The look of exhaustion on their faces confirmed it too. Though I was scared to death of my fate at the hands of the mysterious alpha, I couldn’t continue putting the Rousseaus in harm’s way, continuously forcing them to act on my behave because I couldn’t protect myself against danger.
“You know, you guys aren’t really doing me any favors by keeping every little thing from me. At some point you guys are going to have to accept the fact that I’m not as fragile as you make me out to be,” I said in irritation.
I understood they felt compelled to protect me, but they were seriously taking things to the extreme. How bad could their confessions be? They had confessed to being werewolves. I didn’t think they could keep bigger secrets than that one.
“Marjorie is right.” Marquis turned to Kyran and added, “We aren’t doing her any favors by keeping quiet. Revealing the truth is partly why we brought her here.”
I could feel Kyran tense beside me.
“Before we get to the facts, however, let’s go in and have something to eat first.” Marquis planted a kiss on Simone’s lips before starting toward the house. He pulled back a moment later and smiled. “I believe bad news is always taken better on a full stomach. One of us will run out and get your suitcase in a little bit.”
Bad news? More bad news?
I leaned on Kyran as he led me across the driveway to the side of the house. As I limped next to him, I couldn’t help but study the signs of forced entry on the once immaculate Rousseau home. I’d had the feeling something had happened the day before but now I knew for sure.
Things seemed to have started at the main house and, perhaps, traveled all the way to the woods near the hospital.
That could only mean one thing...they had been after me.
Kyran and I made our way to the side of the house and it didn’t take me but a moment to find another sign of violence near the back entrance. This one was a hole that went right through the wooden door to where you could see through it.
I swallowed hard. Something had definitely happened.
Kyran led me indoors, past the sunroom and into the kitchen. Alexis pulled a chair out and Kyran helped me sit on it. He then sat next to me and carefully lifted my injured leg so that it rested on his thigh.
With all members of the Rousseau clan present, we took our appointed seats and dug into the many platters of food sitting on the table. There was everything from omelets, toast, fresh fruit, milk, coffee, juice, toast, ham, and pancakes. After eight days of eating flavorless hospital food, I was more than happy to indulge in the feast before me.
We ate in silence. The only sound in the room being that of eating utensils scraping against dinner plates and coffee mugs being set back down on the table. I glanced around, gazing at each Rousseau for several seconds before moving on to the next. They all seemed consumed by their own thoughts so I didn’t bother trying to start a conversation.
It was apparent that whatever they had to say weighed heavily on their shoulders and they needed a few minutes to recap before starting. In all honesty, I needed a few more minutes too so I tried taking my time eating. I didn’t want to rush anything. I was anxious to get this over with while I was at the hospital, but now that the time had come, it no longer seemed a priority.
Once we were done eating, Gage and Josephine removed the empty plates and carefully arranged them in the dishwasher. A quick swipe of the table later, we were all quietly sitting and drinking either coffee or juice, staring at one another and waiting to see who would talk first.
I spared a glance at Kyran and found that he wouldn’t, or couldn’t, meet my gaze. Understanding that he was going through something, I settled my gaze on Marquis instead.
“I don’t think I’m exactly ready for this, but this is an unavoidable subject. As far as I understand, there are things I need to know. As worried as I am about what you all have to say, I know it’s probably in my best interest to hear everything,” I said, hoping to ease the tension and get things over with.
As alpha of the pack, Marquis took on the daunting task of representing his family.
“You’re right, Marjorie. From the first time my brothers and my sister saw you they knew something was different about you. We were intrigued from the very first encounter, but I’m afraid our truths go deeper than you might realize.”
I lean back against the chair and interlocked my fingers above my thighs. “When you talk about truths, what exactly are you trying to get to?”
“Well, if we are going to bring things out in the open we might as well begin to what brought us to Wolf Creek Hollow in the first place,” he said.
I turned to look at Kyran, confused. “I thought you moved here to start over. Isn’t that what you said?”
Kyran finally found it in him to look at me. “That’s not really the only reason.”
Stunned, I could only sit there and gape.
“Marjorie.” Marquis reached up to scratch his chin. “Before we go into further detail as to what brought us to Wolf Creek Hollow, it would be best for us to discuss what we think makes you so different from any other human we have ever encountered.”
I wanted to hear everything now. I didn’t want just vague answers. After witnessing the look of defeat on Kyran’s face, I was extra curious to find out more.
“I’m all ears,” I replied with a hint of sarcasm. Kyran’s refusal to open up, to look at me, to own up to anything was upsetting me. What was he hiding that he didn’t want to share?
Marquis’s eyes settled on his wife momentarily before turning back to me. “What we are about to say is based mostly on a legend, but we feel that it’s important for you know about it anyway. Especially because it seems this legend is based mostly on truth.”
A sense of dread spread through me. A week ago, the worst danger I had to face was Santos. A week later, that no longer seemed important.
The worst thing I had to face now was a truth I wasn’t even sure I wanted to hear.
