Stakes Claim On Her

103 years after the war.

The murmur of the lobby, the occasional squeak of freshly polished shoes on linoleum, and the fresh scent of flowers and honey the wall air freshener pumped out greeted me as I walked out of the back room to start my morning shift.

The same eight to eight shift I worked six days a week, but I would never complain; partly in fear of what would happen if I was ever to speak out against a werewolf and partly because I know that I have it better then many in this world.

Many humans in this world know only struggle and hunger and abuse.

The pack territory you lived in almost entirely determined what your life is like.

I hear some packs treat their humans as equals.

What a dream that would be.

Here we fall somewhere in the middle.

Humans have some tights.

They are free to work, educate themselves, and own businesses.

But if you couldn't make a living within the human communities, and they didn't have an open position for pack jobs you were on your own.

Humans aren't seen as equals here and if a wolf asked you to something, as long as it is within pack laws, you had to do it.

If you didn't, you could be beaten.

The punishments for humans are mostly the same for wolves who break the laws, which is sometimes worse for us because the punishments are meant for bodies that can handle a lot more than we can.

Usually, you are given lashes, while tied to a post in front of the pack housing center, where many of the prominent wolves live.

The punishment is extremely humiliating for humans; you are stripped naked before being lashed.

Wolves are much more comfortable with nudity than humans are, so the stripping part is never an issue for them.

I only ever hear stories of what the world was like before werewolves took over.

A place where humans weren't whipped for disobeying silly orders.

The wolves don't allow the history to be taught in schools, probably fearing humans would want to bring the world back to the way it was.

Their thinking is how could we want for something we don't know existed? But they made the mistake of thinking that they could keep the history of our freedom a secret.

Not that it mattered.

Their grip on our lives was too strong.

There would be no rebellion anytime soon, no matter what we know.

A rough arm and sharp shake snapped me from my thoughts.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!"

A deep voice spoke to me.

shook my head and looked at

older, creases on his face, and hair

finely, in a pressed navy suit and a tie

was clearly of higher status, like the majority of wolves and creatures that came through

werewolf, but the woman standing behind him told me he

her head bowed

simply mistaken as someone who was just shier then average, if it wasn't for the shiny gold collar wrapped around her neck and the chain that snaked from the collar to the cuffs on her wrists and ended in the right hand of the man

just

She was a pet.

man standing

the werewolf world, as the supernatural species tend to stay within their respective

ever seen a vampire as physically old as he

forties, early fifties when

common

pets were

pets when he took

moderate view

packs and from other

guess no

conference

clearly angered by my

now fully on the man, not wanting to upset him

located on the third floor, take the elevators to the left of the lobby, and the receptionist will show you to the room,’’ I spoke as softly and as kindly as I could, as

me, and no one would do anything, assuming

let go of

I hadn't realized he had kept

all that was left of the man after he stormed

my skin usually did whenever I

a kind way, at least not

people and direct

incident with the vampire was the only bad experience of

hear whispered close

to face with Adam.He was

up?"

noon darlin?”

"Lunchtime."

as I tend to get lost in my thoughts

it's one of my many

and back into the employees only

rather dingy little room the human employees were given to

the back wall are paper bags filled with our

our bags and go to sit

sit down my chair rocks and almost knocks me

hear Adams laugh loud and clear,

so not funny,'' I grumble as I

usual hunk of bread and

too funny.’’ Adam laughing through his