Michael and Celia paled at the numbers shown on the ledger, whereas Christen has redirected her attention back to the conversation, and was just left speechless by what she was hearing.“You… You stole our ledger?!” Michael accused, prompting Forrest to sigh.“Did you truly not hear the part where I had said that this was lent to me?” he calmly spoke. “And rather than focus on what I have done, how about you at least explain one of two things. Why did you people make so much withdrawals on things that has nothing to do with improving your business? Using the money that was supposed to be for your company, as we had agreed upon. And secondly, I am positive I have sent credits to you once a month, also as agreed upon. Where are these extra transactions coming from?”“T-That’s… We have other business partners! You think you were the only one who supported us?!” Celia claimed.“Oh, so you did have others willing to help you. And yet, despite the help, your company still fell from grace?”
"I'll read it."When one person amongst the group volunteered to do the deed, the rest parted, revealing Franklin standing amongst them."As much as I rather have you all leave fir the sake of our patients, it doesn’t look like this will end otherwise,” he stated.“No, no, no! There is absolutely no need for-”“‘No need’ for what, exactly?“ Franklin interrupted Michael. “After how you two intruders came and demanded we release a still-recovering patient, with little to no care for her life? I want to know for myself if you two are her family, as you so claim, or something else entirely.”Celia shook her head at those words. “No, there is no need for you to-“ Before she could snatch the form out of Forrest’s hands as well, Leonard got between the pair and grabbed her wrist, holding it up and away from the Beta werewolf in a vice grip. “Ow! Ow!”“At ease, Leonard," Forrest ordered, prompting the guy to release the woman, as he handed Franklin the form. “By all means, read this for us.”
Michael and Celia were both at a lost with what was occurring. This was not how they had wanted things to go at all. Not in terms of this visit, nor of what will become of their lives. Not wanting to live the rest of their lives in prison, the pair instantly got on their hands and knees.“W-Wait, please! Surely there isn’t a need for that, is there?!” Michael asked.“Y-Yes! As Michael said!” Celia agreed. “We were just… fooling around, that’s all!” “‘Fooling around’ wouldn’t result in your company shutting down. Nor have you hold that misguided grudge of yours,” Forrest scolded. “Besides, if you’re going to wish for forgiveness, you are asking that from the wrong person. I assume you know exactly what I mean?”Both adults grimaced at the statement, before glancing at Christen, who was still looking down with an unreadable expression. Wanting to make use of her- she who is in fact the only one who can help them avoid this arrest- they hastily rushed over to her.“Christen! Mommy was w
The next few weeks was like a blur to Christen. After standing up to her parents for the first time of her life, she was pretty much kept secluded in the hospital room. Not as a prisoner, of course, or entirely out of fear of going out in the halls, overhearing whatever rumor may be said about her.She was just tired; she didn't want to do anything in general. Be it socializing with others, or getting some exercise, as her doctor had been recommending her to do to improve her health.She may have stood up to her own blood, but what of it? What was going to happen to her next? After she gets checked out? It was not as though she would be accepted anywhere else at this point. With her parents in jail because of her, her siblings- Ace and Bianca- are sure to resent her with a passion. Like their parents, Christen’s siblings never liked her at all. Even if on the off chance that they don’t blame her for what became of them, that did not mean they would be willing to help her regardless. W
Christen practically slammed the door open as she finally arrived at the rooftop. As soon as she got to her destination, she closed the door behind her, and walked to the edge, blocked by a fence. ‘Soon… Soon, this will all be over,’ she thought. As she walked, her mind began to think back to childhood. Specifically to the many times when she was bullied and harassed by her classmates, and the number of disappointed gazes she had piercing through her soul. Be it from the teachers who expected her to be as great as her siblings, or her siblings themselves, as well as their parents. The memories shifted to her time with Forrest. When they first met and interacted with one another, how he captured her heart when he treated her different from everyone else, saw her as a person instead of a disappointment. Even if he never loved her back, he still chose her out of all other girls to be with, and practically gave her plenty of chances to try and close the gap between them. Or so she had
"Come on, Uncle Forrest! We’re going to be late!” Christian urged the Beta werewolf, standing and swaying around by the entrance,“Alright, already, little rascal, I'm coming," Forrest said, putting his shoes on. “I hope you realize, though, that I’m still getting ready, right? It won’t hurt you to sit down and wait.”“Last time I did that, you left without me. And promised you or Aunt Kiara will definitely take me to see Momma on time after that,” Christian retorted.Forrest didn’t know if he should grimace or feel a bit amused by the child’s reminder. As the boy stated, after Forrest came home the day of Christen's parents’ arrest, Christian practically bombarded him with questions.Demanded, even, why the Beta went to see his mother without him. A question he did not dare answer, as he was too young to know of what happened. In exchange, he promised the boy he would make sure to take him to see Christian daily from that day forward.A giggle was heard, as he turned to see Kiara sta
