Chapter 18

"So this is him? He is the one who abducted me!" 'W-Whaoh… What a tragic story" Roxanne commented. Throughout the story, she could feel her emotions welling up. The story touched her deeply that she was left breathless at a point. Finally, after Rita finished the story, she smiled at Roxanne. 'It is indeed… Though we don't know just how much of it is real since it's a tale of the past after all" Rita said. 'Hold up, you mean… That might not have happened?" Roxanne said with disbelief. 'Well, yeah. I mean… How are we to verify the validity of a legend from thousands of years ago? Other tribes have their own accounts of what actually happened, so we can't know for sure." Rita added. 'O-Oh…" Roxanna muttered. 'Any other questions?" Rita smiled. Roxanne looked curious, as she thought deeply to find a question she needed to ask. Then suddenly her eyes widened as she remembered something very important. 'What about the one who chased me? The black Werewolf… Just who is it?" Roxanne asked. Rita's face changed. Her usually cheerful and smiling expression turned into doubt and a little bit of fear. 'You know, don't you? The identity of the person who did this to me… Who is it?" Roxanne furthered with determination. 'Roxy, that's…" Rita said, unsure of what to say. 'Just tell me! I deserve to know, don't I?" Roxanne said, raising her voice suddenly. Her tone sounded impatient and agitated, though she quickly realised this and settled herself. 'S-Sorry… It's just… I… Rita I'm scared…" Roxanne said, looking apologetic. Rita sighed as placed her hands on Roxanne's shoulders and gave her a reassuring gaze. 'It's okay Roxy… I get it" Rita said softly. She slowly removed her hands from Roxanne's shoulders and took a deep breath, bracing herself. 'You're right. I do know the Werewolf responsible for what you went through… The thing is… It's far more complicated than you think." Rita said hesitantly. Roxanne remained silent as she patiently waited for Rita to finish speaking. 'His name is Asher. You most likely know him by his deep black fur and crimson eyes. But, there's something you should know. Asher is… The current Wolf King of Oregon." 'W-What?!" Roxanne's eyes bulged as she heard this. The wolf king, the most powerful werewolf who commanded the respect and fear of the others. He was a symbol of absolute authority among them. Such an existence was the one who stalked and chased her? But she didn't understand. Why? What did she do to attract the attention of such a mighty beast? 'B-But why? I don't understand… What do you mean by…" Roxanne said in panic. She was not breathing hard and fast, remembering the trauma of the wolf's chase and her desperate escape. 'Roxy, calm down. I'm not supposed to tell you too much since I'm just meant to take care of you and attend to your every need until the time is due…" Rita said. 'Time is due…? Due for what?" Roxanne asked. Rita took a slight moment of pause and then stared deeply into Roxanne's eyes. 'It's due for you to meet him yourself," She said. What the hell? Roxanne didn't know how to feel about the new revelation she just received. However, suddenly she started piecing everything together. She finally realised the connection between the people she was with and the wild chase she received the other day. 'So… You didn't save me from the snow , did you?" Roxanne muttered slowly. Rita looked at her in a sad manner. 'No, we didn't. The one who did that was Asher. He brought you down here by himself and told us to take care of you… We only did as he told us to" Rita revealed. 'That bastard kidnapped me! He stalked my house and chased me. Then he also abducted me?! And you guys just did as he said, no questions asked… Even you Rita?" Roxanne said in seething frustration and her tone exhibited betrayal. 'Roxy… It's more complicated than that. Asher is the Wolf King and…" 'And you have no choice but to obey him, right?" Roxanne said, cutting Rita's words short 'No, that's not entirely true. The Wolf king's command can be challenged by the Alpha, the leader of the pack in question if they are dissatisfied with his order." Rita pointed out 'Then why?! How could you allow him to get away with something like this? Why didn't you challenge such a thing?" Roxanne answered 'Because Asher IS our Alpha!" Rita answered, raising her voice to counter Roxanne's, which surprised her. This was the first time Rita also raised her voice, so it startled Roxanne a bit. And then her words struck Roxanne… Asher was their Alpha. 'W-What...??" Roxanne said in shock. 'Asher is both the Wolf King and Alpha of the Rockwood Pack. As such, he has absolute authority over our pack. We couldn't refuse him if we wanted to… And to be honest, we don't want to." Rita said, returning to her calm state. 'You… What?" Roxanne responded. 'You don't understand so many things Roxanne. You're too impatient for me to explain things to you properly. It's more complicated than you realise" Rita said. 'What is complicated in stalking and kidnapping? I nearly died back there!" What do I, a normal person, have to do with your weird culture in the first place? You're saying I'm being impatient, but what else can I be in this kind of absurd situation? You brought a regular human into this whole Werewolf mess… This is what you get!" Roxanne said, clearly angry. 'Roxy… You're not a normal human." Rita said. As the bombshell dropped, Roxanne stared widely at Rita who had a serious look plastered on her face. 'What did you just say?" Roxanne asked with a deep undertone. Rita maintained her stern gaze and her unfazed expression made Roxanne nervous. The intense gaze she received made her feel an intimidating vibe emanate from the usually charming woman she had come to know. 