Truman J. Kingston, DVM

The thoughtfulness behind his actions made Zinaida’s cheek flush slightly as she looked away and laughed. “You um, really didn’t have to Truman.” However, she eventually met his gaze and flashed him a gracious smile. “But I appreciate it, thank you.” She wasn’t used to wearing heels, so perhaps his decision to do such a thing was a good call. “Well you look cool. In fact, one of the best dressed here.” agreed Zi with a nod of approval. At his drink of choice, she turned her attention to the bartender and ordered it while taking a sip of her rosé. She stood there in silence, lost in her thoughts as she wasn’t sure what else to do with herself. Keep drinking. Maybe that would calm her nerves…Her thoughts were soon interrupted once Tru’s Manhattan was finished and ready to serve. Picking up the glass, she handed it to him, “Here you go.”

Was she blushing? Could Vampires blush? 

The vampire looked up at the werewolf and expressed gratitude for his presence. She wouldn’t know how to handle it if she were alone. She felt small and helpless, but she should have known better. Her past and the choices she made were bound to creep up on her and now here she is. Pulling away, she quietly went over to a rock and sat there. “…I shouldn’t be this upset.” she confessed out loud. “…There’s no way I could avoid him, even till this day.” A frown crept onto her lips as she furrowed her brows, “He deserved it though.” She was mostly talking out loud to reason with herself, therefore it may be confusing for Tru to understand where she was coming from. Looking up at him, she looked exhausted and admitted, “I’m not a good person as I make out to be Truman.” 

Zinaida wasn’t sure if Truman was telling the truth, but there was no point in questioning him. He was here with her and it was too late to turn back on that fact now. Slowly nodding at his reassurance, she gripped onto his hand and ran with him, trying to ignore the presence of her past. She didn’t know how much time has passed or how far they’ve gone, but she kept running until they eventually stopped. She didn’t loosen her grip on Tru’s hands as she looked around. It was eerily quiet, but she couldn’t see nor hear those that once surrounded them. Calming down slightly, Zi looked up at Truman and simply stared in silence. There was a good chunk of her life that he didn’t know about her and she thought that it wasn’t fair. Right now it reflected more than ever since he saw her lose her composure. “Thank you for staying with me.” she finally whispered out with heavy gratitude. Without any hesitation, she went towards him for a tight embrace and buried her face into his chest. 

“Y-your sister and pack…” Zinaida didn’t think she was of importance in comparison to the Kingston’s family. If she were alone, she’d figure it out somehow or perhaps ride out the torment that’s right in front of her. What difference would it make having to go through it again? Sure it’ll be triggering, but at least no one she cared about would have to go through her poor life choices. “Where?” She didn’t know where to go at this point and she wasn’t thinking straight. Feeling her hand in his, Zinaida tried to listen to Truman’s voice. However, it was difficult when you have the dead taunting you with each second that goes by. It wasn’t until the werewolf unleashed a roar that Zi finally snapped out of it. “Truman…” she whispered as she squeezed her hand in his and looked into his eyes. “Let’s go. We need to go…” 

Truman’s reassurance was comforting, but a part of her wondered if it’d be true. After all, who would want to stay with her baggage? It was messy and complicated and she was sure he had a lot of his own. Shaking her head, she pushed the werewolf away, “No…No…” Dragging him into this would just make matters worse. What was she even thinking? She should face it alone. “This is a mistake…” Feeling the whispers from the shades caused her to look over at them with wide eyes and fear. “I-I need to go…Far…” Where? They seem promising in terms of following her wherever she was at. The desperation in both her eyes and tone were clear, she was helpless and she didn’t know what to do. “You can’t say that…” she whispered lowly, staring blankly into the empty space as she sunk down onto the ground. “He said that to me and he lied…” 

