watch where he’s gone, not sure if what I saw was even real. Was that a figment of my imagination? His scent lingers in the air, though, and I know that he really was there–he’s just unbelievably fast.
I think that might’ve been my brother, but I'm not sure. Something about the look in his eyes seemed familiar.
Shrugging it off, I continue on my way and spend another hour or so running around. Then, I realize I need to get back to the castle so I can get ready for dinner. My wolf is able to sniff out my clothes, and I have a sudden realization that she can probably keep me from getting lost in the castle, too, if I rely on her sniffer.
Shifting in the thicker forest, I get dressed and head back toward the castle. One good thing about living in such a huge place is that it’s impossible to get completely lost when one is outside. I could never lose sight of the building.
I’m walking through the trees when I hear something over to my left. I stop and peer through the branches of a large cedar tree and see my brother. He’s got his pants on already, thank the Goddess, but he’s just putting on his shirt.
That’s when I see it.
I can’t help but draw in a stuttering breath that leaves him spinning around to face me. “What the fuck are you doing?” Aiden barks at me.
I take a step backward, trip over a rock, and fall on my ass. A searing pain shoots down my left leg.
Aiden rushes around the tree to confront me, not to help me up. “Were you fucking spying on me?”
“NO!” I shout, dragging myself up, even though my ass is killing me. “I heard a noise and wanted to see who was there. Sorry.”
“Bullshit!” he shouts at me. “You were spying on me, you stupid bitch.”
“I wasn’t!” I put my hands up between us but remind myself he can’t know about my magic. “I swear, I didn’t even see anything at all.”
“Nothing?” he questions.
“Nothing! You were already dressed.”
He narrows his gaze even harder, and I know it’s not that he’s afraid his little sister has seen his junk that has him disturbed–it’s the other thing he didn’t want me to see.
But I did see it.
He continues to glare at me before he asks, “How much of our lore do you even know?”
“Lore?” I ask him, and I am genuinely confused. “What do you mean?”
“Do you know about… the Moon Goddess? How She chooses our paths in life? Any of that?”
He’s talking about fated mates. I get that much, but I can’t tell him that. I shake my head. “All I know is that I have a wolf that lives inside of me, and sometimes, like today, the urge to keep her there is unbearable. She needs to run.”
He continues to stare me down for a long moment before he says, “Stay out of these woods. This is where I run.”
“Sure,” I say, wondering if that means I can use the forest on the other side of the castle, or I just shouldn’t run at all. I don’t ask.
He turns and walks away, toward the castle, and I draw in a few shaky breaths. I want to shift into my wolf again and take off running. This time, I don't ever want to come back. I want to run straight to the tiny house where I lived with my mother, to throw myself into her arms and let her convince me that everything will be okay.
But I can’t do that. I don’t even know how to get there, and my father’s guard would stop me if I tried.
So instead, I march myself into the castle to take a shower and get ready for dinner.
I need to find someone I can trust, though, and right now, I think the only person who fits that description that I have access to is Abby.
She needs to tell me why my brother has a mark on his back that looks eerily like the one I left on Rowan’s skin.
There’s a lot more to being a wolf shifter than I ever would’ve thought, and it’s time I was filled in on the truth. I just have to hope that Abby really is someone I can trust or else I just might put myself in a situation I can’t get out of alive.