Chapter 244
[ 1,505 words ]
[DIANA’s Point of View]
“What’s wrong, Diana?”
I just puckered my lips and stayed sitting in the dark corner of the bedroom, playing with the loosened threads of my rag doll with my fingers. I was not in the mood to talk to Devon, but he looked worried about me. And I had a feeling he knew the reason why I hid in this corner of the room.
Devon sighed and then sat on the floor in front of me, looking exhausted from whatever he had done or whatever was running in his head. I knew he hadn’t recovered yet from the shock and terror when a shadow werewolf managed to get into the pack house and almost killed me, so I tried to be a little kind to my twin brother and answered.
“It’s just Mom and Dad,” I whispered, still puckering my lips, feeling a little upset and worried. “I heard them arguing again, and I can’t understand why they keep on fighting.”
It was as if Devon knew what I would say, so he just decided to say nothing and chew his cheek. He looked as if he were thinking of something to say, but then couldn’t say it.
“Is there something you know that I don’t know?” I asked my twin brother as I squinted my eyes at him. “Tell me now, Devon. You can’t all hide things from me.”
“We are not hiding things, Diana,” Devon answered quietly, and I had never seen my brother deeply contemplating matters before. He always used to say things before he could even think of them. He was shallow, easy to read—
“What do you think Mom and Dad are arguing about?” he asked again, distracting me from my thoughts. “I thought they were getting along better together now after we conquered the Wolf Tomb?”
“I don’t think we really conquered the place, Devon. The source of the curse wasn’t there, and that means Uncle Killian will die anytime soon if we still fail to find it. And because the pack is under attack again, Mom and Dad can’t leave Silver Crescent.”
“Is that why they are fighting?”
“No,” I answered and then sighed, feeling awful and confused, and I was on the verge of tears, but I had to tell Devon because he needed to know everything, too. “Dad wants us to move into his Ancestral Manor.”
“The what?!” Devon frowned. “But I don’t like it there! Do you remember the last time we visited that place with Grandma? You told me an old man was standing behind me, looking down at me, but I didn’t see anyone! That place is full of ghosts of dead old people!”
“I think you are too old to believe in ghosts, Devon.” I tried my hardest not to roll my eyes at my brother.
“What are you even talking about? We are just ten, you know? We are still technically kids,” he grimaced at me. “I am hoping Mom said no.”
“You’re right. She would rather not move there. I don’t want either. But Dad was right. It was a safer place than here in the middle of the city. If we stay here in the Pack Manor, we will be an effortless target. Dad said the Ancestral Manor is fortified with spells, and no shadow werewolf can get inside. But Mom believes the place is haunted with a dark aura, which Dad refused to believe.”
“Do you think a dark aura is living in that place?” Devon asked, his voice trembled a little, sounding really scared.
“If Mom felt it, then I believe her,” I answered, trying to stop myself from laughing at my brother, whose face turned pale. I couldn’t believe Devon was afraid of ghosts when he would jump in front of the enemies just to save me or any of us.
“I have something I need to tell you, too.”
My ears perked, and I sat straight, eager to know what my brother wanted to say.
He hesitated at first, thinking about how he would say it, but then he sighed and smiled. “I think I heard Uncle Liam talk to Madison about Dad planning to redo his and Mom’s wedding.”
I thought I had heard it wrong, but when I made Devon repeat what he said, my eyes widened with pure excitement and happiness. “Really?! Dad is planning something like that for Mom!?”
“Shhh!!! Keep your voice down!” Devon hushed me when my voice got a little loud. “We can’t let anyone know about it. It is supposed to be a secret from Mom.”
“Oh, sorry,” I chuckled and then zipped my mouth.
“Here,” Devon stood up from the floor and offered his hand to help me to get up from the floor too. “Get up and let’s have a snack. I smelled cookies downstairs. Madison must have baked a bunch of them again.”
“I don’t feel like eating cookies now,” I said to my brother as I took his arm, and he pulled me up without any effort. Devon was stronger for his age, and I knew he would get stronger—a lot stronger when he started to train with his powers and his wolf.
“Well, we can see what else they have there!” Devon tried to cheer me up with his wide smile.
“Do you think Uncle Killian would come to the wedding?” I asked, wondering where Uncle Killian was since I hadn’t seen him after the incident happened when a shadow werewolf grabbed me here in this very room. “I haven’t seen him for days already.”
“I am not sure.” Devon scratched his jaw. He does that when he is not sure how to answer questions. “Maybe he went back to MoonStone to check on Aunty Brianne? I don’t know. I haven’t heard much about him since the attack.”
We were both surprised when the door suddenly opened and we heard loud barking, making Devon’s and my eyes widen in both surprise and excitement.
Could it be—
“Purple!?” It was I who screamed in happiness as I saw our baby pet run towards us. Devon yelled in delight as he ran towards Purple and lifted her above his head, jumping and embracing her.
“What’s happening—”
It was Mom who came into our room next with a surprised look on her face; she couldn’t believe that it was Purple that she was seeing with us. At first, she was petrified, thinking it was something that was attacking us, but then she relaxed when she heard my brother’s and my laughter booming and echoing inside our room.
“What’s going on here? Is that Purple?” Mom asked once again when we barely heard her the first time because we were so thrilled to have our pet back.
“Yes, Mom! Look! She got a little bigger!” Devon’s eyes were glowing with happiness as he showed Purple to Mom. “She’s back! I have no idea how she got inside, but I think she still knows this place very well!”
There was suspicion on my mother’s face, but I gave her a pleading look for us to keep Purple. We couldn’t lose her again!
“Fine, you can keep her,” Mom said as she sighed and then slipped her hands into the back pockets of her jeans with a smile on her face. I wondered if she and Dad were finally okay and weren’t arguing about moving into the Ancestral Manor anymore. I never wanted to stay in that place, either.
She continued speaking while raising her brows at us. “But just make sure you take good care of her, okay? Tell me right away if both of you notice something weird about her. You tell me straight and don’t figure things out on your own. You hear me?”
Mom noticed something on the floor and she picked it up. A wildflower.
“Purple must have brought it here,” I said with a smile. “I think it’s a gift.”
I saw how Mom’s eyes brimmed with tears as she covered half her face with her hand, suppressing herself from crying. I had no idea what that wildflower meant, but it must have reminded her of something from her past that made her very emotional, which made my brother and me stop playing with Purple and stare at her.
Dad must have felt Mom’s distress and immediately stepped into the room and approached her. He stared at her with gentle eyes as he asked, “Is everything okay here?”
“Yes,” Mom answered as she wiped her tears with the back of her hand. “I am just glad everything is getting better now. That we finally have peace in this house.”
Devon and I smiled and looked at each other when Dad embraced Mom, calming her down. We ran towards them and hugged both of them, too, with Purple still in my brother’s arms.
“I wish we could just stay like this.” I smiled at Mom and Dad, and Mom stroked my hair gently as tears rolled down her cheek.
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