by Burke, Brynn
“Dude, I have no idea what you are talking about or what you’ve been smoking. I am nothing special… I am less than special, a trailer park princess. I need to leave and so do you. Do you want me to throw you in the slammer and let you detox?”
“I cannot allow you to be out of my sight. You do in fact have something correct though, you are a princess… I have no idea what a trailer park is but in the world in which you come from, you are royalty. We need to get you home as soon as possible.”
All this is just absurd, does he not hear himself? I have no idea what I am even doing entertaining this man. He is seriously some kind of crazy. The drug’s he took must’ve really fucked with him.
With everything packed, I go to the front door and exit, patiently waiting for the creepy man who looks like Tinkerbell’s relative to follow suit. I forgot to mention what he was wearing, or lack thereof. No shirt, just a large jeweled necklace adorning his neck and black pants with gold flowers or something sewn in. It looks like he’s wearing pirate boots on his feet, or some freaking old school sailor boots.
I lock the door and practically run to my Jeep, but he continues to follow. I am starting to get really annoyed and pissed off. I pause and turn to him just outside of my vehicle.
“Why are you following me? Don’t you have something else to do? Places to go? Drugs to fetch?”
He just looks at me tilting his head.
“My life is your life. I have been waiting for you for over three hundred and twenty years. You are my betrothed, my chosen one and in good conscious I cannot let you out of my sight. I am here to protect you and since your sister’s protector has not been appointed due to her disappearance, and possible death, I will bring the two of you home.”
Betrothed?
What in the world is this man on? I’ve seen drugs make people say some crazy shit, but nothing this crazy.
“Um. Please stop. I don’t have time for this and for the last fucking time, I do not have a sister.” I turn and enter my Jeep, slamming the door in his face. I put the key in the ignition and step on the gas.
“You do have a sister and it will be proven shortly.”
I slam on the brakes. Hitting my head on the steering wheel.
What?
How?
He’s in my vehicle, in the passenger seat! This is not possible. I must be delirious. Jesus. Am I going crazy too?
I breathe out deeply, honking coming from behind me. I remove my foot from the breaks and hit the gas. I really don’t have time for this. I know Oksana needs me. I can’t explain it but I have this feeling deep in my gut that she is in some sort of trouble.
“You’re not going to leave, are you?” I say looking over at Lynx.
“Your assumptions are correct.” He states concisely.
Fuck my life.
* * *
I pull up to the precinct and to say the car ride was strange is a complete understatement. We didn’t speak at all during the entire thing. It makes me feel slightly uncomfortable and I can feel my anxiety kicking it up a few notches.
I don’t like strangers and I sure as hell don’t like stalkers and believe me I’ve had a few.
I have no idea what to say to him, what to talk about. Everything that comes out of his mouth sounds like complete bullshit and unrealistic. Don’t get me wrong, this guy is hot. Hotter than hot, like something exotic… something you’d see at comic-con if you were into the special effects makeup and costumes. Which I totally am. I have this little soft spot for superheroes. Those tight spandex pants and yum.
Yup, Lynx is yummy.
I don’t want to think about that at the moment but what is a girl to do when a Greek God was riding shotgun? Okay, okay, time to get serious.
I pull in my designated parking spot at the precinct and turn to Lynx.
“Stay here. I will be back in just a moment.”
He gives a slight head nod and I sprint into the building. As soon as I enter, I see Avel typing away at his desk. He lifts his head as if he feels my eyes on him. At this he gives me a weird look. His nostrils flare as I approach his desk.
“Hadley,” he greets me with his gaze focusing back on his computer screen. I can see his hands shaking slightly and his body is tense. I lean down and whisper to him.
“You okay?” He pushes his chair out and puts some distance between us.
“Just peachy.” He says with a forced smile.
Okay…what the hell is this about.
I seriously don’t have the time or patience to deal with his P.M.S. shit and mood swings right now.
I leave him to deal with his shitty attitude and walk towards the back of the building, where the keys to the squad cars are located. I see a young officer sitting behind the desk of the cage playing on his phone. Normally I would give him shit and might even write him up. He’s lucky that I’m in a hurry tonight.
As soon as his eyes land on me approaching, he hides his phone behind his back. Meanwhile he looks like a deer caught in headlights and his eyes go wide. Coughing, he greats me, “Save it. I need the keys to my car.”
He quickly turns and grabs them from the designated hook, handing them to me.
