Myra dragged herself across the forest floor moving further away from the bodies strewn around her. Each movement sending a blinding pain through her. She knew she was dying, she could feel it in the limp way her legs moved behind her, the way her mind tried to hold on to the edges of consciousness, fighting the darkness that was consuming her from the inside out.

Just a little longer she whispered to herself, as she drew closer to the woods. She just needed a concealed place. It wasn’t a grave, but it was better than the open space she’d been lying in. She spotted a low shrub by the tree line and dragged herself under it, ignoring the scratches it left on her face and bare arms. And once her body was fully shielded by the foliage, she released her last breath, welcoming the relief of the darkness filling her mind.

As the darkness began consuming her she felt the hairs at the back of her neck rising, a cold sensation creeping over her body. She wrapped her hands around herself, shutting her eyes forcefully hoping to push back the feeling of being watched. As she did, two violet eyes lit up behind her forcing her own open in shock.

And before she could scream, a warm sensation flowed through her body and with it, the feeling of life returning to the bones and flesh that she’d resigned to an end. She tentatively pulled her arm before her, watching in shock as the cuts and bruises disappeared, even the jagged scars from her husband’s cruelty vanished, leaving her skin smooth and supple.

She dragged herself gently from under the shrub looking around her for the eyes she’d felt watching her.

“It’s me,” a voice whispered, seemingly from inside her head

“Who are you?”

A chuckle echoed in her head, “I’m Esme, your wolf,”

“Wolf?” A cackle escaped her. Then another. And then she broke into a hysterical laugh. Dan had finally broken her. He had abused her so hard her mind broke. She was now officially crazy.

“You’re not crazy,” the voice whispered. “Rest, you’ll be better when you’ve rested,” she felt the darkness crawling in again, swallowing the protest that was beginning to form in her mind.

*********

Myra stirred, stretching her sore muscles. She opened her eyes and it took her a minute to make sense of what she was seeing. It seemed to her that she was looking through something, but she couldn’t tell what. She looked around her, seeing nothing but darkness. Then she started moving. Or, more accurately, something started moving her, slow at first, but then at a superhuman speed that couldn’t be from her own legs, which she could feel curled beneath her.

Then, just as fast as they’d started moving, they stopped. Her eyes were drawn downward and she found herself staring into the water, a wolf reflecting back on the surface.

“I’m Esme , your wolf. It’s nice to finally meet you,”

She just stared at the reflection, watching the violet eyes that seemed to look back into her. She felt herself being pulled forward, her bones twisting out of shape and rearranging themselves, sending currents of pain through her. When the creaking of bones stopped, she lay by the bank of the river, naked.

“We’re werewolves, Myra,”

“But no one bit me. My husband is abusive, but I don’t think he is a werewolf. Is he?”

Esme chuckled gently, “Those are just fantastical tales. Your parents are both werewolves. They died when you were young and someone smuggled you to the human realm. I stayed dormant to protect you,”

“But why now?”

“I waited for you to leave your husband. He would have never let you go,”

“But he did, didn’t he?”

“No, he believes you’re finally dead,”

“Finally?”

“Yes, he has wanted you dead since he met his mistress six years ago,”

“He had a mistress?”

Esme sighed, “Yes, he has cheated on you every day for six years,”

“But...”

“But nothing. You don’t belong with him, never did. He doesn’t deserve the flakes of your dry skin,”

Myra broke down in sobs. She had thought yesterday’s attack was a kidnapping. After all, her husband had been a member of the mafia. It wasn’t strange that his enemies would use her to threaten him. In fact, he had rescued her several times from such kidnappings. She just thought the enemies went too far this time.

“You were not kidnapped. Your husband and his mistress planned it,”

Esme felt her conflicting emotions, the pain and the grief for the man she had loved for ten years since her college days. She had watched from the depths of her mind as Myra poured her devotion into him, receiving nothing but betrayal in return. She had smelled the women on him when he began cheating. She had seen it coming when he started beating her.

And when yesterday, he had men beat Myra to within an inch of her life, she had known the time to save her had come. She had used some of her healing powers to slow Myra’s heartbeat to an imperceptible rate and watched in horror as the “kidnappers” staged a scene, dumping bodies of women from her husband’s sex trafficking ring around Myra’s.

“We have to go. I’ll take you to find our kind. It’ll be better there,”

“Okay,” Myra whispered and Esme pushed forward, taking over her form.

She ran through the forest pausing to sniff for scents of other werewolves. The forest soon gave way to the wilderness. Esme periodically stopped to hunt for food. They ate everything from hare to berries they picked on their way.

A week later and three thousand miles between her and the past, Esme led her towards what she believed to be a werewolf pack, deep inside an extensive mountain range that connected to a deep forest. She doubted humans reached this far, although she wouldn’t put it past their greed.

