The Invitation
"Rogues?" I muttered to myself and leaned my back on the bed, staring at the ceiling in utter silence. Dad died because of the rogues. Does this mean Joshua was also a wolf? How did he know about rogues? And where is his place exactly? A few unanswered questions have been running through my mind at that time. Instead of mourning my dad's death, I focused my attention on Jushua's letters. And the thought not only filled my empty brain but made me feel curious about him as well. If he was a wolf like me, for me, there will be a huge possibility that I can mate him, if given the chance. So, I grabbed a piece of paper from my wooden drawer and began jotting down my response to his letter dated June 1, 2020. The letter has been two years behind already. However, I still wanted to respond to his letter. Right after replying to his letter, I went out of the room to ask our manservant for a piece of an empty bottle. After putting the letter inside the bottle, I went back to the room. The time was already past midnight. Yet, there I am, making myself occupied with a few thoughts after being emptied a few hours earlier. In the morning, I woke up earlier to send the bottle to the ocean. I have the bottle in my hands as I marched to the parking lot. Partly excited, partly worn out. But then I just realized I was no longer at the beach anymore. And the distance between the mansion and the nearest ocean was miles away. Aside from that, I have no idea about which part of the sea current I should send the bottle to. So, I took a few seconds to picture out an imaginary map in my brain, comparing it to the beach in Chicago where we have our beach party. "Bullshit, Nathalie." Could not help but grit my teeth in disbelief as I wasted almost two hours of my time last night composing the letter. Did not even have a good night's sleep last night because of giving the best answer to his outdated letter. "There you are, Nathalie. I knocked on your room a few times but no one answered. When I checked out on you using my wolf's senses, they led me here." My uncle Robin, dad's older brother appeared in front of the car I was in. Compared to my dad, Uncle Robin was unfortunate that my grandparents did not choose him to be the next alpha of the pack. Instead, they appointed dad over him even if he was the oldest amongst the three siblings. But dad never forget to mention to me and mum about not to trust Uncle Robin even if he was closely related by blood. Dad once mentioned before he died that his instinct told him Uncle Robin would somehow take his place one day. Even if Uncle Robin and I were not that close, I somehow knew about what kind of a wolf he is. He is ruthless, manipulative, heartless, and selfish. Considering what happened to dad, his instinct might be right. So, I said, "what's up, uncle?" then I secretly dropped the bottle beside me in the driver's seat of the car. I don't want my uncle to know that I was bringing into the world this kind of conversation with Joshua, especially when he and I are not in a good relationship. I'm afraid he is going to use it against me, telling our packs that their next alpha has just gone crazy. Dad taught me how to be smart, especially in times like this. "Nothing... I'm just checking up on you, honey. How have you been since your dad's passing?" he smiled shortly. But I know it's fake. His eyes were pacing back and forth. Only guilty people do that when talking to someone. He was staving off upon getting eye-to-eye contact with me. "Anyway, we'll discuss with the packs later on about the resolution of who would be the next alpha. And I need you to vote for me instead of your mum or anyone else. Could you do that for me?" he added. There you are. Uncle's real color behind his mask always prevails. Once a hypocrite, always a hypocrite. You could no longer change the fact. But I could not blame him for that. Uncle has been dreaming to become the alpha of the pack. But dad already entrusted me with his alpha badge. All I have to do is to embrace it and prove to the pack I deserve to be the next alpha. "Okay," I said back right after hopping out of the car. Don't want to argue anymore to extend our conversation for a few minutes either. It's just a waste of time for me. Right after Uncle Robin disappeared from his spot, I went back to my room a bit disappointed. I got awfully disappointed with the fact that I wrote a useless letter but I did not show it to him. And I'm not used to keeping my feelings beneath me. It'll make me explode. How I wish Jasper was around since he was the only living proof that I could share everything with. {Jushua's POV} "Another day of being happy, huh?" Mama said in the middle of our breakfast. "Care to share about it, son?" I don't know how Mama comes up with the idea. Or perhaps she noticed my endless smiling since last night after reading Nathalie's letter. "Nah. Our little son seems to be in love by Nathalie's second letter already." Papa teasingly said back. Justine and Mama could not help but smile as well. "No. I'm not. Stop this nonsense, Paps. I just can't believe she would reply to my letters. That's it." I set the spoon