Edrick
Now that the issue of Moana’s pregnancy was settled, in our household at least, I felt much more at peace than before. Ella seemed to get happier by the day, and would chatter away about her future sibling almost every night at dinner. The issue of figuring out how to best bring it up to my parents was still something I would have to deal with, but at least I had a little time; it’ wasn’t as though my father was walking around my penthouse and would see Moana’s growing belly, unlike Ella, who would’ve seen it happening before her very eyes. Part of me wanted to keep up the lie and tell my parents that I wasn’t the father, but I knew that it would be useless with Ella running around. Eight year olds don’t exactly make the best keepers of secrets.
Things seemed to settle down into a new normal over the next several days. The servants were kind to Moana and helped
MoanaOne night, I was reading a bedtime story to Ella when I found myself nodding off in the chair by her bed. I didn’t wake up until a couple of hours later. She was fast asleep and I didn’t want to wake her, so I quietly got up and slipped back into my room to go back to sleep.When I walked back into my room, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary, seeing as how tired I was. I moved my sketchbook aside and climbed into the covers, and quickly fell asleep.The next morning, I woke up with a headache. I groaned and sat up, rubbing my eyes, and as I did so I noticed something sitting on my bedside table that I hadn’t noticed the night before: a glass of brown liquid.Furrowing my brow, I picked up the glass and inspected it. It was certainly one of Edrick’s whiskey glasses from his minibar, and when I sniffed its contents, I quickly
MoanaBy the time Ella’s training was about to end, Edrick and I had purchased a whole host of baby supplies. He insisted on buying the bassinet anyway, as well as anything else the baby might need. Although I thought it was a bit irresponsible for him to spend so much on certain items, I figured that he knew what he was doing, and I didn’t argue any further. Besides: I couldn’t help but feel happy to spoil our future child as well.We picked Ella up at training, then Edrick pulled out of the parking lot and began driving in the opposite direction of the penthouse.“Um, daddy?” Ella called from the back seat, twisting in her car seat to look intensely out the window. “I think you’re going the wrong way.”Edrick smirked, then shook his head. “No, Princess. We’re going out for dinner.”
MoanaThe gap that existed between Edrick and I could never be bridged; I knew that now.Our ride home was silent. The steak that I could still taste on my tongue now tasted foul. To think that I had spent the entire day feeling as though we could have some semblance of normalcy; even if we never became romantically involved, why couldn’t we still be proud of what we had created between us? Why did he always have to hide me and Ella? Would the new baby also face the same struggle of having a father who didn’t want anyone to know about his or her existence?We went home that night, still without a word spoken between us. I took Ella to bed with only a brief word of thanks for everything he did that day, but after that, I didn’t look at him again.…On Monday morning, I awoke to the sound of someone knocking on my door.
MoanaMy eyes widened when I saw Edrick, but at the same time, my body relaxed knowing that he was here to -- hopefully -- help us. He glanced over at me, but clearly didn’t want anyone to know we were together, and walked up to the desk.“Is there a problem here?” he asked the receptionist.“Yes, Mr. Morgan,” she said, gesturing to me, “this woman is a human and she’s trying to be served before werewolves. It’s our policy to serve werewolves first.” Her eyes were wide as she spoke, and her voice shook a bit. I could tell that she knew that she would be in deep trouble if Edrick Morgan himself was here.“Well, break policy just this once,” he said. He turned to the werewolf couple next, who still stood nearby looking utterly confused. “So sorry about that,” he said, then turned to Selina and
Edrick“Edrick…” My mother dropped her tone of voice and leaned closer to me. She took my hand in hers and gave me a serious, knowing look that only a mother could have. “Is she pregnant?”I frowned, hiding the fact that my heart had just started beating rapidly. “What?” I said, shaking my head. “What makes you think that?”My mother folded her arms across her chest and narrowed her eyes. “Edrick, I’m your mother. You can’t lie to me.” There was a long silence after she spoke, but her eyes never wavered from mine. Even in her old age, she was still just as astute and level-headed as ever. I had never been able to lie to my mother, and she knew that. Finally, I caved.“Yes,” I replied quietly. “She is pregnant.”“I knew it,” my mother s
Moana Hearing how Edrick refused to admit that the baby was his to his own mother hurt me deeply. I found myself hardly able to speak or eat all day after overhearing him, and although I wanted to tell myself that he was only put on the spot when Verona asked about the pregnancy, I knew deep down that it was really because he was embarrassed to have a baby with someone from a lower social status. If he had simply denied my pregnancy, it would have been one thing, but to claim it was another man’s baby altogether hurt me to my core. After Verona left, I found that tears were coming to my eyes. I decided to leave my soup unfinished and ran off to my room to cry without anyone seeing me. Once I was inside my room, I felt my emotions take over. I took a deep breath, steadying myself, and walked over to my mirror to will myself not to cry. As I looked at myself, however, and took in the appearance of my growing belly and my red eyes, I couldn’t hold it in anymore. A few tears began to r
Moana The next morning, I decided to take Edrick’s offer for a day off and went to the orphanage to get out of the penthouse for a while. I was still incredibly hurt and angry by Edrick’s refusal to admit that the baby was his to his own mother, but at the very least, I knew that a day out might lift my spirits just a little. As I arrived at the orphanage, I already began to feel just a little bit better. “Hello?” I called as I walked in. I didn’t get a response, but I heard the children’s voices coming from the recreation room as they laughed and played, and it made me smile a bit. I walked over to the recreation room and stopped in my tracks when I saw Ethan playing with the children. They didn’t see me at first. Ethan was giving them an art lesson and was walking around the room, looking at all of the children’s artwork and giving them compliments. Seeing how sweet he was being with the children made me smile, but at the same time, it made me feel sad knowing that his brother w
Edrick The next day after our minor argument, I was happy to see that Moana took me up on my offer and decided to take the day off. I insisted that she let the driver take her wherever she wanted to go. She left in a bit of a huff, holding her belly through her summer dress in the elevator, but as the door closed, I knew that she would come home feeling much better later. In the future, I told myself that I would make sure she had more time off; this much stress was only bad for the baby, so if she needed any time to rest and relax, then I would allow it. However, Moana was late coming home that night. I began to get a little worried when she wasn’t even home in time for dinner, and found myself involuntarily looking out the window every five minutes to see if she was coming. Finally, just as I was about to call her, I saw the car pull up out front and let out a sigh of relief. I watched as she walked into the building, then waited for her to take the elevator up. When the doors fi
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