The tattered and worn cloth has seen better days, but it’s the only thing I could find that my stepmother wouldn’t miss. Technically, I’m supposed to be repolishing the floors in the guest wing right now, but I doubt she’ll notice I’m not there. After my father died, she has spent most of her time away from the estate, fraternizing with influential lords, ladies, and all manner of wealthy merchants as she tries to climb the social ladder. I often wonder if my father was just a step or if she had actually loved him.
I want to believe that they were in love.
I’ll have plenty of time to finish my chores once I return, especially since I did some extra ones for a week prior to today, knowing that I would be taking the whole morning off once she left. I usually don’t get a chance to venture out into the forest, so I’m going to make the best of it while I’m here.
It’s my birthday; I deserve to have a small break.
Besides, who’s going to discover me out here?
With a wistful sigh, I pull a wrapped parcel from my dress pocket and carefully unfold the small napkin. A thick slice of bread with honey smeared across the face is the best I could do on short notice for a birthday cake for myself.
I lift it to the sky, wondering if my mother and father are watching over me even now. “Happy birthday to me,” I mutter to no one as I imagine my parents looking down and smiling upon me.
I open my mouth to take a small bite but stop when I notice two chipmunks making their way toward me. Their striped-copper fur bodies fail to hide them against the summer brush, and I’m surprised that they appear so unafraid.
“Why, hello!” I smile brightly at them, pretending as my father once did that I could speak to animals. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
They sit on their back legs and stare up at me with bright green eyes that seem to study me curiously.
“Would you like some bread?”
I break off two small pieces, set them before the chipmunks, and watch as they eagerly begin to eat.
Did the sweet honey scent of my treat attract them? Or was it their curiosity that brought them over?
I don’t ponder it now; I’m just glad that they’re here. My days, typically filled with loneliness, makes me appreciate their company. I lie back on the blanket and pull the small book from my pocket that I’ve been reading of late. It’s nothing new. I have read it several times before, but I always enjoy the story nonetheless. It’s about a girl with an evil stepmother who is a witch. She ends up being saved by a prince in the end, and they get married.
Perhaps that’s why I love this one so much. It’s what I often wish could happen to me. I sigh as I stare up at the puffy white clouds overhead. “Wouldn’t it be wonderful if I could fall in love with the prince, and he’d take me away from my evil stepmother and cherish and protect me for the rest of my life?”
The chipmunks lie on the blanket beside me while I read, chattering to each other. I frown in disappointment that I cannot understand what they’re saying. Part of me had hoped my father wasn’t lying because it would be positively magical if I could communicate with animals.
It’s strange that they trust me so readily, but maybe it’s because I gave them food. I do my best not to disturb them as they curl up next to me. I smile down at them and speak softly. “I’m glad you’re here. I don’t want you to leave. It’s not often that I have company.”
They lift their heads to look up at me, and a man’s voice speaks in my mind. “Then, we will stay.”
Stunned, I blink down at them. Am I going crazy? “Did you... did you just—”
I don’t get to finish my question because a nearby low growl startles me.
I jerk my head up to see a pair of amber eyes blinking at me from the darkness of the forest. Goosebumps prickle my flesh. I cannot make out what kind of creature it is, but it stares at me with a predatory gaze. My heart stops and then begins hammering as the large shadow stalks closer.
Cautiously, I get to my feet. I’m not sure if I should run or stay still. My every nerve ending hums in acute awareness and anticipation, my body primed to fight or to run.
As I struggle with my indecision, ice fills my veins as the predator steps into the clearing. With a thick coat of dark gray fur and a long black tail, it bares two rows of sharp fangs, dripping with saliva. The wolf’s gaze holds mine, its lips pulled back in a feral snarl as a low growl rumbles in its chest.
“You are Ella.” A man’s voice speaks low and menacingly in my head. “You are the one we seek.”
My mouth drifts open. “Are you talking to me?”
“Yes.”
“I—I don’t understand. How are you able to speak in my mind?”
The wolf’s eyes bore into mine as it steps closer.
The chipmunks move in front of me. I watch in shock as they transform into two humans in the blink of an eye.
Instantly, their fur and tails disappear, revealing two handsome men with golden skin and light brown hair. Layers of thick, corded muscle line their arms and legs. They are bare-chested and wearing some sort of loincloth tied loose around their waist. They are taller than any men I’ve seen before, and their shoulders are broad. As my gaze travels over their bodies, I realize that they’re twins. With square jaws, heavy-set brows, and aristocratic features, the only resemblance to their animal form is their green eyes.
Without warning, the wolf lunges toward them.
A scream rips from my throat as their bodies collide with the predator,
