Chapter 8 — The Green-Eyed Human

In the werewolf clan, Gonzalo pondered on the mystery of the werewolf in the vampire community. Both he and the council could not be wrong about the same thing, or could they? He had heard the lone call, so had they. He had perceived the wolf at the meeting with the vampires and felt his presence strongly. He was not mistaken about this. With his keen sense of smell, he could smell from miles away. His sense of smell was definitely not faulty, not before and definitely not now.

He was quite puzzled and thought carefully so he would not miss anything. Not forgetting that the council also strongly believed that something was amiss in the vampire community, he made up his mind. If he was not sure of any other thing, he was certain that there was a lone werewolf in the vampire community.

The headcount had been done, and they found out that no one was missing. Gonzalo was either going mad, or something else was wrong here. There was no way that his senses were wrong.

Dez Alec could say whatever he wanted to, but he could not fool him. Did he think he could not recognize his own? How dare he?! he thought furiously.

He willed himself to calm down and think rationally. After all, it would do no one any good if he acted rashly. And life was at stake.

He took a deep breath to calm his already fraying nerves.

One thing he knew for sure, Dez Alec was holding his kin hostage. He did not know how that was possible as none of his people were missing, but he would not be fooled.

He was still alive, he reasoned. He could still feel the lone wolf, so that was a good sign. But he could not relax. Whoever he was, he was being kept for a reason. He wasn’t sure what the vampires were planning, so he had to think fast. He could feel his core yearning for this lost wolf and longed to bring him home.

He hoped upon hope that Dez Alec would not do anything rash. Or he would not be able to avert the impending bloodshed. His people were already not on good terms with the vampires. Hearing something like this would only enrage them further.

Just hang in there, he pleaded. “I will get you out, I promise,” he vowed.

Gonzalo thought about how best to approach the situation. He thought about carrying his council along but eventually decided against it. They would always have conflicting opinions, and he did not want anything to slow him down. Besides, some were quicker to embrace the notion of bloodshed, but he wasn’t sure if he wanted to go down that road yet.

He definitely couldn’t tell his wife or children either. That was a suicide mission he was not ready to embark on. There was no other person he could trust apart from the council, but he had ruled them out.

Seeing no other option, he decided to carry out his investigation alone. He knew he had to go about it quietly to keep the council from suspecting his moves and to avoid alerting the vampires. And so, Gonzalo embarked on his one-man mission.

Every full moon, the feeling of the lone wolf grew stronger. He could sense him deeply, almost as if the lone wolf was calling out to him. He kept note of this, believing that Dez Alec had some explaining to do.

He wondered why he was still alive. But that was not his problem. What he had to do was find him and bring him home. Woe betides whoever got in his way. He would stop at nothing to save him from the clutches of the vampires.

After settling and reconciling with each other, Hausten and Grenada had finally overcome their fear of each other. Grenada was no longer afraid to be around Hausten, werewolf or otherwise. She knew that he would never hurt her, and besides, there was no point avoiding him. She could not live without him, and she knew that she would be miserable for life. So, what if he was a werewolf? He was still the same Hausten she knew, with just a little moderation. It wasn’t anything she could not live without.

Hell would freeze over before she would let her fear get in the way of her and Hausten. It was a minor step back if she could even call it that. It was nothing to worry about. There were worse problems in life. And she could live with it, as long as she had Hausten by her side.

After settling everything with Hausten, she even felt stupid. How could she think he could ever hurt her? This was Hausten she was talking about. He loved her with every fiber of his being and would do anything for her. He had always protected her and given her no reason to doubt him.

“How could I be so stupid?” she groaned as she put her hand to her face.

Well, no more. She grinned sheepishly as she thought of Hausten. They would be meeting again today in their usual spot, and she couldn’t wait. She was giddy with excitement. She had half a mind to drop what she was doing and run to the forest. But she could not face the wrath of her mother.

She could hear her mother saying, “You are the next ruler of this community. You cannot do that with your head in the clouds half the time. You need to be grounded in what you do. There is no room for distractions. We cannot afford it. Do better, Grenada.”

