Bernard
Bernard took out his phone. “I’m going to text the others. Maybe Camille is feeling better?”
“That’s a good idea,” Longnose immediately encouraged, but Antione simply shrugged and stared out the window. Bernard lightly squeezed his brother’s arm before getting to work. His eyes widened slightly at seeing a few texts from his mother and one from his uncle, yet nothing from his younger siblings.
That could be a good thing. At least Daymond isn’t saying Camille’s gotten worse. He quickly read the ones from his mother with a small smile before choosing the one from his uncle.
Uncle Wick: Call me.
Bernard stared at it in confusion. Mom’s messages told me to be careful, and she thinks I’m sleeping at Antione’s house. Why is Uncle Wick asking me to call him?
“Are you okay?” Antoine asked, making Bernard jump a little as he turned to him.
“I’m fine. Mom just wanted to say goodnight, but my uncle wants-”
Bernard’s phone rang, filling the car with Beethoven’s 9th. Antione’s eyebrow raised, but he said nothing as Bernard answered.
“Hello?”
“Where are you?” Uncle Wick’s tired voice almost echoed through the speaker, making Bernard frown. Is it the fog? “I’m with Antione and the others like I told Mom. Why?”
“Are you inside?”
“Yes.” That’s technically not a lie. Silence came from the other end for several moments before Uncle Wick chuckled.
“Are you at his house right now?”
Bernard looked at Antione, who only shrugged his shoulders. At least that means he can hear everything we’re saying. But should I lie? His uncle wasn’t very demanding. He respected the way Bernard’s mom wanted to raise him and usually only came around whenever she invited him, just like when Robert came to pick him up.
But too many strange things had been happening with their mothers for Bernard to assume this was a coincidence.
“Why?”
“You need to get to safety.”
“I keep hearing that. But I’m with Antione and some of our friends. Isn’t that enough?”
“No,” Uncle Wick said. “You shouldn’t be outside on a night like this. Get yourself and anyone else with you inside now.”
“I can’t do that.” I won’t. “I need to call Camille and Daymond-”
“What you need to do is listen. You’ve always been smart. Surely you know when it’s time to quit while you can?”
Bernard looked out the window and asked. “Why do I need to quit? We’re being careful-”
“Not careful enough.”
“What do you mean?!” Bernard felt Antione stiffen as both Longnose and Bruno looked at him. This is getting out of hand. We need information! “Do you know what’s going on?”
That I’m a werewolf, and Dad has been kidnapped by vampires? A solid minute of painful silence passed before Uncle Wick spoke again. “You’re in over your head. You want answers? Come back home, where your mother can hug you, and we’ll talk.”
“I can’t do that,” Bernard groaned. “I swear you adults are having fun making this more difficult than it needs to be.”
Longnose chuckled but didn’t say anything when both boys glared at him. Bruno straightened abruptly, making the others tense as well, but they saw nothing as the car continued navigating the twists and turns of the city.
“What did you see?” Antione asked.
Bruno shook his head and leaned back into his chair. “Nothing. I thought I saw someone under the sign we just passed. But the headlights proved me wrong.”
“You need to get off the road.” Uncle Wick’s voice cut in.
“How do you know we’re driving?” Bernard pressed.
“Because you’re not dumb enough to run around on a night like this. Be smart, kid. Your mom has enough problems without you risking yourself on top of them.”
“Does she know?”
“No. She thinks you’re at your brother’s house. I sent her to bed since she’s been fussing around the living room. Why didn’t you respond to her texts?”
“I had my phone off.”
“And you couldn’t have said good night to her first?”
“Antione’s and Camille’s moms are acting strange.”
“And you’re supposed to be at their house?”
“I didn’t tell Mom about that part.”
“But you’re telling me.”
Bernard took a deep breath and nodded. “I’m telling you because you seem to know something important. I need to know what it is, Uncle Wick. This isn’t the time for games. Camille needs help. We’ll get to safety once we have it. I promise!”
Another silence. Bernard strained to hear anything, but he couldn’t detect the slightest bit of static over the light hum of his phone. Not even his uncle’s breathing. But the older man didn’t let the silence last for long this time.
“You’re putting yourself in danger for someone you barely know.”
“She’s my sister,” Bernard insisted.
“Do you trust the people you’re with?”
“Yes.” Even Bruno.
“And you’re determined to see this through at the cost of anything else?”
Bernard frowned. That sounds… No, it doesn’t matter. “We’re trying to save Camille and our father. You don’t have to tell me what you are, but if you know anything that can help?”
He waited, hoping his uncle understood, but his next words only confused him more. “Rainy nights are bad for the health, especially with lighting. Do what you need to do, kid. I’m supposed to take you fishing once all the tests are done… We’ll talk then.”
“What do you mean by rainy nights? It’s not raining. Can’t you give me anything to work with? Please?”
