Chapter Five

Alice

          My body shakes in surprise as I open my eyes, immediately trying to break free. Both of my hands are being tied up being my back including my legs, making my body stuck onto the chair. I scream out, calling for help but all I hear is my voice echoing in the empty room, “Help me!” 

          Someone harshly pulls off the black cover away from my head, a bright light blinding my eyes. 

          “She’s fucking awake now,” A man says, pulling his body away from the wall. 

          “Didn’t know she was so loud,” 

          I furrow my brows in confusion, seeing a few men in the room. 

          “She wasn’t supposed to be,” He replies. 

          Being tied up in a chair. Held up against my will. Pretty sure anyone sane would be acting the same way. I am sitting here in a room full of men, up to three of them eyeing me. I can hear noises coming from outside but I focus more onto the threats in front. These men look like criminals with tattoos visible on their arms however, their faces are covered completely by a black mask. 

          “We have a daughter of a billionaire,” Someone says, appearing from the shadows as he crosses his arms. “In fact, the only daughter of Mr. Quintero. You are quite the socialite,” 

          “What do you want from me?” My eyes begin to tear up but I clench my jaw, trying to hold myself back from crying. 

          The men in front of me are criminals. They kidnap, they murder and they steal. They don’t deserve to be treated with mercy nor respect—they cause trouble to the people surrounding them. These men want more than what they have which is why they put others at risk.

          “We don’t want much. Just . . . a few million dollars,” He replies. 

          “I don’t have money,” 

          “No, we know you don’t which is why we’re going to ask your papa.” 

          The sinister sound of his voice dwells on me, knowing well enough he’s smiling behind the facade. He starts to raise his hand before running his finger on my cheek, causing me to look away; feeling disgusted by his touch. I have never felt so alone and hopeless, being trapped in an endless misery. There is nothing coming up to my mind of my unavailable escape, it feels as if I’m stuck here. 

          This is a dead end. 

          I knew the risks. I know the risks. 

          Being a daughter of a wealthy father is never a good thing. I’m always a target to others and a liability to my family. My parents are comfortable and known to the society which is why they raised me to be the same, always putting up a smile and be graceful in order to attract clients, attract men into the business. It is how my mama and my papa want others to see us. 

          Graceful. Polite. Wealthy. 

          “You see, Ms. Quintero. I don’t get any pleasure out of this,” He starts to speak before leaning back, his eyes never leaving my face—knowing well enough if it burns, it’ll leave a hole in my skin. 

          “Then, get me the hell out of here.” I respond. 

          “Feisty. Brave. You’re truly remarkable,” He chuckles. “I must say, I’ve watched your every move and I’ve planned every single thing one by one. Your father is a very good man, a successful man, indeed. I envy him at times. Honestly, I envy a lot of people when they make a million dollars as the second passes by.” 

          I struggle to break free, trying to make the ropes go loose. 

          “Save your energy, sweetheart. You might need it,” Another man says, which causes them to laugh; as if finding my struggle as their source of comedy. 

          “Money, gold, jewelries. You name it, you have it.” The man continues, “Don’t worry though, princess. We won’t harm you, we won’t even bother hurting you because all we want from you, from your father, is fifty-five million dollars. It won’t even be a budge to his bank account but it would mean a lot for us,” 

         “You are fucking crazy. You lunatic!” I shout, spiting on his face.

          He stops in his step before leaning in towards me, grabbing me by the neck. “You bitch.” 

          “You know what? I just changed my mind,” He adds. “We’re going to have fun with you.” 

          My eyes widen before understanding what he meant. As I struggle to break free, his hands slide up my thighs before stopping near my panties. I feel tears forming in my eyes as the man in front of me roughly pulls my sleeves down, revealing an unappropriate amount of cleavage before he slowly lifts up his mask, making me see his dark brown eyes, fill with lust and anger. 

          “Oh, to be the man who gets to have you. You’re tempting,” He breathes. 

          “Your face, boss?” Someone asks.

          “Doesn’t matter. I want her to remember my face when I’m done with her,” 

          He roughly pulls my hair back before ripping my dress apart which causes me to scream and struggle to push him away but he’s stronger and bigger. His hand cups onto my face as he leans in to eye my exposed skin, causing tears to stream down my cheeks. “Please, just don’t. Please, don’t.” I beg. 

          “Mmm, beg.” 