and fork back on the plate and curved the tip of my brows as I dragged my eyes to Papa. "How did you know the letters were from Nathalie? Do you know her?" Papa suddenly cleared out his throat as if he was guilty of a crime we aren't aware of. "Umm...," then he coughed shortly, "it's just... I got the chance to read the two letters on top of your closet in the middle of your sleep. I'm so sorry, son. Will not do it again. I promise." I don't know if I should get mad at Papa for meddling in my personal business but from the way he stuttered and felt uncomfortable, I find it kinda cute. "But... She seems nice. What's your plan about it then?" he added in a serious tone. In the second letter, Nathalie invited me to her eighteenth birthday. Imagine, she invited me to the most important day of her life as a wolf. Never could I ever imagine the person whom I'm having a letter conversation with was a wolf like me. She even attached a photo of her inside the bottle. That's one of the reasons I could barely let go of my smile since last night. But none of my family was aware of the photo. I kept it in a safe place in my room. And I wanted to keep it that way. "Can I?" I asked dad, letting him read what was running through my mind since he already read the second letter.My Little Journey "Let me ask you this first, son. Will she be worth it?" Papa's facial expression and tone even become too momentous. "I mean... New York City was miles away from here. We don't know what lies ahead of you when you get there. And besides, she was still a stranger to you. And so is you to her." I'm not sure about how far my distance between me and Nathalie was, considering I haven't experienced leaving the island since the day I was born. But I don't care about the distance. It's just numbers. One thing is for certain, never have I ever felt to be that eager and excited to meet someone. And she was the first half-human and half-wolf who tried to communicate with me without judgement. Needless to say, the kind of communication we have. A letter sending in a bottle. "She's worth a try, Paps. I'm losing nothing if I try, right?" I shortly heaved a sigh and smiled at them positively. "And besides, she was the first wolf in my entire life who accepted m
Behind Bars Compared to mine, I was only wearing a tiny piece of loincloth that covers my genital parts, and at least partially the buttocks. Also, the man had no other accessories hanging on his body. I have these wooden and shell-made bracelets in my arms and ankles. Aside from that, the old man was holding a black metallic thing with its tip pointed at me. I'm not sure what it was for. But the one thing is for certain, it doesn't do good to my wolf. Nonetheless, my wolf immediately recognized what was inside the black metallic thing. Something made up of silver. One of the wolf's weaknesses. If that tiny bar made up of silver penetrates my body, it will slow down my werewolf abilities or worse will cause me death. "Kneel and put your hands behind your head!" then he suddenly cocked the black metallic thing. The man's face was furious in his mode. I don't want to cause trouble as Papa advised me. So, I gently dropped the bottle, the piece of Nathalie's photo
Full Moon "Whatever my business here in New York City is none of your business. So, better shut your mouth if you don't want me to cut off your..." I was supposed to say to cut off his throat but then I remembered Papa's advice. Even if I kept on thinking and following Papa's advice, could not help but feel indignant toward the first two humans I've encountered. I expected humans are welcoming. That they could help me find Nathalie as soon as possible, especially when her eighteenth birthday is fast approaching. However, the thought was a huge mistake. Papa was right about them. Humans can't be trusted. And that was my first lesson upon encountering one. "Fine. But, just so you know, there's no chance you'd be out of this place sooner. The cops these days are no longer fair and just. They locked up everyone who they think did something against the law. I'm purely innocent. But they blamed me for stealing." says the man before he dropped his butt on the cold and d
The Search "No!" I exclaimed. "My papa gave me those gold bars to use to see Nathalie. And where's the letter? Give it back to me." Out of too much anger, I tried to bend the metal bars, making a small passage, enough that my entire body fits. Being inside the cell was a waste of time. I don't even know why are they still holding me considering I did nothing to them. However, my Papa's advice has kept on bothering my clean conscience. If I'm gonna forced to escape from the cell, it might cause me trouble upon seeing Nathalie. Or worse, there might be no chance for me to attend on her birthday. "I'm so sorry, kiddo. The pouch of gold was a piece of dominant evidence that you stole them from someone. And as the law enforcer, I decided to proceed with the case against you." The policeman said. "I didn't steal those gold bars. I swear. Papa gave them to me to use here in New York City. Please, let me go. I need to see Nathalie as soon as possible." I insisted.
