"Who are the Hidden Ones?" Layla asked.
"The what one?" Questioned Nuru.
"The Hidden Ones," everyone said at the same time.
"Oh," he paused and asked, "who are they?"
Layla just hit him on the back of his head, causing him to yell. Trust Nuru to make a joke out of everything. But it was a valid question.
After Megan's biting question, they all laughed. Breaking the tension surrounding them. They went back to the inn to explain what had happened.
They were once again in the kitchen. Rena was making at least two Filipino dishes, and Rooka was fixing some fruit shake for everyone. He used the groceries in the car to make the shakes. Once they were done, each got their own, except Rena, who he gave a cup of hot peppermint chocolate.
She just smiled and continued to cook adobo, a classical Filipino dish made up of soy, vinegar, garlic, bay leaves, some peppercorn, and whatever meat a person likes. For her dish she used beef. She was also making sinigang, a savory and sour soup. She is using some tamarind paste for the main broth of the soup, with carabao meat. R****h, eggplants, taro corms, and okra. For dessert? Homemade ice cream sandwiches.
"Any idea what those men are talking about, Lem?" Rena asked. Lem and Lily were on the table, a plate full of grapes, cheese, and some sliced bread was the Sparks' food.
"When you were born, princess, it caused a ripple in the cosmic plane, changing the Alter beings." He started, "before only the male can carry the gene, now female offsprings can have it too. But, like you, they are unable to change. In the span of seven years since your birth, Alter babies, especially girls were killed. No one knows why, and up until your powers were sealed, the numbers continued to grow."
"They had to do something about the death, bhe," Megan softly said. Lily gave her some healing powder to hasten the recovery. All eyes swung on her, it was a statement none of them were expecting. "I know about your people, Rooka," there was a sad smile on her lips when she said that. "My dad was bitten a year after I was born. I guess I wasn't supposed to know, but when I saw him do impossible things, he had to explain what happened to him. I never saw him change. I asked him that one day, he just gave a sad smile."
"Councilman Mido is your father?" Asked Wayne. His eyes sharp, there was an odd note to his voice. Megan thought something was wrong.
"No wonder your face looked familiar," said Kaz. "You have your father's eyes." He smiled at her. "But why is he in the Council of Werewolves?"
"They needed a human liaison," it was Rooka who answered. "I have never met your father. We don't travel in the same circles. The people in the council are more for political gain, so I stay away from the stronghold. I would only be there when I'm summoned." Then he put the empty glass on the sink, washing it too. He looked over Rena's shoulder to see how the tamarind soup was going along.
"Taste," she commanded, holding out a spoon with some soup. He raised his eyebrow and took the offered food. "Too salty? Too sour? Or just right?"
"Why not you taste?"
"Never liked sour soup, unless I will be making it too salty for me. Bhe!" She called Megan. "Taste." Megan tasted the soup and nodded. "Okay everyone grab a plate and let's eat. We can ask questions later."
Everyone in Rooka's pack got their plate of rice with either the adobo or the sinigang or both. Megan had the sinigang and some rice, while Rena had a bowl of cereal and a medium-size saucer with some beef adobo.
Uncle Mido is part of the Were council. I wonder if he knows dad is dead. Rena and Megan’s dad have been friends since they were in high school, and have been ever since. Serena always thought of her uncle Mido as her second dad, and she knew that he would be devastated by their demise.
“How long have you known about the Weres?” Nuru asked.
“Ever since I was in high school.” she looked at Serena apologetically it was clear that it was hard for her to keep the secret. “I wanted to tell you so many times but I was afraid that you will leave me.
“Leave you? Why?”
“Well, my dad is a were and he cannot change”
“So?”
Megan just smiled. Rena had that straight outlook in life. It will take time for her to understand things, but the way she treats people always depends on how she is treated the same. “Nothing.”
Once everyone finished eating, Rena put in three tubs of ice cream on the table and a tray of homemade brownies. The men groaned in delight. It was rare for them to eat sweets and it looked like Rena liked to feed people.
When everyone got their fill with the food, they were quiet. Each lost in their thoughts.
The twins were mostly bickering on their mental link.
Kaz was trying to figure out how the black men knew of their location.
Wayne...he was looking at Megan. Why? He doesn't know.
Rooka? He was studying his mate. Megan and Rena were washing the dishes they used, talking about books and food. He smiled, hearing his name from Serena's lips, and when Megan looked back at him, he gave a two-finger salute.
"Cripes sake, bhe! Don't encourage him!" Megan just laughed out loud.
Rooka closed his eyes. Hearing the smile in her voice calmed his wolf. His mother was right, with Rena near him, the aggression he felt lessened. What he needed to do now is to help her heal. How he is going to do that is still a mystery. But one thing is for sure, he will be there when she breaks down.
