Chapter 30: Stronger

Chapter 30: Stronger
Vander

I didn’t take Freya along with me this time. I didn’t care about being respectful anymore. Surprisingly, they let me through the gates and didn’t stop me from driving straight towards Brutis’ home. I got out of the car and stormed to his front door. I banged my fist against the door, firmly and urgently. The moment it opened, my fist swung. But Brutis was fast and caught it in his hand, a smile on his face as he revelled in my current state.

“You took her!” I yelled out.

Brutis chuckled and shook his head before saying, rather condescendingly, “Tea?”

He didn’t even give me the chance to deny him before he dragged me into the house. I followed him wordlessly to the dining room table but refused to sit down when he did. He didn’t comment on it. Instead, he poured two cups of tea and placed one in front of me. It was dark, sugarless with no milk. I scoffed at it and leaned in, placing my hands on the table.

“I’m not here for your games, Brutis. Tell me where she is,” I spat.

But Brutis was nowhere near as urgent or panicked as I was. Instead, he picked up his teacup, brought it to his lips and took a long sip before swallowing, sighing and placing the teacup back down again.

“And what makes you think I took her?” he asked, almost purring it out innocently. I could tell he was mocking me, and that just infuriated me even more. But I had to try to regain some semblance of composure.

“They found Wolfsbane in her blood. Yesterday when you touched her, she jilted… almost as though she’d been pricked by something. Then, her transformation went terribly and all of a sudden, she’s missing overnight. The only suspicious person in all of this is you. I just don’t understand what use you have for her in that state. It’s not like she’s even fully a wolf yet—”

And that’s when it hit me. That’s when I began to start to put the puzzle pieces together.

“You’re… looking for the Moon Goddess, aren’t you?”

Brutis stared at me for a long time, letting the silence settle, though some part of me felt as though he were calculating his next move. And then, he burst out laughing. It was a sickening kind of laugh that made me nauseous and uneasy.

Once he recovered from his laughing fit, he took another sip of tea, cleared his throat and said, “Creativity must seriously run in the family. I mean to create such a far-fetched story… you must have some evidence somewhere?”

And that was when my angered demeanour slipped into one of nervousness. Everything thus far had been nothing but conjecture. I didn’t have any evidence and he knew that. But his smugness… that was what got to me. I knew he did this. So, I tried the next best thing. I yanked the letter from my back pocket and placed it on the table.

“Who wrote this letter? Because it sure as hell wasn’t Calina.” I said sternly.

Brutis shrugged, “What is that? A goodbye letter? How would I know? And if that’s your evidence, it does nothing to implicate me. The only way you’d be able to prove anything is if you were sure that the letter wasn’t in her handwriting. And even then, all it would prove is that she didn’t write the letter, not that I was responsible for taking her.”

I’d suspected that my journey to finding Calina had begun in the wrong place. I’d jumped many steps ahead and I knew exactly why. Though now it seemed I didn’t have much of a choice anymore but to start right at the beginning.

Then Brutis rattled me once more with his next few words.

“How is your father by the way. I hope I didn’t hurt him too badly. I didn’t think he’d let himself go that much. And to think, he used to overpower me with ease.” The way he spoke mimicked the hiss of a snake. Slithering in the grass. Soft and yet ever so deadly. But perhaps, if, as my father had said, the truth about everything would lead me to ruin, Brutis would be more forthcoming than him. Though I’d need to be cautious. It was clear that Brutis knew the exact words to say to drive a person mad.

“Why does my father hate you so much?” I asked, now finally taking a seat across from him. I dared not touch the tea. I wouldn’t give him that satisfaction.

It was the first time I’d seen him surprised, but he recovered quick enough.

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that your father has still kept you in the dark. I would have thought that after I told you about Calina, he would have finally come clean. But… I supposed he has his reasons. And if he hasn’t said anything about this, I’ll at least do him the favour of telling you himself. Besides, I have a feeling you wouldn’t believe me if it came from my mouth. But I will tell you that your father has every right to hate me. And I know exactly why he attacked me yesterday. I could only keep it hidden for so long. Though…” he trailed off and looked at me, a surprisingly sincere look on his face, “some part of me wishes you knew. Maybe then… the secret wouldn’t have been so lonely.”

His words were cryptic and I had grown tired of his games. It was clear that his answers wouldn’t change. It was a mistake to have come here empty handed. But at least I could gauge his reaction to all of this, and I knew I was in the right direction. And so, I got up from the table and wordlessly headed towards the door.

But before I could twist the doorknob of the door, Brutis spoke one final time. His tone warning and sinister.

“I hope you’re not trying to investigate this further Vander. Any accusations you bring against me will fall on deaf ears. You’ve ruined the reputation of your pack and jeopardized its standing in the community with your actions, not only by not protecting your mate, but also by attacking me and my witnesses yesterday. No one trusts you anymore Vander. And to think, if you were polite enough, I would have let you get away with not even initiating your mate.”

My heart was racing in my chest and my fists were clenched. From the beginning he’d planned all of this, and still he continued to plan, using Calina and I as pawns. Not even caring about the consequences. Leaving his house was a true test of my restraint. Because in that moment all I wanted to do was tear him limb from limb. But I was aware of my weakness. I wasn’t as strong as him. Not yet. And so, I looked back at him, rekindling that promise I’d once made to myself. One day soon, I’d be stronger than Brutis.