"Calm yourself first, Jonea. I'm sure they're fine."
"What did you say? You say you're sure they're all right? Does that mean you haven't met and seen their situation firsthand?"
Jonea was about to run, but Miller held her back.
"I'm looking for our parents to the village around the forest. I found their trail. So, I'm sure they are fine now and are hiding in a safe place."
"Then let's go find your parents now." Aland suddenly appeared behind them.
It's almost morning. They left the forest and headed for the nearby villages. Miller managed to follow in the footsteps of his parents. However, the trail disappeared once they were out of the forest.
"Of course, they erased and hid the tracks," Jonea commented. "If not, of course, the hunters will catch them."
"Do any of you have any ideas? Where do you think your parents will hide in a situation like this? I don't think they would leave you guys without a clue." Aland gave his opinion.
Jonea and Miller exchanged glances.
"Of course, there is one place they might go now. And that place is the only place we will go should something bad happen to any of us."
They move again and race against time. The sun was already getting higher. Aland could feel the threat of danger approaching.
***
That morning, Mrs. Abraham had arrived at the outskirts of Shora City. This small town borders the Blue Sapphire country and the Black Crater country–the land of the Dragons.
Shora City is a very pretty small town. The place is visited by many tourists both for business and for tourism. However, in that small town, some rebels have been constantly opposing the policies of the Blue Sapphire country.
"We've built a defensive camp in this town for the last year, ma'am," reported one of the troop commanders who led several packs affiliated with the Abraham Pack.
"And you still haven't found them? What's so hard about finding a small family that's so poor and doesn't have the resources to protect themselves?"
The troop commander looked grim. "Mr. Hunter has always given us tasks to focus on protecting the border. He kept an eye on us. We barely even had time to find the Fallon family."
"The rebellion has been crushed," said Mrs Abraham. "I think they are having fun because they think the battle is over. Precisely now is an important moment for us to carry out the attack and clean up."
Mrs. Abraham summoned her personal assistant. The man hands over a document. The secret document was handed over by Mrs. Abraham to the troop leader.
"You don't need to work for Hunter anymore. He's having a great time in his condo at the moment. Even last night, he came home drunk. This is the right time for us to move. This document contains all the latest data and information about the Fallon family. I give you 12 hours to drag Miller Fallon in front of me and eliminate the rest of his family."
Mrs. Abraham came out of the military operations commander's tent. She stood on a dais in the middle of the open area. Around her had gathered the warriors and hunters from the combined pack loyal to her.
They all gathered there to pay their respects to Mrs. Abraham. There are more than five hundred troops who are all well-trained.
So amazing and so thrilling. They all simultaneously saluted and swore allegiance to Mrs. Abraham.
Mrs. Abraham looked so satisfied and smiled proudly to herself. After her father's death, the woman gets rid of her husband and sends him abroad. Suddenly, Hunter is the only heir to Alpha.
So far, Mrs. Abraham has been in control of all leadership. Because Hunter is considered too young. Even though Hunter can lead, Mrs. Abraham constantly manipulates him so that the power remains in her hands.
***
Jonea, accompanied by Miller and Aland, arrived at a small village not far from Shora City. The small town looks so peaceful and seems unaffected by the fighting on the border. The inhabitants are even seen busy farming and raising livestock.
"Are we still far from our destination?" asked Aland, who always looked nervous and alert throughout their journey.
"No, we're almost there. The house is slightly separated from the village. We'll find out later after passing through several of these farms."
In summer, villagers are busy harvesting various types of food crops. As Jonea and the others passed a farm with sorghum ready to be harvested, someone waved at the girl.
"Uncle?" Jonea was surprised to barely recognize her uncle.
Jonea approached the man who was in the sorghum field.
"Jonea and Miller? You guys have grown this big. The last time you parted, you were only five years old. Your parents decided to leave the village and move to the city."
Jonea and Miller have no time for nostalgia. Jonea attacked her uncle with one question that kept bothering her.
"Did our parents come here?"
The man in his late 60s hesitated a little. He glanced at Aland, who felt foreign to him. The man didn't even dare to answer Jonea's question.