Feeling Truman pull her close, Zinaida froze from where she stood before slowly lifting her arms and returning the embrace. He felt real and she held him close and didn’t let go as she needed that much validation. The faces of the departed shouldn’t feel real, it shouldn’t matter. However, just seeing then just as alive from where she left them made everything unsettling as she couldn’t come to terms with it. “I…” Her voice trailed off as tears welled in her eyes, the trauma she buried deep for over a hundred years was beginning to resurface. Being taken advantage of against your will was something she couldn’t bring upon her enemies. The ache in her insides made her sick as she gripped the werewolf tightly. “I can’t…”

The words that came out of Truman’s mouth wasn’t registering to her at first. However, eventually she snapped out of her daze as he advised her to look at him. “Truman, I can’t!” she shrieked as she panicked in his arms. “…I don’t…I want this to stop…I can’t…” She tries to take deep breaths, but she could feel herself suffocating from what she was seeing. Zinaida was beginning to regret her actions at that moment. However, her senses picked up on the werewolf’s heartbeat which sounded so much like comfort as she refocused on his gaze. “Please don’t leave me…” she whispered out. “I don’t want to go through it again…” 

He needed to get his mind off of things and he already tried being a responsible adult. Going to work and using it as a distraction from his worries wasn’t doing enough for him. So he found Hale and decided to chill out with her. He pulled his arm from her shoulders and stumbled backwards until he felt the wall behind him. Truman let out a small chuckle before giving her a bright grin. “So...” He started and then let a bloated pause get comfortable as he collected his thoughts. How could he say this properly? Which words could he use? Tru chuckled again and then pushed himself off of the wall. “You know... Zinaida... right?  You know... You and her... Her and you... You two are pretty hot.” Another pause. “I’m not trying to be a pig or nothing. It’s just. I appreciate... Uhh... Nah, I still think you two are hot.”

Truman wanted someone to talk to, but he couldn’t talk to his sister about the shades. The last thing he wanted was for her to take up more of his burdens and be crushed by her own guilt. He loved his sister too much to let her suffer even more. If he could prevent her pain, he would. Still, however, he needed to lighten the pressure around his chest and lift a weight off of his shoulders. The only way he knew how was to go to someone with enough good sense for both of them. 

“Hey, so I know you’re probably busy and stuff, but... I just needed someone I could talk to...” He lowered his gaze, unsure that he’d be able to keep eye contact for long. Fayre tended to have an intense look, and even when she wasn’t doing anything, he felt like her eyes were scolding him sometimes. “You know... that shit that went down a month ago... I... How do you get through it... you know, after all the bad guys you fucked up?”

Imani simply listened to Truman’s reasoning. No matter what he said to her to make sure it wasn’t her fault, it still didn’t change the fact that she still engulfed in the guilt she had put them through. This was something she stuck with the moment the title for the alpha was known between the two of them. They didn’t have a chance at life, it was already written in the books—the Kingston way. “Regardless Truman…” she began to say. “I know I could have done something to prevent all this and I am sorry.” She purposely stayed back, further she allowed for it to happen, when she knew she could have taken the both of them out of the situation. She came to terms that this guilt wasn’t going to leave her, not until she’s content with where she, Truman and her pack stood.

“Of course I still love you, you big idiot!” Sure they were having a disagreement, but this was all out of love. They both cared about each other too much to the point where it was always who can one up each other’s needs. It was Kingston bond that was known for being unbreakable. “I just need you to try. Can you do that? You’re my right hand man Tru and I wouldn’t have it any other way.” When it came down to the question about the councilman’s wolves, Imani immediately shook her head denying the whole thing. A white lie. “No.” she deadpanned. “None of this was your fault.” Glancing down at her smartwatch, she cleared her throat and patted on the couch she was sitting on. “I’m tired. We can discuss this further tomorrow. You can stay and take the pull out couch if you’d like.” 

He looked down at his hands and frowned at them, remembering how it felt to trigger his werewolf gene. Even if their father hadn’t let him fall, with the way the Kingstons were, he was always going to trigger his gene someday. What was an alpha if they couldn’t shift?  He lowered his hands and he looked back at Imani. Truman wondered why she always seemed to be apologizing for him. He knew he was the little brother and that he got into trouble all the time, but it wasn’t her fault. He wasn’t going to blame her for this or for something out of her control, but for her sake, he gently nodded his head at her. “Ok... but it doesn’t change how I feel... I just need you to get that weight off of you.”

