by Mia Rose
“What?” Gabriel stood up from his seat. “They can’t do that! This is our home.”
“Actually,” Megan said between bites, “they can do it, especially if the property is near foreclosure or something. Have you all been keeping up with the bills and stuff? Are all of your finances in good standing?”
Gabriel looked at Declan who said, “They will be all caught up. That’s why I brought Avril on board.”
Gabriel thought for a moment. “Well, I’m sure if we can get the pack members together on this, then maybe we can do some minor repairs around the place to fix it up. We need to do enough so that the inspector will give us some time to repair the building before they condemn it.”
“I don’t know if we will have enough time,” Declan said. “I didn’t realize how messed up I’ve let this place become.”
“Well, we have to try,” Gabriel said. “This is our home and we won’t go out without a fight.”
“That’s all well and good,” Declan said as he smiled at their loyalty, “but that’s not the extent of our problem.”
“What?” Gabriel said. “What else could there possibly be?”
“The inspector is coming this Monday,” Declan said. “Edmund is also coming this Monday.”
“Ah, fuck.” Gabriel groaned. “How the hell are we supposed to hide a freakin’ science lab?”
“And therein lies our problem,” Declan said.
Edmund walked up the front steps of the house. He noticed that they had painted it a light blue color with a white trim —trying to keep with the times, he thought to himself.
He took a deep breath and steadied himself as he knocked on the door. A young maid pulled the door open, smiling at him.
“Ello, sir. How can I help you today?”
“Can you please tell the owners of the house that I am here to see them?”
The woman’s smile faded slightly, obviously not excited by the idea of having to speak with the owners. She nodded and retreated inside of the house, leaving the front door open just a crack.
Edmund could hear the conversation from outside. “Ma’am, there’s a young man here asking for you,” the maid said quietly.
“Who is it, Bridgette? I am not expecting anyone, not today.”
“Oh, well, I’m not sure exactly…”
“You didn’t ask his name?”
“No, Ma’am I’m sorry.”
“I don’t need you to be sorry, I need you to do your job. Now what am I supposed to do? I’ll have to go talk to this random stranger all because you couldn’t find out who it was before bothering me with your presence,” the woman snarled.
Edmund cringed as he listened from the outside. He felt terrible for putting the maid in this situation.
The maid came back to the door and asked, “May I ask who is…”
“Don’t bother, Bridgette. I’m already up. Now who is…” The woman stopped in her tracks as she saw Edmund standing in her doorway.
She took a few steps backward and the glass she was holding slipped from her hands, smashing against the freshly polished tile. Bridgette raced out of the room to fetch the broom and pail to clear the mess.
Edmund looked at the woman and for a moment, he felt as if they had been transported back in time. She had the same deep red hair which curled right beneath her chin. She wore the same blood-red lipstick and bright pink blush which made her seem slightly flushed at all times. The only thing which gave away the passing of time was the addition of a few new wrinkles around her mouth. Edmund knew that they were frown lines. He also knew that they were his fault.
“Hi, Mom,” Edmund said, taking a few steps toward the woman, “I’m home.”
“Finding home once again is good for the heart.”
Chapter 14
The Prodigal Son
“The entire world stopped spinning in that moment.”
“Edmund,” the woman whispered, her eyes never leaving his face, “what are you doing here?”
“I need to talk to you,” Edmund said, taking a few steps closer to his mother.
“Don’t…” His mother was on the verge of tears. “Don’t come any closer. If your father comes home, he will kill you.”
“Mother, I promise you, this time is real. I have a whole lab set up and…”
“Stop it!” his mother cried out, clutching at her chest. “Just stop. I cannot take this anymore with you. I lost you years ago —my son, Edmund died. You, you are just a monster that wears his face.”
“I’ve explained this to you before, Mom. I have it contained!”
“It’s not possible.” She shook her head. “It’s not possible for that to happen.”
Edmund tried to walk further into the house, but as he stepped in, his mother reached down into her stockings and pulled out a knife. Edmund could tell by the blade that it was made with real silver.
“Mom, do we really have to resort to this? I am trying to talk to you civilly.”
“Who knows you’re here?” his mother asked, her eyes darting back and forth as though expecting hidden bodies to emerge from the crevices of the wall.
“Nobody —I didn’t tell anyone,” Edmund said. “As a matter of fact, I have just been telling people that my parents were killed because it’s a lot easier than telling them the truth —or that you wanted nothing to do with me once I was bitten.”
“Yes, well, can you blame us for that?”
“No, I suppose I…”
“Miss Anne,” Bridgette called out from the kitchen doorway staring at Anne who was still holding the knife in her hand. “Is everything alright? Should I phone the police?”
“No, Bridgette, that won’t be necessary.” Looking at her son, Anne continued on to say, “As a matter of fact, you can take the rest of the day off. Thank you, Bridgette.”
“But…”
“I said thank you, Bridgette.” Edmund watched as the young girl turned on her heels and marched out of the kitchen through a side door —a door reserved for servants.
