Chapter 9

Eugenia

I slept feeling his strong arms warm me and his breath close to my ear, I do not know what to do after what happened between us. Who knows, if I could get his love, I could get him to keep his promise. As for this Zayon, he does not deserve to have the power he has and control of so many lives in his clutches. I stood up slowly, taking his heavy arm off my body, looked at him, so beautiful in his sleep that it didn’t even seem to be that monster.

I took a shower, the door was open and went to the guest room that had given me, some dresses had stayed there, and I had tried them before the dance, I chose the simplest of them. I’m sure it was a hell of a lot better than keeping using this one, which Alpha tore up.

— Up so early? Apparently, you and the master must not have had a good night. — Dana, was always sneaky, and was watching every move I made.

— You are mistaken, or you want to go on like this, pretending not to see. I am sure your keen ears have seen how much pleasure I gave him tonight!

She sighed, was angry and her cheeks flushed.

— Why don’t you go back to your people? I thought you were braver than you are proving to be, Eugenia.

— I’m not going back, Dana, at least until he makes sure we’re safe.

— He’s deceiving you, just like he did all of us. Bed promises are carried by the wind, so getting tired of you will look for another, maybe even a human. Since he took a liking to your kind.

— Don’t waste your time saying things I already know, I’m not here for love of him but for my people. And if you take advice, stop listening behind doors. — I left, making her even angrier, the worst is that everything she said is true.

Sooner or later he’ll get tired of me, he’ll get others to satiate his appetite for fresh meat.

Anthony

I came back with the hunt to feed Jane, passed everyone and looked at me with hatred. Ever since Thor did what he did, we’ve been harassed, and even more so now that we have a beast in our midst. I went in, looked for Elizabeth, she had not yet returned from the church and is still angry and bringing more things from the past to get away.

I approached Jane, Thor had tied her arms with disproportionate force. She was asleep and slowly loosened the knot of her restraints, she stepped over me and her fangs passed inches from my face.

— Forgive me Anthony, please!

— If you do that again, I’ll have to gag you.

— Don’t do it, you don’t know what it’s like to live this nightmare. Hide a beast inside you all the time, devouring your soul and transforming everything good in you, in the deepest darkness. — Jane could still feel, cried as she revealed me and I dried one of her tears.

Elizabeth

I came home after my prayers, saw Anthony stroke Jane, or what was left of her.

— I don’t want this monster in my house! Take it where you prefer, I’m seeing how much you’re looking out for her well-being. — I spoke angrily, and the two looked at me.

— Elizabeth is right, as I am, I could lose control at any moment. But if I can do my spells again, I can do a lot for us.

Jane wanted to be free in our midst, that would be total madness. Everyone in the village has harassed us enough and the only one who interceded for us, was Father Jonas, may God have him!

— She will help us bring Eugenia, it seems that you gave up our daughter. — My heart racing in a matter of seconds, Anthony wasn’t hearing his own words.

— Eugenia is my life, how can you accuse me of accepting that they took her, Anthony?

— So take Jane’s help, no matter what she is now! I just want to bring our girl back home.

Accepting the help of a murderous creature seemed like making a pact with the devil, or worse.

— If you really want my help, you need to trust me. — Jane, despite being unrecognizable, still had the same look, trapped inside those yellowish and scary pupils.

Alpha

I opened my eyes, felt the bed, looking for her body. Eugenia was no longer by my side, I sniffed and know that her smell is close, and she did not leave the castle, I took a shower and dressed. Radesh was waiting for me.

— What about Eugenia? — She and her other females await him at the dinner table for breakfast.

I went there, to see me the three stood up.

Eugenia

If I want to make him love me, I need to show some loyalty, I got up too. He sat next to Dana and Hellen, hopefully this time, Radesh has something much better to serve than the remains of a priest. To my surprise, they ate fruit like us. Maybe it’s just one of the many other options they have besides tearing people apart.

— Did you have a good night, Eugenia? — Hellen asked me ironically and I returned it. Alpha looked at me, looking forward to the answer.

— Yes, I had a good night! — Good morning, I will finally meet your newest wife! — A strong, handsome man with red eyes said as he entered the dining room and joined us, he seemed to have a lot of freedom with Alpha and the others from the pack.

— Eugenia is not a wife! — Sue replied to him, nervous.

— Speak only when authorized. — Alpha took the floor, reprimanding her.

— The impromptu sacrifice arrived just in time, as Thor did not want to give up his own head.

— Then we’ll talk about it, Zayon! — Alpha didn’t want me to hear what they were up to, that man was his general.

The executioner to whom for many years we have delivered people for sacrifice, the elders used to go voluntarily, but Father Jonas had changed this rule and only thieves and heretics were delivered to the monster.

— Why are you looking at me so hard, Eugenia? — Zayon asked me to bite an apple. — That way, Alpha will think you’re interested in his trusted man.

— Sue said, looking at him, she knew how no one would create a situation in her favor.

