The Silver Cauldron

Damian's POV

I was standing a yard away, and I was captivated by her stormy gray eyes.

She was an instant mystery that unfolded before my very own eyes.

"Are you alright?" I asked her.

"I . . . I . . ." She blinked, her chest heaving as she swallowed hard. She looked to her left and then her right, and behind her, searching, unsure.

"Are you badly hurt?" I asked, my voice almost in a whisper. She hadn't noticed the small cut on the back of her hand but I did. And the blood was about to reach the surface.

She clutched her hand against her chest, trying to calm herself, and slow down the beating of her heart.

"He's"

"He's gone," I answered.

"Ar.... Are you sure?"

"I think my presence must have scared him off. Here, it's clean you've got a cut on the back of your hand," I told her.

It was only then she turned her hand over to see. Her brows came together in a frown, it was probably the least of her problems then, "Oh, it's not much."

"Still, you should keep it covered," I said, and my hand was still outstretched. I needed her to take the handkerchief.

She lifted her eyes back up at me before she took it. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." I could see behind the panic and the gratitude. There was something else gnawing at me from the strange woman's gaze, rooting me which brought some unfamiliar heat to my senses.

"He just. . . came out of nowhere," she said, as she dabbed at her hand.

"He must have thought he'd be lucky," I told her.

I've had my fair share of encounters with roadside strangers. If only the blonde-haired woman standing in front of me knew how pale in contrast every second that passed in our silence was to many others, she wouldn't be so calm.

She shook her head and sighed, "God," tucking her hair behind her ear.

"You're alright now."

The next move I finally made was towards her.

I heard as her heart skipped a beat. Wa

What was that about? Some subtlety or not? I took the handkerchief from her. "May I?" I asked.

She hesitated, then she held her hand forward. I've lived long enough to say I've seen it all, but never have I seen time pause.

Time suddenly stood still as our fingers brushed each other.

Why the hell was I so calm in front of her? I definitely hadn't met her before. I would have noticed her smell. I just could not take my eyes off of her.

Who was she?

What was she?

"Thank you," She let out.

"Of course."

Nothing about this made sense. Not my sudden domestication. Not the strange woman's comfort being so close to me, a stranger, just moments after almost being assaulted by one.

I stepped away and looked at the flat tire of her car. This was obviously the reason why the vagabond had pulled a knife on her. Seen her vulnerability and took the chance.

"Are you sure he's gone? Shouldn't I call the police or something?" she asked, and I could sense the panic still there.

"He's definitely not coming back," I answered. I would know this because I had broken both of his hands and dumped his unconscious body somewhere in the abandoned building behind her.

"And how are you so sure about that?" she asked.

It sounded as if she was suspicious of me. Maybe I had planned it with the attacker who wouldn't be coming back anytime soon.

Anyway, I didn't want to tell her the truth. That I had hurt the guy. It was better I just allayed her fears.

"Just trust me on this one, will you?" I said to her.

She hesitated for a second, eyes scanning me as if she could very well tell if I was lying or if I was telling the truth.

To me, she looked so vulnerable. And I felt this sudden urge to protect her at all costs.

She rubbed her shoulders and asked me, "So, what are we going to do about my car?"

"About your car?" I asked. "Well, I am going to help you fix it. Do you have a spare tyre?"

She nodded her head in the affirmative.

"Good. I don't expect you have the tools for that, do you?" I asked.

She shook her head, suddenly losing her power of speech.

"Just stay right here and I'll get them from my car, all right?" I said, and my hands were spread right in front of me to tell her that there was no need to worry.

There wasn't anyway. I could smell a heartbeat miles away, so I could tell that we weren't expecting any company.

I got the tools from my car and the spare tyre from hers, and proceeded to fix the flat.

"Where are you headed?" I asked her.

"Home," she said.

"Is it a long way?"

"Quite."

"Good thing I found you, right?"

"Thank you. For your help."

She was standing so close to me and I could feel her presence. It was like some immovable object that was trying to intrude into my private space. How possible was that?

"Sure," I told her.

She had a new tyre after I was done and her car was as good as new.

I returned my tools to my car, cleaned my hands and went back to meet her.

I didn't know what made me say it but the words just came right out of my mouth. "I should see you home. Just to be sure you get home safe. If that's alright with you."

"Thank you for your help but I can't trust you with my location."

"I understand. I don't have to follow you home."

She agreed and we were on our way. The drive took six minutes. I got out of mine and she wound down her driver's side.

"Make sure you treat that," I pointed to her hand.

