Chapter 3) Brother?

My breathing stops. Everything around me seems to freeze and I feel my wolf lurch back, as if physically struck.

         "What?" I whisper, my hand reaches up to clutch at my heart. I feel like it's missing. I don't understand-

         "You're not our baby. Reign. Goddess. I didn't give birth to you-" she reaches out to touch me, but I flinch away from her. Brown eyes lock together, and a pain so deep and buried rises in the air that I wonder if it will suffocate me.

         Sudden determination comes over me and I move towards the door.

          "Reign! You can't!"

         "You don't have the right to tell me what to do!" My wolf scream at her. "You lies to us! You betrayed us!"

           "Reign! Don't talk to her that way! She is still your mom!" Justice suddenly barks at me, and I swing around to face him. A look of guilt crossed his face and my lips quiver.

           "Y-you knew." I breathe.

          He doesn't respond.

           "How the Hell did you know?!" I yell. My head spins and I think I might be sick.

           "I heard your dad talking about it a few weeks after I got here." He tells me slowly. "I wanted to tell you-but he-"

            "He what?!" I snap, my chest tightening. Betrayal stings. Especially his. God. I've never felt so... alone.

           "He begged me not to... he said it was for your own good. That you not know. Red Star-they are here for one reason. Reign. The alpha want you- he wants to punish you."

         I freeze, listening to the howls of my pack in the distance. Their pain, their anguish. It's all my fault.

          "I have to go." I say, then turn towards the door. Byron catches my eyes. My baby brother stands there, tears on his face as he watches me. I go to him.

         "I didn't know-Reign! I swear I didn't know!" He cried, suddenly lunging at me. I wrap my arms around him tightly. I've never seen Byron cry. Even as a baby, he was so good. So very good. Happy. Now he's crying because of me.

          "It's okay." I pull back, my hands rest on is cheeks and I stroke the tears away quickly. "Look at me. It's okay." His eyes lock on mine. "You'll always be my baby brother." I whisper, and he sobs violently as I pull away from him and go to the door again.

         This time I run out.

        I don't say a word when I hear mom yelling for me, begging me to come back, or Justice chasing me. I put up a wall around my head to block their attempts at communication as I run. My body suddenly spasms, and I shift.

            I feel like I am a broken doll. There is only one thing I can do now.

           I can't let Rogue get hurt because of me, not when I'm not even here because I belong.

            Not when I'm not their real future Alpha. I just can't.

            So I run. I run as quickly as I can. My body flinches when I cross over the boarder into the place between our packs. The ten mile boarder.

          No man's land.

          There are about five hundred wolves here. Five hundred. Fighting like...animals.

           There's blood and pain, everywhere.

           I can't seem to move as I watch the wolves tear into each other without remorse. My pack. My wolves. People I know are being ripped into because of me.   

          "STOP!" I call through my minds link, my voice chocking from my mind, but raw...strong. Alpha like. "FOR FUCKS SAKE! STOP!"

            The meadow falls so silent, that I can hear the air ringing in my ears.

            No one moves. No one seems to be able to.

             Except one. One wolf, that for a single second, I think is a figment of my imagination.

            Because I swear, this wolf is me. Only bigger... and with blue eyes so light they are almost white. He moves closer and slowly comes to stand before me. He looks confused...but elated. Happy as his poofy tail swishes in the air behind him.

            "Hi." He suddenly mind links me. My eyes widen. He shouldn't be able to mind link me. He isn't my pack member. This shouldn't be a possibility. "I'm Collin . Son of the Alpha of Red Star. Future alpha." Then he sits down in front of me as if there wasn't just a battle waging.

              "Future Queen, or Alpha, of Rogue." I respond stiffly. I don't add my name. That's too personal.

              "Reign!" A black wolf suddenly comes up to my side, looking scared and hurt. Dad. Oh, god. Almost instantly, he ask. "What the hell are you doing?! You should be home-dose your mom kno-"

               "Mom knows where I am. Ask her." I tell him quietly.

        His eyes glaze over suddenly and a white wolf comes to stand at his side.

        "So, this is my daughter?" The white wolf says, and my dad snaps out of it. "She needs to come home. Now."

          My eyes suddenly get watery.

         "She isn't your daughter!" Dad snaps, and I flinch. "You didn't want her! You would have her dead if it was to you! She has been mine since the night she was born! You will not take her; you haven't the right!"

          "She is my blood!" The white wolf turns towards dad before his eyes go black. "My son is to take my title in just a few months! He wants his sister with him. It will be his gift."

          "You can't just take her!" Dad lowers, his ears going flat and he had his teeth bared. The sight of blood shinning on his shoulder in the moon light makes me whine.

            "If she doesn't come with me, I'll flatten your pack to the ground!"

            I look to the other wolf, Collin, panicked. His eyes meet mine, pleading. Pained.

           My dad suddenly snarls lowly before inching closer to me, to stand before me in a protective manner.

           I can see him bleeding more as he moves. I look around, at all the wolves watching their alphas. Waiting for a command that could raze both packs.

             The other Alpha, who is bleeding near his neck, onto his white pelt, looms over my father disrespectfully, making my father growl.

         I witness, mere inches away from  his side, my father's muscles cooling beneath his fur.

         "The girl is old enough to make the choice herself. Don't you trust her? You says she is your daughter...

          "Girl? If you know what's best, you'll come. I will kill this entire pack."

          My dad snarls as the man speaks to me directly.

