CHAPTER ONE: A TALE OF TWO LOVERS

My name is Jake. I am the only son of my father Alaric who was an Alpha and my mother Edith, a human. My mother was a vet when she met my father in his wolf form. The hunters had attacked and brought him to her so she could heal him, and they would them take him and use him as bait to lure other wolves out. They knew he was the alpha of his pack and when he lets out a howl, they would all come together.

Before my mother starts treating my father, he turns human startling her. She was shocked at what she had just seen. On top of her examination table was an injured wolf now it was a naked and still injured man in his early thirties. She threw her lab coat at him so he would use it to cover himself.

"What are you?!" Edith asked afraid.

"Please let me go before those hunters get back" Alaric begged Edith who was still trying to grasp what had just happened.

"What is happening? Am I hallucinating? Is....is..is...is this a dream? Pinch me" Edith ordered.

Alaric ties the lab coat around his waist and touches Edith to calm her down.

"I am a werewolf. Those hunters out there are going to use me to get to my pack. I'm not letting that happen without a fair fight. So please let me go"

"I can't let you go....." Edith insisted as Alaric became more tensed.

"..... through the front door but the back should be clear" Edith said with a smile.

"Before you go you gotta make it look like you attacked me and ran off" Edith proposed and Alaric disagrees saying that his scratch and bite might be lethal to her and doesn't want to take any chances. So she got a knife and cut herself. She gave Alaric some jeans so he could blend in as he walked out the veterinary. When he was completely gone, she screamed, attracting the attention of the hunters.

They rushed inside and Edith reported that the wolf had escaped. They scattered round the premises looking for the wolf. Some even went back into the woods and laid there, watching out for him. Alaric passed the hunters unnoticed. He was headed back to the woods when some hunters saw him.

"Where are you going to man?" A hunter asked

"I was just..... passing by" Alaric said trying to go deep into the woods. A hunter stopped him cautioning that there were wolves in the woods and he could get harmed. Alaric insisted on getting through but the hunters refused. In order not to blow his cover, he retreats and finds a place to stay for the night.

He tracks the scent coming from Edith's lab coat and follows it to her house. He was scared to knock on the door but finally finds the courage to do so. Edith opens the door and is suprised to see Alaric. She gladly welcomes him into her home. She served him some hot casserole and when he was done she advised that he took a bath. He did as she said then she offered him fresh clothes to put on.

"Where did you get this from?" Alaric asked. Edith was hesitant to talk but she later did

"Once upon a time I had this finance...."

"Oh.....sorry about that....uhh..." Alaric stuttered trying to get her name.

"Edith.....my name is Edith.....and you?"

"Alaric"

"Umm....so you never quite told me why you came back and also how you found me"

"The hunters, they were everywhere. I was just looking for a place to stay, pass away time then go back to the woods when the hunters would probably be asleep, plus you gave me your lab coat so I tracked your smell down" Alaric said with a chuckle.

"I'm sure that there are a million and one people that are in possession of my fragrance....but okay Mr. Wolf guy" Edith said as they both laughed.

"This fiance of yours.....what happened?" Alaric inquired. There was a brief silence then Edith spoke.

"He just leaves all of a sudden. I tried calling, texting, faxing, emailing....I even tried mailing......" Edith said with a chuckle.

"But he never got to me. Weeks later this lady walks in my vet clinic with this ill dog. I ask her what the name of her dog is and she says she named it after her boyfriend Paak Miller.....who was supposed to be my fiance" Edith concluded.

"I'll tell you what, it's his loss. From the minutes I've spent with you I can tell that he's already missing out. Not many can witness a wolf turn into a man and still be alive to tell the tale" Alaric jeered.

"What can I say.....I've seen worse my friend" Edith joked as both laughed. There was a moment of silence as both stared into each other's eyes smiling.

"Stay" Edith insisted.

"Stay?" Alaric asked confused.

"I'm not in any rush to get you out of here, you can stay for as long as you want. It's been quite a long time since I've had company"

"Edith.....I have to get back to my pack"

"It's...it's...it's fine, I understand" Edith said in a sad tone. The clock chimed. It was already one in the morning and Alaric had to go back. He hugged her and said his goodbyes, thanking her for being a good friend.

Moments later, Edith heard a knock on her door and went to open it. She is suprised to see Alaric at her door again.

"Ok.....am I dreaming or is this real?" Edith jeered

"I realized I was making a Paak-ish move by leaving you all alone again" Alaric joked.

"And your pack?" Edith asked concerned.

"They are a pack, they've got each other....you don't have anybody....the least I can do is stay for some few days" Alaric insisted smiling. Edith beamed with joy and jumped on Alaric hugging him. She thanked him and invited him in again. They share a bed since Edith did not have a guest room seeing as she barely had any. As they slept, Alaric cuddled with Edith. This shocked Edith but she allowed it.

