“Fuck, I really hate them.”
Margot shouted, breaking the chandelier after clenching her fists in the air. She felt exasperated by the incident. Her anger was not channelled just because she saw the offspring of the person who made her miserable for the past 200 years.
The seven rogue wolves surrounding her gasped in surprise and looked at each other. When the chandelier made a loud, shattering sound, Gautier got up from the chair. He advanced towards Margot and looked deeply at her.
“What exactly is your problem with those brown wolves? From what I saw, you were flirting with them earlier.” Gautier was irritated by Margot’s attitude.
“That’s none of your concern.”
Margot looked away. Obviously, that made Gautier suspicious. Margot’s words and deeds were inversely proportional, and he wanted to know the truth.
“Tell the truth. We all need to know it, apart from the reason for the werewolf race to triumph again. It doesn’t make sense that a witch would have the sincerity to help a werewolf for free.”
Margot heard whispers from the werewolves in the room. She became indecisive after hearing Gautier’s words. She did not deny that what Gautier said was true.
Margot decided to tell the truth. She didn’t want to risk having the werewolves she recruited turn against her. Margot would have a hard time dealing with seven werewolves with ingrained brutality.
“Alright. I had my reasons when I decided to recruit you all. My name is not Margot, but Matilda. I have lived for 250 years, and when I was two hundred years old, I met Alpha Vincentius of the Red Crescent Moon Pack.”
*
Autumn 200 years ago…
“I’m not a bad person; give me your hand so I can pull you out of that mud.”
Matilda hesitated for a moment when she saw the figure with a scarred face above her. Only when Matilda looked into the dark blue eyes that radiated sincerity did she have the courage to extend her hand. Margot felt the strong pull of the man’s burly hand so that she could get out of the quicksand that almost sucked her in.
“What is your name?”
“Matilda Blossom.”
“How did you end up in a place like this?”
“I was running away from a bunch of…”
Matilda trailed off. She wanted to be honest with the man, but it was like any other human’s reaction. She would always be considered a crazy woman, and that made her feel inferior.
“It’s okay. You can tell me about it. Oh, I haven’t introduced myself yet; my name is Vincentius.”
“A bunch of witches are after me because they say I’m a witch who will pose a threat to them.”
Matilda glanced around her, wary of any sudden danger. Her movements were noticed by Vincentius, so he closed his eyes and began to detect his surroundings. He sensed only the presence of the two of them in this place.
“There are no other people or creatures within a mile radius of here. You are safe with me, Matilda.”
Matilda frowned. She scrutinised every part of Vincentius’ large and muscular body, unlike any human Matilda had ever seen in general, even though they exercised. What made Matilda even more astonished was that Vincentius did not overreact when he heard an unusual word like witch.
As if he understood what Matilda was thinking, Vincentius immediately spoke up. He said, “I am a werewolf, so you should not be afraid to express yourself. I also know that you are a witch. I can see your aura.”
Matilda felt relieved after hearing Vincentius’ words. She got up from the ground and started looking for leaves to clean the mud off her face and body. She did this for half an hour, until Matilda sat back down on the ground.
Matilda was somewhat surprised by the way Vincentius kept looking at her. She felt her heart pounding as their gazes met. Neither did Vincentius, who had not taken his eyes off Matilda for a moment.
“You should clean yourself up. There are no rivers or lakes near here. If you wish, I have a house not far from here, and you can clean yourself there.”
Matilda was reluctant at first because Vincentius was a stranger she had just met. Moreover, the significant difference in their species would make it even more difficult for Matilda to keep her distance. She pondered for a long time until Vincentius spontaneously touched her hand, then pulled Matilda to follow his lead.
“I will explain to you why I am doing this to you. The most important thing now is for you to clean yourself up first.”
*
Matilda looked up at the ceiling, which was dimly lit by candlelight. She had replaced the chandelier that she had broken with several candles that flew up to brighten the room. She also made a flick with her finger to fix the broken chandelier without multiplying her gaze from the ceiling.
“Vincentius said I was his chosen mate. He kept me by his side even though he had a fated mate a year later. I really hate that wolf for killing Vincentius,” Matilda said.
“So this is all revenge-motivated? And us?” demanded Gautier.
“Any witch will always protect someone they love by leaving a trail. I want Vincentius’ descendants to carry on the trail I’ve blazed. I was just distracting him so the Alpha of the Red Crescent Moon wouldn’t suspect our plan to kidnap one of his members.”
“I see,” Matt agreed.
“So when are we going to visit Red Crescent Moon? I can’t wait to fight with their arrogant Alpha.”
Gautier grinned. He imagined tearing Seth’s body apart for daring to make fun of him. He would support Matilda fully after knowing the witch’s motives.
“Tomorrow night, since the red full moon will occur in two days,” Matilda finalised with a glint in her eyes.
“We should organise a plan and then divide the tasks. It’s not impossible that they will also investigate us,” Matt suggested.
Matilda could still rely on Matt compared to Gautier. Matt had a brain that was used for thinking, compared to Gautier, who only relied on the strength of his muscles. Matilda accepted Matt’s suggestion.
Matilda discussed it with Matt while the other werewolves went back to pouring wine into their glasses. Inside the house that Matilda had enchanted to be invisible, the werewolves spent the night talking and getting drunk. Matt was partly the leader of the rogues, letting his members enjoy the night.
“You’re dead, McKirby!” screeched Gautier.
“Ah, I hate it when I have to hear Gautier delirious. He’s such a child.”
Matilda was about to swing her hand at the sleeping Gautier with his mouth agape. Her action was immediately prevented by Matt. Matt shook his head silently, and he was lucky that Matilda immediately lowered her hand.