Forrest's eyes widened at what he heard from the human. She ‘can’t’? Can't what?"What do you mean ‘you can’t’?” he inquired, sitting up while keeping her close to him."It doesn’t matter. Nothing I say will ever matter," she whispered, raising more of his concern for her."Why would you say that? Of course it matters!"“You’re just saying that. We both know you dan't mean it. I’m just nothing.”The way she spoke so little of herself was starting to unnerve Forrest. How could anyone have so low an opinion of themselves? Don't humans normally have so much pride in them?"Then pretend that I do care and tell me why you think you don't matter?” he practically demanded, any to receive no answer from her again, aside from a weak headshake. The Beta started racking his brain, wondering what he could say or do to improve her situation, or get an answer out of her. "Okay, it that's how you want to play it, consider this an order. Tell me why you believe you or nothing you say will ever matter
After giving Christen some time to calm down, Forrest took her by the hand and guided her back down to her room, to get her changed out of her hospital gown, and into some casual clothes Kiara got her the last time she visited. An action that was turned out to be more troublesome than it should, when Christen nearly stripped on front of him in broad daylight. Surprising as it was, he supposed he couldn’t blame her much for the action she took, seeing as she had been held captive for the past few years as a plaything.Once she changed into her new clothes, Forrest took her down to the lobby, where a bored Christian sat in one of the seats, waiting for their arrival, with Franklin trying to entertain him. As soon as the child took notice of the pair’s arrival- specifically one of the two- a smile broke out on his face, and he shot out of his seat."Momma!" he cried out, rushing to Christen in joy.The sight of her child being this happy to see her filled the void Christen had in her ch
"What do you mean ‘you don’t know what’s wrong with her’?” Fenris demanded the healers, after spending hours watching them do their jobs, constantly checking Christen’s condition and comparing notes with one another, and even overheard them coming up with various theories as to what became of her. Theories shot down but the other healers.“Exactly as we mean it, Alpha. We checked over as many things as we could, and even took blood samples to see if there was anything wrong. Unfortunately, as far as we could tell, there was nothing wrong with her at all,” one of the healers explained.“‘Nothing wrong with her’ would mean that she would have no problem with waking up. Yet, she hasn’t so much as respond to our call to her one bit. You cannot be telling me that this is all nothing,” he demanded. “Check her again. Use every method you can think of to find out what is wrong with her. Try to get her to wake. And if I see so much as a scratch on her, I will hold all of you accountable. Is th
Fenris ran in the snow in his werewolf form on all fours at full speed like his life depended on it. Desperate to get to his house in the Diamante-Krawler Pack as quickly as he could. Only it was not his life that needed the saving, but Christen’s, who was strapped to his back with the blanket. Body practically limp on him.“You’re going to be just fine, Christen! I promise you, you’re going to be okay!” he shouted to her, not receiving any response from her at all.‘How could this have happened?! Right after I promise her!’ he frantically questioned. That indeed. How could it be possible? He had just woken up from the nap he was having with her, feeling refreshed, and wanted to make some light meal to have with her. By the time he woke, she was still asleep, not that it bothered him. And since her body was warm- a sign that she was still alive- Fenris just thought to let her sleep peacefully a little longer while he was getting lunch ready for them. While her appetite may not drasti
Fenris was shocked enough with everything he had found out that involved Christen. The way she so nonchalantly accused him of being like the other guys who toyed her really took the cake. “I would never play you like they did!” he exclaimed.Christen was unfazed by the shout, though, as she shook her head. “Of course you wouldn’t. You’re not human like my customers are; maybe you have a different preference in games, too. And now that you’re married, maybe this game you’re playing is one that your wife would be okay with. So long as it ends with my blood being spilled or something.”Shell shocked, Fenris did not know what to think or say about this. “How could you have so little view of yourself? Of me?” he could only ask.“Like I said. It wouldn’t matter what I say. Not to anyone else. Only Christian- my own son- cared, but now he’s gone. With a much better family, who would give him more than I ever could.”“You really think I don’t care? When I saved you from death, cared for you,
