Vendetta

"A mother's love will never end. It is there from the beginning to the end."

"Caroline, pack your bags, we're leaving!" Mother's frantic voice sounded from the downstairs just seconds after I managed to unzip my backpack. Unknowingly I rolled my eyes in annoyance; sometimes, she was too much drama for such a tiny woman. I could hear her footsteps rushing upstairs; for a second, the thought of danger invaded my mind. I did, though, did my best to get rid of it as soon as possible. 

"What? Mother, we just got here!" I yelled back, hoping that she would catch the hint of annoyance in my voice. I sat down on the old mattress and sighed. This can't be happening, we just got to the safe house, and now she demands to leave. Again. I didn't hear anything from her; instead, my supposed to be bedrooms door flew open, and my mother rushed in. She grabbed my wrist in a tight grip and pulled me up from the mattress. In moments as such, I silently dreamed of getting a few extra pounds, maybe then everyone wouldn't be able to throw me around like a rag doll. 

"Caroline, don't be stupid!" Mother splat at me, grabbing the sides of my face. I was shocked by her sudden action, not to say more. Her eyes grew wider as they observed my facial features. She let go of my face and grabbed my only belongings - the backpack, which I didn't get to unpack after all. I hated the way we became and despised ones who threw us down on the chain of evolution. Humans used to be the most intelligent kind, that is- until the day when they came around. 

"We don't have time; they're coming! Believe it or not, we better get out of this damned place!" Mother whisper-yelled as her bottom lip trembled, fear evident in her eyes.

"What? No! You're lying." I wasn't sure who I was trying to convince anymore. Was it me, hoping that whatever was happening wasn't the truth? Or was it her, being a little overdramatic, going way over the situation, as per usual. She tended to overreact, so maybe it wasn't as bad as she acted. Perhaps my mother was looking for problems where there was none?

"Didn't I just told you to stop being stupid? I'm telling you - they're coming! We have to run!" She repeated herself, making me even more confused than I was. Was all my effort useless? I kept trying to convince myself that there was no way the trackers would find us. Would they? We were so close away from the capital city; they wouldn't have enough time to catch our scent and find us that fast.

"Mother, this must be a joke, right? Ha, ha, very funny, you got me." I mocked her, deep down, hoping that she was joking. What if she decided to scare the shit out of me while we were safe? It would be a very dangerous and cruel joke, but that would be better than if her panic is based on the truth.

"This is no time for jokes; if we don't leave soon, they might find us. Lord knows how much of them are out this time. Last time we got lucky, I don't think that the Baron would make the same mistake twice. Back then, he sent ten trackers; I bet he sent at least a hundred this time." She ran to the old window and peeked outside, as she always did, trying her best to stay in the cover. The loud gasp was all it took for my blood to freeze in fear. How could they?

"But they can't come here. This land is forbidden; it's cursed. Shifters are not supposed to come near these lands. Mother, you're becoming paranoid, it's outrageous!" I whisper yelled at her, trying to get at least a bit of sense in her. Alright, maybe I did act like a brat, but despite the fear I felt, I didn't want for things she said to be true. We ran for months, and now, when we almost reached the goal- they're after us. I want to live a happy life with my mother; I can't become a slave. 

"Caroline, listen," she sighed, sounding much calmer than seconds ago. She took a few steps closer to me and captured my eyes with hers, keeping eye contact, as she did whenever my mother was serious. "The safe lands are not safe anymore. We're almost at the borders, close to them, yet still far. The majority of houses have been invaded already; we have to evacuate before it's too late. Sean can't get in contact with 25, 76, and 44 numbers; they're close. We must run! Only God knows what will happen to us if we don't. We're a part of the resistance; we can't let them get us. Alive." I looked at the window, spotting dim lights around the horizon, and gasped. My eyes landed on my mother's moment after, and I didn't lose time to grab the backpack and bolt downstairs.

Mother ran after me, she grabbed her bag, and we left the house.

I kept mentally cursing myself for wasting precious time and being an ignorant brat when she tried to warn me, as we ran away from the safe house. Those few minutes we spent arguing, because of me, could end up being lethal. How stupid can I be? We ran for about 30 minutes, both of us exhausted beyond limits, panting for breaths. 

I was about to climb a tree and see how far we got when my mother stopped me. She hugged me tighter than ever before, pressing a gentle kiss on my forehead.

"Caroline, you know I love you, right?" She asked, my throat was too dry from running to speak up, so I just nodded my head. "You know that I would do anything for you. I would go beyond any limits to save and protect you." A single tear rolled down her cheek; I raised my hand to wipe it away. I could hear aggressive howls coming closer and closer with each second. Mother's bottom lip trembled, yet she didn't move a muscle. She just stood there, looking down at me with so much love and adoration, I nearly broke down in tears myself. I didn't want to answer her question; I tried to run away from those filthy beasts as fast as possible. 

We could make it if we move now. I grabbed onto her wrist and tried to pull her with me, but she didn't move.

"Mother?" I raised an eyebrow in question.

"Caroline, run. Six miles from here is a little cabin, hidden in the mountains, you'll find it easily, but beasts won't reach you there. I know it for a fact, it's on land they can't step their feet on. Only the ones who have never killed a single soul can, so it's none of them. Run, I'll slow them down. Just promise me that you'll run!" She was pushing me away from her, the words she spoke eager and encouraging.

"No, mother, you can't do that! I need you! I won't give up on you!" Tears filled my eyes; I tried to reason her. We're in this together, and we will get out of this together.

"Caroline, promise me to run and never look back. Whatever you hear, whatever happens here, keep running. And I promise to come back to you. Sean and I will be there with you." Once again, she kissed my forehead, whispered a weak "I love you," and ran towards the beasts.

I wanted to yell, I wanted to stop her and never leave her, but it was too late. They were too close, and I was too big of a coward to run after her. So I did as she told me, I whispered a weak "I love you," knowing that she won't hear it and took off. I ran to the little cabin she told me about earlier. I found it, yet I couldn't force myself to enter the house before my mother returned. I hate myself; I hate myself for being weak and cowardly. I hate myself for being a pathetic human. But most of all, I hate myself for not standing up to those creatures.

I sat down on the ground, next to the cabin, and squeezed my eyes shut, praying God for my mother to return. I couldn't sleep, and if I managed to fall asleep because of exhaustion- I kept having nightmares. A vivid vision of millions of ways they would hurt my mother. And for what? For them claiming to be better and own everything? For us standing our ground and fighting for our rights?

For us, resisting their said dominance...

That night was the worst night of my life. The night when I held a promise to my mother, and she sacrificed her life for me, breaking the only promise I truly wanted to be kept.