Chapter 5 MELANIE NOT MOM

Wren's Pov

And that is how ended up where I am right now, in this boarding school. After Melanie died, Bryce made sure I knew he never liked me. I became hi personal maid and errand boy. Harrison was practically receiving payment for work that I was doing. He even got the time to start a family. For months, I would cook, clean, wash clothes and any menial job around the house including busted pipes and broken roofs. And by evening he did not like what I had done, I would be made to understand why he is a Roberts and not a Davidson. He would beat me like there is no tomorrow. Like real beating involving kicks and fists.

On top of that, he would expect me to run errands for him. He would send me with messages and letters which was Harrison's work. He would time me and if I was not back on time, he would beat me in front of his workers and the children in the orphanage. Worse was if I failed to deliver a message or letter, I would receive twice the beating. I was always bruised up and I had no one to talk to. If you happened to be seen near me, you would be punished alongside me. So, everyone minded their own business. Only Melanie would have defended me, but she had left me with him. I hated her so much for that, so I started calling her Melanie instead of mom. Bryce never even cared about my education.

By the third month of Melanie leaving us, Bryce was tired of seeing my face. He would beat me simply because I showed my face to him. So, he made the conscious decision to send me to a boarding school. I was kind of relieved because I would not be beaten but I was also worried because I knew nothing beyond this house, Melanie and Bryce. I had barely interacted with anyone outside our house and now I was expected to interact with so many people at once. Not like I had a choice. I was asked to pack a bag one night that I was leaving for boarding school the following day. He did not even have the courtesy of taking me. Harrison was the one who took me. I did not even know where we were going. At least he provided a cart as a means of transport as well as food and water for us and the donkeys to pull the cart. It was a long journey that took a little over a month. At least Harrison gave me stories about his new wife on our way, so I was not bored. But I never responded. He was the one doing the talking.

I only knew where we were headed when we reached. Montes village, his village of origin. I guess now I knew why he was Bryce Roberts and not Davidson. As soon as, Harrison made sure I was settled, he left. And that was the last person my village I ever saw. I have been in this boarding school ever since. Bryce sent me a letter a little after to the school explaining how I was a delinquent child and that I was never to be allowed to go home even on holiday breaks. So, my school became my home. The day I was sent away from home to this school was my birthday. I turned 16 that day.

Now I am a few days shy from turning 18 and for some weird reason I am nervous as hell. I can feel my body is changing calling for something even, but I cannot place my hand on it. Anyway, I have 7 good days to figure it out.

It is night now. Midnight to be precise. Everyone in the dorm is asleep. Weirdly, I cannot sleep. It is too hot to sleep. I feel kind of feverish, and my lake is calling out to me. I have this lake just outside this village. A little deep into the forest behind our school and dorms. I love sneaking out most of the nights that I feel restless. It is the serenity that comes with it that attracts me to the lake. It always reminds me of how I felt around Melanie and tonight I need that. So, I sneak out without notice and trek the short distance to the lake.

But instead of the peace and quiet that I always find, I find chaos. Even before I reach the clearing where the lake is situated, I hear the heavy splashing of water. Continuous splashing like someone is drowning. I start running and indeed someone is drowning. I cannot tell exactly who, but it is a guy. And by the looks of it, someone must have pushed him in because he is fully dressed. Though am in a dilemma. I cannot swim. No one ever taught me how to. I only come to the lake to dip my feet in and enjoy the quiet.

I think fast and find a long strong stick. Finding one was easy since am surrounded by trees. In his splashing, I manage to get through to him and ask him to hold onto the stick I am holding over him. I manage to help him get to the lake shore and I help him out of the water. The guy in his relief hugs me really tight but I manage to throw him off me. I am mad at this point.

"And what exactly is wrong with you! I was just being a good person helping you and you take advantage of that!" I am yelling by now. He just laughs and replies.

"Feisty. I like it." That manages to calm me down enough to remember no one actually likes me talking. So, I just give him a mean face in response and he just laughs.

"I am Terris St Augustine." He introduces himself stretching out his right hand which I shake. He has a firm grip to be honest, and he is not bad looking. I am quite tall myself, but he is towering over me. I would say over 6 feet tall. He has this striking honey-colored eyes with a hint of red. In fact, a red ring surrounds his pupils. Strange I have never seen that before. He only has a robe on and a pair of shorts which are dripping wet. His robe is a nice mix of blue and green which compliments his rich in color skin. Against my own skin, his makes me look paler than usual. His chest is full, and he has got a 6 pack. He definitely works out. His thighs and legs are packed and strong. His arms are also packed with veins running down them. I find myself ogling. His voice snaps me out of it.

"Like what you see?" He teases and I find myself blushing. His hair is short and matches his eyes. And he has alluring lips covered with this bush of a beard same color as his eyes. His jawline is sharp matching his body.

"The way that blush travels up your ears. The red suits your skin perfectly. I like." He teases again and I turn even redder. He licks his pink, rosy lips and laughs.

