MoanaThe very next morning, I called Sophia as soon as I awoke.“Sophia, it’s Moana,” I said into the phone. “Do you have a minute to talk?”Sophia was quiet for a moment. I could tell that she was hesitant; I had just informed her only a couple of weeks prior that I was working for the very man who frightened the orphans, and she no doubt had a suspicion that I was going to ask for something after how he acted.“Yes,” she finally replied. “It’s good to hear your voice.”I smiled, relieved that she was at least willing to talk to me. “You, too,” I said. “I know this might seem a bit contrived, but I wanted to ask if Mr. Morgan and I could come to the orphanage today. He wants to speak to you and the children after what happened yesterday.”“Really?” Sophia responded, sounding a little surprised. “He doesn’t seem like the type to talk much.”“Really. He wants to apologize.” Sophia was silent again. I grew desperate. “Please,” I said. “I’d really appreciate it if you gave him another c
MoanaThe children all began to cheer once Edrick agreed to stay longer so that we could make cookies. I lifted my gaze from Clara to see the Alpha billionaire standing in front of me, but he wasn’t looking at me; he was looking at the children.We all made our way down to the kitchen. I lingered at the back of the group, still in utter shock as I tried to wrap my head around Edrick’s sudden change in demeanor. Had the tour of the orphanage and seeing how disadvantaged children lived given him a bit of compassion?Once we were in the kitchen, I put on an apron and started to get out the ingredients to make the cookies while the children watched hungrily, licking their lips in anticipation for the sweet taste of sugar in their mouths.“Do you like to bake, Mr. Morgan?” Clara asked, standing on her tiptoes as she gripped the edge of the counter to see.“No,” Edrick replied, avoiding eye contact with the little girl. “I don’t.”“Not even cookies?”“No, not even cookies,” Edrick said. The
MoanaA few more days went by, and I had just come inside from a midday walk with Ella and was taking her sun hat off in the foyer when I suddenly felt a newspaper being shoved into my hand. I glanced up to see Amy standing above me with a surprised look on her face, and I took the paper from her to see that the front page had a picture of Edrick crouching in front of Clara from the day we went to the orphanage, when he crouched to explain the situation with his father to her. Selina must have snuck a picture while they were talking.The headline of the article read “CEO OF WERECORP VISITS ORPHANAGE, SPENDS HEARTWARMING AFTERNOON WITH CHILDREN”.“What’s that?” Ella asked, leaning over to look at the paper. She gasped then and ripped the paper out of my hands. “It’s daddy! And look, Moana!” she exclaimed, pointing to the background. “There you are!”In the background of the picture, I could be seen standing and looking down at Edrick and Clara. I felt my face get hot; I was never one f
MoanaI couldn’t bring myself to avoid Ethan’s exhibit after he had asked me to go so many times. So, after putting Ella to bed, I went to Selina with my hand on my stomach and a frown on my face.“I’m afraid I might have contracted food poisoning,” I said, feigning illness. “Can you keep an eye on things if Ella wakes up? I’m going to go to urgent care.”Selina frowned, looking at her watch. “Do you need a driver?” she asked.I vehemently shook my head. “No. It’s okay. I’ll call a cab.”“Well… Alright,” she said, pursing her lips. “Be careful.”After that, I put on a simple dress that could pass for urgent care attire if anyone were to question me, and flagged down a cab outside of the penthouse.Just as I suspected, the art gallery was packed to the brim when I arrived. As I got out of the cab, I felt a lump rise in my throat; all of the other patrons seemed to be dressed lavishly, which made me feel incredibly out of place.There was a line with a bouncer to get in. I stood in line
MoanaAs Ethan mentioned the “Golden Wolf”, I felt Mina react strongly in my head. She didn’t say anything, but I could tell that she was just as intrigued as I was. “I haven’t heard of the Golden Wolf,” I said, shaking my head.Ethan smiled. “If you want to know more about werewolves, then this will interest you,” he said. He turned and started to walk, nodding with his head for me to follow. As I walked with him, he began to speak, gesticulating with his hands.“The story of the Golden Wolf is a story that has been passed down through generations and generations of werewolves,” he began. “If I’m being honest, I’m not entirely sure if it’s real or just an old wives’ tale; some werewolves will say it’s real, and others will say that it’s just a legend. Either way, it’s an important story. You see, there was supposedly once an extremely rare, golden wolf that was spotted only once in the forest by a human. He was hunting for his village, long before humans knew about werewolves, and he
