His Blue Moon Princess
Chapter 53

Liam takes his favorite black bike, and since it's only the two of us, we arrive quickly at the docks. As we enter the Sea Moon Wolves' turf, some wolves come immediately. But they recognize Liam and me, and agree to let us through after a few words. As we had

fought side by side only a couple of weeks ago, they have no real reason to argue with us. Not today.

He finally parks his bike in front of a family restaurant, a large one facing the sea. The whole building has been built in what was formerly one of the dock's warehouses but was entirely renovated to give it a seventies decoration, with leather seats, neon lights, and a retro feel.

Once we enter, a few heads turn to check us out, mostly sailors and dockers, but nobody says a thing to chase us. I guess the word must have been given because everyone quickly ignores us to go back to their meal. However, a waitress runs up to us, a plump woman in her fifties. She smiles at Liam, visibly happy to see him.

"Liam, boy! It's been a while, sweetie! Moon Goddess, you are so grown up already! How old are you now?"

"Eighteen, Nina! How is my favorite waitress? I missed you!"

"Oh, you little sweet-talker..." They quickly hug, and the adorable lady turns to me. "Did you bring a girlfriend this time?! Hello, darling!" "Hi, I'm Nora."

"She's my brother's girlfriend. I stole her for a date," says Liam with a wink, putting his arm around my shoulders.

Nina laughs and adjusts her red hair, before grabbing two menus. "I see, I see, well, come on, I got your favorite table available, sweetie."

She takes us to a great spot, a little table with a view on the ocean. Giving us the menus, she is still looking fondly at Liam. "Oh sweetie, I feel so nostalgic seeing you there again! You know, darling, this boy used to come here every single day when he was a kid! Oh, Liam, I remember you doing all your homework on this very table, with that little mint diabolo you always had."

"And you gave me free refills anytime, Nina. Can I get that diabolo today?"

"Sure, you can, sweetie! And what would you like to drink, young lady?"

"I'll have the same as Liam."

"Okay! Take your time, I'll come back for your order. Our special today is the fish and chips; I would recommend it!" She takes off quickly, and Liam sighs with a smile.

"She loves you a lot," I say.

"Nina is the sweetest waitress in the world. She didn't just give me refills, you know. Most of the time she didn't take any money for those diabolos."

"So, you really came here often?" I ask.

Liam nods, but before saying anything else, he is absorbed in the menu, and so I am. When Nina comes back with our diabolos, I order the fish and chips, while Liam chooses the biggest burger on the menu. Once she leaves us alone again, he starts playing with his straw and looks at me. "So, how are you?"

"I'm fine, I guess... Better than last night."

"Looks like it. I was a bit worried. Well, a lot actually. I was afraid that might have been a big blow for you."

I frown and push my drink aside to lean closer to him. "Why did you take me there, Liam?"

I want to know what he was trying to achieve by bringing me there. After all, he was the only one among all the others who chose to do so.

He takes on a serious face, and sighs. "To be honest with you, Nora, I didn't do it for you. I did it for Damian. That engagement is total bullshit, and I don't want him to be unhappy and tied to a b***h like Alexandra King."

He says her name with so much disgust, I do feel a bit better.

"But why did you bring me to the party, then? Couldn't you just talk to him before all this? Liam, now that it's done, I'm... It's just plain painful for me!"

Does he realize how much I suffered last night? Seeing Damian with another woman... No matter the reasons Liam had, I still feel like I was just brought there to watch this nightmare and suffer. Why use me in all this? Does he realize how much I suffered last night? Seeing Damian with another woman... No matter the reasons Liam had, I still feel like I was just brought there to watch this nightmare and suffer. Why use me in all this? Liam stays silent for a while, apparently thinking. After a while, he turns his head to the docks, and a soft smile appears. "...You know, my brother is a big liar."

What does he mean now? Sometimes it's hard to decipher Liam. One minute he is acting like a kid, and the next one, he is there acting all mysterious and plotting behind his brothers' backs... He points to the docks, and I turn my head to follow his finger. "When I was young, Damian used to work right there. He started when he was ten. After school, I would go see my mom at the hospital and then Damian would take me to this restaurant. I did my homework and drank diabolos while he was working. He worked, on this very dock, for five or six hours straight every day. He carried huge boxes back and forth from boats to the dock. Whenever he stopped, he just came here to check up on me, and he went back right away."

I try to imagine a young Damian, working there, sweating under the weight of heavy containers. It's hard to imagine how his youth was like...

"Those boxes where awfully huge, and heavy. It was a job even a lot of adults didn't want because it was hard. But the old man Seaver let my brother work there, because he never complained, never took a day off. And when he was done, if I just said I was tired, he would carry me home. Whenever I asked, he lied, saying he wasn't tired."

