Chapter LXXII

Maria

When everything seemed to be returning to normalcy, yet another problem arises.

A month had passed, and Alex's uncle reappeared. He claims he wants reconciliation with his nephew, but I know Alex, and I know he won't want that, especially because it's written all over his face.

As his uncle realized Alex wants nothing to do with him, he threatened to kill me. After saying that, they argued, and then Alex's uncle left.

If I'm not mistaken, his name is Berald, and he was responsible for the death of Alex's aunt. I confess, that shook me too. I just hope Alex knows what he's doing because I don't want to die yet; I have many plans for our future, which involve Soraia, who is in the developmental phase.

But something caught my attention that day—the expression on Alex's face after the conflict with Berald. He seemed more worried, not to mention his personality became colder. That triggered my concern for him, to know what's wrong and how I can help.

He was playing with Soraia, but after two minutes, he stopped and seemed to be going to do something.

Before he could, I approached him and asked, "Alex, are you okay?"

I was worried, and seeing my concerned expression, Alex replied, trying to act normal, "I'm not okay."

"What's wrong?" I asked.

Alex sighed and after a few seconds of silence, replied, "Be careful tonight, Maria. My uncle is unpredictable. He wants to kill you because he knows you're my anchor. I can't let that happen."

"You need to call the Saraiva Brothers for help."

"This fight is mine."

"Alex, we are family. Mess with one of us, you mess with all of us," I argued firmly.

Alex looked at me, seeming to want to understand my point of view.

"Also, Rosa will stay with me and Soraia to prevent the worst from happening," I argued. "Rosa doesn't know how to fight," Alex replied.

"No, but she knows a way for us to escape if necessary," I reassured him. "Don't worry, Alex, everything will be fine. If I were you, I'd talk to the Saraiva Brothers now."

Alex seemed apprehensive.

"But what if he shows up?" Alex asked.

"Don't worry, that won't happen. I doubt he'd want to appear with the village stirred up," I comforted Alex, and it seemed to work. He seemed calmer now and then decided to go talk to the Saraiva Brothers.

"I'll be right back," Alex said, and I just nodded.

Night fell.

And sure enough, Rosa was with me, and the Saraiva Brothers were responsible for helping Alex if Berald were to show up. Half an hour passed, and there was no sign of his uncle.

Rosa looked at me and asked, "Do you think he'll really come?" I was sitting on the couch with Soraia in my lap.

Rosa was standing with her arms crossed, seeming very alert to everything around her, as she should be. The village was quiet, with only Alex and the Saraiva Brothers present. They stood in front of our house. Before everything went silent, people asked them why they were standing in front of our house. Alex only said it was for security and didn't say anything more. He didn't want to involve family matters, so he chose to say just those words. Suddenly, I heard a branch rustling, the same way Alex and the Saraiva Brothers did, as they stood ready to defend the house. Rosa and I looked outside to identify Alex's uncle, and he was already transformed. He was a golden werewolf, just like last time. I just hope no one wakes up, or the whole village will be in turmoil.

"Time to end this," I heard Alex say, and he transformed into a werewolf instantly, which I didn't know he could do. I'm not sure if it's true, but I think Alex has been training to get stronger, which is why he was able to transform into a werewolf so easily.

Anyway, Rosa and I watched that confrontation that was about to take place.