"It is like your tongue got stuck somewhere. Anyway, it was nice to meet you officially and thank you for saving me. Whoever pushed me into the water is here and if he continues to see me with you it will be more trouble. So, I have to run. Bye pretty lady and see you St Durren." He says looking at the forest across the lake and running in the opposite direction. The confusion on my face is very evident. Now, who is St Durren and what is with the saints? It sounds like a cult or something.

I look in the direction he looked while referring to this St Durren and I see no one. Well, it must have been those chasing him down and I must have made them end their pursuit. After all, he did say that being seen with me is trouble. I must be trouble then. I think to myself. The night drama has already exhausted me. I came for the peace and quiet, but I ended up in chaos that just left me confused and rather tired. The walk back to school is uneventful and I manage to slip back into bed without alerting anyone to my absence. Not that anyone cared much anyway.

The next couple of days are quiet. To avoid being noticed, I mostly keep to myself. No one knows much about me except the fact that I practically live in school. Everyone thinks am an orphan that got picked by one of the teachers and was on that school on scholarship. I hear them talk every time I pass by. The way I arrived in school is what makes them start the rumors. I was a quiet kid with healed and healing bruises all over my body. That made me look helpless in their eyes. Not that I minded, only that it was a reason to be bullied. But the bullies never anticipated a 'helpless' child to retaliate. I once beat a fellow student, a boy for that matter, till all I could see was blood. That is when I stopped. He was rushed to the village healer, and he stayed with him for 3 months. I hear he had a broken nose and jaw.

To be fair, when I started beating him, all I could see was Bryce's face. So, I kept beating him until I could not see his face. No action was taken against me. I was taken to the head of the school who let me off with a warning. She said that she understood that I had been through a lot, but it should never repeat itself. I was fine with that as long as no one touched me. From that day, no one ever dares breath in my direction which is fine by me.

Anyway, my birthday is in 2 days. I was born/found on the last day of the fourth month. I do not know how my life is going to change once am 18. One is considered responsible for themselves once they got to that age and my situation is worse since Bryce washed his hands off me. He can easily toss me away once I am 18. But that is the least of my worries. I am particularly not feeling well. Ever since the night of the chaos, I have been having several fever spike episodes and serious cases of severe headache. I do not want to say anything since I know Bryce will have to be informed. And going back there is not an option for me. So, I am suffering in silence.

I particularly feel more drawn to the forest and the lake than normal. It is the only thing that manages to calm me down. In the presence of nature under the glowing light of the moon, I feel so much better. So, I have been sneaking out every night since the chaos night. I have been hoping to see Terris again, but I have been hoping in vain.

This sickness has been affecting me in ways that it should not. I am an excellent student. I do well in my studies but concentration for me has been difficult since the chaos night. It is serious to the point that teachers call me out for it in classes which has had me laughed at more times than I can count. Another thing is I have found myself attracted to both boys and girls. Before the chaos night, I never found myself checking out anyone. I always assumed like Melanie, I would find someone meant for me when the time is right and settle down. Now the last few days, I have been finding myself staring at both girls and boys. Good thing is no one pays attention to me, so it mostly goes unnoticed.

No one even knows my birthday is soon. I am thinking all this nervousness is what is making me sick. Some teachers have noticed, those who care enough anyway. I am paler than usual, either sweating or having chills which make me shiver. I manage to pass it off as nerves courtesy of the coming exams which is understandable.

So, it is one day to my birthday. By midnight, I will be 18. Everyone is asleep in my dormitory. I cannot seem to catch any sleep. I have been turning and tossing so much that I am worried I might wake someone up. I can tell it is almost midnight, and the nature is calling out to me stronger than ever before. I am hot and sweating like crazy. Sneaking out like this is not going to be easy but I have no choice. This heat can only be cooled by the waters of the lake.

I sneak out successfully. I try to be as quiet as possible despite my discomfort. I literally run to the lake. How I remove my clothes even I do not know. What I know is that the water feels amazing against my skin. It cools me down drastically. That proves to be temporary though. Suddenly, I feel so much intense pain from virtually everywhere to the point that I scream out. I do not understand what is going on. I think I might be dying. Maybe I got the same sickness Melanie had.

The water does not seem cold enough for me. It is burning me instead. So, I carry myself out of the water with the little strength I have got. I lie on my back on the back on the lake shore closing my eyes. The night air is doing good things to me. I feel so much better. Who knew being naked outside at night at night was this good? I slowly open my eyes to the sight of a bloody red full moon. That is odd. I had never witnessed or heard of one. But I am distracted from that by the pain. This time stronger than before. I wince and curl up into myself. And as soon as it comes, it is gone. Just like a wave. I have a series of waves before everything stops at once. The pain, the fever, all gone.

