Chapter 14: Werewolves

Winter's POV

They are gigantic, I've never seen animals that huge. Even on four legs they are almost as tall as the man standing in the middle. The man was quite tall and muscular with tan skin and cropped black hair.

"Are those wolves?" I asked, my heart racing. If I wasn't so scared, I'd be amazed. I've always wanted to see a real-life wolf, just maybe not two at the same time.

"Sort of." Edward answered without taking his eyes off the man and the wolves. He was tense and apprehensive. I squeezed his hand for comfort, hoping to ease some of his worries.

"Cullen," the man spoke with a deep commanding voice, "let the girl go."

What? He means me, right?

"There seems to be a misunderstanding." Edward replied, keeping me hidden behind him.

"We can discuss it after you've let her go." The wolves made growling noises, which made me panic. I know Edward is strong and I was taught some self-defence by my dad, but I don't think the both of us can take on two enormous wolves and a muscle man.

The thought of their fangs piercing our necks made me step out from behind Edward and nervously announce, "You don't understand, he's my friend. He's not holding me against my will or anything."

Edward tried to push me behind him again, but I shook my head, "No, stop trying to hide me. They think you're kidnapping me or something." He sighed and let me step forward, without letting go of my hand.

"Girl don't fall for his tricks. He's not what you think he is." He took one step closer, Edward did the same causing the wolves to snarl.

I must do something before the situation escalates. Based on what the man just said he knows that Edward is a vampire, but I don't know for sure. I mean what if he doesn't? I can't just blurt out the Cullen family's biggest secret. I should really ask Edward or Carlisle for specifics on who knows what.

I held onto Edward's arm to stop him from taking another step towards the man. "Okay, calm down everyone," I turned to address the man, "Mister, I don't know who you are but I'm pretty sure I know exactly who or what Edward is. He's not going to hurt me. In fact, he's helping me." I know I'm babbling, but at least the man is now looking at me, not at Edward.

The man sighed and turned his attention back to Edward, "Cullen, your family and our tribe have managed to coexist in the same town for years. We have an agreement, so I will give you the benefit of the doubt. Does she know about you?"

"Yes, she does. I promise you I have no intention of breaking the pact we've made." Edward replied.

"How much does she know?"

"She knows that we're vampires. She knows nothing about you and your tribe. Now, if you don't mind me asking, why are you here? As far as I remember, this area is out of your territory."

"Not officially but due to recent events, we have decided to keep an eye out here from time to time. So, what are you doing here? Who is the human?"

Okay, I've had enough. This man is ignoring me, which is just plain rude. I glared at the stranger and waved my hand, "Excuse me, I'm right here," the man looked at me, mildly surprised that I dared talk to him, "That's right, I know about the Cullen family but I still don't know who you are and why you and your, uhm, friends are intimidating us in front of my house."

The man looked stunned, he shared quizzical looks with the wolves, which was weird but also, I must admit, kind of cool. "You live here?" he asked. Finally, he was talking to me.

"Yes, now would you please tell me who you are?"

"My name is Sam Uley, I am the Alpha of my pack." He announced.

"Did he just say Alpha? And pack?" I looked at Edward, who couldn't help but smile at my confusion.

"Yes, Winter. That's what he said." Edward seemed to have calmed down a bit since he now has the energy to tease me.

I glared at Edward then turned back to the man, "Alpha of your pack? And those two must be your pack brothers?" I joked.

"Yes," my eyes widened, I was just joking but Sam is clearly serious, "this is Jared, the Beta," he pointed at the brown wolf on his right then turned to the other wolf with dark grey fur, "and this is Paul, my third-in-command."

I gaped at them. He's not joking. The wolves even did a weird bow when they were introduced. He managed to tame two huge wolves, tall as horses, and is even the leader of their so-called pack. What a guy!

"Now that I have introduced us, it's your turn. You say you live here?"

I was still a bit stunned, but I managed to regain some of my senses, this weird man might know something about my parents' attackers, he knows the area and has wolves as pets or friends.

"Well I hadn't been home ever since I met the Cullens but yes, I live here. My name's Winter Ellis."

Sam was taken aback, "Ellis? You're Troy's daughter?"

Today is full of surprises. "You know my Dad?"

Sam was looking at me, he seemed to be thinking very hard about something. My question must have brought back some memories, "Yes, I have met your father before."

Wow, this man knows my father. I looked at Edward and realised he was staring at Sam, with a dazed look on his face. Ah, he must be reading Sam's mind. Better not bother him then, I'll just ask him later.

