<b>Chapter </b><b>173 </b>
Conrad POV
I spent some time in the kitchen that day with Mary and Liam. Jace even goes for a run with Valen to reconnect. We did a lot more talking and got a lot of things off our chests. I know I hurt Mary the most, so that will take more time.
It’s mid–afternoon before I head to my final stop for the day. I walk up to the small house that blends into the others in this zone. One where most werewolves rarely go.
“Hey, Connor. You got time to talk before Ste is out of school?“.
He looks at me skeptically. I have never actually been to his house before. “Yeah sure. What’s
up?“.
I enter the living room, and it looks neat but in. I know as a single dad, he probably doesn’t care much about decor, but there were a few little details like the nt in the blue pot on the mantle piece. That’s when I smell a scent that has been here often.
I look at him, confused. “You and Kimberly“.
He chuckles. “Yeah. Nearly three months now. Ste loves her and is happy to have someone do her hair properly in the morning. Don’t think that is why you’re here though“.
I steel my resolve as I need answers, but I know I might not like them.
“I need to know more about hunters. Your powers and what you’re capable of“.
He stares at me, shocked. “Oh, can you tell me why?“.
“I’m trying to work something out, and I need to know“.
He sighs and heads to the kitchen to start making coffee. Thinks he needs something to hold as much as I do for this chat. He starts to exin as he stirs in the sugar.
“Willow has actually filled in some of the gaps for us, as it’s not just the werewolves that are lost at the moment. As you know, an Alpha King rejected his blessed mate 500 years ago to gain power and status. That is why the werewolf curse started. In his quest for power, he started enving wolves using the Alphamand so they had no choice but to obey him. This continued for generations. About 300 years ago, when werewolves started attacking humans in droves, the Moon Goddess blessed some humans with the power to kill a werewolf. It’s said that the bloodshed between her children broke her spirit, and she couldn’t continue to
watch them destroy each other and be more corrupt. We were tasked with telling the difference between a corrupt wolf and a pure wolf“.
“How can you tell?“.
“Wolves can sense each other’s auras so they can tell the status and power of another–wolf. It’s a simr power, but we can sense soul energy. Everyone’s soul changes through life. Children’s souls are always pure, but as they grow and be adults, their souls change. They be fractured. Some be corrupt. Hunters are meant to be able to tell the difference between this, so we know who is beyond saving and who is a risk to others, so we can kill them“.
That makes me freeze. “What do you mean, meant to?“.
“That’s what I mean by we have lost our way as well. We have been missing signs of what is good and bad, so we haven’t been able to warn you. Hunters for thest 150 years have just been killing all wolves because we stopped being able to tell the difference as much. Some think it because we haven’t seen that many good wolves and everyone has some bad in them, so it was safer to just kill them all“.
I think back on the past with Connor and how we met. “What changed your mind about Liam and me when we met? I know we saved Ste at the time, but why not kill uster?“.
“Because Ste told me not to. She said she likes you both, Liam a little more than you. I had lost everything but her, so I went with what she said“.
I stare at him, shocked. “You’re telling me the only reason you didn’t kill me was the word of a
four–year–old“.
“Yep“.
“I need to buy her a pony or something“.
We both let out an awkwardugh before returning to silence. I sit in for a moment and just stare at the coffee now gone cold in my hands. The mug no longer brings warmth<b>, </b><b>just </b>emptiness<b>, </b>
“Why are you really here, Conrad?“.
“I think you know why“.
He leans forward and looks me in the eye. “You weren’t yourself when possessed by the
shadows“.
“That’s technically not true. Yes, they possessed me. But even before the shadows, I wanted to hurt them. I tortured and killed a wolf in front of his mate, and I enjoyed it. Even now, I don’t regret it. I beat and terrorised Cordelia cause I wanted to. All of it was for revenge. It wasn’t who I thought I was, but I know that part of me is still there“.
Connor takes a deep breath and leans back in the chair. “So that’s why you’re here. You want to know if you’re corrupt“.
“Yes“.
“And what if I tell you, you are. You want me to kill you. The Alpha King. You know what they would do to everybody, including the hunters living here. You have given us not just a home and employment, Conrad. You’ve given us ourmunity and purpose back. The night you killed Bake, we had this discussion, and we knew we couldn’t do it. Not to you“.
“Not even if it protects others in the long run“.
He gets up and starts pacing the room. The tension in the room crackles. I just watch as he paces back and forth.
He eventually snaps at me. “This is why we set up the justice system together, Conrad. So wolves would stop killing each other and we could give them a fair trial“.
“And if another wolf did what I did, they would be in the cells. You would have hunted them. Don’t deny it. I would be tried for what I did. Why am I the exception? How will I know if I’m good enough and not too corrupt to do this?“.
“You’ve fuck up, Conrad. We’ve all been there. But you have done more for all of humanity in ten years than your ancestors did in 500, Two back months possessed by darkness shouldn’t
erase that,
“But it doesn’t excuse it either“.
We both jump when the door opens and see Kimberly and Ste walk in.
“Daddy, why are you mad at Alpha King?“,
<b>Chapter </b>Comments
LIKE
POST COMMENT NOW