Chapter 3. Training

News about Luana reached Alpha Tulio first. He went to see what his son had done and found her in the clinic. He couldn't stop laughing -- his boy was excellent at roughing up the pups, and he found his methods extremely effective.

"Dr. Clecio, how is she?"

"She looks terrible on the surface, but otherwise she'll recover soon. He dislocated her jaw so she couldn't speak, but it's already been set and has nearly healed. Her buttocks were also badly beaten, but there shouldn't be any lasting marks."

"Good. Otherwise, I'd be howling at the moon, because my Luna will kick me out of the bedroom."

"It might be wise to have a talk with Henrique. He's growing, and his strength could do much worse damage next time."

"Let the boy play. He's probably jealous of the attention his mother gives her. I'll send him to the arena with the older fighters."

"You think that's wise?"

"He's not a child anymore. If he's left idle, he'll keep doing this to little kids. Let's see how he handles himself against an adult."

In trying to impress his father, Henrique had created a bigger problem for himself. Training with the older fighters would force him to focus on combat just to avoid getting broken. When he learned what his father had planned for him because of what he'd done to Luana, he deeply regretted using the girl to show off.

They began the next day, though his luck was that the instructor decided to build his muscles first. He had Henrique run deep into the forest, weaving between trees and leaping over obstacles -- in both human and wolf form.

The Luna couldn't do anything about Henrique, because Tulio had taken his son's side and told her Luana hadn't been hurt that badly, that she was nearly recovered, and it wasn't worth fighting with the boy over it. He also accused her of neglecting their own son, caring only about someone else's daughter.

The Luna didn't like what she heard, but she held her tongue. There was a line she couldn't cross with her mate. He was extremely violent, and lately his mind seemed unsteady -- one moment he'd be perfectly fine and pleasant, and the next he'd turn vicious and cruel.

Months passed. Henrique grew stronger. The pack launched another attack, wiping out an entire pack of red wolves. It wasn't a large group -- that type of wolf was extremely rare -- and not even the protection of the gods had saved them.

When they returned, Henrique was there watching and listening to everything. He didn't like hearing that such beautiful wolves existed only to be wiped out, that there would never be another wolf of that kind. But then he spotted a figure in the corner, hiding, eavesdropping -- and he went over and dragged her out by the hair that was just starting to grow back.

"What are you doing here, you nosy little brat?"

"Let me go! Let me go, Rique!"

"No way. You came here because you want more spankings, don't you?"

"No, Rique, no..."

He was dangling her in the air when she kicked him hard in the shin. Then she bit his arm, and the shock made him drop her to the ground. She managed to crawl away and get to her feet, running straight to the kitchen where the Luna was preparing dinner.

"Luna! Luna! Rique--"

She hid between the Luna's legs and waited for Henrique to arrive. It didn't take long. He appeared and glared at his mother with fury, seeing that she was shielding the brat.

"That little pest kicked me and bit me, and you're defending her? Why?"

"Stop it, Henrique. She's still a baby. Instead of hitting her, you should be teaching her."

"How do you teach a little terror?"

"You're like a big brother to her. Please -- protect her, and stop hitting her."

He stormed out of the kitchen in a rage and joined his father's celebration with the men. They'd started wrestling and sparring with one another, and they included him, turning him into the adults' punching bag. From that moment on, he made a decision: he would become very strong and very brave. He would train harder than anyone, and one day he'd be an Alpha far greater than his father.

Keeping the promise he'd made to himself, three more years passed, and he was powerful -- still just a boy, but he already looked like a young man. It was at this point that he noticed Luana had grown too. She was six now, still that same little girl. Her hair had grown back and formed golden curls. She looked like an angel.

"Luana!" he called when he saw her running through the middle of the hall.

She didn't stop. She never stopped for Henrique, because she knew he'd torment her. She headed straight for the kitchen. But Henrique ran after her and caught her by the shoulder, knocking her to the ground hard.

"Ow! Stop it, Rique."

"I called you and you didn't stop. You need to learn to obey me. I'm going to be the Alpha of this pack, and you'll have to serve me."

Luana knew that all too well. To avoid more trouble, she picked herself up off the ground and bowed to him.

"What can I do for you, Rique?"

"That's more like it. Tomorrow morning, be at the arena. You're starting combat training."

The little female stared at him with wide eyes, wondering why she'd need to learn to fight. Only the males went into battle -- there was no reason for her to learn.

"Females don't learn to fight. What would I need to learn that for?"

"Because I'm ordering you to. You need to learn to defend yourself. What if we get attacked one day and you can't fight -- who's going to protect you?"

"The pack's warriors. They're the ones who protect the women and children. The Luna taught me that."

He grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked until he lifted her off the ground.

"Ow! Let go, Rique!"

"I'm ordering you to be at the arena tomorrow at sunrise to learn to fight. I don't want to hear another complaint." He let go, and she dropped to the ground again.

He watched her crawl away, then turned and left with a smirk. He'd teach the little pest to fight and defend herself, even if it cost him time and effort.

***This work has been signed with NovelToon, and piracy such as reprinting without permission is strictly prohibited.***

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***