The Wolf House | OffGun - TayNew |

06 | The Blind Wolf

Arm's eyes shimmered like cold amethyst.

The children of his brother's pack were all huddled together near the house while Tay watched him warily. The older wolves of the pack and the woman he recognized as the White Rose remained motionless. He raised his hand and all the shadows surrounding the house disappeared into the forest. Mix stayed behind him, uneasy and unfriendly to everyone around. "Mix, you can join the others in the forest," said Arm.

"I will not leave you, Sassda," said Mix. "Chief's orders."

"Sassda...Chief's orders..." repeated Arm. "It would do you well to listen to me and not my brother."

"But—"

Arm turned to face Mix with an unsettling smile, his purple eyes grew dark. "Am I not making myself clear, kaptan?"

Mix bowed his head and disappeared into the forest.

"I thought we made a deal that the North will never bother me again?" said Tay, walking towards his youngest brother who remained smiling at him. "What part of that was not clear?"

"The elders and our brother agreed to never bother you again, yes, that is true," Arm nodded, almost unfazed by the hostility his brother was showing to him. "But that agreement included you only, not your family. Your eldest son is the Northern Clan's heir—"

"He will not be—"

"That is not for you to decide," said Arm. "Tay, you have already abdicated your rights to decide. Unnecessarily and foolishly, if I may add. When the time comes, Pluem will make that decision himself. As of now...he still hasn't rejected his inheritance."

Tay's brows furrowed. "What do you mean? Who told you that you could come?"

"Your mate did," said Arm. "Called me a few days ago."

"Phaw." Pluem came forward, a striking semblance more to New than to Tay. Northern noble blood may run through him but he is quite the spitting image of the wolves from the east. "I've been speaking with Uncle First. I wanted to tell you but..."

"I told him not to," said New. "I didn't know how you would react so—"

"—so you decided to keep it a secret. From me." Tay's eyes were blown wide, hands curled up and shaking. Veins were popping around his temple and his face had become visibly red. "What's the point of me being the head of this family when all of you are hiding secrets from me?!"

"Tay, please—"

New tried to grab Tay's hand to calm him down but he had already shifted. A large wolf of the darkest black rose up in the midst of them. Golden eyes glared at them with pain and betrayal. His howl echoed through the night and the black wolf was suddenly gone, swallowed up by the forest. Despite Gun stopping him, New shifted as well: a wolf of purest white dashing after the black into the forest.

Everyone was left stunned by what had just transpired but Arm, unfazed by his older brother's outburst, was eager to continue on as if nothing happened. He turned to Singto, almost as if to ask permission, and smiled. "I need to speak to their children."

***

"Are you really blind, Uncle Arm? You don't act blind at all."

All the three older children of Tay and New glared at Nanon who had innocently asked the question that had been floating around all of their heads for a while now. Nanon stared at his uncle's unmoving purple eyes as if mesmerized by them.

Arm just laughed monotonously and patted Nanon's head. "My eyes can't see but I have sight of a different kind."

"Phaw New said you're a Sakdi, just like my friend, Ohm."