The Prophecy Of The Wolves I - The Beginning
~ Chapter One ~

It had been nine years since her parents had died. Evelyn and Ryan had done their best to raise her and help her through the trauma of losing them. They became second parents to her, but they started getting busier with the pack over time. The more active they got with the pack business, the more time she spent in the forest.

Liliana was walking through the forest, taking everything in with astonished eyes. Her love for the forest had never died, even after that horrifying day. She felt as if she were closer to her parents when she was in the woods. Liliana lightly traced her fingers over the charms on her bracelet. She had made them herself and had put a small number of her parents’ ashes in each one. That way, they were always with her.

Liliana was petting an adorable fox when it suddenly grew skittish and ran away. She frowned as she looked around. It only took her a minute to replace the hellhounds that had scared off the fox. She took a few steps backward and stared at the hounds with wide, frightened eyes. Hellhounds had never been seen in the area before. They couldn’t even leave the underworld unless someone had summoned them.

Liliana’s frown deepened when the hounds started stalking toward her as if she were the one they were after. She quickly spun around and started running as fast as she could. Unfortunately, the hellhounds were slightly faster than her as they easily caught up to her. Liliana let out a loud cry of pain and terror as one of them got their razor-sharp teeth into her calf. She fell to the ground and tried to crawl away as the hounds stalked closer to her.

Liliana threw her arms up to try and protect her face when she heard something hit the ground in front of her. She looked up and saw a tall man standing with his back toward her. Liliana watched in amazement as he moved faster than the hounds. Within minutes he had killed all five of the hellhounds that had been after her.

Liliana lay curled at the base of a tree as the man turned to her with a reassuring smile. “Hey, little one,” he said in a gentle tone. “I’m not going to hurt you. I promise.”

Liliana studied him for a minute before whispering. “Who are you?”

He flashed her a bright grin. “My name is Jacques,” he said softly. “What’s your name, little one?”

She gave him a small, tentative smile. “I’m Liliana,” she said quietly.

Jacques grinned as he knelt in front of her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, little Liliana,” he inhaled deeply and frowned. “Were you hurt, little Liliana?” He asked as he looked her over.

Liliana slightly moved the calf that had been bitten and nodded with a frown. “Yeah. One of them got my calf,” she said quietly.

Jacques gently took her leg in his hand and looked at her calf. It was a deep bite that wouldn’t heal on its own. He could smell that the young girl in front of him didn’t have a wolf. “Are you feeling tired at all?” He questioned as he glanced up at her.

Liliana nodded as she exhaled harshly. “I am getting sleepy,” she said in an exhausted voice.

Jacques was enjoying the calm of the forest when he heard it. Footsteps rushed toward the tree that he was lounging in. He frowned as he looked toward Orthrus and gave him a slight nod toward the thicker part of the forest, telling him to hide. Orthrus backed into the woods as Jacques stood in the tree and looked toward the sound.

Jacques’s frown deepened when he saw a young-looking girl running toward him. His forehead creased in confusion when he found five hellhounds on her heels.

One lunged forward and took a bite out of her calf, sending her to the ground screaming in agony and terror. Jacques watched as she tried to scramble backward to get away from the hounds. Finally, as Liliana threw her arms up to try and protect herself, he couldn’t take anymore. He swiftly jumped from the tree and landed protectively in front of her.

Jacques watched as the hounds hesitated for a few seconds before running straight toward him. He scoffed and smirked as he went on the offensive and quickly sent all five hounds back to the underworld.

Once Jacques was sure they were safe, he turned toward the young girl. Liliana was frightened and huddled into the tree trunk as he knelt in front of her. Jacques reassured her that she was safe and that no one would hurt her while he was there. Jacques knew that she was bleeding, but he had to comfort her and gain her trust before he could do anything to help her. Jacques knew he had gained her confidence the second she gave him a small, tentative smile before fainting from blood loss.

Jacques swore quietly as he gently picked her up. He let out a low whistle and chuckled when he heard Orthrus coming toward him. Jacques gently rubbed the two-headed dog’s ears as he held Liliana in his other arm.

