Saving Myself. (The Mountain Territory)

Kate.

          Running is something I never thought I’d do, running from my pack is something I knew for sure I would never do. But things change, clearly. I couldn’t stop, I knew they were just a few miles behind me if they caught me they’d kill me. So I continued doing the one thing I promised myself all my life I wouldn’t, I ran.

I finally couldn’t run anymore, my hind legs were burning, my front left paw was bleeding from a stumble down a hill and I could feel the exhaustion seeping through my body. I paused lifting my head in the air and taking a long inhale trying to find the scent of Theo my pack’s best tracker.  When I could no longer smell him I looked around, the trees where tall strong and oak the leaves crunchy from the sudden chill of fall that fell upon us in haste. Taking a deep breath to relax my body before I shifted, the cold nipped at my skin chilling me. I picked a tree that still had a nice full look to it and started to scale it using what little strength I had left in my body. Getting to a high enough branch I sat down with my back leaning on the trunk of the tree stretching my legs out in front of myself. Once I felt secure enough I closed my eyes thinking about how my once normal peaceful life changed so drastically.



                             Two days ago.
“Theo stop that tickles!” I yelled out before I started to laugh uncontrollably. He continued to tickle me until my mother walked into the room.
“Theodore Ashton Brink! You get off your sister this minute or I’ll call your father in here! You know how he is when it comes to her.” My mother’s voice got soft at the end of her scolding. We all knew how my father was, he didn’t let any male touch me including my brother and truthfully we had no idea why. It wasn’t always like that it had started when I turned fifteen. He wouldn’t let anything with a penis within two feet of me with the exception of himself and Alexander, mine and Theo’s eldest brother.   Mumbling to himself Theo rolled off me laying down next to me on my bed and grabbing my hand. Theo was my best friend and the best big brother anyone could ever ask for. He never let anything hurt me and when something did he made sure to end the threat of it happening again.
“Katarina your father wants you in his office now, and he said to come alone.” I sighed and turned to look at Theo. He squeezed my hand and sent me a reassuring smile. When we went to his office it was because we did something wrong nothing pleasant ever happened there. Slowly sitting up I let go of Theo’s hand and started the walk downstairs to my father’s study.

Knocking twice I slowly entered the office shutting the door quietly behind me, I turned around clasping my hands behind my back with my head slightly bowed.
“Mom said you wanted to see me sir?” My voice was soft but clear my brothers always joked about me having the voice of an innocent angel they said it floated around the room and captivated people.

“Katarina honey look up you aren’t in trouble, come give me a hug I haven’t seen you all week” Looking up I couldn’t help but let out a giggle before running to my father and throwing myself in his lap wrapping my arms around him in the process. I loved my father, calling me a daddy’s girl would be an understatement my dad and Theo made up my world. Sure the rest of us were closer than the average family but without my daddy and Theo I don’t think I would be able to make it out of bed in the morning. When one was away for pack business the other had to stay otherwise I was completely unresponsive. We learned this right after my sixteenth birthday daddy had taken Theo with him to help another pack track a rogue that kidnapped the Alpha’s daughter. I understood the importance of the trip so I sucked it up and kissed them goodbye, they were gone for a week and a half. During that time my mother was pregnant with baby Ashlynn so Alexander stayed to make sure that we were safe and happy. But in the end I spent the time they were away in a bunker my father had built in my room encase of an attack, the problem that everyone had was that my father was the only other one with the code to open the door. Needless to say, my father agreed to make sure one or the other was there with me at all times. Looking back I was a bit dramatic but I had never been without them before, they were my safety net.