The Last Hope (AU Book 1 of The Last Series)

Chapter 6

I had stopped crying and was staring at the rug when someone pushed open the curtain to my tent. "Go away," I said, my voice cracking. I cleared my throat and licked my lips. "Go away," I said again, and this time it was firmer.

"I thought you'd be hungry," a female said from the doorway. "So, I brought you some food." Giselle smiled at me when I looked up, the smile not reaching her eyes. Dark circles were underneath her eyes, and I didn't know if it was because she was tired or if she still felt lost. She held a bowl of food in her hand, the bowl steaming.

I watched as the steam curled up above the bowl, getting thinner and thinner the higher it went before disappearing into the air. I had always been fascinated with water ever since the day that I was born. If I could sleep by the bubbling creek, then I would, but it wasn't safe for me. Nothing was.

Giselle cleared her throat, and I focused on her again. A real smile appeared on her face when I looked down and mumbled an apology, my face turning red. "It's ok," she said with a chuckle in her voice. She moved farther into the tent and made it to the table that I had. "May I join you?" she asked, and I hesitantly nodded my head because I had no idea why she wanted to eat with me.

"Uh, yes," I said while she placed the food on the table with a cup of water. I stood and walked over to her, feeling cautious. I had no idea what she was planning and couldn't help but wonder if she was just faking being nice to me.

Giselle sat at the table with some bread and started to munch on it. She leaned back in her seat and studied me. "I have already eaten," she said, noticing me looking at the only bowl on the table.

"Please, have some more," I said. "I don't want to be the only one eating." I sat down at the table and looked at her. I was hungry, having woken up late for breakfast and skipped lunch to watch them work.

"Why do you think I have the bread?" she asked, holding it up with a smile. "Eat. I know that you are hungry."

My stomach growled, and I blushed when Giselle chuckled. I tucked into the food, savoring every bite.

It was rare for us to have any meat because of the lack of animals, so the days we did have it were blessings.

Giselle watched while I ate with a thoughtful look on her face. She studied me, and I felt as if everything was out in the open for her to see. It felt as if she knew every thought that went through my head, even if they were private.

"Why are you here?" I asked after I had finished the bowl of food. I placed the spoon back into the bowl and leaned back in my seat, my hunger satisfied.

Giselle raised an eyebrow and took a bite of her bread. "Because," she said, swallowing her food. "Fernos told me that you were crying."

I scoffed and rolled my eyes, folding my arms across my chest. "Of course he did," I muttered.

"I don't blame him for her death, Caroline," she said. "I am kind to him."

I stayed silent, and she sighed and moved a hand through her hair, grimacing. I watched while she grew older before my eyes, her whole body seeming to grow smaller while she leaned forward and studied me.

"I know that I haven't been that kind to you by not talking to you and making you feel worthless." She gave me a pointed look, and I shut my mouth, not saying a word. "The main reason why is, I guess I am afraid to say goodbye."

I stayed silent and watched as her hazel eyes turned darker. I knew that she had known the last Red Wolf, but I didn't know how close they were.

"She was my best friend," she said finally and answered my silent question. She smiled and shook her head before she blinked back some tears. "I was one of her Protectors, just like Cooper, Liam, Becca, Rhett, and Vulcan. She was my sister, not just by mateship but through the bond that we had formed."

"What was she like?" I asked, leaning forward. I had no idea what she had been like because no one talked about her. I had no idea if she would talk about her, and I prayed that she did.

"Stubborn," Giselle said, her voice shaking while she chuckled. She shook her head and cleared her throat. "She was very stubborn and very prideful. She hated seeing people cry and hated people seeing her cry."

I watched as a spark appeared in Giselle's eye while she talked about Rylan.

"She had shoulder length brown hair that she loved to keep in a braid or ponytail. It would be rare if she had it down, but when she did, it bounced because of the curls that she had at the end. She always had a spark of happiness and mischief in her eyes and would always plan the ridiculous things."

"Like?" I asked and raised an eyebrow.

"There was this one time that she wanted to put Jonah in a tutu when he still was a Pup in wolf form and teach him how to stand on two paws and dance."

"Really?" I asked with a breathless chuckle, and she chuckled and nodded.

Giselle's face became brighter while she thought of her best friend. "Really," she confirmed. "She would do something stupid and then look at us with those big eyes of her and say something sarcastic." She sighed and shook her head, her face turning darker with grief, and looked at the tent flap. "I keep imagining her walking through something from doing something that we, her Protectors, would disagree. She would look at our scowling faces with a raised eyebrow and her lip curling into a smirk. Her eyes sparkled with mischief and would say, ''sup?' as if she wasn't in trouble."

I nodded my head, staying silent. I could picture her looking at them with a smirk, her eyes sparkling with mischief and humor from doing something, maybe something heroic.

"She did leave you something," Gigi said, reached into her back pocket, and pulled out a letter that looked to have seen many battles. "She said to give it to you at your weakest moment. I think this would be counted as your weakest moment."

Hesitantly, I took the note from her and looked at the envelope. I traced the words, 'my successor,' and knew that she meant me. "Do you want to hear what she has to say?" I asked, noticing her stand.

Giselle shook her head. "Knowing her, she would want you to read it alone first. After, if you want me to read it, then I will. But for now, I think you need to hear them more than me."

I nodded. "Thank you," I said and lifted my head towards Giselle to see that she was at the beginning of the tent.

Giselle paused and looked back at me while she held the edge of the tent flap, about to leave and do something else. She smiled, the wrinkles of her eyes growing deeper. "My pleasure, Red Wolf," she said and bowed her head in respect. "Excuse me." And with that, she left me alone with the letter still in my hand.