Valerie’s scream seemed like time had stopped for a moment. Everyone was frozen, including the tigers outside became as still as a statue. Richard’s mouth was covered with blood. Alice’s blood. Alice lay on the couch unmoving; a pool of blood surrounded her. Amanda looked like she was going to vomit at the sight of blood. By the time the scream ended, Alice’s body was jerking violently.

            Sam and the group tried to open the window harder. I was staring at Alice. I tried to twist and turn to free myself from the belt but it was only hurting my wrist. My fingers caught a small pocket knife hidden in the couch.

            Thank God! I thought. Val was distracted as she was crying. I tried to cut the belt slowly so the wolves couldn’t hear.

            “Mum,” Val cried. She buried her face into a pillow while she sobbed. Richard waited for Alice’s arrival to her new form as a werewolf.

            The noise from outside was louder than usual. I glanced at the window. Was it my eyes or did I just saw a huge eagle? The eagle was covered with dark brown feathers except for the head. The eagle looked at me. It was too dark outside so I couldn’t see what color were the eyes. The story Alice and Val told me came back to me.

            Thorene found a humongous eagle. Eagles were not as trustable as wolves since most of them had humans to satiate their stomachs.

            Why did this particular eagle bother to help the tigers and free us? Richard stared in disbelief at the eagle. He said something to another wolf, in an unfamiliar language. I think it was German.

            It was too late. The eagle managed to rip the roof open before the wolves could do anything. The tigers and Jamie climbed and jumped into the house. They attacked the wolves that were still in their human form. The living room was a battle field and in mayhem. Richard carried Alice as two other wolves carried Val and me. I was able to cut the belt open. I jumped to my feet and scratched the boy’s cheeks with the knife. As a result, a line of blood formed on his cheeks. The boy touched his cheek and showed his fangs at me. Sam was just in time to destroy the boy before shifting into a wolf. I didn’t have time to take my weapon from the table so without hesitating, I ran towards Val. Another wolf scratched me at my left wrist with it’s long claws. I used my uninjured right hand to stab the knife into his heart. By the time he was human, I took back the knife that was still stabbed since I was weaponless except for the knife. The scratch was so deep that blood began to gush out. I covered the wound with a piece of cloth that I tore from my shirt and kept running towards Val. She shrieked and tried her best to get away from the wolf. I shot his head from behind. He fell to his knees, releasing his grip on Val. Val kicked him in the back of the head so he fall face down on the ground and I could hear a crack from the head.

            I threw the gun at Val and she caught it. We ran to Alice and Richard, who were heading for the forest. We were able to catch up because Richard was not in his wolf form. I was lucky that the injury was on my left hand instead of my right hand. The knife was the only weapon I had left. I threw a knife and it sunk into his calf. He fell and dropped Alice.

            I sat on him so my weigh would hold him down. I took out the knife which was covered with blood from his calf and pointed it at his neck, ready to disconnect his head from his body.

            “You have a choice to live forever and be invincible but you refused. Why do you want to sacrifice your life just to do what you’re born to do? Why not try something different? In a good way?” Richard tried to change my mind about becoming a wolf but my answer was unchangeable. The way he said was demanding. Something was wrong. Why did he want me to be a wolf so badly?

            “Being a wolf is not good.”

            “Says who?”

            “I do,” Val said.

            Richard ignored his daughter, concentrating on me. “Innocent people will be killed,” I replied bitterly.

            “You will not have human feelings anymore. The sooner you become one of us, the faster you will forget.”

            “Val and Alice are innocent too,” I noted. He didn’t like the reminder.

            “I’m doing what’s best for my family.”

            “They are not your family anymore. All these years you were hiding from the light. Ten years later, you appeared just to tell Val that you’re alive. I don’t believe you. Tell me, what happen if Val or Alice died in the transformation? Am I next in your list? You didn’t care about family! All you care about is power, strength and respect.”

            He bit his lips. Whatever I was saying was the truth and he knew it.

            I told him softly, “You don’t care if your daughter is dead in the transformation at all! Alice loved you so much and this is how you love her? She lost her mind for six months, Richard! Just because of your death and this is how you repay your love to her?!” I demanded for an answer. He looked at his wife. Alice’s eyes were circling but she couldn’t see anything. Her body was moving, jerking. He turned back to face me.

