1. The beginning
Seattle,
In the middle of the night,
Clouds roared loudly in the sky above. The roaring was so intense that the screeching sound of the halting bus got camouflaged, "Be careful, baby." A man softly said whilst looking behind him at the girl who followed him out of the bus.
"Thanks, bud. It was a nice ride." The man waved at the driver of the bus as he carried a small bag on his shoulder.
The driver smiled, “Have a safe journey, dude.” the doors closed automatically and it once again resumed its speed, running on the wet road of Seattle under the drizzling night.
The weather became mystically haunting. The girl wanted to enjoy every moment of such weather as it fills one's heart with happiness albeit, she could do nothing more than holding her whiffs, and following every step the man took. She wanted to feel positive and hopeful about life amidst such a serene ambiance but her thumping heart made it difficult.
She carried her little bag on her back. Her fingers clasped around the straps of her backpack as she followed the man. The light rainfall in fine drops on the ground made a musical note which soothed her mind. She concentrated around the dark surrounding amidst the melodious air and then abruptly stilled, realizing that the man walking before her had turned around, and staring at her.
"Uh, is so-something wrong, daddy?" She asked with cracking fumbles, and in reflex, she was pulled forward by her hair and was forced to look into his dark frightening eyes.
She shuddered when the man who was believably her father pulled her until her head uncomfortably moved up. Small drops of rain cascaded below on her face as a small yelp erupted from her mouth, "That hurts, daddy!"
However, her father yanked her hair more and tears occurred before her retina. She seized her lips together in order to suppress her threatening sobs and endured the pain with a crazily beating heart.
"You are a good learner. I am impressed you learned to behave across people real soon, but I must say you can't control your excitement even today." He dangerously whispered with a cluck of his tongue. "Do you want me to teach you how to control your excitement, Reyne???" She mouthed a painful and inaudible apology.
Reyne dreadfully eyed her father’s face and clutched her eyelashes together, “Daddy, I am sorry. I will behave myself from the next time” She sobbed hoping for her father to let her go.
She let out a gasping sigh when indeed he left her hair and grunted, “Good. We have come to a new place. I would be glad if you act nicely. I don't want anyone to pick up on me just because my daughter is mannerless! Hari Stark's daughter cannot be a mannerless bitch! Do you get that?” He reminded her.
"I am sorry, daddy. I swear on myself that I will behave nicely. Please do-don't hurt me. Please." She pleaded.
On seeing her condition, her father let her go and moved backward, “Very well then. Now come on, follow me. We need to head to our new home quickly before it rains faster.”
She composed herself and resumed following her father.
*****
“Zaneee,” While the thudding noise of the steps neared towards the door, Zander heard his mother's howl coming along.
He still laid unaffected on the bed and dug his head in the pillow. Not even a minute has passed that the sun rose again, but his mother came to give him a call in the early morning already.
He quickly pulled the pillow on his head such that his skull was sandwiched between the mattress and the bed while he held the two ends of his pillow with his hands.
'No matter how much you force me, I am not going to school, mom!!! I don't want to see them acting all lovey-dovey around me, huh.'
Tbc...
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(Last chapter) Five days later, In the lounge of the hospital beside the reception desk, Valen stood with her phone in one of her hands and a package in the other. She stomped her foot impatiently as she glanced at a recently received message, seething in vexation. 'Stuck in the traffic!' "Oh, moon goddess! Why do you have to mate me with such a dumb f*ck bastard." She cried— like she was a wolf, with a baby face and pout she was adored for. Then another message appeared on her screen that turned her facial expressions even sour and bitter. 'A bloody red lory has blocked my way. It's not moving further, not letting me do so.' "Oh Jesus, I will kill you, Ryley Shine." Valen shrieked, this time like a human, earning amusing looks from the passers-by and the watchman who was sitting across a huge television, keeping
117 "Tell me, I am on time." He said amidst his uneven respiration as he stood with his torso bent forward and hands resting on his knees, working on stabilizing his breathing. His beta entered the room behind him, "You are, Ryan." "How long has he been dead for?" Alpha Ryan asked coming to his full height even though his breathing had not braced up. He discerned the clueless faces of Zander's kith and kin waiting for an answer. When none came, his beta stepped next to him and disclosed, "Less than twenty-four hours. We still have time— but not much!" "Great. That's enough time." Alpha Ryan expressed his delight at his beta's reply with a clap of hands as the others gawked at him. Their doubtfully teary eyes stayed affixed on his face as he, standing as an odd one out, smiled in the whole room.
116A storm of grief, they never anticipated, knocked their senses down.Anyone and everyone, who walked inside the ward Zander's corpse was placed in, returned with an expressionless face. He was just too young to die. Nobody believed their eyes when they walked in, but when they returned, they realized it was indeed true.His parents and friends stayed lined up by the side of the wall adjacent to his ward's door, weeping.His father had awoken with a smile, hoping to see the others safe within the boundaries of their pack- back in their sweet home. But the news he was dawned with, trembled his very core, muting him for several times before his wife broke into his ward.They held each other in a forlorn embrace and shared their pain. Their first child, their son... Was gone.The doctors warned him not to leave the bed yet Mr. Brown overstepped thei
115"Noooooo! Zander, my son.. He Can't... He can't die!" Mrs. Brown melted to the ground, her body loosely flattened, wailing deeply on top of her voice."C-control yourself, Mrs. Brown. You..." Ryley, who had been attempting to handle her, himself felt his throat choke as tears blurred his vision.The news that they received was itself so shaking and bewildering that none of them was ready to believe it. Zander was dead. He died whilst saving his mate. The Paladin Alpha sacrificed his life to save the others.When in the morning the Gamma hastily rushed to woods land after receiving a call of trepidation, all of them prayed for the well-being of all the Alphas and betas who've gone on the rescue mission with Zander.Although the Gamma left in his car, he returned with five ambulances behind him that paused across the hospital gate. It was Ryley who was given a call by doctor Jason to come ov
114“Zane!” his father shrieked, perceiving him wail in discomfort.A big chunk of glass stayed stabbed in his stomach. Blood slipped at his temple given that his head hit against a sharp rock, making the world around him spin.He did not get a second to steady himself as the ifrit galloped near him. He lifted Zander by his neck, his hold tightening around it. The wisp sound of his slow squeezing at zander’s neck had his father roar manically while he plunged at the demon, turning into his wolf.His canines pierced through the shoulder of the arm that was clasping Zander in his hold, and caused him to loosen his grip. Zander plummeted at the ifrit’s feet coughing and gasping for air.“He was dead, wasn’t he?” there was a faint tremor in alpha Hercules’ tone.Nobody had any answer except for shocking gasps and he
113Satisfaction. It was a kind of satisfaction he never derived before. Not from bullying or hurting people. It can only be derived through killing... Killing the enemy.His chest swelled in pleasure and eyes brightened. The scent of Reyne stayed in his breaths. The air held her fragrance, which his lungs gladly sucked in.Those alphas waiting out there said that they would leave as soon as they found Reyne— without creating any scene, but he couldn't stop. He had to kill him. Kill them all. They tortured his Reyne. They threatened their kind. And hunters... He killed him half right when he mentioned them.But it was over. Zane killed them here and the doppelgangers killed his psycho wife there.He smiled to himself as he rushed ahead. He just wanted to get to his Reyne and hold her tight. His crawl was quick. Zane was moving further steadily until— he witn