Chapter Three
Kara
It was a beautiful summer morning. It was perfect weather for picking herbs in my garden, as well as foraging for the wild herbs that grew around here. Some of my healing oils, and ointments were getting low, as well as my herbs for cooking, and I needed to stock up, putting some away for the winter. I had a greenhouse for some of those ingredients, but the window of opportunity was closing in for the rest that I would find out in the wild. I grabbed one of my baskets off my front porch and made my way to the tree line where I usually found a few goodies.
I had a love/hate relationship with where I lived. My mother stumbled upon this place when she was pregnant with me. The farmer who owned this land was a widower, took a liking to my mother, and let her stay here. When the widower found out that my mother wanted to help other women like herself, she gifted the cabin and a few acres surrounding it to my mother. With the help of the widower, my mother, a powerful witch, turned this piece of property into a sanctuary for other women.
You see, this place is located not too far away from another powerful person, whom my mother loathed with all her being. She had cast powerful wards protecting this place from him and anyone else who wished to cause harm to anyone who crossed the protection boundary of the sanctuary. I loved the beauty of the place. I simply hated my neighbors and the trouble that they created.
The moment I reached the area I was hoping to begin my search, I heard a woman’s voice franticly shrieking for help. My heart jumped and I immediately began to search for this person. I headed in the direction I knew she would be coming from. This wasn’t the first time. It had been a while since I had a woman running to me for help. I only wished it was the last.
“Come to my voice,” I yelled out. My eyes scanned the area for anyone running through the woods. The trees and brush were denser the further I went in making it hard to see anything past them. “Hey,” I shouted again. “I’m here if you can come to me.”
Finally, I could see someone making their way toward me and I picked up my pace to meet them.
“Are you Kara?” she asked as she slowed to a moderate walk.
“I am,” I replied. I peered over her shoulder and couldn’t see anyone, but I knew they were there. However, I didn’t know how far away they were.
“They’re after me,” she said. Her words were staggered, telling me she was exhausted. She drew in deep breaths through her nose, letting it out through her mouth. A way to get the heart rate to slow down, as well as catch her breath.
“I’ll take care of them,” I said as I closed the distance between us. The moment I got to her, she collapsed in my arms. “I got you, but we have to keep moving.”
She shook her head and said, “I’m so tired.” She looked defeated, and I could only imagine what she went through to get this far.
“I know, dear, but your sanctuary isn’t too far away. We need to get there now.” I didn’t want to scare her, but the magical barrier didn’t extend out this far. I couldn’t protect her and fend off those who were chasing after her.
I wrapped an arm around her as she wrapped an arm around me, and I helped her back up to her feet. She wrapped her other arm around her belly, and I knew.
“How far along are you?”
“I’m not sure. Five months, I think.”
“Okay. Let’s try and pick up the pace.”
I didn’t want to alarm her, but my keen sense of hearing had picked up a few yips and growls which sounded like they were yards away. They were closing in on us fast. I whispered a few words, inciting a spell, and threw my free hand back toward the wolves.
One of the wolves yelped and the woman glanced over her shoulder and nearly stumbled. “Oh, I can’t go back,” she cried.
“And you’re not going to,” I said, trying to comfort her. “We’re almost there. Twenty more feet.”
She seemed to have found a renewed spirit of energy and we made it across the boundary. Within seconds the first wolf hit the invisible wall shielding the sanctuary, letting out a loud yelp the moment it zapped him.
I let go of the woman, spun around, and glared at him. “You won’t get her. You can tell your pack master I helped another one.” The wolf growled in response, and I couldn’t help but sneer. I hoped the wall zapped him well.
The wolf shifted into a man just as two other wolves approached. He glared at me and I could sense the hate he had for me radiating from him. “You can’t stay behind your magical wall forever, witch.”
“You honestly don’t know me very well.”
At that, he retorted with a smirk, “We’ll be back and in larger numbers.”
“And I will be better prepared so, thank you for the warning,” I said, giving him a sarcastic grin.