'Roxy, listen to me closely. Asher took you for one reason and one reason alone… To become his mate" Rita said. 'What the he-' Roxanne let out with perplexity. 'I'm not done Roxy." Rita cautioned her. This made Roxanne feel even more annoyed, but she listened nonetheless. 'A mate is a Werewolf's other half, our eternal partner, sealed by marriage and bound by love. However, the most basic criteria for a Werewolf's mate is that first and foremost… The mate has to be a Werewolf" Rita explained. Roxanne heard her words but didn't understand, or rather she didn't want to understand. She refused to accept something so absurd that it made her skin crawl. Her being a Werewolf? Impossible! 'That's impossible, what you're saying makes no sense!" She argued. 'Roxy, It's the only way to explain this. Lord Asher picked you to be his mate, it is a serious matter among us Werewolves… Something that is not taken lightly among us. If he picked you, then there's no doubt you are a werewolf." Rita replied. 'You're ignoring one other option. Maybe your all-powerful Alpha made a mistake. My family is entirely normal, foreign to this whole wolf concept! You've got the wrong girl! I'm no one's bride! Heck, I'm just 19! I'm still in High school and I don't need to deal with this bullshit right now!" Roxanne responded in angry frustration. 'That's not possible. Lord Asher would never pick you out of a mere mistake or coincidence. If he picked you, then it must mean you are the real deal. Besides, I do not know who your family is or their reasons for not telling you anything about your identity, but I can feel it even within me that you are my kin" Rita said. 'Besides, as for your last statement… About age… I was 18 when I met Dax, my mate. I understand you are still growing and may find it difficult to accept my words or your new reality, but you soon will Doxy, trust me!" Rita explained calmly. Roxanne scoffed at Rita's words and shook her head in disagreement with a look of disappointment in her eyes. 'You're crazy! I don't know why or how I let you talk me into this whole Werewolf nonsense, but I can see it now… You're all bonkers here!" Roxanne said, rising from her seat. 'No Roxy, just sit down and listen to me. You are…" Rita stood as well, trying to draw closer to Roxanne. 'Stay away from me! I can't believe I actually thought we could be friends. You actually agree with whoever did this to me? I can't deal with this anymore" Roxanne said, backing away from Rita. Rita still tried to speak, but Roxanne clearly wasn't in the mood for listening. With an intense glare and a determined look in her eye, she spoke with resolve. 'I'm done with all of this! I want to go home… NOW!" Roxanne declared with a frown. Rita gave her a look which made her realise the truth that she had not seen since she woke up. The thing Rita was trying to distract her from. Roxanne finally realised that she had been deceiving herself, thinking she could leave at any time. However, in actuality that wasn't the case. 'I'm sorry Roxy, but I can't let you leave." Rita said with resolve. Rita moved toward the door and stood a small distance from it, blocking the exit so that Roxanne couldn't leave. In essence, Roxanne was trapped! 'Get out of my way Rita. Now! She clenched her fist. 'No Roxy. I can't… I'm sorry. Let's talk more. There's so much I still haven't been able to explain to you. Roxy!" 'Don't call me that! Only my friends call me that, and you're not one of them!" Roxanne shouted. This sudden outburst shocked Rita and she took a step back, loosening her concentration. Her face expressed pain as she looked at Roxanne, showing she was hurt by her words. While Roxanne felt guilty for her statement, she felt she finally had the window of opportunity now that Rita's guard was down. With a quick sprint, she quickly brushed past Rita, who still stood in a stun as she slowly processed Roxanne's angry words. She opened the door and faced the front of her to see the snowy settlement beyond the warm house. However… What she saw was entirely different, not what she expected at all! A tall and buff man stood beyond the door and stared at her as she nearly bumped into him when she attempted to make her escape after opening the door. He had dark brown colored hair and his deep green blue eyes had a sharp gaze which intimidated Roxane and made her take steps backward. He had a short, trimmed beard, coupled with a plain grey shirt and dark blue jeans, he appeared to be a man in his early twenties. He walked into the house slowly, but with a sense of purpose and an aura of control. As he walked in, Roxanne instinctively took steps back, until she found herself to be some distance from the door and the man now guarded the place which guaranteed her escape. He used his hands to slightly push the door, causing it to close once again, leaving her trapped within the house once again. He looked around the house and then his eyes rested on Rita, who looked a bit shaken when she saw him, still affected by Roxanne's words. 'Rita, what's going on here?" He asked her 'She isn't listening to me. I tried to explain to her but she's quite stubborn. She won't budge" Rita said with a downcast expression, walking to the man's location. 'Who the hell is this guy?" Roxanne asked herself as she glared at the man, who also returned the look. Rita stood beside him and smiled fondly. 'Roxy, it's fine. This is the man I was telling you about…" Roxanne's eyes immediately bulged as she heard this. In front of her… The dashingly handsome but fierce looking man, was he Asher? 'So this is him?, he's the one who abducted me" Roxanne concluded.