Status: Alive and Kicking!
The Ripple Effect
Home was Nowhere
It was the same nightmare I always had, the recurring dream that made me dread the moon that I had once loved. I had just come home after celebrating my eighteenth birthday with some friends. My mother greeted me at the door with a hug, and my father called to us both from the living room. We always watched ‘I Love Lucy’ together, and I loved the time we spent together. My entire family wasn't so close-knit, but I did cherish my parents. They were my best friends.
We lived in the middle of nowhere, the nearest neighbor being a half-mile away. Mother and Father built the house here, and when I had asked why my father had said that Mother loved trees and this had a small wooded area right in the backyard. It was perfectly well and good with me, too, because I had inherited my mother’s love of the wilderness.
Once the episode was over, Father excused himself to bed after kissing my forehead and wishing me a happy birthday. Mother gave me a speech about how proud she was of me and how I was going to make some lucky male and his entire village very happy someday, and then she retired with my father. I hadn’t been ready to go to sleep yet because it had only just reached midnight, so I returned outside and dashed barefoot through the backyard.
Our little forest was wonderful, a square mile of dense trees with a small clearing in the middle. I loved lying out there under the moon’s light, absorbing the peace and stillness that surrounded me. The pull was especially strong tonight, so there was no way I could resist the call of outside.
I pushed past a particularly large tree, ducking under the branches that tried to hinder my movement. My guidance was provided only by the moon that illuminated the night and the instinct that dragged my feet onward.
After what seemed like forever, I finally reached the center of the woodland and leaned against one of the trees so I could stare up at the moon looming over me. I would be so happy if I could only reach up and drag the floating orb closer.
I bent down and picked up an empty beer can, growling at the piece of litter as I set it on a nearby rotting log to take back when I returned home. My hands smoothed my blue dress back down. Perhaps I should have changed after the club; skin-tight dresses certainly weren’t apt for a hike in the forest!
“So beautiful,” I murmured, sitting carefully on a rock so my dress would stop sliding upward. “Why can’t I have you, Moon?”
Absently, I played with the necklace hanging around my neck, a gift my mother had bestowed upon me when I had turned six years old. The delicate moon charm had only heightened my love for the beautiful night sky, so I came here as often as I could. My elbows pressed into my thighs, and I rested my chin in my hands as I became absorbed in the serenity around me. This was home, this and nowhere else—unless somewhere else would place me right beside the moon.
But then I heard a twig snap. Normally I would laugh it off as a lost deer, but then there was a quiet curse. I stood quickly, my eyes darting about the area and scanning for danger. Not even the moon was worth waiting around to see who had followed me here.
I tiptoed quietly so as not to make a sound and alert whoever was here. My fingers grazed an old stump as I reached the edge of the clearing and returned to the dense thicket.
But a hand grabbed at my wrist, jerking me backward and nearly pulling my arm out of its socket. A scream tore through my throat, but his other hand clamped over my mouth and pulled my head so his lips were right at my ear. I stared at him through wide, trembling eyes.
“Leaving so soon?” he snarled, his crazy blue gaze narrowed and dancing with an evil glint.
I whimpered, prying at his hand with my fingers; but I couldn’t get a good grip with the panic that made my entire body quiver!
“I’ve been watching you for so long, my love,” he breathed, squeezing my face in his hands as I slammed my eyes shut before tears could trail down my cheeks. “You’re not going to leave when I’ve finally got you, are you? That would break my heart…”
I began sobbing when his nose trailed along my neck, his exhale shaky as he pulled my body tightly to his.
“By the gods, you just came of age, didn’t you?” he whispered with a voice that quivered dangerously, and his lips pressed firmly to my neck. I shuddered when his tongue darted out and trailed across my skin. “And you’re in heat, baby. Your first heat, and you’re mine. How did I get so damnably lucky?”
He eased up his pressure, allowing me to breathe and beg him to let me go.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I choked, my fingers still clinging to his large hand that hovered over my lips. “Please, just let me go. Please! I won’t tell anyone, I swear; just let me go!”
“This is a bit of a turn-off,” he muttered, clamping his hand over my mouth again as I began to squirm frantically against his hold. “Good thing you’re beautiful. I’ll manage. How about you shift, then? I’d like to chase you first before we mate.”
I shook my head fervently; I didn’t know what the hell he was talking about! He wasn’t making any sense! But I didn’t want to stay around long enough to figure him out.
I lifted my knee, bringing it upward between his legs with as much force as I could muster. He groaned in pain and tumbled backwards. I took it as my opportunity to run.
“Help!” I screamed as loud as my lungs could bear, pushing against trees and weaving between roots. The forest just stretched out before me! I heard a loud, angry growl that echoed around me followed by an even angrier snarl. “Help me, please! Help!”
“You’ll pay for that, you dirty bitch!” he hissed just before his body fell onto mine, knocking both of us to the ground.
