CHAPTER 39: THE END OF BATTLE

Isabella and I flew through the sky until my wounds had finally healed and we were ready to return to meet the others. We found them waiting just outside the gate. When we landed, Allison was the first to rush over to me; she practically jumped onto me, sending a stream of pain through my entire body.

Lily followed soon after, adding yet another layer of weight. She was still in her wolf form. A small wolf cub with beautiful white fur. Her claws dug into my flesh as she climbed onto my neck and started licking my face. Liora watched with a frown on her face, but beneath it, I could tell she was happy.

"Where is Derrick?" I asked, and Allison answered.

"He’s lying down in the truck. He got injured during the fight, and it’s taking him a while to heal." Hearing that, I immediately went over to the truck to check on him. He was lying on his back in the back of the truck, but his eyes quickly opened when I approached.

"Liam. Thank God you’re okay. What took you so long?"

"I was busy getting my ass kicked by a giant demogorgon."

He chuckled at my answer.

"Well, did you get him?"

I nodded, then climbed into the back of the truck to lie beside him. It wasn’t the most comfortable place to rest, but it would do.

"We should leave now," Derrick said. "Mom and Dad are waiting. If we take too long, they might come here for us."

Allison nodded when she heard what he said.

"I’ll drive us back since you’re injured. Just leave the rest to me, okay?"

Isabella climbed into the back with us while Allison, Liora, and Lily took their seats in the front. I lay in the back, staring up at the full moon in the sky. Derrick was fast asleep, and Isabella sat with an uneasy expression on her doll-like face, she had returned to normal. I could tell there was something on her mind.

"What’s the matter?" I asked.

"We need to talk. It’s about my clan... I mean, the Veylmont clan. By now, they will surely be coming after us. They must’ve figured out what you did to Victor."

"What makes you so certain?"

"I just know. I am 100% certain they figured it out. They have connections to some of the most powerful people you wouldn’t even know. Plus, it isn’t that hard to hire a witch to find out what happened at the school. Most likely, they have already figured it out and sent an assassin after us."

"I can handle whatever assassin they send."

"No, you can’t! You don’t get it," Isabella clenched her fist, looking a bit frustrated. "You don’t get it. The person they will send is no ordinary assassin. She’s the best. She has wiped out some of the most powerful clans as if they were nothing. She is feared and is one of the reasons why the Veylmont clan has been on top of the vampire world for centuries."

"It sounds like you know her," I commented.

Her expression softened a bit, and I could see a hint of sadness in her eyes. She lowered her head and brought her knees up to her chest.

"They call her the Thorn Princess but her real name is Gloria Nora... my mother."

Her mother? That explained a lot about her behavior. She was torn between loyalty to her mother and loyalty to me. She was also scared about what she would do if it all came down to choosing between the two of us.

In a situation like this, I thought it was best if the choice came from her. It would only backfire if I tried to force her into a decision.

"Tell you what, if what you fear does come true and your mother comes after us, I’ll leave it to you."

Her mouth quivered slightly, but then she nodded and took a deep breath.

"That was actually what I wanted to ask you. Thank you."

She was still worried about her mother coming after us, but a small smile appeared on her face.

"Speaking of parents," I thought the conversation would end there, but Isabella said something else. "What are your parents like? Since I’m going to meet them, it would be good to learn more about them. I mean, I know they are werewolves just like you, but that’s about it."

"Hmm? Like what do you want to know?"

Isabella frowned at my question.

"Like, what are their names and who’s the alpha? You have to at least tell me that much."

"Oh, my mom is the alpha. Her name is Lisa, and my dad’s name is Paul. My father worked as a professor before all of this happened. As for personality, my dad is a quiet man unless you get him talking about the supernatural world and folklore. In that aspect he’s bit of a nerd, while my mom, her personality is a strange one."

"How so?"

"I’m sure you’ll be a victim of it the moment you come across her but let me warn you from now. She can be a bit of a pervert at times."

"A pervert?! That’s a strange thing to say about your own mother."

"It’s the truth. Liora and Allison can attest to that."

Isabella looked at me skeptically as if she didn’t believe what I just said. She must’ve thought I was joking but she’ll understand what I mean soon enough. My mom and her big mouth are notorious for getting us into trouble.

"But still... A female alpha," she smiled, "that isn’t very common."

"No, it’s not, but our circumstances are a bit different. My mom was originally the daughter of an alpha from a powerful pack, and my dad was human. You can imagine how complicated that got."

"I can imagine. Werewolves don’t take kindly to outsiders, much less a human. You can imagine Victor’s shock when he found out that you and your sister were werewolves. He could hardly believe it since you kind of aren’t normally in the city areas."

"Yeah, that’s why we moved here in the first place." I answered. "The pack wouldn’t accept my father even though my mother turned him. It wasn’t long after she turned him in that they got married, and Allison was born. So that’s it, the story of my family."

Isabella nodded along, but from the expression on her face, I could tell she wasn’t satisfied.

"Can I ask you something? Why are you different from the others? Your orange eyes, being able to turn other people into werewolves even though you’re not the alpha, and even the skills you get when you level up seem different from other werewolves."

I saw her point. It was hard to miss how different I was.

"In truth, I wanted to figure out what made me different from other werewolves, but every time I asked, my parents would clam up. It was quite obvious that they knew something and were hiding it."

And I had a sneaky suspicion that the thing they were hiding led back to the Wild Hunt. It was all connected. I could sense it.