(Come on Izzy, keep up! We don't need that rouge catching onto our scent again)
Her mother mind liked her as they quietly made their way through the trees between a den of rouges and a pack territory.
(I am keeping up, dads the one lagging, I'm just trying not to trip him up or trip on him.)
I mind linked back playfully as I moved into the tall underbrush at the base of the tree almost bumping into my dad's back.
(For your information Isabella, I'm not lagging. I'm being cautious because I have a bad feeling. Now shush and stay alert little one.)
My dad replied as he quickly made his way up the tree and through the branches until he was a few feet away. He motioned for us to follow with me going up first and my mother close behind.
We continued in silence for a while and I started to understand the feeling that my father had because I had it now too. It felt like there was a darkness looming around us, getting closer every second. I knew we needed to get out of here and it needed to be now.
(Dad I know you're being cautious but I have that feeling now too and we need to get out of here pronto.)
I mind linked him nervously as we got closer to the end of the pack lines. The neutral zone shouldn't be much further and we would be safer there.
(I know little one but it's better to be safe then to try to be quick about it and be spotted) He replied as we reached the end of the trees.
He quietly dropped to the ground landing on his feet before he turned around and lifted me and then my mother from the trees.
We made our way back into the tall grass and continued to our next safe house in the neutral zone.
———
It was dark as we reached the house and the ominous feeling never left. My dad set about starting a fire in the fireplace while my mom and I worked on dinner.
We had just rolled out the dough for the homemade noodles when I glanced into the living room to see my dad looking off into the distance in thought.
"Hey, what's got you so deep in thought?"
I called out to him as I started cutting noodles.
My dad looked past me towards my mom with pleading eyes " We have to tell her Maria. With the close call we had today I don't know what the future may hold and she needs to know"
My mom looked towards me and I could see tears beginning to form. She shifted her eyes from me to my dad and gave a small nod.
" I agree Richard, I just thought we would have more time." She said sorrowfully as her voice broke at the end. "As did I my love" he replied as he came into the kitchen to console my mom.
"Will someone tell me what the hell is going on and why you're talking about me like I'm not standing right here," I said slightly exasperated as I looked between them.
"come to the living room," my dad said as he wrapped his arms around my mother and gently led her back to the couch in the living room.
I sat on the love seat opposite them and pulled my legs up so I was sitting cross-legged. Once I was comfortable I looked at my dad expectantly.
He took a shaky breath and started as my mom entwined their hands together to help keep him calm.
"Well, to begin with, you know that you were adopted and that no one really knows where you came from before they found you outside the hospital" my dad stated looking towards me. After a moment I nodded and he continued.
"There is something that we were informed of after having you for a while, but we were asked to withhold what it was until after you turned 13."
"What? But I'm 14, shouldn't I know whatever it is already? Why haven't you told me yet?" I interjected. He gave me his shut-it-and-I'll-tell-you look so I calmed my lips together and shooed him to continue. He chuckled and shook his head.
"That is another part of this story but know that it's something we didn't plan on telling you until we absolutely had to so it wouldn't be something looming over you." He said before pausing to look at my mom.
She solemnly gazed towards me as a tear trailed down her cheek. She took a moment like she was trying to engrain every detail of my face into her memory before slowly nodding.
"one night about two years after we had adopted you. We came home to find a wooden box on our doorstep that had the royal crest engraved into the top. A crest that only those gifted by the moon goddess or the goddess herself could produce."
He pulled a small chestnut box out from underneath the couch and sat it on the coffee table between us.
I put my legs down and sat forward to look at the crest. On top, there was a Golden shield that was intricately carved with swirls that form a howling wolf. The crest itself had a supernatural glow to it and was something like I've never seen.
I gently ran my hand over it feeling the carving as my dad continued.
"Inside this box is documents about you. There is a picture of you at your birth with your bright blue eyes staring at the camera, little golden tuffs on your head, the cutest little smile on your face. Along with that, there are papers that state your real name since you technically by birth aren't a knight, and there is a journal that contains the great prophecies as well as all of the information we were able to gather about it and you." He said as he pushed the box closer in my direction.
I look up at him quizzically but stayed quiet as I picked up the box and ran my hands over it.
It was quite light and about the size of a shoebox. As I moved my hands towards the clasp at the front something shot out and stabbed me.
"Ow! Hey! What the hell!" I yelped as I pulled my hand back. There was only a little pool of blood in the middle of my index finger but it was still throbbing.
I looked down at the box and watched as the little needle that shot out slowly retracted before there was a click and the box sprang open revealing the documents inside.
"Sorry about that Hunny, I should've warned you but the box is spelled. From what we know, only me, your mother, and you can open it but it must take a sample of your blood. It will only work if it's the blood of the person holding it." My dad said apologetically as he handed me a tissue.
I wiped the blood off of my finger and pulled the papers out of the box before settling it aside still open.
"Now as I said, only three people know these papers exist and we need to keep it that way." My father said before reaching for the papers and flipping through them to find the one he was looking for.
"Why?" I asked as I looked at him quizzically. Why would matter if people knew information about me, I'm no one special.
"I'm about to cover that but first," he said as he put the paper on top of the pile and set it aside before opening to journal to the front page and handing it to me.
"You need to read the great prophecies". He finished as he sat back and rubbed gentle circles on my mother's hand. I looked down at the journal and on the front page in swirling cursive was the first part of the prophecy.
I ran my hand along the last couple of words as I looked at the right side where the other part of the prophecy was. I re-read the passages as I tried to make sense of what it would have to do with me.
I don't have some supernatural powers and I'm sure as hell not feared by anybody. Though we have been on the run for longer than I can remember, always moving from place to place. The longest we stayed anywhere was six months so I was always the odd one out and the new kid at school and bullied because of it.
I can't tell you the number of times I got my ass handed to me by numerous school bullies for pretty much everything. Whether it was small like sitting in what they had claimed as their seat by mistake to things like refusing to do their homework for them, they always found a reason to beat me up.
"What does any of this have to do with me?" I exclaimed as I sat the book back down in the box.
"Well, that's where these come in." My dad stated as he handed me the papers he had set aside.
"On top is your birth certificate that was blank when we got it with instructions to fill in our names but it also lists the name you were given at birth." My father said as I grabbed the papers and flipped them around so I could read them.
The certificate on top has little Inkings of my feet and hands as a baby and as my eyes trail down the document my breath hitches and my hands start to shake lightly.
There on the document, plain as day is my real name.
Isabella Renee McVeigh