Luna Catalina (ENG)

Chapter 14

The next few days went by very quickly. The whole morning was spent training, and as we had increased our patrol hours, the afternoon and/or evening was spent on patrol. Any free time I had was spent studying all the papers I had with information about the rogue attacks and visiting Nico in the hospital. Nico was getting better, but he still hadn't woken up. 

In none of the previous attacks had anyone been reported kidnapped. But I had started to investigate and discovered that, since the attacks began a month ago, six members of the herd had disappeared. Except for a couple of them, no one had reported the disappearances. I spent my free time going around shops, cafes and parks, asking people if they knew of people who had gone missing in the last month. That's how I had discovered the six-missing people. 

Miguel always accompanied me on my scouting rounds. On days when Miguel had to patrol, Mark would always coincidentally show up to pick me up from training. Some days Kate would come too, and the three of us would have lunch at a restaurant or café, and then walk around the area asking questions to passers-by. I particularly liked Kate and Mark. I usually had a hard time making friends, but with the two of them I seemed to fit right in. They were both beautiful people and neither of them would shut up underwater. They were also very funny. 

Today was one of those days when Mark and Kate "happened" to be passing by the training camp and decided to join me on my scouting rounds. I had never asked Mark why he was coming to pick me up, but I could well imagine what his answer would be. 

I greeted them as I saw them arrive and walked over to them, saying goodbye to Miguel. We walked together to a café that had been recommended to Kate and sat down on the terrace to eat in the sun. Kate kept talking animatedly about Bela's birthday party the next day. Apparently, a lot of Alphas from nearby packs were coming, there would be a big feast, music... I couldn't have been less interested about it, so I zoomed out the conversation completely. 

-“Catalina," Kate said to me, bringing me back from my world. I looked at her apologetically, I didn't know what she had said. –“I asked you what you were wearing to the party tomorrow.”

-“Ahhh, none, I'm not going,"- I replied matter-of-factly.

-“What do you mean you're not going?" Kate asked, getting up from her chair and bringing her face close to mine. Mark and I laughed at her reaction; Kate is a drama queen. 

-“I'm not really looking forward to it," I said, watching Kate sit back down. -"Besides, someone's going to have to do the patrol rounds. Security is going to be tripled, and we need warriors on the borders. Most everyone wants to go to the party, so I don't mind being the one who doesn't."

-"I don't think you'll need to go on patrol," Mark said, "There are at least five Alphas coming with whom we have alliances. They will bring their own guards to post at the borders of the territory. There are going to be guards to spare."

Kate stirred nervously with excitement in her seat. I rolled my eyes.

-“Well, we'll see." I said, getting up, "For now, let's start asking around and see if anyone tells us anything interesting."

We started walking around, and for a couple of hours, we asked a lot of people, without getting any interesting answers. As we were about to return home, I noticed that in front of a huge building there was a big crowd of young people. It must have been the high school. Kate, Mark and I split up and started asking people questions. I approached a very pretty girl. Brunette, wavy hair and huge golden eyes. She looked like a typical popular high school girl. 

-“Excuse me, I'd like to ask you a few questions," I said, addressing her.

-“Is it compulsory?" she asked with a disgusted look on her face as she looked me up and down. 

-“Unless you want me to take you to your Alpha and have him do them in person, yes, it's mandatory," I said, giving her a hard look.

-“OK”. - She replied, breaking away from her friends. 

-“Do you know anyone you haven't seen or heard from in the last few weeks?" I asked.

-“Besides that bloodsucking Melany, no, no one." She said with what must be her usual disgusted face. 

-“What do you mean, bloodsucker?" I asked confused. 

-“You don't know?" she asked, her eyes widening. I looked at her seriously without saying anything, inviting her to continue. –“Melany's father was a vampire.”

-“Are you sure you know what you're saying? How do you know?" I said, leaning over her intimidatingly. I didn't want to be guided by what a little queen-B like this said.

-“Ask anyone you want," she said, looking at me with superiority. –“Everyone knows. I don't know who found out, but since then no one, except her freak boyfriend, has gone near her."

-"Is her mother a werewolf?" I asked, ignoring her tone. The girl nodded.

