Chapter 67 - The Acts That Must Be Taken

>>Ruda

Days passed, nights turned into days and days into nights, yet I couldn’t bring myself to hate the people who had groomed me, the people who raised me with so much. I could never, I realized that, I could never do it. Because when I think about it my parents may be hated by some other people, they may be the worst kind of scum to some but to me they were the best people.

I was skipping classes, there was no point in going since I couldn’t concentrate at all.

There was only one thing stuck in my mind and that was the problem at hand.

Two days after Yohan went missing dad went to visit him and found out he was gone. The pack members have been on a look out and everyone is searching for him frantically.

I was asked about him too but I feigned ignorance.

I was asked about Maya too and I simply told them she went back to her guardian and doesn’t know Yohan is gone.

The news was kept hidden from the media because that would cause a lot of problems. Not just for the company but also for the pack.

I know that now that I’ve found out the truth.

I snorted at myself.

Truth? Who am I kidding?

I sighed and crouched into a ball while I sat in the corner of my bed.

That’s when I got a call from an unknown number.

I didn’t pick it up, I really didn’t have the energy to so the call ended but immediately after I received a text.

The content was shown on the screen so it caught my attention otherwise I wasn’t going to see that anytime soon either.

The text said, ‘It’s me Yohan. Pick up.”

Yohan?!?!

I got another call from the same number and I picked it up right away.

“Yohan?!” I forgot to even greet him, “Are you okay now?!What about your injuries??”

“Calm down Ruda.” He said, “I’m fine.”

“Really? Your injuries were really bad.”

“I guess the nymphs were really strong.”

“The water nymphs?”

“Yeah. Maya told you about them right?’

“Yes, before leaving.”

“Well, thanks to them and thanks to Quincy I guess, I’m still alive.”

“That’s good.” I took a breath of relief. This was really good.

“What about mother and dad?”

“They’re looking for you, they already searched your house so I guess they won’t be coming back soon but then again there is a huge team on the lookout for you. They might come back anytime. Are you home?”

“Yea…” He sighed. “I guess we should meet as soon as possible.”

“It’s evening now, should we meet today?”

“Tomorrow.” He said, “I have to go back home since Maya is sick.”

“Maya’s sick? What happened to her?”

“Fever.”

“I see,” I nodded my head. So even she got sick, she was as sturdy as a horse, “Where are you if you aren’t home?”

“I’m on my way back.” He said, “I went to Quincy.”

“Quincy? Maya’s guardian? Why?”

“I needed to know something.”

“What?”

“The missing part of Maya’s parents tragedy.”

“Ah… I see.” Right, he told me there was nothing in the original report even though it was authentic, “Did you get the answer?”

“Sort of, he’ll send me the document related to them, I’ll tell you about it tomorrow.”

“Okay. When?”

“I’ll text you the time and place. Okay?”

“Okay.”

I was about to hang up when he spoke again.

“Ruda?”

“Yeah?”

“The men you caught, did you let them go?”

“No.”

“Where are they?”

“In your basement..”

“Huh?! In my basement?” I couldn’t see him but I was sure he was bewildered, “Why?”

“Where else was I supposed to take them?”

“I don’t know but- are they alive? I mean I’ve been home since yesterday I didn’t hear a thing.”

“You would if you went down there, your basement is soundproof remember?”

“Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?”

“Well,” I paused, “Both of them are half dead.”

“...”

“I can picture your face right now but I needed my answers.”

He sighed, “Did you get it out of them?”

I nodded, “Yea. sort of.” I sighed, “At least what I needed to confirm.I’ll tell you about it tomorrow.”

“Okay then, see your tomorrow.”

“Yeah.” He finished the call and I laid down on the bed with the phone still in my hands.

I guess the time is here.

I closed my eyes and thought about how I still wasn’t ready, but then again, I opened my eyes and stared at nothing in particular. Maybe I’ll never be ready for this kind of thing.

I just have to face it.

***

I met Yohan at a small cafe located in a narrow street. I had never been to this place and I’m guessing neither had Yohan but still it was a decent place.

The owner was a young woman with a baby. She was working on the counter while carrying her baby. Many young girls came to the cafe just to meet and play with that baby.

Well no doubt he was cute.

“So, what did you find out from the men in the basement?” Yohan asked, “You gave the blonde one some first aid, I wonder why?”

I stared at the USB on the table between us that Yohan had brought with him, “According to that blonde we all-” I pointed towards myself and then at Yohan, “-Especially dad were all underground dealers.”

“I see, what about the other one?”

“He didn’t open his mouth but the blonde one already confessed that he didn’t shoot Maya, he was there for you and only had silver bullets.” I looked at Yohan grimly, “He’s from a pack that has weak defenses.”

“Did he say anything else?” I guess Yohan is still angry at the fact that Maya was even targeted. Well, he has every right to be.

“He said he had no idea who the other guy was so the probability the chestnut haired one was working for dad or mom is-” I didn’t want to say it but I had to, “High.” Yohan pondered on my words, “But, that guy shot only once though.” I said, “A single bullet wouldn't have killed her.”

“Or maybe he stopped because I covered her and he can’t harm his own.” He looked directly into my eyes, “And a single bullet can kill a human. She was locked outside, she would have bled out.”

I chewed my lower lip, “Maybe…” It was just hard accepting it.

“About the blonde one,” Yohan asked “Did he have any proof?”

“He said his sister died because dad took her venom out.” I sighed, “According to him dad’s been selling werewolf venom to various people.”

“Hmm.” He scratched the left side of his neck with his right hand’s index finger, “Werewolf Venom? But why?” He thought about it, “The venom is used to kill vampires but we’re on a peace treaty with them.” Suddenly something came to his mind, “It was taken out? All of it?” I nodded,”I see.”

“What?”

“It’s being used as a cure.”

“A cure?”

“Not many people know of this, it’s a thing confidential even among werewolves. But the venom in our fangs can be extracted and used as a powerful healing medicine.”

“Really?” I asked and he nodded.

“It only sells in the black market.” He sighed, ““But the venom in our fangs is very vital to us, no longer having it can lead to death.”

“Wait. What?” Is that how the blonde’s sister died? It does make sense… I knew the venom in our fangs was important but I didn’t know the details. I thought that the sister maybe died in the process.

“I know you’re shocked, that’s why it's confidential. Not all wolves die because of it but it’s the source of our own strong healing ability.”

“How come not all werewolves know this?”

“So that people don’t take advantage of it, well not that they easily can but still.” He sighed, “Even if it’s sold in the black market, where it is extracted from is never revealed. The medicine is very expensive and most likely can only be supplied by another werewolf.”

“But having the venom extracted shouldn’t be easy.”

“It’s not.” He looked out the window at the empty street then looked back at me, “It takes time and a lot of power. A normal human would never be able to do it, but if we talk about an alpha and strong werewolves, it’s a different story.”

“...”

“...”

We both stayed silent for a while, neither of us knew what to say.

“It’s strange.” I spoke, “Dad has been such an awesome father to us…” He always stood by me and Yohan whenever we needed him, treated us so preciously and genuinely loved us.

“I know but we need to make a decision.” Yohan sighed. He was trying to imply that we should stand against them.

“Make a decision?” I gave him a pained expression, “You’re saying as if we aren’t at fault.”

“....” He knew what I was talking about.

“We both knew what was happening all along and we chose to turn a blind eye to it. We both are as guilty as our parents.”

Note: Werewolf venom is present in their fangs and is deadly to vampires but werewolves and vampires have been on a peace treaty for ages so they no longer use it.