Still Mavericks POV
Centuries ago, Lakewood and Woodbridge were not separate, it was just huge city that is densely populated by both humans and Werewolves. The lycans and vampires did not allow humans to live around them. We could accommodate the humans because they were of help to us after we lost our powers. We needed the numbers because we couldn’t defend ourselves from all our numbers enemies.
We lived peacefully with the humans, my great-grandfather was king and we had the most beautiful pack house in all of the city. Our pack lived in Lakewood, and the mayor’s mansion used to be our pack house before we were kicked out of the damn city. The other Alphas moved away after we were cursed by the moon goddess, but we refused to move away because we need to preserve our heritage. The packhouse held many secrets and secret powers that could never be replaced or abandoned.
Woodbridge used to be a little city outside our city. It was at Woodbridge that the healers settled in. I could remember when we used to live in Lakewood City, we always travel to Woodbridge in search of the last healer. The magic in the Alpha King’s pack house was no more, but whenever we visited Woodbridge, there is always a powerful presence hanging around that atmosphere. We knew why that town is significant we know the healers lived in Woodbridge and we expected the descendant of the healers to emanate from Woodbridge too. That is why we never bothered to check around us.
Nobody knew how she would come, if only we knew she was in the pack house all along, we would never have left Lakewood in the first place. When we were chased out of town, we didn’t even put up a fight because we thought we would find the last healer in Woodbridge. It was many years later after we had already settled in nicely at Woodbridge that she decided to come out of her hiding place. She was frozen in time, for many centuries. And when she finally came out, her powers were dormant within her. That is why she was not detected on time, or maybe the mayor wanted to play a fast one on King Gerald. That is why he hid her identity from him for years. When Val ran away, he knew the truth would come out soon, so he had no choice but to run back to King Gerald and tell him the truth about Val.
Now that I think about it, I think King Gerald had a clue about her location, he must have struck a bargain with Mr. Keller. That was why they both came up with lies and tricks to get us to leave Lakewood. His sorcerers must have told him that a spell was cast on the last healer to keep her hidden. And I’m pretty sure that they would have tried to trace her with magic and find her location, or they could be monitoring the two cities, looking for signs of a strange aura that with traits of magic. They must have known that she is hiding in Lakewood all these years, and that is why they had to do everything to keep us from finding her before King Gerald. To think that I fell for their lies too.
They said we used magic and charms, and that is why we were kicked out. We were accused of intimidating the humans in the city. They spread false stories about us, causing the humans to hate us. After some time, we started facing rejection and brutality from humans because they saw us as a threat to their lives. A few months after they threatened to burn us all, the king noticed that more humans began moving down to Lakewood and our population continue to decrease drastically. More investigations showed that they were taking us out one by one, trying to reduce our population so they can outnumber and overpower us.
We thought they were conniving with the authorities to relocate us to another location. But that was just wishful thinking. In truth, they invited the hunters and taught them how to kill werewolves. King Gerald personally trained the hunters and gave them tips on how to poison us and kill us easily. With our secrets exposed, there was no need to stay back here and try to reason with them because our lives is in danger. The forces against us were too dangerous, if we stayed back in Lakewood, they would have killed us all.
“We did not bargain with the Mayor, and we did not leave because we were scared of the hunters. We left because we were betrayed by our biggest enemy, we left so one day, we would take back our city and prove to everyone that we are not murderers and monsters. They think we ran away, and now they tell their kids stories of monsters and terrifying creatures that causes nightmare. We are portrayed as evil, and from generation to generation, the warning is passed to humans to stay away from us.
I want to change that narrative, Val. I want to prove our innocence and free our people from slavery. We have faced rejection for centuries, and we are suffering from crimes that we know nothing about. King Gerald and Harold Armstrong have manipulated us enough. It’s time to go back home, Val, it’s time to take back everything that has been stolen from us.” I told her firmly, looking far ahead, trying to avoid her eyes. I don’t even know why I’m speaking about these things, I thought I would never speak of it ever again. But I can’t keep anything from her at this point because even the slightest mistake we make could cost us our lives.
“I guess that is why I was drawn to this very city. From the moment Janelle mentioned this city, I just couldn’t stop thinking about it. I felt so safe in this city, it felt like home and I didn’t know why I liked it here.” She responded sadly, looking dazed.
“I know love, and that is why you never left this city, despite everything I put you through. In your heart, you always knew you were home. I’m sure you must have felt the familiar presence of your family in this city, it will always feel like home.” I told her calmly, caressing her plump cheeks with my palm, and looking deeply into her eyes. It seems we are comfortable here, we have forgotten all about King Gerald and his warrior, and we are not even thinking about our numerous enemies anymore. All that exists is Valerie and I and the love we share.
Now that we have poured out the secrets in our hearts, there is no shadow hanging over us anymore. Our hearts have been set free, and now we can feel the bond like never before. The doubt and uncertainties have been taken off our minds. The heavy burden in our chests has been lifted away, now we can enjoy the benefits of honesty and our bond strengthened is stronger. I can’t believe that I nearly got her so upset a few minutes ago. If I didn’t calm down and listen to her. Malia would have been so fucking pissed, and Hunter would never let me off easily.
“Yeah, man. I would have kicked your ass if you pushed her away at this crucial moment when we are so close to fulfilling our destiny. Now get your acts together, it’s time to claim our mate.” Hunter let out excitedly. This is his way of telling me that he has been watching us argue all afternoon. He must have been so scared when I yelled and screamed at Val. I would hate to see what they would have done if we did not find a way to figure out our problem and find the solution. We shared a special moment as we both look into each other’s eyes longingly.
“I’m sorry for all the pain I’ve caused you. I promise to listen to you and follow your lead. Tell me what I need to do, where do we go from here?” I asked her calmly, earning me the cutest smile ever.
“First, we need enough supplies to last us a few days in case things go south and we need to lay low for a while. We don’t need any guards, and we certainly don’t need cars. Then we need to follow the druid’s secret path that leads deep into the heart of the basement. It’s coming back to me, I can lead us right to the heart of the basement, that is where the ritual would be done. I just need a few personal belongings from our apartment, then we can find our way into the basement without attracting attention to ourselves.”
“And what about, Devon?
How do we get her to come to the basement, how do we even send a message across to her, how will she know where to find us?” I inquired curiously. She liked in response, looking so relaxed and unbothered.
“She is Devon, the last white witch. We share a special connection, there is a special force that pulls us to each other. She can track my aura or yours and find us within seconds. Besides, she knows our history better than anyone I’ve ever met. So, trust me, she would know exactly where to find us when she is ready. I just hope she changes her mind soon, we need her.” She admitted. I turned on the ignition and sped towards the Mall where we got all the supplies we needed in the basement.
“Let’s do this, my love.”