MoanaI felt a hand on my arm in the crowd and turned around, expecting to see Ethan or one of his friends standing there.But it wasn’t any of them.It was Edrick.Without speaking, he kept his grip firmly on my arm and pulled me away from the crowd, into a private room.“What are you doing here?” he asked, although I was certain that he had already seen me with Ethan and his friends. “I thought you were sick and had to go to urgent care.”I felt my heart rate quicken. “I…”Before I could answer, he raised his hand to indicate for me to stop speaking and then rubbed the bridge of his nose exasperatedly. “I don’t know how many times I have to tell you that you’re making a mistake by hanging around Ethan. And now you lie about your health so you can sneak out and galavant all over town with him?”“I wouldn’t feel it necessary to lie and sneak if it wasn’t for the fact that you seem to have boundless enmity for your own brother.”Edrick’s face darkened. “He is not my brother,” he snarle
MoanaWhen I opened my door, all I could smell was alcohol.Edrick was standing in the hallway. He was swaying slightly back and forth, his steely eyes unfocused in front of me. Even though it seemed he only just got home, he already had a glass of whiskey in his hand -- he must have filled it as soon as he came in the door.“Why aren’t you in my room?” he grumbled, his breath reeking of whiskey.I took a step back, scrunching up my nose from the smell. “I waited for you for two hours, but you never came,” I replied. “I assumed you wouldn’t be home tonight.”Edrick was silent for several moments before speaking: “Well, I’ll sleep in here, then.” Before I could stop him, he pushed past me and into my room.“How much have you had to drink?” I asked, closing the door quietly.Edrick chuckled sardonically and turned around to face me with a shrug. “What does it matter to you?” he asked. As he stared at me, I wondered to myself if he even knew or if he had lost count of how many times he’d
MoanaEdrick and I quickly pulled away from each other, rushing to fix ourselves. I pulled my nightgown back down around my legs and tied my robe around myself, fixing my hair while Edrick quickly buckled his belt once more.“Hello?” Ella called again.“It’s okay, Princess,” Edrick called, steadying his heavy breathing. “You can come in.”Ella cracked the door open and poked her head in. Her hair was a mess and her eyelids drooped sleepily as she rubbed them and yawned, but there was also a hint of fear and sadness on her teary-eyed face. She looked as though she had been crying -- I couldn’t quite tell if it was from the sound of Edrick and I fighting or from a bad dream. Maybe both. “I had a bad dream, Moana,” she said quietly and tearfully. “I came to look for you, but it sounds like you’re fighting…” Her tiny voice was quivering so much that it made my heart ache.“What? No,” I said, rushing over to her and crouching to her level. “Your daddy and I were just talking.”“Oh. I thou
MoanaI couldn’t help but laugh as I thought back on the beginning of our relationship.To think that, just a year prior, I was just Edrick’s one night stand who also became his nanny… And now, here I was, standing in front of the mirror in my wedding dress.The dress that I picked out was beautiful. We planned to have a late summer wedding to commemorate our meeting,six months after little Daisy was born. My dress was a blush pink color. It was soft and flowy with a beautiful floral embroidered pattern, and sleeves that fluttered in the breeze. It hugged my waist in all of the right places and made me feel more beautiful than ever.Daisy was six months old now, and Ella often mentioned how she no longer looked like a squished little grape. Ella had just turned nine, and thought that she was a grown-up, although she still liked to
MoanaAfter ten hours of intense and grueling labor, little Daisy was born.“She’s so tiny,” I whispered as I held the little crying bundle in my arms. The doctor weighed her at just six pounds and twelve ounces, but she was as healthy as an ox.Edrick, who hadn’t left my side throughout the entire delivery, leaned over my shoulder with a wide grin on his face and held his hand out to touch her cheek. Almost instantly, Daisy’s little hand shot out and gripped his index finger with a relentless force for such a little thing.Her eyes were squeezed shut, and yet she still had an instinct to keep her father’s finger in a vice grip.I couldn’t help but laugh, but I also wanted to cry.When I was on the cliff with Michael, I saw my parents at my birth. I did the same thing to my father, and I also wouldn&
MoanaThe time between Michael going to prison and Daisy’s birth were such a whirlwind of activity that the months practically flew by.Ethan and Kelly wound up being transferred to a mental health facility. I think that was better for them in the long run, as the things that they did were ultimately the result of Michael’s brainwashing. I didn’t hold any grudges against them; in fact, Edrick and I visited them on a monthly basis, and the medication and therapy that they went through seemed to be helping a bit.Of course, Kelly could never get over her obsession with Edrick. Nor could Ethan get over his obsession with me. It was very likely that they would spend years in that place, but at least we could have somewhat normal conversations with them when we went to visit.Michael, however, had no visitors and I didn’t feel the least bit bad about it. Verona ev
