Hidden Wolves: Pact of Beasts, #1

CHAPTER ONE

Roman Kilani took a deep breath and tore his shirt open to reveal his impressive body. Some might say he was a very erratic person but Roman would call himself confident and unpredictable. It was a very dangerous combo and now the crowd was starting to warm up to him, and why shouldn’t they? He was the most entertaining showman they had ever met, plus this bull was the dumbest creature in the universe.

He made another dodge and the crowd went absolutely nuts. Roman raised his hands and faced the crowd again as the bull went the wrong direction and turned around to get ready for yet another charge. From the corner of his eye, Roman saw the last people that he ever wanted to see and it enraged him. What in the world were they doing here? How did they even know he was here? The bull charged forward, even angrier than it was the last time and just to spite his family, Roman lifted himself from the ground and jumped nearly six feet into the air over the bull and came down tumbling on the other side, unharmed and unscathed. He lifted his hands high in the air again and the people went crazy. The chant was Roman’s dream and he bet it was his family’s worst nightmare.

ROMAN! ROMAN! ROMAN! ROMAN!

The crowd chanted faster and faster while Roman basked in the praise. Yet again, the bull began to charge but while Roman’s back was facing it, receiving his glory and praise from his adoring crowd when he went into Zen mode. His ears were fine-tuned and he could hear the bull’s footsteps as loudly as though it was right beside his ear. He felt the vibrations on the ground and even without looking he knew the exact speed and the exact number of seconds it would take the bull to reach him. The crowd suddenly stopped shouting and there was loud murmuring and pointing as the crowd tried to warn him. His eyes were closed and his back was still turned to the charging bull, and in a matter of seconds, the bull would plunge headfirst into the body of Roman and he was sure to die.

But Roman was not going to die today and certainly not by a bull in the middle of the town right in front of everyone. Closer and closer, the bull charged forward towards Roman, preparing to launch its horns into him, when in the last split second Roman opened his eyes and shifted to the right ever so slightly, ever so masterfully, making the bull miss him by less than an inch and charge the wrong way yet again. The crowd went ecstatic and began chanting his name again. He could get used to this, where has this been all his life?

The bull was restrained and Roman took a bow, ending his showmanship for the day. The crowd loved him and he knew it, if only his family could see his true potential rather than scowl at him from behind the stands. He could smell them, he could sense them around and he knew they were going to give him hell when he returned home, but he was ready. They needed to loosen up and be wilder and more adventurous. They needed to listen to reason – his reason. 

It was well into the night by the time Roman got home that day. If he was being honest, he had stalled all day after the arena, entertained himself with some ladies, met new people, made new friends, and he felt like he was part of the community, which was more than his family could say. As he entered the little townhouse the family shared at the edge of town, what he saw was exactly what he had imagined would be waiting for him.

His mother and all of his siblings were sitting in the living room waiting for him to come home. As soon as he walked in, Margaret Kilani stood up and stared at her son.

Roman! We need to talk, she said simply. Roman could hear the stern tone in her voice and he knew she meant business. He had expected this to be honest but he was not prepared for how stern she was.

He had done this a couple of times. They called what he did exposing himself to the locals but he called it mixing with the community. Roman was sick and tired of the Kilanis hiding and