The Gift

Chapter Six

'Maila, set me free,' the voice whispered seductively in her mind. 'Maila, set me free,' the voice pressed once more. 'Sweet Maila, come release me and I will grant you your deepest desire. Come Maila, come and set me free.'

"Noooo" Maila screamed herself out of the trance. Sweat dripping down her neck. Her fingers wrapped around the brass door knob. She leaped back, hand dropped to her side. The Crown was getting stronger, the voices came more frequently now.

"Mai, you ok honey?" Jackson jumped out of the shower.

"Now, I'm good," she said and offered him a meek smile.

"Are you sure?" He asked as he snaked his arms around her waist.

"Yeah, I'm ok."

With a deep sigh he let her go, "I'm going back to my shower now, you are more than welcome to join me," he finished off with a wink.

"Well, it looks like I will join you since you got me all wet!"

"Mission accomplished. Don't make me wait, my queen."

"Don't push your luck Mr. Silva," she said and followed him in the shower.

They were getting ready leave their private quarters when Jackson gently grabbed her by the shoulder.

"We need to talk about this?"

"Not now."

"Maila darling, we must discuss this. It just keeps getting worse."

"Fine. But not now. I promise we'll talk about it tonight." She said not waiting for his response and left the room.

◇◇◇◇

Her paws were flying off the ground as she was making her way through the densely populated jungle. She had lost her security detail within the first five minutes of her run. It was imperative that she was followed by no one.

She needed to do this alone. She would reach the ruins soon enough, she took her last leap and landed over the bushes that ruggedly shaped the entrance of the courtyard. She could feel the power surge emanating from the Crown as she entered the temple. Maila's bones cracking echoed in the grandiose emptiness of the ancient shrine room as she shifted back to her human form.

'Maila dear, you have come for me.'

"Yes, I have come," she replied as she took in the wild beauty of the chamber once again. Overgrown trees were covering the walls, the once magnificent brightly painted ceilings had now gave way to the oddly shaped yet colourful flora.

This place had been her sanctuary since her teenage years, it had given her shelter during a night hunt when she got separated from the pack.

'I'm delighted to see that you have come to your senses'

"I bet you are," she grunted under her breath.

She started digging her hands in the dirt, shoving the soil all around her.

'Maila dearest, what is taking you so long?'

"Patience my Crown," she said sweetly.

Once Maila was satisfied that the hole was now deeper than the previous one, she went to the other corner of the room and dug up the lead box that held the Crown.

'Hurry my Queen, and I'll give you what you need. I'll give you the world. Anything you desire will be yours.'

A low growl escaped her lungs. She needed to be strong.

"My lovely Crown, a few moments more and you shall be free. I only ask that you remain calm" Maila voiced.

'Maila dearest, you will be the greatest Queen the world has ever seen.'

"Just a few more moments." Maila said through gritted teeth. She grabbed the lead box gently, took the second lead box she had brought with her and shoved the first one in it. Thus, creating two barriers for the voices to get through before reaching her. 

She dashed to the previously dug up hole placed it carefully at the bottom making sure not to disturb the Crown. As soon as it was set she shoved all the soil on top and closed up the hole.

"That should keep you quiet for a while until I figure out what I should do with you," she whispered to the ground.

She was lucky that nobody was watching her , they would most certainly believe that she had gone mad.

A smile of gratification was plastered on Maila's face as she lazily made her way out of the temple. The bright sunlight hit her eyes and it took her a few moments to adjust her vision to the change.

The deafening silence made the bile rise up in her throat. She took a few steps back and with narrowed eyes scanned the tightly packed trees that surrounded the clearing. Without wasting another second she let the wolf take over.

Yellow beady eyes were trained on her. She counted five pairs. Retreating back into the temple was not an option; she would be trapped.

She bared her teeth and let the predator within take over. Swiftly she lunged on the creature closest to her. She heard the snap of the neck as it was torn off the body, with a thud it hit the ground. The taste of nickel lingered in her mouth, she spat it out.

The remaining of the Undead, their bodies covered with curly, black thorns, were trying to flank her from the right. She moved to her left and then circled back around them. With stealth movements she took them down one by one from behind, pulling their bodies apart to make sure they wouldn't rise again.

The adrenaline of the fight was now subsiding. A numbness started to take over her hind paw. A low growl escaped her as she saw one of the thorns stuck to her thigh. Her human form took over and she plugged out the thorn and tossed it aside. "Lovely," she said ironically to herself.

'My sweet Maila, you can do it, release me from this prison'

Maila's head snapped up, the Crown should not have been able to reach her. Then she spotted it, one of the Undead was carrying the lead box out of the temple.

"You have got to be kidding me! Which hole did you crawl out of?"

Word count: 1016