The doctor redoes Mackenzie’s test and it comes out just the same - her blood is way hotter and her heartbeats and pulses are way faster than a regular patient’s. But as the doctor told me the first time, they can’t determine the reasons behind these abnormalities. “Davide, if you like, we can send Mackenzie’s blood sample and medical report to different laboratories here in France, so we could know if we should worry about her situation or not. If you still don’t get a satisfying result, then we can send her medical sample to the best laboratories in the US,” Vivienne says. Her suggestion is the only thing I can cling on to to reduce the anxiety that’s crisscrossing through my nerves. “That’s a good idea. I’ll do that. I can’t settle on the doctor’s words that Mackenzie isn’t sick when there are obviously abnormalities in her body. We have to treat whatever rare illness Mackenzie has before it’s too late,” I reply. The thought of losing Mackenzie generates moisture in my tight-
Based on the information I’ve read about lycanthropy, lycans have the ability to shapeshift into humans. Not only that they can look like us, but they can also speak, act and think the way we do. I squeeze my eyes shut while massaging the sides of my forehead with my fingertips and clutching my cell phone in my hand. I’ve not returned back to the bedroom coz it’s certain that I won’t be able to fall asleep, so going back there will only be a waste of effort. Plus, I might unintentionally wake Mackenzie up. I sit on the chair in the balcony, staring blankly at nowhere while my mind throttles with my insane thoughts about Macknezie’s oddly inexplicable medical results and Vivienne’s disturbingly unbelievable assumption about it. It can’t be possible that Mackenzie is a… is a… I can’t even bring myself to say the word as my memory trips me back to the moment I heard a growl of what seems to be from a huge, wild animal when I was forcing myself to Mackenzie the first day we met.
MACKENZIE’S POV: My legs slide down from Davide’s hips as he pulls away from our passionate kiss. I level my soles on the wet tiled-floor while still dangling my arms over his broad shoulders. The love that’s coursing in and out of me is so welcoming that letting it go will be very regretful. I want this to last… I want this to foreve-... Davide opens his eyes and a reaction, I’m not expecting in a million years, emerges through him. His eyes, widening. His gray pupils, trembling. He's as if seeing a nightmare right in front of him. The love that overflows in and out of me quickly dries out while panic starts to gush through. I flump down my arms from his shoulders, then step away in wobbling steps. “Davide, are you okay?” The fear on his face continues to darken. His breaths are also becoming rough and unsteady. “Davide, what’s happening? Talk to me!” Again, he doesn’t respond. Instead, he rushes out of the bathroom in staggering steps. Thudding and screeching from the bedroom
Davide and I are already clothed and have already packed all our things up. Even so, we’re still stuck in this penthouse. It’s been almost an hour since he’s on his phone with Vivienne. Though he’s on the balcony and there’s a glass door that separates him and the living area where I’m standing, his angry voice is still penetrating through. Thanks to my keen sense of hearing, I’m able to clearly hear every single word he’s saying. “I told you, Vivienne! I’m not allowing you or anyone to send Mackenzie’s blood sample to any laboratory!” If there’s a pause, it’s short. It’s either he’s catching his breath or he’s listening to whatever Vivienne is saying. “It’s not your problem anymore! I’ll monitor her health. I’ll take care of her.” He forcefully removes his phone from his ear. When he turns around towards the sliding glass door, the remainder of his anger is still plastered all over him. His face is red and clenched and his glare is so fierce that it can probably shatter the glas
Once our wolves take over our appearances, they also rule over our minds and control our actions. I can identify what’s happening through the lenses of my lycan eyes, but I can’t do anything else aside from that.My torn clothes dangle all over me. My saliva gushes in between my canines. My feral growl explodes out of my vibrating throat. As I’m getting to my feet… or should I say, my paws, all pairs of eyes that are directed at me are unblinkingly wide. All bodies are shakingly paralyzed. All mouths are hanging open, some release scream, others release halted breaths. Finally, one clear voice, Errol’s, reaches my ears. He yells, “Kill her!” Everyone stands still, but there’s one who dares to follow Errol’s order, Mia. She bravely crawls back to grab the gun she aimed at my head earlier. But, she moves so shakily and slowly that, without the need to move from my spot, my long, muscular limb manages to reach the gun first. I stomp on it, then pull it with my paw towards me. Dumbfo
My eyelids quiver when I inch them open. Even though my vision is blurry and my head is aching, I force myself into a sitting position, and lean my back against something comfortably hard. Then, I notice that I’m wearing a slightly loose nightgown and I’m sitting on a huge bed. While I’m trying to remember what just happened, I stare at the plush curtains with luminous sunlight spreading on them. Not long after, my memory suddenly recovers the petrifying recent events. My chest tightens and my tears begin to sting my eyes. I curl on the bed, pulling my knees to my chest and tucking my face in my arms. What am I gonna do now? Not only that I put myself in danger, but I also put my entire pack, my entire race in danger! I was so scared of dying and being r.aped, so I let my wolf take over me, completely dismissing the atrocious consequences of it. I was so stupid and selfish! An unceasing sickening remorse bubbles inside of me, granulating all of my hopes of being with Davide again.