Hausten had never given her a reason to doubt him, he had proven to be noble through and through, and she was not the only one who thought of him as a nobleman. Other people did too, and it was whispered around the community how lucky she was to have been the one she chose. They did not know about his werewolf side, but they knew about a side alright, and it was one they approved of; her parents approved of him too. The universe surely wanted them to be together, for there was no way she would be so cruel as to bring them together, then send them to ruins for her pleasure. The witches always had a way around these things, and in a few days, Grenada would go to them and beg them to help their love stay forever without pain. The flowers would bloom brighter, and Grenada would know that they had answered her.

Her mother called again, and she decided to hurry up with the task at hand to avoid her mother’s wrath.

“Can the day go any faster?” she sighed pitifully.

Hausten, on the other hand, couldn’t be any happier. He had finally had his Grenada after such a long time. Well, it was a long time for him. He had never gone so long without just speaking to her, let alone being with her. He was over the moon.

They had been spending more time with each other. Those precious moments he had with her were the highlights of his day. He could taste the breeze and feel the sparks in the air. All his worries melted away when he was with her. He would die a thousand deaths just to be in her arms. He would gladly give up this werewolf in him just to be with her.

He could not stop beating himself up whenever he remembered the way he manhandled her in the bloom fields. He was such a fool, and he would spend the rest of his life making it up to her.

Hausten could not wait for his time with Grenada. He had planned a picnic in their usual spot in the forest, away from the prying eyes of Rue and particularly Adolpha. That girl was the nosiest person he had ever met, and she made no effort to hide that. She would surely quiz him about what he was going to do if she had the faintest idea of his meeting with Grenada. He smiled at the thought of her. Adolpha was a handful, and he loved her like that.

He kept himself busy by training until it was time to go meet Grenada. He always wanted to impress her, so he took his time while getting dressed. When he was ready to leave, he peeped out of his room for any sign of Adolpha and Rue.

Seeing no sign of them, he tiptoed out of his room. He walked quietly and was already fist-bumping the air in victory. He opened the door to step out with a sigh of relief at the encounter of no one.

“And where do you think you are going, young man?”

His heart thudded violently. He turned so fast that he gave himself a whiplash, only to discover Rue leaning casually against the wall. He had a wicked smirk on his face as he tried so hard to stop himself from bursting out in laughter.

“Oh, I got him good this time,” he laughed to himself with glee.

Hausten tried to get his heart in control when Rue asked him again, “I asked you a question, baby brother. Where are you off to?”

Hausten scowled at Rue. He knew he hated being called that. He was no longer a baby. Rue reveled in the look on his face. He just loved riling him up. Adolpha always got on his nerves, but when Rue decided to act as his sister, Hausten felt like pummeling him to the ground.

“What exactly is your problem, Rue?” He groaned.

Rue could no longer control himself. He was in hysterics as tears leaked from his eyes.

“I don’t see anything funny here.”

“Oh, Hausten. Always so easy to rile up.” Rue gradually collected himself as Hausten scowled at him.

“I’m glad you are having so much fun. And for your information, I am going to see Grenada.”

“You lovebirds are now together again. Nice. I am sure Adolpha would love to hear this.” Rue said with a twinkle in his eyes. He knew Hausten did not want Adolpha to know where he was going. But it was fun to get on his nerves.

“Rue, I beg of you, if you love me, don’t do that,” he said as he pinched his nose. Rue was exasperating. He was beginning to lose his patience. He had already lost time, the precious time he could have been spending with Grenada.

“Whatever. I’m already late. See you when I get back.”

He didn’t get so far when he heard Rue’s loud voice booming, “For the love of Father, do not get her pregnant.”

He could hear the snicker in his voice. The idiot was bawling with laughter. He did not turn around. He would not acknowledge the fool. He clenched his fists as he tried to control himself. He imagined he was pummeling Rue’s face as he calmed himself when he opened his eyes only to find Rue in his face.

“Get out of my face, Rue,” he growled. He walked faster just to get rid of his infuriating presence.