“Tell me what you know.” As I waited for Marquis to begin, I took in his sibling’s expressions. Trying to decipher their thoughts, however, wasn’t that easy. Kyran appeared angry while Alexis, Simone, and Josephine seemed worried. There was nothing about Gage’s countenance that I could easily read. Marquis was a mixture of all.
“Let’s start from the beginning then.” Marquis took a sip of orange juice before continuing. “All werewolves born within this world were an equal. We were all at one point bloodthirsty killers. Each pack had its own society and rival packs were part of everyday life. Competition between rival packs was mostly related to territory. The pack that encroached on the territory of another would either be chased off or killed by the one with the strongest alpha.”
“Such were the old ways of our kind. Times when we acted more like our brother the wolf than the humans we resemble. That part of our society was crucial to keep our growing numbers under control. In the past we were many, much more than what we are now,” he stated. “In one way or another we were as one, rival or not. Approximately a thousand years ago, however, the werewolf genetic line got divided.”
“You’ve mentioned this before,” I pointed out.
“Yes, well, there is a legend that has been circling around for hundreds of years and which is associated with this metamorphosis of our unique species. Some say that it’s the beginning of how werewolves split into two subspecies within their own kind. As the legend goes, there used to be a royal family who had one of the most powerful werewolf princesses to ever have lived. It is said she gave birth to two children. One of them, the youngest, was different from his parents and the rest of the pack.”
“The smaller of the two was no different from his kinfolk and fellow pack members except in one area.” This was when my full attention was diverted completely to Marquis and his story. “When the time came to hunt humans, the boy couldn’t do it. They say he didn’t have the natural urges that you would expect from our kind, that the idea of killing humans to feed was
repulsive to him, that if he consumed human flesh he would become ill.”
“Because of this weakness he was rejected by his father and set aside like some common beta, not even allowed to come out of his quarters when the pack was in the presence of others who could learn of his unique condition. As a matter of fact, he was only tolerated due to his mother, who was said to be a direct descendant of an ancient bloodline dating back several thousand years. She loved her son too much to see him killed and despite the law of the pack, she decided to keep him. When the boy grew into a man, both parents passed away and his older brother stepped up as alpha. His peaceful life ended shortly thereafter for his brother had no tolerance for weaknesses, and once he became leader, there was no room for a tainted wolf.”
“So what happened?” I asked, finding the story much more interesting than I had originally expected.
“The man left and became a lone wolf. A loner. As you know, back in the day, abandoning the pack wasn’t well looked at either, but since his brother was happy to be rid of him, he was allowed to live in peace. For a while...” Marquis sighed. “...it is said that he fell in love and married a human woman, therefore tainting his family name further by mating with the enemy. The action of taking a human for a mate was considered to be treason, unacceptable.” He shrugged before continuing. “It is said that the lone wolf’s wife became pregnant.”
“Wait!” I held my hands up. “How is that possible? You said yourself that humans and werewolves cannot reproduce because our overall genetics are different.”
“I did say that,” he said. “But I warned you that this is all based on a legend that has been circulating for a long time and which no one has confirmed as of yet.”
He’d also said that this legend was mostly based on truth. So what was it really? Fact? Or legend?
Since Marquis seemed determined to get to the end of the story, I decided to withhold any questions until he was done relating his so-called legend.
“The wolf’s human wife gave birth to a child, which was different in his own right. This child was the first of his kind, genetically more human than werewolf, but somehow he still retained some of our traits.”
“Such as?” I asked.
“According to the information we have on hand, this child could self-heal like we can. He wasn’t susceptible to disease, nor did he age as your average human does. He could communicate telepathically with members of his group and possessed great strength. In fact, the only thing he could not do was shift from one form to the other.”
Legend or not, even I had to admit Marquis’s story was attention grabbing.
“How did the lone wolf’s old pack take the news of his son’s birth?” I felt compelled to ask, but somehow I knew the news was not well accepted. How I knew was an enigma I had no answer to, but instinctively I knew things went downhill for the lone wolf.
“As expected, when the elder brother found out about the birth of this child, he set out to kill them both. Accepting his brother’s child would be the same as demeaning himself. Humans and werewolves have been enemies from the very first moment we began to share our living space. There was no way for him to accept this new addition to the family without losing face with his pack. As alpha and leader he had to set the example, he had to show others no form of treason would be forgiven.”
“Would he have chosen differently had the circumstances were altered?” My question didn’t seem to surprise the Rousseaus in the least. In fact, they looked as if they had been expecting it.
“Not at all. For what we have heard, Lykos ValKhazar was a ruthless leader. He was cold and calculating. Dangerous. Showed no mercy. At times, he killed merely as a source of entertainment.”
I’d hate to be related to someone like that. “So...what did he do? You know, after finding out about the lone wolf and his son?”
“He commanded for his brother and nephew to be brought into the ValKhazar castle to face justice at the hands of the Order,” Marquis said. “Catching whiff of the alpha’s plans, the lone wolf took off with his son in hand.”