Knocks come to the door and Vivienne, who’s leaning on it, opens it. Since my defeated gaze doesn’t wanna depart from my lap, I’m unable to see who just came, though I can hear her voice, a woman’s voice. She says, “Madame, Mr. Ocampo just arrived and he’s waiting for you to meet him.” My gaze frantically lifts to Vivienne’s back.What?! Davide is here?! I don’t think I’m ready to face him!Vivienne’s voice echoes next. “Thank you. Tell him that Mackenzie and I will be heading down in a few minutes. Offer him some coffee or snacks while we’re preparing ourselves.” “Yes, madame.”Vivienne peeks through the hallway for some time. She only shuts the door close when the woman’s footsteps fade. Then, she faces me again.“Just in case Davide asks you why you didn’t come home to him last night, you must tell the same lie I told him to make us both believable. Tell him that we enjoyed our conversation last night and that you weren’t able to notice your alcohol intake. Remember, you were v
“Will you marry me, Mackenzie?” I’m dumbfounded at Davide’s question. Is our situation reversed? Am I the one who’s hallucinating now? I thought that that may be the case, but I’m proven wrong when he repeats his question while jerking the ring in a box. “Will you marry me?”I can’t commit to it yet. It’s only been a week since we met each other. Sure, we both make our feelings felt, but… but we have a lot of things to consider and to ponder through before entering a more serious chapter of our lives. I open my mouth, but when I realize that I’m short for an answer, I close it, then press it tight. That causes Davide to sag her eyelids and to lower the box in his hands. The sadness he once had earlier returns. “No?” he asks. It’s not really a ‘no’ coz I wanna spend the rest of my life with him, but I can’t accept his proposal yet until I’m brave enough to be honest to him… to let him know that I’m a lycan, and of course, for him to accept me for being a lycan. “Seven days,”
MACKENZIE’S POV: Three years later… The joyful guffawing and the running footsteps of Davide and Cedric fill our low-fenced front yard as they toss a soft, plastic ball to one another. Cedric looks so much like his daddy, physically. His dark, curly hair drifts against the breeze while his gray eyes moisten and his chubby cheeks redden due to almost non-stop laughing. Both of them have sweat and soil smearing on their faces and clothes, but none of them wanna dare to even take a break to wipe themselves clean. This has been their morning routine ever since Cedric learned how to walk on his own, and Davide is enjoying every minute of it. I, too, enjoy the scene, though I’m not allowed to join them yet. I place a pitcher of freshly squeezed apple juice and two empty glasses on a tray. Then I carry that tray towards the front porch and lay it on the white-painted wooden table. “Boys,” I say to call their attention. Though Davide makes an effort to glance at me, Cedric doesn’t.
MACKENZIE’S POV: One of the greatest relief of my life is when Davide returns to the apartment safe and sound and unscathed. We spent the entire night in the living area with a mug of coffee each, talking about the surprising things he discussed with his brother, Gabrielle. I’m not sure if Gabrielle naturally has a good side in him that he never showed before or he’s just gotten scared to interact with any of the lycans again. Whatever it is that gave him a change of heart, I’m very glad about that. Davide is also very happy, more than happy than I am. How I wish I was able to hear how they talked to each other earlier, coz every time I saw them near each other before, disastrous things followed next. Two weeks have passed and we’ve finally gotten our passports and visas. Our last day in the Philippines gives me mixed emotions - sadness and excitement. I’m sad because I have to live thousands of miles away from my parents again. But I’m also excited coz leaving the country and goi
I roam my eyes around as I cautiously enter the coffee shop where Gabrielle asked me to meet him. The shop is not entirely small, but not entirely big either. There are only a few customers so it’s easier to verify if Gabrielle is among them,... and he’s not. I glance at the wall clock near the counter and it says quarter to four o’clock in the afternoon, which means I’m a little late. Is he also late? Or did he get impatient waiting for me and just leave? I walk towards the left part of the shop that’s hidden from the fixed, glass window that overlooks the parking space. “What can I have for you, sir?” a waitress asks the moment I take a seat. I’ve never been in this shop before, so I’m not really sure what kind of coffee or other menu they serve. “I’m still waiting for someone. You can give me your menu though,” I answer. The waitress nods, then pulls a piece of parchment-like paper from the board she’s clutching on her arm. She slides the paper in front of me and s
DAVIDE’S POV: Mackenzie and I head to the nearest branch of the Department of Foreign Affairs to get our new passports. I have no idea how to do all the processes on my own. Before, I always had one of my men do this stuff for me either in legal or illegal ways. But now, I’m experiencing what ordinary people do: to ride on un-air-conditioned jeepneys, which makes me sweaty and uncomfortable, to show up to obtain several documents from different agencies, follow a very long line and wait for an hour or so to be entertained by the agency’s employees. For all the illegal things I’ve done, I’m glad that none has ever been recorded to the National Bureau of Investigation. Otherwise, I won’t be able to apply for a passport or worse, I’ll be tossed to jail immediately before I can even get the chance to get out of the NBI office. Frankly, it’s quite fulfilling to be able to do the things I wasn't able to do before, especially doing it with my wife. The employee who assists us says that