Unfortunately, I took the full force of the fall as I was pushed against rocks and roots and mud. He grabbed at my face roughly, glowering down at me.
“I guess that will do for the damn chase,” he spat, sneering at me and gripping my face more tightly.
“Please!” I sputtered, reaching up with shaking arms that were bleeding from the fall. My hands pushed at his chest, but he didn’t budge. This man was surely 500 pounds of brick! “If you want money, you can have it—just let me go!”
“I said that talking was a turnoff, babe,” he reminded me with a scolding tone, smiling mockingly. “I don’t want your money; I want you.”
Before I could respond, he crushed his lips against mine in a punishing, bruising kiss. I pushed against him more, wriggling and kicking as much as I could. He didn’t even seem to notice! I kept my mouth firmly closed when his revolting tongue began prodding at my lips, but he easily pried past the barrier and plunged down my throat.
I was going to be sick! His hand moved to my throat and held me in place while the other slipped under my back. I tried to press back into the ground when he crushed his hips against mine, but there was no room to run.
Then I heard the zipping sound, and my dress loosened around me.
I slammed my head to the mud, screaming and begging him to stop. Just let me go! But he just shook his head at me disapprovingly before tossing his shirt over his head, still straddling me.
“Baby, this is your first time, I know. That’s why I need you to be a good girl; it’s not my fault that you’re perfect… You can’t hold this against me.” He unzipped his jeans without once removing his evil eyes from my face, and he awkwardly managed to slip out of them without giving me any room to move and escape.
I screamed and pleaded more, pushing away his hands when he gripped my dress and pulled it off of me. My body was just convulsing, refusing to comply with me. I would rather die than let him touch me a second longer! Not only was my mind aware of how repugnant he was, but my very skin hated him as well. He reached toward me with a nail that looked more like a claw, and it took only one quick swipe to ruin my undergarments.
“Please!” I screamed one last time before he slapped a hand over my mouth again, shifting and moving my knees despite how I redirected all of my energy in fighting him.
“Just bite down when it hurts; and it’s going to hurt. But I can handle it,” he breathed, brushing his thumb over my cheek. “Shh, don’t cry. This will be over soon, and then it can really begin.”
I knew what he had meant by that a few months later, when my mother found out I was pregnant.
The tears on her face... It had been enough to all but kill me. Then she slapped me, shoved me out the door, and locked me out in the cold.
My best friend. Gone. I had begged and pleaded, pounding on the door. I even slept there for the night, praying my papa would let me back in and my mama would pull me back into her arms. But they didn't.
So I had to pick myself up and run, run with no direction and without any idea of where I was heading. The only reason I didn't give up and leave my body to the crows...
The only reason I survived...
Was Rein.
We lived in the middle of nowhere, the nearest neighbor being a half-mile away. Mother and Father built the house here, and when I had asked why my father had said that Mother loved trees and this had a small wooded area right in the backyard. It was perfectly well and good with me, too, because I had inherited my mother’s love of the wilderness.
Once the episode was over, Father excused himself to bed after kissing my forehead and wishing me a happy birthday. Mother gave me a speech about how proud she was of me and how I was going to make some lucky male and his entire village very happy someday, and then she retired with my father. I hadn’t been ready to go to sleep yet because it had only just reached midnight, so I returned outside and dashed barefoot through the backyard.
Our little forest was wonderful, a square mile of dense trees with a small clearing in the middle. I loved lying out there under the moon’s light, absorbing the peace and stillness that surrounded me. The pull was especially strong tonight, so there was no way I could resist the call of outside.
I pushed past a particularly large tree, ducking under the branches that tried to hinder my movement. My guidance was provided only by the moon that illuminated the night and the instinct that dragged my feet onward.
After what seemed like forever, I finally reached the center of the woodland and leaned against one of the trees so I could stare up at the moon looming over me. I would be so happy if I could only reach up and drag the floating orb closer.
I bent down and picked up an empty beer can, growling at the piece of litter as I set it on a nearby rotting log to take back when I returned home. My hands smoothed my blue dress back down. Perhaps I should have changed after the club; skin-tight dresses certainly weren’t apt for a hike in the forest!
“So beautiful,” I murmured, sitting carefully on a rock so my dress would stop sliding upward. “Why can’t I have you, Moon?”
Absently, I played with the necklace hanging around my neck, a gift my mother had bestowed upon me when I had turned six years old. The delicate moon charm had only heightened my love for the beautiful night sky, so I came here as often as I could. My elbows pressed into my thighs, and I rested my chin in my hands as I became absorbed in the serenity around me. This was home, this and nowhere else—unless somewhere else would place me right beside the moon.
But then I heard a twig snap. Normally I would laugh it off as a lost deer, but then there was a quiet curse. I stood quickly, my eyes darting about the area and scanning for danger. Not even the moon was worth waiting around to see who had followed me here.
