The Reluctant Golden Wolf

Melody is living in a nightmare.

Abused as a child she must fight to protect the new younger girls from evil.

Loki is the Alpha Werewolf of a large Pack.

He is stunning both as a man and a Wolf and loved by his Pack as a fair and just Alpha.

When Melody takes matters into her own hands and the girls make a run for safety the Watchers find her and bring her to the Alpha.

Loki is lost from the minute he sets eyes on the beautiful little waif.

She is his fated mate but Melody does not even know she is a Wolf.

Fighting against her passion and her Wolf Melody must learn to survive and then conquer her new reality.

Can she accept her destiny?

Will love conquer all?

Chapter One

Note To All My Readers, I would like to apologise for the problems with this book, they were not intentional mistakes but I understand your frustrations. As a result of your feedback, I have completely rewritten the book and can assure you no chapters are repeated and there are now additional chapters for your pleasure. I hope you can now enjoy the book fully and I thank you for your continuing support.

Chapter One

The small child cowered in the corner of the room under the table her hands over her ears as the adults shouted at each other again, her whole short little life this was all she had known. The arguing came closer and the little girl trembled trying to sink into the wall behind her covering her face with her hands, if she could not see them then they could not see her she thought with a small child's intelligence. 'Come here you fucking brat.' A large calloused male hand grabbed her by the hair and dragged her out from under the table banging her head on the table top as he did so. 'You're always fucking hiding you little fuck, now make yourself useful and go and fetch me the whisky.' He tossed her toward the kitchen door and she banged her leg on it as she skidded through but no sound came out of her lips. Small as she was she had learned never to show any emotion in front of these men. Quickly she jumped to her feet and raced into the other room where the cupboard held the bottle the man wanted grabbing the golden liquid she ran back to where she knew the man would be. This was the part that sickened her and she tried to keep her eyes on the floor as she stumbled into the room. The man was naked and underneath him was her mother, to her frightened little eyes, he was hurting her Mama as the woman was crying and moaning. He caught sight of the little girl and grabbed the bottle from her outstretched hand then cuffed her hard across her head sending her tumbling to the floor and the world turned black. When she opened her eyes again the sun was pouring through the grimy broken windows and she tried to sit up but pain shot through her small body and she curled into a silent ball, 'Don't make a sound Melody, don't make a sound.' She chanted to herself terrified the man would hurt her again if she made any kind of sound so she closed her eyes and let the blackness claim her again. The next time she woke the pain in her head was not quite as bad and she pushed herself to her feet to head for the bathroom to relieve herself and wash the blood off her face. Blinking she gazed at her reflection in the mirror and looking back at her was a thin dirty little girl with a face and body full of bruises, what she did not see was the real picture, a tiny beautiful angelic child, with hair of molten gold and eyes that glittered like gold nuggets. She was a true beauty, even though she was caked in dirt and her hair was matted but it would not be many years before the man switched his interest to her instead of her mother. Walking back into the bedroom she headed for the big broken bed to wake her Mama scrambling up next to her she patted her face, 'Mama? Mama? Wake up Mama I'm hungry.' She patted harder but Mama never moved so the tiny child curled against her cooling body and fell back to sleep only to be rudely awakened when the rotten front door of the scruffy rooms they lived in was kicked open, 'She's in here.' Large hands plucked the sleepy girl from her dead Mama's side startling her awake and she struggled against them, 'No, no Mama, Mama, wake up, wake up.' She screamed fighting the hands that held her firmly, the Police Officer said nothing as he carried the frightened half starved child away from her dead overdosed Mama and handed her to the female Officer waiting outside, 'Fucking junkies shouldn't have kids, look at the state of this one, poor little thing.' She was taken to the local hospital, stripped, scrubbed, photographed and then dressed in pretty pink pyjamas given some food and a warm bottle of milk and put into a baby's cot. She was too old for the bottle and the cot but so traumatised by the day's events that she curled under the warm blankets and fell instantly asleep. When she woke up the next day they gave her more food and she ate it ravenously, the kind Nurse then helped her to the bathroom where she stood looking up helplessly. 'What did this woman want her to do?' She thought her golden eyes wide and round and seeing her confusion the Nurse showed her how to clean her teeth, wash with soap and water, and then put on the clothes they had found for her. Melody did as she was told pulling on the pretty blue dress, white socks and cardigan and letting the Nurse put the shiny black shoes on her feet. Now she was clean and clothed in appropriate clothing the little girl was stunningly beautiful, her golden hair had been brushed until it shone and then braided into two thick braids that hung to her waist. When the Nurse led her into a room where the Police Officers, Doctors and Social Workers waiting for her and she felt a pang of fear clinging to the woman's hand. One of the Social Workers, an older woman called Mary, detached herself from the others and crouched down in front of the scared little girl but Melody hid behind the Nurse, 'Hi there little one, my name is Mary can you tell me yours?' She watched the tiny child carefully unknown to Melody they knew all about her from the documents they had found in the hovel they had been living in but they needed to know how advanced she was. Melody looked up at the kind Nurse who smiled reassuringly and pushed her forward, 'My name is Melody and I am five years old.' She whispered to Mary and then stuck her thumb in her mouth, 'It's very nice to meet you Melody and as I know it's your birthday today I have a little gift for you.' Melody blinked wide-eyed with astonishment, 'How did these people know it was her birthday?' She thought confused and then beamed with happiness when Mary produced the most beautiful pale golden teddy bear with a pink ribbon around its neck and she crouched down and handed it to the awestruck little girl. 'Happy Birthday Melody.'