It seemed to have pushed a button as he snarled at me, showing me his white teeth as they lengthened into long, sharp canines. The woman next to me whimpered as she tapped my shoulder. I could sense her fear. It was thick and I’m sure it was giving these wolves a heady rush. The man shifted back into his wolf form, and they all turned away and ran back in the direction they came from.
“I’ll be waiting,” I shouted knowing they heard me. It was foolish to poke the wolf with such words, but I didn’t care. They were sick in the head and needed to be taken out.
My cabin was fairly nice in size and was as comfortable as I could make it. A few years ago, I was able to install solar panels as I was completely off the grid. It allowed me to install lights and a small fridge. However, I still cooked my meals on an old wood-burning stove.
I helped the woman settle into bed in one of the three spare rooms. “You know my name.”
“Yes, I think a lot of the pack knows you. I overheard them talking about you one day.”
“I’m not overly popular with them,” I said and let out a small laugh. I truly didn’t care. They weren’t fond of either me or my mother.
“I could tell. It wasn’t the first time that I had heard your name though. The mother of the daughter I tutored told me that if I had ever found myself in trouble, to find you and you would give me sanctuary.”
“Where’s the girl you tutored?”
“I helped her escape. It was the reason why I was locked up. The alpha was angry at Gemma and me and told me I needed to help the pack in other ways for breaking my trust.”
“That’s how you became pregnant?”
“Yes,” she said. Her voice cracked as tears fell down her cheeks.
“Hey,” I said softly, sitting on the edge of the bed. I took her hand in mine, “You’re safe now. You and your baby.”
She squeezed my hand and I knew that comforted her. “Thank you. She told me you were a witch. I didn’t know how powerful you were. I mean, why didn’t they attack or follow us?”
“This place is heavily warded against werewolves. They are a very ruthless pack who needs to be stopped and my place needs to be well guarded if I am to protect anyone who comes to me. So, you know my name. What is yours?”
“Sophia,” she said softly.
I took a moment to look her over. She was a lovely young woman with caramel-colored skin, maybe in her early twenties. She had brown eyes and long brown hair that looked as if she hadn’t brushed it in a while. She had scrapes across her arms that I was sure came from running through the thick brush. Blood began to already scab up, but they needed to be cleaned to keep an infection from sitting in.
“Sophia, I am going to mend these cuts on your arms, and I would like to check on your child to see if they are okay. When was the last time you had eaten?”
“It’s been a while. I had been kept in the basement for so long that I had lost track of time. I didn’t know if it was day or night until I stepped outside to make my way here.”
“I’ll be right back. I’m going to collect a few things and see if I can get you something to eat. Just relax. You are safe here.”
“Thank you.” She laid her head back on the pillow and closed her eyes. I could see her body relax as if she knew that she was in the right place. Safe.
I walked out of her room, down the hall, and into the bathroom where I kept my first aid kit in the bathroom closet, along with my medical bag. One of my mom’s requests was that I had gotten an education that benefitted others. I had gotten a nursing degree, but I also studied botany and a few other courses that were useful in helping others here at my sanctuary.
My mom didn’t ask for me to come back here. I chose to come back. What she did here was important to me, too.
When I made my way to the kitchen, I heard some shuffling noises. My eyes brightened when I spotted a familiar face.
“Mera,” I said cheerfully. “You’re back.”
“I hope I got everything on the list,” she said as she emptied a paper bag of its contents. “I had to improvise with a few things.” She glanced up at me and smiled. “Do we have a new arrival?”
“Yes, and she’s a few months along.”
“Blessed be,” she said in a cheerful tone. “I’ll make her something to eat. I’m sure she’ll need it.”
Mera was someone who had also escaped the ruthless pack. However, she wasn’t pregnant when she arrived, only badly attacked. She was close to death’s door, and I was thankful that she pulled through. She was one of a few who decided to stay here and assist me. She didn’t have any supernatural gifts, but she was a great cook and a wonderful nurse’s assistant.
