Sapphire A Huntress no more (Sapphire Book 1)

When the life you have is peaceful and the things you care about are close by you tend not to appreciate them. They are there in your life where you can touch them, feel them and all you do is turn away from them. The sand and the moon at the shore on a winter night or the pack house full of noise, the warm wind and the scorching summer sun are things some take for granted. But it is not always like that, there are also sad moments like the death of a parent or the departure of a friend, which are there in your life but you forget about them in time. And so, when you lose that freedom regret washes over you like buckets of water. I regret not attending my mother’s funeral, due to being too busy grieving on my own to show up. Regret had washed over me but along with it a frightening desire for revenge.

The waves were as strong as the storm, water splashed everywhere on the deck with such power that the navigators had to tie themselves to the mast in order not to be thrown over the vessel. I stood quietly in my spot contemplating the life I could have had. My soul had the same temperament as the weather, it was crying. The only difference between them was that one was expressing its emotions freely while the other kept those same emotions bottled inside. I won’t give them the satisfaction of showing my weak side, it was enough that my body was brittle due to malnourishment. Another wave hit the ship almost turning it upside down, why they chose to sail to Scotland was beyond my comprehension. Flying would have been faster and easier, but HE was not the kind of man who hurried through a task. HE liked to plan his moves with care but in my opinion, he was just a sadist, he lay his trap and waited for the target to step right into it and after, he enjoyed torturing them slowly. I should know, I stepped right into that same trap and ever since then loathed myself for my stupidity.

The men on the bridge were running like chickens without heads from one place to the other, they had no clue on how to steer a ship. It was clear that they were never on one before, or if they ever were, they did not board one in a storm. Only HE was calm and staying put near the bow of the ship looking right ahead anticipating the events to come. Rain did not touch him, noise did not bother him, ever since the woman he raised as his child left he become a silent ticking bomb. As another wave hit the ship near the stern more water splashed me making me shiver. The clothes I had left on me, as torn as they were, stuck even closer to my body, if that was possible. The scars on my back stung as the salty water cleansed them, my body was too weak to heal by itself, not even my wolf had the power to help. He was binding his time in silence until we shall be free again, and we will be, now that we were out of that damp dungeon.

We just needed time.

Cunningham was an old name, not many had it so where had he heard the name before. Cunningham, Cunningham, Cunningham he enchanted as though by saying the name three times it would make him remember. The study he was in smelled strongly of old books, Charles thought as he opened another dusty book. A... Arthur, Ava, Alias who names their child Alias?...B... Boris, Birmingham, Basel....C... Carver, Colins but no Cunningham, this book was another dead end. A heavy sigh left his lips as he moved from the sofa to the window. Outside, the cave was just as cold, just as grey as the day before. He had enough of hiding, he missed the days when looking out a window all he’ll see would be a sea of grass and a calming blue sky.

The reflection of a picture that hang on the wall behind him caught his attention. Charles took the picture from the wall and examined it with melancholic eyes, a lot of people from the picture were long gone from this world, his parents, one of his cousins. The picture was taken a long time ago before the first war and before the heartbreak that came with it. As he looked at all the people in the picture he stopped when his attention was snatched by a blonde woman. She had curly hair that made her body look slimmer and her eyes...her eyes were a brighter shade of sapphire. Charles studied the woman some more and, as his train of thought went on it hit him, the woman’s eyes were just as Erin’s only that Erin had a darker shade of sapphire. ′Selrahc do you know who this woman is?′ ′Oh...that picture is old.′ ‘Concentrate please...’ ‘Hold your horses, the picture won’t run away. Let’s see...hmmm...yes, yes, this one’s name is Cassidy...Cassidy Stewart. Yes, she is one of the Elders, I remember that when this picture was taken she was just appointed in her role. How come you don’t remember?’ But Charles said nothing, he put the picture back and went to his desk. He dug through some files and looked in the drawers until he found what he was looking for, the official appointing paper of Cassidy Stewart as an Elder.