Chapter Two

Mary smiled as Melody clutched it in her tiny hands, intrigued by its soft silky fur and stroking it reverently she looked back at Mary and whispered, 'Is this really for me?' She had never been given a present before, Birthdays and Christmas were barely acknowledged by her junkie mother and her many lovers, all they meant to the woman was an excuse to get very drunk and hook up with the nearest available guy. As long as he was willing to fund her 'habits' she would spend the night screwing him in front of her terrified daughter uncaring of what such a young child was witnessing. Now, Mary saw the uncertainty in the little child's eyes, she had lost count of the number of children she had seen brought to her in this condition. This dainty, pretty little girl had survived horrors that would crush most adults, starved, beaten, ignored and left to fend for herself seeing things she should never have witnessed. The other Social Worker, a guy called Simon, knelt to address her and Melody backed away, all men terrified her all they did was hit her and hurt her, none of the ones she had contact with had ever shown her anything but pain. 'Hello Melody, I am Simon and I have a gift for you too.' She started to tremble with fear she knew the gifts men had for her, the back of a hand across her face, or the same hand gripping her hair and shaking her violently or the sick ones who put her across their knees and spanked her hard before throwing her away and hurting her Mama. Men were not to be trusted and she backed into the Nurse's legs her eyes wide and fearful, the man looked surprised and then hurt by her actions, 'Hey, it's okay, I won't hurt you Melody I just wanted to give you this.' He held out a pretty dolly to her but she made no move to take it, she knew this game too, as soon as her hand reached out to take it the dolly would be snatched away and the hand would grab her and shake her until her teeth rattled. Simon saw the fear in her eyes and stood up handing the doll to Mary without a word, they knew not to push a child so badly traumatised. Mary smiled at the little girl and handed her the doll, 'There you go, wasn't that nice of Simon to remember your birthday just like I did?' Melody said nothing clutching the teddy bear in one hand she bent and carefully placed the doll on the floor then fled back into the arms of the kind Nurse, 'Hey, hey now come on young lady. That's not a very nice thing to do, you have hurt Simon's feelings.' The Nurse was old-fashioned and did not know the little girl had been taken from her dead mother's side and was severely traumatised. She set Melody away from her and frowned disapprovingly, 'Did your Mama not teach you any manners, young lady? You go pick up that pretty dolly and apologise to Simon right now.' Melody was appalled, she had thought she was safe with these people, hadn't they cleaned her and fed her? Confused and scared she looked at the floor frozen where she stood the teddy bear dropping from her hand as she trembled violently. Mary rushed forward to sweep her into her arms and hold her close stroking her back and murmuring in her ear, 'It's okay baby girl, it's okay.' Glaring at the Nurse for her insensitivity she scooped up the teddy and walked out of the room to sit on a chair in the corridor rocking her gently. 'You okay baby girl?' Melody felt safe in this older woman's arms, somehow she knew no one would hurt her if Mary was there so she snuggled against her shoulder clutching the teddy to her chest. The adults continued talking over her head but she did not listen just stuck her thumb in her mouth and relaxed under the gentleness of Mary's touch. 'Do we have a foster home for her?' Simon asked looking at Mary and then their boss, Julian Fisher, he was the Head of the Social Services Team at the hospital and he had just arrived after reading the little girl's notes. 'She needs specialist care, as far as we can see she has not been sexually abused but physical abuse, mental abuse, starvation and I would guess she had been subjected to some pretty horrific sights.' All the adults paused to look at the tiny pretty child sitting so quietly and still on the senior Social Worker's knee, it was an unnatural position, she appeared to be cuddled into Mary but if you looked closely she was holding herself so stiffly it had to be painful for her. 'We have only one family capable of giving her the care she needs but they are retiring soon. I'm not sure it would be beneficial for her to go to them and then have to be relocated just as she's settled.' Julian looked at the two Social Workers both knew the service was overworked and understaffed, with a huge shortage of facilities for every sector. The couple Julian mentioned, Anna and Henry, had been foster carers for more than twenty years, when their children had grown up and left to start their own lives, the couple had begun taking in unwanted and traumatised children. They had an amazing success story, almost all the children they cared for went on to lead 'normal' fruitful lives. If this tiny child was to have any chance at all she needed their care for however long they could give it so Mary sighed and stood up cradling Melody in her arms. 'We don't have a choice, the system would crush her she's far too fragile for anyone else.' Anna and Henry welcomed the little girl using all their years of experience, they did not crowd her or make any fuss of her, instead, they spoke in soft voices, showing her to her room, telling her what was hers and what she needed to do.

