Chapter 14
“What is that now?” She muttered under her breath as she remained on the same spot.
She heard the sound again and this time it sounded like something or someone ran past her, behind her in a flash. Scared and holding her breath, she slowly turned around but saw nothing.
Her heart began to pound in her chest as she stumbled through the dense forest, her breath coming in ragged gasps. The memory of the wolf's failed attempt to attack her flashed through her mind. She had narrowly escaped being killed by the wolf and then hunger had gnawed at her stomach but now, fear clawed at her mind.
“What could be lurking in the bushes?” She thought to herself once again as her eyes scanned the area once again for anything familiar or unfamiliar but there was nothing but silence.
“Maybe it was my imagination. It may be that I was hallucinating.” She said to herself as she tried to shake off the thought of the sounds that she had just heard in the bushes.
She then decided to continue in her search for something she could eat. As she trudged through the underbrush, the sound of the rustling leaves and snapping twigs made her freeze in place once again. Her eyes darted around once again, searching for any sign of danger. Her heart pounded in her chest like it was threatening to come out.
“Who is there?” She summoned the courage to shout but her voice echoed back to her.
Suddenly, a figure darted past her, but this time it wasn't behind her, it was right in front of her, all she saw was a blur of movement that left her heart racing even faster.
Panic gripped her as she realized she was not hallucinating and she wasn't alone in the forest. Was it the wolf, who had come back to finish what it had started? Or was it something even more sinister lurking behind the trees? These were the questions she kept asking herself.
With trembling hands, she reached for a nearby branch, ready to defend herself against whatever threat approached.
“If you do not come out now and show yourself, you'll have yourself to blame.” She threatened. Anyone who heard her threats would have thought she had some kind of power to fight and defeat anyone who came in contact with her at that moment.
“I'm going to say this for the last time, come out right now or face the consequences of your actions!” She shouted, holding the branch like her life depended on it and turning in different directions to make sure she wasn't caught by surprise.
“If you don't come out and stop scaring me right now, I'll find you and make sure I kill you!” She added to sound scarier.
Gradually, a figure came out of its hiding behind one of the trees and immediately the figure came into view, she let out a sigh of relief. It was a young boy, no more than ten years old, his eyes wide with fear and shock. He was dressed in a brown tee shirt and black pants and had a backpack behind him.
Veronica immediately dropped the branch which she was holding and ran to him. "Are you okay?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
The boy nodded, his breath coming in short gasps as he tried to fight the tears which were threatening to begin to pour out of his eyes. “I-I think so. I got separated from my family during the storm last night.”
“Wait, what? There was a storm last night?” She asked him, looking at him in confusion because whether there was a storm or not, she could not remember at that moment.
“Yes, there was a storm before the rain began.” He replied and Veronica’s eyes widened as she remembered that it was truly about to rain the previous night but it wasn't really stormy.
“The only thing I remember was that it was about to rain and I needed to find shelter, then I fell and that was all.” She thought to herself and kept trying hard to remember anything else before her encounter with the wolf in the cave that morning.
“Are you okay? You look bothered.” The little boy said to her as he noticed her demeanor.
“Yes, I'm fine. It's nothing.” She replied.
“I don't believe you. Why do adults always want to lie their way out of situations? That's why I don't trust some adults.” He said and Veronica's heart hitched in pain.
She wondered what it was that such a little boy could have gone through which could make him utter such words.
She faked a smile and said, “Wow, you're such a smart little boy.”
“I know. My parents usually say that too.” He confirmed. “So are you going to tell me what you were thinking about or not?” He asked her.
“Of course. You know, I was here in the forest last night when it was about to rain but it wasn't too stormy here, or maybe it is because I can't remember properly. It's strange that the only thing I can remember is me trying to find shelter from the rain, I fell and that was it. I woke up this morning and found myself in a scary cave.” She narrated and the little boy just listened, with different facial expressions at every point.
“Who took you to the cave?” He asked.
“I don't know, I have no idea.” She answered, shrugging and shaking her head.
“Wow. That's serious.” He muttered.
“I know, right.” She muttered too.
“But why didn't you stay in the cave? Wasn't it safe?” He asked.
“Oh no! It wasn't safe. It looked scary with bones everywhere. I was scared as soon as I woke up, that I screamed in fear, only to be faced with a big wolf which tried to kill me.” She revealed and he screamed in shock.
