I watch his shocked face as what I had blurted falls into place in his confused mind. He sits on the couch again after he'd stood. He puts his face in his hands. "Please tell me that you know who the guy was who knocked you up." He says bitterly. I look at him as hurt and rage fills me.
"This baby isn't the result of some naiive, drunken mistake, dad. Yes, I knew the guy. We had been together for five years before we had sex last month for the first time. Somehow, though, the doctor I'd went to see says that I seem to be further along, but last month, to the day, was the first and only time we did it. He died a week later while under the influence as he was coming home from a friend's party." I say looking at my feet. I hear my father audibly sigh.
"I suppose that it's time." He says. I back away in confusion. What could he possibly mean by "it's time"? He motions me to follow him and he walks out the back door. He walks down a familiar path. I follow as best as I can.
"Dad, where are we going?" I ask fearfully.
"Just follow." He says not once changing his pace. I sigh and stumble along behind him. Suddenly we break through a clearing and I gasp. It's an entire community tucked away in the woods beside a deserted highway.
"D-dad, what is this?" I ask as we walk towards a large four story mansion.
"Welcome to the pack, Korinna." He says. I gasp and sway as repressed memories come flooding to the surface. Me shifting into a white and silver wolf, being betrothed and mated to a she-wolf, another Royal, being rejected, asking my father to erase my memories to take away the pain.
"H-How? When? Why?" I stutter out near tears. He looks sheepishly at me.
"I'm sorry, Kori. I had to. It was killing you when Grace rejected you and accused you of not being her true mate. You begged me to. I couldn't watch you writhing in agony. Your wolf almost died." He says softly as a woman comes down the stairs before freezing.
"Zeke? You said she wouldn't remember." The woman says stopping on the next to the last step. Her grey eyes flash with worry as she slowly walks to my father.
"Laura, she's pregnant. The prophecy is coming to light. I had to unlock the memories so that she could remember. You're a Shaman, didn't you see this happening?" He asks in a hushed tone.
"We should take this to the office, so that the others don't hear." The woman, Laura, suggests walking back up the stairs where she'd come from. My father and I follow her.
"What prophecy? What does that have to do with my baby? How am I involved?" I demand glaring at the black hair, fair skinned woman with grey eyes.
"Korinna, have you ever thought about that the stories you've heard through your youth may have been true and maybe they were our history that your father has been telling you?" She asks. I frown confused.
"The Royal family is powerful and you are the younger twin of the Queen of Werewolves. She died when you and your sister were fairly young. Amelia was the only one that was thought to have survived. See, we'd been together before we'd met our mates and it just took one foolish night of drinking then a week later she was pregnant. Five months later and she has you and your sister. You were thought to have died. Then, as she's walking around with Amelia, she meets her mate and that was the last time the hospital saw her. They tried to tell her that her second daughter was alive, but the King of Werewolves didn't believe them because of the plots against the kingdom. I was granted full custody of you immediately and your mother had custody of Amelia. Your mother was a simple werewolf without any visible gifts but I am a hybrid, half witch and half werewolf. You and your sister are a quarter witch each. The prophecy speaks of the twin witch's offspring will rise and ascend a joint throne and destroy the rogues which will climb out of the forests and the crypts." My father says. I gulp audibly before worrying with my bottom lip.
"So, my sister and I are the ones from the prophecy without any doubts?" I ask doubtful.
"Yes, without a doubt. Your child will make it to where your lineage will inherit the throne before hers should you choose to follow the path of the prophecy." Laura says softly.
"So, how the hell am I royal without my mom's true mate?" I ask narrowing my eyes at my father.
"I present to you, Queen Charlotte Aurora Lauran Micheals-Pierce, Queen of the North American Werewolves." My father says with a slight smile. I barely hear as a scream echoes in the room and my body feels as though I'm on fire. I then realize that it's me screaming.
"She's shifting. Take her outside." Laura says opening the door for us quickly. My father scoops me up and runs out with me.
When I open my eyes, I'm looking into a lake deep in the woods, but it's not my face. A loud yelp sounds close to where i am as I am scramble away from the white and silver wolf in the water. When I look around, a black wolf and a gold and white she-wolf join me. The she-wolf is radiating power and authority as she stands beside the black wolf who oddly looks familiar.
'KORI, CAN YOU HEAR ME?' my father's voice says softly. I look around for him and the two wolves make throaty sounds that sound almost like chuckling.
Laura says softly as well. I look around for her as well.
'AMELIA WILL BE HERE FOR A MEETING WITH THE COUNCIL AND ALL OTHER ROYALS SOON. WE HAVE TO CATCH KORINNA UP ON ALL THE TRAININGS SHE HAS MISSED.' my father says as the black wolf looks at the she-wolf. That's when it clicked.
'IM THE WHITE AND SILVER WOLF AREN'T I? YOU ARE THE TWO WOLVES IN FRONT OF ME.' I think hard grasping onto the threads that tether me to them. The wolves bow their heads once as a nod.
They start teaching me the basics: how to shift back to my human form, that my true wolf should be appearing soon and to not be frightened of the voice, that wolf pregnancies grow shorter when they shift but risk harming the pup and that the pregnancy without shifting is only 5 months long for regular wolves but 3 months for Royals and Alphas.
When we walk back to the large packhouse, various expensive looking cars sit in the driveway.