I turned away from her and looked around for Mark and Kate. Neither of them knew that Melody's father was a vampire, or where her mother lived. We decided to go to David's house. I was furious with him. I hadn't slept for four days, racking my brain for answers. If that damn kid had told me the truth, it would have saved me a lot of time. 

Vampires were frowned upon among the werewolf packs. They were dangerous and manipulative. For years vampires had killed werewolves mercilessly, to drink their blood. It is also true that a werewolf was very likely to kill a vampire if it crossed its path. However, the Moon Goddess in rare occasions paired a werewolf and a vampire. This was a very complicated situation for the couple, as they were not accepted by either race. Their children were hybrid creatures, who would never quite belong anywhere. 

I knocked impatiently on the door of David's house. A middle-aged woman opened the door. Her features were unmistakable, it was David's mother. 

-“Can I help you with anything?" she said, looking at us in surprise. 

-“We've come to see David," I said commandingly.

-“He's asleep right now," she replied.

-“Wake him up and get him downstairs immediately," Mark ordered. 

The woman nodded and went to fetch David. She could not disobey the orders of the Gamma of the pack. We went into the lounge and waited for David to come down. He appeared sleepy-eyed but woke up as soon as he saw us. Terror covered his face. He walked, stopping several feet away. I cut the distance in three big steps and brought my face close to his. 

-“You know what I hate most in this life, David?" I said, staring at him. I noticed how he began to tremble under my gaze, but I didn't stop. –“Liars”.

-“I didn't lie to you," he stammered. 

I immediately moved my arm swiftly, punching him in the face. The boy staggered from the blow. He clutched the side of his face where I had hit him and looked at me in surprise. I grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall. 

-“I'm not going to tell you again, I don't like being lied to, do you understand?" I said looking him in the eyes. David nodded with watery eyes. I let go of his collar, though I kept pinning him against the wall. –“Is there something you need to tell us about Melany?"

David looked first at his mother, who was sobbing uncontrollably behind us, then looked at Mark, and finally pinned his gaze on me.

-“Melany's father was a vampire," I nodded at his words.

-“Melany knew her father?" I asked.

-“He's dead. His own family killed him when Mel was just a baby. They couldn't stand that his mate was a werewolf."-I nodded again, processing the information he was giving us. 

-“Where does his mother live?”

-“She lives here in Blood Moon..." He looked at me, doubt in his eyes, as if he wasn't sure if he should continue. I looked at him menacingly, I was tired of wasting my time. –“After Mel's disappearance, she disappeared too.”

-“When did she disappear?" I asked.

-“A couple of days after Mel disappeared. She was scared, she thought her mate's family was the cause of what happened. I think she decided to run away.”

I spent a couple more minutes asking David questions, but he had nothing more interesting to contribute, so we left. The walk back to the packhouse was silent. No one wanted to break the silence. I was in an incredibly bad mood, and Kate and Mark could sense it. I was furious. From the beginning that boy had had all the answers to our questions, and instead of giving them to us, he had wasted our time.  

When I got home, I said goodbye to Mark and Kate and went up to my room. I lay down on my bed and closed my eyes, exhausted and with a headache. I had always thought I slept too little, but now I longed for those four or five hours of sleep. Between the stress, Nico's visiting shifts, patrol shifts and my research, I couldn't get more than two hours of sleep a day. My body couldn't take it anymore and was screaming at me, but I was ignoring it. 

I managed to fall asleep for half an hour, but I woke up when an idea began to niggle at the back of my mind. I moved quickly to the desk, where all the missing persons reports were stacked. I picked up Melany's and looked up the information about her parents. Where her father's name should have been, there was one word: unknown. I scrolled through the other people's reports quickly. When I finished, my heart was pounding with excitement. At last, I had something. Kayden was going to regret his words. 

I ran down to Kayden's office, carrying the folders of the missing persons. I knocked repeatedly on the door, until Kayden's annoyed voice invited me in. When I opened the door, I found that Ian and Mark were also there, they must have been having a meeting. 

-“What do you want?" Kayden said dryly. He seemed annoyed by the interruption. 

Electra whined pitifully at the tone used by our mate, but I decided to ignore her. I held out Melany's open folder to Kayden.

-“Father unknown," I said when he finished reading the report and he looked at me questioningly.

-“And?" he replied dryly. 