“I already did. You’re turning sixteen in a few months. Consider it an early birthday present. Keep your phone on, and send your mom a text. I won’t let her leave the house tonight. So make sure you finish everything before coming home. You hear me?”
“I…” Bernard looked at Antione, but the other boy looked just as frustrated as he felt. It feels like we’re trying to solve a Rubix cube with some of the squares removed. Why does being a werewolf have to be so complicated?
“Bernard? I know you’re still there, kid. Talk to me.”
“I… I’m here. I don’t understand why you’re acting like this. It’s almost like you’re saying you’ll keep Mom safe, but you won’t help me?”
“That’s what I’m saying,” Uncle Wick chuckled. “You’re a smart boy, Bernard. Always were. You may not like this, but trust me. There will come a day when you wish everything went back to normal.”
“I already do.” Camille wouldn’t have gotten hurt, and Dad wouldn’t have been kidnapped by vampires.
“Nah, you just think that because you have no idea just how much worse it can get.”
“That’s not very reassuring.”
“It’s not meant to be.”
“What is it supposed to be?”
“A warning, nephew. One that I hope you’ll take seriously since you refuse to come home and not make your mother worry.”
“I just want to save my family”-
“And that’s very noble. But you’re still a child, Bernard. Don’t be so quick to drown that you risk setting yourself on fire.”
“Huh?” Bernard frowned, but Uncle Wick only chuckled again.
“Nothing. Don’t worry about it. You’re young. You’re allowed to be stupid. Just take care of yourself, kid. Your mother and I… you’re all we have.”
Bernard tightened his grip on his phone and shivered. “I’ll be careful. But why are you acting like something bad is going to happen?”
“Because something already did. Remember what I said.”
“Uncle-” The line went dead. Bernard stared at his phone in growing confusion before turning to Bruno. “Did any of that make sense to you?”
“Congratulations, your uncle doesn’t sound human… is he your real uncle? Are you related by blood?”
“He’s my mom’s older brother.” Bernard frowned and tried to call him back, but the call refused to connect. It was as if Bernard was trying to use a paper cup taped to some string without adding a second cup to the other end. Is this because of the fog? Or is Uncle Wick somehow responsible? He turned to Antione. “Can I borrow your phone? I still didn’t text the others.”
“Sure. Just don’t take too long. I don’t know when my mom will try calling.”
Bernard nodded, relieved to see Antione’s phone was working, but when his fingers brushed the case, the screen darkened before completely going black. Antione stared at his phone incredulously. “Was that me?”
“Are you asking if you can absorb electricity now?” Bernard enquired as Antione nodded. “Did you feel your powers activating? I thought they couldn’t outside of our werewolf forms?”
Bruno growled lowly. “That wasn’t either of you. This fog is a vampire’s doing. My guess is they just decided to boost it…”
I don’t like the sound of that.
“Then, why did it take so long to work?” Antione asked, but the burly werewolf only shrugged.
“I don’t know. There are plenty of beings that can mess with the weather. But I do know that it’s impossible for you two to be able to do anything outside of your transformations.”
“And why is that?” Bernard leaned forward, eager for any scrap of information he could get.
Longnose chuckled. “Because you’re werewolves. You can have DNA from hundreds of other supernaturals flowing through your veins. But the fact that you transformed is proof that your werewolf side is the strongest… And before you ask, that bit of knowledge came from decades of study that a friend of mine did.”
“Is that the same one we’re going to see?” Antoine asked.
Longnose nodded. “She devoted herself to studying our world ever since she was a child. We went to college together, and… and she helped me come to grips with being a werewolf when I first transformed. I trust her with my life. She can be a bit eccentric, though.”
“She doesn’t sound like the type of person to use a rougarou,” Bernard stated as Longnose laughed.
“No, she isn’t. And please, don’t ever say that where she can hear you. Creating rougarous is extremely distasteful, almost as bad as making zombies.”
“Does she have a name?” Bruno asked as he stared at his Alpha. “I don’t know much about voduists, but she sounds impressive.”
Longnose grinned. “Of course, she has a name. But I’ll let her introduce herself. She likes it that way.”
“Can we get back to the part where my uncle might not be human? I’m also curious as to why you two aren’t freaking out about this.” Bernard hadn’t meant to snap, but his annoyance came out of nowhere. First, Dad gets kidnapped, then Camille gets injured, and now my uncle isn’t human. What else can happen tonight?!
Antione patted his hand. “Just because your uncle might not be human doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy. At least he said he’ll talk to you once you get home. That’s better than what Robert did.”
Bernard chuckled. “You’re just saying that because you don’t like him.”
“I’d like him better if he stopped getting in trouble and answered our questions.” Bernard wanted to argue, but he just laughed instead. That’s one of the things the others don’t understand about Antione. He’s not being childish around Dad. He’s just bracing himself in case Dad disappoints him again…