Charles Harrington was a man of few words. In his early years he thought that the position of King would not be his for many years to come. He did want to become King, but he loved the freedom of spending time with the pack members a lot more than the thought of politics and ruling over all the Alphas. He wanted to look for his mate and make connections by traveling the world, but what he wanted and what was given to him were two different things. War began and things changed for the worse, his parents died, a lot of werewolves died and he became King much earlier than planned. His life become all about protecting his kind and making sure there will be a future for their offspring’s. Between fighting and training, burying his loved ones and ending the war his life became one of responsibility rather than freedom as he wished. It was not as bad as he thought though, he was good at what he did and the friendships he gained were one’s that will last him forever. Charles was looking at that piece of paper for the fourth time, could Erin be the daughter of Adelaide Cunningham? It was possible, but the only way he would know for sure was to ask Cassidy, she should know.

The war was already in motion, pack houses were attacked all over the world by Cole’s hunters. They hold their ground as days passed by and the casualties of war began to grow on both sides. Werewolves showed signs of winning but it was the same in the past, during the first war. If not for the death of their former king they would have won last time.

Due to Francis and Robin’s arrival we had to move to another location, it was not guaranteed that they won’t find us again but the new location had better defences. The stronghold’s setup was to our advantage for when Cole and the others will arrive. The wolves were not ready for an attack though, yes, their army was trained and yes, they were a lot in numbers but they needed fire power as well as manpower. The witches’ materialization the following month brightened the mood of many and the scale was turning in our favour more and more.

I was in charge of showing the many werewolves how to use guns and teach them about hunter behaviour. They learned faster than expected and so all we had to do now was to train more and wait. Robin had mentioned that Cole would come by sea, so time was good but I knew better. If he took his time to reach us then Cole had something up his sleeve. I was so into my thoughts that I have not sensed Charles approach me.

‘How about you take a break and come running with me?’ He said. I might have looked at him strange because he added...′You have to change one in a while, your wolf needs to spread her wings too.′ He is right you know, it will also be good for you to relax a bit. All you do these days is worry about Cole. Well he is coming to kill me, I have to worry. Why don’t you? What is the point of worrying he will come and we will deal with him then. We left the stronghold grounds and shifted into our wolves. Shifting was still painful for me, Nire said it was because I don’t do it too often but something made me doubt her words.

The place we stopped at was rough and rocky still, the view was breath-taking. Below a stream passed and split the land in two, on either side the withered flora had the same tint as the rocks it grew on. The clouds become darker and the wind intensified as we reached the very top of the hill and shifted into our human self. Far into the distance the sky was clear and the land brighter while on our side the weather rivalled our mood.

‘Would you like to know about your family?’ Charles spoke breaking the silence. He did not look at me, instead he took in the view before us.

’I don’t know. Why, do you know something about my birth parents?′ I said. My birth family was far from my thoughts at the moment but maybe knowing would make me understand the new me better.

‘Well your parents were Elders, they were killed from what I know.’

‘What are Elders?’

’They are like a human government but in our world, it is called a council. Anyway, I don’t know much about them other than that your father was one of the founders of the council.′

‘Is there something you do know?’ Charles did not like my reproachful tone, his eyes darkened as he said.

’You should be careful Erin, I may allow you a certain freedom but make no mistake, I do not tolerate those who disrespect me.′ His Alpha voice surfaced and had such power that it almost made me kneel before him. What a terrifying power he has. Well yes, silly, after all he is our king.

‘As I was saying, I may not know much about them but there is someone who does know.’

‘There is?’ I said, glad he was back to normal.

‘Yes, there is. As it seems, not all of your family members had been annihilated by the hunters. You have a cousin that is still alive and who knows, maybe more of your other family could be alive.’

’I have a cousin? What is their name?′

’She is called Cassidy Stewart. She is an Elder as well and an old friend. Cassidy will arrive the day after tomorrow, you’ll have the chance to talk to her then.′