I try to get up only for me hear a crack and the most excruciating pain from my legs travelling up my body. I have just broken my legs, and I do not know how. It is midnight now, but it does not matter since there are more serious issues at hand than turning 18. I am now convinced that I am going to die. This is definitely worse than what Melanie had. But one thing is for sure, I am not going to be found naked. I try to locate my night gown. It is a few feet from my legs. Maneuvering with broken legs is not easy.

I try to lift myself up so that I can be able to turn and grab my gown, but my hands crack too. The pain is worse than before, and the heat comes back with it. Even the night air is useless now. The intensity is too much now. I am sweating ten times more than before. I feel a series of more cracking as if the bones in my body are rearranging themselves. The pain is too much now that I am crying. Every bone in my body is cracking and breaking. The pain makes me think of one person who might be of help. Only problem is, he is far away. But I call out anyway with the only strength I got.

"Wilen."

And as soon as the name rolls out of my tongue, I see him in my sight. I have never been this relieved to see someone. He looks about the same but with my tearful eyes it is hard to tell.

"Help me please." I manage to whisper. I have been screaming a lot, so my voice is barely there.

" I am sorry my child. I cannot. I can only sit and hold your hands through it. This is the next phase of your life, and you must go through with it. The only person who can help you is on the sidelines watching. He knows better than to interfere. He knows you need to do this by yourself. And also, he is a little afraid of me. He did just see me appear out of thin air." I want to laugh at that last statement with him but am too weak and in so much pain to engage. His explanation does not make sense to me, and I frankly do not care. I am glad he is here though.

He holds my hand through it. It has been hours of pain and heat to the point that am numb. I feel my bones rearranging themselves. And my vision slowly starts sharpening. All of a sudden, am in all fours looking straight into the red eyes of a large black wolf that is in the forest that is across the lake. I do not understand how I can see that far or what exactly I am seeing. And before I could grasp anything, everything goes dark.

The next time I come to, the sun is shining bright on me I have to close my eyes for a second. I open my eyes again and try to adjust to the light. I am lying on my back and with the way I can feel the sun on every part of my skin, I am definitely naked. I look around. I am still at the lake, by the shore. The morning breeze feels good. I feel better actually. No more heat or headaches. Just a calm healthy body. And the events of last night come rushing back. Wilen was definitely here and am sure I saw a wolf. It was as dark as the night with red eyes like the moon that same night. And again, it hits me where I am and what time it is.

By now everyone must be awake. I am in so much trouble. I run back to school and sneak in successfully. Everyone i sup and about in their night wears. It is bathing time, so I blend right in. I am just lucky. This would have ended so much worse. Bryce would have been called, and I am not ready to see him, maybe ever. So, I join the others and prepare myself for the day. Funnily, I do not feel sickly like yesterday, but I feel funny. Like I am not just me. All my scars are gone. My skin is as smooth as a baby's. But I ignore it. It must be just that Wilen was able to cure me. Maybe it is the herbs that are making me feel funny. But deep down I know that Wilen never gave me any herbs.

Anyway, I manage to catch up with everyone and sit down for my first class of the day; Social and Political Science. I do not enjoy it very much because it involves a lot of discussions forcing me to participate. But the teacher, Ms. Koza, is nice even to me. She was among the few to notice I was not fine the past few weeks. She in class and she is discussing leadership. She wants someone to help define leadership and no one is. I usually sit at the very corner of the class. She is scanning the room to see who she will choose. I know the answer but am always quiet unless chosen. Then out of nowhere a deep voice says,

'You know you should answer. It would not hurt anyone.'

"What?" I say so loud that everyone turns to look at me. I sit alone and no one in this room would dare to speak to me. So, where did the voice come from? And before I can figure it out, Ms. Koza smiles wide and takes the opportunity to ask me to answer. Everyone is still looking at me, weirdly of course. I clear my throat and answer as audible as possible. I know it is correct, so I say it fast and keep quiet.

"Very good." Ms. Koza and the voice say at the same time. She must have seen the confusion om my face because she asks me what the problem is. I manage to lie and tell her I thought I had omitted something in my answer.

The rest of the day goes by smoothly except the voice. It is everywhere I go and it is driving me crazy. I can tell it is coming from within me. It is in my head, and it scares me. Maybe I am not cured after all. What happened last night must have been leading to this. My thoughts are interrupted by the voice.

'You know I do not like being called the voice. I do actually have a name. You should be kind enough to ask.' I like the sass, but someone is angry.

Right now, the nature is calling out to me once again. It is night now and everyone is asleep. So, I focus on sneaking out. The lake is peaceful tonight. I disturb the peace by dipping my feet in, but it soon settles. The air is cool and crispy which is making me feel good. I close my eyes and for some weird reason my hearing sharpens. I can hear all the little creatures running around the forest. Except I hear a twig snap across the lake in the forest, and I open my eyes so fast. At first, I see no one but suddenly my vision sharpens and I see beyond the trees across the lake. It is the same wolf as last night but what shocks me the most is what the voice in my head shouts.

'Mate!'