Chapter 6: Rest in Peace

Selene never felt as full as she did after eating the breakfast Ida prepared. Her exhaustion from last night’s events made her ravenous to the point where he devoured every meal the old woman brought them without even thinking about it. If her mother was there, she would be ecstatic to see her daughter eating as much as she did.

She thanked Ida before and after the meal, and every time she did, the widow always brushes her off and would just sweetly smile at them. She wondered if she could take her in as an assistant, then she could stay in the town.

A woman burst through the door and rushed to the stairway. “Where are you going, Elise?” Ida greeted her. The woman turned around but her eyes seemed glassy and inattentive.

“Up,” she replied and continued on her way.

“Who is that?” Selene inquired.

“She is the baker’s daughter,” Ida replied. “Wait a minute while I check where she’s going.” She stood from her seat and walked up the stairs.

“She went inside your brother’s room,” she reported when she got back to the counter. “I did not reckon her to be that kind of woman,” she murmured mostly to herself. “Oh, well. She can do whatever the hell she wants with her body.” She beckoned to Selene and Archibald. “Are you ready to get into your room now? There’s still an empty room upstairs. But I’m afraid you can’t share one with your brother now,” she smiled at Archibald. “Oh, and I have clothes prepared for you in the drawer upstairs. I just hope they fit.”

“You’re such a good soul, Ida,” Archibald said.

“You’re too kind,” Selene added.

***

As they walked past the door, they could clearly hear moans and groans inside. Selene hurried to the room in embarrassment. Archibald followed suit.

“What a rabid dog,” Selene remarked. “That man sure is a beast.”

“What would you expect from an alpha?” She has always known how they value power as part of hierarchy but she never realized how apparent the differences were. She felt pity to those who were at the bottom; then she remembered she was the bottom, and chuckled to herself.

“Are all werewolves that sexually active?” she curiously asked.

“It differs from werewolf to werewolf. It depends really on their internal desires. Being a werewolf is not only about the ability to transform, it’s also about amplifying one’s proclivities.” Selene appreciated his intellect. It was like having a walking book as a friend.

“What’s your desires?” she asked.

She saw the man tensed up on the question. “I mean, if you don’t mind me asking,” she added.

“No, no, no,” he interjected. “I was just thinking what really is my desire. Nobody ever asked me that so I never really considered it.” He rubbed a hand on his dirty cheek and down his chin. The action made him look more genuine to Selene’s eyes. “Considering everything I put my efforts on, it would seem like my desire is… you. During full moons, I never found myself lusting for sex. I never felt hunger for violence. It was you who I wanted to see during a full moon.”

Selene was shocked and confused by the statement. “What do you mean?” she stammered.

“I mean, not sexually,” he immediately explained, blushing. “Like, I desire to know you more. More than what my eyes could see. You’re like a specimen I am awfully curious about.” He looked straight at her eyes, unblinking and unyielding. “I wanted to study your very being.”

Selene returned his gaze. Then a loud bang rang from the wall. The wooden wall in between their room and Perseus’ started to thump loudly. Selene thought something may have been hitting the wall, then they heard the ecstatic moans of a woman in unison with every thud. Selene and Archibald looked at each other and chuckled to each other.

She looked around the room. There were thankfully two beds, but the bathroom was not exactly a room. It was a cubicle on the corner with only a curtain as a partition.

“You go wash first,” she commanded Archibald. He looked dirty all over, dirt clung on his body. “Miss Ida said there were clothes in the drawers,” she pointed at the drawer beside the bed. “I’ll prepare my things first.” Archibald nodded at her and fetched the clothes. He laid them in the bed and started to unbuckle his pants.

“What are you doing?” she frantically shouted. “Undress inside the bathroom! And bring the clothes with you,” she said. She had never seen a fully naked man before, except maybe a glimpse of his parents making love. Being in a room with such a man like Archibald was weird for her.

He gathered the spare clothes and hopped towards the bathroom. “Sorry,” he said meekly. “I forgot my manners for a second there.”