“Alright, little one. Have fun, but not too much,” he said in between fits of laughter.

As Hausten approached their spot, he sighted Grenada. His heart gave a violent thud at the sight of her. She was so beautiful it hurt to look at her. The air seemed to sizzle around her. Even the trees seemed more colorful. Maybe it was all in his head, but he did not mind. He was lucky to have her and would continue to thank his stars for crossing their paths.

Grenada felt eyes on her, so she looked up and saw Hausten staring at her. She could feel her heart jump. He looked dashing, and he was all hers. With each step he took, she could feel her heart trembling. Could he be any slower? She smiled wryly.

He was nothing less than ten feet away when she jumped on him and kissed him hard. She had been waiting all day long for this moment, and it was finally here. It was an electrifying kiss that Hausten felt down to his toes. They kissed until they had to come up for air.

With swollen lips and starry eyes, she looked at him. He was the embodiment of perfection, and she would give him up for nothing. He tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and pecked her on the lips. Then he took her hand and led her to their spot.

There they lay in each other’s arms, enjoying the peace and tranquility, discussing everything and anything. They were so engrossed in each other that they did not notice a lone figure in the distance, who turned out to be Gonzalo.

Gonzalo was on his mission and in deep thought as he patrolled the vampire grounds. He knew there was a low chance of being discovered since the forest was way off the community grounds. He was lost in his thoughts when he was compelled to look up. His chest gave a violent lurch when he saw Farkas, well, who he thought to be Farkas.

Was the boy mad? What on earth had possessed him to be on vampire grounds? He knew his sons were misbehaving, but this was just too much. Did he want to send his mother back to her sickbed? Oh, Daciana could never hear about this. Her heart could very well give out.

He would go out there and give the foolish boy a piece of his mind. How dare he do this? He was sick of his sons” misdemeanors. No more, he thought. Things are going to change.

He got ready to launch at him when he stopped in his tracks. It was as if he was stopped by an invisible force. He looked closely at Farkas and noticed something was off about him. Farkas was not this small, neither was he that stupid to be on vampire grounds.

This wasn’t Farkas, he realized, though he looked eerily similar to Farkas. He had the same hair color; the eyes were the same. He even had the same build as Farkas. Anyone that saw him would make the same mistake he just did. They would immediately think he was Farkas. But Gonzalo was certain. He was no Farkas.

Gonzalo continued to examine him closely when he backed away in surprise. All he could see was a reflection of himself. It was as if he was staring at himself. He was shocked to his very core. He remained transfixed in his position, jaw slacked and unable to move as he tried to make meaning of what he saw. He knew he had to move to avoid being seen. He crouched just in time when the boy looked in his direction.

That was close, he thought. He had to get out of there immediately. He wasn’t sure he could control himself. With one last look at the boy, he hurried away.

Hausten looked around as he thought he saw someone.

“What is wrong?”

He looked around again just to be sure.

“I thought I saw someone.”

Grenada looked around but saw nothing.

“There is no one here. You are just being paranoid. Come here and kiss me.” She pulled Hausten to her and kissed him. He smiled against her lips as she melted in his arms.

“Well, you might be right. Or it is just Rue spying on me. He has been a thorn in my side for some time now.”

“Oh, really now?! In that case, why don’t we give him a show?”

“As you wish, my lady!”

They laughed carelessly as they tumbled to the ground and made out to their hearts” content.

Gonzalo pondered on his thoughts on his way home. He couldn’t believe his eyes, but the evidence was there. It was hard to ignore. He could swear he had seen the lone wolf he had been searching for, who happened to look just like him. Could this be his son? Already, Daciana believed their son was alive. Could this be true?

His head wheeled in confusion. This was too much to take in a day. First, is the lone wolf, and now his supposed dead son? So, the lone wolf was his son? He wanted so desperately to believe it, but he did not want to have high hopes. Even though he had seen him, he could not let himself believe it until it was confirmed.

Gonzalo was lost in his thoughts so much that he did not know when he got to his home. He came into Daciana knitting a shawl. Despite everything going on, he could not help but crack a smile. It was such a welcome sight, almost as if everything was alright. And everything would be soon, he vowed.