"I will. Thank you again," she said and offered me her hand.

I took it and that's when I saw it.

Zelene's POV

He took the hand I offered and he seemed to just freeze in place. I could tell because I had seen a lot of people in that very trance. Usually at the hospital where I worked as a nurse.

But why had that happened the moment he shook my hand?

I had to admit that I felt something but it was almost latent. As if non-existent. And no matter how hard I tried, I could not reach for it anymore.

He finally let me go but his eyes were on me and his mouth was slightly open. As if he had suddenly realized something surprising. I wanted to ask him what the problem was but it was already late and it was rather awkward.

So I drove towards my place.

I stayed with my friend, Dalia, and she was a busybody.

She was there when I opened the door and walked in.

"Haven't slept, I see," I said.

She was clad in a bum short and a spaghetti top. Her hair was tied and she didn't seem happy. "What happened?"

"I ran into some inconvenience," I said to her

"What sort of inconvenience?" she asked, and joined me on the couch.

"Some vagabond pulled a knife on me and tried to, you know.."

Her hands flew to her mouth. "Oh, my gosh. Are you okay?"

"Just a scratch," I showed the wrapped wound to her and her eyes went ostrich eggs.

"You fought him off?"

"No, I had help. Someone was there. Seemed like he scared the vagabond away."

"Was it a man?" she asked.

"Yeah, it was. He wanted to ensure that I got home safe but I didn't want to show him where I lived."

"Why? Did he act strange?"

I thought about the question and the answer I would give to it. Well, was the man strange? Somewhat. He had appeared out of nowhere and he seemed to go into some kind of trance after shaking my hand.

Maybe he was a psychic and had read my future.

The question was who was he? And what was he?

"I can't say that I am entirely sure," I said.

"Thank heavens nothing happened to you , and it wasn't that bad. Wouldn't know what to tell Mikey."

The moment she mentioned the name of my son, I remembered that I had totally forgotten about the most important person in my life.

Mikey was my son, though his father and I were separated. The man just couldn't bear to look at us and have a good day. He wished that I had never kept the child. So I felt it was better to let him go and do whatever he wanted to do with his life.

After all, the fault was mine for letting him get inside my pants and eventually in between my legs. I hadn't had good sex in a very long time. And shame on me if I ever went back to Mikey's dad.

I headed straight for Mike's room and found him sound asleep. I kissed his forehead and left the room.

Dalia followed me to my room, and eventually the bathroom. She helped me wash the wound and dress it.

"Never believed my hand would be wrapped in white bandage this week," I said.

"Yeah. And would you believe that Cain called?"

I looked at her. Cain was Mike's father. I had told him to stop calling me and it seemed he had gone ahead to start calling Dalia.

"What did he want?" I asked her.

"He wants his son," Dalia said, and the look that she gave me, I knew she was somehow fed up with my relationship with Mikey's dad.

But it clearly wasn't my fault. The man had been so self-concerned that he didn't even seem to recognize me back then. But after keeping the child, he somehow had a change of heart and wants to see the son he once rejected?

Why should anyone even blame me for not answering his calls? Or not wanting to talk to him?

"I'm sorry, Dalia. I didn't even know that he'd do something like that."

"You told him to stop calling you, right?" she asked, and dropped the scissors after wrapping my hand.

"Yeah, I did that."

"But he somehow got mine and decided to call."

"What were his words?"

"Straight to the point," she said and launched into a mimic. "I want to see my son. You tell your friend that when she comes back. Make it tomorrow."

"That sounds urgent. Maybe I should get a restraining order."

She gave me a look. "Can't tell you what to do with your life, Zel. Just don't pull Mikey into something toxic. He's too young for that right now."

I agreed with her. I didn't want Mikey growing up knowing that his father and mother weren't on the same page. And that his father was trying hard to get back, but she was refusing.

My grandmother had told me stories of witchcraft. If only those were true and I could somehow create a magic spell, then I would use it to keep Cain away from us.

Or just make him forget we ever existed.

Before I slept that night, I thought about the mysterious man who had shown up out of the blue and chased the vagabond away. I wasn't even expecting anyone to hear my cry for help and dash in.

He had taken one hell of a risk. Maybe the vagabond wasn't that desperate and didn't want to rob another.

But one minute he was holding the knife on my face, and the next he was gone. Just like that. Poof. Replaced by someone who helped me fix my flat tyre.

Things didn't happen like that, did they? I believed in logical explanations. And I wanted to assume that was a logical explanation for what happened out there.

I looked out the window in my room. No one was watching me from the shadows.

