To the Wolves

Chapter 32

After sunset, Olivia and Ethan sat on the roof of his house as they narrated the recent incidents that the other one missed. The night sky was filled with stars and a half-moon that shone brightly but was getting partially obscured by the cotton thin clouds that floated like a boat in the calm sea.

"I could have never guessed that he is your uncle," he said, surprised and slightly conflicted after hearing her side of the story.

"Me neither," she said as a matter of fact. "From what I know and have learned, he is not the best person to be related to."

"I will agree with that, he definitely isn't," Ethan said. "You will be surprised to know the things that he does."

"Why? What does he do?" Olivia asked.

"He..." Ethan started hesitantly. "Ugh... never mind. He is your family and I don't want my opinions to cloud your judgment."

"I already have a strong opinion and it won't change even if you try. So tell me."

"Apparently he is the pack warlock and he uses magic to enhance the strength of the wolves," he said.

Olivia looked at him blankly. "And?"

"He uses vampire offspring to do that. He makes the wolves eat them. Even saying it is making me want to throw up," Ethan said with disgust.

Olivia too had a disgusted look on her face.

"I cannot believe it," she said. "I finally understand why my parents kept me away from him."

"Yeah, you don't want to be a witch like him."

"I don't want to be a witch at all," she said looking at him. "I never acknowledged my powers until I met you, even when I knew the truth. It's just something I have to live with."

"I didn't know you hated it so much," he said.

"I don't hate it, but it's something that I don't like either. I don't know how to explain it. I realized this when Dino said that he would teach me how to do real magic. And I... all I could think about was that I don't really want to learn it, especially from him. It has done nothing good for my family. My mother passed away because of it, my uncle does cruel things to children, and I don't want to end up like that. I want to live a normal life of a human," she said.

"I get it," Ethan said softly. "I somewhat understand how you feel. I felt this surge of anger when Aubrey insinuated that I was not normal."

Olivia's lips tugged upwards in a partial sad smile.

"By the way," Ethan continued, "did your uncle know what Mico wants from you?"

Olivia's smile fell as she hesitated before saying, "I don't know."

The night wind sent chills down their spines as they wrapped their arms around themselves. Looking at each other they let out a chuckle. Ethan moved closer and wrapped his arms around her while she attempted to conceal the blush on her face.

"What?" He asked, laughing.

She looked up at his face and said, "I'm happy."

"Despite all the horrible things that have happened?" he asked.

"Yes, despite all the horrible things that have happened."

Ethan smiled. He removed his arm from her shoulder and hesitantly said, "I have been meaning to ask you something. This may sound lame but I have never asked this to anyone before." He paused before saying, "when was the exact moment that you knew...that you had feelings for me? I'm curious to know."