“Don’t mention that idiot Liam! This brat is no better than you! Always getting into trouble, why does it have to be the two of you now? Two weeks ago, he got into a fight with five rogues! And now he is skipping school and helping you in getting yourself killed? If he’s still alive once Nathaniel is done, I’m going to teach him a good lesson, too! I’m so mad about you two! What is wrong with teens!”
I’m feeling sorry for Liam. I think I can handle being scolded by Tonia, but I bet Nathaniel might be giving him a hard time right now. Judging by their interactions earlier, he really respects his brothers.
Tonia keeps talking and goes on about my recklessness, but I’m not listening anymore; I’m thinking about what happened today. This is crazy...
My brother made me guilty of everything that happened in the Clan’s eyes. Then, Nathaniel’s intervention... I see Peter, Amber, Marc, and his sister’s corpses. Four people died within ten minutes before my eyes. I knew the Blood Moon Clan lived up to its reputation, but...
I’m well aware this kind of thing happens with werewolf Clans. We are not gentle creatures; our instincts push us to use our strength to mark our territory and fight for more. I’ve seen people die before. Rogues we killed, other Clans members fighting to death... But now, I know what they mean when they say the Black brothers are ruthless. Nathaniel didn’t even sweat or blink while killing Marc’s sister. Liam and Bobo both attacked to kill from the start. None of them showed the slightest hint of hesitation.
They have nothing in common with the Jade Moon Clan, which is always avoiding trouble. The Blood Moon takes what it wants. That makes me think about Nathaniel’s words. How could they possibly have been looking for me? They couldn’t have known who I was to Damian back then! Now that I think about it...
“Nora, are you listening to me?”
“Sorry, Tonia, I was... thinking. But why did you save me that night?”
She looks taken aback by my sudden question, and her angry expression vanishes as quickly as that. She looks at me, confused. Behind us, Bobo stopped pretending to sleep and has raised his head and ears to listen.
“What do you mean? You were attacked and...”
“No, I mean, why me? You didn’t know I was Damian’s mate. It was cold and pouring, nobody was out in the streetsthat night, but you guys were there. Not only were you there at the right time to save me, but you also took me straight to a hospital and treated me like... like a princess from the start. It doesn’t seem like something someone from the Blood Moon Clan would do at all. Not for a random stranger, some unknown girl you found in the street.”
This time, she goes silent. Tonia seems hesitant, and I can see her exchanging glances with Bobo through the mirror. Are they talking using their telepathic bond? Hard to tell. The siblings stay silent for a long moment before Tonia finally sighs.
“Okay, you’re right, baby girl. We were looking for you.”
“But you didn’t know me!”
“No, but... We were looking for a seventeen-year-old girl with blue eyes, black hair, and a scar on her face. We knew you were in danger. Bobo smelled your blood, and we tracked you all the way to that street. It’s not just us, Nora, all of the Blood Moon Clan was roaming the streets looking for someone fitting your description that night.”
What? How could that be? This is nonsense...
“The Boss knew you were in danger. He felt your panic and sent everyone out to find someone fitting your description. I don’t know how he knew precisely what you looked like, Nora. He just said his mate was in danger before we all went.”
This is impossible! First, how could he have known I was in danger that night? To know our mate is in danger or hurt, we need to have met him or her at least once and made eye contact, to awaken the bond between our wolf-selves! How could Damian possibly have known I was his mate before having met me first?
Moreover, even if, somehow, he could feel our bond, how did he know what I looked like? The description Tonia gaveme is too precise to be luck. He even knew how old I am and about my scar. And why couldn’t I know about our bond? My wolf recognized Damian for the very first time as her mate when we were at the hospital. I’m positive she had never felt any connection like this before; she never met him. None of this makes sense!
“I don’t get how this could be possible... Tonia, Damian and I met for the first time at the hospital. I didn’t even know I had a mate before that.”
“Me neither, baby girl. The Boss didn’t explain anything, you know. He just confirmed it was indeed you when he saw you lying in the hospital bed after that. He never told us how he knew about your bond. From what I saw, the only other person who might have known about the Boss even having a mate is Nathaniel, since he wasn’t surprised at all. He acted as if he knew about you right from the start. I am not sure about Liam, though.”
I take my head in my hands, trying to process everything. That is way too much happening in one day for me to handle. Not only everything going on with my Clan, but now even my bond with Damian is... I sigh. Behind us, Bobo lets out a whimper.
“He wants to know if you’re okay,” explains Tonia.
“I’m fine, Bobo. Sorry again for sneaking out on you...”
Tonia seems about to scold me again, but she exchanges a look with her brother and rolls her eyes.
“He says he’s not really mad. He understands you wanted to go out, but he was anxious something might have happened to you. He says next time you ought to bring him, too. And that I... Hey, I don’t nag too much, shut up!”
“Aren’t you guys supposed to stop me?”
“Well if you’re going to sneak out anyway, we would rather come along, though it’d be better for you not to.”
I smile at Bobo, thankful to him for being so understanding. He probably felt as trapped as I was in that apartment. I don’t get why Damian is so persistent in having me locked in. I’m done with the golden prison.
We finally arrive back at the building, and by the time the elevator takes us upstairs, most of my confidence has vanished like snow under the sun. Liam is standing next to me, pouting and avoiding Nathaniel’s gaze. Guess the Big Brother talk really had some effect on him... Now that I see them, it seems like they are several years apart. If Liam’s my age, I would guess Nathaniel is around 22 or 23... But he might be even older, I’m not sure. What about Damian then? I need to ask Tonia later.