          My vision widens as the alpha raises his lips. His teeth... they are coated with silver tips.

           I glance at dad, and he looks a little stricken, but resolved none the less.

           "My daughter has the choice. What ever she wants. I side with her. Always."

            My eyes widen. But I know what I'm going to do. When given the choice. My eyes hit dad's. His Instantly sadden further.

            When I walk up to the front of him, I press my head against his.

            "You taught me that an Alpha always puts her pack; her family first." I tell him, using our private connection.

             His wolf barks quietly. Then he shakes slightly. "You know I would fight for you. You are not an alpha yet. You're still my little girl."

             "I'll always be your little girl. I love you, daddy. Tell mom I-tell her I'm sorry. I was so mean to her. And Byron. And Justice. Just tell them I love them. Forever."

            Then I pull back, my eyes hitting the wolf before me. "I'll go with you." I tell him. Green eyes on mine make me wince. He succeeded. He won this battle. Even though he didn't. Not really.

        "Come." He orders. I feel my wolf stiffen with objection at his condensing tone. But we follow. We have no choice now.

           The silver wolf beside him looks happy, but he repressed his happiness as the two lead me away from my home. My father. My family.

              A few minutes later, I feel the buzzing of my family in the back of my mind. I hear them talking to me. Trying to convince me to not go. Their voices are almost soothing as I am lead away.

        And suddenly, they are gone.

         I guess I looked a little freaked out. The wolf that looks like me looks me in the eyes before telling me, "we've crossed over the boarder. You're in Red Star now. Your connection to you old pack is broken."

          They even took that from me.

         "Can you track?" The white wolf  suddenly ask, I nod once.  "Follow our scent back to the pack house. Don't think about going back. You'll get them all killed if you do." He tells me. He's trying to threaten me. He doesn't realize that I am already at his mercy.

          I do as I am told. I pick up the scent of power; tracing it to the huge white mansion in seconds.

           It's nothing like mom's subtle cottage like house in the woods. It's almost standoffish in its decor. It makes me a bit uncomfortable. I don't like it. I don't like how unnatural it looks here in the woods. I don't like how it smells like greed.

           I dislike it even more when I see a man in his skin walk through the door. The silver wolf comes to stand beside me. 

           "Follow me." He orders. I do. He leads me into the house. The surprising stench of death and blood fill my nose and the silver wolf ushers me on. He leads me up a semi spiral stair case and into a hall with several black doors on either side.

         He doesn't seem to have trouble finding exactly where to go. It's three doors away from the very end of the hall and when he pushes it open, I follow him wearily.

          It's a bedroom. A single, circular bed in the center of the room is covered in silver blanket and pillows. There's two window and three doors black doors total. And one book shelf takes up the wall only three feet away from what I assume to be the head of bed.   

       Another doors squeaky hinges are forced open before I hear the cracking of bones and the ruffling of material.  

         When I look over, I'm stunned.

         He looks just like me.

         Dark red hair crooked shirt and a semi tan. His facial features, his soft cheeks and big lips, even his jaw line... it's my male version. But then he turns around, presenting me with his back as he pulls a shirt over his head. I stop breathing.

         Scars cover his back. Whip marks. There isn't a part of his back untouched.  Even his birthmark is cut up...

        Or should I say my birth mark?

       It's the same as the one on my back, behind my heart. Only his is a little bigger.

        The Rose is in art novae style, with swift looking red streaks.

         Suddenly, he looks back to me and tosses a pile of clothes on the bed.

         "You can wear those... I had my friend buy you some clothes. I hope they fit.

          He doesn't turn away.

          I shift uncomfortably, my paws moving slightly.

           He sighs, then smiles a little. "You want me to turn around?"

No shit, moron.

           "No need for rudeness." He looks at me with a bit of hurt in his eyes before turning away from me. When I shift, it hurts, and the hurt makes my heart heart, reminding me of how Justice used to tell me to not cry in front of people.

            I quickly pull on the clothes. They fit, surprisingly well. But the t-shirt is too big.

           "Okay." I croak.

            The boy, Collin turns to face me before smiling.

            "We do look alike. People told me... I just didn't think it would be so much." He smiles gleefully.

            I shrug, my heart clinching painfully when I hear quiet howls from outside the window.

            "That's the bathroom." Collin suddenly tells me. My eyes focus on him. He is pointing to a door directly to his left. "Behind Me is be closet. And there-" He lounge to the door to his right, "is the balcony." It's really quiet a beautiful scene. If you want-maybe you can look? Your room will have the same view."

         I go to it, the sound of wolves calling to me. I pull the brass handles and it opens easily. The sound of my family floods me.

         Byron. Mom. Dad. Justice. They are all calling to me, along with several other members of my pack.

           I can't control the sudden sob that escapes me. My head flies back and I howl.

            But it's not just a normal howl. It's a death howl. Most wolves only let this howl out once in their lives.

        Some times its for the loss of a mate. Sometimes it's for loss of a home. Sometimes it's for death of an elderly wolf that can no longer stand to be alive.

          In a way... I think mine is for all of that. I feel my heart breaking more, and tears fall down my face in a race. My heart is ripping apart, and my family falls silent, because this is me letting them know that I am done.

         My wolf is in total agreement with this.

        We have always been the one to never give up. Never accept defeat. Never stop, no matter what the odds against us.

        This is me accepting defeat. Accepting my penance. Accepting my downfall.