Eclipsed Hearts

Settling In

[Bailey]

I stared at Keaton Black, my mouth slightly agape. A truce with a werewolf? Was he serious?

The rocking of the boat did little to soothe my nerves. What would he do if I didn’t agree? He wanted to protect the humans here. Not something I thought a werewolf would want.

None of that mattered. There was a question weighing on my mind that I had been curious about ever since I heard about the Blood Moon Pack and their tendency to hunt the hunters.

“Did your pack kill my family?” I asked quietly.

He looked puzzled. “The Damson family is still alive and well, as far as I’m aware. I can’t guarantee how long they will be or that it won’t be me and my pack who wipes them out, but I didn’t touch them.”

“Their name was Walker.”

Keaton’s eyes widened in recognition at the mention of my family name. A flicker of something akin to regret crossed his features before he schooled his expression into a mask of neutrality.

“The ex-hunter family…. That wasn’t us. We got an anonymous tip that a hunter family was living outside of their community. My uncle went to investigate. He talked to the father… your father…. He told my uncle that your family had left the hunter community, but he wouldn’t share where it was. It was so strange that my dad and uncle talked about it a lot.

“He didn’t threaten or posture. He treated them respectfully and begged their forgiveness. No hunter had ever done that, even when facing death. Your father said he wanted out of the hunter clan because he didn’t want you to grow up thinking it was okay to kill people. He wanted you to have a safer life.

“When my father heard about the deaths of your family, he was saddened. They were a hopeful light in the distance. Hunters who realized we were people and not monsters. Humans who didn’t think we were worth more dead than alive,” Keaton explained.

My uncle assured me it wasn’t Blood Moon who killed my family when I asked him, but I needed to know from that side. I needed to hear it from one of them or from someone else admitting to killing my family. I didn’t remember ever seeing anything like that, but my uncle said my father made the mistake of thinking that werewolves were people, too.

His foolish belief put us in danger. I nodded, accepting Keaton’s word.

“Ms. Walker, please consider what your parents wanted for you. They wanted you to live a life without death. I’m sorry they didn’t survive, but joining the Damson Clan is not going to make anything better for you.”

“The Damson Clan is my family. They raised me and cared for me after a werewolf killed my parents and my sister. I want to kill the person or persons who killed my family. I love my family, the living and the dead. Do you think I would join them only for revenge?”

He sighed. “I was hoping after your revelation that you were a Walker my intel would be proven wrong.”

“What intel? How did you even know who I am?”

“I don’t know your name, but your picture has been taken on hunts. It has spread to us. We know a lot, but not everything. We also know that Ianto Thornwood is on this boat and the two of you have been seen together by members of a nearby pack,” Keaton told me.

“They know what he looks like?”

“Their pack is very aware of him and his family. I wondered what brought you two together until I saw him speaking to another werewolf. I’m assuming the two of you are on a hunt and your partner has made contact with the target.”

I needed to make sure Ian knew the pack was aware of him and his family. It could be dangerous. I didn’t want him to lose more family. Not after all the losses he experienced when werewolves attacked his clan.

“My information says that werewolf is the most likely person to have killed my family. For a long time, I thought there was a possibility it was you, but the honesty in your response told me that was not the case. I can’t speak for Ianto, but I am okay with a truce for this conference,” I replied.

“Since we’re not enemies, for the time being, is there anything you’d like to talk about? I would love to get to know more about hunters and humans in general.” He smiled in a way that seemed really fake to me.

“Is this the time when we pretend to be friendly and try to get the other to give away information about our enemies?” I asked, sitting back in my chair.

Keaton laughed. “No. At least, that was not my intention. I am intrigued by your people in a way that has nothing to do with killing them. I truly would love to know more about how your clans work. It seems almost like a pack structure.”

I regarded Keaton with a mix of skepticism and curiosity. Despite his reassurances, there was still an undercurrent of tension between us, a reminder of the complexities and animosities that defined our worlds. But perhaps, in this fragile moment of truce, there was an opportunity for understanding, even if just a sliver.

“Very well,” I began cautiously. “Our clan operates on a hierarchy similar to a pack structure, with a nepotistic leadership. Though we function under one name, we are not actually one family.”

Keaton nodded thoughtfully, his gaze fixed on the table between us. When I said nothing else, he looked up at me again. Just because I was answering questions didn’t mean I was going to risk more of my family.

“I see. Our pack titles aren’t inherited. It sounded like you believed that. Werewolves come in two types, dominant and non-dominant. Dominant wolves have a chance at becoming leaders of the pack and are usually decided through several fights to determine who is the strongest and most capable. However, there is one pack that deviates from the norm in that way. They started their own pack about five years ago and the Alphas didn’t need to fight to gain their place, they only fight to keep it.”

“A new pack? Where would that be? I hadn’t heard of one.”

He shook his head. “You know I’m not telling you that.”

“It was worth a try,” I said with a shrug.

We chatted a little more. We were both protecting information that might put our people in harm’s way or make them targets. It was the most I’d talked to a werewolf in my life.

It really felt like he was a human. I could see how easy it was for my father to believe that. Talking to Keaton was almost like talking to another hunter.

Eventually, the ride ended. We stood up and tucked our chairs in.

“Meeting you was the highlight of my trip, Ms. Walker. Please feel free to come talk to me if you see me around. This truce will last until we are both finished with this entire journey and back on the mainland. If you could extend my offer to Mr. Thornwood, then I would greatly appreciate it. I would like this to be a peaceful week for everyone involved.”

“I can ask, but I can’t make any guarantees. Perhaps you should approach him on your own. You already know what he looks like,” I suggested, knowing I couldn’t get close to Ian this week.

Keaton nodded. “Yes, that does seem prudent. I’ll find him during the mixer tonight and talk to him about the offer.”

“Good. You can talk to me if you see me, too. I won’t try to kill you this week, but I also will not stop someone else from killing you.”

“And I will return the favor by not protecting you, either. I hope you enjoy the week, Ms. Walker.”

“Same to you, Mr. Black.”

He gave a brief bow, then left the cabin with most of the crowd. I waited until it died down a little. The last thing I wanted was to be crowded after such a shocking and nerve-wracking conversation. I was in no condition for it.

As the cabin emptied, I took a moment to collect my thoughts. The encounter with Keaton had been surprisingly civil, but the underlying tension still lingered in the air. I couldn’t shake off the feeling that there was more to his intentions than mere prudence. The truce was a good idea, but he could have just avoided me the entire week. I didn’t understand him.

I went to gather my luggage and get off the boat. There wasn’t as much of a line, probably because almost everyone had gotten off of the boat already. I got my bag and started heading to the lobby of the hotel to get my key.

When I entered the hotel lobby, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of eyes on me. The feeling was familiar to me, a product of years of training and survival instinct. I instinctively reached for my blade, hidden in my coat. As I discreetly scanned the room, a sense of unease washed over me, intensifying the prickling sensation on the back of my neck.

Pretending not to notice, I made my way to the reception desk, where a friendly-looking older woman greeted me with a warm smile. She was pleasant throughout our transaction and handed me a key with a smile.

Following her directions, I found my room quickly and breathed a sigh of relief once the door was closed and locked. There were two deadly werewolves on the island with me, that I knew of. And I had a temporary truce with one of them.