Chapter Three

Children as traumatised as Melody needed structure and rules to follow as they tried to make sense of their new world. It took the couple a month to break down some of the walls the little girl had erected, slowly she told them about the abuse she had suffered. The doll Simon had bought her remained untouched on a chair in her room while the teddy bear on the other hand, never left her side wherever they went the bear went. She refused to be parted from it, to the point if anyone tried to take it from her she became hysterical and screamed the place down. Everything was written down in her 'diary' so the experts knew what they were dealing with and slowly Melody began to blossom when she realised no one was going to take her from this kind, caring couple. She could eat and sleep to her heart's content as the fear left her and she put on the weight she needed and even grew a couple of inches. They decided to attempt sending her to school, she had never been before and needed to be in an environment with other children and learn what it was like to be a child. For Melody it was an eye-opener, she loved school from the first day, and it was a paradise to her traumatised brain. She could play, read, learn and more importantly make friends. Anna and Henry fell in love with the gentle, charming, beautiful little girl, once they broke through her fears she was a very loving child always climbing on their knees for a cuddle or to fall asleep. Anna delighted in dressing her in the prettiest dresses with lacy white socks and patent leather Mary-Jane shoes and loved to brush her golden blonde hair and braid it. She became the darling of their Elder Pursuits circle, going with them to their bowls club, bridge club and the ballroom dancing lessons they enjoyed. She was doted on by their friends, who pampered and petted her, buying whatever she wanted although she never asked for anything. Whenever they saw her they had ribbons, pretty socks and tights, even clothes that they had spotted and bought because she would look so cute in the outfits. They always had chocolates and sweets for her, calling her their 'little doll' because she was always well-behaved and polite. Melody adored the elderly couple and the next two years were the happiest of her young life. She had everything she ever wanted, and the memories of her junkie mother faded to the back of her mind. Mary visited her often, she had taken on the little girl as her client and watched her grow and thrive under her new living conditions but at the back of her mind was the worry of what would happen when the elderly couple retired. They were well into their sixties but had fallen in love with the little girl and started proceedings to adopt her, Melody was delighted with this change in her circumstances and while she waited for it to be formalised she began using their name. Melody Grantham made her part of a real family, she had two older brothers, both married with children older than her. They adored their baby step-sister and like their parents, they indulged her at every opportunity and she would run to them for hugs and kisses. The adoption was a formality, she was their child and they did not need a piece of paper to prove it, all that would do was legalise it. That was until her worst nightmare was realised, Henry suffered a heart attack two weeks before his seventieth birthday, he was rushed to hospital and they managed to save his life by putting in a stent to clear a blockage. He was very frail but they sent him home telling him to take things easy. He did as he was told until a few days later when Anna was involved in a minor car accident and he forgot all the advice he had been given. He strapped Melody into her car seat and raced to the hospital to be by her side. Anna was not seriously hurt, when they got to her bedside she sat up laughing and chatting with the Nurses who seeing the anxiety and worry in Henry's eyes quickly melted away to carry on their duties. The elderly couple embraced and Henry whispered, 'I was so worried about you, honestly, you are such a stubborn woman, don't you know I love you? Don't you know you are my life?' Anna grabbed his hands and pulled him toward her, 'I'm fine you silly old fool, stop fussing.' He kissed her tenderly and sat down in the nearby chair grinning at his wife, they chatted for a while and then she turned her attention to Melody. By now she was almost ten but still a dainty, pretty little doll, her golden eyes held a high intelligence, she understood now why education was so important and had already taken some exams meant for older children. 'Come here my pretty girl.' Melody went willingly into her arms hugging her tightly, she loved this couple dearly and then sat on the edge of the bed chatting animatedly to her 'Mother'. Neither of them noticed Henry's grimace of pain or the way his face turned grey while he gasped for breath. Anna was tickling the little girl and they were so engrossed and noisy that they did not notice his eyes gazing at them intensely, burning with such love as the light went out of them forever. The next few weeks flashed by full of pain and tears, Melody had never felt anything like this ache.in her young heart, Anna was so wrapped up in her guilt and grief she forgot to care for the little girl so her brothers took over. They made sure she got everything she needed, they cuddled her and pampered her helping their baby sister come to terms with another loss in her young life. The funeral was a shock to Melody as she had never been to one before all the tears and sobbing made her want to cling to her mother.

