Chapter 4 – Flower Of Carnage

Julia POV.

PRESENT DAY.

I wait patiently at the bottom of the rocky hill for the old man to return. Damien and Pete run around aimlessly at a distance. They have nothing to play with, no toys, no board games. Surviving every single day is a monumental task for them. Running around on wild terrain is the closest they can ever come to being a kid.

It’s the only reminder that they are still kids.

Alpha Leander returns with the water jars filled up to the brim after a long while. Long enough for my mind to wander and race. Long enough for me to throw a volley of questions at his direction once he hands over the water jars to me.

“Thank you … Alpha,” I remark gratefully. “You have been so kind. But I need to know something before I bid you goodbye.”

“Shoot,” he says and slumps on the rocks looking visibly tired and a little out of breath.

“How did you know I was born on a full moon night? And what connection does that have with Luke’s untimely demise and my survival?”

Lee takes a deep breath. His dark eyes look piercingly sharp in the afternoon sun. Glowing with an unfathomable intensity that defies his age. His long silver hair gets swept aside in the wind. His wrinkled face looks like a map engraved in stone.

“How did I know?” he responds slowly in his usual gravelly voice. “Because I share your fate. I was born on a full moon, too. I was blessed by the Moon Goddess. I am the only survivor of my pack just like you are. I am still unharmed and breathing just as you are. It’s not just willpower that has made you and me survive the apocalypse. It’s destiny.”

“How so?” I can’t believe a word he says. I stopped believing in miracles and lost my faith the day Luke died.

And yet, I am mesmerized by what this old Alpha has to say.

“Wolves born on a full moon night are blessed directly by the Moon Goddess. They are special. They are natural leaders. That’s why most of them, if not all, turn out to be Alphas and Lunas at a later date. They crave intensity, passion and spotlight. They are strong willed and not averse to taking risks. They are ‘all or nothing’ individuals who hunger for new experiences.”

Lee pauses. Lee takes a deep breath and stares directly into my eyes. He is aware of the impact his words are having on me. He continues his speech without removing his piercing gaze from my face.

“Full moon Alphas and Lunas are also cursed in a way. Their blessing is their curse. They will always feel pulled in 2 different directions in life. They may go to extremes to fulfil their desires and achieve their goals. I am sure you have had these experiences in your young life already. Because I have had plenty in my long life.”

I listen in rapt attention and do not interrupt him with any more queries. Everything he just said about me happens to be true. But destiny? Blessing? Fate? I do not believe in them anymore.

The only blessing that I can think of right now is being alive. And keeping my children alive. I watch them play in the dirt and mutter to myself, “Those two pups are the only blessing that I need. Their wellbeing and safety is the only destiny that I crave. Their fate is my fate.”

“I know what you are thinking,” Lee tells me as he gets up from the rock and starts walking towards his truck. “You are destiny’s least favorite child. You probably grew up in squalor and spent the last 5 years in violence. But you are the flower of that violence. It has burnt you, shaped you, sharpened you and toughened you up. It has given you a rebirth. It is that abandonment of fate that has kept you alive till now. And it will help you achieve the impossible.”

I say nothing. I keep quiet. My mind wanders off to memories of Luke and his sermon-like statements which were not much different from this old Alpha’s.

“You are the Warrior Luna I have heard so often about, aren’t you?” Lee interrupts my train of thought. “You are the one who faced off an entire pack of rogues to save your kids. How many did you kill that day?”

I don’t respond.

“So, how many did you end up killing that day in Blackburn?” Lee asks again in his slow measured tone, choosing his words carefully. “Or, in Sentinel City? Or, at Whistling Woods?”

“I don’t know,” I reply irritatedly. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Well … as you wish,” Lee turns around and faces me again. “But I have been hearing about the Warrior Luna’s exploits for the past 4 years. And there is someone at my place who is absolutely enthralled and enamoured by those stories.”

“Who? Your children?” I retort sharply. “Why do you care about my past? What’s your interest?”

“My children have been dead a long time now,” he responds in a deadpan voice. “My entire family and pack perished years ago as I had told you earlier. But, my interest in you is not a superficial one. I believe you are alive and standing today only because you are a Moon Wolf.”

That destiny crap again! How do I convince him that there is no such thing? Aren’t the last 5 years proof enough? But I decide to let it go.

Instead, I change the topic.

“So, if it’s not your children, who is it that is so fascinated by stories of the Warrior Luna?” I ask him point blank.

“Come to my place and you will see,” he opens the door of his rundown pickup truck, inviting me to get in. “I live just around the bend behind those hills. Your kids could rest for sometime and have something to eat while you get to meet your secret admirer.”

I nod and accept his proposal. Not reluctantly but readily. I find it very lucrative. A place to rest and eat before we are on the move again. I hop in with the kids and ask them to buckle up on the back seat.