“Mom, can we talk please?” Edmund begged. “I think I found her.”
His mother’s eyes grew wide and she lowered her knife slowly. Her mouth opened as if she wanted to speak, but no words came out.
“How can you be sure?” his mother finally said.
Edmund held up a picture of Noelle on his cell phone that he had taken of her while she was asleep next to him. The knife fell to the ground as his mother gasped.
“She looks just like her,” his mother whispered. She took the phone from his hand and stared closely at the picture. “How did you…”
“Like I said,” Edmund replied, walking up to her and taking his phone from her hands, “can we talk?”
His mother led him into the formal living room where they sat on two couches facing each other. Although she had dropped her weapon, she certainly had not dropped her icy exterior, with regard to Edmund.
When she spoke, it sounded as though she was in a business meeting. “So, tell me. How did you find her?”
Edmund nodded. “After I had been bitten and father pulled my funding for further research, I transferred into another medical school that was further away. I graduated and became a doctor at a local hospital. A few weeks ago, a man came in with a large wound from an unidentifiable animal and everyone had been talking about it. When I went to peek inside the room, I saw her sitting by his side.”
Edmund stopped a moment as he recalled the first time he had seen Noelle and chills ran down his arms, giving him goosebumps. His mother listened attentively.
He continued, “As luck would have it, she landed in the hospital herself, just a few days later. She’d had an accident and I made sure that I was the one on her case.”
“Edmund, does this mean what I think it means?”
“Yes, Mom. We have found the one missing ingredient to make the elixir permanent.”
His mother clapped her hands together, smiling for the first time since he could remember. He could vividly recall
the day that he had told his parents he’d been bitten by a werewolf —she had slapped him so hard across the face and then run up the stairs and locked herself in her room. As for his father, he got what was coming to him.
Just then, the door to the sitting room swung open. A portly man stood in the doorway with his thick gut protruding over his khaki pants which he wore too high. A pair of suspenders struggled to stay fastened as they stretched over his broad shoulders to his waistband. The man’s face was red and twisted angrily.
“Anne!” he bellowed. “Why is there broken glass by the front entry?”
“Eddie, dear.” Edmund’s mother tried to soothe her husband.
But as soon as he took a few steps further into the room, his eyes caught sight of Edmund and the entire world stopped spinning in that moment.
“Son.” Edmund’s father sneered. “I see the prodigal son has returned at last.”
Declan spent the entire weekend with Gabriel hunting down all the supplies that Edmund had requested. More than once, they had been asked what they were planning to do with all this equipment.
“People definitely think we are drug lords or something.” Gabriel groaned.
“Why are you so worried about what people think about you?” Declan asked him.
“I don’t care what they think about me,” Gabe explained, “I’m more worried that they will see us walking into this apartment complex and the complaints will get ramped up against us.”
Declan could definitely understand Gabriel’s concern. They had been all over the city, so who knew who might have seen them at this point, or what kind of rumors may have started. The last thing they needed was for the city inspector to have a reason to investigate the basement.
“We will figure this out, Gabriel. I know we will.” Declan’s words were more positive than he actually felt and he hoped that his tone didn’t give away his doubt.
The rest of the pack had been working tirelessly on trying to get the complex back into shape. Some of them had started on the roof, repairing leaks and fixing the tiles wherever it was needed. Others went apartment by apartment trying to give each one a fresh coat of paint. Another team painted the outside of the complex. And the final team was planting some colorful and cheery plants.
Declan had told everyone else to try to fix minor repairs within their own apartments and to clean everything from top to bottom. They worked endlessly for three days and nights.
Now, it was Sunday evening and the basement was the only room left untouched. Medical equipment lined the sides of the room, taking up almost one third of the space itself. Declan stared at it all and he wondered how much of this Edmund actually needed, and how much of it was more of a fool’s errand. Declan said goodnight to Gabriel and headed back to his apartment.
He caught sight of Avril standing in the hallway and he called to her, “Hey Avril, do you have a second?”
Avril looked at him and waved. “Sure thing!”
She walked over to him and Declan took a good look at her as she neared him. She wore tight jeans and a flowy top that hugged her breasts and then flared out. He could feel a small jump in his heartbeat.
“What’s up?” she asked once she got near to him.
“I was wondering if you wanted to go back to my apartment so we could talk,” Declan said. He noticed her brows furrow together in confusion, so he added, “You know, about tomorrow. About our plan for the inspector.”
“Oh right.” Avril smiled. “Well, I was actually headed out on a date. Do you think it could wait until the morning? If not, I can just reschedule.”
“No, that won’t be necessary.” To Declan’s surprise, his heart dropped just a little bit. “Have fun on your date!”
Avril smiled and walked down the hallway and knocked on the door of another apartment. Declan watched out of curiosity and was incredibly surprised when Ramona walked out and took Avril by the hand. The two women walked down the hallway together and Declan could not help but laugh to himself. It was obvious to him now that her excitement was entirely about the job and not at all about him.
