The Broken Queen

Chapter 16; Today Is the Day: PART TWO

Dani's POV:

I creep silently along the corridor, hoping, and praying I won't be spotted. There are many wolves bustling about downstairs who are preparing for a meeting, as it's Friday evening. I reach the door and remove a bobby pin from my dark hair. After some wigglin' and jigglin', I hear a pop, and the door slowly opens. I step inside and look around, closing the door behind me. As I'm searching my father's desk, I hear footsteps coming up the large marble staircase outside. I stand back in an alcove to hide from the person walking through the halls.

I hold my breath, and Kayla takes care of the rest. Their heels click clack along the stone floors outside the room, telling me it is one of the maids. I exhale in relief, going back to my search. The drawers give up nothing, so I move onto the file cabinet...nothing. I turn and look around, thinking. The safe behind the portrait of my mother, maybe. I walk over to it and lift the painting careful off the wall behind my father's desk.

I quickly flick through a stack of papers and the pages of the books that sit on the shelf to my right beside the safe. Nothing falls out but something written in ink on the dedications page of a book catches my attention. I flip back to it and find a 6-digit number. It might work...

I type in the number 282190. The screen beeps, flashes 'wrong code'. I look at the numbers again, trying to figure out if they could be in a different order when it hits me. This is my mother's birthday backwards. So, I try it again, but this time typing 091282, the 9th of December 1982. The vault beeps twice before the screen flashes green and it softly unlocks. I'm surprised that my father would have the code set as my mother's birthday but put that thought aside for the moment and focus on the task at hand. There in the safe, under stacks of papers is my mother's baby blue journal.

I hesitantly take it out, but then, from the corner of my eye, I spot a familiar name. One of the files in the safe is labelled "Diana". I snatch it up and carefully tidy it up, putting everything back in their place before locking the safe, rehanging the painting and leaving the room quietly. Next, the pantry. Once in the kitchen, I sneak around, ducking and diving to avoid being seen by the busy maids or the pack cook. I get to the pantry and begin to fill a drawstring bag I had hidden in the corner with a few small snacks.

I then proceed to snatch 3 knives from the knife block on the counter. They'll be put to good use somehow. 'Right pup, time to go, let's get out of here and meet the lads' Kayla says. 'Aye aye captain' I mock in return. 'Yeah yeah, just keep it moving Green. Don't start slacking or I will have to take control, remember that' she jokingly threatens with a smirk, making me laugh.

Sophia's POV:

Bree and I are crouching behind some shrubbery waiting for Dani when she creeps into the clearing with a backpack on her back and a duffel bag over her shoulder. The wind whistles through the trees and the birds chirp as they begin to settle down for the evening. The squirrels chatter as they gather nuts for the coming fall. The forest that lay ahead is alive tonight. We quietly walk in her direction, keeping our senses alert. 'Listen to everything Dani and Kayla say now pup, okay?' Andrea reminds me, and I agree to do so.

As soon as the sun fully sets and darkness befalls the pack lands, Dani stands up with her bags and gives the signal with a salute like gesture. 'It's time, let's blow this joint' she says sternly.

'Now, do we all remember the plan? I will disguise your scents, you stay quiet, low, and alert. Keep the link open at all times. We need to work together and protect each other if this is going to work okay. Bree, you go to the left for 10 miles, Sophia, you go right for 10 as well, and I will go straight through the middle. Got it?' Dani checks with us. The plan was decent, though there was a lot of room for error. Nodding, we all get into our positions, ready in our wolf forms and when Dani gives the signal, we set off through the surrounding woods. Dani hangs back a moment.

Andrea's POV:

The bushes rustle and the twigs snap under my paws. The air whips through my fur and the scent of pine and leaves fill my senses. I come to a fallen tree that I have to hop over and a few smaller logs along the way. It feels amazing to be out again after so long. I have missed the feeling of freedom. I glance to my left and see a black shadow suddenly pass by. I sniff the air...nothing. I try to ignore the uneasy feeling in my gut. It has to be my eyes playing tricks on me. I look again and this time the blurry shadow takes the shape of a wolf, a BLACK wolf! A shiver runs down my spine, it can't be. I start jumping over obstacles and dodging wildlife in order to avoid whatever is close to me. Then through the active link, I hear Kayla's voice...

'Andrea, what's going on? Is everything alright?' she asks with concern. 'No, I think I'm either crazy from the last 3 years since my last outing or I am gonna be killed. I-I think there's a black wolf out here, and it's close. How is that even possible? They don't even exist, except for in the legends we are told as pups?!' I reply frantically. 'Andrea, look to your left...' I slow down and do as I'm told, my heart pounding. There, only about 25 meters away is a black wolf pacing back and forth. 'I'm going to stop pacing now Andrea and raise my right paw' 'Why w-' I stop with shock as the wolf mirrors what Kayla says. 'K-Kayla?' I ask in confusion. 'Yep, that's me' she says as a pair of grey or silver eyes stare back at me. 'But...how?' I ask astonished.

'You know how I told you that I am a mystic wolf? Well, I am the electric midnight wolf, the one from the legends. You will understand soon. Dani doesn't know what the full extent of our powers are yet. She only knows that I am a special wolf; I am a black wolf and that's why I am so strong. This is me in my weak form Andrea. Oh, and you can allow Sophia to see too by the way' she explains. I stand there shocked as I let Sophia come through and her shock matches my own until Kayla speaks again, snapping us out of our thoughts.

'Come on, let's get moving, Bree is already a mile ahead of us, I will see you again in 8 miles, stay safe, and call for help if you need it, keep the link open.'  And with that, Kayla speeds straight ahead as I race to catch up with her fast form. Wow she was fast..