-“As I imagine you are well aware, Alpha Kayden, hybrids are not welcome in werewolf packs," I said, staring at him. –“That is why, when they register their pups, the name or race of the parent who is not a werewolf is not usually given, but rather, parent unknown.”

Kayden looked at me with undisguised curiosity. I smiled inwardly, proud of myself, but I didn't let that smile reach my face. I handed the rest of the reports to Kayden, who began to look through them. Mark and Ian looked at us curiously. Mark even winked at me at one point, congratulating me on my work.

-“As you can see, Alpha, all missing persons are missing at least one parent," I said, not waiting for him to finish reading, I was getting impatient. –“Which makes it highly likely that all missing persons are hybrids.”

Kayden looked at me intently, as if seeing me for the first time. He was silent, thinking. His silence was making me nervous, so I decided to break it. 

-“It is clear that the rogue attacks are related to the disappearances. We must find out why this interest in hybrid people," I said, crossing my arms. 

-“Ian, Mark, get out." Kayden ordered. 

Without a word of protest, Ian and Mark walked out of the office, leaving Kayden and me alone. Kayden got up from his chair and approached me, slowly, like an animal stalking its prey. When he was dangerously close, I stepped back, trying to keep my distance. He must have understood the message, because he stopped. 

-“Tomorrow a large number of Alphas will be attending Bela's birthday party," he said, staring at me. –“I think this is a good time to ask them questions. We need to find out if this is happening only in Blood Moon, or if there are similar cases in other packs as well."

-“Very well, I'll make sure that Casandra and Miguel ask the necessary questions.” I said, ready to leave.

-“You'll go, and you will be the one asking the questions," Kayden said, using his Alpha tone. It was the first time he used that tone on me, and it made me furious. Even though Kayden wasn't my Alpha, he was my mate, I’m his Luna, making the tone have an effect. 

-“I'm on patrol all night," I said, making no effort to disguise my palpable discomfort.

-“Security will be beefed up with warriors from the other packs, so you won't need to patrol tomorrow. That way, you’ll be able to attend the party. 

Kayden's face made it clear that he was not willing to discuss the matter. So, annoyed, I headed for the door. But before I could get out, Kayden's voice stopped me. 

-“Catalina," he said. I turned slowly and looked at him. –“Have you been sleeping and eating for the last few days?”

I looked at him dumbfounded. I couldn't believe he was asking me that. His eyes reflected sincere concern. I clenched my hands into fists in annoyance. Kayden had literally been avoiding me all week, not caring about how I was sticking up with everything, and now he was worried about my well-being? Come on.

-"Why would you even care?" I replied annoyed. 

Kayden looked at me in surprise. I'm sure no one had talked down to him in a long time. After all, he was the most feared Alpha in America. His eyes began to darken. He was clearly furious and starting to lose control. I took a step back, approaching the door. I wanted to keep it close in case it was necessary to flee. Just then, someone knocked on the door. Kayden's eyes darkened even more as he smelled who it was. I, on the other hand, relaxed. 

The door opened and Miguel poked his head in. He bowed his head slightly to Kayden, as a sign of respect. Then he looked at me. 

-“Nico just woke up," he said, "He's fine and conscious. The doctor said he should be able to go home in a couple of days. Juan asked me if you'd like to go and visit him.”

-“Yes," I said with a huge smile on my face, "If you'll excuse us, Alpha," I said, and without waiting for his reply, I ran out the door.

For the first time all week I felt relief and joy. Miguel followed me and together we went to the hospital. When we entered the room, Nico was awake. He was still a little pale, but he didn't look bad. I rushed over to him and gave him a big hug. 

-“Come on, come on, you're going to break me in two," Nico said, laughing and stroking my hair. –“Thank you for saving my life," he said, breaking the hug and looking at me. He said breaking the hug and looking me in the eyes. 

-“I didn't..." I stammered.

-“Yes, you saved my life. I know what you think, but none of what happened was your fault." He said interrupting me. –“If you hadn't come to save me, I wouldn't be here right now. Thank you."

I noticed the tears rolling down my cheeks. I hugged Nico again, as I cried, letting out all the stress and fear I had been repressing all week. I curled up next to Nico and fell asleep. 

For the first time in years, I slept through the night in a row.