Chapter 112

Chapter 112
Aidan's POV

"What have I done?" I panted, staring down at my palms—my blood-stained palms.

I heard that line "I've lost control again" repeat a gazillion times in my head. Only this time it was different. I don't know what happened. One moment I was staring at the sky and the next, I was in an alley shivering like a cock in the rain.

My skin didn't feel like mine. Not because it was drenched in sweat and blood. It just felt different. My clothes were in rags, I could still feel the metallic taste of blood on my tongue and  my limbs trembled so much that I couldn't even stand if I wanted to.

Tears rolled down my cheeks. I still couldn't take my eyes off my palms.

A dog scampered into the alley, sniffing through the tied up sacks and the trash cans around. It stopped at a particular bag and dug its mouth in, tearing through it. It ripped some rotten meat out and gobbled it in a matter of seconds.

Watching it tear through the meat felt like I was replaying my own memories.

It turned and walked closer to where I was crouched. As it spotted me, it growled, flaunting its wild grinders at me. My body suddenly woke up like it was triggered by the dog's offensive growl. The dog was no threat at all, its action was normal. But why did I suddenly react to it?

I felt a sting in my head and I winced. The dog backed away. After a few steps it scrambled away, whimpering.

The fear in the dog's eyes before it ran away was one I remembered seeing a dozen times. I just couldn't remember where, or when.

The alley was quiet again, save for light footsteps behind me. I knew that scent. My canines grew longer, my claws shot out, and my eyes turned red. Only one species could smell this way, and I remembered that I met a group of them when I stepped out.

"Show yourself!" I growled.

The person chuckled. Whoever they were, they were doing this to mess with me.

"I'll kill you! I know what you are."

The person clapped and laughed. His laughter was soft and light, yet it irked me. "Of course, because that is what you do best. That's what you are meant to do. Killing."

His silhouette appeared in front of me. It slowly became a figure I knew I must've seen before.

My brows furrowed in anger as he approached.

"Mr Petrova? You are Ryan's father, aren't you?" I grunted the words out. 

My body was shivering again and at the verge of going out of control. He smiled like he was expecting me to figure it out.

"I love that I'm no stranger to you, Aidan."

I swallowed hard. He was getting on my nerves.
“Why are you here?” 

He stepped closer. Moonlight shined directly over him, revealing his pale skin, his dark trench coat, the crimson-lined eyes that radiated a vibe I didn't like. Must've been where Ryan got those fierce eyes to use against me.

I remembered Ryan talking about his father, a quiet man, strict, old-fashioned. But I’d never imagined him to be twice as annoying as Ryan.

“You made quite the mess earlier,” he started. “It is only a matter of time till all those twenty bodies are found. One survivor was found at the scene with a trail of blood wide enough for a blind vampire to follow.”

My heart dropped. “What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

"I didn't kill anybody."

“But you did it,” he said in a sharp tone but almost amused. He tilted his head, regarding me like a lab animal he was waiting to dissect. “You tore them apart in the most gruesome way possible. You enjoyed it. Didn’t you?”

“No!” My hands shook violently, my claws retracting and shooting out again uncontrollably. “I don’t even remember anything."

“How convenient. Let me refresh your memory then. There was an old woman barely able to walk anymore. The cop, a couple of teenagers just like you, and there was the last woman begging for her life and her baby's. You heard her screams till when she was dying, her blood spilling over your face and body."

The more he spoke, the more the memories came back to me. And it wasn't nice. Not one bit. The sting intensified, feeling like a terrible migraine... No, it was worst.

"Argh!"

I wanted to rip my head out.

He crouched in front of me, lowering himself until we were face-to-face. I jerked back instinctively, but he wasn’t moved.

"You are trying to run away from what you are but you know the truth. You can't be more than that. I’m not mocking you, Aidan. I’m telling you what you already know."

I looked down again. My vision was being slowly covered by a red aura.

"What's going on?"

"Why are you acting like you don't know?" He began pacing around. "I couldn't believe it when Ryan told me what you were becoming weeks ago..." 

What was he talking about? Ryan would never do it... Would he?

"You should’ve asked for help then, when it wasn't too late for you. You see, that's the problem with wolves. You barely think when instinct takes over."

He began circling me slowly, like a predator deciding the best angle to strike his prey.

“Shut up!" I snapped and lunged at him.

My claws swiped the air inches from his chest. He didn’t flinch, he simply dodged me in a single move that was too fluid for someone his age. He looked amused at my sudden movement.

I was finally back on my feet. The sting began to spread and as it did, my body was changing too.

“There it is,” he said, chuckling. “Good. Good."

A pulse of pain finally burst through my skull. My head went blank, everything was coated with a crimson film and I felt like I had drifted far away from reality.

I stumbled first, gripping my head. I felt my claws digging into my scalp.

“Don’t fight it, Aidan,” he said softly, like a therapist giving tips to mental patients. “Let it out. I don't want to see you go through this torture. Let the beast out. Let it shine.”

“The world always thought they could make our species hide in the dark while they lived a beautiful life. They tag us as cursed beings, diabolical things, hellish curses and their worst nightmare. They burnt us, drove stakes through our hearts and killed our kinds just to claim superiority. Vampires have to feed and only their blood can feed us. We can't live longer anymore…”

I could no longer hear him. My knees sank into the dirt. I couldn't hold it any longer.

I closed my eyes, screaming as I felt my bones twisting and cracking. I have never morphed like this.

When I opened my eyes again, I was staring down into the alley. At my feet, Mr Petrova stared up at me in awe; like an engineer staring up at his creation.

"Now that's what I was just looking for. You, my friend, will now serve a greater purpose. You will help me reclaim the world and restore the legacy of the vampires. We hide in the shadows no more!"

He let out a sinister laugh. I only listened, I couldn't talk or harm him. I felt locked in my own mind and body.

The world is doomed.