            Then it hit me. This was what he told the other wolves. I was sure the other wolves wouldn’t agree to him if he was talking about the love nonsense. All they wanted was to be powerful like the Bermudan Wolves. That was why they did it to Jamie first, to see whether she could change into one of them and then he would convince me and Val that he loved us so he would change us. That was why one of the wolves nearly bit me just now but instead he was able to leave a scratch. I was sure that if I and Val refused to join them, I was sure they wouldn’t leave until we were all bitten and kill the tigers off. All he had to do was to tell me and Val to look for the Bermudan Wolves so they could destroy them and gained power in exchange for food, human that we wanted the most if we were one of them. It seemed like history was repeating itself from the time of the Roman Empire and Julius Caesar. Richard was the Julius Caesar. I was sure he wanted to get rid of Jamie before I knew he changed her but she managed to escape. Was I the only one who was aware of his crap?

            “You think that your love for your family is going to make you as strong as the Bermudan Wolves after you defeat them by using us?” I screeched.

            “Sophia, please let us live in peace. That’s all I want. We won’t bother you anymore even if you don’t want to be one of us. Let Valerie make a choice if she wants to join her parents. She has a right to choose,” Richard begged in the end. I was right. He wanted to use us all this time. I hoped Val understand what I was trying to tell her.

            If Val decided to join them, I will be the only Hunter left. I couldn’t kill them even if they become wolves. Richard was right though. Val must be given a decision. I waited for Val’s answer while my knife was still in place.

            Val was sitting next to her mother. Her face was mixed from sad to angry to disappointment to desire. She stood up. “It’s your fault! It’s your fault mum had to go through this!” Val yelled at her father as she pointed at Alice. She looked at him straight in the eyes. “I will never join you.”

            “Now you know her answer,” I confirmed and cut his head off. His head rolled off his body. I couldn’t stop staring at his dead but opened eyes. I burnt his body with a lighter. Now we know he was dead for good.

            What are we going to do with Alice now? I walked over to Alice and sank to my knees. Val held Alice’s cold hands around her warm ones. I could see her mouth moving but no voice could be heard.

            Val put her ears near her mother’s mouth. So did I.

            “I’m so sorry, Val. Please forgive me. I’m so sorry. I just wanted to . . .” Her voice broke off. It was too late. We were not going to know what she wanted that will remain a mystery. She was too weak to survive the transformation. It was all over. Her chest stopped moving and her mouth was still open. She couldn’t be saved even if I did CPR. I closed Alice’s dead eyes and walked away without glancing back. Val needed time alone now. She just lost both her parents.

            I found my way back to the house. Sam’s arms were wrapped around me when I reached our land. All the wolves must have been destroyed. I couldn’t find Jamie there but the group was outside, watching the open fire. Daniel wasn’t with them either. He must have looked for Val so he could assure her to move on after her mother’s death. Amanda sat in the corner with her head touching her knees as she rocked back and forth. She was ten and still young. She had to handle a lot today so she needed time alone. I was grateful for her to be here even if it did risk her life.

            He took my left hand. I winced when he touched my wrist. His face was in pain and then vanished out of my sight. I was lucky it was a scratch, not a bite.

            I noticed a smaller flame next to the large flame. The fangs were unlike the wolves, it looked more like a tiger by the characteristics . . . Someone from the group died today. Sam was by my side so it wasn’t him. Thank God it wasn’t him. He had the first aid kit in his hands. He made me sit on the ground before taking out the bandage.

            “Who died, Sam?”

            He remained silent and kept treating my hand. I winced again when I felt a sudden cold touch on my bloody wrist. I tried to recognize the dead tiger from the size and the color.

            “Sam, who died?” I repeated my question.

            His eyes were dead as Alice’s when he turned to look at me. “It was Daniel.”

            No. Today, Val lost almost everyone she loved. Daniel, Alice, Richard. The memory I first met Daniel came back to me, he opened the door when I dropped in Sam’s house. He was Val’s close friend who knew everything about her that her human friends didn’t. How was it possible? Was it a curse that was stalking her all along?

            “I’m sorry. I should have been more careful,” Sam murmured in my ears after he wrapped a new bandage around my wrist. I pulled him into the house. When we passed by the living room that was in chaos, it was as if the portrait of Richard was looking at me, watching my every step. We went into my room. Pierre was trying to get out of the room all this time but the door was locked. Pierre ran out. I lay on the bed. I didn’t realize I was crying until Sam wiped my tears with his fingers. Sam lay next to me, cooing me until no more tears came out.

            “What am I going to do now?” I whispered.

            Sam was unmoving, still holding me. He didn’t answer me. I closed my eyes. By the time I opened them, Sam kissed me. I knew the answer to my own question; I have to move on.