"Mummy, mummy."
I remember being only seven years old, wearing my favourite Bubbles night dress. Bubbles was my favourite power puff girl and because of that, my father had also adopted that as a nickname for me.
"Crystal." My mother sighed, looking down at me from where she was doing the dishes at the sink. "You're supposed to be asleep."
I didn't say anything. I just placed my thumb in my mouth. A habit that I was yet to curb.
"Nightmares?" My mother guessed.
I nodded.
My mother looked a lot like an older version of me. Or at least that's what people told me. I always thought she was much prettier with her big and long hair which she always found new ways of styling. Her dark beautiful skin, her round hazel eyes and the beauty spot right above her top lip.
For me, at that age, there were two sure marks of gorgeousness, dimples and beauty marks, two things I didn't have.
"Well daddy is sleeping." She spoke as she walked over to the pantry and took out a box of Maryland chocolate chip cookies. My favourite.
"I won't tell if you won't." She whispered as she picked me up and placed me on the high stool beside the island.
She walked over to our refrigerator and took out a carton of milk and two glass cups.
"Our little secret, okay?" She winked at me before pouring the milk.
Daddy didn't like me eating processed sugar or cow milk.
He was a vegan who was all about the organic lifestyle.
Mum wasn't but she went along with it... sometimes. You could always trust that she'd indulge in her guilty pleasures one way or another. She loved steak.
She sat on another high stool and faced me as if we were friends and I wasn't her daughter and not to mention, a child.
"Tell me about this nightmare." She spoke like she was ready to handle whatever it was already. Like it was no match for her.
"It was a Wolf." I spoke in a whisper.
For a minute I thought I saw her frown.
"A Wolf?" She asked carefully.
"Uh huh." I put down the cookie I had picked up, suddenly feeling a churning in my stomach. "A big bad wolf with sharp teeth and red eyes."
I shuddered.
"Baby, are you sure?" She asked, reaching forward to finger my freshly done twists.
"Yes mummy, it's big and grey and it follows me around"
"It follows you?" She asked, seeming surprised.
I leaned forward as if I was about to tell her a secret. "Sometimes, I even see it when I'm awake."
She furrowed her brows at me. She absentmindedly fingered her necklace.
She was quiet for too long.
Then she finally spoke again.
"Maybe the Wolf is trying to be your friend, Crystal." She suggested.
"He's scary, mummy." I protested.
"Oh, my baby girl." She reached forward and picked me up. Placing me on her lap. "Let me tell you a story. It's about a big scary, powerful king. His eyes shone red like the Wolf in your nightmares. Everyone thought he was scary as well. His strength intimidated the other kingdoms. But all he tried to do was provide a good life for his own people. Everyone but his own were afraid and jealous of this nice misunderstood king. So one day, the kings and Queens of the other Kingdoms attacked the poor innocent king. Taking his kingdom and all his people."
I remember listening intently as she told the story.
"That's sad." I frowned.
"It is." She agreed as she stroked my hair.
"Take out your necklace, baby."
I took out the crystal necklace. "Remember how I told you to never take off this necklace?"
"Yes." I responded. I didn't mind having it on all the time. I liked the pretty purple colour.
"Never forget. You see, the king in the story is our ancestor. The necklace has magical powers. It keeps people from misunderstanding us the way they did the king."
I gasped. "So our eyes will turn red too?"
"No." My mother laughed softly.
"What I'm trying to say, baby is that we shouldn't judge scary looking things too harshly. If the tables were turned, we would be the scary monsters."
I sighed. "Okay mummy, I won't be scared of the Wolf anymore."
"Great." She kissed my cheek. "Now off to bed for you. Oh and Crystal?"
"Yeah?"
"Do me a favour and don't tell daddy about this story."
I cocked my head to the side. "Why mummy?"
She just gave me a small smile. "He wouldn't understand."
"How many were they?" Captain Park asked me.
I tried to think.
The three who attacked Peter's car....
The other three who came after May, Joshua, Bea and I... they could have been the same ones but I had no way of knowing.
"Six, I think." I replied shakily. Wringing my hands together underneath the mahogany table.
We were at HQ, in Tristan's office. His scent was all over, but he wasn't here.
"Did you recognise any of these wolves?"
I looked up at her in confusion. "Why would I?"
I didn't mean to sound defensive but I think I had the right to be.
The minute we had gotten here, May had been rushed to get some medical attention.
Bea and Joshua had been taken to some other room and from what I had heard, the other candidates were there as well. But I had been isolated. Taken straight to Tristan's office where Captain Park questioned me like I was the one on trial.
