Lady and the Wolf [Book One, Lady and the Wolf Series] -Published-

Chapter Seven: Nightmares

As annoyed as he was throughout the days following Emma's birthday, today would have to top off his list. The Russian wolf marched back and forth throughout his office as someone he had detested, someone who could make the bile rise in the alpha's throat by her mere presence, someone who he never thought he would have to see again, stood leering at him as if he had killed her damn dog.

"Mother, please sit down," Drake tried to beckon as he pushed a seat towards the elderly woman.

"Be quiet, boy. You have done enough damage." The woman's thick Russian accent was noticeable, which made her son grimace.

Aleksandra Volkov had a voice that made Van's blood run cold. It was deep, much deeper than a woman's voice should be, and had the proper authority needed to be the mate of one of Russia's most powerful shifters, the former alpha, Van's adoptive father. His real father was a dark wolf that could shift into quite a huge and vicious sight and trumped any and all others when he was still alive.

"A human! It wasn't enough you had to mate one, was it? You had to go and pick up a tinier human. Do you know the whispers that are circulating? Do you know what I have seen of her, Drake?" Her big green eyes were wide as she stared up at her son. "I have seen what she will bring. That is why I am here!"

Drake's normally placid face darkened. "That's enough, Mother. She's just a little girl."

Aleksandra's brows furrowed in confusion at Drake's words. "I have seen what that little girl will bring. I have seen that girl soaking in the blood of our pack's future!"

A loud bang sounded from Van's desk, making both the woman and Drake's heads snap around to see what was happening. Their alpha had a steely gaze as he watched both carefully, his sharp claws peeling back across his desk and making a sharp screech that sent both the occupants reeling back.

Not only was Van's pack known for having such a large group but also for their most powerful asset — a golden wolf that could see into the future, near and far. Aleksandra was a she-wolf born with some blessed power centuries ago when his pack roamed free throughout the cold, barren lands of Russia, during a time where they did not have to hide their true forms. There was fear, but they were hailed like gods, and humans kept their distance. Now, only traces of their existence still lingered in bedtime tails and books, never to be believed in.

Aleksandra's eyes narrowed. "He will not stop. He will come for her, and you will be his sacrifice, Kostya. You think that day he came and slaughtered those humans was all by chance?"

"My name is not Kostya," Van growled, malice dripping from his tone. He hated that name, and Aleksandra knew that.

Aleksandra smiled. "You don't invite Riding Hood into your home and not expect the hunter to come looking, Van."

She clasped her purse shut and left the office of her alpha; her heels clicking loudly down the hall as she headed towards the elevator. Drake sighed heavily before chasing his mother, slamming the door closed behind him as he left.

Van frowned. Only a few people confused him, but Aleksandra and her future telling magic seemed to be filled with nothing but riddles. Aleksandra was wrong; Aira Blight was just a child that was caught in the middle of war — a war she would never be a part of. The rogues that left her family slaughtered in the rain wouldn't come back for her.

I have seen what that little girl will bring. I have seen that girl soaking in the blood of our pack's future!

If that fortune came to be, he wouldn't hesitate in killing the human himself.

*******

"Mother!"

The irritated she-wolf turned her head to stare at Drake, her eyebrows creasing slightly at the delay, showing briefly the dread she had tried to mask while in Van's presence. She knew she was being doubted, and if there was anything Aleksandra Volkov hated most, being doubted was certainly in her top ten.

"What is it? I'm tired and just want to go back to my hotel," she snapped.

As Drake slowed to a halt beside his mother, he asked, "Is it true what you said?"

Her face dropped slightly. "You doubt me too, son?"

Drake shook his head. "I don't doubt you, but what you said was going too far. Were those rogues really after Aira?" His desperation was showing. He wanted answers, but Aleksandra couldn't help but notice both her son and Van both shy away from her dreaded warning of the future, a future that the human could possibly destroy their entire existence.

She sighed as she gently clutched her purse to her chest. "You know as well as I do that Van is a target, and if by chance he found a mate, he could possibly become a very strong leader."

Drake was confused as he took a step forward. "What do you mean?"

Aleksandra smiled. "They came looking for the mate of the Konstantin that day they attacked the humans. It's too bad the seer they have on their side is not very accurate for they came a few years too early. It's ironic. Their attempt at changing the future really did set everything in stone, yes?"

Drake was in shock and trying to take in what his mother had just revealed to him. Her smile never faltered as she gently touched her son's face, her perfectly manicured nails gently grazing his cheek as she said; "You're just like your father, so compassionate. But sometimes taking in strays only leads to trouble." As she said this, her eyes shifted down the hallway towards Van's door. "I sometimes thank the spirits Van took over when he did. I wonder if this girl reminds him of himself, after all, a child that was raised from murder and misery is bound to lead a lonely existence. The nightmares still rip him apart."

Drake never said a word as his mother left the building.

*******

"Emma!"

She had heard the screaming long before her name was shouted so desperately. She couldn't believe that the nightmares that plagued Aira so viciously could actually hurt her during the day. When Aira had first been plagued with these horrible night terrors, Emma was convinced it was simply at night, but during the day, they seemed to be just as frequent when Aira went to sleep. She was exhausted from being kept awake for most of the night, fearing her dreams above all else.

As Emma reached her daughter's bedroom, the sight of the dark-haired child huddled up in the corner, shivering and sobbing, no longer made her frantic with worry. This ritual happened day and night like clockwork. Emma even knew the dream that plagued her child; of wolves chasing her through a dense forest, biting at her heels and murdering strange people who tried to protect her. Aira would never remember that those same people she often dreamt about were her own family, people who had given their lives protecting her.

"Shush, it's okay, honey. Emma's here," she cooed as she cradled Aira in the corner of her pink bedroom.

Aira nuzzled her head into Emma, sobbing quietly as she said, "There-there was so-so much blood..."

Vaughn, the pup Aira had rescued in the forest on Emma's birthday, whimpered as he licked the shivering girl's arm. Emma had decided to let Aira keep him despite the puppy eventually growing into the size of a small horse.

Emma seemed confused. Aira had never dreamt about blood before despite her dreams involving death. She had never told Emma anything like this before. "Blood?"

Aira nodded. "I-I was covered in blood, and those wolves, they were everywhere. They were growling and-and one—" she began to sob harder as Emma cradled her.

Emma was shocked she could hardly speak. "And what, sweetheart?" she stuttered, afraid of Aira's answer.

Aira's bright blue eyes shifted to look at Emma's pale face. "Hero was a giant wolf."