Zinaida didn’t think this day would come. However, knowing that she’s already part of the supernatural realm it was inevitable to escape her past. There were many of them, surrounding her with wide eyes and emphasizing how she should have heavy guilt. It wasn’t their fault he took advantage of her. It wasn’t their fault that they were in a relationship with her. It wasn’t their fault that she almost died. 

At the end of the day it wasn’t their fault and yet, they faced their demise on his behalf. Zinaida was the executioner and the fact that he left him alive they wanted her to feel at fault. Now that many years has passed, he too ended up showing himself as a ghost of her past. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

“Truman?” she questioned as she brought her attention to him. “I…No…What’s…” Now she was panicking as she gripped onto his arm as an anchor, but as much as she kept telling herself it wasn’t real—this all felt real. Her perpetrator was staring straight at her with the intent to hurt her like that night. “I don’t know what’s happening…I don’t feel good…He’s everywhere…”

Truman pulled her close because they both seemed to need it. His pack mates weren’t around and right now the most real thing next to him was Zinaida. “Yeah, I’m right here...” He hugged her tightly and tried not to look at the ghost of his mother. With the way that Zi was acting and all the other faces, he knew that he wasn’t the only one who had to face a terrible past. “Who?” He followed her eyes to the shade that was staring at her. 

Imani knew all this time that Truman wasn’t the same ever since the climbing trip he had with their father. However, she kept it to herself because a part of her was in denial of what went down. As the eldest Kingston, it was her obligation to look out for him. She always did when they were kids and their bond was truly unbreakable. However, the more expectations her parents had for them, the more it became difficult to look out for each other. It was why things happened the way it did. The fact that her brother confirmed her suspicions caused her take a step back as she stared at him with a saddened gaze.  

“I’m sorry!” she finally yelled out. “Just say that it was my fault that you got into this predicament. Stop trying to not be unfazed Truman! This isn’t fucking right! None of this was supposed to happen! You were supposed to…” Her voice trailed off as it pained her to say it. He had a lot going for him, but because their father was so caught up on him being the alpha, he never had a shot at a normal life. “You should give a fuck Truman! You’ve been bottling shit ever since! I’m sorry that I couldn’t save you from him! I’m sorry that I couldn’t protect you! I’m sorry that you didn’t get to live freely as you should! You were young and you had everything taken away from you and as your older sister, I should have looked out for you more.” Wiping away her tears, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath before walking over to the couch and taking a seat. She was not only tired, but defeated. She couldn’t bring herself to argue any further.

“No you don’t get it.” she said as she locked her gaze on him. “I’m doing all this for you…For us…Because we’re all we’ve got. To see you not try or not care it hurts. I worry for you all the time. You don’t realize the effect you have on people. Our pack relies just as much on you as they do with me.” Shaking her head, she flopped back into the couch and glared at the the empty space before. Why did it matter at this point? She was fine now. “The other wolves under the Councilman, they were mouthy. I was civil until they laid a hand on me, so I did what I had to do.” In no way was she going to bring up the fact that she knew he may have been involved in one of the missing wolves. There was so much going on between them that she didn’t want to play the blame game. Besides, she understood why he did what he did and in no way does she find him at fault for it. “Just let it go Truman, I’m okay.” 

Their father wanted him to man up and become the alpha that he wanted. Truman never really reached their father’s expectations. He wasn’t the softest man around, but he learned how to be sweet from his mother. He knew how to be tender and warm; there was nothing wrong being in touch with his emotions. If anything, if Imani was a guy, she’d probably fit more of what their father wanted. She was amazing and strong. She rarely hesitated. If he hadn’t been so weak, maybe he wouldn’t have fallen and hit his head. 