          A loud bang interrupts him from continuing any further as he pulls himself back. His men has already raised their guns as they barge out, aiming for the door while I am left trying to control my heavy breathing. All of a sudden, a growl can be heard from afar which causes the men to arm themselves. “Drug her!” 

          A sharp needle pierces into my skin which causes me to scream in pain as the loud growl gets near. 

          “What the fuck!” Someone shouts. 

          I look around and see everyone moving in slow motion, my head spinning as they do. All of the men are being thrown across the room, bleeding to their deaths as their bones break. My eyes widen at the sight of large wolves barging into the room, their presence causes me to yelp but everything seems like a blur. It is almost like a nightmare but at the same time, it is too real. 

          Another wolf appears, larger than the rest. He stands out in his dark brown demeanor as he walks before dropping someone’s arm off—both of his eyes are focusing onto me. My eyes begin to get droopy as I stare at the wolf directly, knowing well enough this is how I die. Being eaten by a wolf after I was kidnapped and being held ransom. 

          The wolf continues to near me as everything goes dark, unconscious. 

— 

          I wake up, surprised as I sit up straight, eyeing my surroundings. My eyes wander around the room, seeing minimal but homey decorations. It is like I have just woke up from a nightmare and now I’ve been pulled up to reality. I glance down at my outfit, realising that I am no longer in my previous dress but in an oversized shirt and an oversized pants. The large sized outfit makes it clear that it belongs to a male. 

          I gasps at the sight of a man appearing from the balcony, “Jesus—“ 

          My eyes widen at the figure, seeing Damon standing in front of me feels surreal. I was kidnapped and I was molested but somehow I survived. I immediately push my body away from him, increasing the space between us as I grip hard onto the sheets of his California king bed. “Alice . . . it’s okay.” 

          “No, get the fuck away from me. You—you, lying bastard.” 

          “Wait, this is a misunderstanding.” He replies, bringing his hands up as a white flag. 

          “What misunderstanding? You kidnapped and drugged me!” 

          “No, let me explain. Please,” 

          “Just stay away from me!” 

          “Okay, okay, I won’t move. I’m right here,” He stands firm at his spot, showing both of his hands are empty from any weapons. His eyes seem to have changed from a slight tint of yellow to the familiar brown ones, making me wonder about the werewolves in my nightmare. 

          The biggest wolf had his eyes. They were brown and warm.

          I frown, “Why? I trusted you,” 

          “It wasn’t me. I saved you,” 

          “You . . . saved me? How?” I scoff, “You’re telling me you killed those men?”

          Both of his eyes continue to look into mine as he keeps a straight face. “Do you remember what happened last night? After they tried to hurt you,” 

          “Don’t tell me as if you weren’t behind all of this. You planned it and you want to pretend you’re innocent?” I ask, shaking my head. “You got me fooled. You’re not the person I thought you were. Just get me the hell out of here. Just let me go!” 

          “Please, Alice. Calm down,” He clenches his jaw. “Let me explain,” 

          “I don’t know—“ 

          “I’ll show you.” 

          “What?” I stutter. 

          Damon starts to take his shirt off before unbuttoning his pants which causes me to look away, “What are you doing? Are you out of your damn mind?!” But he ignores me as he continues to pull them down, leaving him standing in his undergarment; stretching. 

          All of a sudden, a growl escapes his lips as fur begins to appear on his skin. My eyes widen at the sight of his body transforming into a different creature, a bigger and familiar creature. It wasn’t a nightmare last night, it was very real until the moment I fell unconscious. The man in front of me has just changed form into an animal, a beast. His human form is no longer, leaving me to stare directly into the eyes of a wolf. 

          A scream escapes my mouth, causing me to push my body further away. 

          “What . . . are you,” I mutter. 

          Damon, the man underneath the wolf form, takes a few steps towards me before placing his head low onto the bed near my hand. His eyes are looking up into my own as he becomes submissive, as if asking me to pet him. He whimpers and I move my hands slowly, placing my hand on his head, feeling the softness of his fur which causes me to blink in disbelief. 

          “Damon?” I ask, hesitating. 

          The wolf whimpers, pulling away to reveal his form by standing tall. 

          He appears to be at least six foot tall just by being on his paws. It’s an intimidating sight but at the same time, the wolf in front of me shows no harm. His eyes no longer have the deathly stare when he ripped out a man’s head but they show submission. It is as if he’s surrendering to me. 

          And, he’s beautiful—dark brown fur with a tint of black. 

