The mystery of Miller's farm

Lying in bed I pulled the cover over my shoulders; there was a coolness to the air tonight. I rolled my eyes and listened as my mother told my little sister the tale for the hundredth time. Everyone knew it, I was sure it was just a tale to scare kids into not going to the old miller's farm. My mom however was adamant that old tales have a layer of truth to them. “Mom stop scaring her with story, it's not true Abby,” I told her. “They just want to scare you.” By this time Abby was shaking under her covers as she always did when being told the story of old man miller.

“They say he is a monster, doomed to roam the earth forever. His eyes are red rimmed, and his skin pulled to tight across his bones. Sometimes he looks like a man and others he is said to transform into a wolf. Dark black fur like midnight with green eyes that seem to glow on their own. They say if you ever get close enough to see his eyes glow – it's the last thing you will ever see. When I was young a boy my age named Seth did not believe in the story either, he went in search of old man millers farm deep into the forgotten wood. We waited for hours for him to return, when the air turned cold and sun went down, we returned home without him. The next day his dad was seen in the market telling everyone he was missing and tried to put together a search party. My dad was only one to go with him, when he returned that night, he told grandma that the boy was found dead, shredded to pieces along the old market road. That’s when I knew, it is not just a story,” mom said. Rolling my eyes and turning over I mutter, yeah right.

The sun came up cascading the room in warm orange light, groaning i pulled the cover back and got up. After dressing and brushing my teeth, I went downstairs to eat breakfast. Abby was already at the table bouncing excitedly waiting for her pancakes, i tussled her hair and sat down. “Ren” my mom called, she had an edge to her voice this morning. “Yes mom,” I called back look at her walk into the room. “I need you to go town today, there is some things I need from the market,” she said handing me a list and some money. “Do not stray from the path Ren, danger follows in the unknown.” Her warning was cold and to the point, making a shiver run down my spine. “Okay mom, I will.”

Grabbing my coat, I wave my goodbyes to mom and Abby. Outside the leaves are starting to change and the air has a cold grip to it. Birds chirp and leaves rustle as the forest wakes up, turning left on the road I head toward Riverdale. Walking along the road I come upon a sight, A tree has fallen across the road. It is a huge oak tree; the base of the trunk is a good 6 feet high in front of me. I look around to see if there is a way to go under or around the tree, Inspecting the space where the tree meets the ground i notice a path to my right. It curves just beyond the roots of the tree, maybe it will lead me around this tree. Standing to my feet I shrug and decide I have no choice but to take the path.

As soon as I step onto the path the air around me changed, smelled old and stagnant, like no one has traveled this path in a long time. Tentatively stepping forward I notice the ground seemed to already be asleep, nothing was growing or dying—it was just frozen in time. I started to get nervous, looking around I thought I should see the main road by now. At that very moment something moved to my left, snapping my head in the direction I saw nothing. Taking a few more steps I run into what feels like a brick wall, looking up I realization hits when I see green eyes and thick black fur. Its fur seemed to absorb the light around us leaving behind nothing but shadows and coldness. I stood there shaking but not from the cold. I knew not to run, predators only liked the chase so i stood there trying to act as if i was not about to have a heart attack. It bowed its head low and took a long inhale of breath, then backed off blowing said breath hot on my face. In the blink of an eye where a massive wolf stood now stood a man. He had long black hair with the same green eyes, only they did not glow they were an earthy green like the forest on a warm summer day. But there was something else in his eyes I could not place sadness? Longing? Disbelief, maybe? Just as he shifted his weight, I noticed he was taller than normal, around six foot seven maybe, standing there towering over me like a tree. “My name is Caldwick,” he said with a deep sultry voice, it seemed to rumble out of his chest, deep and soothing. “I-I’m R-Ren,” I managed to stutter out.

As I stand there deciding whether to run or stay and figure out what's going on, he moved. It was not a subtle movement, it was fast, one moment he was about ten feet away from and then before the thought could form he was standing right in front of me, so close I caught the faintest hint of saw dust and earth. Gasping and looking up i see the green of his eyes with the faintest hint of glow to them, “Hi Ren, it’s nice to meet you,” he said in a low hushed tone. I decided in that moment that he was probably going to kill me anyway so I should go out like I always am, “If you're going to kill me could you make it quick, I don’t really like pain,” I said as serious as I could muster. He laughed, a loud belly rolling laugh, “is that what they are saying now, that I kill anyone who comes here?”