"He's a friend," Jonea said. "He's the one who helped us get here safely. Uncle need not worry about him. Just tell us, did our parents come here?"
Several times the man kept glancing at Aland. Finally, he nodded. The man pointed in a direction behind the sorghum fields.
"Last night, your parents arrived here. They're in the old shack behind the fields."
"Thank you, Uncle. We will never forget your kindness and help," said Miller.
"Jonea… Miller… I don't know what trouble you're in. I also don't know what predicament you guys are facing right now. But I hope you don't stay here too long. After all, I've taken a risk by letting you guys stop here. Our village was pretty peaceful all this time–"
Even though her heart felt tight, Jonea tried to understand. She nodded and promised her uncle that she would leave there soon without causing a mess.
They rushed to the old hut shown by the uncle.
"Something's a bit annoying," muttered Aland. "If your uncle last saw you when you was five years old, how could he recognize you with just one look?"
Jonea and Miller stopped.
"Maybe from our photos. Because we also recognized him from the photo Mama showed us."
Aland tried to ignore his suspicions.
They arrive at the hut. The hut is made of wooden planks and overgrown with reeds around it. From the outside, the place looks uninhabited. Cautiously, Miller stepped in first after confirming there was no threat.
"I'll keep watch outside," Aland said. "Use your precious time with your family, Jonea."
Jonea was almost crying. She let go of Aland's hand and immediately followed, drooling, into the hut to meet her parents.
"Mom?"
Mrs. Fallon let go of Miller's embrace and turned to Jonea.
"You are okay?" asked the mother.
Jonea nodded. "How about you guys? What really happened? We went camping and–"
The mother stopped Jonea's words. She pointed at Mr. Fallon, who had been lying shivering in the old bed.
"What happened to Daddy?" Jonea and Miller ran to where their father lay.
"Your Dad was injured on the way here. We fled when the camp was attacked. Maybe we were lucky at that time because we used the last potion to disguise our scent."
Jonea and Miller knelt beside their father's bed. The man lay unconscious with a high body temperature. There was a sizeable wound on his left leg from being entangled in an animal trap in the forest.
"Mom, we have to take him to the hospital."
"There's nothing we can do at this point. Jonea… Miller… come and sit here. I want to talk to you guys."
The three of them sat at a small dining table with 4 chairs. Jonea and Miller sat side by side. Ahead of them was an uneasily seated Mrs. Fallon.
"I saw those eyes," the mother said, looking at Miller. "You've got all your memories back?"
Miller nodded grimly and told his mother everything that had happened at school. Oddly enough, Mrs. Fallon was not the least bit surprised.
Mrs. Fallon looked down and couldn't hold back the tears. She sobbed and repeatedly apologized to both Jonea and Miller.
"You shouldn't have awakened the Lycan soul in you, Miller. You should have remained human to protect your safety and your sister."
Jonea shook her head in disbelief. She tried to deny that fact. In the end, Jonea demanded an explanation from her mother.
"Is it true that there is lycan blood in our bodies? Are you two actually lycans? Is it just one of you? Because only Miller can change, and I can't."
Mrs. Fallon was speechless.
"Perhaps now is the time for you to know the truth. And we don't have much time left to accompany you."
"What are you talking about, Mom?" he asked. "Don't say such terrible things. I will protect you. Whatever happens, we will always be together. I'm taking Dad to the hospital. I'm a lycan. I'm even much stronger than the werewolves out there."
"But, you are alone, Miller!" said the mother with great emphasis. "You are alone; they may even number in the thousands or perhaps in the millions. Who knows?"
Mrs. Fallon rose from her seat and went over to the couch where her husband was lying. After glancing briefly at her husband, who was still unconscious, Mrs. Fallon took the hemp bag she always carried with her. From inside the bag, she took out an old leather-bound book.
For as long as Jonea and Miller could remember, her mother had had the book since they were not born. Her mother always cared for and guarded the book and never allowed anyone to touch it.
The mother sat back down across from Miller and Jonea. She put down the old book and pushed it toward the two of them.
"All the answers you ever wanted to know are in here."