Chapter 169: Do You Think I'm Weird?

Chapter 170: Do You Think I'm Weird?
Zephyra's POV

"Fiora," I gasped, the wolf inside me already snarling and pacing. "Please tell me that's just mother's intuition and not..."

She's afraid. Our pup is afraid, Fiora growled in my mind, confirming my worst fears. Run faster!

I didn't need to be told twice. My feet pounded across the manicured lawn, my heart racing as I tracked Ophelia's scent. Every maternal instinct screamed at me to move faster, to find her before... God, I couldn't even let myself think about what might be happening.

Horrible scenarios flashed through my mind—rogues, hunters, accidents. Each possibility worse than the last.

Then I heard it again—Ophelia's scream, high and terrified, cutting through the afternoon air like a siren.

"Where the fuck were the warriors?" I muttered through gritted teeth. They were supposed to be patrolling, protecting. What good was pack security if they couldn't keep a little girl safe?

"Fiora? Please give me a boost," I begged, pushing my body to its limits.

I felt the rush of energy as Fiora responded, lending me her strength. My muscles burned with newfound power, my strides lengthening as I sprinted toward the tree line. I could feel Fiora's presence more strongly now, our shared goal temporarily bridging the gulf between us.

When I reached the edge of the forest, I slowed, scanning frantically. "Ophelia?" I called out, trying to keep my voice steady despite my racing heart.

The scents here were confusing—Ophelia's was present but faint, mixed with other smells. And underneath it all, the unmistakable stench of rotting flesh that made my stomach turn. Something had died here. Or something that was already dead had passed through.

"Ophelia? Where are you baby?" I called again, straining to isolate her scent from the confusing mixture.

The mixed odors were throwing off my tracking abilities. I closed my eyes, trying to focus just on finding my daughter's unique scent. That's when I heard it—a faint sobbing coming from my right.

I changed direction immediately, running toward the sound. "Ophelia!" I shouted, making no attempt to hide my approach. I wanted her to know I was coming, that help was on the way.

I knew she could hear me calling, but she wasn't responding, which only heightened my fear. I kept calling out reassurances as I ran, promising I would find her, that I wasn't going to leave her alone.

Finally, I burst into a small clearing and saw her—my beautiful daughter, crouched down with her head between her knees, hands clamped over her ears, making herself as small as possible. The sight broke my heart.

"Baby," I said softly, approaching slowly so as not to startle her.

When I placed my hand gently on her shoulder, she jerked violently, eyes still squeezed shut as she screamed and flailed her arms wildly, fighting against an invisible enemy.

I quickly wrapped my arms around her, restraining her flailing fists. "It's me my darling, it's your mommy... it's okay, you're safe," I murmured into her hair, rocking her gently.

As my voice penetrated her fear, Ophelia stopped struggling. Her eyes flew open, recognition dawning as she looked up at me. Then she collapsed against my chest, sobbing uncontrollably, her tears soaking through my t-shirt.

She was trembling violently, her eyes wide and unfocused. Whatever had frightened her had terrified her to her core.

"Tell me what happened honey... tell me what scared you," I urged gently, stroking her hair.

Ophelia tried to speak but no sound came out. She swallowed hard and tried again, her voice barely audible. I had to lean in close to hear her whispered words.

"I-I s-saw a big big m-monster," she stammered.

I frowned, my heart rate picking up again. "Monster? What did it look like?"

"Like a huge dog. It-it had r-red eyes," she whispered, her small body shuddering against mine.

My blood ran cold. The red-eyed wolf, as we called it, had been here. That explained the foul smell I'd detected. But why would it show itself to a child? Unless... it had been looking for me and found Ophelia instead.

Before I could process this horrifying thought, Ophelia screamed again and clutched at me desperately. I spun around to see what had frightened her and saw Storm in wolf form emerging from the trees.

I quickly stood, positioning Ophelia behind me protectively. My heart had leapt into my throat at first, thinking the red-eyed wolf had returned, but relief washed over me when I recognized the familiar glow of Storm's eyes.

Ophelia cowered behind me, her small hands clutching my shirt. I suddenly realized my mistake—Ophelia didn't know about werewolves. Of course she'd be terrified of any wolf after encountering the red-eyed monster.

"Please go change," I told Storm. "She's scared, and tell the warriors to back off."

Storm nodded his massive head, let out a single howl that would command the nearby warriors to retreat, then turned and padded back into the forest to shift back to human form.

I felt Ophelia's grip on my shirt loosen slightly. "Y-you talked t-to them and t-they I-listened," she said, a note of wonder mixing with the fear in her voice.

I knelt down to her level, intending to comfort her, when I noticed blood trickling down her arm. My heart clenched painfully.

"Did it hurt you?" I asked, gently taking her hand to examine the wound.

Three deep gashes ran along her forearm, still oozing blood. The sight made me sick with anger and fear. How dare that thing attack a child? My child? I couldn't bear to think about how terrified she must have been, facing that monster alone.

"Come, let's go to the clinic," I said, already planning to have Noah increase patrols around the pack lands. I sensed Noah's presence behind me before I saw him.

"It's okay... it doesn't hurt so much now and it will heal soon," Ophelia said quietly, looking down at her arm.

I glanced at Noah in confusion, then back at my daughter. "What do you mean, Ophelia?"

She shrugged her small shoulders. "I always heal really quick. Any time I hurt myself it just heals. Nanny used to say I'm a freak of nature because of how fast I heal. She said I was abnormal."

Noah and I exchanged stunned looks. I carefully examined her wound again and gasped. The gashes were already closing, the bleeding had stopped, and new pink skin was forming along the edges.

This shouldn't be possible. Werewolf children don't develop enhanced healing abilities until after their first shift, usually around thirteen. Before that, they heal slightly faster than human children but nothing like this.

Ophelia's eyes dropped at my gasp of surprise. "Do you now think I'm weird like Nanny did?" she asked in a small voice.