The Skin Walker

13 | The Highest Mountain

"Did you have breakfast?" He asked.

"Not yet."

"I'll make you something to eat," He turned to the kitchen. "Follow me."

I did as he said, trailing behind him. Ander strode through the place like the title he claimed - a gamma. His build was tall, his figure alert of his surroundings. He almost resembled the man he engaged with on the night of the gala. Angelo.

"Tell me the pack names again," I kindly stated, walking to the marble counter in the middle of the kitchen.

"There are heaps all over the world," Ander began, excusing himself to wash the blood from his hands in the next room over. He came back with a clean shirt, and I wondered if they left spare clothes laying around everywhere.

He headed for a cupboard embedded into the counter on the other side. Ander faced me as he pulled out a pan and said, "But the largest packs are the Galilean Moon Packs. We are one of them."

"Yeah, Mae told me there are five: Europa, Callisto, Io, Adrastea, and Ganymede." I watched patiently, leaning on the counter as Ander pulled out some eggs, bread and other essentials for making me breakfast.

"That's right," He said, flicking on the stove.

"Eloise said there was a war between them," I urged for more answers. The history of all these packs interested me. They had something to do with this curse Rueben was tied with, and I wanted to know more.

"The Galilean War."

"Yeah, was it a big war?" I started with the simple questions.

"It was. The end of it resulted in a chain reaction."

"The next generation of Alphas and Lunas were cursed," I said what Eloise had informed me of.

"Mhm," Ander hummed as he broke the eggs into the pan. "And Rueben's dad, our previous Alpha, became bed bound until death."

"He died?" My voice softened.

Ander scoffed, tilting his lips upward. "No. That man is the toughest one I know. Alpha Ezekiel. I visit him all the time. He's like my second dad."

I recalled Ander mentioning him a couple of times before.

"Who else are the Cursed Children?" I asked after the eggs had cooked.

"You know Rueben Andino of Europa," Ander's voice sombered. "Then there's Amaris Daxer of Callisto, Angelo Lebedev of Io, and Zephaniah Larsen of Adrastea."

I remained silent, waiting for the fifth pack to be mentioned.

"We haven't heard from Ganymede in years, so we don't know who the Cursed Child is from that pack," Ander shrugged.

"Doesn't that bother you? That there's a massive pack unaccounted for? What if they're planning something big, like an attack, and you have no idea when they'll strike?" I countered, leaning forward on the counter as Ander toasted the bread.

A ghost of a smile appeared on Ander's lips. "I'm glad to hear you're interested in this topic."

I snorted, "I'm just curious. And a little worried. Doesn't silence worry you?"

"I've adjusted to enough chaos to relish in the sound of silence," He murmured. "I enjoy it whenever I can get it."

I went quiet at his words. They made sense.

"Where are the Galilean Moon Packs located?" 

"We were originally residing in Greece, but the Alpha from two generations ago wanted to move here. If we were to go back, we'd have to face other packs who took over there. But it's nice here. We visit Greece when we can. Callisto is in Scotland, although some of them reside in Ireland. Io is in Russia, and Adrastea is in Slovenia."

I took a while to process what he explained to me. They really were all over the world. 

"Where was Ganymede before they went M.I.A.?" 

"Egypt," Ander whispered, handing me a glass of water. "Not anymore. It's been said they moved someplace else."

The way he sobered up pretty quickly made me believe he shared relations with the people of Ganymede. Their disappearance must've taken a toll on everyone for differing reasons. It made me wonder why they'd gone in the first place. 

"After breakfast, Reuben wants you to meet him at Crete Point," Ander mumbled as he put together the food into a plate.

"Am I supposed to automatically know where that is?" I questioned.

"It's at the highest mountain of our land," He replied.

My eyes widened subtly because I did not do too well with heights, and my lack of coordination would get me lost in the wilderness for days.

"Don't worry. I'll take you there myself," Ander's words made me release a relieved breath. "Now, eat up."

I ate in silence as Ander cleaned up the kitchen. He took an apple from the fruit basket on the counter before me and consumed it as he packed the dishes he used to make me the meal. Considering his words from earlier on, I remained silent, letting him enjoy the shortness of it as I finished up.

"Do you have any brothers?" Ander asked as I hopped off the stool I'd been sitting on since I started eating.

"One. He's my only sibling, but he doesn't live with me," I informed him, walking over to his side of the counter. "You know, the one that confirmed your ID before you took me from my home?"

Ander took the plate away from me and into the sink as he continued to ask, "Do you live with your father?"

"Yes," I simply replied, wanting to forget the thought of him.

The werewolf rinsing my plate into the sink said nothing for a few minutes as he set it in the dishwasher. As we turned out of the kitchen to leave, Ander spoke words that made me go still.

"It was him that slapped you, wasn't it?"

Fear of what he might do if I refused to answer chilled my blood.

"You can deny Reese and Rueben an answer, but you forget who I am, Ruth," Ander's presence drew closer until I felt him beside me. "In this world, there are no soldiers. Soldiers are civilised, well-trained humans who fight to serve with an army. We only use that excuse as a cover. In this pack, I lead warriors who fight savagely with no remorse to protect what is ours. We have no limit to the methods used to get what we want."

A shudder slithered down my spine.

"So I'll ask again. It was your father who slapped you, wasn't it?"

I didn't turn to face him as I nodded once. Ander inhaled slowly and deeply before overtaking me to take the lead.

"You won't hurt him," I had the nerve to threaten Ander as we walked out of the kitchen.

"Not yet, I won't," He replied in a voice that made me believe he was holding back a snarl.

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a/n: I've been planning the rest of the series, and can I just say that I'm so excited for Angelo's book <3