Chapter 54

Lord Colton Mansion, Fairyland

The darkness was smothering him. It was too dark, the eerie sound of the wind outside the cave prison was making him lose his mind. Before Jerome Wallace opened his eyes, his whole body was painful as if he had been crushed by a train. He frowned and felt fuddle-headed while he looked around and surveyed the cell.

How could this happen to him? The last thing he knew was he had been watching his band of rebels in the tavern hall, after the raiding episode in the tavern and the fighting with the woman who seemed to be able to conjure a fire on her hand and burned the tavern. After an hour they were assaulted by Lord Colton's Army. The bastard, he thought.

But who could be that woman? She wasn't a fairy nor a witch but she was powering, he could almost feel her power radiating from fire.

However, he spun over the reality that right now he was in a cold cell as a prisoner. 

Abruptly, he rolled his head towards her youngest daughter, her body resting against his side. For a moment he wondered if she had awoken, but her breathing remained steady. He moved his arm out from between them, and he curled tighter into her. He could feel her heartbeat as his arm slid across her, it was so weak, almost straggling to beat. Jerome Wallace listened again to see if she was awake. She wasn't. He let his fingers wind into his daughter's hair and then down to her back, pulling her even closer. She was just a child and already experienced this kind of maltreatment. What kind of father would he be if he couldn't protect his child? Her little movement caused him to sighed contentedly. He suddenly wrapped one of his arms over her. A sense of rapport and concern burst into him at least they have each other. He was worried, he didn't see her with them, where could the monster bring her? He doesn't have any idea of how long they have been unconscious, he remembered the sudden noise in the banquet hall then suddenly a commotion outside brings out his inner self. Jerome remembered he had moved in a blur towards the tavern doors then something hit him and he passed out. 

By any changes, it was not something a werewolf could withstand. A wolfsbane-of-dart. The next thing he knew, he was already in a secluded room, almost drained, beaten, and almost dead. The darkness was all over him. Oddly unnatural. That even with his werewolf enhanced senses there was nothing distinct in his sight, it was like he was in the vowel of hell. He guessed as he was in a wolfsbane cell. It was weakening him yet he could sense some connection, like a call of home, the tingling sensation was so familiar. 

Two hours later, Jerome Wallace's breathing came in gasped and his body was painful that even coughing became torture. He was a hundred-year-old werewolf and an Alpha yet he had never experienced this kind of anguish before. It was uncommon, he was not recovering from the unbearable blows and tortures from the new guard. And right now his hatred towards Lord Colton was unmistakable and clear as the sun, like acid burns from deep within. 

Yet nothing hurts more than seeing the love of his life tortured then drained in front of him. His resentment roared through his mind. While the pain was beyond any nightmare he had before. It was more than madness and an uproar of his soul. Seeing his daughter's unconscious eyes with dry tears on them, but he couldn't do anything to ease her pain, he was hopeless, tied up, yet he was immobilized by fury and retaliation.

And again he was tied in with silver handcuffs. The number one foe of werewolves, specially coated with wolfsbane. With it, he was depleted, drained, helpless, weak, and above all vulnerable. Being this helpless made him wish for a quick death if only the guard had ended his life earlier, though he begged, he begged for his death but they never even acknowledged his plea. Unfortunately, he needs him, the South needs him as a hostage. He was a friend of the North, a long-time ally. He wondered how the Alpha the South and Lord Colton knew about their whereabouts in his pack.

Earlier the guard took his daughter and tortured her instead. Jerome's hatred became his only strength. His sick reality became his refuge like some firewall of rage rose in him, and he was brimming with anger. Like an old friend from his past, just waiting for him to remember it. And he promised to himself. The South will pay. Not only for killing his kind but in the attempt to take the Royal Kingdom. He will make them pay for what they did to her child. For the pain, she had endured. There was nothing on earth that could save them from his hatred as rage pulsed through his veins. He will kill them all slowly and watch their life drain from their eyes and he will make them beg. What he needs will never be returned, his child innocence plea, and no matter how much he seeks he won't find it. She was born for great things, to find her place in the sun. She could try every day, work for what she wanted and needed, but there were no paths to success now, not from here. Not with him dead.

In the evening, out of the blue, a shadow on his mind lurked through him, making him shiver like some unknown entity invading his thoughts, eventually welcoming, soothing him, and asking him to let it in. In a moment of straggling with himself, Jerome gave in. 