Captain Park gave me a tight look. "With all due respect, Luna, all I'm trying to do is get to the bottom of this."
I looked at the door, knowing two soldiers had been asked to guard it.
It really didn't seem that way.
I fingered my necklace.
I looked around the office.
It wasn't as neat as I would have expected. There were book shelves on the side of the room, a desk with scrolls and pieces of paper strewn around. Tristan had left a jacket on the back of the head chair. That's where Captain Park stood, behind his chair. Where he should have been.
I didn't know where the hell Tristan was. I hadn't seen him since he had run off after the rest of those rogues. And quite frankly, I was nervous and scared and I wanted him here.
Two attacks in one week. The same week I had just opened school, gotten chosen for the AAP and forcably been declared luna.
Wasn't my life boring once upon a time?
Now Van Cliffe wolves were in town, coming after me? Why?
I didn't even know any Van Cliffe wolves other than my mother and uncle Victor.
The thought sent chills through me. And surely if my mother wanted to talk to me, she wouldn't send a bunch of killer wolves to do it.
Besides, she didn't know Van Cliffe wolves either. Or did she? As far as I knew, my mother was a secretary at a law firm who painted in her free time. Until I started experiencing the changing I didn't know about her being a werewolf. And she told me her pack had shunned her for leaving to be with a human.
So this didn't make any sense.
"Crystal." Captain Park called my name. She leaned forward. "You know why I would think you would recognize them." She pressed.
This would probably be a good time to mention that this wasn't even close to being my first run in with Captain Jasmine Park.
She was a very tall and Asian woman with features so striking you could only describe her as beautiful. She also had a commanding presence which must have suited her job perfectly.
She had been the Captain of Defense and Security for over twenty years. She had been the one to run the investigation on Roman.
That's why I saw this for what it was.
An interrogation.
She knew my file. She knew that I was part Van Cliffe. She was suspicious. Which I have to say was understandable.
Heck! I was suspicious.
But she had also dug deep into my past, asked me questions that were beyond personal, exposed me inside and out so she must have also known that I wasn't capable of being a top class spy.
"I don't." I told her more firmly. "I swear I don't. I have met two Van Cliffe wolves in my life, my mother and my uncle and those wolves definitely weren't them."
"You were talking to one of them when we got there. Your peers can attest to that."
I gripped my necklace tighter.
"I was asking it if it was a Van Cliffe Wolf. I was asking if it was there for me." As the words came out of my mouth, I realized that they weren't doing much to exactly prove my innocence. "My peers can attest to that as well." I added.
"Why?" She asked.
"What?"
"Why did you think it was there for you?" She asked.
"Because... because -"
At that moment, the door swung open I immediately turned just as Bridget walked in.
No Tristan.
Bridget looked at me. I wanted to feel hopeful, Tristan wasn't here but his second in command was. She would surely save me.
But when Bridget looked away from me, I wasn't too sure about that.
"Captain, what is going on here?" She addressed Captain Park. "The alpha gave strict instructions that no one was to talk to the Luna before he arrived." She spoke.
I felt relieved. She was on my side after all.
But why didn't Tristan want anyone to talk to me? Did he think I was guilty?
"With all due respect, Beta, I'm the Captain of Defense and Security. It's my job to protect my pack. The Luna could have information that could help with that." She told her. "Is there a specific reason the alpha doesn't want anyone talking to his mate without supervision? Is there a reason he thinks I can't do the job I was appointed to do?"
"She's a minor." Bridget spoke, not missing a beat. "She can't talk without an adult present."
"Only if she was a suspect. I'm interrogating her as a witness. Is there a problem with that?"
Bridget seemed to study Captain Park for sometime. She then took a step back. She folded her arms across her chest. "I'm not here to tell you how to do your job, Captain, but I am only doing my job. And I'm following the alpha's orders. He wants to be the one to talk to the luna."
Captain Park could have easily been twice Bridget's age, she obviously didn't appreciate having to take orders from someone who could be her daughter.
Captain Park pursed her lips and stepped back. She gave me a look.
"Tell alpha Tristan that he is not doing anyone any favours." She spoke before turning to leave.
Bridget remained in the same position, looking thoughtful.
I cleared my throat to get her attention.
"Um, am I in-"
"Get up." She ordered.
I stood to my feet in obedience.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"Tristan wants you and Joshua at the manor." She responded as she walked towards the door.
"Bridget!" I yelled.
She turned around. "What?" she snapped.