“Does that mean there's a wolf in here that might kill us eventually?” He asked in fear.
“I don't mean to scare you but I'm afraid, Yes. I don't know how many of them might be here but I'm very sure of the one I had an encounter with.
“Oh no! I don't want to die. I need to find my parents.”
“Don't worry. I'll find them for you. They might even be looking for you already.
“You will?” He asked in anticipation and happiness.
“Of course. We can go and search everywhere for them together.” Veronica said to the happy little boy.
“That is so cool of you. Thank you.” He appreciated her and she smiled.
“Oh, my bad. My name is Veronica. What is yours?” She asked as soon as she realized that they had been talking without knowing each other's names.
“I’m Scott. Nice to meet you.” He said, and stretched his hand to Veronica in a formal manner.
She chuckled and took his hand, “Nice to meet you too.”
“So, what brought you here? How did you get lost?
“Well, my parents and I came here hiking. They had promised that we would go hiking for a very long time but they never kept to their promise because they have been so busy with pack duties and all. They decided to fulfill their promise yesterday, which was my birthday. We were having so much fun before the storm came and ruined everything.” He narrated to the listening Veronica.
“Wow, I guess it's not too late to wish you a belated happy birthday.” She said and he smiled.
“Thank you.”
“Are your parents the Alpha and Luna of your pack?” She asked.
“Nope. My dad is the Beta of the Alpha, but he is always busy.” He said sadly.
“And your mum?” Veronica asked him.
“She is as busy as he is too.” He answered, shrugging.
“Oh wow.” She muttered.
“Are you their only child?” She asked.
“No, I had an older sister but she died three years ago.” He replied with sadness in his voice and tried to fight back the tears in his eyes.
“Oh no, I'm sorry about that.” Veronica said.
“No, it's fine. It's not like you were the one who killed her anyway.” He said, trying to act strong, gaining Veronica's admiration for him.
“You know, she really loved me but always felt that I liked too much attention which she didn't seize to give me, especially since our parents weren't always available.”
“I miss her so much and I guess that's why our parents became more distant after her death. I think they feel like they caused her death, because they weren't around when she died and they blame themselves for it.” He explained to her, and she just kept wondering how he became so wise despite his young age.
“Oh my goodness. That is so sad to hear. I'm so sorry.” Veronica said as she herself tried to blink off her tears.
“It's really fine. I mean, compared to when it just happened, our family was broken. You know, she used to tease me that I always acted like a little kid.” He continued.
“But you're a little kid, aren't you?” Veronica teased him.
“Of course not! I'm not a little kid.” He answered sharply and glared at her.
She immediately raised her hands in surrender as she said, “Okay, Okay, you're not a little kid, you're a young man.”
He scoffed. “Just in case you don't know, I understand sarcasm quite well and I can say for a fact that you're being sarcastic.”
Surprised by his words, Veronica had to ask, “Wait, tell me, how old are you again?”
“I'm ten years old.” He replied. “Aren't you surprised at how old I have gotten? TEN WHOLE YEARS! Wow, I'm really old.” He added, stressing his age and sounding like an old man, that Veronica could not help but burst into laughter.
She then rubbed his hair, “I like that you are a very smart young man.” She said and he smiled.
“What about you? Are you an only child?” He asked her.
“I'm not sure. I don't know much about my birth or my birth parents.”
“Uh, I'm so sorry about that.” He said, sadly.
“It's fine, you don't have to look so sad.” She assured him.
“But wait, I have a question, why didn't you all go back to your pack earlier? Why wait till night?” She asked, curiously.
“We were having so much fun that we didn't pay much attention to the time. Actually, I got lost trying to chase after a strange animal that I saw. By the time I realized, I had gone far from my parents. I think they also noticed I was lost and began to search for me because I could hear them calling my name but it was hard to find where exactly their voices were coming from because the whole forest was echoing.”
“It got late and that was when the storm came and then the rain and that was all that happened.” He narrated his ordeal and Veronica's heart went out to the lost child, knowing all too well the feeling of being alone in the wilderness.
Without hesitation, she took the boy's hand and assured him once again that they were going to find his parents.
“What about you? What are you doing here in the forest all alone?” He suddenly asked her and she swallowed hard.
“It's a very long story.” She said to him, and sighed right after.
“Trust me, I love listening to long stories. So I'm all ears.”
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