“No problem,” she said. Selene kept her head low and focused her eyes on the luggage she had as the cries of pleasure from the other room intruded. She felt flushed by an unfamiliar feeling. She considered herself innocent from any carnal activities; well, she read some literatures in the library with explicit descriptions of sexual acts but she paid them no mind.

Now, she was feeling hot all over. She wanted to take off all her garments and lie there on the bed. Then her mind wandered to the idea of a naked man taking a bath just a couple of steps away from her. Her mind lingered on the picture of that man, chiseled chest, lean stomach, strong arms. She felt embarrassed at the thought and tried to brush the images off.

Archibald, bare naked like the day he was born, pulled her on his hard body. He teared off his clothes, and pushed her on the bed. She wanted to scream but no voice came out. The man went on top of him, and she saw how his eyes stared into her like she’s the most beautiful creature in the world. He kissed her on the forehead and a sharp sensation flowed throughout her whole body. Then he kissed her lips. His tongue invaded her mouth as she felt weak and helpless. She let out a moan…

“Yes?” Archibald called out from the bathroom.

“Wha—what?” she stuttered.

“You called me,” he explained. “What was it?”

“Nothing,” she answered. “Nothing.”

Selene looked at herself in the mirror and slapped her face. The stress must have been affecting her state of mind. She was losing control of her emotions. She must get herself together if she wants to start a new life.

***

The cold water felt comforting on his skin. He watched as the clear liquid turned muddy upon contact on his body. He can’t remember the last time he got this dirty. Days and nights reading in the library and his home kept him away from all this mud and blood. But it’s not like he was not happy of his decision.

“Archibald.” He heard Selene’s voice called softly.

“Yes?” he called out.

“Wha—what?” he heard her reply.

“You called me. What was it?” He was sure he heard her voice calling his name. Or maybe he was just lost in thought and his mind tricked him into hearing her voice.

“Nothing,” he heard her say. “Nothing.” He shrugged it off as stress catching up to both of them. He must have been hearing things, or she must have been saying things.

Archibald thought about what’s in store for her in the future. Will she really stay here by herself? Is it really safe here? They don’t even know why her parents were killed and what they mean by this ‘Hunting Season’. What will they hunt, werewolves or Selene? Questions raced through his mind but she has no answers to satisfy them. He felt worthless. He felt the need to provide Selene the safety she needs. No. He must make sure she is safe before he could feel any semblance of peace.

He finished cleaning himself, and tried putting on the clothes Ida prepared for him. They fit him tightly, but they did not rip open so that’s fine.

“Your turn,” he told Selene, who was sitting on the edge of her bed, covering her ears and rocking on her knees. He realized the racket Perseus is having was still ongoing, but they seemed to switch places, away from the wall but they were still audible.

He approached Selene and tapped her shoulder. Selene jumped up in shock and faced him. She was blushing and tears wetted her face.

“Are you okay?” he asked. He sat down beside her and tried to hold her hand. But she immediately scampered about, clumsily dropping and picking her clothes. She rushed to the bathroom without saying a word.

Archibald shrugged and laid on his bed. He looked up at the ceiling and continued daydreaming about the future; he slowly drifted into sleep.

***

Georg Tempest stood in front of the council, back in the Crescent Peaks. He asked for an audience with the elders to discuss the death of his best friend, Mikhail Edevane, and his wife. He wanted to know what the next course of action in regards to the meaning of the threatening announcement they left written in their comrades’ blood.

“Let’s wage war against these humans,” he proclaimed. “They disrespected us, killed members of our pack, destroyed a family. Then they dare call out a season of hunting? I say we hunt them out first.” He was furious at the humans, at what they did, at their existence.

Lucian looked down on him from his seat. He had gray hair strands on his head, but other than that, he still looked like an incredibly capable werewolf despite his age. His form was still at tip-top shape, and his eyes still reflect that sense of authority only a wise leader has.

