Chapter 6

Lowell Keeler

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He splashed the water over his face as he leaned over the basin. The water ran from the shiny silver tap built on it and when he turned it off, he looked at his reflection in the mirror. His chin was getting patched with stubbles of beards, his eyes looking lazy and his hair ruffled. He sniffled. Remembering what had ensued between him and Eden that night.

After she'd passed out, he dragged her body through the woods to the road. It was night, so he didn't mind that he was naked. He in fact, drove Eden home, naked.

He checked her ID for a name, the cursive writing displayed Eden Cooper. He searched on his phone for her address which helped him reach her house. Knowing there was no way she'd ever let him bite being a human, he'd made use of that opportunity and when she'd woken up to attack him, he breathed into her ears.

"Eden." Then, She stopped struggling, her beautiful blue eyes getting lost in its sockets. Gently, Lowell placed her head on the pillow.

"Sleep tight, Eden."

He liked her name just as he'd liked her at first sight. But he needed to be sure the feeling is mutual or he'd lose the war.

Every morning, he would come in to check on her and every night, he'd lay on her porch in his transformed body. He needed to protect her at all cost. But after she woke up a week later, she didn't return the energy like he'd expected. He wondered why she wasn't finding him attractive when he can barely walk through the streets without girls flocking around him. Glancing at the mirror again, he thought about it.

"How is she able to resist me?"

It was a blow to his ego. But, he cannot let that stop him. Wiping his wet face with a paper towel, he left the toilet and made for his living room. His place was no different from Eden's arrangement, except his was more dull and wider. Walls covered in paintings, book shelves filled the room and his sofa was a white leather with a glass cross-legged table in the middle. The oakwood floor covered in tapestry rug with Greek embroidery. It was a definition of home and abroad. The windows were a long cut overlooking the city, the mountains and the road.

His phone rang and he picked it, not knowing the caller.

"Hello?"

Silence. It was followed by a long heavy breathing later.

"Who is this? Who am I on to?"

But there was no reply. Lowell checked the screen of his phone and realized the seconds were still ticking. The person was probably one of these hackers trying to get into people's phones or some random teenager thinking he could scare people for fun.

"Hello?"

"Help." The voice was weak and shaky. More like something he'd been scared of hearing, maybe from Eden or someone he loved so much. His heart skipped a beat.

"Who the fuck is this!? You better not be playing g..."

"Long time no see, Falcon."

That name!

It can only be someone who recognized him that well.

"Carlsen. What do you want?"

His jaws tightened and his knuckles were getting white.

"I don't want so much. I just want to ensure you never come back to the pack. Looks like you have what can break the curse, don't you? Don't forget, you have just few months left before you turn thirty and the curse becomes activated." A long silence accompanied by a throated laughter. "Let's see if you can break the curse before then. By the way, don't even think of fighting me. You're now an enemy to the humans. Talk about the killings in the woods."

"So, you're the one who has been..."

"Just a little something I thought I could play with. At least, the whole town will see you for what you are," he heard him take in a long breath. "Falcon."

Lowell gripped the phone tight, wishing so much he could get his neck.

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Eden Cooper

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She dropped a long file and a long cup of coffee before sitting on the chair. Engrossed in her work, she was startled when someone banged his hands on the table. The coffee fell and spilled on the floor.

"I'm really sorry." It was Peter.

As soon as she looked up into his blue eyes, her anger diminished. He couldn't have done that on purpose.

"It's fine," Eden smiled. "I'll just clean it." She used a paper towel to clean the drink on the floor.

"I saw something, Miss Cooper," he shifted on one leg. "But first, let me buy you another drink."

Her heart twitched at the thought of having coffee with this strangely handsome man. She couldn't tell if it was a good feeling or not. However, she grabbed her car keys and followed him to Katie's.

"So, tell me about you," Peter sipped coffee from the white mug before him.

"Well, asides from being a bad ass cop and a very strict person who wouldn't spare an hour from her working hours, what else is there to know?"

Eden leaned on her chair, staring straight at Peter. He was right. Ever since she had issues with her parents, her personality had been more rigid. Not to mention her relationship with the city men that had almost driven her crazy. When she had given Raymond a chance but he was all about writing his book and he had called her a distraction. She gave George, her high school Best friend, a chance only to be heartbroken seeing him with her cousin. They had gotten married months later and are now expecting their first child. These things were too much for her that when she got a letter of transfer, she didn't bother to know where. She just needed to leave.

"I..." Eden sighed, "I am an only child. My parents wanted me to be a doctor but I surprised them by pursuing my dream. Enrolling into the police academy drove them mad and," she tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear. "Although Mom and I have been talking ever since, I'm sure they are still mad at me, especially dad. I haven't spoken to him since total blackout."

"That's like what? Seven years ago!" Peter whistled, face looking thoughtful. "But, I want you to know something, " he slipped his fingers between hers and took her hand in his. "You don't need anybody to tell you what is meant to make you happy. You have a life to live and you deserve better."

Eden thought for a while but as soon as she became conscious of his hand, she straightened, removing her hands. Her grim expression back in place.

"Tell me what you found about the body." She tilted her head towards him.

"Er...nothing much, given I just started working on it. I only found more bites than I found bruises. He also has a fractured rib...like two of them broke at the force of a moving vehicle. It's crazy, Ede..."

"Miss Cooper." She corrected. "And tell me about this crazy part of your story."

Peter nodded. He leaned closer, lowering his head like someone who wants to spill a top secret. "I searched for animals with the features I discovered. Extra long nails of about seven inches, curved fangs, ability to strangle its victims first and then the body weight of about 2500 pounds. Also, with the magnitude of acceleration in the course of such motion, hard enough to fracture the victim's ribs."

"And what did you find?"

"It may sound..."

"What did you find!?"

"A werewolf!" Silence engulfed them, accompanied with stares from the other customers I'm the cafe. Her heart stopped for a while.