Midnight Moon’s Embrace

Chapter One

The phone’s shrill ring cut through the tranquil air or Mara’s kitchen, drawing her attention away from her sketch pad in front of her. With a deft moment, she lifted the phone to her ear, her lips curling into a smile even before she spoke.

“Hello, Jess,” she greeted, her voice warm and familiar, the receiver nestled against her ear at a slight angle as she leaned against the counter.

As Jess’s voice filtered through the line, Mara’s face lit up, her grin widening with each word. “ I won’t be coming home early tonight,” she declared, excitement bubbling in her voice.

“It’s my birthday,after all, I’ll be heading to the club after my rehearsal.”

Her fingers absentmindedly traced shapes on the notepad in front of her. The pen danced across the paper as she listened to Jess’s response. “ I won’t be lying to her her,” Mara added, a mischievous glint in her eyes, “ but I won’t be going straight to her either,”

“Grey asked about you, what’s going on with you guys?” Jess asked.

“We’re just friends and besides he doesn’t like me in that way,” Mara replied.

“You never know,” Jess added.

Just then her mum trudged into the room, her shoulders slumped with the weight of the painting she struggled to carry. With a sigh of relief, she dropped it in the corner before making her way into the kitchen.

“Hello you,” her mum greeted, her voice tinged with weariness as she glanced at Mara.

“He said you should call him,” Mara relays to her mum, her gaze still fixed at the notepad in front of her.

Her mum’s response was a raised eyebrow and a smirk playing at the corner of her lips. Before she could retort, Anthony entered the kitchen, his hands laden with shopping bags.

“ Hello, Anthony.” Mara greeted, her eyes lighting up at his arrival, even as she juggled the phone, the sketchpad, and her greeting.

“How’s it going, ladies?” Anthony asked, maneuvering the bags onto the kitchen counter.

“ I need to go get dressed for my rehearsal,” Mara announced, finally tearing her gaze away from the notepad as she set it down and headed out of the kitchen, leaving the others to their own device.

Debby, in the midst of tidying the kitchen, stumbled upon Mara’s sketchpad.

As she gazed at the drawing within, her features contorted with a mixture of surprise and sadness. With trembling hands, she held it out to Anthony, her eyes brimming with unspoken emotions, her complexion growing paler by the moment.

Anthony’s eyebrows shut up in disbelief, Marveling at Mara’s unexpected artistic talent, prompting unspoken questions about the complexity of their lives.

Debby's hands moved with urgency as she swiftly folded the book shut, her finger trembling slightly. Without a moment’s hesitation, she flung it into a nearby bin. Her breath caught in her throat, her eyes darting around nervously, with fear of discovery.

Mara stepped into the kitchen, her gaze immediately drawn to the spot where she had left her note.as her hand reached out expectantly, her finger grasped only empty air. Confusion knitted her brow as she scanned the room,searching for any sign of the missing paper.

“Who used my note”? She asked aloud, her voice tinged with a mix of frustration and concern.

“How are you feeling” Debby asked.

Mara’s reply came with a forced cheerfulness that barely masked her true feelings.” Fine, fine, mom,” she muttered, the words escaping her lips with a hint of reluctance.

Mara responded fine fine, with a confused face

The mother’s directive hung in the air,laden with unspoken concern as she implored Mara, “make sure you come home straight tonight.”

Mara's response came swiftly, her tone tinged defiance veiled beneath a causal demeanor. “It’s only poetry, mum,” she retorted, her words carrying a subtle edge of dismissal.

Make sure you come straight home tonight, Debby says.

Come on mum, it’s just a poetry reading Mara responded as she shook her head, aiming for the doorway

I know Debby replies as she stretches her hand to touch Mara’s hair.

Bye, Debby says as she waves her hand with a little smile on her face as Mara works out of the door.

Anthony turned his head immediately with a fierce look and a bold deep voice. He says “you need to talk to jack immediately”.

