Chapter 4: Rule

BEADS of sweat had formed on Amara’s forehead when she opened her eyes, forcedly waking herself up from an unwanted nightmare. She gasped as she stared at the old brown-colored thatched coconut roof. As she got up on the bed, her eyes looked around the tiny room where she was. It was dark, and the only thing that was somehow lighting up the room was the moonlight through the window. 

Tears started to burn her eyes. Her lower lip trembled, remembering the tragic fact that her father and Killian died unjustly. 

Amara cried and hugged herself. The night cold breeze embraced her skin. It was supposed to be her comfort, like how it used to be; however, at that moment, she knew that her pain wouldn’t fade away as the death of her loved ones was already pierced in her heart. It was excruciating… It was fatal. 

“I’m glad you finally woke up,” said the familiar voice of the woman who just entered the room. 

She glanced at the older woman, who was now wearing an apron on top of her rugged dress, holding a tray of food using both her hands. She encountered the same face in the woods, the human she tried to harm when she partly shifted. 

Amara didn’t flinch when the woman walked towards her. She was crying in despair and mourning that she sets aside the fear she once felt towards the human. She hugged her knees and let her pain engulfed her wholly.

“I’m not going to ask you about what happened to you, but I hope you at least try to eat. You’ll get weaker if you cry with an empty stomach.” 

She didn’t say a word. Amara stayed in that position while her tears continued running down her cheeks. She didn’t understand why it had to happen. Why did they kill her father and Killian? They had been good followers for years! They never disobey the Alpha even once. 

‘Was this part of the curse of the Moon goddess?’ she asked herself. If so, that was so cruel of her. She didn’t do anything wrong. She tried to obey the leaders of their pack despite the bad treatment she’d been getting from the full-blooded werewolves. Amara never fought back, even if she was bullied and tortured several times. 

She tried to be submissive, although her emotions were invalidated thousand times. In return, the Moon goddess continued to make her suffer. Why? 

‘Wasn’t it still enough that I was born as a half-blood? Wasn’t it still sufficient that my human mother died because of me? Wasn’t it still enough that I’ve endured all the sufferings from being a half-blood and accepted all the humiliations and attacks from the pack?’

Her mind was filled with questions—questions that Amara, herself, couldn’t find the strength to answer. She felt betrayed, as if the world had never wanted her to live happily. 

“She cursed me…” she whispered. 

“What?” 

She gazed at the woman who was standing beside the bed. She noticed her eyes, those innocent pairs of eyes that looked at her worriedly. 

“I am cursed… You shouldn’t have brought me home,” Amara replied in between her sob. She breathed heavily and wiped her tears away. 

“No, hon. I couldn’t leave you in the woods. You’re way safer here, trust me.” 

Amara almost smiled bitterly. This human didn’t know what she was capable of. She almost harmed her in the woods. If she hadn’t controlled herself, she knew this human would have died from her hands, too. Too, yes.

She remembered how she killed those two warriors who attacked her father and Killian. She didn’t know how it happened. Right after she shifted, she felt so powerful and ruthless. She didn’t know that she was capable of killing someone until it happened. 

“You take your time. I’ll just leave the food here. You can stay here for as long as you want,” the older woman sincerely said that somehow brought comfort to Amara. “If you want to take a bath, there are clothes available for you to wear in the closet.” 

She glanced at the older woman. Amara couldn’t believe that she would still be able to smile gently at her after what she did in the woods. The smell of human blood was irritating her nose, but other than that, she felt safe at all. 

“Have a good night, young lady.” The woman walked to the door and gave her one last look before she opened the door. 

“I’m a werewolf,” Amara stated bravely. “I am cursed. I can kill you anytime once I lose control.” 

“That answers the mystery then.” She smiled and then left the room. 

Amara gritted her teeth. Tears fell from her eyes as soon as the door closed. 

She cried endlessly that night. Her heart was mourning and dying. She couldn’t do anything at all as she felt so weak… empty… and hopeless. 

Some lives have been taken before her eyes. These people had suffered death instead of her. Their lives were thrown out in vain...

“No,” she whispered. Anger started to build up in her chest. “I swear I’m going to take revenge… The Alpha will suffer… I’ll make him pay….”

