Chapter 2 The Beginning ii

"How dare you kiss me, you bastard?" She roared at him with fury in her eyes. And all he did was smile. He said nothing and did nothing else, further infuriating her.

The caterer noticed what happened over there and walked up to them. "I'm sorry, sir, for her stupid behavior. I'm sorry, it won't happen again," she pleaded with Roberto, who was amused by the girl in front of him and barely heard what the caterer was saying.

"And you!" She faced Lucia and said, "Get the hell out of here this instance!"

Roberto heard that. "No, let her be. I am at fault here, but I'm not sorry, so it's just right to stand here. Having to see my face after that kiss and slap would be her punishment," he said, winking at Lucia, and then taking his seat on a chair in the VIP section.

"You should be thankful to him for allowing you to stay here!" The caterer said this into Lucia's face and stormed off, leaving her to face the over ten people seated in the VIP section.

Roberto winked at her, infuriating her even more. She fumed and threatened to teach him a lesson once they were all done with the showrade they called a party.

The party was at its peak, and Lucia was starting to enjoy the activities they did. The way they spoke, their eloquence, and all that appealed to her She had served them all some appetizers and was waiting for the next instruction from the caterer through the intercom fixed in her ear.

A hand grazed her delicate skin a few minutes later. She turned in the direction in which she felt the graze. It was the same proud and arrogant fool. She spat at him so much and could strangle him if permitted.

A frown was etched on her face but vanished the moment it came when she remembered losing three hundred dollars all because of a spoilt brat.

"Hello, how may I help you?" She asked, flashing him the brightest smile in her reserve. Those smiles she used only in extreme cases.

"I didn't know you had such a bright smile. Can I get your number?" He grinned with excitement, confident that she would grant him his request. He was in for a rude surprise.

"I'm sorry, but I wasn't told that giving out my number was part of my job description. Smiling at you, which I just did, sure is, but never what you requested."

"Did you just turn my request down?" He asked with a flabbergasted grimace.

"Yes, and I would do it over and over again if need be," she responded, and as a sign to end the discussion, she faced the crowd. She flashed a deceptive smile at them, leaving Roberto embarrassed again.

He was furious this time around but shoved it off as he was starting to fall for her.

Lucia was glad when the party came to an end. Her body ached, and her legs quaked. She packed the last of the dishes into the kitchen for those assigned there to wash. She found Jackson waiting for her by the door. "You look exhausted! You sure must be."

"Well, I am, and I am famished too. I took nothing but a few snacks to the coffee shop this afternoon," she said to Jackson, who had his full attention on her.

"I knew you would be, so I left you some food at a corner." He trailed off as his eyes darted around the large space that was the kitchen in search of the meal he kept.

He didn't search long, as at the center of the kitchen sat a chubby-looking guy, eating the meal Jackson had reserved. He smiled as his gaze met Jackson's, leaving him enraged. He wanted to go confront the guy, but was pulled back by Lucia.

"Let it go!" She whispered into his ears. He yielded and assured her that he would get her something once they left there.

The loud baritone voice of the middle-aged woman who was the caterer stung their ears. "You all should gather here."

"Let's go!" Jackson pulled Lucia along with her to the spot where the woman sat. They were the first on the line.

She counted them. Twelve in all... She grinned mischievously as she pulled a small bag from underneath her chair. Two hefty men stood on each side of her, flexing their muscles at her.

"This is your payment," she said, handing some money to Lucia, who was grinning with excitement. She stepped out of the line and then counted the money.

"One, two, three..." she counted till she reached the last.

"I thought you said you would pay us three hundred dollars. This isn't up to a hundred!" She said with a frown to the caterer, who continued like she didn't hear her. Jackson counted him, and it was complete. Same as others.

"Ma, she said hers is short by over two hundred dollars," Jackson said aloud, and there was no way she could pretend not to hear him.

"The rest, I deducted for being so sassy to an important guest this evening!" She said this to Lucia, whose eyes were welled with tears.

"But he kissed me! Isn't that wrong? Isn't that a crime?" Tears choked her voice as she spoke.

"You should be happy that he kissed you. If I see a man as rich as he is to at least give me a peck, do you think I wouldn't love it?" the caterer said, and he dismissed her off with a wave of the hand.

"Pay me my money now!" She said it to the woman with so much power and authority that it sent chills down her spine.

"You had better leave here; otherwise, I'd have my men drag you out!" She threatened, but Lucia moved not an inch.

The caterer gave a sign, and the men by her side hurried to carry out her order.