I turned back to Sam, "Do you know my mother as well?"

"I have only talked to her once. I don't know her very well but from what I remember you look very much like her."

"How come I've never seen you before?"

"Your father and I only met a couple of times and when we did, we met somewhere between our territories."

My dad had a territory? What does he mean by that? I guess he means the land where our house stands.

"So, what are you doing here now?" I asked Sam. Edward seems like he's still reading Sam's mind, but his previous dazed look is now replaced with furrowed brows and disbelief. I wonder what's going on.

"Last week, another member of our tribe was forced to phase meaning there were new vampires in the area. We talked to Carlisle, but he didn't seem to have anything to do with it."

"Wait, what do you mean phase? And if Carlisle didn't know, then how come you're coming here?" I had so many more questions, but I didn't want to bombard him, he already looks annoyed by my cluelessness.

Suddenly, Edward spoke, "She doesn't know," everyone, including me, turned to look at him, "about you and your tribe. She doesn't know."

"What's wrong Edward? You're acting weird." I whispered. He was still holding my hand and I could feel the tension through his grip. He was relaxed a while ago, but he must have seen something in Sam's mind that caused his reaction. He looked me in the eyes and I was surprised by the concern I saw reflected in those golden pools, but concern for what?

Before he could respond to my question, Sam spoke bringing back out attention to him, "What do you mean she doesn't know?"

"It means what it means. She doesn't know what phasing is, she doesn't know what you are."

Now I'm even more confused. What in the world is he talking about? Sam shared another look with his wolf pack members.

And then I realised. Of course, Sam is not just a simple human being. I mean how could he have trained those animals beside him, not even the best dog whisperer could have done that.

"I guess showing you would be better than explaining." Sam proclaimed.

Suddenly, the dark silver wolf started convulsing.

"No, don't." Edward shouted.

But the wolf continued to tremble, as though suffering great pain. Then it twisted and turned into something else. I couldn't believe what my eyes are seeing, the wolf is no longer a wolf.

It's a man. A naked man.

I kept my eyes focussed above the waistline but the man, Paul I think was his name, doesn't seem to care about his exposed self. The other wolf ran behind the tree and came back with some pants and I was relieved. Honestly, I think I was more surprised by his nakedness rather than the fact that he was a wolf a second ago.

"Y-you're a-a," I stuttered. My mind is totally blank. What is the word I'm looking for? There's something niggling at the back of my mind.

"A werewolf?" Paul, now wearing pants, replied.

Werewolf. That's right. That's what they're called. Something clicked in my brain, as though a missing puzzle piece has finally been found. I remember now. Edward's initial reaction makes sense. Werewolves and vampires are natural enemies.

But then –

"Di-did my Dad know about you being, you know, werewolves?" I asked hesitantly. My father never told me about this. But I guess it wasn't his secret to share.

Sam's reply was cut off by Edward, "Sam. She doesn't know." Edward gave Sam a pointed, warning look.

"What is it?" I asked but he didn't answer.

"Well, she deserves to know." Sam replied, and Edward took a step forward menacingly, but Sam merely continued, "She needs to know, we have questions for her."

I held Edward back from taking another step, "I want to know," he looked at me and was about to argue but I interrupted, "I know that you're trying to protect me but hiding things is not the way to do it."

After a while, he sighed in defeat and backed down.

I looked back at Sam, "Know what?"

"Your father. He was like us."

"Like you? Yes, I guess you're both very tan and muscular." I stammered. I know what he's trying to say but I just don't know if I can accept it.

Sam shook his head disappointingly, "I meant, he was a werewolf like us."

"I know that's what you meant but it doesn't make sense. Don't you think I would know if my father can turn into a 6 feet tall wolf?" I laughed hysterically, Edward placed both hands on my shoulder but didn't say anything. This must be what he saw in Sam's mind.

Sam, Paul and the other wolf merely looked at me.

"What? Was he a member of your pack too?" I asked, after taking a couple of deep breaths. I will go with what they're saying for now.

"No, he came from a different tribe up north. As far as I know, he wasn't a member of any packs."

My dad was a lone wolf. That's kind of sad.

"So, what do you want from me?" I sighed. I'm exhausted. Today has been crazy. First, my parents are missing. Then, I find that they might have taken down and hidden all our pictures. And now, these strangers are telling me my father is a shape shifter.

"As I mentioned previously, another member of our tribe phased for the first time. This only happens because of vampire appearance. It's not the Cullens. So, we came to ask your father if he knew, but he's gone, and your house reeked of vampires. That house has been empty. It's gone now but it was strong before. Tell us what happened. Why were there vampires in your house?"

