The Oldest Dream of Eternal Night
Chapter 35: Hannah’s Suspicions

Chapter 35: Hannah’s Suspicions

Silence hung heavy between them, each holding their breath after making their decision. Hide Ben. Lie. Risk everything.

And then—

FWISH!

A sharp whistle cut through the air.

Kaiser, always the fastest, reflexively reached out toward Hugo’s face.

The arrow pierced his palm with a sharp thud, cold metal embedded in his flesh.

"FUCK—"

A second arrow grazed Sabrina’s temple, slamming into the tree behind them.

"TAKE COVER!" Yuki roared, throwing himself against a concrete pillar.

The others scattered in the chaos. Kaiser clenched his bloodied fist, Sabrina dragged Ben by the collar, Hugo dove behind a tree.

FWISH! FWISH!

Two more arrows lodged into the tree bark.

"Who the hell are these assholes?!" Kaiser spat, yanking the arrow from his hand with a groan. Blood splattered his jeans.

Yuki’s hand dipped into his waistband, fingers gripping the last blades he had left.

"It’s probably the Zodiacs!"

"How many do you think there are?" Hugo asked, voice oddly calm despite the sweat beading on his temples.

Kaiser snorted, clutching his injured hand. "How the hell should I know? You think I’ve got the Byakugan?!"

A low growl caught their attention.

Hugo.

His eyes, bloodshot, scanned the darkness. Veins bulged on his arms, muscles swelling beneath his skin as if they were about to burst.

"Wait, what are you doing?!" Kaiser tried to grab his arm.

Too late.

Hugo exploded forward, his feet tearing up the ground in a mad dash toward the shots.

"Hugo, NO—"

But he was already gone.

The others had no choice. They ran in the opposite direction, toward Sabrina’s car parked down a side alley.

Kaiser climbed into the backseat, gasping, his injured hand pressed against his chest. "DRIVE, DRIVE!"

Sabrina slammed the door, turned the key—

VROOM.

The engine roared.

And then—

A howl.

Not human. Guttural.

"Oh shit..." Sabrina paled. "It’s not just the Zodiacs..."

Yellow eyes glinted in the darkness.

Wolves.

"We’re waiting for Hugo!" Yuki slammed the dashboard.

Sabrina shot him a dark look. "You think I’m going to let werewolves tear us apart?"

And she floored the accelerator.

"FUCK— Hugo’s still— BITCH, STOP THE CAR—"

Pain overwhelmed Kaiser suddenly.

"AHHH, SHIT! IT HURTS LIKE HELL!!"

The dopamine was wearing off. The arrow had been pulled out too fast, the wound half-cauterized by the heat of his blood.

"Shit, we can’t take him home like this!" Yuki examined the claw marks striping his arm, deep, gruesome gashes exposing raw flesh.

"We need to take him to the hospital!" Carter panicked.

"No." Kaiser gritted his teeth, voice raspy. "Take me to your place, Yuki."

Sabrina dropped them off at Yuki’s house, then sped off with Ben in the backseat.

Yuki carried Kaiser, who whimpered with every step.

"Shut up, you’re going to wake the whole neighborhood!" Yuki growled.

Kaiser, eyes glassy, smiled weakly. "I swear... if I die... I’ll haunt you..."

"Shit! Is he going to die?!" Yuki panicked.

Yuki knocked on the door.

A few seconds later, Yara, his older sister, opened it, hair tousled, wearing an oversized t-shirt.

"I was about to call you! Do you know what time it—"

Her gaze fell on Kaiser, bloodied, half-conscious.

"...Huh?! Isn’t that your friend?!"

Not a second of hesitation.

She let them in, settled Kaiser on the couch, grabbed a first aid kit from under the sink.

Yuki ran a hand through his locks, nervous. "Actually—"

"You can tell me later." Yara cut him off, fingers already busy cleaning the wounds. "Call his parents. Tell them he’s sleeping over."

Yuki nodded. "Is he going to be okay?"

Yara glanced at Kaiser, who was gritting his teeth, forehead slick with sweat.

"It’s bad... but I can handle it."

Hannah’s room was bathed in the silvery moonlight filtering through the lace curtains. Kneeling on her prayer mat, hands still clasped, she had just whispered her final "Amen" when her phone vibrated violently on the nightstand.

At this hour?

She frowned, recognizing the number. Mrs. DiAngelo.

"Good evening, Mrs. DiAngelo..." she answered, surprise in her voice.

The broken voice of Kaiser’s mother pierced her ear: "Hannah, I... I don’t know where else to look. Kaiser hasn’t come home. He’s not answering. Did you see him today?"

A shiver ran down her spine.

Ben missing. Now Kaiser unfindable.

The news loop from the afternoon flashed in her memory: "Benjamin... 16, last seen..."

"I... no, I didn’t see him after school," she said, fingers tight around the phone. "But I have Hugo’s number, I can try calling him."

Silence. Then a muffled "Thank you..." before the line went dead.

Hannah stood still for a moment, heart pounding.

Kaiser, you idiot... What are you up to?

She dialed his number with feverish fingers.

Call in progress...

"The number you have dialed is currently unreachable."

Blocked. Of course. After their fight the other day, he’d erased her from his life in three clicks, and she did the same. Even her texts would remain "undelivered."

"Whatever."

Hugo, then.

Ringing.

No answer.

"God. What the— Kaiser, you’re up to something again!"

Carter.

Unfindable.

"WHAT?!"

She jumped up, pajamas wrinkled, and began pacing the room. Hassan? No number. Ben? Never exchanged.

Yuki’s left.

She dialed, cursing inwardly: "I can’t even sleep in peace..."

The line crackled before a lazy voice answered:

"Hello?"

"Yuki, where’s Kaiser?!"

A muffled laugh. "Relax, what’s up?"

"Mrs. DiAngelo just called me, he’s not—"

"Don’t worry, I was just about to call them and say he’s sleeping over tonight." A cough. "We went a bit overboard on Call of Duty, he’s exhausted."

Hannah’s eyebrows furrowed.

"Hmm... There’s nothing fishy going on, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

"I want to hear him. Put him on."

"..."

"Hey. You think you’re his girlfriend? Chill, we’re in the middle of a game."

Her voice turned icy. "You think you can fool me? Tell me what’s REALLY going on."

"I’ll tell Kaiser you called. Bye!"

CLICK.

Hannah stood there, phone to her ear.

She could tell he was lying, if Kaiser was really there. He’d probably say something sarcastically unpleasant for her to hear.

But Hannah also knew Yuki wouldn’t be so calm if he were in danger. Maybe he’d been drinking?

"Maybe, his life doesn’t interest me! He’s just an asshole with a shitty personality."

She set her phone aside and climbed onto her bed.