He must have been. How could he have not been, after working like that... And Liam and Damian have a six-year age difference. No matter how young Liam was, he must have been heavy for Damian to carry...

Liam chuckles. "He lied all the time. He made me believe for ten years that he was allergic to chocolate because our Mom often gave me chocolate for the three of us and I loved it. So, Damian always said he didn't want it, and I ate his share without knowing." I can't help but smile, imagining a young Liam happily eating chocolate... I thought Damian didn't like sweets, though. Maybe he just has a soft spot for chocolate, then. Our plates arrive, and after thanking Nina, Liam goes on.

"Nate and Damian always hide stuff from me. I learned very late that they had to work because our father didn't give us any money. We ate fish that Damian would bring back from his work for years. They both dropped out of high school to work full time. Yet they never let me see any of the hardships we were facing. Every time, they made it look like a game."

Now I know why they are so adamant about Liam going to high school properly... They are truly caring for their youngest brother. The three of them had to protect each other, but they protected Liam more because he was the youngest. It's a miracle they turned out the way they did, given their family situation... Liam suddenly stops eating to play with his fork.

"You know, I suffer from moderate claustrophobia because of them. When I was a kid, they made up a game where I had to sleep in a hole under Nate's bed. I hated that game! It was a stupid hole, where they just put a blanket, and Damian took my bed whenever I had to sleep in there. Nate's mattress was above, so I couldn't see a thing. I thought for years that they were messing with me, the kind of stupid jokes you would play on your younger siblings, you know?"

Liam shakes his head, frowning at the memory. Why would they put him in a hole? I don't see Damian or Nate, from what he told me, playing this kind of mean jokes on him just for fun.

"It took me a long time to realize. Every time I was in that hole, it was a night when our father would come home."

Oh, Moon Goddess. Does he mean...?

"Yes Nora, you got it. Nate and Damian hid me in that hole so our father wouldn't hit me when he was drunk. Most of the time, I fell asleep fast and didn't hear a thing. But when I grew older, I started to realize Damian and Dad fought when I was in that hole. Nate used the mind-link to tell me to stay hidden until it was over. And when it was over, I would come out and replace my brother beaten up really bad. Nate, too, sometimes."

Liam looks very sad when telling this. He plays with his fork with a sullen look, bending it and putting it back. He has the same frown as Damian when he's conflicted. All of sudden, he looks at me, and from his eyes, I feel like he is holding his tears.

"You know what's worse? The one our father really wanted to beat up was me. Every time, he came looking for me. But Damian never let him touch me, so he would beat Damian instead. And my brother resisted, but he let our father hit him until he was satisfied. Because once he had enough, he would go out again and stop looking for me. You have no idea how many times I found Damian soaked in blood, Nora. He was strong, so my father never held up. But Damian never complained, not a single time. Instead, he just smiled at me anytime he saw me, saying he was fine. Lying again, to protect me."

I feel tears coming from hearing this. Liam had already told me that Damian fought with their father, and confronted him a lot, but... This all sounds way too real. And Liam's voice is breaking, too, from reliving all this. What kind of mess did they grow up in!? I hate their father so much. He was a monster, to his own kids. Liam wipes away a couple of tears and drinks a bit before going on.

"Damian is that kind of guy, Nora. He never shows how hard it is for him. Do you know he almost never visited our mom in the hospital? Because most of the time he had bruises and cuts, all from our father's beating, and he didn't want our mom to see it. And he is doing exactly the same with you now."

I frown. What does he mean with that? Damian's engagement, that whole situation, how is it related to me?

Looking more serene, Liam takes a serious tone. "Nora, you are the most important person in my brother's life. He would do anything, and I mean anything, to protect you. Just like he did for me, for our mother. And sometimes, that i***t is willing to make very stupid decisions, sacrificing himself for this."

"...Like the engagement, you mean?"

He takes some fries and nods. "Exactly. He accepted the Gold Moon Clan's proposal because he believed he could protect you, and us, with it."

I don't get it. I shake my head. "Liam, you're going to have to be a lot more precise if you want me to believe that Damian got engaged to another woman for my sake."

"Nora, Damian has treated you like a little princess, shielding you from whatever is going on in Silver City right now. But trust me, my brother is going to need a lot of help from now on, and I don't agree with getting it from that King bitch." "What are you talking about? What is going on in Silver City?"

Liam smiles and eats another portion of his burger. Why can't he answer me first before stuffing himself? It's nerve-wracking! After a few very long and annoying bites, he takes a gulp of his diabolo, and just when I'm about to lose patience, he smiles at me. "A war, Nora. Forget vampires and witches. Silver City is about to get in a mean, violent, and b****y war between all the werewolf Clans if we don't do something soon."