Edward and I reflexively looked at each other. There were vampires in my house? There's only one explanation. Our attackers… they were vampires. They must be. The look in Edward's eyes shows he's come to the same conclusion.

"I don't know why there were vampires in our house. I-I didn't even know they were vampires."

"What are you talking about?" Sam asked. He wore an expression of impatience.

"Last week, my parents were attacked. I didn't know at the time, but I guess they must have been vampires."

"Troy's dead?" His impatience has been replaced with alarm and a hint of pity. I guess their surprise meant that they had nothing to do with the disappearance of my parents' corpses.

"Yes."

"Why would he be attacked? Who did it?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. Honestly, I think you guys know more than me. This is the first time I've been here since it happened. I didn't even know vampires existed until I met the Cullens." I muttered.

"We came back to collect some of Winter's belongings. The house is empty, there was no trace of the attackers," Edward interrupted Sam from asking another question, "Today has been difficult for Winter. We don't know anything else and I promise to honour our pact not to hurt humans. So, I would like to take her home, so she could rest."

"But –," Paul was about to argue but Sam held up a hand to silence him.

"I understand," Sam nodded then turned to look at me, "if you do not mind, we'd like to perform our own search of the house. We promise not to take anything, and we will leave everything as you have left them. Our noses are better at picking up vampire scent."

"Fine. It's not locked anyways." I sighed. Edward placed one hand on my back, whilst he carried the box in another. We started walking towards the car, but I stopped and turned to look at Sam and his pack, "I know that you and the Cullens have a shaky relationship but, please, if you find anything about the attackers, let me know." I pleaded.

Sam stared at me for a moment, his gaze was dark and sharp, I could see why he's the Alpha. He closed his eyes and nodded, "I will."

"Thank you." I smiled.

We got in the car. As we backed out of the driveway, the two men and the wolf continued to stare at us. They stood there until they were out of sight.

Edward was quiet as he drove us home. I could feel the waves of worry coming off him.

"He wasn't lying, was he?" I whispered as I turned to look at him. His brows furrowed in confusion, so I clarified, "Sam. He wasn't lying about my Dad being you know… a werewolf?"

"No." He gave me a sympathetic look.

I couldn't bring myself to respond so I just nodded. We didn't speak for the rest of the way. We were both lost in our thoughts. When we arrived home, no one was to be seen and as much as I love the Cullen family, I was a relieved. I didn't think I could socialise when my head is a mess. Edward carried the box and placed it next to my bed.

"I'm not going to ask if you're okay." He stood in front of me and looked me with understanding, "What I will say is that I'm here for you," he whispered gently as he stroked my cheek.

I closed my eyes and focussed on his cool hand. I didn't want to see his reaction to what I'm about to say, "I think there's something wrong with me." I breathed.

"How do you mean?" He placed both his hands on each side of my face, I opened my eyes and was met with his golden gaze.

"Do you remember what my uncle said?" Edward kept his gaze on me, "He said not to trust my memories," I turned my face away and sat down on the bed, looking down on the floor.

Edward kneeled in front of me and grabbed both my hands, "What makes you think of that?"

"Sometimes, I get this weird feeling when I'm thinking about my past. I can't explain it very well, but I felt it when I was talking to my uncle. Today too, when I saw those werewolves. And when I was telling you about the night we were attacked," I looked him straight in the eyes, "Don't you think it's weird that I got out of the house alive? I mean, if they were vampires, they should've been able to sense that I was in that cabinet. I would never have been able to outrun them."

He sighed, "I was thinking the same thing," he stood up and caressed my hair, "when Sam told us he smelt vampires in your house, I wondered about how you escaped."

"I don't know what to do. I don't even know what's real anymore." I covered my face with my hands.

"Hey, hey, I've told you before, I'm here. I'm real. We will figure it out. I know it'll be hard but try to rest. My family and I will help you."

I looked at him gratefully, "Thank you."

"Sleep." He smiled.

I didn't realise how tired I was until my head hit the pillow. I thought my chaotic brain would keep me up all night, but I was out cold in a few minutes. In my half-conscious state, I heard Edward's whisper of good night and the split-second touch of his cool lips on my forehead.

Author's Note

Hello! This one's a pretty long chapter. I hope you are all enjoying the story so far. Also, pardon any typos or errors, I don't really proofread the chapters before posting.

Again, your review will be much appreciated and thanks for reading!

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