I cleaned Sophia’s wounds and got out my stethoscope. As I placed it on her stomach to listen in on her fetus, I touched her stomach with my free hand and closed my eyes, concentrating.
I couldn’t help but smile when I glanced at her and asked, “Would you like to listen?”
“Yes,” she said almost too quickly. She put the stethoscope on, and I placed my hand back on her stomach.
“She’s healthy,” I said, my eyes watching hers. She didn’t disappoint me as tears fell down her cheeks as she listened to her baby’s heartbeat, probably for the first time.
“I’m having a little girl?”
“Yes, and she is going to be so loved as you are going to be a great mom.”
“I’m literally scared for her.”
“I know, but you got to safety is all that matters now.”
“Her father is a werewolf. I just don’t know who the father is.” Her voice cracked when she continued, “It could be the alpha’s. He got mad at me for helping his daughter escape.”
“Hey,” I said calmly, taking her hand in mine. “You don’t have to explain. I understand. He doesn’t have to ever know. You can stay here for as long as you need to, or my friend Mera and I can help you find someplace else to go.”
At the sound of her name, Mera stepped into the room carrying a tray. “Hi. I’m Mera. I’ve brought you something to eat.”
Sophia’s eyes darted to Mera. She tried to offer Mera a smile, but her emotions were all over the place at the moment. Sophia wiped at her cheeks with the back of her hand as the tears continued to flow.
“Why don’t we give you some privacy?” Mera exclaimed softly. “Eat, and get some rest. We’ll be right in here if you need anything.”
Sophia couldn’t reply other than nod. I found a box of tissues on the dresser and handed them to her before stepping out behind Mera. Closing the door behind me, I followed Mera in the kitchen feeling absolute hate for that pack and what they did.
Mera turned her attention to me as if she could feel the anger radiating from my pores. “Hey, don’t go doing anything rash.”
“Why not?” I said in a sharp tone. “How many more will it take for them to finally come to their senses? We know they don’t have any.”
“Look, I know you’re angry right now, but going over there will not help you or that woman.”
“They need to pay for what they’ve done, Mera,” I snapped. “You, of all people, should know.”
What Mera didn’t know, however, was that I vowed to get back at the pack somehow. I grew tired of how horrible they treated women. I knew the pack and their alpha only through association. My father was the pack alpha until the current alpha challenged and killed him. My mother escaped because she was in trouble.
My mother was a powerful witch who fell in love with a werewolf and then she met my father. She said he wasn’t that great of a man, but he tried to be for her and they seemed to make him weak in the eyes of his pack. She said she knew the new alpha and was terrified of him. The moment she found out he was coming after her, she left.
I didn’t know anything about pack laws or rules. My mother never talked about it or about my father. She created this haven for her and me and vowed to accept any woman who needed sanctuary, even if it meant sneaking them away from the pack in the middle of the night. She had helped many women through the years. Some of them stayed, some had passed away during childbirth, and some had left to find their own ways out in the world far away from here.
Once I came back here to help my mom keep her vow, my mother left for a time only to return to show me that I had a sister who was half-dragon. They stayed for a time and left, never to return again.
I thought about my mother and sister, wondering where they were. My sister would have turned nineteen not too long ago and probably came into her shifter abilities already, if not earlier.
Mera walked over to me and wrapped her arms around me as if that would help calm me down. “What do you want me to do?” she asked, knowing that no matter what she said, I was going to war with this pack.
“I may need you to help me keep an eye on Sophia.”
She stepped back and met my gaze. “I can do that. When are you leaving?”
“I’m not sure yet.” I wasn’t sure. I hadn’t thought this through. “I may wait until it gets dark and check things out. See if I cannot find any weaknesses.”
“You’ll need to stock up on your energy,” she said in an encouraging tone.
I was fortunate to have Mera here with me. She kept me on my toes and reminded me to eat when I skipped a meal because I had found myself too occupied with something.