Chapter 10: Make Your Choice

Kelvin may not have known who Alex was, but the anguish etched across Joel's face revealed that Alex held great significance to both of them. "Who is Alex?" Kelvin inquired.

"Maya's dearest friend," Joel answered.

Maya's fury refused to be quelled; her connection with Alex ran deep, and she vowed to avenge him without limits. Tonight, she had already claimed the lives of five werewolves, but who knew how many more would fall at her hands?

Kelvin hadn't witnessed Maya in such a state of furious rage for years now, and he feared the consequences if she failed to find solace. In the past, it was Maya who calmed Kelvin during his bouts of uncontrollable anger, but now he found himself powerless to do the same for her. Maya's outrage burned unbridled, an unstoppable force that no one could extinguish.

Kelvin pondered his next move, desperately searching for a way to diffuse the mounting tension. He decided to resort to a trick he often employed with Maya during challenging times.

"I am deeply sorry for the loss of Alex. May I ask what species he belonged to?" Kelvin inquired, hoping to gain some insight into Maya's intense reaction.

Joel, sensing the need for clarification, chimed in, "He was a human."

Kelvin couldn't hide his surprise. "A human?" he uttered, taken aback. He hadn't anticipated such a vehement reaction from Maya over the death of a human.

"Does it really matter? They killed my friend right before my eyes, and they even tried to kill me too. Do you honestly believe I would let that go unpunished?" Maya responded, her voice laced with aggression.

"But you've already taken the lives of five werewolves. Isn't that enough?" Kelvin interjected, hoping to reason with her.

"What? Are you seriously asking me that?" Maya retorted, her voice dripping with incredulity. "Do you have any idea why the werewolves came after me?" She dropped the wine glass from her hand and advanced menacingly toward Kelvin, bombarding him with questions about Alex's murder.

Joel sensed the tension escalating and wisely decided to make himself scarce. "I'll go check on Rita," he announced, quickly leaving the sitting room.

The household servants had wisely retreated into the shadows, unwilling to interfere unless expressly called upon.

Kelvin realized that if he didn't handle this situation delicately, Maya might tear him limb from limb. His previous strategy had failed to appease her. "You initiated the killings of the werewolves, and now they're retaliating against me," Maya accused.

"But nobody knows it was me," Kelvin countered.

"You have always been the werewolves' target of suspicion. The moment they laid eyes on you, they suspected you were the killer. And if it wasn't you, then it was surely the person they came to deliver a warning to—the one their Alpha wanted to confront," Maya explained, taking a step back and reaching for another bottle of liquor.

Kelvin's voice dropped to a hushed tone as he asked, "And who is this person they delivered the warning to?"

"Two hours before you arrived here last night, those very same werewolves approached me right outside the compound," Maya revealed, pouring herself another drink.

"Why were they there?" Kelvin inquired, his tone filled with cautious concern. He didn't want to further upset Maya.

"They delivered a message from their Alpha, Raven. He demanded that I apologize to his wife," Maya added.

"That despicable, self-righteous Alpha," Kelvin seethed. "But do you truly want to risk starting a war with the werewolves over a human?" Disappointment tinged his words, abruptly shifting the atmosphere between them.

Maya's anger twisted into a sinister smile as she dropped the empty glass from her hand and charged towards Kelvin with a fury that seemed to consume her. Before Kelvin could react, she slammed him forcefully into the glass table in the sitting room.

The solid glass table, measuring 6 feet in length, 3 feet in width, and half an inch thick, shattered into countless pieces upon impact. Its sturdy live oak legs crumbled under the force, but Kelvin emerged relatively unscathed from the wreckage of the table.

Fueled by adrenaline and his own rising anger, Kelvin's voice erupted in a roar. "What the hell was that for?" he demanded, his once-pristine tuxedo now torn and disheveled. He charged up and his fang burst out from his mouth, dripping venom.

Maya smirked, undeterred by the outburst. "Already losing your temper? Well, I assure you, I can do much worse if you refuse to join me in this war," she threatened, her words laced with a dangerous certainty. Maya was a person of her word, always following through on her promises.

"Why should I help you?" Kelvin retorted, his frustration seeping through his voice. "Just because I killed a few werewolves?"

Maya approached him, closing the distance between them until she was almost whispering in his ear. "Because if you don't, I will kill her tomorrow night," she whispered, her voice dripping with venom.

Kelvin's confusion was palpable as he asked Maya who she was referring to.

"The same girl you failed to kill sixteen years ago. I believe you already know exactly who I'm talking about," Maya revealed, her words laced with a mix of menace and anticipation.

"You're going to start a war with the Witches too?" He acquired.

Maya nodded, "Dare me and see."

For a moment, Kelvin's composure faltered, but he quickly regained his composure and feigned indifference. "Why would I care about Alisha?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.

"I saw the way you looked at her, and your racing heartbeat betrays your true feelings," Maya taunted, her words hitting Kelvin like a sledgehammer. She could hear the pounding of his heart escalate the moment she mentioned the possibility of Alisha's demise.

"Just like two hundred years ago, you've once again forged a weakness that will tie you down," Maya declared with a chilling certainty. "You have until the end of the funeral tomorrow, or else Alisha won't survive tomorrow night."

As the weight of Maya's ultimatum settled upon him, Kelvin found himself torn between the dangers of joining a war and the dire consequences of refusing. The clock was ticking, and with each passing moment, the grip of fate tightened around him and the fate of Alisha hung in the balance.

To be continued...