“Well, yes,” I whispered, a little taken back by his sudden outburst. “Several people have gone missing or turned up dead, torn to pieces after traveling the old market road. We are told from a young age that you are a monster that shifts shapes, cursed to roam the earth for eternity. That this has caused you to go mad and turned you into a sickly-looking man who transforms into a monstrous beast and kills anyone who gets close.”

He regarded me for a long moment then sighed deeply, “yes i have killed someone before, until very recently I was lost. Doomed to roam this earth slowly going mad. . . Until you.” The last part was said so low I barely heard it. “Until me?” I questioned, puzzled by the admission. He went on to explain that he is known as a werewolf, His kind share a consciousness with a wolf spirit and can assume their shape when needed. He also explained that each werewolf has a fated mate, someone who the Moon Goddess has chosen for them, someone who completes them and helps to chase the darkness away. When an alpha male does not find his fated mate in time, he will slowly start to go mad, consumed by darkness. He then is very violent and more animal-like than man-like. I sat and listened intently, amazed by the story being told me, when he was finished, I started at him questionably. “Why then, did you say until me? What do I have to do with fated mates and werewolves?"

He looked at me for a while before answering, “When I made eye contact with you, two things happened at once. My wolf Drake informed me you are our mate, secondly, I smelled wild lavender and honey. The smell has always made me think of home, this is how it was confirmed for me that you are indeed my mate.” “So, your fated mate can be human?” I remark. He then explained to me that a pure fully human person cannot be a werewolf mate, due to the length of a werewolf’s life. “So, in order for me to be your mate. . . somewhere in my ancestors has to be werewolf blood?” “Yes,” he answered with absolute certainty to his voice. As I looked into his eyes a wave of something unknown to me hit my chest, causing it to be hard to breathe. Clutching my chest, I asked what was wrong with me. “This is the mate bond fully forming between us, it can be unsettling at first,” he explained meeting my gaze with a flicker of hope that was held back by a veil of fear.

After a few moments the pain subsided and I could breathe better, when I looked back at him it was if the air between us was charged. I felt an undeniable pull towards him, in that moment I knew I needed to speak with my mom. “I need to go and speak with my mom; there is no way I am part werewolf. She would have told me that,” I said feeling a little overwhelmed. When I stood to leave, he had this look of pure fear in his eyes, “Don’t leave me, don’t reject me,” he whispered with unshed tears in his eyes. I didn’t know what to say or do so I just walked back to him and wrapped him in a hug. The moment I touched him sparks flew across my skin in every place out bodies touched. In that moment I heard a voice in my mind saying mine. I looked up at him surprised, realizing he had not said it out loud. As if reading my mind, he said this is one of the perks of the mate bond, you can hear each other's thoughts and speak without moving your lips.

After a moment we started walking, I guessed he was coming with me to speak with my mom. Upon seeing my house Caldwick froze, “I thought the moonstone pack was gone generations ago.” Before i could even form the thought my mother was storming out of the house yelling, “I told you not to leave the main road, what did I Tell you?” She was waving her arms like a mad woman and stomping toward us with determination. “Have you already heard his voice in your head?” She asked me with a hint of sadness to her voice. “Yes,” was all I could mange to say. She lowered her head and motioned for us to come in the house.

Sitting at the kitchen table she explained to me that she was the luna of moonstone pack, that my dad lost his life in the great purge and she had fled. The humans feared anything they could not explain or exploit, they rallied together and set fire to our lands. After hearing her story i asked her why she hid this and made up stories about old man millers farm. “It was the only way for me to keep your lineage secret, I was told if you awakened then it could alert the humans to the existence of werewolves they missed. I was just trying to protect you,” she whispered with un-shed tears in her eyes.

Caldwick finally spoke to my right, “I am so thankful I found her, I was losing the battle against the darkness,” he told her looking ashamed but hopeful. “I did a lot of things that i am not proud of over the years, I would soon have had to been put down if she had not stumbled into my life.” With a sigh my mom told us it was time to reunite the packs then, we needed to be prepared. Over the course of the next few years, we reunited the packs and made alliances with the humans, we now have real peace and a chance for our packs to thrive. It took a lot of work and a lot of learning, but we healed our land and brought our people back from extinction, the darkness is at bay, and the monster of old miller's farm was put to rest, all he needed was love. . . without it he was lost.