Becky's POV:
I heard a voice: "You see, you're different from everyone. Your mother tried, but look now, you're back at this place."
"I'm not different from everyone," I cried. "Please take this power. I don't want it. I want to be with my mother." "So you want her dead?" the voice questioned, making me shiver in fear.
"No," I shouted, feeling the surge of power again. I started running from the forest.
Then I woke.
Gasping, drenched in sweat, my chest heaving. My eyes darted wildly until they landed on a low roof above me. The scent of herbs, woodsmoke, and something faintly metallic hit my nose. I was in a small thatched house, my shoulder bandaged, my body aching all over.
Then memories of yesterday came flooding my head.
The gunfire, my strange power. No, I wasn't a monster. A cry tore out of me as I clutched my head. I heard footsteps, and the door creaked open. I quickly got up, my heart thundering, ready to protect myself.
"It you…" my voice trailed off. The tall figure filled the doorway, dark eyes burning into me, that same unreadable expression carved onto his face. Drey. The person I'd bumped into that morning. The one who always looked at me like I was a problem he didn't ask for.
My eyes flickered in realization. "Why did you kidnap me? I spat, looking at him with hostility. I wrapped my arms around myself like armor.
He chuckled for the first time since I met him. So this is the thank you I get," he muttered, stepping further into the room while I took a step back.
"Thank you?" I glared at him. "You drag me here like some prisoner, pretend to play savior, and now you expect me to say thank you? What kind of twisted joke is that?"
His lips curved up in a smirk. "You would have been dead by now if I hadn't saved you." I froze at his words, but I refused to let him think I was grateful to him. "I never ask you. How did you find me there if you weren't involved?" I saw his eyes flicker for a second. He tilted his head, eyes narrowing, studying me like he was deciding whether to strangle me or laugh again. "You really don't know when to shut up, do you?"
His jaw flexed, and he stepped closer, cornering me to the wall. I tilted my chin up to meet his eyes, not backing down. "You think I wanted this?" His voice was low and dangerous, but his eyes showed a hint of softness before hardening again. "Dragging you out of that building? Carrying you half-dead while you breathe as if it were your last?"
"Then why did you?" The words burst out before I could stop them. My throat tightened, my heart hammering.
His eyes flickered again. I couldn't read his emotion; he masked it too quickly. "Because you're trouble," he said finally, like it was both an accusation and an answer. "And trouble always finds me."
"Then stay away," I whispered, even though my chest ached. Deep down I wanted to tell him he was mistaken; I was the one trouble always found.
Another person stepped into the room. My eyes widened in disbelief. It was that same creepy old man from the hospital ranting about curses and fate.
"You…" My voice broke, my body stiffening as I stumbled a step back. "Why…why are you here?"
Drey turned, his broad shoulders blocking part of me from view, his posture suddenly upright. "You know him?" His tone was sharp, laced with curiosity.
I knew I had slipped up; every instinct in me wanted to tell him about the old man and all he had said to me that day. But something inside me hardened. Drey wasn't my friend. He wasn't someone I could trust. Not yet.
"No," I said quickly, too quickly. I forced my expression into something blank. "I've never seen him before; I mistake him for someone I know."
He stared at me as if not believing, but I just shrugged my shoulders, not wanting to continue the conversation. The old man chuckled, his voice dry and rasping. "How clever of you, child."
"Talk to me alone," I snapped, stepping past Drey before he could block me. My stomach knotted as I moved closer to the old man, but my eyes stayed steady. "Whatever you came here for, say it to me."
"What do you want from me?" I hissed, my voice laced with anger. "Why are you following me?"
The old man let out a dry laugh. Then he tilted his head, with his eyes staring at me, almost making holes.
"Following you?" he repeated slowly, almost amused. "Child, this is my house."
I froze. My mouth went dry.
Behind me, I heard Drey snort, like he couldn't believe how foolish I sounded. Heat rushed to my face, making me embarrassed, but I didn't look at him.
The old man looked at me again. "You came here bleeding, half-dead, and it was this kid who brought you here." "He's a good kid, so I helped him. You should be thanking me, not spitting questions."
The old man's gaze slid to Drey, sharp as a blade. "You should go home now. Everyone must be looking for you."
Drey's jaw tightened, his eyes narrowing. For a second, I thought he'd argue, but instead he turned his head toward me.
"Don't think too much," he muttered. "I'll be back. And don't leave this house."
The authority in his voice made my skin crawl. "Where do you live?" I asked before I could stop myself.
He froze, his eyes flicking back to mine. "None of your business."
And with that, he left, his steps heavy, what made him think I was going to obey him? I bit my lip in anger.
The old man let out a low chuckle. "I see," he rasped, his gaze lingering on me. "You weren't able to leave after all. Seems like fate."
My fists clenched at my sides. "What do you know? Stop speaking in riddles. Just tell me."
His expression darkened, his eyes burning into me. "Can't you sense it yet, child? The power in your veins? You are not like the others. Not like normal humans."
My breath hitched, memories of last night flooding back: my hands tearing through ropes, the men's bones snapping under my strength, and the way the world had blurred red around me.
"No…" I whispered, shaking my head. "I don't want this."
He leaned closer, his voice dropping, rough and cold. "Whether you want it or not doesn't matter. You carry a tragic fate ahead of you. Stay away from that kid."
My heart thudded painfully. "Drey?"
The old man's lips twitched. "Don't kill him. He's had it rough from birth. His twin doesn't even like him."
His twin? My mind went back to Dwae and how they were always at each other's throats, but I pushed the thought aside. My survival was my only priority. I had to leave this place. I had lost my phone. I don't know if those people harmed my mother.
"Can you help me, old man?" I asked, fear choking my throat. "If what you're saying is true… then tell me, how am I supposed to do this? How do I stay away from him if fate keeps pushing us together?"
The old man's eyes looked at me with pity making me uneasy. "I have someone you can stay with. Someone who owes me a favor. You'll be safe there… until you're able to leave this city. But you must avoid that boy. Avoid him, regardless of what your heart tells you."
His tone was final, but my chest clenched with pain. Drey's name throbbed in the back of my mind like a sore spot.
"I don't understand," I whispered. "Why him? Why me? I don't even know him." The old man looked away, his expression unreadable. "Some truths are heavier than you can carry right now. Trust me, child distance is your only chance."
I knew I wasn't ready to face anything inside of me. I sat down, lost in my thoughts, until the old man left the room. My chest still throbbed where the bullet had grazed me. I pressed a hand there, trembling.
Through a crack in the thatched roof, a pale glow spilled into the room. My breath hitched when I saw the moon; it was red like that day at the cliff.
A shiver raced down my spine. I felt eyes, unseen but piercing, watching me through the night…
In another part of the city, the masked man leaned against a crumbling wall, his eyes gleaming under the faint glow of the red moon. "Our little blonde is awake," one of his men muttered.
Another laughed, the sound harsh. "So, boss… do we capture her again?"
The masked man's lips curved into a cold smirk. "She's growing teeth. If we strike too early, she'll bite us harder than we expect." He tapped his fingers against his arm, thinking. "But she's not ready to control what's inside her, so we can use her to take him down." "Tomorrow night we capture her; it's going to be a full moon. Then take some of the werewolves I'm done hypnotizing to help you guys tame her.