Fenris did not know what to think at this point, when he saw Christen crying for her son’s leave. Not out of sadness or desperation for him to come back, but accepting the leave? Accepting that he was happier with another family? But what about him? When he didn’t even know he had a son until now? Not that it was her fault, he supposed…“So… That was our- uh… ‘Your’ son I saw?” he asked.“Yes. And he’s happier with another family,” Christen answered, not daring to look at him, as she only sat on the bed, hugging her legs close to her, with the blanket wrapped around her body.Running a hand across his face in an attempt to calm himself down from this revelation, he asked, “And you know that. How?”“Because I was with him at the time.” The response confused Fenris. She was with Christian when he was with his new family? He had thought that once a child is given to another family, the original would not be allowed to see the kid. Then again, it was not as though she lost custody over hi
Fenris was shocked enough when Christen responded to him, then when she wanted him out of her life- when she wanted to have no further involvement in anything at all- but that last one? That one claim she made in her plea? Did he even hear her right?“Baby? What baby?” he asked, kneeling down to her side. As he was about to place a comforting hand on her shoulder, before he could even touch the blanket, Christen toppled over a bit, leaning against the door, with the blanket falling off her body. To his shock, astonishment, bewilderment, and all other words he could think of to describe the sight before him… Her belly was swelling. No, not ‘swelling’. “Pregnant… You were pregnant?” he asked her, looking to his mate and notice how pale she seemed. While he was no doctor, nor did he know much about pregnancy for human females, he could tell that it was not a good sign for the mother. Just as he was about to comfort her, the scene changed again. Not really the scene itself, as it was mo
It took a while for Christen to calm down. Unlike the last time she had a panic attack, she was still awake. Just huddled against the corner with the blanket wrapped tightly around her. Her eyes were red and puffy from the frightful crying, and seemed very distant.Fenris walked to her, a cup of tea in hand. “Here. Something to warm you up,” he offered.Christen did not take the offering, much less acknowledge it. Her mind wondering around to other matters.Fenris did not know what to think or say now, as he licked his dry lips. He sat down by her with a light sigh, and brought his tail to her, hoping she would at least react to it. Even then, there was nothing. Fenris was at a loss. Why was his mate refusing to answer now? Was taking her out really that bad an idea? Then again, she was hesitant on coming out earlier.“Did you have some bad experience being outside? Maybe a kidnapping or something?” he asked. A question that was left unanswered, considering how unresponsive Christen h
"Okay, I think that’s enough combing now,” Fenris said to Christen, having endured the gentle grooming long enough, as he moved his tail out of his mate’s hold. He could sense the small dismay his beloved was feeling, but for once, chose to ignore it. For he knew for certain he would not be able to handle any more of that touch if he continued to let Christen continue.He glanced behind him, wondering if his mate’s mood has improved after all that combing. While she did have a small frown on her face, he could see that it was not from the earlier experience; just the loss of his tail. The moment she noticed him looking, however, the frown turned into a slightly frightened, hesitating expression. “As I said, this will be a part of your job,” he reminded her. “I have you cleaning the cabin, it will become too sparkling bright as a hideout. If you do feel restless not having anything else to do, you can comb my tail. In fact, I will even allow you to cook, if you so wish. It gets tireso
When Finral confirmed his son’s bond’s legitimacy, the other werewolves looked on in interest with what the evidence was. “Everyone here tell me first. Has there ever been a time when a werewolf has ever linked their mind to a human in any way?” he began.There were some murmurs at the question, all with uncertain expressions. There were even some who wanted to think that the man was about to talk nonsense- especially from the Krawlers, namely Winston- but could see from the tone and expression that Finral was quite serious in the topic. “My son is able to do that with the human. Linking his mind to her’s when asleep.”The moment the explanation left Finral’s mouth, Winston brushed off the claim. “In other words, the boy was doing nothing dreaming, as are you. And yet it is my and my daughter’s positions that are called to question? If this is dreams we’re talking about, I’m sure many of us here has had plenty of dreams where there are other people included. Loved ones or otherwise.
Back in Fenris's house, in the Diamanté-Krawler Pack, things have gotten quite troubling for the Advisors. “This is the last time we have let your daughter get any sort of freedom, Winston. Not once did she get in the way of another werewolf’s mate bond, but twice. Nay, THRICE, if you include her meeting with Alpha Fenris’s mate the other day!” a male elderly Advisor from the Diamante Pack scolded.“But Allister, this ‘mate’ Fenris claims to be with is human. How do we know for certain of that person if his mate? And furthermore, let’s not forget that the boy is cursed. His senses dulled to the point that they have become equal to that of a human’s senses. Who is to say that he is not mistaken in what he feels?” Winston reasoned. “He’s not wrong,” a male Advisor of the Krawler agreed. “While those of us amongst the Krawler know little of this curse your Alpha has, as the people who have watched over him, you should have some idea of the curse. Better than we do, at least. That being