"Run....Hide...Stay a-away....from p-people...." The man croaked out, blood gushing out of his mouth. Evelyn sobbed, taking her father's head into her lap.
"N-No........ I don't w-want to leave you...... You're the o-only one I h-have." She broke down, hugging the man close.
"N-No, Eve...... You h-have to go.....y-you're not safe h-here...Just g-go.... I w-won't survive..." He coughed, trying not to choke on the red liquid.
"D-Don't say that! You c-can........ I know you can survive......There must be s-some way......... Please stay w-with me..... I don't w-want to be a-alone........ I'm scared, papa." The ten-year-old little girl was terrified, thinking about a future without her father.
"You w-won't be alone, Eve.... When t-the time is r-right.... you-you will meet your m-mate..... They will l-love you and protect you f-from all the d-danger......till then y-you h-have to hide, okay?" He gripped her little hand. "Promise me,"
"But-"
"N-No, p-promise me....s-so I can d-die in p-peace." He strained with the last bit of energy. Evelyn cried helplessly, loud sobs falling from her lips.
"I-I p-promise..." She stuttered out, making the man release a weak sigh of relief.
" N-Now.....go.... Run a-as fast as y-you can........ They m-might come here a-anytime..." He urged the girl as his hands weakly pushed her to stand up.
"B-But what about you...."
"I'll be f-fine...I'll be fine as l-long as I k-know you're s-safe." He assured and tried to muster up a small smile but failed miserably.
Evelyn didn't know why this was happening to her. She did nothing wrong. Her father too was innocent. Why are they attacking people who are trying to protect her? What do they want? There were thousands of questions running through her mind but she didn't have the time to waste thinking about them.
"E-Evelyn, go. I-I can hear t-them coming," Her father urged, panic taking over his features. She looked at the dying man, more tears fell from her eyes as she leaned down to place a kiss on his forehead.
"I-I love you, p-papa..." Her lips trembled as she wiped the tears away.
The man tried to smile through the pain. "I l-love you too, Eve......B-Be safe and remember w-what I said, okay?" The girl nodded, trying to clear her vision by blinking away the tears. She turned towards the woods, reluctantly taking small steps there.
She looked back at her father once she reached the line of trees and gave a small smile to him before running deep into the woods. Even though she was afraid of the darkness, the woods gave her a sense of safety.
A loud scream from where she came from made Evelyn stop on her track. She knew whose sound that was and it made her head spin. Her body trembled as she fell to her knees.
Her father......... Her father was no more....
*
*
Evelyn gasped as she shot awake from her sleep. Even though the night was cold, she was sweating profusely.
The nightmare wasn't something new to Evelyn.
But despite haunting her for almost half of her life, it never failed to make her hot and sweaty.
She looked out of the treehouse to see that the sun had risen. It was early in the morning and sunlight peeking through trees made the woods look mesmerizing.
The view calmed her disturbed mind.
Evelyn liked this place. The treehouse, despite being empty, wasn't that bad. It was in an abandoned state when she first found it but a little cleaning and then it was perfect.
There is a small waterfall near the treehouse which made a lot of animals come there. Evelyn loved animals and they loved her too. She has been staying in the forest for ten years but never got attacked by any of them.
Squirrels and monkeys are the ones that amused her the most. They always bring her fruits and flowers, unknown to her why. At first, she was surprised but now it has become a usual thing. Wherever she goes, she always gets these little gifts from them.
She has also encountered the main predators of the forest but they never tried to bother her. Once a big cat walked past her like she's invisible. She didn't know the reason why they behaved like this towards her. She always thought it was because she's a werewolf, even though she doesn't have an inner wolf.
The animals made her feel safe and that's why she liked them. They kept her safe from the people who were chasing her. Safe from her own kind....
Evelyn climbed down from the treehouse, walking towards the waterfall. She sat down on one of the big rocks, enjoying the sound of water and the forest.
She should leave here soon. She's been staying here for almost two months and it's not safe here anymore. It's a pity because she likes this place very much.
She has to move and also buy some clothes and necessities since winter is coming. Going to the small villages to buy things is always exciting for Evelyn since she could see what people like her are doing. But it also made her a little sad that she can't have a normal life like them.
She wanted to be like them. Laughing and enjoying their life with their loved ones.
Loved ones.........
Evelyn doesn't have anyone to love.
She forgot how love felt like. Her only hope was finding her mate, but now she was starting to lose that too.....