“This is Liliana, Orthrus,” he said as they started walking toward their house deep in the mountains close to the forest. “From now on, we are going to make sure that she stays safe,” he said as they made it to their house in no time.

Jacques went inside while Orthrus went around the house to the bit of woods next to the house. He went to a guest room and laid Liliana on the bed. Jacques quickly grabbed a wet towel and wiped the blood from her leg so that he could see how bad the damage was. He grimaced as he carefully moved her leg around to get a better view of the bite.

The bite was terrible, but he didn’t want to give her his blood without her consent. He wasn’t sure if she would be okay with it or not. He knew that she was old enough to choose for herself. He blew out a rough breath as he gently shook her awake. “Little Liliana,” he said softly. “I need you to wake up.”

Liliana moaned as she lifted an arm to rub her eyes. She groaned as she sat up slightly. “Where am I?” She asked in a quiet voice.

Jacques held his hands up to show that he meant no harm. “You’re at my house. I promise I’m not going to hurt you. You’re safe here.”

Liliana nodded as she gave him a small smile. “Thank you for saving me,” she said softly.

Jacques grinned as he sat on the bed next to her. “There’s no need to thank me, little one.”

Liliana moaned in pain as she moved her injured leg. “How bad is it?” She asked as she looked down at it.

Jacques sighed. “It’s pretty bad, but I have a way to heal it instantly. If it’s alright with you,” he said gently.

Liliana bit her lip. “How would you heal it?” She asked after a minute.

“Since I’m a vampire, I can heal anyone with my blood,” Jacques explained as he folded his arms over his chest.

“I have to drink your blood?” Liliana asked with furrowed eyebrows.

Jacques nodded. “Yes, but if you drink my blood to heal your leg, then I will always be able to know exactly where you are,” he explained as he studied her.

Liliana bit her lip as she looked at her bloody leg. “You saved me,” she whispered to herself. Then, she looked up at him. “Will it taste bad?” She asked softly.

Jacques shook his head. “I could mix it with something to make it taste sweet,” he said gently.

Liliana smiled brightly. “I love sweet things,” she said happily.

Jacques chuckled as he stood up. “Alright. Give me just a minute,” he rushed to his kitchen and quickly made a sweet drink. Once it was ready, he cut his wrist and let a decent amount of his blood drip into the glass. When he was sure there was enough blood to heal her fully, he let the cut seal itself as he mixed her drink. He returned to the guest room and handed her the glass as he stood by the bed. “Here you are, little Liliana. You have to drink all of it,” he said softly.

Liliana nodded and took a small sip, simply tasting it to see if she liked it. Her eyes went wide as she took another drink. “This is delicious,” she said with a joyful grin.

Jacques chuckled as he sat down on the edge of the bed, careful not to jostle her leg. “Make sure you drink all of it, little one,” he said softly.

Liliana grinned and took another drink.

Jacques was glad that she was enjoying the drink. “Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?” He asked with his head tilted slightly to the side.

Liliana shrugged with a bright smile. “Ask away,” she said as she took another drink out of her glass.

Jacques chuckled. “How about we start with how old you are?” He asked as he moved to sit with his legs crisscrossed in front of him.

Liliana licked her lips before answering. “I’m fourteen,” she said.

Jacques frowned as he looked at her calf. It was starting to heal well enough with the bit of blood that she had already consumed. “Why were you in the forest by yourself?” He questioned as he leaned against the footboard.

Liliana took another drink out of her glass before exhaling slowly. “No one in the pack talks to me,” she shrugged. “I mean, Sharon, our pack doctor, is sweet. She’s training me in all things medical. Then, of course, Ryan and Evelyn, the alpha and luna, are like parents to me, but they’re all busy with their everyday work. Plus, I don’t mind being in the forest by myself. Makes me feel closer to my parents, and I love all the nature and animals,” she said as she looked at the glass she had resting in her lap.