The words hadn’t quite left Marquis’s mouth when an image invaded my train of thought. I could clearly make out the man in the woods, running, in his arms he carried a small bundle. A child. His child. He had one goal and that was to see to it that his son would be protected from those hunting him down.
I felt short of breath as I relived those moments in my head. I could see everything clearly, as if I had been standing in the middle of the woods, observing him as he ran by. I could feel his desperate need to protect the only innocent, good thing he had left. The only thing of value he would die to protect. It was almost as if I was locked somewhere within a world of fantasy and reality, watching the man carry his son to the cabin where he found the mysterious woman.
“The legend of the Lost Child.” The words flowed easily out of my mouth, as if I’d heard them before.
All eyes fell on me. No one spoke, but I wasn’t really looking at anyone either. I was staring off into space. Before me, I could see the man entering the cabin and engaging in a conversation with the single mother.
In my head, I could hear his words as clearly as if I had been present during their exchange.
“I offer you a wealth in gold in exchange for saving my son’s life. This child is the most important person in my life, but I cannot protect him. I need you for that.” He offered the woman a sack full of gold coins. “If you agree to care for my son as if he was yours, I will make sure that you and your son never go hungry again,” he pleaded.
The woman looked at him as if he’d just gone mad. “What can I possibly do to protect this child?”
“The only thing you need to do is be his mother.”
Anxious energy thrummed right through me. I barely contained the need to scream in confusion and horror. These were memories I was reliving. Someone else’s memories.
“You’re familiar with the name?” Marquis asked intrigued.
“Not really, I just....” Felt like I’d heard it before but couldn’t remember from whom or where. “That’s the name they gave the legend, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” Marquis looked at me as if wishing he could decipher what was in my head.
I bet he wished he could. The legend sounded exactly like the dream I’d been having for the past week. The man, escaping with his son, looking for a permanent way to protect him. Yes, it all made sense to me.
“Isn’t it possible that I could’ve heard this story before and that’s why I’m dreaming about it?” I tried defending my lame conclusion, but we both knew that wasn’t the case at all.
He wrinkled his nose. “It could be.”
I couldn’t understand where he was going with the story. Or what was the point of telling it. So I was reliving someone else’s memories. What did that have to do with the lone wolf or the king wolf for that matter? Or me? What did it have to do with me?
“What happened to the lone wolf?” I asked, wanting to change the subject.
“He was slain by his brother.”
Pain radiated through my chest at Marquis’s words. I couldn’t understand why I’d feel so defeated and disappointed all of a sudden but I did. The lone wolf died. He died. He fought in vain. Why did that affect me so much? I didn’t even know the man for crying out loud.
“He was judged by the Order? Wasn’t he?”
Marquis looked stunned for a moment. “You know what the Order is?”
I gaped at him. “No.” I had no clue what the Order was, but somehow I knew they had sentenced the lone wolf to death. Why was I suddenly so well-informed of things I supposedly knew nothing about?
“The Order is basically aligned by hierarchy. Alphas, elders, and top Trackers. The Order, as an organization meant to keep the peace within the werewolf society, began with the ValKhazar pack. Being that it was the biggest pack to have ever existed, it was to be expected. They decided the fate of the troublemakers, those accused of treason, betrayals of the throne. Wi
th the exception of them, that is. The ValKhazar leader was a wolf with a very short fuse and held no mercy for anyone who went against him. His brother wasn’t the exception.”
I squeezed my eyes shut for a moment, trying my best to digest all this information. It wasn’t easy. I kept seeing the lone wolf over and over again in my head. He might have been dead for nearly a millennium, but his presence seemed to linger with me, as if he was guiding me, trying to help clear things up for me.
Wait! How did I know how long he’d been dead?
Chapter Four
“What of the baby?” I asked after a moment.
“According to legend, the baby was never found.”
My eyebrows shot up. “The legend must have originated from somewhere though.”
Marquis tipped his head down briefly as he studied his interwoven fingers resting on the table. “No one knows how he hid the baby. If there was someone who did know, chances are he or she has long since passed. Most, if not all, of the members of the ValKhazar pack were either killed or taken prisoners at some point in time.”
No. Someone did know what happened to the baby. A member of the ValKhazar pack helped hide the baby. But who? I tried recalling one of the many dreams—well, memories—I’d recollected over the course of the week, but the details were hazy.
Frustrated, I turned to look at Kyran then, and found his silver eyes focused on me. “Even if this legend is true, what does it have to do with me?”
I was hoping Kyran would take it upon himself to provide an answer for me, but he merely sat there and stared. A look of bewilderment took hold of his handsome features.
“Imagine that this baby survived. Imagine that he or she grew up, fell in love, and had children of his own,” Simone spoke up this time.
It did cross my mind actually. As a matter of fact, I envisioned this special child living a long and happy life with people who loved him, fulfilling whatever destiny his father had in mind for him as I reached out for the cup of coffee in front of me and brought it to my lips.
Dark Side of the Moon Page 4