“It isn’t. I didn’t try hard enough... or something.” Their father mistreated them, he reminded himself. It wasn’t their fault. “No. It ain’t our fault... they weren’t good parents, Mani. He wanted to hide an accident instead of taking me to a doctor and mom accepted that he was a monster.” Tru was trying to keep his own tears down. He didn’t want either of them to end up a sobbing mess. They never really talked about that night or their parents after shit hit the fan. “Because I didn’t want you to worry! I didn’t want you to feel like this! I’m not ashamed of you! I’m proud of everything you do and it hurts me to see you like this, taking the blame for something that was out of your control. We were both young when it happened, sis. They took away everything we knew long before we even realized it.”

Truman realized what was going on when he saw her face in the chaos. She was just as blue as the last time she saw her and he didn’t need an explanation. He felt like a coward for turning to run, but at the time, his first thought was to find Imani. If their mother was back then what was keeping their father from showing up. He wanted to make sure she was okay, but the chaos kept them away from each other and eventually he got word from another wolf that she was fine. Imani was strong, stronger than him even. 

With Imani safe, he turned his attention toward his friends. Zinaida and Hale were out there somewhere and he wanted to make sure they were ok. He just caught Zinaida’s scent first. He bolted toward her direction and slid to a stop when he saw her. “Hey! Hey, Zi.” He slowly moved up to her. “Are you alright? I was looking all over for you... You aren’t...hurt are you?”

“There’s no feelings to spare at this point.” she hissed out loud as she found no use in beating around the bush. They were both being dishonest with each other that they were well aware what was said and going to be said would hurt them equally as much. “You’re sick in the head Tru for even thinking otherwise. This isn’t even about the business, this is our lives we’re talking about and you should be prepared for anything.” So he wasn’t going to drop the tone, she expected nothing less at this point, but it just angered her how they even got to this point. It should be easy between them, after all they’ve been through hell and back, but lately there was a divide between them and she knew they had their reasons. 

“So what? Am I supposed to thank you for keeping it within the family!?” Sarcasm. If they were to blow up in front of the pack, she wouldn’t care, especially since the other wolves knew better than to step in between the Kingston siblings. “I am here as your sister! It’s just that you’re not being completely honest with me that I have to pull the authority card! For fuck sakes Truman, I can see through your fucking lies—What the fuck is that supposed to mean? You were hurt and here you are being so…UGH!” She walked up to him, frustrated as she threw her hands up in the air, before poking his chest repetitively to emphasize a point. “Fuck you. Fuck you. And FUCK YOU!” 

Biting the insides of her cheek, she paced back and forth, clenching and unclenching her fists. She refused to cry, despite the tears forming in her eyes. She was frustrated, exhausted, angry and especially disappointed with herself. She felt as if she failed as the eldest sister, especially when Truman didn’t know his worth. It hurt, it made her heart drop completely as she felt an immense amount of guilt for how things turned out. She knew their father damaged him beyond repair, but she didn’t think it would have been this bad. If she had saw the signs earlier…”That’s not fair Truman…” she whispered as she turned her back on him. “I need you…You think I can do this alone? You’re the reason why this pack is even together. You’d be a greater loss. Why can’t you see that?” He was the heart and soul of the Kingston pack. Rubbing her face, she took a deep and shaky breath, before exhaling slowly and finally facing him. “Pack or no pack, it still doesn’t matter…At the end of the day, I can’t lose you. I refuse. I will raise hell should anything were to happen to you. You’re the only family I have left. Fuck Tru, you just can’t think less of yourself…Not after how far we’ve come.” 

“I am sick in the head! You know what? I haven’t been okay since that climbing trip! Even after I killed mom, nothing got fixed!” He didn’t want to tell her this. Everything in him was tensing up like his cells were trying to choke out the flames of truth that was overtaking him. If only he could just keep his mouth shut, but both of them were never silent. Imani was quieter but they had too many words to keep inside; it was probably why they were fighting like this. “I stopped feeling pain normally! You could stab me right now and I’d feel the blade but I don’t fucking care. It doesn’t bother me!”