Chapter Four

Anna could barely get through each day herself and she had nothing left inside her to give the helpless little girl. It all became a blur as the days went by and Anna deteriorated as soon as it became clear that she could not look after herself or the small child the brothers were left with no choice. When they found Melody in her pyjamas desperately trying to clean Anna up after she had fallen out of bed they found her in a terrible state, confused and afraid. The Doctor diagnosed Dementia and advised that she needed specialist care and that they must put her into a Nursing Home for both her and the general public's safety. Within a week, Melody's life changed again, she was moved from the comfortable home she had lived in for five years with 'Parents' who had loved and adored her to the box room at her eldest brother's house. The brothers did not know what to do with her, they all had families of their own and their wives were not keen on having this little cuckoo in their nests. For her part Melody sensed her 'good' life was over she heard the brothers discussing her and her hopes were raised when they mentioned sending her to a Boarding School. 'She would not mind that.' She thought, 'She loved school and anything was better than the limbo she had been left in.' She had not been able to grieve properly for Henry and Anna, things had moved too fast from him dying to her Dementia, and it appeared the couple had been hiding how bad Anna was. He had been managing her condition without help from anyone, they had decided it was better to keep it to themselves because he was coping. His death had exacerbated Anna's condition so rapidly that she lived for just six weeks in the home they had put her in. On Melody's tenth birthday, she found herself standing by the graveside of the only mother she had ever really known, her birth mother had ignored her for her first five years but Mary had given her the security and love all children deserve. Tears fell on her young cheeks as she laid the bouquet her brothers had given her on top of the coffin and her tender young heart broke as she watched Anna laid to rest beside her beloved Henry. Her brothers held her small hands as they led her back to the car and then to one of their houses for the Wake, placing her on a chair where she was petted by Anna's friends while the brothers did their duty talking to all that came. Melody was frozen in her grief, she longed for someone to put their arms around her and tell her not to worry it would be alright but she knew it would not be. The voice in her head that had helped her through her darkest times was back with a vengeance, 'You must protect yourself, be prepared, something bad is coming.' It kept telling her so she kept out of the adult's way, trying to be invisible, hoping they would forget about her but of course, they did not, they watched her go to school and then scurry to her little room and they heard her crying herself to sleep. They did want to help her, they all cared about her but it was their wives who stopped them, saying they had enough to deal with and the situation became untenable for them when both wives discovered they were pregnant again. One of them with her fourth child and the other with her third and there was no room in their hearts for this broken little girl so they began the arrangements for her to go to Boarding School. She was so close to her happy ending, the school was impressed with the exceeding bright little girl they presented, so quiet and obedient and very beautiful and they would be happy to take her. Melody wanted to go, she knew she would be happy there but the voice in her head told her it was not going to happen and sure enough the Authorities arrived two days before her admittance. The two Social Workers arrived with two Police Officers and explained to her brothers that as the adoption had not been finalised and now both their parents had died Melody was legally a Ward of the Courts, in other words, an Orphan who had to be cared for by the State. They went on to explain that it would be a simple procedure to change the application into one of their names if one of them wanted to adopt her instead. Both the brothers wanted to, and they said as much to the Social Workers, who went away smiling thinking this case would be wrapped very quickly. That night though their wives sat them down and pointed out all the responsibilities they already had and taking on this child, who hadn't anything to do with them if they were being honest. She was not their sister by blood, she was the child of a violent drug user who had overdosed and also who knew who on earth had fathered her? They went on to add that, as she grew up these problems would manifest themselves and she would more than likely become a wild teenager and would almost certainly take drugs herself. That would mean she would steal from them to get the money to pay for the drugs and cause them no end of problems. Sadly for Melody, the brothers listened to their wives even though she had never displayed any of the antisocial behaviours her mother had. Even though she had been the star pupil at her school, and every single person who met her adored her they believed the lies their wives told them. The Social Workers could not believe the brother's cruelty when they rang them back the next day to call off the adoption. Three days later they had to return and collect a terrified little girl with a suitcase clutching a battered old teddy bear who did not cry or make a fuss when they placed her cases in the back of the car.

