The Protector

Chapter 1

"Kiara. Wake up sweetie." Mrs Higgins, an elderly woman who was one of the cooks, placed my food on
the table in my room before leaving. I listened for the lock to click before climbing out of bed and walking over to the food.

"Happy birthday to me." I whispered before taking a bite out of the toast.

I had only ever known the inside of these four walls, my private bathroom and the small garden my window overlooked for thirteen years now. Alpha Hayden, the man who had kidnapped me when I was seven, said that it was for my own safety, but I couldn't believe that. Since I was young, I knew I was special. I was born to be the Protector. The wolf who could protect the rest of our kind. Many of the Alpha's were interested in my upbringing and Hayden took matters into his own hands so therefore he stole me away from my family and brought me to his own pack. Every so often, he would bring a wolf who needed healing to me and I saved them with my powers but that was the only time I would see him. As I grew older, I understood that he just wanted to use and abuse my powers, not to protect me until I was needed.

As I got dressed, I looked at my left arm. There, at the top, was the mark that made me different from every other wolf. My Protector mark. It was just a paw print but it made me like royalty. Only royalty didn't get treated like I was.

Noticing the time, I went to sit at the window. Each day at ten, some of the wolves trained in the garden my window overlooked. One of those wolves was Rory, Hayden's youngest son and my boyfriend. Hayden wanted me to mate with his eldest son Tobias to make sure the Alpha's heir would have strong heirs but Tobias was a horrible wolf. Rory was nothing like his brother or dad and had pleaded a number of times to get me out of my room, but it never worked. I didn't care though, as long as I was with Rory, I was happy.

As he trained, Rory kept looking up at my window and smiling. Every time he did this, his opponent took advantage and hit him. The idiot. Before long, they were finishing and Rory was coming up to my room.

He picked me up and span me round before giving me a kiss.

"Happy birthday, Ki. " he smiled.

"Thanks. Now go shower, you are very sweaty." I giggled.

Rory liked to spend as much time with me so he kept some clothes in a drawer and often showered in my private bathroom after his training sessions. After he had re-emerged from the shower, we laid on the bed for a bit. Rory gently stroked my silver hair while looking into my eyes.

"I'm so glad you picked me rather than my brother." He sighed.

I sat up, "I sense a but. Please don't let there be a but."

"I'm so glad you picked me rather than my brother but I don't know how long this can carry on for. I don't want to hurt you because I love you but I feel I will hurt you at some point."

I grabbed his hand. "This is about mates, isn't it?"

"Kiara, as long as you are locked up here, you will never find your mate. But I could. If I was your mate, you would have felt the sparks. You are older than me, yet you still chose me. I have given you everything I could but in two weeks time I will be of age to shift which means I will be of age to find my mate. When that happens, I won't be able to make you happy anymore. Can you forgive me?"

"There is nothing to forgive. It's fate. Just promise me you will stay with me until you find your mate. That could be the day after your birthday or in five years time. Just stay with me until that day." A tear slipped down my face and before I could wipe it, Rory did.

"Of course. Now, I nearly forgot, your birthday present." Rory grabbed my hand and led me to the door. "You told me not to get you anything, so I didn't buy you anything. I did however get you a little bit of freedom. Dad has allowed me to take you out of this room, just for this afternoon, as long as you stay in the garden."

I started crying fully. I hugged Rory before grabbing his hand and stepping out of the door. This was the first time I had been outside my room for thirteen years and I intended to enjoy it.

Arriving in the garden, I saw a blanket laid on the ground with a picnic basket.

"Do you like it?" Rory asked.

I was speechless so I just nodded. It was an overwhelming feeling being outside the room. Feeling the wind in my hair. Smelling the pine of the forest. Hearing the birds chirping. The food tasted so much nicer when eating outside.

"You can shift if you like." A hard voice came from behind me. "I know you often shift in your room but I bet that isn't nice." I see Alpha Hayden stood behind me and I stood up.

"Thank you, Alpha."

He nodded, "Take care, you will be going back to your room in one hour."

I wasted no time and quickly shifted. My wolf was eager to run around but before she did, she bowed to Rory and he rubbed her head. My wolf understood that he had looked after me and was grateful for that, but she also understood that when he finds his mate, he will no longer be able to look after me. She misses what she can't have. She longs for a mate. But we both know that we will never find the wolf we are destined to spend our lives with.

A/N- This is my second werewolf book but this is a little different to my other one. If you haven't already, I would love you to read my other book TRULY. Hope you enjoy this book.