MoanaThe months in between Michael going to prison and Daisy’s birth were a whirlwind of emotions and unexpected turns. After the incident with Michael, where he was sentenced to prison for his attempt on my life, my world took another astonishing twist.The news outlets revealed a shocking revelation: Moana, the seemingly ordinary girl who was raised in an orphanage, was, in fact, the legendary Golden Wolf.I never imagined my life could become so entangled in a web of fame and attention.Suddenly, everyone wanted a piece of me. All sorts of brands and non-governmental organizations bombarded me with invitations and tempting monetary offers. It was overwhelming, to say the least. My inbox was flooded with messages from high-profile companies and influential figures, all hoping to capitalize on my newfound fame.It felt like the world had changed overnigh
EdrickWithin an hour, Moana and I were nervously walking up the front steps to my parents’ mansion.We left Ella with Selina just in case we walked in on anything sinister. The house was mostly dark, which was out of the ordinary. As I slowly opened the front door, I felt my heart catch in my throat.“Hello?” I called out, holding Moana’s hand as I stepped into the large foyer. “Mom?”There was no answer. Moana and I exchanged nervous glances and walked in a little further.“Verona?” Moana called, cupping her hands around her mouth to make her voice travel further. “Are you there?!”Still no answer. We decided to head into the sitting room, where my mother often liked to be during her free time, but it was dark and empty. At this point, I was starting to get even more nervous.
MoanaA little while later, Edrick and I were standing in the front doorway of the mansion and looking out at the scene before us.The security guards were leading Michael, who was cuffed, over to the car. His nose was still clotted with blood from Edrick’s punch, but something about it was satisfying to see. I enjoyed seeing Michael finally face some consequences for his actions, and I especially enjoyed watching Selina scold him like a child.What was even more satisfying, though, was seeing him being shoved into the back of the car to be driven down to the police station.Kat was found by the guards, too. Not long after Edrick punched Michael in the face, Kat was found hiding in the woods. As it turned out, Michael paid her a pretty penny to get close to me and lead me off into the forest to get lost so that he could kill me. She looked ashamed as the guards cuffed her, and
EdrickI hated to say it, but Moana looked more beautiful than ever as she practically assaulted my evil father on the back lawn.“He’s no threat,” she said as she released her grip on his shirt and let him fall back to the ground, then turned and walked back to meet me. “The knife is gone. He’s just an angry old man now and nothing more.”Moana was right; the knife was indeed gone. It shattered when Michael tried to stab her with it.During those moments when the knife was plunged into her belly, it felt as though my heart stopped. I watched in horror as the knife disappeared into her belly. When my father pulled it out, it was covered in blood and he had a maniacal grin on his face.But something happened then. She became enveloped in that golden light again, only this time it was even brighter and more blinding than before.
MoanaEveryone froze and stared at each other with wide eyes as the sound of the groaning and shuffling came closer.“Daddy?” Ella whimpered. “Who is there?”Edrick slowly sat Ella down, then walked toward the door. He gestured to the security guards, but before anything could be done, the last person we expected walked into the doorway.“Thought you could kill me, huh?”Michael stood in the doorway with an evil smirk on his face. Selina, the maids and I all let out a collective gasp. Selina suddenly grabbed Ella by the arm and shoved her behind us to keep her protected.“Michael,” I said, taking a step forward, “you were dead.”Michael just laughed. “I was indeed,” he said. “But not for long. I guess you didn’t realize that I was waking
Moana“Can you trust me to take care of him?” I asked.Ella began to sob, but I somehow knew exactly what to do. It all felt so natural now… I didn’t even really need to think about it. I just knew to wrap my arms around Ella and comfort her, although whether it was my abilities or simply my nurturing instincts, I couldn’t be entirely sure.Suddenly, Ella stopped crying.“Okay,” she whimpered after a moment, stepping back and wiping her tears out of her eyes. “I trust you. Please take good care of my daddy.”I managed a weak smile and nodded at Ella, taking her little hands in mine. “I will take good care of him,” I whispered as I looked into her eyes, still using my pacifying ability to keep her calm. “Don’t you worry.”Ella nodded and stepped away, allowin