          Just as I blink, he begins to change back into his human form. My eyes widen immediately at his naked figure before turning around to look away, seeing him picking up his clothes on the ground. He changes into his previous clothes as he clears his throat, running his fingers through his hair. “I’m sorry,” 

          “You—you just—there was a wolf,” I stutter in shock. 

          “Here,” He grabs a glass of water before gently handing it to me in which I take with shaky hands. It is as if everything is happening too fast ever since I met Damon again yesterday. I was kidnapped and I was about to get hurt until he came, his wolf form came, to save me. 

          I blink, “You can shape-shift?” 

          “Something like that . . .” 

          “It was you? Last night? You were the wolf,” I say, determined. 

          “I was—“ 

          “But, you were in the wolf? You changed into a wolf? I just don’t understand how any of this is possible. You just changed forms in front of me and I can’t believe my eyes!” I respond, completely in shock. 

          “Alice, relax. Okay?” He smiles, still respecting the space between us. 

          “Relax? You’re asking me to relax?” I stutter, trying to control my breaths. 

          After all this time, being alive, I never would have guessed or known the possibility of a new existence. Aliens? Sure, they were mentioned live amongst us in a different planet and that one day, they would attack the Earth because we’ve always been ruthless or they would kill us because they want to take over the planet. They might even want to co-exist. 

          How can I believe all of that? Without anything to prove. 

          Was it because the government told us all about it? 

          “I . . . I don’t know what else to say.” He frowns. 

          How is a werewolf any different? A creature that was mentioned for centuries in different versions. We all grew up and I admit, watching Twilight and falling in love with both Edward and Jacob. It was never considered as real because it was in a movie, it was from a book writen by a famous author. Throughout my teenage years, werewolves and vampires were romanticised. Aliens? They were a mystery. 

          “Are you cursed?” I ask, meeting his eyes in an instant. 

          Damon seems to be a little taken back by my question but he covers it up with a chuckle, “No but my species are cursed. You can say that,” 

          “Your species?” 

          “Werewolves. Humans that can change into wolves,” He replies before clearing his throat, “We are all descendants of a cursed man. He was a human, an ordinary human, until one day he just . . . wasn’t.” 

          I blink, “Can I know more? About you,” 

          “Where do you want me to start?” 

          As scary and irrelevant as it might get, I’m interested. I’m blown away. 

          “From the cursed man. Everything,” 

          “Well, I don’t exactly know him. I’ve heard stories about him throughout the years because he was the first of our kind. He was the one who got the curse,” He says, looking directly into my eyes before sitting down near the edge of the bed. “It was centuries ago, when people truly believed in mythical creatures. Even though there was no solid proof of our existence at first, it was the start of these folktales,” 

          “Centuries ago? What year?” I ask.

          “The 1400s. It was in the 15th century.” 

          “Wow, that long, huh?” 

          “Mmm, that long.” He smiles, “I don’t want to scare you off, Alice. I just wanted to convince you that I was there, I was the one that saved you and not the other way around. I would never hurt—“ 

          I cut him off, “—it’s okay. I understand and I’m not scared. I just want to know more,” 

          “Of course. You can ask me anything and I’ll be truthful,” 

          “How old are you, Damon?” 

          Damon is no way more than his early 30s. The way he carries himself, the way he dresses and the way he speaks, it wouldn’t cause any suspicion. However, there is just something in his gaze. As if he has been through years or even centuries as the world folds into a different era. He moves slower, he takes his time in the words he speaks. I am confused. 

          “You wouldn’t believe me,” 

          “Really? Try me,” 

          Our eyes meet and he sighs, “I’ll be 244 years old in a couple of months,” 

          24 years—wait, he said 244 years old?! I thought. 

          My eyes widen in surprise at his answer before trying to seek for a lie. “You’re lying.” 

          “I’m not lying,” 

          “So, you were born in the 18th centuries? You were born in—“ I pause before using my fingers to count, letting him stare at me in amusement. The way his eyes spark at my behaviour seems to humour him, “—1776?!” 

          Damon looks down at his hands, “You make me sound really old.” 

          “That is because you are! You could even be friends with the ‘cursed’ man!” 

          “Well, he disappeared to his death.” He replies, “I assume.” 

          “You assume?!” I lean back, trying to process this whole conversation. 

          He chuckles, definitely finding this funny. “I told you, Alice. I don’t know him—he might’ve lived his entire life somewhere. He was the first werewolf to ever exist and I’m pretty sure he’s alive somewhere or he could have died along the way. He was being hunted for decades. Nobody is at peace when they’re hunted,” 

          “So, you’re saying he might’ve killed himself?” 

