*Kyle*
The floorboards make a weird sound as I walk toward my bedroom for my date with Thelma. I can’t help but wonder if the house needs new floorboards already. Hasn’t it only been a year since Billy, the construction guy, put in new tiles?
The thought quickly is pushed to the back of my mind as I hasten my footsteps toward the bedroom. I am both nervous and excited to see Thelma today.
Hopefully my request for a bottle of champagne over ice with two flute glasses and a tray of chocolate-dipped strawberries has already been prepared.
Glancing at my Rolex, I realize I only have about thirty minutes to spare before Thelma arrives. I must prepare myself because tonight I plan to get her to fall in love with me–well, maybe a little bit in love.
*Thelma*I watch the spiral of the stairs below me as Kyle continues to carry me up them. I decide to stop struggling, as I am afraid this will just cause the giant monster who is carrying me to lose his footing and fall, which wouldn’t be beneficial for either of us.Once we reach the top, Kyle enters a dimly lit room; I can tell it’s his bedroom by the woody scent. He locks the door before walking over to the bed and throwing me onto it. I close my eyes and brace myself for the painful impact; I am surprised that the bed is soft and cushions my landing very well.When I open my eyes, they meet him, his orbs blazing with anger as he surveys me. Kyle’s eyes seem to flicker a red hue….I wince. Pure rage and disappointment, not like a parent has with their apathetic teenager, but something eve
*Tobias*I survey my brother’s gray eyes and smile, which is more of a permanent scowl that has been etched on his face since my arrival. Although we are identical twins, I have always felt the absence of the bond twins usually share, partly due to the fact that we are a very rare breed of twins.Kyle inherited both vampiric and wolf powers from our biological parents, but I on the other hand was born devoid of the physical attributes and powers that my brother is blessed with. He has always been the best of our pair; he has everything I wish I could lay claim to.Our adopted Leviathan father had always praised Kyle for his power and level-headedness. He had trained with Kyle day and night to make him even stronger than he already was.I am the one who needed
*Kyle*The scotch I’m drinking feels great as the spicy liquid goes down my throat. I feel it as my Beta tries to mind-link with me, and I wonder what the problem is. It has only been an hour since I last spoke with him. Had Rhia given him a magical wedgy for leaving her in bed to run to my call?“What’s up?” I answer.“After I left the house, I went to see Leo and asked him to check if he can find anything about Tobias,” he starts.Ahh, how had I forgotten about Leo? He works with the human police. I could have asked him myself, but the thought slipped my mind.“Good catch, Beta. Does Leo know anything?” I ask and wait impatiently for his answer.
*Thelma*What? Tobias attacked? By whom? I turn and run after Kyle wondering if whoever was trying to attack me is who attacked Tobias. I pray not; Kyle told me this place was safe and protected. How or where did Tobias run into danger?I smell blood as four men rush into the corridor with a wounded man on a stretcher. A pained sound comes from the man, who I hardly recognize as Tobias, is bleeding and both of his eyes are swollen shut. I push past Kyle and kneel beside the stretcher.“Tobias, are you okay?” I ask.The man struggles to open his swollen eyes; his cheekbones and jaw are bruised purplish-blue. Tobias rests shirtless on the stretcher that has been placed on the floor. It looks like someone whipped him mercilessly…repeatedly. The shredded f
*Tobias*I look at the bloody mess in my bathroom and am thankful the maids paid attention when I demanded no one enter my room. Before leaving, I had made sure to lock the doors behind me for extra measures.I take a small cloth and begin wiping the blood on the walls. I open a tap and try to wash the one in the sink down the drain. Damn it. This particular move had really cost me a tooth. How else would I have made my attack believable? Pulling out my tooth had been excruciating.After I am sure the bathroom is clean and disinfected, I start washing off the makeup on my face and the fake blood from my hair and body. I wince when the towel makes contact with an open wound. The makeup had tied the whole look together, but I had to actually cause my body harm in case a doctor took a look at me.
*Thelma*“Rosehip seed oil will make your skin glow while the lavender oil will make you smell great,” Hilda says as she rubs the mysterious oils onto my skin. I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror that’s close by and grimace. I know the elderly woman is only trying to help, but I am already looking like a generously basted turkey.“Are you sure I won’t slip out of his grasp?” I ask. She throws her head back and laughs.“Not at all. Since long ago, women have always prepped themselves with the finest essential oils,” she replies.I nod. I wonder if I should tell her my fear that I might slide off Kyle’s huge four-poster bed. Not that it was a bad thing, as I honestly wanted nothing but to run away from this distressing situation.She takes a silk gown and helps me put it on. Although the gown's length is up to my feet, and covers most of my nude body, I still feel naked. I wish I could put on some type of underwear, but when Hilda caught me trying to put on panties after my bath,
*Thelma*(Three months ago)“Whenever you are ungrateful for anything you get in this life, remember: Kwaad will come and take your little soul and trap it in the dungeon in his dark castle. He will torture you for the rest of your days!” Uncle Fernandez finishes by raising his hands in the air and waving them around for a dramatic effect.The four little children sitting around his rocking chair look at him in shocked silence; they look like they have just seen a ghost. Roy looks like he is about to cry.I chuckle as I put a small bucket under the leaking ceiling. The rain is coming down hard and the old farm house is barely managing to keep us dry.I straighten my back, trying to stretch my poor muscles that are already worn out after my busy shift at the diner.“Rest is for the rich!” I whisper my usual mantra to myself to give me some mock courage.I remember this story giving me sleepless nights and the most vivid nightmares as a child. Kwaad is our family’s ‘Boogeyman.’“I think
*Thelma*I wake up to find a little box on the small bedside table. The white envelope underneath the box is addressed to me. I attempt to rub the sleep out of my eyes with the back of my hand, before getting up and retrieving the envelope and opening it.‘I can’t imagine my life without you. My sunshine, my angel. Happy birthday to the world’s best daughter. Love, Mom.’I smile as I open the little box. In it is a gold chain necklace with a blue pendant.“Thanks, mum,” I whisper to the empty room.I know that my mother can’t afford to buy me many luxuries, or throw me an expensive twenty-first birthday celebration, but this necklace was something I would treasure more than diamonds or platinum.I wonder what time it is; a quick look at my phone tells me that it’s half past seven. I’m surprised to see that Roy isn’t still sleeping, and after a quick shower, I make my way down the creaky stairs to the kitchen.“Happy birthday, dear,” my mother cheers in a sing-songy voice as I walk in.