Vivienne gives Davide and I another special gift aside from everything she already has given us. She pays for a luxury hotel a few kilometers from the Sunrise Inn, where we’re staying. That luxury hotel is where Davide and I will spend our honeymoon. I’m giggling whenever the word ‘honeymoon’ is being mentioned or is crossing my mind, as if Davide and I never made love before. Well, this is the first night that we’ll make love as husband and wife, so this night is gonna be more special than the ones prior. I step into the hotel’s black and gold bathroom, which has floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall fixed glass that overlooks the breathtaking beauty of Iligan City’s skyline. It’s hard to stop appreciating the jagged silhouette of the towering buildings, the popping lights from different angles, the tiny moving cars feets below me and of course, the dark sky that doesn't shy away from flaunting its twinkling stars and silver, arched moon. “So pretty,” I murmur. Standing up here makes
.Alexa is kind enough to put light makeup on my face without putting additional charges on our bills. She also rolls my dark hair into a bun and adorned it with a jeweled barrette across to one side, letting some of my bangs messily, yet beautifully fall. Lastly, she dangles a veil on my head. The very second the veil touches my bare shoulders, a tingling sensation crisscrosses all over me. Oh, this is a deja vu! But this feeling is much better than the previous one I had. To complete the look, Alexa hands me a fake bouquet of assorted, white bridal flowers. “Done!” she says, giggling. Her giggleness transfers to me the moment I turn around and finally see myself in the mirror. My heart jumps in joy while my tears threaten to stream. I take a deep breath, flap my fingers near my eyes, while murmuring, “I can’t cry. I don’t wanna ruin my makeup.” Both Alexa and I chortle afterwards. That actually makes my tears retreat from my eyes. If I assume the prices of my wedding dress
I’m told that, while I was gone and fighting for justice, Vivienne helped Davide book our wedding in a church called San Lorenzo Ruiz Parish Church, which is located a few kilometers away from where we’re staying. They’ve also effortlessly booked a high-end restaurant for the wedding’s reception, even though there’s only five of us who’ll attend the ceremony. Now, our only problem left is to find my wedding dress, Davide’s three-piece, white suit and others’ formal clothes. It’s six in the morning when we start our travel, using the limousines that Vivienne rented, to find boutiques nearby that sell wedding attires and accessories. We’ve combed through the entire Iligan City and been to several high-end boutiques, but all of them can’t entertain us since they require a scheduled appointment first, which we don’t have the luxury of time to do so. Davide and Vivienne even offer to pay the prices of their clothes and dresses in three folds, but still, they get refused. Hours have alre
MACKENZIE’S POV: Alpha Allen turns blue. He can't breathe, let alone move. What he’s feeling is the exact sensation I felt when he rejected me. However, I don’t feel that pain anymore. In fact, right after I accepted his rejection, I feel so much lighter and freer. I feel like heavy manacles that have been wrapping me for so long shatter. Into pieces I assist Alpha Allen onto the sofa. Then I rush towards the kitchen to get a glass from the cabinet and a pitcher of water from the refrigerator. When I rush back to the living area, his natural skin color is finally returning. His breathing is also calming. “Here,” I say while pouring some water into the glass. He takes the glass and empties it with one, swift gulp. “Do you want more?” I ask. “No, thank you,” he says, then he lays the glass on the table in front of him. There’s silence afterwards, a surprisingly ear-splitting silence between us. I wanna break free from it, but I don’t know how. When I attempt to say someth
ALLEN’S POV: While everyone is celebrating and going home after the trial, I stay in the courtroom alone to clear my headspace. The ‘guilty’ verdict of my father’s trial is both a relief and a pain to me. Relief coz Mackenzie and our race get the justice they all deserve, and pain coz he’s my father. And seeing him in jail while awaiting his death sentence isn’t easy to take in. Be that as it may, as the next Main Alpha of the Golden Crest Pack, I have to accept his disastrous fate that he created himself.I consider visiting my father in jail, but since the tension between us is still really high, I postpone that plan and will just do it some other day or when the time is right. Instead of going home, like what others did, I head towards Mackenzie’s house to do something that I should've done before - to apologize to her regarding what I’ve done the other day, no actually, I wanna apologize for everything I’ve done.Frank and Ellaine welcome me to their house and direct me to thei