— Just studying the face of whom I should hate. — I replied without any intimidation.

— Eugenia knows it’s mine as long as I want it.

Alpha told me by blinking, I started eating before more unnecessary things were said. Anthony After releasing Jane and watching her eat all the meat I had brought her. I stood outside the hut, remembering the past…

About six years ago…

I was with Elizabeth hugging her body, and we were lying in our bed, I heard branches breaking, and it was late at night. Jane and Gustave’s cabin was very close to ours, I heard her scream and the sound of the trees' tops moving, I ran to get my rifle, and came back very fast, but before I shot, Gustave held my hand preventing.

— Don’t shoot, the bastards are with her. They took her! — Gustave said with tears in his eyes, a few days before, Jane had revealed to everyone that she was pregnant.

— And why did they take her?

This question, I asked so many years ago, continues to this day without an answer. Maybe now, Jane can tell us all the truth and what happened to the child she was expecting. I was brought back from my memories by the voice of Thor. — Will you trust Jane? — Thor asked me.

— I don’t know yet, I’m afraid of deciding wrong.

— Maybe we needed a better leader! — Thor knew how to be tough when he wanted to, but I can’t admit he disrespected me.

— And who would this leader be, you? The same one who laid with one of those filthy creatures and condemned his own sister to lie with the devil?

Thor came up to me and I could not contain myself, I threw a punch in his face and with the force, he ended up on the floor.

Elizabeth came between the two of us, preventing him from reaching me to fight back.

— Did you two go crazy? We have enough pain for our family to separate even more. — She screamed.

— Thor has no respect for me, neither as a leader nor as…

Thor rose from the ground, and Elizabeth supported him.

— Father? You were never my father, always gave me crumbs of your attention and I even thank you for it, so prevented me from being a weak as you are!

Once again Elizabeth prevented me from going after him and settling our accounts, I know I may have failed him and all thanks to the nights she dreams of that damned stranger.

— Please leave Thor alone, all the guilt he has carried for Eugenia is no longer enough.

— Guilt that he himself sought, here there are so many young people, and he went to get ready for the damn lover of that animal! — I punched the cabin wall.

— He made a mistake, we all made a mistake in this life, Anthony.

— Yes, you justify all the failures of this world, you recognize all the good that exists in others, except me, Elizabeth. It’s all my fault, I was wrong to believe that one day I would get your love.

— We’re not talking about both of us!

Whenever I sought a definitive word from her, Elizabeth simply ran away as the devil runs from the cross. I think deep down, she feels sorry for telling me that I am not and have never been anything in her life.

Elizabeth

I feel like I ended Anthony’s life, and I shouldn’t have accepted that he would marry me and come out pregnant with someone else. I could never really be his, because my heart was trapped in the image of a complete stranger, I wanted to move on with my life despite the sudden change in the world we knew.

I was willing to separate myself from him, to give this freedom so that one day he could have a whole woman, but I found myself pregnant with Eugenia and in this hostile world, I could not take care of two children alone. It was a selfish and cruel decision with him, maybe now and so many years later I should gather forces and say that his life goes on, without being stuck to mine. But not before we bring my little girl back into my arms.

Anthony

I went to the river, jumped in the water to slow the fire that was consuming me. Fire of pain I feel inside me, so much love invested, caresses and thousands of attempts in vain to call the attention of Elizabeth, my daughter suffering in that dark place and now Thor denies me as father and leader.

— I will bring our daughter back, and I will live my life, far from dreams that I will never reach, the water that river has washed so many tears that no one will ever see.

I decided to go to Jane’s old house, the shack was closed for years. Everything was in ruins, walking among the remains spent by time, I found photos, obviously taken before the dark ages.

I heard something falling on the ground and I got scared, I approached and observed on the ground a book covered by cobwebs and dust, I caught it.

— Jane can tell you what you’re for! I took the book, left that place and walked through the forest back to the village. Since Eugenia was taken and now with the death of the priest, no one fails to respect the curfew.

I entered the house before nightfall, Elizabeth made dinner and Jane remained cornered in a corner still trying to regain strength.

— Thor is not back yet! — Elizabeth said worried.

— He knows he can’t wander around after sunset, he must be around and just doing it to annoy me.

Jane began to growl.

— I hope he comes back, I smell the danger surrounding the village! Fortunately, he came knocking on the door.

Elizabeth did not rest until I barricaded the door, even though she knew one of the beasts would sleep with us inside.

Thor

I went straight to my room, I was not hungry and neither wanted to see the face of Anthony after all the friction we had this day. I fell into bed and followed with my anguish, I do not know how my mother still follows next to him, it is noted that there is no love. And I who one day longed to be his successor, who in this village would entrust leadership to me? I failed and today, I’m a much more cowardly man than Anthony. Lilith must have been killed, at least Eugenia was spared, Jane will put me inside those gates and I will bring my sister back myself.

— That is the key to having forgiveness and trust once again. Besides showing this man that the son, who does not have his blood, is much braver than he can ever be in this life!