“And what is my Lady up to now?” He made his presence known to her with a warm smile.

“Just knitting,” she said with a smile.

“And why, if I may ask?”

She smiled sweetly as she replied, “For my son.”

Gonzalo nearly staggered, but he controlled himself. He did not want to alarm Daciana, so he just smiled at her. He knew now that she was not mad, and he cursed himself for ever thinking she was. If anyone was mad, it was him. How could he deny a mother’s instinct? Of course, he was alive. He had seen him with his very eyes. How could he be so stupid not to believe his own wife? He felt like a failure.

He was certain now that his son was alive. And he was the lone wolf. He wondered whether the vampires knew he was a werewolf. He reasoned that they did not. If they did, then he wouldn’t be alive, in the forest without a care in the world He hated to think of what they could do to him if they found out. He could not keep this to himself. He had to get it off his chest. He decided to tell the pack about it.

He called for an emergency meeting, and they all converged on the park grounds. The council arrived first and wondered what was amiss. Gavin spoke up first.

“What is the matter, Alpha? You did not even meet with us before this, so I know it is something serious. What is going on?”

Gonzalo took a deep breath before speaking. “What I have to say, I cannot repeat, Gavin. Just hold on. You will all know soon.” The council looked at each other worriedly. Whatever Alpha had to say was of immense importance. And they waited with bated breath.

When all pack members had gathered on the pack grounds, Gonzalo stepped forward to speak. All incessant chatter ceased immediately. There was a buzz in the air.

Gonzalo relayed his findings to the pack, who listened with rapt attention. He left out the fact that the lone wolf was his son. They were all taken by surprise. The council listened with dismay. Even the hot-blooded Gastos was rendered speechless.

“What do we do now?”

Every person had an opinion. He knew in his heart that he had to get his son back. He knew what he had to do. So, he decided that they would have to get him that night. They all agreed and waited for dusk before they set out.

That night, they set out discreetly for the vampire community. Gonzalo made sure to take a few warriors with him and three members of the council. As they got closer to the pack grounds, they could hear what seemed to be a gathering. When they were close enough, they saw that it was indeed a party. They were all merry as they danced around a fire.

Almost at once, they all spotted Hausten. They knew they had seen their target. Hausten was seen dancing with Alarick and Grenada. Though Hausten was having a good time, they failed to see this. Their lips curled in sneers at sight. All they saw were filthy vampires.

The group made to charge in, but Gonzalo stopped them.

“We cannot go in like this, no matter what. It will only end in a full-blown war. We are on their grounds unauthorized and fully armed. We will be putting his life in danger, which will definitely be a shame after knowing all this.”

“So be it, Alpha. They are holding one of us unauthorized as well. We will gladly give our lives if the need arises,” Gavin spoke up.

“I agree, Alpha. This is a slap on our faces. I say we charge in now!” Gastos chipped in.

As much as the idea was tempting, Gonzalo knew that was not the answer. He saw what they failed to see. His son did not look like he was in danger. If anything, he seemed very happy. He could not ruin that by charging in. No! They would not charge in. They would get him another way.

“I have made my decision. We will not charge in. That will be a suicide mission. We will fall back and regroup. We will get him back, but this is not the way to go about it. Let us think clearly before we make a rash decision.”

They were not satisfied with this arrangement, but Gonzalo had made his decision. They looked at the vampires and Hausten again before they left as silently as they came.

Gonzalo left last after looking at his son. He felt his heart bubble at the sight of him. He could not wait to be reunited with his son “Soon,” he vowed, “you will be back home where you belong. I swear it.” He gave Hausten one last look and headed home.

He thought of ways to get his son back from the vampires. More importantly, he did not want to start a war. He looked content with his surroundings. Did it mean they did not know what he was? He was not certain, but he hoped that he would be able to get him out before they discovered what he was.