“We’ll rest here and seek sanctuary in the pack tomorrow,” she told Myra before allowing her to shift to her human form. The transformation had gotten easier. Her bones didn’t hurt as much as it did the first few times. She had developed a stronger relationship with Esme, feeling for the first time in her life, a sense of genuine connection.

She walked towards a stream they’d seen on their way. She took her time scrubbing her skin trying to wash away the grime from these few days of running through the wilderness.

“Why don’t you take a soak, Esme, the water is warm,” Esme snorted then shifted, allowing herself to soak in the warmth of the stream.

“It’s a full moon,” Esme mused, raising her paw in the air.

“Does it matter?”

“It’s the best time for a werewolf to find a mate. Senses are heightened and mating scents are stronger. It’s much easier to find your fated one,”

“Fated one,”

“Yes, your soulmate, the mate the goddess herself made for you. Dan was never your soulmate,” she said with a tinge of sadness.

Esme padded out of the water, shaking her fur vigorously to get rid of the excess water. Then she began a slow walk through the forest.

“Won’t we rest?”

“We will, just...” Esme couldn’t explain what was drawing her deeper into the forest, just that every instinct and sense in her had hyper-focused on something inside the trees that seemed to call to her on a primal level. Myra watched through Esme’s eyes, seeing little in the dusk with her human eyes. As they walked deeper, she caught the intoxicating scent of cinnamon and something else she couldn’t distinguish.

“Mmmh, that smells good, is there a bakery around here?”

Esme didn’t respond, stalking deeper into the forest, her heartbeat increasing with every step she took. The scent was getting stronger, and the restlessness in Esme grew. They reached a clearing, and there sat a lone figure, turned away from them.

He turned around, half shifted as they stepped into the clearing. Myra watched as the beast’s eyes went wide, before both he and Esme exclaimed, “MATE!”

They stood staring at each other, before the man shifted into his human form. Esme hesitated for a minute before shifting, leaving a naked Myra crouched before him. He didn’t seem fazed although Myra could feel the redness creeping up her neck from embarrassment.

The man chucked, before wrapping his jacket over her.

“I’m Derek, it’s nice to meet you,”

“I’m Myra. My wolf is Esme,”

“Which pack are you from,”

“Uhm, I’m from the human world,” she watched as his eyes went wide with surprise.

“What about your parents?”

“I don’t know. I was raised in an orphanage. I didn’t know I was a werewolf until a week ago,”

“Do you understand what just happened between our wolves?”

“Not entirely, but Esme called you her mate,”

“That’s right, we’re fated mates. Although, if you don’t want me, us, you can reject us,”

“Oh,”

“Do you want to?”

“What”

“Be my mate?”

“I have no where to stay,”

“That can be arranged. If you’re okay being my mate, you can come live with me. My house is not very far from here. I came here to avoid the mating ball,” he chuckled at the twist the goddess had pulled. He had attended mating balls since he got his wolf at 18 and never once had he met his mate. More than ten years of faithful attendance, and the day he chooses to skip it, his mate shows up in front of him.

“What do you think, Esme,”

“He’s our mate, tell him to mark us” Esme paced excitedly in her head.

“What’s marking?”

“It’s where mates lay a claim on each other. Usually by sinking fangs into each other’s neck,”

“Is it painful?”

“I don’t think it is. It shouldn’t be. It’s a way to strengthen the bond between mates. It can enhance communication and the love between mates,”

“Esme wants you to mark us,”

“What about you?” She thought about it for a while. Technically, she was not in love with this man. But Esme was. And if she had been with her all her life, then she had given her ten years with the man she thought she loved. Maybe she could let her have her soulmate.

“I don’t mind,” she shrugged. “What happens when you mark us?”

“I take you home and spend the rest of my life loving you,” he said it with so much passion that Myra found herself surprised. Nothing in his eyes suggested deception, even if she didn’t trust her own judgement.

After a brief moment, Myra rose. “Okay, I’ll be your mate,” Derek chuckled, pulling her to him. He lifted her in his arms, carrying her into the trees before taking a hidden path that opened to a cabin house.

“Wow, it’s beautiful,” He leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on her lips, sending a shiver through her. They both heard Esme purr.

“Tomorrow, I’ll take you to our pack for initiation. But tonight, you’re mine. I’ve waited ten years to meet you,” he said, his voice husky from desire.

“Thank you for waiting. It’s nice to finally meet you,” Myra whispered as their lips met in an all-consuming kiss that burned through all the layers of pain she had endured over the last six years. And when he sank his fangs into the hollow of her neck and Esme into his, she felt the weight of the human world wash away from her. She was finally home.