Chapter 25 TWENTY-FOUR

MORGIANA'S POV Glass shattered from the window following the enraged scream of Mr. Hawthorne. I flinched in my seat as he took his time shattering everything on the table. His daughter had just turned into a vampire. A creature that his family and all the others have fought to keep away. The dead body of Adrian has been taken care of by the other wolves and I don't want to know what they would do with it. I settled on thinking that they are just going to bury it. Inside Mr. Hawthorne's office are Hawke Flint, Glenda Hawthorne, Alaris, and me, the witness. The auction outside had been done when Alaris called for them to come to the office. Outside, people still enjoyed the party without being aware of what just transpired inside the city hall. The moment they got inside the office, Alaris did not waste any second and told Mr. Hawthorne right away what had happened to Arleigh. I saw how both Mr. Hawthorne and Glenda turn to where their daughter was seated. I don't want to think that it was loathing or perhaps disappointment on their faces and I just hoped Arleigh did not see it. When people look at you in disdain, it doesn't feel good. "How…How could this have happened?" Mr. Hawthorne said as he turned to Alaris who was standing in the middle of the room. "It was your job, Alaris. It was your damn wolf's job to watch for them. But they got in! And that bastard turned my daughter into a monster!" I saw Arleigh flinch at that. A monster. Her father had just called her a monster. I know what she's feeling now. As she's a newly turned vampire, her emotions are at their peak. Which means her sadness and disappointment now are many times worse than normal. Her mother was seated next to her but not quite near. As though she's afraid of her own daughter. "They have found a way to make a drug to cure a wolf's bite, Lukas. They have been abducting wolves-attempted to abduct my wolves-for whatever experimental purposes they do to make that drug. And according to my sources, the rogue wolves have been working with them too." "This shouldn't have happened, Alaris. This shouldn't happen-" "The vampires have become more innovative, Lukas. They have found a way to make an antidote against a wolf bite. Alaris has no control over that," Hawke said. He was standing near the door where I hid earlier. Another series of curses came out of Mr. Hawthorne's mouth before he turned to Arleigh, sitting quietly in the corner. He looked like he wanted to say something but stopped himself. Glenda stood and went to comfort his husband. I couldn't help but feel for Arleigh who only looked at her parents in hopelessness. "It wasn't her fault she turned into a vampire, Mr, Hawthorne," I said before I could even stop myself. "Adrian-that vampire-managed to keep himself undetected by Mr. Hawke and even Mr. Alaris." "I believe they had a help of a witch too," Hawke said and we looked at him. "To be able to conceal themselves completely under the appearance of a normal person, it has to require magic. I don't want to think it's from my coven but I am going to find out." "What use would it have if we discover that some wolves and witches are really involved? It won't turn my daughter back to normal. She's turned into a complete monster-" "She's not a monster!" I said, a bit loudly and at the same time, I heard Arleigh let out a sob. "Mr. Hawthorne, she's Arleigh, your daughter. She's…it's still her. She's not a monster." Both of them did not say anything but it was enough for Arleigh to know that her parents could not accept her as she is. I don't know how to tell them that Arleigh is not going to go on a rampage because that would mean revealing my identity. I can't reveal my being a hybrid, especially now. "I need some air," said Mr, Hawthorne before he stormed out of the room. Glenda looked at Arleigh for a brief moment before she walked out too to follow her husband. Unbelievable. "This is insane," I said as I looked at Alaris. "How could they do this-" "Shut up, Morgiana." I looked at Arleigh who was looking at the floor. "Now you're talking. You should have told your father to shut up too." "You don't understand what I am going through right now, Morgiana. So shut up." "Hah!" I scoffed and I stood to face her. I am so pissed I was so tempted to pull her hair off her scalp. "Listen here, Arleigh. All my life, I was scorned. All my life, I was mistreated even by the people whom I thought were my family. I was bullied at school-though I am certain you know that very well-so if there is anyone in this room that understand you more than anything, it's me. Because I have been there, Arleigh. Welcome to my fucking world." Then she started sobbing and I instantly felt bad. I looked at Alaris and Hawke and they were looking at me as though telling me they don't know what to do and that it is up to me how to deal with it. I let out a sigh before I walked to where Arleigh was seated. She looked at me and before she could even get mad, I started the compulsion. "I'll walk you to your bedroom and once you're there, you're going to stop crying." She nodded and wiped her tears immediately before she stood and started walking to the door. I looked at Alaris and he nodded in my direction before I went out to follow Arleigh. The moment we got inside her room, she sat on the bed and looked at me. "Why…why am I following whatever you say? What are you doing to me?" "You should sleep, Arleigh." "What are you, Morgiana? You fought him-that man. He was a vampire. What are you?" There is no point in hiding everything from her now. "I am also a vampire, Arleigh. I am like you. And I am also a wolf." "You belong to two sides." I let out a chuckle. "I belong to no side. There is no one like me. If only you know how the wolves hated me so much that they attempted to murder me on the night of my eighteenth birthday. And that vampire earlier, well, he wanted to kill me too." She looked at me as though she couldn't believe what I just said. "They…they tried killing you? When you say wolves, Mr. Alaris is one of them, right?" I nodded. "He's the Alpha of the wolf pack residing in Great Oaks. I saved one of his wolves from being hunted so he decided to spare my life. He had placed me under his protection so those wolves under him would not hurt me. Although I am not sure when it's going to last." "What…what happens to me now? My parents don't even want to look at me. And that man said-he said I won't be able to go out during the day. I can't-I don't think I can live with that." I wanted to tell her something uplifting. Something that could somehow ease what she's feeling. But there is nothing that came to my mind. "You can't change what you are now. You're a vampire. You will feed on blood and you will find great delight in doing so. But you will have to control yourself or you would fall to the dark side. You will not be able to come out during the day or you'll burn. That's going to be what your life would look like from now on." Another sob came out of her. "How come you don't burn under the sun if you're like me?" "I'm a hybrid. My wolf side is dominant. I guess that's why." "And I'll be stuck in this room enduring my parent's stares for the whole day." "But you'll be stronger. Faster. You will have heightened senses. You will own the night. You'll be ageless." A soft chuckle came out of her mouth and I smiled a little at that. "Don't worry. I will ask Alaris if he could ask Hawke to make something that would stop you from getting burned under the sun." She looked at me and nodded. I pushed myself away from the frame of her door and before I could even close her door, she called my name. "I'm sorry, Morgiana," she said and I couldn't say I wasn't surprised at what she said. "I…I made your life a living hell." "Don't think too highly of yourself. You did not make my life a living hell. You got to step up your bullying skills next time and don't let your victim head-butt you in the face." She frowned at that but I smiled. I didn't think we both would come to a point where we would talk like this. It's just sad that she had to turn into a vampire to be kind to me. "You should sleep. And don't worry about your parents. Mr. Alaris and Mr. Hawke will talk to them." She didn't say anything about it but just nodded. Then she said, "See you, Morgiana, and thank you for what you did tonight." I closed the door of her room before I went back to the office where Mr. Hawthorne was once again screaming at Alaris and Hawke.