But how did his son end up with the vampires? That was the question on his mind till they got home. Last he knew, Daciana told him it was a stillbirth. So, what had happened then? He had to get to the bottom of this mystery before he took any action. He would have to visit the witch for answers. He could not do this alone. With this thought, he went to bed.

Eager for answers, Gonzalo summoned Rhea, the witch for answers, the next day. Not what one would expect for a witch, she trooped in with a gait in her step. Due to her powers, she did not look a day over thirty. She looked young and carried herself with pride and grace.

“You sent for me, Alpha?”

“Yes, I did. Come with me.”

“Have a seat, please. Would you like anything?”

“No, Gonzalo,” she said as she settled down comfortably.

“I will just go straight to the leader then. I have summoned you here because of the lone wolf. You must have heard about this case.”

“I know why you have summoned me here, Alpha,” she cut him off. “You wish to know more about your son, am I right?”

He should not be surprised, but he was. She was a witch, after all. He was just caught off guard because he told no one about that part. He was certain no one knew the lone wolf was his son.

“Yes, Rhea. You are right. What can you tell me about him?”

“Well, to start with, you are right. They do not know what he is.”

Gonzalo sighed in relief.

“Let me take you back to the beginning. Your wife told you it was a stillbirth because she thought it was. It was no fault of hers. The baby boy shed no tears. She left him in the cave because of the war to go back to you all. What she did not know was that the baby was not stillborn. The baby cried sometime after she left, but how was she to know? It happened that some vampires were lurking in the cave at the time of your son’s birth.” Gonzalo stilled at this. Rhea noticed this and put his mind at ease.

“They were children. They were in hiding from the war. They were put there by their father to protect them. They heard your son’s cry and went to him. They took care of him while they waited for their father. They had no idea what he was. Their father returned after the battle. A kind-hearted soul, I must say, Alpha. He could not leave the child to die in the cave. So, he took him home with his children and raised him as his own. He had no idea what he was as well. They all thought he was human. That, Alpha, is how your son came to be with the vampires. He was not kidnapped, nor has he held him hostage as you feared. He is very much part of them if you must know. The name you seek is Alarick. He is the one who raised your son. You have heard what you need to know. I must now take my leave.”

Gonzalo was lost in his world that he did not hear the witch leave. So that was what happened. He was saddened by the fact that Daciana was ill for years, all for nothing. Mourning the supposed death of her son, she lost years, precious years they could have spent as a happy family.

Well, it is never too late, he thought. At least, now he knew the full story. He knew they could not charge into vampire territory. He had to tread carefully. There was no sin being committed here. He would have to carry on with his one-man mission.

With this thought in mind, he decided to see for himself what would happen on the next full moon.

During the next full moon, Gonzalo transformed and sneaked into the vampire territory. Right on cue, he held the wolf call and followed the sound stealthily. The sound led him towards the pack homes.

As the moon went down, Gonzalo transformed back to his human form. He followed the call home.

This must be the home of Alarick, he thought. He looked around to make sure he was not being followed or watched. He snuck in and checked for any sign of movement. Seeing none, he followed the scent of his son down to the dungeon.

Gonzalo was gripped with fear at the thought of his son in a dungeon. But Rhea said Alarick was of good heart. Was she wrong? He had half a mind to charge in and save his son but decided to investigate further.

When he got closer, he was gob smacked. There he saw who he believed to be Alarick dropping clothes outside a door, which he believed held his son. The man stood watchfully with two other people, a boy, and a girl, who he believed to be his children based on the similarity in their faces.

This could only mean one thing. They knew. They knew! They knew what he was, and still, they protected him! He could not believe it. Rhea said Alarick was kind-hearted, and he believed it now. The sight he witnessed was a rare one, and he could not help but shed tears. His son was in good hands. They would let nothing, and no one harm him.

He understood that they placed him in the dungeon to shield him from prying eyes. He couldn’t be any more grateful. He looked at them one last time and hurried to his pack to relay the news.

Back at his pack, Gonzalo called for a meeting again. He informed the pack of this development but, for some reason, decided to hide the fact that their son was alive from Daciana.

Soon, he thought. He was just biding his time. He would reveal everything to her in due time.