Under the Moonshine

Thirteen | Secrets and Lies

Emily locked the front door, typing the code into the keypad. The security system was working fine again, all cameras running like it used to.

Obviously, it wasn't just a small time burglar. A can spray of chemicals to put a dog into sleep was found in a trash bin, three blocks from her home. No finger prints, but the authorities claimed that it was used against her Labrador, Max. Now that everything seemed okay, Emily tried to behave the best she could, not drawing too much attention. She didn't even know why she wanted to hide Taren so much, it was as if he didn't exist.

For safety. She nodded at her own thought, convincing herself that it was, indeed, for his safety.

As Emily dug into her school bag, she noticed an envelope tucked beneath the pages of her book. It was the invitation of Bree's mother, to be held at Sophie Hotel. Her brows furrowed as yesterday's memories came rushing in her head. She always play the piano whenever there was a celebration. Her father had that shining pride in his eyes every time she would impress the crowd with her talent. Those memories usually tailed by joy and happiness, but now that everything seemed out of place, it held nothing but grief and emptiness.

"Emily?"

Startled, she turned and saw Taren, head cocked a bit to the left. He was wearing a gray shirt, his eyes looked heavy, as if needing some more sleep.

"Yes?"

"My head hurts."

She stared at him, his words hardly registering into her head. Putting back the invitation in her bag again, she walked toward him.

"What do you mean? Are you feeling sick or something?"

Taren shook his head, brows slowly frowning. "No. My head just hurts. It hurts so bad, Em." His head felt like it was about to crack open any moment, a burning fire beating like a pulse buried deeper in his core.

Emily brought her hand to touch his face, checking in his temperature. He was so hot that she had to withdraw her hand at the instant contact. Before Emily could even utter a single word, Taren fell to the cold floor, his body landing with a thud.

- - - - -

He could hear the annoying beeping of a monitor somewhere near him. The scent of mixed chemicals and some burnt-ash thing filled his nose while subtle movements from a distance made him weary. He felt irritable, weak, anxious and angry. The bed where he lay felt like a grave, no ounce of comfort could be trace. He couldn't tell how long he was sleeping but the numbness and the pain throbbing at his lower back told him it could be days or weeks.

Hell, he felt sick.

Prying his eyes open, he blinked as he tried to adjust his vision. Scorching pain suddenly hammered his head, his heartbeat mirroring the speed of every thump pounding in his skull. He closed his eyes again, his thick eyebrows drawn together.

Dug. Dug. Dug. Dug. Dug.

He groaned loudly, his body curled in pain, veins bulging in his arms and temple.

"Easy... easy..." a voice tried to soothe him. "You will be a good boy."

The voice was familiar.

"You will be a soldier," the man continued. "Oh, yes you will. A loyal follower. A very loyal one."

He wanted to tell him to stop but he couldn't find his voice. He felt like he was dying, his sanity was on the verge of slipping out of his system. It seemed as though there was a grand battle happening inside him, a war between two vastly different monsters. It hurt like hell, a torment like no other. He wondered if he was being punished for every sin he had committed and instantly prayed for death but it had been evading him for the past hour now. Anger snapped him awake, his saliva melting inside his mouth. Now he felt stronger, firmer, crazier. He wanted nothing but to hunt, to fill in the hunger and thirst that had been beating in his throat.

He screamed helplessly, hoping for the scorching pain to go away. But it didn't.

And as he forced himself to open his eyes again, he knew he wouldn't be the same.

- - - - -

Taren slowly opened his eyes.

It was midnight, or maybe just around dawn.

He stared blankly, trying to place in the dream he just had. Brushing the side of his head, he frowned as he forced to remember bits of his past. But aside from the dream, he was drawing a blank. He couldn't remember a single thing before the experimentation.

It was frustrating at the same time energy-draining.

Who am I?

"Just... Who am I?" he whispered to himself.

Sebastian's face emerged in his head without invitation, but the usual kind face of the man looked distorted, as if there was another side of him too.

Clicking footsteps run toward him as Max opened his door. The dog leaped onto the bed beside him, licking his jaw to comfort him. Taren patted his head and scratched his furry neck, grateful for the distraction.

He barked and made a low crying tone, putting a drool on Taren's face once more.

He just smiled and embraced the dog.

Another footstep came, this time, it was Emily. She stood by the door, her face worried. "How are you feeling?"

Taren thought for a moment. "I think I'm okay now."

"Do you want me to call a doctor?"

He just shook his head softly. "No need. You are enough."

Relief washed over her, relaxing her tensed shoulder.

She wished she was truly enough.