Chapter Five

When the female Social Worker took her small hand and said it was time to go she went without a murmur, not saying goodbye or even looking back at them, her shoulders were straight and her head held high. The eldest brother went to hug her, he felt so guilty about what they were doing, she looked so small and fragile. His wife grabbed his elbow and then shook her head, 'Don't make it any harder for her, just let her go.' Both brothers knew that what they were doing was wrong, their parents would never have forgiven them for abandoning their little 'sister' and it was a guilt they would carry for the rest of their short lives. Within five years of their cruel act, both had succumbed to heart attacks leaving their families destitute as neither had thought to safeguard their families in case this would happen. Their businesses collapsed and their selfish wives found themselves out of their luxurious lifestyle and living in poverty in a place they had once described as hell on earth. Melody knew nothing of this her life of hell was only just beginning. beginning. The Social Worker took her to an Orphanage many miles away from everything and everyone she had ever known and she was placed in a room with three other girls all of a similar age to her. It was a good job she was a quick learner for although she was petite she was tough, she had asked for karate lessons and self-defence classes and Mary had thought it was a good idea for her to learn how to look after herself. Those skills quickly came in handy when the Social Worker left her with the other girls and they tried to take her stuff and then bully her. They soon learned not to mess with the tiny blonde she beat up all three of them leaving them on the bedroom floor in tears and when she finished with the last girl a voice made her look up, 'Well, I think you will be wasted with this lot, you have talent little girl and you are coming to stay with me.'

The older girl was Carla, and she ran the orphanage with her boyfriend Sean, they were the toughest kids in the place and had reached the top of their respective trees by fighting and winning against anyone who challenged them. The Social Workers were swamped with work, they all had more cases than they could cope with so happily left the two bullies to rule over all the others. They doled the rules and if any of the kids broke them they also doled out the punishments, for some reason both of these fifteen-year-olds adored Melody. She was incredibly beautiful, very bright and she could look after herself, they took her under their collective wings and taught her how to survive being in the 'system.' For the next two years, she stayed in that orphanage and soon learned the 'system' did not care for these broken children, all of them had to look after themselves. Boys learned to fight and keep all emotions locked away becoming gang members and were notorious on the local streets, stealing from the shops, drinking and taking drugs and fighting all challengers. The girls learned the same lessons and were far better at shoplifting than the boys, Carla taught Melody how to do it and because of her angelic looks she never got caught and enjoyed doing it. The thrill of lifting whatever she was asked to without security catching her gave her an adrenalin rush like no other. The voice in her head told her it was wrong and not to get involved but she ignored it she was having far too much fun and why shouldn't she? No one cared about her so she could do whatever she wanted. whenever she wanted to do it. The Social Workers tried to find her another family and many did offer to take the beautiful young girl but Carla taught her how to be so obnoxious without appearing to be and the families quickly backed away from her. Melody was growing up and developing into a real beauty and Sean began to notice her stunning figure, with long legs, a cute firm ass, slender waist and perfect luscious breasts, along with her waist-length golden hair and incredible golden eyes made her perfect. He did not hide his interest by including Melody in everything he did she did not understand what he was doing so he took every advantage he could. He touched her whenever he could and even kissed her at every opportunity always taking her by surprise so she did not stop him. Of course, word got back to Carla. She did not confront them though as it was not the first time Sean had strayed he was almost eighteen, a very good-looking flirt. Instead, she watched them and saw for herself it was all Sean, the little innocent orphan had no idea what he was up to. In the next couple of months, the two would be leaving the 'system' as they would both be turning turn eighteen in the same week. That always meant they would be turfed out of the orphanage none of the kids stayed passed their eighteenth birthday, there were so many kids in the 'system' that there was no room for those leaving so they were found a small flat and left to deal with the future themselves. With no backup, no training, and no one available to help when it all went wrong, far too many of these young adults ended back in the 'system'. The trouble was when they returned, this time the 'system' was either prison, mental health or drugs or worst-case scenario, they ended up dead, overdosed on drugs, or taking their own lives because life outside the 'system' was just too hard. Carla had thought she had all that sorted, she loved Sean and had done since they were small children, she had willingly given herself to him when he said he loved her at the age of fourteen. Since they had turned sixteen they had been engaged and she had let him indulge in his dark fantasies, he had tied her up, blindfolded and gagged her and then he had whipped her.