The Lycan King's Healer
The Lycan King’s Healer – Chapter 15

We left Cathy alone in the garden. Clearly, neither of us saw her at peace very often.

As Theo pulled me into his room to play with toy soldiers, I could no longer ignore the question that has been scratching my brain raw.

He had to be my son. As our little soldiers fought on the wooden floor, I glanced up at him with a somber smile. I wondered if he sensed it too.

“Hey…Theo,” I tentatively said, his name unfamiliar but sweet in my mouth, “would you like to learn some fighting skills?”

Theo was very young, and I doubted he was interested in hand to hand combat over playing games or with toys, but I still wanted to see how he’d react. I was his age when I began training with my father’s general. And I did promise him that I’d teach him someday.

“Yes!” he yelled, flying off the floor. “Teach me!”

The boy was very excited at this, his eyes big and full of mischief. They reminded me of Cathy’s, how determined and bright they always were.

We went outside to the backyard, silently sidestepping Cathy. I decided to teach him an array of beginner techniques, mostly defensive stances. I did not want to get too down and dirty, not wanting to taint his mind with too much brutality.

“Your feet should always be in line with your shoulders, knees bent,” I ordered, pushing the inside of his knee outward so that he squatted slightly.

He giggled. I took his hands and molded them into fists. “Never throw a punch with your thumbs tucked in,” I instructed, demonstrating what it’d look like. “Always make sure your fist looks like this.” I rearranged his fingers, and he looked thrilled.

He jutted his fist out in the perfect form while bent in the defensive position, and I was delighted at the fact he was a quick learner. The boy often defended his mother, but I wanted to show him how to do it right.

Even in the boy’s wolf form, he was impressive. His wolf was larger than most boys’ his age, so it was no wonder he got stuck in the wall.

But when the boy got on his hind legs, standing seamlessly, I nearly dropped to my knees.

He was not an ordinary wolf, just like me. I grinned at him, beaming at my child.

His mother, who was apparently full of secrets and unraveled mysteries, must have done something to mask his scent. I was certain that he belonged to me, and even more certain that Cathy was keeping him from me.

After teaching him most defensive skills, I wanted to teach him offensive moves without too much brutality. Plus, this particular skill could cater to defending his mother, something we were both hell bent on doing

I ordered my accompanying servant to deliver some bows and arrows from my training grounds, along with targets. Archery was a good way to introduce battle to a child; it focused primarily on skill and focus, and he would be entertained by the game aspect.

It was also a staple to the werewolf world. One of the main reasons lycans ruled the werewolf empire and suppressed vampires from invading was because we were gifted in weaponry. We knew how to wield such tools to our benefit.

Cathy

When I closed my book, I discovered the sun turned a shade of pink. I blinked in surprise as the crickets and frogs sounded around me, the chorus of a summer evening. Time escaped me whenever I read through my witchcraft books. Theo would be hungry for dinner, and I felt a twist of guilt. I was too immersed in the strange potions and medicines that I had not yet purchased or concocted.

I heard the whistle of something fly through the air and hit something hard. Wary, I stood up with a frown. What was that? Fear of more intruders and Emily’s avengers surfaced. I cautiously wandered around the side of the house to the backyard where I heard it, prowling silently through the sunset drenched garden.

I found Theo with a bow and arrow, and Aldrich standing behind him with a grin. A target stood in the patch of grass.

“Shoulders down. Grip the bow tightly. You’re doing just fine, just control your breathing,” Aldrich urged in a soft voice. “Now…shoot!”

Panic pierced my chest as I saw my son shoot the very sharp object across the field and hit the bull’s eye.

My eyes widened as I stared at the arrow impaling the circle, bewildered. I could not be panicked for long—I felt pride instead. An involuntary grin passed my face.

Aldrich yelled out in pleasant surprise and immediately lifted Theo up into the air, twirling around in triumph. I couldn’t help but admire the scene, my son and his father dancing around the grass and laughing in glee.

That wasn’t the only thing Aldrich did for my son and I. He ordered someone to bring us a horse and a small pony, clearly intending to elongate his lessons to my son. Throughout the week, Aldrich taught Theo how to ride the pony, and by the end of it, he mastered it. By the next week, he learned how to ride with the bow and arrow. I watched all of this from the background, silently and tentatively. Sometimes I pretended to read as I peered out the window. My pride for my son achieving these triumphs dwindled into disapproval.

One day, Aldrich exclaimed joyously, “Theo, the future general of the pack is definitely you!”

That’s when I decided enough was enough.

I did not want my son to be like Aldrich. Sure, Aldrich may have been trying to undo his wrongs, but that did not make him a good person. I did not want my son heavily influenced by him. Plus, I didn’t even want my son to be a general or even on the battlefield. He was to live a long, safe life with me.

One day, I sat in the garden watching them with a scowl. Aldrich concluded the lesson once the pony was tired, and told Theo that he would revisit him tomorrow. I stood up from the garden swing as Aldrich passed me to leave.

“Hey,” I snapped, immediately capturing his attention.

He stopped, looking pleasantly surprised that I was speaking to him. “Yes, Cathy?” He said my name with a buried kind of longing, and I tried to stifle any feelings I secretly had for him.

“I would appreciate it if you stopped teaching my child these preposterous things without my permission,” I hissed in a low, threatening tone, “and I’d appreciate it more if you got lost and never came back.”

Aldrich paused for a moment. He seemed to soak in the information before simply nodding, a neutral and unreadable expression on his face.

With a wink at Theo, he suddenly kicked my feet out from under me and threw me over his broad shoulder, running up the stairs to my bedroom. He ignored my protests to put me down.