Chapter 4

She knew it was not her fault, but she couldn't prove it without evidence. 

"Who," he said grabbing her shoulders. His veins seemed to pop at the sides of his neck due to anger he was trying to suppress. 

********

His suspicion only increased because he has receiving multiple death threats, assassins every since he was a kid even kidnapping for being born a Alarick. It was a double sided dagger that he holds it both protects and destroys him. As with everything that he has it was his family who are more capable of killing him. Their was an old saying that dramas in film portray again and again.

‘Keep your friends close and, enemies closer.’

***********

Her face lost color, pale with fear. She looked at him in his eyes. "I-I don't know," she said, weeping as she remembered her pain.

He saw the tears that run down her face. He felt something wet in his face and realized that it was not sweat. It was his tears. 

"Sorry," he apologized then he turned his gaze to the other side. "Go get dressed. There is a change of clothes in the bathroom." 

Remembering that she was nude, she brought the sheets with her as it glides on floor. She made way to the bathroom then she closed the door. Leaving him, he opened his stash of boxers and dressed. 

In the bathroom, Cathwulf stared at herself on the mirror and noticed visible light scratches. 

'All men are wolves.' 

She remembered a metaphor of her heartbroken friend, as she wore a plain baby blue lingerie. 

A strange hickey stood out from the side of her breast that had some sort of symbol of something. She touched it, then felt a sharp pang of pain. It was burning from the inside and it was a painful than a second degree burn. She screamed in agony. 

***

A memory of Theo when he was a small lad hearing such stories from a old shaman named Na'al. She was foretelling of old folklore that exist and believed throughout the mid-southern tribes. As the warm fire crackles and sparks glisten to the wind.  

"An imprint is a pact that all packs have honored for generator from their ancestors. It is a tradition that symbolizes an unbreakable bond of both body, mind and spirit. It cannot be broken for it will curse your bloodline and cannot be undone. But if it can the price must certainaly a heavy and painfull to bear." She said spooking the children with her meek tongue that aged with her wit.

***

Reaction of the children 

“I dont believe her”

“I do”

“I think its romantic”

“Yuck”

“So is this considered an imprint too?” the youngest of them asks the red embossed birthmark from his back to show to Na'al lifting his shirt to reveal it. Others were curious too so they look to Na'al for answers. But they were inturrupted by the chief of the pack and Theos father, Darius Alarick. 

“Yes, it most certainly is. But only us male have it because are birth mothers are Shewolfs. ” He replied sternly

***

Theo came and opened the door feeling worried. He saw that she was barely clothed. He saw the scratches but Cathwulf was covering the mark.

"Let me see," he said as he removed her hand to reveal a mark dried up in symbol of wolf. He seemed to recognize it. It was his imprint.

"When did you get this," he said calmly despite him being alarmed. 

"L-last night you…" 

She didn't know how to say it as she recalled what happened last night. He kept looking at the mark like he was in disbelief then he touched it to test its authenticity. 

'It's real…' 

"It's just a strange hickey " she timidly answered. 

"No, it's not hickey it's an imprint," he said. 

'An imprint,' she thought having no clue to what that is or what it meant to have one.

 While he opened the first drawer, he laid out the first aid kit on the sink countertop.

"Sit down and let me tend to your wounds." 

***

Theo thoughts about her imprint

The consequence of the imprint of her should not have shown unless she is ‘something’ of their kind. But for some reason he is reminded of his late mother that had fought with his father in a battle long ago. They won the war but his father lost his lover. She-wolfs are regarded as equals to He-wolfs meaning they can feed the young while helping their spouse when in short of men. It was a battle even now that their numbers are slowly decreasing because of mortals, bhampirs, mermen and creatures are thought to be myths. It was a world that mortals adapted because of the longevity tht they lived they became more advance producing science which is demonic works for some making them monsters of their own creation. Theo thoughts spiraled around his head in whether or not he can trust this naive girl that the world she once knew is not the same anymore than what it portrays it to be. He kept his mouth shut examining the imprint. The dark flesh that rotten black that watered water and blood.

***

She closed the toilet seat cover and sat down. Theo gently applied a cotton ball of alcohol to disinfect the fresh scars. 

Breaking the slience, Cathwulf spoke. 

"You are not human, are you? And this 'imprint'… what does it mean," she asked pointing at the bruise. 

He looked at her face. "No. I'm not human. I am a werewolf, and that is my imprint." In utter shock, she still wanted to know more. 

"An imprint is a lifebond mark. It is how us males choose a mate and once we do, it is permanent," he continued. "You can continue to dress up," he said as he finished the dressing of her deep cuts.

***

She wanted to ask so much more about the life bond but was too scared of him