He recognized what pain felt like, but he couldn’t suffer from it. Truman felt that it had something to do with the last time he went on a trip with their father when he hit his head. “I don’t give a fuck about myself. I healed and it didn’t hurt. I didn’t bitch about it.” He was the broken sibling, the one who dropped the ball, the disappointment. Truman wasn’t enough for their father and he didn’t understand why it felt like Imani was asking him to be more than he was. He kept his place even as she poked his chest. “Yeah, that’s all you got? Fuck you? You don’t got to waste more of your breath with that shit, I’ve been fucked a long time ago.”

If there’s one thing the Kingstons were truly known for, it would be their wrath. Their anger was subtle in ways where an outsider would not think they had it them. However, it was one of the driving factors as to how Imani became alpha or how both she and Truman were free to do as they please. Out of the two of them, it was evident that the eldest Kingston was able to conceal it in comparison to the youngest who was practically like a ticking time bomb. Not once did Imani flinch as soon as Truman reacted the way he did. She’d seen the best and worst of him, that it was all about patience at this point. “I’m not dying.” she stated firmly as she looked him straight in the eye. Slowly nodding, she scoffed in response and did a nonchalant wave as if that was that. “At the end of the day, we’re not fucking invincible Tru! Anything could happen and I thought we made it clear that you’d step up to the plate if that were the case. You know what to do, I shouldn’t have to hold your fucking hand every step of the way. We’re not babies anymore!” They were children though, forced to grow up due to pack politics and expectations out of their hands. The accusations, the yelling, the assumptions…It all caused Imani to glare coldly at her brother as she lowly replied with, “Truman Jabari, drop that fucking tone.” 

Regardless of being family, he knew his place and he should have known better, that she had her reasons that were better left unsaid. “Don’t ever think for a second, that I don’t trust you cause all this—” She pointed a finger at her unit as a means to represent everything that they’ve done to get here on the whole. “Wouldn’t have happened if that were the case. I had help, I’m here, I’m fine. You should know when and when to not question me. If I didn’t bother bringing it up, then it’s not a big deal. Honestly, who the fuck do you think you are coming at me as if I’m the problem here? Last time I checked, you were in the same predicament as me, but do I go and fucking accuse you of being less of a brother? NO!” This time she was raising her voice as she finally got up from her seat, a hurtful expression on her features as she was upset at how hypocritical he is. “You’re untrustworthy Truman. You’re all talk! Communication? You can’t even fucking tell me one mishap over the full moon, so you should clearly fuck off!” 

“You trying to spare my feelings?” He didn’t expect an answer. Truman didn’t want a response from Imani. If she gave one, he knew that he wouldn’t be happy with it. From the looks of it, she already shut him out or was in the process of it. “Don’t pull that shit with me. That’s not even the fucking business.” She was right; they had a plan for what would happen to the pack if she met an untimely end, but he was more concerned for his sister than his alpha. She was the only blood he had left, and after everything, he couldn’t lose her. “No. I may be fucked up, but people need something fucked up to make them question shit around them. I’m not gonna sit my ass down and let you off just cause you warm a throne, Imani.”

Some people were just born into the role of the alpha, and it became a part of their whole being. Truman wondered if he would ever be put together enough to have a pack of his own, but when he looked at Imani and remembered their father, he didn’t want to take on that responsibility. He was broken and even with how whole they seemed, the power that came with it seemed to split cracks in the people he had come to know. Maybe he was too critical of them, but regardless, his stomach turned at the thought. 

“I’m doing this behind closed doors. No one else is here, and they’re not stupid.” With the vibes and aura, they were sending out, he was sure that the rest of their crew would have found reasons to avoid the storm and take shelter. “You come at me like an alpha, and I’m here as your brother! I don’t get anyone else. I don’t need an alpha, I just need my sister here with me, right now. I want to know if I got to fucking kill someone for doing that to you. I don’t give a fuck ‘bout your alpha pride.” Truman stopped a side table and considered driving his foot down the centre of it, but he stopped and continued to pace again.