CHAPTER 2 : SECRETS

Memories of her childhood flashed through Ember’s mind as she navigated through the route leading to the secluded mansion. It had always been her sanctuary, a place where she had felt safe and loved.

Now, it was nothing more than a desolate reminder of what she had lost.

When Ember finally arrived, she hurriedly parked her car in-between some trees, to keep it away from sight, looking around to make sure, no one was secretly watching, she ran towards the direction of the mansion

Her knees felt weak below her, as she saw, the state of her family house.

The condition of it was beyond anything she could have imagined. The once-beautiful estate, with its pretty gardens and elegant architecture, was now reduced to an abandoned site, filled with ashes.

Ember’s heart ached and her body whimpered, as she took in the scene, the reality of her loss hitting her like a physical blow.

~~~Ember~~~

"Ember" a voice called out, breaking me from my daze. I turned around to see Mr. Grant hurrying towards me, his usually composed demeanour replaced by one of urgency and fear.

“Mr. Grant...” I called out, my voice was barely above a whisper. “What happened here?” I questioned

“I’m so sorry, Ember,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I never thought it would come to this. Your parents... they were targeted. The entire family was. It was a calculated attack.

“Who did this?” I demanded, I could feel my breath coming out in rasps, screaming desperation. “Who would want to hurt us?”

Mr. Grant hesitated, as if weighing his words carefully. “It’s not safe to discuss this here. He said as he dragged me into the mansion.

" Years ago, your father made mention of your family being targeted for generations, though he didn't say why it was so, or what they were being chased for" he said, I was beyond shocked, as I paid rapt attention to everything he was saying.

"There’s something I need to show you—something your father left behind for you. It’s in his office.”

I followed Mr. Grant through the ruins of the mansion, my footsteps echoing in the hollow silence. The once-familiar corridors were now unrecognisable, reduced to rubble and debris.

Tears streamed down my face and emotions took the better of me as I tried to push aside the memories that threatened to overwhelm me, focusing instead on the task at hand. Whatever my father had left for me, must be important.

I could feel it in my bones. We reached what remained of my father’s office, a small section of the mansion that had somehow survived the inferno.

" Do the honours of opening the study, Ember", he said

I stepped forward, moving towards the ever familiar shelf filled with books and dragged one out, the doors opened and we found ourselves inside my father's study.

A room he hardly allows us to play around in, I thought as tears continued to stream down my face.

My eyes were immediately drawn to the desk, where a small laptop that had barely survived the wreckage, hid in between the desk.

Mr. Grant walked over to the desk and opened the laptop, his hands trembling slightly as he typed in a password. The screen opened and my father's face appeared on it.

“Before you watch this video Ember, there is something your father dropped with me. He said it should be given to you, if anything should happen to him or the family.” Mr. Grant continued, while dragging a very thick journal, which looked as if it had suffered while passing through generations.

“I think you should go through this first, before you continue with the video, it might be of help and answer some of the questions”, he said.

I felt chills crawling up my skin as I impatiently dragged the journal from him, and quickly opened it.

"Deviant clan ?” it was there written in bold letterings

What the heck is that? I asked myself, as I began to read through the history of the deviant clan, from generations.

A part penned down in red caught my attention and made me clench my thighs tightly, as I sat up straight in my father’s study desk.

“We’re what they call the Custodian family, blessed by the moon goddess, to grant more power to the deviant clan, when needed, you can call us the descendants of the moon goddess. Werewolves by nature but still more than a werewolves.

Once upon a time, the moon goddess got tired of her realm, and decided to come down and dwell among her people. And that’s how we came about. Touched by the goddess, we were meant to be leaders of all the werewolves pack.” I shifted on my seat, as I moved to another page.

“Our clan, mostly our daughters, are the carriers of that great power, a sip of their blood, grants any wish from the goddess and upgrades a lower ranked wolf, to a higher one. At the age of 22, the members of the deviant clan, will become more sensitive to our scents and knowing that, our powers are at its peak will beg for us to bestow powers upon them and elevate their status.

But Human greed took over and things changed, once revered by the pack but now tracked down to be killed and digested.

This has been going on for generations, to avoid this fate, we mixed our blood with that of the humans, diluted our blood and made it a lot more impotent. But fate has decided to play its tricks on us once again. The witch of our clan has gotten information from the moon goddess, the daughter birthed by the family of the fourteenth generation, shall be taken back to the main clan to become the Luna and to lead her people.”

“The daughter of the fourteenth generation….” I repeated, that should be me, right? I asked, there's none remaining aside me, " meaning I killed my family by just being born?" I said as a sudden chill passed through my veins.

My father had always been secretive about our lineage, and never mentioned anything about relatives or parents to me, even when I ask.

But it all made sense now, he was doing all that to protect me from this fate, hiding the truth to keep her safe. " Withholding the secret, isn't keeping me safe now, or is it" I whispered to myself

I looked at the journal, the red ink still vivid and ominous, with its words repeating in my head over and over again. I felt a strange connection to the words, a pull that I couldn’t resist. The more I read, the more I realised that my life was not just mine.

It was entangled in a web of ancient promises, bloodlines, and prophecies that stretched back generations.

"What does it mean to be a custodian? And why had the moon goddess chosen me? I muttered to myself as I yearned for answers.

Watching me close the book, without a word, Mr. Grant clicked on the file and stepped back, allowing me to watch.

He looked older than I remembered, his face was lined with worry and exhaustion. But there was a steely determination in his eyes that sent a shiver down my spine.

“Ember," he started

“if you’re watching this, it means that something has gone terribly wrong. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there to protect you, but you need to know the truth.

Our family... the Knights... we’re not ordinary people.

We belong to a clan—a deviant clan, as they call us. Our bloodline carries a power that has been passed down for generations, a power that others would kill to possess.” I know I have read it but it just sounded like a fairytale but hearing the same words from my father’s mouth, made my eyes widen in shock.

“You need to be careful, my baby,” he continued.

“There are people out there who will stop at nothing to get what we have. You must not trust anyone—not even those you think are your friends.

Run, Ember. Run and hide. And whatever you do, don’t reveal your hair or surname to anyone. No matter what.” The video ended abruptly, leaving me staring at the screen in stunned silence.

A soft whimper escaped my lips as my father’s final words echoed in my mind, sending chills down my spine.

I had always known there was something different about my family, but I had never imagined it would be something like this. Before I could fully process what I had just learned, Mr. Grant spoke up.

“There’s more, Ember. Your father left behind a safe house—filled with all the necessities you might ever need. But you need to be careful. Trust no one.” he said as his eyes turned red for a split second or maybe it was my imagination.

I nodded numbly, my mind racing, filled with the thoughts of my predicament.

My family was gone, and I was alone. "The Deviant clan" I gritted my teeth as my eyes got filled with pain and hatred.

Mr Grant left immediately the video ended, i understood that he couldn't keep me safe, I have to find the safe house and plan my next move, I thought to myself, as I made my way towards my car.