The next thing I heard was a loud thug on the floor. The fourteen others glanced to see what happened; they were shocked to the marrow. Lucia had changed into a huge creature with yellow eyes that sparked fire.

"It's a wolf!" They screamed and scampered off as fast as their feet could carry them, but they could only go a few inches before she caught them, one after the other, burying her long claws deep into them. Her teeth dug into their faces, tearing them apart like she would a piece of meat. She severed their heads from the other part of their body and, with her left head, hurled it at Jackson, who stood still, watching everything with keen interest.

She stopped after a while and, at a slow pace, transformed into her normal self.

She stared around her with a perplexed grimace when she had returned to being Lucia. "Who did this?" She asked Jackson, who stood akimbo with his eyes fixed on her.

"You did! All of this!"

"How's that even possible? Are you kidding me? Tell me you are. I didn't do it, right?" She sounded desperate and frightened.

He was speechless.

"Didn't you know? I thought you knew."

"Knew what?" She tugged at his shirt with all her might.

"That you are a werewolf!"

She went limp as tears trickled down her face. She should have known better. What had she expected? To be normal? When her mother's a witch and her father's a werewolf, Her spirit fell when she realized her world was gradually closing up on her. She saw how Jackson was treated at school and did her best to defend him, but now she would suffer no better fate, or even worse. She's a girl.

She stood up without thought and walked out of the building into the dark, with Jackson following her in a scrupulous manner.

"Lucia!" he called after her.

"Leave me alone!" She shot back.

It was a big house set in the heart of New York City. Three acres. That was the expanse of the house and premises that were the Avanti's mansion. Fleets of cars and horses in their stable, the large garden, and the driveway were the things you would behold after leaving the gate where tight security was mounted. It was dark, and the lines of the lamp across the compound shone their lights on the place.

The car drove in front of the main gate and parked in front of an open space, where an artificial spring sat.

"Welcome, sir!" A maid said, bowing to him. He handed his coat to her and zoomed into the house without uttering a word.

A woman of middle age, forty-six or so, sat in a huge living room, staring at a television, a third of the height of the long wall. She was Lydia, Roberto's mom, and the wife of the late Roberto II Avanti.

"Hello mum!" He greeted her, swishing his feet against the floor to where she sat.

"Oh, you're back. So early? Didn't you enjoy the party?"

"I did, Mom, and really had a swell time. But the party ended sooner than I thought," he said as he pulled his shoes off his feet.

A maid from nowhere came and carted it to his room.

"Did you meet Mr. Sanchez's daughter, Mayra? She's such a beauty," she asked with grace and passion embedded in her voice.

"I thought you mentioned that she was in Spain and wouldn't be back until summer next year."

"Oh, I did. It escaped my mind; maybe it's because I'm anxious to see you guys together...

She hadn't completed her words when Jackson stood up and found his way up the stairs. By the time she realized he was gone, he was almost in his room.

"Come back here, you moron! I am not done talking with you!" She yelled.

"We would talk tomorrow, Mum!" He responded from the safety of his room.

While in the room, Jackson, no matter how hard he tried, couldn't get that usher at the party out of his head. One minute he's thinking of one thing, and the next it's her.

It amused him because he had never felt that way towards any girl, and goodness knows he had a truckload of them. They were at his calls and beckons, and a snap of his finger would bring them to him in Mass.

He had the money, the looks, and the body. His weapons below his groin were also wonderful and were a major reason why the girls returned to him after a night together.

He noticed something different about that girl. Something he hadn't seen in others. He had kissed her, and instead of shrieking in excitement, she landed him a slap that still made his cheek hurt, up until that moment.

"Damn it! Your unknown name Thanks for toying with my head," he said, covering his head in his blanket to shut her out of his head. It failed.

Lucia got home with a strong feeling of hate toward herself for what she did. It was so strong that she sat transfixed on one spot, refusing to eat something or go to bed. She stared at the sky, where she knew her parents must be watching her.

"They must be upset with me for what I did!" She sulked and couldn't convince herself otherwise.

"Yes, they are!" A thin voice whispered into her ears. She recognized it. It was the same voice she heard before she changed into that hideous being.

"Who is who?" Her voice echoed through the night.

"I am a werewolf..." The voice responded and, without warning, jumped on her, trying to force its way in just like it did the other time.

She refused, and this time she meant business. She wasn't going to allow herself to turn into some hideous creature despised by society.

She resisted, groaning in pain.

Claw marks, just like the ones on the bodies of those she killed, appeared on her.

It was fierce, and blood trickled out.