A Shifting Love

Chapter 6: The Origin Story

I sat there dumbfounded, processing the revelation I had just heard. Nicholas' people were shifter killers. So many questions swirled around in my head. He acted like his family played no part in being cursed. Were they really innocent, though?

I could tell Nicholas was different from the others. He had risked his safety to protect me without hesitation. There was no way he would hurt our people.

“Are you okay, baby girl?" Dad asked. “You're looking a few shades lighter, and I know that has nothing to do with me or your mama." His smile didn't meet his eyes, but I'm glad he was trying to stay calm. Unfortunately, I wasn't in a joking mood.

“Why were they even hunting shifters in the first place?" This origin story of how the Night Stalkers came to be, was still missing some key details.

“According to the legend, a group of high school athletes stumbled upon our woods one night after a game," he said.

“How is that possible?" I interjected. “We live completely isolated from humans." Shifters were aware of the tales humans had about us, but we took precautions not to expose our world unless necessary. It was best for humans and shifters not to coexist in the same environment.

“No one knows," Dad shrugged. “Maybe it was their fate for being sh*tty people."

I nodded in agreement. “Yes. The Moon Goddess always has a plan."

Dad cleared his throat and continued the story. “The teenagers saw a few wolves roaming the woods and thought it would be fun to trap them. I think you can guess what happened next," he said softly. I could see the pain in his eyes.

I nodded, trying to hold back tears. “How can people be so cruel?"

“I'll assume their reasons were probably a mixture of hatred and boredom," he said. “Boredom led them to the woods, and they hated wolves because of myths they heard in their world."

I scoffed at how ignorant humans were. “Yeah. That makes a lot of sense."

Dad glanced at his watch. He probably had an important meeting starting soon. Alpha August was an extremely busy man. I don't know how he had time for anything.

“For a week, the humans returned to our woods, looking for wolves to hunt," he resumed. “During one botched attempt, an injured wolf had shifted back into non-wolf form, exposing the secret. That's when the Goddess stepped in."

My eyes were open so wide from the shock that I felt they would fall out of their sockets.

“Wow!"

“She had to protect our world, or those humans would have exposed it."

Too bad so many innocents died when she could have interfered before then, I thought. We were not to question or speak critically of the Goddess out loud.

“Did all of them participate in hurting the shifters?" I asked, thinking about Nicholas' dad, who claimed he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“Most of them stood around and watched as a few of their buddies did the gruesome stuff," he said. “They all are guilty as far as I'm concerned, and I'm grateful to the Moon Goddess for punishing them as well."

I thought of the shadowy creatures I had seen the night before. Nicholas had told me they transform at sundown. “What exactly do they look like?"

“You have a lot of questions about these a*sholes," he said, stroking his chin.

“Just curious."

“Humans by day. Ugly a** deformed-looking wolves by night." He replied bluntly. His response was harsh but expected. It was apparent he hated the Night Stalkers.

I twirled a loose strand of hair around my finger, pondering the best way to ask my next question. “So, the bystanders also got cursed just for being there, even though they didn't do anything violent?"

“Are you really innocent when you continue to watch a person's harmful behavior towards another?" he queried. “In my opinion, you're just as guilty as the person committing the offense."

That was a valid point, but it wasn't fair that Nicholas and any other offspring of the original group had to suffer the consequences as well.

“Surely, they're not all monsters, though." Dad's shoulders stiffened, but I continued. “If they are trying to reverse the curse, maybe some of them aren't hurting people." Nicholas never mentioned finding a way to end the curse, but I assumed many Night Stalkers wanted their punishment to be over, especially those who got cursed by association.

“There is no cure for them," Dad said, eyeing me suspiciously. “And as far as I'm concerned, all of the Night Stalkers are monsters."

“But—"

“There are no 'buts', Autumn," he interrupted, slightly raising his voice.

“Don't you think we should try to help them before something terrible happens?"

He leaned forward in his seat, and his brown eyes beamed with fury. “Is there something you're not telling me?"

My hands had gotten sweaty and shaky. I gripped the chair cushion on both sides, hoping to calm my nerves. Dad's Alpha face didn't scare me, but I feared I had said too much. “I'm sorry, Dad. I won't mention it again."

“You're d*mn right you won't," he replied, rising from his chair and adjusting his vest. “I don't want your sisters hearing about this. Do you understand?"

I nodded. “Yeah."

We said our goodbyes. Dad went off to take care of his duties as Alpha. As soon as I got outside the university doors, I sprinted toward the woods; the sunlight beat down on my bare shoulders, mocking me. I had to tell Nicholas everything I had learned, but how would I find him?