He walked back to his apartment and opened the door. The moment he opened the door, he had a creeping sensation that he was not alone. He shut the door behind him quietly and walked into the apartment, trying his best not to make a sound.
“Declan, it’s just me,” the familiar voice came from the living room. Declan reached for the light switch on the wall and turned it on, revealing Noelle sitting on the couch.
“How the hell did you get in here, Noelle?” Declan hissed. “And what the hell are you even doing here, anyway?”
“Declan, I know that you are upset with me, but I need you to hear me out.”
“What is it? I don’t have time for all of your drama and bullshit.”
“Declan, I think Edmund may have left town. I have tried reaching out to him since that day in the hospital library, but his phone has been off.”
“Has it ever occurred to you that he just doesn’t want to speak to you?”
“I went to the hospital and no one has seen him for three days. He missed his last shift there, which he would never do.”
“Noelle, I don’t know what to tell you.” Declan sighed. “I don’t know where your little boyfriend is, and honestly, I don’t give a fuck. As long as he is here by tomorrow, to start that cure for us.”
Noelle looked at Declan and he could see the fear on her face as plain as day. He realized that she was more afraid that he had left her, far more than because he might not be able to make the cure for the family. That familiar stabbing pain filled his chest again.
“Noelle, you need to leave now,” Declan said quietly.
“Declan, I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry, for everything.”
“Please,” Declan said, holding his hand up to stop her. “Please, just go.”
Noelle nodded and stood up from the couch. She walked toward the door and put her hand around the knob.
Without turning around, she said, “I will be back here tomorrow. I need to speak with my family about the cure and let them know everything that’s going on.” She pulled open the door and shut it closed behind her.
Declan stared after her. Any progress he had made over the past few days in forgetting about her just shattered around him. Just like a piece of stained glass thrown to the ground, made up of over one million pieces.
Edmund sat on the couch remaining very still as his father walked toward him. “Come on now, son,” his father said. “Where’s the greeting for your ol’ man.”
“Hello father,” Edmund said casually.
“What? No hug?” His father laughed humorlessly. “Or I suppose you might be afraid you’ll lose control again and attack me? Why are you here?”
Edmund studied his father closely. He noticed the slight limp in his step and he knew that was his work. He thought back to the day that had brought upon that injury.
It was the same day that Edmund had been bitten by the wolf. When he woke up later that day, he discovered that the werewolf had escaped his office. He went home to his parents to tell them the news —they would need to track down that wolf as soon as possible to prevent the news from spreading about the lab.
When Edmund told them what had happened, his mother slapped him across his face, asking how he could be so stupid. She retreated up the stairs and locked herself away in her bedroom. His father remained calm. He asked Edmund all the necessary information he needed in order to find the escaped werewolf.
Once Edmund was finished recounting every detail he could recall, his father told him to stay where he was, while he went to get something. When he came back, he held up a gun and pointed it directly at Edmund.
Edmund’s body reacted before his mind had a chance to catch up. He ran toward his father. His father pulled the trigger and hit Edmund in the chest, but it was not a fatal wound. Edmund closed in on his father and grabbed the gun from his hand. He pointed the gun and shot him in the lower calf. Edmund
stood over his father’s trembling body before he ran out of the house, never to be seen again, until now.
He wrote letters to his mother —each one left unanswered. He told her about the cure he had found which helped him control his transformative abilities. He told her about the book he had found written by his ancestor which outlined other useful properties for werewolf blood. In this book is where he learned about Noelise —the original huntress. And in this book, is where he learned that her blood was the one ingredient which could make his cure permanent.
Edmund shook his head as he withdrew himself from his reveries. He stared ahead at his father who was glaring down at him.
“So, why have you come here?” his father asked him. It was clear from his tone that this was not the first time he’d asked the question.
“I’ve found her,” Edmund said simply.
“What do you mean by that? You’ve found who?”
“Dear, why don’t you sit down,” Anne spoke up. “Edmund, I never shared your letters with your father. He does not have any idea about what you are talking about.”
“Letters? What letters?”
“Never mind that now, Eddie. For once, just listen to your son.” Anne was agitated, but Edmund did not want to miss this opportunity to speak with his parents and tell them everything he had learned over the past few years.
“Father, as you know, after you passed down that book to me, I took up the same research on werewolves. I even created a few new elixirs and potions to help you during your hunts.”
“Yes, and then you got yourself turned into one. I really don’t know why I am even entertaining this…”
“Eddie!” Anne shouted. “Just shut up for once and listen.” Edmund’s father looked shocked. Anne had never spoken to him like that in his life, but it had worked and he shifted uncomfortably in his seat across from his son.
“Yes, you’re right. I had gotten bitten, but I never transformed into a wolf. But I worked tirelessly on a cure and I found something in the book which eventually created an elixir. One that reverses the genetic changes from the bite. The only problem is, that it’s not permanent. If I do not drink it every day, the changes will start to take over again.”