There was hope, he knew. Just a tiny flicker against the wind on his mind. With the open eyes of confidence, he reached out, fingers extended to the shadows. At that moment he had a choice either to acknowledge or resist it; it took no time at all for him to decide. He saw the dying eyes of his youngest daughter and brought the winds to a cold howl. How was he thinking so different from his own? So foreign? He thought.

"Jerome, are you there? Don't fight me, let me in. It's me, Lady Maria."

Jero e was beyond shocked. He heard her voice like she was inside him, how is this possible? He wondered.

Being linked with her pack wasn't like this, yet Lady Maria's voice was like she was inside him, "Alpha let me in, I know you have a doubt, and you are confused, but remember; this is not just your battle. We will fight for you. We will find you, I saw you mourn, and frightened. I felt your essence, one of fear and doubt. And there is even guilt, actions you cannot undo, but you have to remember, we are here to help you, let me in, don't fight it." 

After he'd finished his struggle with Lady Maria's plea, he began to relax and open his mind. Jerome's heart was beating in his ears now. His palms shook and tingled with an almost painful prickly sensation as his breath shortened.

"Are you inside me? How can you talk to me?" he inquired, and though everything weakened yet, he had a little faith.

"Yes, I'm inside you. I can feel what you feel, I can see what you see."

"Am I getting crazy?"

"No, you are not." She answered, "...where are you? You need to tell me your location so I can notify David."

"David? Who is David?"

"He is a sorcerer, later, ...we will talk about him later, but for now tell me anything about your location, I'm weakening as well."

"It's the silver and wolfsbane," he warned.

"Oh! That is now good at all."

"Yes, I know it's the werewolves' nemesis. With it, no one couldn't tap me with a link, nor I'm healing. Oh, but why can you reach me?" asked Jerome.

"Because I'm different now I got the presence of the last daughter of the Moon with me, she gave me a drop of her blood for this purpose."

He acknowledged that his affection for this woman folds into a hundred. He was extraordinary. Amazement doesn't cover his admiration towards her, yet he just hoped she could rescue them sooner and whoever this Daugther of the Moon Goddess Lady Maria was talking about he was thankful and owe her at once.

"...Alpha, can you describe to me your area now? Aside from what I'm seeing through your vision, anything can help, how about outside can you hear something?"

"I can smell the farm, I hear birds, cows, horses, the wind, the smell of fresh air and snow," replied Jerome as he breathed in the air from the small window above his head.

"Okay, then, that is good enough, anything else?"

"Nothing." He added and he hoped that they could rescue them in time. He knew he was dying, his wound wasn't healing, and his guards didn't offer them any food nor a single drop of water.

"Okay, I'll notify Dacie. I'll go now, okay? Just wait for him. They are coming." Then he was cleared out. His mind began to free as the shadows retreated... Vanished.

So odd, so bizarre indeed. A seer who could tap his thoughts like that was powerful. Even with the silver, nothing prevented her. He was more than impressed and frightened at the same time. Now he will wait. Wait for the rescue and for sure, someone will pay. 

It was two days after Lady Maria had tapped into David mind and to Jerome Wallace, two days since they went into the mansion lawn, and since then they had been searching for any feasible entrance to the cave with practical silver cells or space, and yet they were unsuccessful and now they camped again on a desolate side of the farm just behind the mansion. On this particular occasion, David and the fairies scouts first, obtained the farm owner's permission to escort them to the backyard of the Mansion. David wished to use the entrance gate of the mansion but it was too risky.

He could see in Leon's eyes and those of his fellow fairy warriors that it was important for them to move on because of the lateness of the hour, they needed to be back before dawn. After a moment's consideration, he was inclined to comply with them and let their nature take its course. He told Leon to remain at the farm shed and guard their belongings.

"I'm not staying here old friend. I'm going with you."

"No, you are not Leon. If Lady Maria was correct, that Jerome Wallace is here then you will be in grave danger if Lally the high guard will find you after all are now a fugitive and branded as a traitor." His jaws tightened. He won't risk his old friend's life for such foolishness. "You are staying here and that is final." He needs him alive, not dead. How could he be willing to risk his life like that? David thought to himself.

"Fine, but I will time you in. Half an hour if you guys are not back then I'll follow inside. Deal?"

"Dammit Leon, are you out of your mind?" He snarled, he knew never to give up, his specialty was to be this assertive. He just didn't trust David enough not to let himself get killed and Leon won't let that happen. "Fine," David added. Such foolishness, such stupidity. David turned and rejoined his companions, and the seven shadows set off again. Yet the further they went, the more he felt the tug within himself.