"What's going on? Why are Van Cliffe wolves after me? Was that other one a Van Cliffe as well?"
Bridget didn't answer. She took a step towards me and narrowed her eyes. "You tell me."
I looked at her wondering if she thought I was guilty as well.
It was always hard to tell with Bridget really.
"I already told Captain Park that I don't know anything. " I spoke in exasperation.
"That better be true because I swear if you're lying - if you're doing something to hurt Tristan-"
"I would never!" I yelled feeling offended.
That wasn't fair. She might have been Tristan's right hand woman, his confidant, his beta or whatever but that didn't give her superiority over him.
Our relationship is a complicated one but I care about him too.
Bridget scoffed. "You already have. And you keep doing it."
"What are you talking about?" I asked in confusion.
Bridget rolled her eyes. "What do you think rejection feels like? Crystal? You think it's like a small cut? Just a little blood and a little pain and you heal?"
I could tell it was a rhetoric question so I didn't respond.
"No, it's like getting hit by a bus." She took a step towards me. "And that bus doesn't back away, no, it stays on you. You feel that pressure. He held that in. He kept it all these yaers."
I knew I had caused Tristan pain. She didn't need to remind me.
"I know what I did, Bridget." I spoke, looking down.
"No you don't. I do. I'm the one who is always in his head." She continued. "You were happy. You were running around town with your little boyfriend. You. Were. Happy. Tristan is the one who has spent everyday still feeling the effects of the rejection. He is the one who had to see your little lover in his AAP program."
She pointed a finger at me.
"You don't know anything about Tristan's pain, Crystal. And now, you're going to ruin his life even more. These rogues, they're coming after you. And he keeps trying to protect you. He keeps trying to protect an Eclipse wolf. The pack will start to turn against him. And it will be all your fault."
I stood frozen in my spot, clenching my fist. I didn't want to cry.
I wasn't going to. At least not in front of her.
Bridget's eyes flashed blue.
She looked back at me. "Tristan is here." She muttered.
She turned to start walking away.
I followed quietly, still just trying to hold myself up.
I honestly didn't want to see Tristan after what Bridget had just told me. But I knew refusing would just cause more problems.
So I just let my feet guide me.
HQ was impressive for a building that was mostly hidden.
They had somehow managed to make it look more spacious than it seemed.
But with the mood I was in, I didn't even pay as much attention as I was supposed to.
The minute we got to the bottom of the stairs, I sensed Tristan's presence.
I saw his back first. There were soldiers surrounding him, listening and nodding along to whatever he was saying.
"Okay, you're dismissed." He told them and they dispersed. All except two, who continued talking to him. I rrealised that it was Peter and the Wolf who didn't seem to like me, Raphael.
Tristan suddenly turned around as if someone had called his name.
I saw him visibly relax when his eyes met mine.
But I didn't.
His hair was dishevelled and there was a cut right under his chin.
He looked at me, head to toe as if looking to see if I was injured.
Seeing him honestly put my nerves at ease in a way. And it was honestly what I needed right now.
"Are you okay?" Bridget asked as she walked towards him.
"I'm fine." He brushed her off, his eyes still fixed on me.
Of course this didn't make Bridget happy at all.
He made a move to walk towards me but he was cut off when Raphael stood in front of him.
"Raphael, stand down. My Luna is not a threat." Tristan told him in a stern voice.
"That hasn't been confirmed yet." Raphael responded.
Wait, what?
"Raphael." Tristan spoke his name in a warning tone as he looked right into the eyes of the soldier.
"Back off, Raph." Peter spoke as he stepped in between the two, pushing Raphael away.
"Act like an alpha, Tristan." He told him in a low voice.
I saw Tristan ball up his fists and glare at Raphael but he didn't make any more moves.
Bridget stepped forward and looked at Raphael. "Soldier, I would think twice about disrespecting your luna."
"She's not my luna." Raphael spat.
I know I wasn't rushing to claim the 'luna' title or anything but that statement actually hurt - a lot.
Raphael shot me one last not so friendly look before stalking away.
"Don't worry about him Luna," Peter spoke, giving me a reassuring look. "Raphael is a good soldier who would die for anyone in the pack in a heartbeat but his fatal flaw is that he lacks in discipline."
No. He just doesn't like me. I wanted to say.
Tristan didn't say anything, his eyes just followed Raphael and I could sense how angry he was.
I remembered Bridget's words. 'The pack will start turning against their alpha.'
Because of me.
And it looked like it had already begun.
Tristan stepped towards me. He took my hand in his.
