==Matteo==
I sat at the balcony, cup in hand and sipped slowly. Relishing in the placating taste of the green tea. The day was bright. Thank heavens. I was beginning to get tired with all the rain, moodiness, gloom and wind. I couldn’t wait for the summer, to be honest. However, I did know that that was an issue on its own. Soon, everyone was going to complain about the heat.
I downed my tea and settled for some croissants. Yes, I was in the mood for some treat. Yes, I was cheerful. Last week was a scare. With all the business palaver going on, I was totally upset. But good riddance, everything was fixed now. Good gracious riddance.
With everything coming back together, I decided to celebrate. And what better way to do that than to get a bottle of my favourite: Moet et Chanson, some grapes an
==Olivia==“Get the fucking grip on yourself, girl!” I groaned. Frustrated with myself, I tossed the hairbrush on the bed. Why was I sad. Why? Why was I feeling like a loser? Matteo was a monster. Therefore, I shouldn’t be crying my eyes out because he completely forgot about the kiss. The touch, the stuff we shared the other day. Instead, he sought for pleasure some other place.Hiccups set in. “Fuck me.”I didn’t look like myself one bit. The eye bags, the frizzy hair, the dull colour of my skin. All pointed to lack of care. I was hear mourning about what never was. And something that never would be.I sat back on the chair, staring blankly at the mirror. The images of yesterday flashed before my eyes. Matteo naked, mount
Jimmy Bellamy lit his cigarette, drawing in as much smoke as he desired before bellowing it out. What a godawful day it was. Bookehurt had a reputation of being extreme. Whenever it rained, everywhere was flooded. Sometimes, electricity would be cut off. Amd for days. When came the sun, however, blistering heat was the result. Same went with snow, wind, everything.He sat on his rocking chair, looking out to the foggy environment. It was 8 in the morning, yet the weather made it seem it stilm was dawn. Jimmy hated the weather. He hated the town. Hated his neighbourhood—sometimes, hated his life. Well, not exactly hate. Nah, that wasn’t the right word. He wasn't just feeling it anymore. Bookehurt could be boring at times, and he was so done with it. However, all that changed some days ago when he happened upon a xiene.Just thinking about it now sent shivers down his spine. The xiene was the rarest, oldest and undoubtedly the strongest clan…breed of werew
==Olivia==The freakhead was at my door. What a pleasant surprise.“What do you want?”He quirked his brow and I refused to admit that they were cute. Then, his eyes happened upon my chest and he took them away.I wrapped my arms around my chest. “What are you looking for?”“I own this place, Olivia.”“And?”“Let me in.”“No,” I said. Meanwhile, I yearned for his touch. Am I seriously saying this? Yes.
==Matteo==Of course, I was right. She'd seen me have sex. But why was she acting so furious? Like I'd cheated on her or something? Women. Women and their drama.Olivia had insulted me. She'd spat obscenities on me and I stood there like a moron, watching her yell her insides out. I stood there like a weakling. At one point, I wanted to shut her up with a kiss. I’d had this feeling, I still had this feeling that she was jealous. I mean, what else would have made her jerk off while moaning my name? I shook my head. Enough with that. Enough with all the sex talks, something more important was at had.Pete's death. Clearly, his death wasn't natural. I didn’t believe it was suicide either. Or was it? Pete could have been stricken with guilt and had resorted to ending his life. Was it that simple? There were other ways he'd have done that. Why choose a chimney? It was ridiculous. What was even more curious was the fact that the kind of chimneys that were
“Hi.”“Hi!” Leah replied breathlessly as she skipped to where Lyons stood. They were in front of the police department.“Do you think they've found her?” Lyons asked her just as they began climbing the stairs that led to the entrance door.Leah couldn’t speak. Tension, the anxiety from the phone call still had a stronghold on her. Last night, while she was running a bath, her phone rang. As soon as she saw the name on the caller ID, her chest heaved with anticipation. Eagerness.“Can I see you tomorrow, Miss. Lindsey?” the police chief had said. She had tried cajoling him to spill water it was. But man, the guy was a staunch…a no-telly individual, if that made sense. As a result, s
==Matteo==I hadn’t fully made it out of town when I noticed a navy blue Toyota trailing me. At first, I had thought nothing of it, but then as time passed I realised the person was in fact on my tail. He’d taken every turn I'd taken. So, now I was convinced. However, I decided to ignore him. Should I keep going and notice he was still following me, I would then lash out.And just like that, he didn’t back off. I made to jam the brakes, but hesitated. That was a foolish thing to do. If I did that, the guy would be forced to hit use brakes too. Or, he would keep going. The consequences were the same. It meant that we both would collide and fall to our deaths. So, instead of jamming my brakes, I gradually slowed down. The car copied me, and I, unable to put up
