Chapter 4
TEN YEAR LATER (HUMAN WORLD)
EVIE
I kept pacing back and forth in the room, my whole body trembling with emotions, wondering why I'd just been summoned to my son's school. Just then the door flung open, revealing a well…. Now the familiar face of a middle-aged woman as she walked majestically to the seat in front of me.
“I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting, Miss Evie,” Mrs. Julie apologized, taking my hands in a handshake, gesturing for me to sit down.
“Mrs. Julie, I came the minute I got your call. Is Ethan okay? Where's my son? Did something happen to him?” I fired at her, my heart pounding against my chest as I could no longer contain it anymore.
“Woah, Miss Evie, please take it easy on yourself now, okay…” she retorted sharply.
“How can I possibly do that when you haven't told me how my Ethan is doing? Where's he?” I snarled, my voice echoing loudly through the room, making her flinch as she stared at me in awe.
“Get yourself together, Evie!!!” Cyan shot back at me, as the tone of my voice got higher with each word. “Could you at least allow the lady to speak?!” she added sternly.
I clutched my hands to the seat I was trying to keep my emotions in check.
“Uhm… I'm sorry…” I apologized through clenched teeth, slumping back in my seat and staring at her.
She slowly moved forward, picking up the telephone, dialing a number, and said some inaudible words. But they weren't inaudible to me, as I could hear her perfectly with my wolf abilities; she said, “I need you in my office right now.”
A few minutes later, the door flung open, revealing two huge men dressed in security uniforms as they stood at the far end of the room.
“See, you scared her,” Cyan growled at me. I heaved a deep sigh of frustration as I slammed my hands against my face.
“Listen here, Mrs. Julie, trust me, I didn't mean to go overboard like that. I'm just worried for my son…” I said, my voice calmer but firm.
“Miss Evie, that's what I've been trying to tell you…. Ethan is fine…” she blurted out.
I clutched my hands tightly to my chest, letting out an audible sigh of relief and closing my eyes.
“Ethan got into a fight that landed his opponent in the infirmary, Miss Evie,” she added sternly, her voice laced with venom.
“What?!” I exclaimed in shock, jolting my eyes open as I stared at her.
“There you have it, Miss Evie, that's what I've been trying to tell you. This is the fifth time Ethan is getting into a fight, and every single time he overpowers his mates and leaves them barely alive… It got the parents talking...” she said.
My heart raced in my chest as I closed my eyes in frustration. I thought we talked about this, Ethan? I mumbled under my breath.
“Can I see him?” I asked softly.
“Sure you can,” she replied, dialing another number on the landline, and minutes later, my boy was brought to me in a healthy state, though his clothes were torn; he had no other marks on him.
“Ethan,” I called, rushing to his side and pulling him into a hug. We stayed like that for some minutes before I released him from my grip; my eyes danced around the moon pendant that hung loosely on his neck, making me wonder how he was able to still possess such powers with his pendant on.
“Ethan? What is this I'm hearing about fighting? I thought we'd discussed it.” I fired at him.
“Mummy, it wasn't my fault; it was Ricky, he wouldn't stop making fun of me…. He made the entire class start calling me a beast… again…” he replied sternly; I could feel the amount of rage oozing from him.
Those words hit me like a jagged lightning bolt. I heaved a deep sigh, placing a light kiss on his head before turning my gaze back to Miss Julie. I held his hands as I approached her with a straight face.
“Did you hear that? Ethan didn't start it. My son isn't the bully; he was only trying to defend himself.” I fired at her.
“Five times?!” she shot back at me.
I swallowed hard, staring at her in disbelief. “How about you talk to the kids to stop making fun of him? My son isn't a beast!” I snarled.
“Is he not, now, Miss Evie? Because considering the stunt you tried to pull just a few minutes ago, I'm not surprised Ethan is like this. What's that saying, an apple doesn't fall far from its tree…” she retorted sternly.
“What?!” I exclaimed, staring at her in disbelief.
“Yes, Miss Evie, this is the fifth time something like this is happening, and I can't continue to let it slide each time, else we'll lose the other students. So I'm sorry, but Ethan has been expelled!” she blurted out.
“What?! No, no, no, you can't do that, Mrs. Julie…. You can't possibly expel him because of a fight?!” I fired at her.
“Yes, I can, Miss Evie. If I don't, the other parents might sue me, and I'll lose my job, so no, I'm not willing to take that risk. You know how hard it is to find a job in this part of the city, don't you?” she fired at me.
“No, no, come on, Mrs. Julie… Okay, I'm truly sorry for how I acted, alright? I'm sure there's another way out or something… Maybe I can plead with the other parents to…” I said.
“That's a very terrible idea, Miss Evie Hart. I'm sorry, but there's absolutely nothing I can do about it this time.” She cut in sharply.
“Okay, how about this, what if I take care of the injured child’s hospital bills? How about that?” I replied.
She just shot me a stern look that said, ‘you must be blabbing.’ “Miss Evie, I doubt that would be possible. You haven't even paid Ethan's tuition fee for the term, and you speak of clearing a whopping five thousand dollar bill? ($5000)” she replied.
“What?!” I exclaimed in shock the minute she mentioned the amount. I moved my gaze to Ethan, who just stood there with an innocent look. My mind reeled through several amazing things I could get if I had such an amount of money.
“Was it that bad?” I mumbled under my breath.
“Yes, it was, Miss Evie. I hope you can see why I had to take this decision… As we speak, Ricky is in the intensive care unit and his parents are furious; your son has caused this school more damage than we can handle. I do hope you understand. Have a nice day,” she replied, standing up from her seat to leave.
“When you're ready, the security will escort you out… Ethan's things are already packed outside,” she added before storming out of the room.
I slumped in the chair where I sat, my mind a jumble of different thoughts. Oh dear goddess, why has life chosen to be so difficult for me? I cried inwardly. First, it was a whopping rejection from my mate after marking me ten years ago, then I was banished and chased out of the pack.
I fled, finding myself on the other side of the world to live with these humans. It's been from one chaos to another, as I juggled several jobs to be able to cater for my son.
Still, his powers had to start manifesting at a tender age, making life a lot worse. I've lost count of how many schools Ethan has been to for the past ten years because of one issue - his anger.
“Mommy…. I'm sorry…” he called, his voice shaky as he spoke, remorse written all over him.
I stared at him, knowing I didn't even have the strength to be mad at him; it wasn't his fault that I was rejected and lied to… It was all my fault for giving his father the luxury of marking me that night. But still, I never saw him as a mistake; if anything, he's been a blessing, just one that came following odd circumstances.
“It's okay, son, it's fine. Mommy would figure it out, alright?” I said reassuringly, grabbing my things as we made our way out of the school.
My heart felt heavy with each step I took. I picked up his things, which were neatly arranged in a box just outside the school's gate as we headed to the train station. “Oh dear goddess, help me,” I cried.