And I was disappointed. Was hoping to see him standing right on the street. Because I wanted to meet him again.

Damian's POV

I drove home alone. Unable to think clearly after shaking her hand.

I felt a jolt just as we touched and something flashed before my eyes. I didn't see much of it. But it was enough to tell me that she was the one.

That she was meant for me.

I could trace her to where she lived. After all, I already had her scent on me. But I didn't just want to show up out of the blue. She'd become so protective of herself and it might ruin the whole thing.

Especially for me.

What to do?

I got home, poured myself a cup of Dussie and sat in my recliner staring at the moon through the open window. It called to my inner wolf but I wasn't even ready for that. I didn't listen.

I just wanted to know her. We just parted ways and I didn't even get to know her name.

I turned to my computer. Turned it on and proceeded to get to work.

There was this research that I was working on and I needed to get it done as fast as possible.

The werewolf clans were at war with the witches. And it was an ancient feud that saw no hope of ending in the nearest future.

Except I did something about it.

The search for the silver Cauldron had been on my mind and even on the lips of our most eldest Lycans. But it was kept secret because the news went out that the werewolves were looking for the one thing that could give them an advantage over the witches, then it would only get harder.

I was tasked with finding that silver Cauldron. Though, there were people on the board who thought it was only a myth and that such power never existed.

Regardless, the Alpha leader of the whole werewolf clan, Alpha Weiss, didn't think it was all a myth. And that was the reason I was looking for something that might just be a wild goose chase.

There was a thought at the back of my mind and it kept telling me that the witches would also be looking for the same thing that I was. And if they found me, then it might just be beddy bye.

I pulled up a map of Seattle and began looking for possible locations that I could visit and check for the whereabouts of the silver Cauldron.

I had already marked out some places with the X sign. Those that I had checked and found nothing. Good for me, I had not met with any resistance from the witches or those working for them as spies. I wondered why they would use humans as their informants. Probably because they were expendable and paying them was much cheaper than getting the right people to do the job.

I leaned back in my recliner. Searching for the next location, I wondered if one of them would be the exact location she lived.

She had intruded into my thoughts, again. Wasn't sure if I would be able to work that night.

My phone rang and I checked the caller ID. Sure, it was about time that Weiss talked to me and demanded feedback.

Unfortunately, last night was another dead end. The man wouldn't be happy to hear me tell him that.

I answered the call and let him speak first.

"Damian," he said.

"Weiss."

"It's been a while since we last talked."

"Have you been busy?" I asked, as if I didn't know that.

"You can't possibly begin to imagine what I have been attending to, Damian."

And he was right. Being at the helm of affairs when your whole clans were in the middle of an ancient war with witches, wasn't something that brought moments of sleep or rest to your head.

"How is it going?" I asked. I wasn't at the frontline of the madness. My task was to look for the silver Cauldron and that meant I got to stay away from the brutal scenes. Not that I was scared of it anyway.

"I should be the one asking you that, Damian. How is it going at your end?"

I paused before I answered his question. "Last night was another dead end."

He sighed deeply. Spoke to someone at the other end of the line, probably demanding for his vape.

"Last night was another dead end, you say?" he repeated and ended with a question, as if he wanted to be sure that he had heard me right.

"I got to the location and couldn't find what we needed, Weiss. It was all quiet out there."

"Did you notice anything else?" Weiss asked.

"Anything like what?"

"Was there a hideout and those involved had cleared out already?" he asked.

I thought about what he had said and found a hidden meaning to it. He must be onto something, the man.

"No. It didn't look like a hideout. If there had been people there, I would have known."

"I see."

"What do you see? Tell me. I know you are into something, Weiss. Anything you know can help me."

"I believe we have a traitor in our clan," he declared.

Well, that struck me as odd. I looked at the map again and counted the number of Xs. "A traitor? How possible is that? Or how sure are you that it is true?"

"Seventy percent sure. The witches have never had this advantage over us before. In all the years we have been at war against them. Suddenly, they seem to elude us every damn time we come close to dealing with them."

"I thought you weren't in support of the war."

"I'm just not in support of years of madness repeating itself over and over. But since the Consortium doesn't want to be reasoned with, then we respond with violence."

"We can't give them what they want?"

"What they want is our obliteration, Damian. We can't give them that. Now you have been given a task to make sure that doesn't happen. You know how important finding that silver Cauldron is, don't you?"

"I do."

"Tell me."

"It's the only way we can have victory over the witches," I said.

"Good. Now, don't fail us. Or our blood will be on your hands."