==Olivia==I peeled my eyes open, just in time for sun rays to stream in. I squnited, hugging my pillow tightly. I wished I could stay in bed forever, but for some reason, I rose. I yanked and stretched my body, and for some time, I stared blankly.I, however, soon jerked out of my lazy gaze and walked straight to the bathroom to go through my morning routine. It didn’t take long for my stomach to give a loud groan, making me yawn a second time. I hadn’t had dinner last night, so now, I could really deal.I got hold of some clothes before walking to the door. I pulled it open and just then, my gaze fell on the stuff lying the floor. A white shopping bag. It had the name Durrell printed on it. I looked around, wanting to spot whoever it was had dropped it.I crouched down and grabbed the bag before getting inside. What is this? I dug my hand into the bag feeling the items inside. They were wrapped in what I supposed was polythene. I d
The tragedy had occurred, exactly a week to Thanksgiving, eight years ago. Lyons could remember that day, as clear a ball of crystal. He could still remember how it was for him and his family. That morning, everyone was downstairs getting ready to have breakfast. Everyone except Peggy. Initially, no one thought much of it. Sometimes, she would ditch breakfast, mostly because she was at the studio, sketching one drawing or the other. But a couple of hours later and still no sign of her, everyone became concerned.And so, the servants were instructed to get her. They knocked all they could but she wouldn’t answer. Eventually, the door was broken down and lying face down on the floor just beside the bed was Peggy.Lyons could remember how different she looked. Scary, if he was being honest. Peggy's naturally cherry lips had darkened. It'd b
EPILOGUEFew months later...==Olivia==I applied one last coat of lipstick on Leah's lips, before bloating the excess. It was said that pregnancy brought out a person’s glow. Well, I partly agree with that. Leah was a beauty queen. Her dark hair had taken up this lustre I didn't know its origin. Her skin was smooth, her body chubby. Pregnancy looked so good on her. However, my case was different. I was fatigued most of the time, and the only plump thing right now was my boobs. Although, in retrospect, I'd have squealed in glee. The baby had begun to kick, especially at night. Phew. If I didn't know better, I'd say there were as much as five foetuses in me. "Isn't this too much?" Leah asked, looking at the mirror skeptically."Too much for your baby shower and my housewarming?"She rolled her eyes and I couldn't help but smile. I was glad she agreed with me that this wasn't much. I helped her hold down in a French braid and added some decorative pieces around it. "And done," I sai
Later that night…==Matteo==Darkness had covered everywhere now. Night had set in. I could hear the irritating sound of crickets and the breeze. Fucking nature. I laid on my makeshift bed—which was my perpetual position now—and stared straight ahead. I waited for sleep to take me. One of my men rose from his bed and walked out of the room, probably to take a piss. I didn't care. Moments later, he dashed back inside, eyes wide open.But still, that didn’t move me. His words, however, shook my up. "We're surrounded." At first, it didn't make sense, but then he repeated himself. "Sir, we're surrounded. There're people around the precinct."I rose from the bed. Surrounded? Bu whom? Whispers broke and I glared at my men. "Shut up!" And there was dead silence. "Philemon," I called the guard that'd come with the news. "What did you see?""Wolves. White wolves. They're hiding in this bushes and possibly armed as well." I shut my eyes, trying to process the information. White wolves! H
==Matteo==It had been 84 days of hell. I had lost everything. Everything. The mansion, my business, my men, my image….Olivia. Everything. And funnily enough, I hadn't spilled a tear, neither had I roared in pain in the beginning. The entire occurrence had simply felt surreal. The stench of silver hanging in the air was a proof though, that none of this was a dream.Yosef had lost his life. I'd spotted his charred body in the gazebo, while I was scampering away for my life. My trusted butler was gone. He had been the only living vestiges of my childhood, as he was my Dad's secretary. And now, I had lost him. Just like I had lost everything that mattered to me.Like I'd said, I hadn't cried initially. Upon finding shelter around the Brookehurt—Eggortin mountains, however my composure broke. I had done that which I hadn't done for years. Cry. The truth was scary. I would never see Yosef again. I'd never repay him for all his loyalty and endurance. Yes, that man had kept up with my exce
Two days later...==Olivia==Suddenly, all I saw was a bright white light. It was so harsh I tried shutting my eyes, all to no avail.It came pouring in, inflicting a pounding headache to me. I groaned, even as my body began to tremble. And then everything ceased. The light, the trembling. Everywhere was quiet for some time and darkness pervaded. I didn't know why, but the thing that came to my head was: death. I must have died. And now, I was in this sort of limbo where nothing existed. Having this belief, I gasped and started to grope around for anything I could touch. Surely, this place wasn't a void! And I was right because someone grabbed my arm. I whipped my head in the direction, ready to punch whomever it was off. "Olivia? Oh God, yes! Wake up. Open your eyes." Open my eyes? Did that mean my eyes were shut? And so, I did obeyed… or rather, my eyes did so on its own accord and I came face to face with this brown haired lady who looked so fucking familiar. I took a second,