The next morning Edith awoke to see Alaric gone from the bed. She became sad until Alaric came into the room asking if she wanted pancakes. She is thrilled with joy as what she thought had happened wasn't true. She went to the kitchen and ate with Alaric. She reckoned that the pancakes were very good but Alaric rebutted her praises. After breakfast, she left for work leaving Alaric home alone.

A hunter brought in a badly wounded wolf to Edith's vet clinic. They chained him up with stronger chains so it wouldn't escape. Edith asked them to excuse her while she did her work and they did. She calls her home line and Alaric picked.

"Alaric.....there's something you need to see. Bring some clothes" she said. Alaric quickly rushed down to Edith's vet clinic. He greeted the hunters a the lobby as he entered Edith's workspace.

"What happened?" Alaric asked

"This hunter brought in another wolf....I think it's not just a wolf" Edith proposed. Alaric went closer to examine it and finds out that it was his beta; Nathaniel.

"His badly injured, can you treat him up as fast as you can....I can't loose him" Alaric ordered.

Edith got her tools and started the treatment. There were several bullets in his body. Edith began removing them. When she was done, Nathaniel began slowly recovering then he abruptly snaps his fangs at Edith and gave a heavy growl. It attracted the hunters who asked Edith if everything was okay. She told them that everything was fine and their wolf was almost ready. Alaric calms Nathaniel down and he transforms to a human. Alaric gives him the clothes he brought and he puts them on.

"Where have you been Alaric?" Nathaniel asked quite pissed at Alaric. Alaric pauses for a moment not knowing how to answer Nathaniel's question.

"Everyone has been worried sick about you. I thought you were in chains.... weakened by wolf's bane....I thought those guys weakened you with silver..... I thought you were dead Alaric!"

"Those guys don't know what we are Nathan, they just think were ordinary wolves." Alaric said.

"Answer my fucking question Alaric" Nathaniel ordered furious. Though Nathaniel was Alaric's beta and had no rights to question his actions, Alaric felt ashamed but later brought himself to answer Nathaniel's question. As he was about to Edith interrupts.

"It's my fault really, I shouldn't have...." Edith confessed but Alaric cuts her short.

"It's my fault Nathaniel and I'm sorry. How's the pack?" Alaric asked.

"They found us...some were lucky to escape while some....my daughter....your mother...."

"What happened to her?!" Alaric asked already pissed.

"She died right in front of my eyes"

Alaric got very angry. One of the hunters came in and asked Edith of the wolf's whereabout. Before she could give an answer, Alaric grabbed him and punches him several times till he starts bleeding profusely. Edith tries to stop him but Nathaniel holds her back telling her that it was werewolves business. Alaric stopped punching the hunter and asked him to call off his hunters. The hunter told him that he wasn't the one who called the shots.

They were a family of hunters. The leader was the father; Enoch. Alaric told the hunter to put his leader on the phone and he did. He called his leader father and Alaric knew he was in possession of something his father would care about. Alaric took the phone and told the father to call off his children but his father refuses. Then he threatened him that he doesn't call of his children, he would kill his son. His father had no choice but to call them off. Alaric let go of his son and sets of the woods with Nathaniel. Edith asked Alaric if she could come with them but Alaric refuses, telling her that he would come back for her in another life...not just this one.

Alaric got to his pack and they welcomed him, all with sad faces. He apologized to them telling them that he had taken care of the situation and nothing like that was ever going to happen again.

One night, Alaric couldn't sleep. All he thought about was Edith. He told Nathaniel about her but Nathaniel was not having the conversation. Nathaniel told him to worry about other women in the pack and not some mere human. But Alaric didn't listen, instead, he set out to meet Edith. He goes back to her house and knocks on the door. Edith opens the door to see Alaric. She was shocked to see him and immediately he kisses her.

"What happened to another life" Edith jeered.

"I want you in every life" Alaric said then they continued kissing.

Alaric told Edith to follow him back to his pack and she did without thinking twice. He introduced her to his pack and everyone welcomed her with warm regards except Nathaniel. Alaric decided that he was going to marry Edith and the moon goddess agreed to it. The marital ritual took place where there was clear visibility of the moon. Alaric's and Edith's souls were spiritually married; that is to say they were soul bounded.

The encounter Alaric had with Edith led to her becoming pregnant. Everyone were surprised and scared for her. If the baby were to possess the genes of a werewolf, she would die while giving birth as her pregnancy would be a three months gestation period like that of a werewolf. Alaric who was soul bounded to her knew that if she dies, he dies as well. He entrusts his child's well being to Nathaniel if ever the birth was go go sideways......and it did.

My name is Jake. I am the only son of my father Alaric who was an Alpha and my mother Edith, a human. I am the reason for the death of my parents, I wish I could take it all back but I can't. Now I am forced to live with this burden till I am no more.