“She’s not ready, not yet,” Mara’s mother declared with a hint of concern in her voice.

Anthony leaned forward, his conviction evident in his tone. “Yes she is, “he asserted, locking eyes with Mara’s mother.

“You know she is.”

“Sorry guys, I can’t continue with the rehearsal,” Jess announced, her voice tinged with fatigue. “I need some coffee.”

“Mara, do you want one too?”

Mara glanced up from her script, a grateful smile touching her lips. “Yeah that sounds good,” she replied, appreciating Jess’s thoughtfulness.

Mara pressed on with the rehearsal, her focus unwavering even in Jess’s absence. Moments later, Jess returned, balancing two steaming cups of coffee.

“There you go,” Jess announced, extending one of the cups to Mara with a warm smile.

“Thanks,” Mara replied, her gratitude evident in both her words and the smile that graced her lips as she accepted the coffee.

After the rehearsal, they both walked down the street. “ I think she’s struggling with her scripts,” Mara remarked, concern lacing her voice.

“ Maybe her script is great, but we just haven’t realized it yet,” Jess countered, her tone reflective.

As they keep on strolling down the street, Mara gestures towards him and turns to Jess. “Hey, let’s go in here, I need to ask about something, “she suggested.

Jess glanced at the long line of people waiting to enter the club and shocked her head. “ We'll never get in there,” she remarked, her voice tinged with skepticism.

With a flick of her hand, Mara removed her hairpin, letting her head cascade down her back. “Such an optimist,” she quipped in response to Jesse's doubts.

Jess smiled at her friend’s spontaneity. “ This is so not like you,” she teased, as they made their way towards the club bouncers, Mara leading the way with a confident sway of her shoulders, Jess following close behind.

“Hey, what does that symbol mean?” Mara inquired, gesturing toward a mysterious emblem on the club’s entrance.

The bouncer furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “What symbol ?” he asked, scanning the area.

Simultaneously, Jess echoed Mara’s question. “ Yeah, what symbol?” She added, joining in the search.

Mara’s eyes lit up as she spotted the symbol.

“There it is! You don’t see it?” She exclaimed.

Before the bouncer could respond, a man ahead of them approached, whispering something in the bouncer’s ear. Moments later, the bouncer nodded and gestured for them to enter, a smile gracing his lips.

As they passed through the entrance, Jess turned to Mara with a grin. “Hey, that was cool,” she remarked, impressed by the unexpected stroke of luck.

Amidst the pulsating rhythm of the music, Jess leaned in towards Mara. Do you want a drink?” She shouted over the loud beats.

“Yes Mara responded.”

As Jess moved away to fetch drinks, Mara’s attention was drawn to the man who had assisted them earlier. His presence seemed to linger in her mind, an enigmatic figure amidst the swirling chaos of the club.

Unable to shake off her curiosity, Mara found herself fixated on him, her gaze unwavering as she watched his interactions. A woman approached him, and together they disappeared into the dimly lit recesses of the club.

From her vantage point, Mara could still observe them, the shadow playing tricks on her senses as she strained to make out their movements. Then, in a choking turn of events, the man was suddenly attacked, his life slipping away before her very eyes.

Shock rippled through Mara as she witnessed the tragic scene unfold before her. Panic surged within her, her mind racing to comprehend the gravity of the situation. In the chaos of the club, amidst the postulating music and flashing lights, a sinister truth had been revealed, leaving Mara reeling with a new found sense of dread.

As Mara witnessed the fatal encounter, her heart clenched with dread as tears welled in her eyes. To her horror, she noticed the assailant bore the same symbol she had been unconsciously sketching.

Frozen to fear, Mara’s gaze met the killer’s, who suddenly recognized her true nature-a wolf, a revelation that she herself had yet to fully grasp.

“Why was he staring at me like that? Could there be a connection between us? Why is that symbol on his hands ?” Mara thoughts keep going through her head.