Deacon - Nicholas Bella

CHAPTER ONE

Life Forever Altered

Jasmine.

That was the scent I smelled after my mother pushed me into the darkness of the underground hiding spot that was beneath the floorboards of our home. The light from candles that illuminated the room slipped between the floorboards, keeping me from being in complete darkness. The sounds of my parents screaming filled my tiny ears, terrifying me to my core. My heart thudded in my chest faster than it ever had before. God, please help us, I prayed. I closed my eyes and tried to imagine my mom and how her lovely dark hair and soft, pale skin often smelled of jasmine, a scent I’d always found comforting. It wasn’t working, I was too afraid. Tears flowed down my cheeks as I tried to stay silent while listening to the gut-wrenching carnage above me. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop trembling.

It all happened so fast, no warning was given to us from our pack Alpha or his Capos. I’d been sitting at the dinner table with my mother and father enjoying the delicious venison my father had caught earlier that day. He’d taken me with him because it was important for me to learn how to hunt. I was now ten years old and one day, I’d experience my first transformation, the moment when I’d become truly immortal. For now, though, I was mortal and still vulnerable, but needed to learn how to be a wolf and survive pack life. Those were the lessons both of my parents had been teaching me.

Oh God, the screams. I could no longer hear my father, just my mum and the muffled voices of the men who’d attacked us. I covered my ears, trying to drown out the sound as I thought about anything other than the attack on my family. I remembered watching my father, Drake Gables, transforming into his wolf. He was so majestic. A beautiful black wolf with gray eyes, and when he’d sprinted off after the deer, I had to keep up with my normal human legs. I had felt the wind rushing against my face during the chase. My heart had raced with adrenaline, pumping in time with my footsteps on the grass and twigs below. I’d finally caught up and watched my father bringing down the deer with a powerful bite to the animal’s throat. A quick kill, merciful. He’d changed back into his human form and lifted the deer over his shoulder with such ease, I had marveled at his strength. Nothing would be able to take down my father… that was what I’d thought then, but right now, I just didn’t know.

My heart was pounding in my chest so loudly, I could hear the sound in my ears. My stomach was in knots and I thought I would vomit, and the only thing that forced my food to stay down was the fear that they would hear me. I was so worried that whoever attacked my family would find me hiding under the crawlspace. Even as I covered my ears, I could still hear my mother screaming, and the voices of the men laughing above, cheering, their words increasingly cruel. I wanted so badly to go to her, to help her in whatever way I could. But she had made me promise to stay hidden, to not say anything no matter what. Should I keep that promise or break it? Snot flowed down my nose to my upper lip, but I didn’t want to uncover my ears to wipe it away. I was only ten years old, what could I do against this threat that attacked my family? I had no strength, no power, no skill like my father.

“I’m next,” I heard one of them say.

“This cunt is sweet,” said another.

My mum’s screams were muffled, but I knew she was crying. I’d never heard my mum in that much distress. God, I wanted it all to end, for those monsters to leave our home. Should I do what my mother had told me, or fight? What would my father want me to do? He’d want me to be a man and wolf, and we didn’t hide. I steeled my shoulders and took several breaths before I pushed the floorboard open. I climbed out as quietly as I could and scrambled to get to my feet. I had a knife in my hand, the only weapon I’d managed to grab from the dinner table before my mum had shoved me into