The Search Part 2 "Based on our profound investigation, fingerprints, facial recognition, and other forensic pieces of evidence made, the man has no civilian records. No debit or credit cards under his name either. No CCTV footage recorded for the past few months." "The man's name was Joshua," Jasper said back before he handed over the photo to me, letting me study it for a few seconds. But I was more focused on Joshua's letter for me. And it stated; "Dear Gorgeous Nathalie; Thank you so much for the invitation. The thing is, if you were able to read this letter, it simply means I safely arrived in New York City. The funniest thing there is, that I have traveled two nights and three days with the enthusiasm for the possibility of joining you on your birthday for the very first time. However, I brought no present for your birthday aside from myself because I don't know what are those things you hate or like. I hope you can forgive me for that. By t
Endless Chasing "All right. We'll leave you guys to it then." one of the cops said back, "but if given the chance you guys have seen this man, don't hesitate to reach out to us. The entire NYPD already had their eyes on the monster. He's too dangerous to the public and considered a fugitive." The three cops bent half of their bodies to us before they finally disappeared from their spots. Jasper then dragged me back to the main house as it was already late. As soon as we got back to the hallway, some of the pack's members have already cleared out of the place. Who remained were dad's close acquaintances and those who have the positions of the pack. "What do those cops want from you, Nathalie?" Uncle Robin asked. He then dropped his gaze towards the letter in my hands and added, "do you get a summon from them? What's that?" He was about to snatch the letter and the photo from my hands but I quickly hide them behind me. I can't afford for him to know more about J
I Give Up! Jasper did not move a bit even after a few roll calls. But when I was about to slap his face, he quickly opened his eyes and covered his face with his bare hands. "Come on, Jas. I know you've been staring at me this entire time." I added. "Get up there and join me in my craziness." "What's up, Nathalie? Why weren't you still awake even this late, huh?" he pretended not to hear my statement. He even yawned to make it more realistic. "Have you come up with a plan already?" His statement only proves that he has been awake since he lay his body on the floor. Because if he wasn't, he could not come up with that kind of response when I only mentioned about my decision once. "It's still our semestral break. So, I decided to find him as soon as possible. Will you join me in my journey to find him?" Enthusiasm and encouragement were traced on my face when I say those words. "Yeah. But I'm not asserting I would spend the rest of my entire one-month semest
Giving Up And Joshua was one of them. Unless he has some relatives in New York City. But out of the few letters that I've read from him, he did not mention any relatives, by blood or not, here in New York City or other places aside from the island where he lives in. "But we have hundreds of thousands of hotels, apartments, motels, and boarding houses within New York City. How are we supposed to check on them one by one?" The idea may give me the chance but it was utterly ridiculous. Our entire week might not be enough to inquire about Joshua's information. It will consume our entire time. Besides, the cops were already aware of his monstrous existence. Perhaps they already informed all the establishments to be observant. "Well, that's only my advice to you. Still, it's up to you if you are going to follow it or not." Jasper said back. While holding onto that thought, I shifted into a wolf and rushed to the forest, leaving Jasper alone, again, in the car. After