Jacques was confused. Liliana was a sweetheart. “Why doesn’t anyone talk to you?” He asked with a creased forehead. “You seem like such a sweetheart.”

Liliana sighed heavily. “Well, first of all, I’m the runt of the pack. I have no wolf, so that makes a lot of people stray away from me. Second, most of the pack blames me for my parents’ deaths.”

Jacques frowned as he folded his arms over his chest. “Why would they blame you for that?” He asked.

Liliana took a deep breath and finished the drink in her glass. She set it on the nightstand before leaning against the pillows and headboard. “Well, now that’s a long story,” she said quietly.

“I have all the time in the world,” Jacques said as he got comfortable in bed.

Liliana cleared her throat. “Okay,” she blew out a rough breath. “When I was five, my parents died. A lot of the pack blamed me for it,” she scoffed. “They were the best enforcers in the pack. They were the best, but they always made time for me. Of course, they always kept the pack safe. But I was their number one priority,” she explained.

Jacques nodded in understanding. “You were their daughter. Any good parent would put their child first.”

Liliana sighed as she looked down at her calf to replace it fully healed. As she got comfortable again, she continued. “One day, we were all outside enjoying the weather. I was only five,” she sniffled and took a deep breath. “A small baby fox had wandered into our yard. I remember playing with the fox while my parents watched from the porch. The fox ran back into the forest after a while. I turned to my parents and noticed they weren’t paying attention to me at that moment.”

Jacques knew what had happened before she could say it. “You decided to chase the fox into the forest,” he stated in a matter-of-fact tone.

Liliana nodded as she folded her arms over her stomach. “I didn’t realize how far I had gone until the fox finally hid in a small burrow. I stood up and looked around when I couldn’t reach the fox. It was a part of the forest I had never been in before because it was too far from home. Mama and daddy always made sure that I stayed close,” she could feel the tears gathering in her eyes, and she knew Jacques could hear her voice thickening with the emotion of her story. “As I looked around, this group of horrifying men came out of the thicker part of the trees. They were dirty, and the one that spoke was mean. I tried to run, but he easily picked me up and tossed me into a tree trunk close by,” she cleared her throat as her voice caught. “I was so scared. I didn’t understand what was happening at the time. My parents got to me before the man could hurt me anymore. They stood between the group of rogues and me.”

“They were keeping you safe,” Jacques said as he studied her.

Liliana nodded. “I still didn’t understand what was happening since I was so young. I just knew my father was standing protectively in front of my mom and me while my mom spoke with me. At first, she asked if I was alright. She checked to make sure I was alright, but then she glanced at my dad, and something happened. My mom had told me to run when they said. I need to run and not look back, no matter what I hear. She even took off the anniversary necklace my father gave her when I was born and put it on me. She said that they both loved me, and they had to keep the rogues busy until I could get to the packhouse and get help,” she shook her head as more tears streamed down her face. “I ran as fast as I could. I didn’t look back, and I didn’t let anything slow me down. I ran straight to the packhouse and barged inside. I went right up to Ryan and got his attention. I told him that my parents needed help, and he rushed outside with a big group of our warriors,” she hiccupped as she ran a hand through her hair. “They were too late. By the time they got there, my parents were gone.”

Jacques sat there in shock. “Your pack shouldn’t blame you for that. It was a group of rogues against two people. They may have been the best, but eventually, they would have been overwhelmed. Anyone would have been in that situation.”

Liliana shrugged. “Doesn’t stop them from blaming me,” she sighed as she took a deep breath and wiped her eyes. “Your turn,” she said.

Jacques raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?” He questioned.

“I want to know about you,” Liliana said with a small smile.

Jacques chuckled. Of course, the little one wanted to know about the man who had saved her life. “Alright, little one. I’ll tell you, but we might be here for a while.”

Liliana shrugged. “Most people don’t care when I come and go in the pack. Evelyn and Ryan are busy with pack business, but they know that I like to explore and that I sometimes wander too far,” she explained.

Jacques nodded with a small smile. “Alright. I’ll tell you my story, but no judgments,” he said with a playful glare.