***

SIX days had passed. Amara stepped outside of the small wooden lodge for the very first time. Looking around the place, she noticed that the human was living in the middle of the forest. The tiny lodge was rustic and old, as if it had been there for a decade, and has experienced solid summers and rains and could still stand up with such dignity. 

The smells of plants, trees, dried leaves, and the salty mist of morning fog were very inviting to her nose. She inhaled heavily and then gazed up at the clear blue sky. The clouds were formed in perfect shapes and slightly moving to the west.

She closed her eyes and focused on her surroundings. 

Surprisingly, her sense of hearing seems to have changed the moment she turned seventeen. The chirping of birds across the sky was too loud on her ears as if those were just beside her. Hearing the alluring dripping of water from a bamboo falls somewhere made her heartbeat so fast in excitement. Her forehead creased as she tried to concentrate. She then heard animals running in the cave, the whispers of the air blowing everywhere, the eerie sound from a broken door in the back part of the lodge… 

She opened her eyes. Her mouth was half-open in disbelief, still shocked by the enhanced power she acquired. 

“The weather seems nice today, isn’t it?” 

Amara turned around to look at the older woman. Innocence was written all over her face. She couldn’t believe that she tried to harm the human whose face screams of purity and kindness. 

“Appears to be,” she whispered and licked her lower lip. 

“You know, it’s too seldom that we get to see the sunlight here in Drysdale, so whenever there’s a ray of sunshine appearing in the sky, it feels like a perfect day to everyone. It gives warmth and assurance,” the older woman added. “The rain has a serious obsession with this land.” 

“I see,” was the only thing Amara could utter. 

“Are you feeling better?” 

 “I guess... Sort of.” She swallowed the lump in her throat. She knew she wasn’t feeling any better... She couldn’t be alright at all. The death of her loved ones made her want to die too. However, she knew her father wouldn’t like it if she thinks that way and so, despite the sorrow and rage, she wanted to live. To live far from the pack that engraved the sadness in her heart. 

The older woman sat down on the dusty stairs in front of the lodge and curiously looked at her. 

“Did you run away from your land?”

“Y-yes...” she answered truthfully. She walked towards the stairs and sat down on the stairs too. 

“Why? Your family might be worried sick about you.” 

Amara bit her tongue firmly. If only her father was still alive, she knew he would be worried sick about her and would look everywhere just to find her. However, things weren’t the same anymore. Now that her father was gone, not only she became a lone werewolf, but an alone daughter... an orphan. 

“I escaped...” She breathed heavily before she continued, “I ran away from the pack because—” She swallowed once again. “They killed my father and my friend...” 

“Oh, no!” The older woman’s voice was sounded so frightened. “I am sorry to hear that, hon. I... I didn’t know. I didn’t—”

“It’s okay,” she said and gazed up at the human. Tears started to pool in Amara’s eyes. “It’s painful, but I want to stay alive that’s why I escaped because I know they would kill me too.” 

“I’m sure you’re going to be safe here. Werewolves wouldn’t dare to enter Drysdale. We have a lot of hunters here.”

“Hunters?” Amara wiped her tears away and looked at the older woman curiously. 

The older woman nodded her head. “Yes, hunters. They are protecting us from werewolves and vampires who are living outside Drysdale. They keep us safe from any kind of threat. It’s been years since the last time I’ve heard that they’ve killed a werewolf who harmed an innocent high school student. Still, for every full moon, they are patrolling everywhere just in case a werewolf or a vampire suddenly appears to cause trouble.”

Amara gasped for air. She could feel the fear eating her wholly as the thought of getting killed by a hunter whirled through her head. Her trembling hand formed a fist.

“But you have nothing to worry about, hon. I know you’re not here to cause any trouble.You can stay here with me for as long as you want, and I will do my best to help you. You just have to promise me that you will control yourself... that whatever happens, you will fight the urge to transform, especially on the night of the full moon.” 

“How am I supposed to do that?” Amara asked her worriedly. “I am not sure if I can control myself, especially if it’s a full moon. You see, I almost harmed you before, and it was in daylight!” 

The older woman looked at her with sympathy. “That, I don’t know, hon. But I guess you need to learn how to control yourself if you really want to live in Drysdale. That’s the only way you can live here. This is going to be a rule you must follow. You have to act like a human—a human who doesn’t transform when in rage. With that, you can protect yourself from the hunters.” 

Amara shook her head. “I am not sure if it’s possible.” 

“If you want to live, then make it possible.”