"Are you okay?" He asked, looking right into my eyes.
I nodded and then caught Bridget glaring at me over Tristan's shoulder.
I subtly removed my hand from his.
"I'm fine. How's everyone else?" I took a small step away from him and looked at Peter. "May?"
"She'll be fine." He nodded but his eyes furrowed slightly. "Everyone is fine, luna. They didn't get to anyone."
"Thanks to you." Bridget grinned at Peter. "You got them good."
Peter shrugged and one of his dimples appeared. "They had it coming. I can't take all the credit though, T definitely held his own."
I thought back to how Tristan had jumped into the way of those wolves.
I turned to look at him. "Are they - are they dead?"
Peter opened his mouth to say something but Tristan cut him off.
"Could you leave us for a second? Peter, go get Captain Park, Bridget, handle the candidates."
"The candidates need to hear from their alpha, Tristan. They just went through a traumatic experience. Your brother is among them." Bridget gave me a sort of accusatory look.
The blame wasn't going to stop, was it?
"Fine. Just give me a minute." He responded gruffly.
Bridget and Peter left.
Tristan sighed.
He took a step closer to me.
"Look at me." He spoke softly.
I did. His green eyes were clear. His brows furrowed. His lips in a straight line.
"I promised to protect you." He spoke.
I nodded. "I know."
"I would be failing in that if I let anything happen to you, you know that, right?"
I nodded really not knowing where he was going with this.
"I can only ask you for one thing in return, Crystal. One thing."
I nodded at him, urging him to go on.
"Honesty. Complete honesty."
I nodded, still looking up at him. This was Alpha Tristan I was talking to. Not just Tristan.
"Did you know those wolves? Did any of them seem familiar?" He asked still calm.
I shook my head. As I had told Captain Park and Bridget.
"I have never seen those wolves in my life, Tristan."
"Why were you talking to that one?" He asked. Still calm, not accusing in the least.
I shut my eyes and took in a deep breath. "You asked me if there was anything familiar?"
I opened my eyes and Tristan was watching me attentively.
"I don't know those wolves. I promise, Tristan. But I know that scent. It's - it's a scent I had picked up from my mother a couple of times."
I sucked in another breath, keeping my emotions at bay. "It might just be a coincidence b-but Tristan, is she part of this? Is she in trouble? I-is she a rogue?"
"I don't know." He spoke. He placed a hand on my shoulder. "But I will find out, okay? I promise."
Without thinking, I wrapped my arms around him. When I realised what I had just done. I pulled away.
Bridget was right. It wasn't fair. I couldn't keep playing with his emotions.
"Thank you." I told him.
He simply nodded. "We should go talk to your peers."
He held out his hand for me.
I looked at it skeptically.
"You're my luna." He spoke. "The rest of the pack needs to see that."
I knew what he meant. If anyone was going to accept me, even in this temporary arrangement, they needed to see me at Tristan's side.
Tristan led me down the hall.
Holding his hand felt like he was sharing his strength with me. And I needed that.
We reached the waiting room where the candidates were all seated.
It was right in the reception area. A mostly white room with three white sofas on three corners.
Allison and Andre took one. Bea and Joshua an were on the one opposite theirs, holding hands.
Bridget was already in there, talking to Courtney in a corner.
The minute we walked in, they all rose and bowed.
Bridget's eyes fixed on our interlocked ones.
Thankfully, Tristan chose that moment to let go and step forward, hands behind his back.
Tristan cleared his throat. "I hope you are all doing okay. Today must not have been easy." He spoke sounding business like.
"No kidding." Andre chuckled nervously.
Everyone just turned to give him a 'not now' look.
"Anyway," Tristan continued. "Thank you all for your bravery. You showed us exactly why you were picked for this apprenticeship in the first place."
Tristan continued. "Courtney Ryan."
Courtney immediately perked up. "Yes alpha."
"You showed outstanding courage and skill in getting your peers here while your instructor fought off those rogues. Because of that, you get the privilege of escorting Lady Melrose and May to the Diamond lake for a diplomatic meeting with the Reece Pack."
I saw Courtney's face brighten and I could tell she was trying her best to keep her excitement in check.
"Thank you, alpha." She spoke with a curt nod.
"As apprentices in training, this will definitely go down as one of the most memorable moments in your life. But let it also be a lesson. They'll be more days like this. Days in which you'll have to face enemies and make the right calls. If this is where you all really want to be, you'll all work hard to better yourselves. But just know this, today, I stand here as your alpha, and I am proud of all of you."