==Matteo==9:13 pmI held a wolf by its throat, pinning it to the wall. I had punched the hell out of him and he was almost lifeless now. But I wasn't done. I'd make sure I snuff the life out him. And so, my hands held his neck like a vice, tightening as seconds rolled by. His eyes began to glaze over and just when I was about to deliver a deathly blow, someone called my name."Macini!" I frowned. Who dared to call me by my last name. I delivered the intended blow on the wolf, watching it slip to the floor.I was startled the moment I turned around. "Oh, you recognise me. Good riddance." Not much of that was the truth, because the reason behind my surprise wasn't this jerkass standing before me, but Olivia. I growled, "Let go of her now.""Who? Oh, her?" He laughed. The sound grate my ears. "Nah, she won't appreciate that."My frown deepened. The fool was messing with me. I attempted taking a step forward when Olivia spoke."Don't." There was something strange about her voice
7:00 pm==Matteo==We were ready. With the snipers, grenades, shotguns and pistons, we were prepared for battle. In addition to the guards at the gate, there were those stationed at strategic places all over the Malchian Grove. They would take them down even before they reached the mansion. I could hear the distant sound of gunshots and wolves growling. They were near.I cracked neck. I flexed my fingers. With my fist balled and my eyes staring straight ahead, I was ready. The sound approached, getting dangerously close to the gate. Just like that, shots begun to be fired. The guards at the gate fought well. They fired all their bullets on the invaders, but then, something weird happened. The invaders came pouring in numbers.I stood, shocked. I hadn't expected this kind of number. A sea of people forced themselves through the gate. They had with them ammunition.Someone threw a grenade, shooting everyone around the gate off. Yosef gave me a look; I shook my head. No. We wouldn't
==Olivia==5:55 pm.I would so fucking deal with Matteo! The fuck, the dude had told me to stay in his room pending his quick arrival. Guess what, eons….epochs had passed by and there had been no sign of him. Not even his shadow. Not even his smell, scent, whatever. The room was growing darker, and dear mister wasn't here yet!Initially, I had left the room to meet him outside. Lo and behold, the entrance was completely manned by guards. My anxiety peaked. I'd guessed a similar phenomenon existed in other entrances/exits, and I hadn't wasted my energy trying them out. Again, rather than going to my room, I'd returned to Matteo's, mainly because it had a balcony which would likely offer me access to the outside. However, to my chagrin, that balcony was locked. I had remained in Matteo's room because I felt safe here. I couldn't tell why I felt so, but that was it. I stopped pacing about and sat on the bed. First it was a curfew, and now this? What… I buried my face in my palm befo
A knock came and Lyons—still with his eyes fixed on his nightstand— said, "Come in."The door swing open. It was the butler. "Sir, the hall has been assembled." Lyons waved him away. Now was the time. Turning away from the nightstand, Lyons walked out of the room and reached the hallway. He descended quite a number of stairs, before reaching the basement door. As he opened the door, noise of chattering people hit him. He could make out what each one of them was saying.The noises died down as the people spotted Lyons. He looked ahead to see a multitude. Hundreds and hundreds of Brookehurtian citizens. He smiled to himself.He stood in front of them. "Good evening, the great people of Brookehurt. I'm so glad you honoured my request. As you know, our town has been under attack, in which loves and properties have been destroyed. May I use the opportunity to apologise for that." He paused fir let that sink in. Everyone paid rapt attention. "As a way of helping out, I am donating a sum
==Matteo==Pulling shirt down my face, I was set to leave. Olivia on the other hand was still in the process of putting on her bra. I looked away, not sure I wanted to catch sight of her pointy breasts. They were so fucking tempting. When I looked her way again, she was done. Her hair was tossed, an evident of the body slamming exercise we'd had moments earlier. A look on the clock on the wall confirmed it was way last our lunch time. I walked up to her; a smile appearing on her face. I picked up her scarf that laid some feet away and gave it to her. "Here." Still having the tiny smile on her lips, she took it from me and tied up her hair.As we left the chambers, I could sense she was exhausted from the thing we had. So, to save her any more troubles, I'd let her rest for some time before we met for lunch. I escorted her to her room and when we got to the door, I leaned to kiss her light. Yes, a chaste kiss this time around."See you at lunch."She smiled in response and steppe