Sins Among Royals
Chapter 22

Indie stood motionless and scared as Noah shed his human form and let his wolf emerge. It was fierce, it was huge and it was pissed off. Indie shook with terror as it snarled and growled at her snapping its jaws. What had she done?

The wolf turned from her and ran off. Disappearing into the sheets of water that fell from the sky.

Soon Indie heard a splash and another howl that shook her bones and echoed off of the cliffs around the lake.

Collapsing to the ground she began shivering as the rain unexpectedly grew heavier. How was she supposed to get off of the island! Indie wasn’t the best swimmer in her human form but she was terrified of shifting and had promised after the attack on Poppy she wouldn’t do it again.

The memory formed in her head though she tried suppressing as hard as she could.

In a lush green forest sat a little girl in a yellow dress playing with her dolls. She had bright blond hair and tanned skin and a smile that could light up the world. She and her parents had just moved to town and they were unpacking the car and moving truck. Poppy had been instructed not to interrupt her parents and replace a spot to play.

Her curly blond hair danced as she bounced her dolls around joyfully.

Unbeknownst to Poppy she was being watched very closely for she had stumbled into the playground of a young wolf. But not just any wolf.

It watched her claim it’s little territory as it’s own and it didn’t like that. It’s fur was coarse and wiry, it’s eyes as dark as night and it too being of a young age was smaller than those in its pack.

In a flash the wolf charged at the girl who screamed a blood curdling scream. Her yellow sundress covered in blood.

Indie tried desperately to shake the memory from her head. She had suppressed it for so long but now she suddenly found herself at its mercy. Despite the cold, wet weather Indie pushed herself up off of the spot she occupied and ran towards the beach. Perhaps the cold sting of the water would force all thought from her mind.

Unfortunately for Indie the water was warmer than the air around her was as the sun quickly disappeared over the cliffs casting a long shadow over the entire area.

A second thought made Indie turn back to shore. She would surely drown in the choppy, storm like weather if she tried to cross the lake alone.

“Mommy, mommy.” A little girl called to her mother as she ran into the family home covered in blood.

Rita had been in the kitchen baking cookies but with her daughter’s arrival also came the stench of death, the stench of human.

“Indie darling,” Rita called as her little daughters head popped up. The six year old had twigs in her hair and dirt smudged everywhere but what shook Rita was the dark crimson stain that covered her daughters lips and dripped down her chest and torso. “What have you done?” She questioned her child breathlessly.

The blood was human, that much she could tell and the look on her daughter’s face was one of guilt and sorrow.

“I hurt the girl mommy,” Indie held her hands behind her back and swayed on the spot. Not even she knew what had happened.

Rita sent Indie to clean herself up and dress herself as she searched around the house for her first aid box.

Before long Indie instructed Rita where to go as they wound their way towards Indies favourite spot. The little forest stream where she would often go and play. It was quiet and mostly secluded and for Indie it was like a magical dream.

“Honey calm down.” The woman’s husband demanded lightly. “Let them help so we can get her to the hospital.”

They arrived the same time as the little girls parents who were visibly shocked at what they saw.

“Let us help please,” Rita rushed to the girl’s parents and saw the child bleeding profusely from two wounds. One at her shoulder and the other at her torso.

“How’d you know she was hurt!” The woman’s voice was accusing. “Did you do this!?” She questioned again.

“Please just let me help her. I need to stop the infection.” Rita was desperate to get her hands on the little girl who looked deathly pale.

“Honey calm down.” The woman’s husband demanded lightly. “Let them help so we can get her to the hospital.”

At his words Rita knelt beside the girl and let her limited knowledge of healing try and save her.

“You won’t be able to take her to the hospital,” Rita sighed as she flipped open the lid of her kit and began dabbing the wounds with an orange liquid. ” If you take her there she will be killed.”

Indie pulled herself back on to the rocky beach and watched as all light faded from the sky. The darkness that washed over everything was welcome.

Surely Noah wasn’t cruel enough to leave her stranded. Was he?

A slight chill crept into Indies body as she sat against the rocks of the shore and before too long she was shivering completely. Her body drenched from head to toe as she held out hope that Noah would return for her.

The rain eased slightly but Indie still couldn’t see to the far side of the lake no matter how hard she squinted.

Weakness quickly overcame her as she lay herself down against the lumpy rocks and stared out at the lake. Numbness soon took away her sense of comfort as she held on to every ounce of warmth she could.

The little girl’s wounds had clotted and began healing which meant her body was accepting the wolf bite. It meant she would survive. The child’s father had managed to move her up to their house as the sun set.

The movers had unloaded the rest of the gear and had gone for the night. There was enough unpacked that Poppy and her parents could at least sleep on a mattress on the floor.

“You have to create an elaborate lie.” Rita instructed Poppy’s parents. “If anyone discovers the truth then we will all be punished and the girls will most likely be killed.” It was a very real possibility as Indie lay next to Poppy on the mattress on the floor. Poppy’s mother had changed her bloody clothing and thrown it in a trash bag. “As long as she is around you no one else will catch your human scent.” Though she knew that some would replace it strange that they constantly smelled like Poppy.

“What will we tell people who ask?” Poppy’s father asked as he glanced back at his daughter.

“Linda you are an old friend of mine from college. Maybe we were dorm mates. You’ve moved up here from San Francisco for a quieter life and we’ve only just reconnected.” The lie grew large and it grew quickly. By the end of it the two families were such close friends that they were godmother to each other’s daughters.

It would have to do!

By the time the rain cleared Indie was very near passing out. In the distance she spotted a faint light bobbing on the water. An engine sound filled her ears as she heard shouting. A cloak of light settled over her before she knew it and she heard a splash hit the water. A set of hands picked her up as she found herself entombed in the arms of a very strong, warm person. It wasn’t Noah.

A sense of disappointment washed through her. Where was he? The man pulled her into the boat where Indie heard faint voices. Before they reached the shore she had passed out.

“Indie honey promise me you will never bite another living thing again!” Rita demanded of her daughter. “If you bite another human you will be taken away from mommy and daddy and you will never see Hunter or any of us again. Do you understand?” Though the true meaning of what she had done was lost on Indie she nodded her head as tears filled her eyes.

“I promise mommy. I will never let the wolf out to play ever again.” Indie replied with utter surety. She didn’t know it at such a young age but as she grew older she would take her vow seriously.

Soon the fear of being put to death was so strong that her promise not to shift turned to a thought that she couldn’t. That she was unable to. Her years of silent psychological abuse to herself had left it’s mark and just the thought of shifting terrified her so much that she shook with fear and often cried.