“Who says the humans are hunting werewolves?” he asked with a booming voice. “The guards told me you killed the only one we captured. So, how would we know if they are really after us? For all we know, this is an isolated incident targeting a single family in our pack.”

“The humans clearly know what to do. They used silver bullets and they attacked at the exact time they would be defenseless. Those are proof enough that they were after our kind.” Georg was keeping most of his anger to himself, but he can’t keep them from showing.

“That is still not enough to mobilize an attack. Unless you have concrete proof, then you’re just wasting my time.”

“But—”

“Don’t come in here and tell me to wage war against humans just because they killed two of us and left an ambiguous message. I built this community to be sustainable without outside interventions from humans, and I have no intention of burning everything I built just because of your emotions. For all we know right now, this ‘hunting season’ is just a scare tactic by a couple of werewolf hunters. So, stop this war nonsense.”

“But—”

“No buts, my child,” he interrupted. “I feel the same pain as you do. The Edevanes are still my people. They are part of me and my pack. I would be leading the charge if this is indeed an attack on our kind, but until then… Go back to your duties and I will not hear about this concern again. Our dead are already buried and their daughter run off to wherever. This case no longer has value for us. Anything we do hereafter is just a waste of our time.”

Lucian waved a hand to shoo Georg away, but Georg stepped forward and told him, “What of the alpha leaving with the Edevane child? And the zeta going with her as well? Is that out of our concern as well?”

“Let them be,” Lucian said dismissively. “They can do what they want to do. I’m still alive, am I? You won’t be needing Perseus yet. Let him enjoy himself for a while. Once he supersedes me, he won’t have the time to explore the world.” He waved at Georg again, this time more impatiently. Georg bowed, defeated, and turned his back at the council.

***

Perseus lay on the disheveled bed with the naked woman sleeping soundly beside him. He felt quite pleased with how she tried to keep up with his stamina and vigor. She was knowledgeable and skilled enough to take him in and give him what he wanted. But in the end, she was still a human; weak and incapable to match him.

“Get out,” he said as he rocked the woman awake. She looked at him groggily and unsure of what to say. “Get out. I want the room to myself now,” he said dismissively.

She stood up and dragged her bare body, still red and sweaty from exertion, to where her clothes were thrown to. She could barely walk straight, her knees wobbled in every step as if she would fall over.

“Hurry up,” he commanded. She looked like a wounded animal. He could devour her without breaking a sweat from her current situation. Her bare ass looked delectable even from a distance, and her ample breasts jiggled in harmony with her hips.

She bent over to pick up her dress on the floor, baring to him her nether regions. Her openings beckoned to him to come again and eat this woman. He stood up from his position and glided to the woman’s backside. He grabbed her hips and pulled her close.

“On second thought,” he whispered. “I may still find a use for you.” He pushed her down on her knees and made her face his reemerging erection.

She frowned up at him. “You’re treating me like you own me,” she confronted. “You don’t even know my name.”

“I don’t have a use for a name. What I need is for you to shut up and put that thing inside your mouth.”

“My name is Eli—” He grabbed at her head and pushed deep inside her throat. The woman gagged but she managed to pull her head away. She coughed and wheezed. Her eyes watered. She stood up, stared daggers at him and slapped him on the face. “My name is Elise,” she continued. “You don’t own me and I don’t have any obligation to suck your cock at your will.” She turned around to pick her dress up on the floor.

Perseus stood there dumbfounded by the woman’s action. “Who do you think you are?” he angrily shouted.

“I just said it,” she replied while getting into her clothes. “I am Elise, Elise Mayheart.” He looked down at her and imagined How easily he could break her right then and there, but it would be pathetic to harm a defenseless prey. She got dressed and turned to him. “If you need me again,” she said. “Call my name and treat me like a human.”

She left the room, leaving Perseus standing motionless, fists clenched, and feeling pathetic. He looked down on his still raging boner with seething displeasure.

He returned to the bed, and tried to get some sleep. But the woman, Elise, stayed on his mind like an annoying tick.