Cursed By Fate

Carl woke up in a pool of his own sweat. It was weird as the temperature on the thermostat was almost freezing. Laura was still asleep. She had cried herself to sleep the night before. Neither he nor Caroline could console her so he just held her as she sobbed until she fell asleep in his arms.

He got up and pulled off his shirt which was soaked and tossed it into a small laundry basket just beside the door to the bath room. He walked in and turned on the light, closing the door behind him so as not to wake Laura. He twisted the faucet on as he splashed his face with water severally. He picked his towel from the hanger on the wall. As he wiped his face, he saw a glimpse of his father’s reflection on the mirror.

Bewildered, Carl dropped the towel almost immediately and wiped his eye in a bid to clear his vision and saw his own reflection vividly, but his eyes glowed in a mix of bright red, yellow and blue. This wasn’t an unusual occurrence, But it had been a long time since it happened. He sat on the edge of the marble based counter pondering on what to do next. He’d just discovered something huge in his investigation.

However, telling Laura would be hard because of his unresolved issues with his family, not telling her would be betraying his promise to her as well. He felt uneasy and conflicted. “I’m so sorry dad “he heard Laura mumble in her sleep. She was having a dream. Perhaps residual thoughts of the emotional roller coaster from the day before.

He switched off the light and closed the bathroom door behind him. As he slid back into the bed quietly, he pulled her gently towards him and wrapped his arms around her. Feeling how warm his body was she immediately shifted towards him leaving the bed cover on the other end. But Carl couldn’t go back to sleep. He knew he had to make a decision soon and whatever the outcome. He must see it through to the end.

*************

Jack was also unable to sleep that night. He had been revisited to a past that he had tried so hard to forget. Losing Ambrose was devastating and the guilt of how it had happened ate him up for years. Eventually, he came to accept it as an act of faith. But what happened earlier that afternoon reopened old wounds. Seeing Laura in tears broke his heart and shook him to the core. The words of Carl, a werewolf from the pack that had killed his friend left him stuck between the emotions of sadness and anger.

He got up from the bed and went to his kitchen, He picked up a whiskey glass from the shelf and poured himself a healthy amount or scotch. He quickly gulped it down, and as the burning sensation from the alcohol was leaving his throat, he poured himself another shot which he took to his living room.

“I have to save her from that beast, it’s what Ambrose would want” he said to himself as he pondered on the best way to kill Carl. In his intoxicated state, he’d concluded that the Lycan was an immediate threat and if he killed him, the rest of his pack would take caution towards him and his people, thereby any form of danger would be averted.

Jack stood up and went into his workshop where he hid most of his Hunting gear. He scanned through a couple of knives and daggers but none seemed to suit the task he was faced with. Carl wasn’t just strong physically but also smart and perceptive. He could tell that much from their first encounter and now he knew who he was and had a fair reason of animosity towards him as well.

He turned towards the crossbow that hung on the wall and smiled to himself. That was it. But for a measure of certainty and caution he would make sure to lace the arrowheads with “wolf’s bane” a rare flowering plant that was toxic to wolves. It slowed their heart rate and made them incapacitated, almost too easy to kill.

He went out to his garden where he had planted them in abundance and picked a few. He then poured the flower petals into a small stone mortar and added wood ash to mask the scent since wolves had a heightened sense of smell. He grinded both and added some drops of ethanol and water till it formed a black paste which he used to lace the tips of the arrows and then proceeded to sharpen the blade of the dagger he intended to deliver the final kill.

It was quarter past Four when he was finally done and then he retired back to his living room feeling satisfied with himself. He then proceeded to sip the rest of the scotch left in the glass, before finally falling asleep on the couch. “Tomorrow is the day my friend, the day I start to clear my conscience, the day I avenge you.” He murmured as he closed his eyes.

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“How much of his routine have you gathered?” Louis the Alpha asked his spy who he’d summoned. He too was having an uneasy night and could not sleep. So he decided to not wait an longer on the vengeance he’d postponed earlier after learning the truth about Jack and his dead friend Ambrose. “Enough to launch an attack and get revenge for the young wolf, my lord.” His spy replied kneeling on one knee facing him.

“Very well, fetch me the father of the dead girl” Louis ordered one of his guards who dashed out to retrieve the young man. Upon arrival he knelt down and bowed as a form of respect to his Alpha. “What is your name?” Louis asked. “Elijah, my lord” the young man replied still facing the floor.

“I have some good news Elijah, but allow me to offer my condolences again” Louis said. He walked towards Elijah and placed both hand on his shoulders. “Get up, my good man.” He said as he raised Elijah to his feet. “How would you like to take part in the fatal end of the man who killed your daughter?”