"They wanted to give you a normal life," Lem said. It was past midnight, but sleep eluded Serena. She was at the nipa hut again. This time, Lem was with her. The three Sparks wanted to be with others."I got that, Lem, but why go through all of that? They never hid me, far from it, they love my paperwork exhibitions. I mean, you're always with mom, so you know what I mean.""They didn't do it to hide you from humans, but to hide you from your people." He looked at her, there were so many questions in her mind, but she knew that Lem didn't know everything. "Celeste saw how they were going to die each year, princess. And you were always the catalyst. The first time she dreamt of death was when you were just two months old. The cause? A fire you created.""I don't have -"
"Coffee."It was the first thing Serena said when she stepped inside the kitchen past ten in the morning.Megan was fixing some meat sandwiches and greeted her. Rena just nodded and headed straight for the coffee pot. She grabbed a tall mug from the shelf and poured the life brew together with several spoonfuls of sugar and cream. After giving a quick stir, she took a long drink and sighed happily."Baby, if you will be like that every morning, I can give you something better than coffee," Rooka said, a mischievous glint in his eyes.Rena stopped drinking, and Megan stopped slicing tomatoes. Both looked at him and said,"Is it more creamy than c
It took them three hours to finish the things they had to do before driving back to The Daire's homestead. Megan had to hand over the inn's care to one of her cousins, with a promise of a weekly update.The mood inside the cars was somber. Rooka, Serena, Wayne, and Megan were in one car, while the twins and Kaz were in the other. The Spark was with the twins again, except for Lem who stayed with Rena.Megan looked at the rearview mirror. Her friend was looking out the window while the man seated beside her was looking at her. He saw her observing them and gave her a reassuring smile."My brother will make sure Alpha Serena will be okay," Wayne said."You can drop the alpha thing, Wayne," Serena sai
Rooka wanted to run to Serena the moment she leaned against the doorframe. If not for Wayne holding on to his arm, he would have rushed to her side."You cannot enter the house Alpha," they all looked at Lily. She was sitting on Nuru's shoulder. "No one can enter.""Why?" He asked, even though he cannot see her, he was able to pinpoint where she was."Her mother. You were able to set foot yesterday because it was her will. Now it's her turn to understand why this happened. If not the whole thing, at least part of it.""This has been bothering me…" Nuru said, "you guys are so small, how can you have a loud voice.""Magic."&n
After leaving the office, she stood at the foot of the stairs. She looked up and began walking up. When she touched the handrail, another memory surfaced. Her mom was casting a spell over the entire house. A spell that will activate once they are gone. Celeste's heart was breaking, and there was nothing more they could do. They have avoided their death numerous times, and it is time to finally accept it. But it was so tempting to run again, to hide, to just forget everything. However, fate will always be one step ahead of them. "Lem, Beth, Lily, Mac," she called the Sparks. One by one they showed themselves. All looked the same, but their eyes and manner differ from one another.
"I want some ice cream." Serena whispered against Rooka's neck. Eyes closed, with an occasional sniff, it took her more than an hour to cry her pain. He knew it wasn't over yet, and the bravery she was showing was good. He looked at the house. It was slowly burning down to ground zero. Even the concrete walls crumbled. It was a testament that Rena's flames were hot, it even melted the metal support of the house. "Strawberry ice cream?" He asked. He felt her nod in agreement. She was moving a bit making Rooka close his eyes, counting in Arabic. It was not time for his body to react to his mate's shifting motions. When he heard a clinking of glasses, he looked down and saw her holding five empty vials. He gently draws her face away from his neck, tilts her face so he can look at her. He raised his eyebrow in question.
"She will be fine, princess," Lem said.Serena thought differently. Lily may be invincible, but it doesn't mean she cannot be detected. "Lem -"."You have to trust her," he said quietly. "My sister knows the danger we face. We have been dodging death for quite some time, so please, trust her.""Wait, Lily is your sister?""Yes, Beth and Mac are my cousins," Lem replied. He was looking at them while they interacted with Nuru and Layla. It was rare to find them with humans, other than the alpha pair and Rena, it was the first time they had any human int
It took an hour and a half to reach the private airstrip where the jet was fueled and ready to go.Rena and Megan were accustomed to private flights. Megan's dad, Mido is a well-known geneticist and would travel with Megan when she was little. While Rena was a paper artist, there are times that her works were transported with her because some of the paper she used was infused with gold or other precious gems. Their fathers would always hire a private jet, but this jet was a thing of beauty.The outer hull was stunning. Black monochrome covered the body. An outline of a wolf on a dune can be seen on the tail of the jet, while the word Shifter Dunes was written in both Arabic and English can be read on either side of the main body. The cockpit also looked like the head of a black wolf as the white outline was artistically painted