          “Probably. I would,” 

          “Kill yourself?” 

          “Hmm, his wife and children were killed before he fled the village. The villagers thought they were werewolves as well. They didn’t want to live with dangerous creatures,” He continues to speak, “If I were in his shoes, losing everyone and everything I’ve built, even if I was given a thousand years to live, I wouldn’t want that. I’d be living in pain. I’d suffer,” 

          “Why did the villagers hunt him? How did they find out about him?” I ask, starting to become more curious. 

          “Children started to go missing. Especially in the woods,” 

          “He ate them?” 

          Folktales about werewolves exist in many different versions throughout the years but they never fail to mention the harm of them. Werewolves are portrayed as harmful creatures that hunt during a full moon or the night. That is one of the reasons why they live longer than humans. They consume human blood, they prefer to play with their preys. This is only told in stories—it can be different. I have a werewolf in front of me. 

          “He did.” He says, firmly.

          “Do . . . you?” I hesitate, looking directly at him. 

          Damon chuckles, “I actually love children—“ 

          I gulp, “—uh.”

          “—when they’re alive and well.” He finishes off which eases me. “The man was cursed because he was greedy. He wanted to have everything even when his life was already perfect. Some said that he fell in love with another woman and he didn’t know she practiced witchcraft. He ended up breaking her heart and she cursed him to take form of a hideous creature, to be hated and hunted, to crave for human flesh and to lose the ones he loved.” 

          “Well, he kind of deserved that.” 

          “I think so, too.” 

          “So, you said that your species are his descendants?” 

          “Not literally. He was cursed and he turned others to become like him. You know, werewolves have evolved ever since. Many innocent people were hunted and killed because of him. So, we got a blessing from the moon goddess. We were given soulmates,” 

          “Soulmates? Like another werewolf to fall in love with?” 

          “You have so many questions, Alice.” He chuckles, shaking his head.

          “Well, this is all strangely new to me.” 

          “Yeah, another werewolf to fall in love with. To have a family, to have a normal life.” 

          “Until now?” 

          “Yes. That is how we all exist,” 

          “So, you’re telling me, you were born instead of bitten?” 

          “No. I was bitten,” 

          “What?!” I exclaim, “So, you eat people?” 

          “I don’t eat people, Alice. I eat animals, not humans.” 

          “But you were bitten,” 

          “Doesn’t mean I’m feral. I was bitten because I was dying,” 

          “Oh . . . I’m sorry.” 

          He sighs, shoulders dropping as he stares at the wall. “Many things have happened throughout the centuries, Alice. For someone like me, who have lived through it all, I’ve seen different things and I can tell you that humans are far more dangerous than any other creatures.” 

          “Can I ask what happened when you were bitten?” I ask, after a few seconds of silence. 

          “You can say that I was in the army,”

          “You won’t tell me much about it, huh.”

          “No, I don’t like to think about my past.” 

          Just as I’m about to speak, he is already standing up and taking the empty glass away. Our eyes meet once more as he stops in his steps, “I know that this is a lot for you. I don’t know what you’re thinking right now but I can tell that you’re scared, you’re confused and I understand. I would be too if I were in your shoes. Just take your time, there’s no rush and when you’re feeling better, I’ll take you back to your friends.” 

          I grab onto his hand, catching him off guard. 

          His eyes glance down at our hands before looking back at me but he shows no signs of discomfort. In fact, his expression has soften up a little bit but I immediately pull my hand away. 

          “I’m sorry, I didn’t—“ I stutter, “Right, you must have a soulmate.” 

          He frowns in confusion, “Are you still highly sedated?” 

          “What?” 

          “I did ask you out for a date, Alice. I think that tells you enough,” 

          “Right . . . right, it means you’re single?” I ask, still confused. 

          He laughs, revealing his perfectly straight teeth before shaking his head in disbelief while I continue to stare, completely confused by this whole situation. 

          “Hmm, that is true.” He replies. 

          “Great.” I shake my head, “I mean, I don’t want to—you know what? Never mind,” 

          “I’ll let you rest,” He smiles before taking a few steps back and leaving the room, closing it behind him.

          My heart continues to beat fast as I lean back on the bed, trying to process everything. My eyes wander around the room before pinching myself, finding that it is actually painful to do so. No, this is not a dream. This is as true as it can get.