I tiptoed quietly so as not to make a sound and alert whoever was here. My fingers grazed an old stump as I reached the edge of the clearing and returned to the dense thicket.
But a hand grabbed at my wrist, jerking me backward and nearly pulling my arm out of its socket. A scream tore through my throat, but his other hand clamped over my mouth and pulled my head so his lips were right at my ear. I stared at him through wide, trembling eyes.
“Leaving so soon?” he snarled, his crazy blue gaze narrowed and dancing with an evil glint.
I whimpered, prying at his hand with my fingers; but I couldn’t get a good grip with the panic that made my entire body quiver!
“I’ve been watching you for so long, my love,” he breathed, squeezing my face in his hands as I slammed my eyes shut before tears could trail down my cheeks. “You’re not going to leave when I’ve finally got you, are you? That would break my heart…”
I began sobbing when his nose trailed along my neck, his exhale shaky as he pulled my body tightly to his.
“By the gods, you just came of age, didn’t you?” he whispered with a voice that quivered dangerously, and his lips pressed firmly to my neck. I shuddered when his tongue darted out and trailed across my skin. “And you’re in heat, baby. Your first heat, and you’re mine. How did I get so damnably lucky?”
He eased up his pressure, allowing me to breathe and beg him to let me go.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I choked, my fingers still clinging to his large hand that hovered over my lips. “Please, just let me go. Please! I won’t tell anyone, I swear; just let me go!”
“This is a bit of a turn-off,” he muttered, clamping his hand over my mouth again as I began to squirm frantically against his hold. “Good thing you’re beautiful. I’ll manage. How about you shift, then? I’d like to chase you first before we mate.”
I shook my head fervently; I didn’t know what the hell he was talking about! He wasn’t making any sense! But I didn’t want to stay around long enough to figure him out.
I lifted my knee, bringing it upward between his legs with as much force as I could muster. He groaned in pain and tumbled backwards. I took it as my opportunity to run.
“Help!” I screamed as loud as my lungs could bear, pushing against trees and weaving between roots. The forest just stretched out before me! I heard a loud, angry growl that echoed around me followed by an even angrier snarl. “Help me, please! Help!”
“You’ll pay for that, you dirty bitch!” he hissed just before his body fell onto mine, knocking both of us to the ground.
Unfortunately, I took the full force of the fall as I was pushed against rocks and roots and mud. He grabbed at my face roughly, glowering down at me.
“I guess that will do for the damn chase,” he spat, sneering at me and gripping my face more tightly.
“Please!” I sputtered, reaching up with shaking arms that were bleeding from the fall. My hands pushed at his chest, but he didn’t budge. This man was surely 500 pounds of brick! “If you want money, you can have it—just let me go!”
“I said that talking was a turnoff, babe,” he reminded me with a scolding tone, smiling mockingly. “I don’t want your money; I want you.”
Before I could respond, he crushed his lips against mine in a punishing, bruising kiss. I pushed against him more, wriggling and kicking as much as I could. He didn’t even seem to notice! I kept my mouth firmly closed when his revolting tongue began prodding at my lips, but he easily pried past the barrier and plunged down my throat.
I was going to be sick! His hand moved to my throat and held me in place while the other slipped under my back. I tried to press back into the ground when he crushed his hips against mine, but there was no room to run.
Then I heard the zipping sound, and my dress loosened around me.
I slammed my head to the mud, screaming and begging him to stop. Just let me go! But he just shook his head at me disapprovingly before tossing his shirt over his head, still straddling me.
“Baby, this is your first time, I know. That’s why I need you to be a good girl; it’s not my fault that you’re perfect… You can’t hold this against me.” He unzipped his jeans without once removing his evil eyes from my face, and he awkwardly managed to slip out of them without giving me any room to move and escape.
I screamed and pleaded more, pushing away his hands when he gripped my dress and pulled it off of me. My body was just convulsing, refusing to comply with me. I would rather die than let him touch me a second longer! Not only was my mind aware of how repugnant he was, but my very skin hated him as well. He reached toward me with a nail that looked more like a claw, and it took only one quick swipe to ruin my undergarments.
“Please!” I screamed one last time before he slapped a hand over my mouth again, shifting and moving my knees despite how I redirected all of my energy in fighting him.
“Just bite down when it hurts; and it’s going to hurt. But I can handle it,” he breathed, brushing his thumb over my cheek. “Shh, don’t cry. This will be over soon, and then it can really begin.”
I knew what he had meant by that a few months later, when my mother found out I was pregnant.
The tears on her face... It had been enough to all but kill me. Then she slapped me, shoved me out the door, and locked me out in the cold.
My best friend. Gone. I had begged and pleaded, pounding on the door. I even slept there for the night, praying my papa would let me back in and my mama would pull me back into her arms. But they didn't.
So I had to pick myself up and run, run with no direction and without any idea of where I was heading. The only reason I didn't give up and leave my body to the crows...
The only reason I survived...
Was Rein.