When I go towards the front of the building, I notice that something is out of place. Avel isn’t here…but I’m grateful for that. The man sure does know how to talk. Now that I’m thinking about him…it was strange of him not to ask a million and one questions about the number I asked him to look up.
Oh well.
I step out the front door to the precinct and I am greeted with Lynx standing there, next to my patrol car, holding the bag I had just packed a little bit ago. He sure is a strange one.
I hit the unlock button and hop in the driver’s side. Ordering Lynx, “Get in.”
He does as I tell him, placing the bag on top of his lap.
“Seat belt.” He just looks at me, blank expression on his face so I reach over him and latch him in.
I start the engine, looking over to him and instruct him on what to do., “Hang on tight.”
Turning the sirens on, I am off like a bat out of hell.
10
Oksana
My body feels… different.
It feels as if a war is being fought.
A battle that is consuming me, bit by bit.
Two different parts of myself are going at it, fighting to the death and I can’t seem to choose which side I want to take. Both are enticing, offering me different things. I know none of this probably makes sense if I were to explain it to someone out loud, so I remain rooted in place. Kneeling on my knees in the damp grass trying to work through this… whatever this might be.
I know Wyatt is next to me, sensing his presence. I can feel him all around me, but it’s not just that, I can pick up on his scent. His scent of pine and sunshine wraps around me. It’s comforting and giving me a sense of calm that I so desperately need.
I lift my hand and place it in the thick, coarse fur that is covering Wyatt’s body. He’s in wolf form and I stare, wrapping my hand in his warmth. It’s a distraction, a way for me to think about something other than what is actually going on inside of me. My heart rate slows down, and my lungs finally get the air that it so desperately needed.
I snap out of my current state by the sound of sirens approaching off in the distance. I turn my head in the direction of the noise, it’s sounds close… really close. I attempt to stand, about to use my arm that is broken…
But wait, I move my fingers around and I don’t feel any sort of discomfort, or soreness. My arm was broken, that I know for a fact because I saw my bone sticking out of the skin.
How is this possible?
Have I lost my damn mind?
I look over to Wyatt who’s just sitting here, like a dog. Granted this dog is taller than I am, even if I was standing. It makes me giggle and my God… it’s been such a long time since I have laughed.
I don’t know if it is because of my lack of sleep or from the lack of food and wat
er but I can’t help but laugh out loud. I start laughing so hard I can feel tears sliding down my cheeks.
“And just what are you laughing at?” Wyatt asks, his voice inside my head.
“Stop that, it’s weird. If you want to talk change back to a man.” I firmly say to him. I am handling all of this quite well if you ask me, but telepathy is just pushing it a little too far for.
Wait… can he hear my thoughts?
I wait a few moments and instead of getting just one reply, two confirmations of ‘yes’ rattle off in unison inside my head.
Years of no privacy and I feel like my life is still not my own, even being out of that hell hole I just escaped from.
I remove my bandages starting with my sling, just as Wyatt starts to change back into a human. The noise his body makes once again causes my stomach roll. The crunching and popping, it looks painful and I feel so bad that he has to go through something such as this.
I turn my head and give him some privacy while I continue to remove my bandages. What I didn’t expect to happen is be in one place one minute and a few yards away in the next.
“What the…” I start to say but that is when I notice the cop car barreling to the spot I was in just moments ago. I am rendered completely paralyzed as I see a long dark-haired beauty exiting the vehicle. I can hear the conversation she is having with the person in the passenger seat. Something about shutting up, minding their own business and yes, she can in fact drive.
Hadley.
I don’t give a second thought, I start to sprint towards her but a pair of arms wrap around me. I look up to Killian and growl out, “Let. Me. Go. Now!”
He lets go of me, taking a step back and I continue on forward, running with all might.
I don’t give a fuck that I am practically naked. I don’t give a damn that I am winded in the first few steps I take. And I don’t even care that my body is about to topple over in exhaustion.
Hadley’s eyes grow wide at the sight of me. Like she’s just seen a ghost. Then she takes one step before she is sprinting towards me, making a hell of a lot more headway than I am.
Our bodies collide, wrapping a syphoning grip around one another. The two of us sob uncontrollably. It’s been long… too long. I missed her every day I was in Monster’s dungeon. She is what kept me fighting all these years. Even though she’s not aware of it, she kept me alive. Hadley is and always will be my lifeline.
We fall to our knees on the ground. I don’t know how long we remain in each other’s arms, but I never want to let go. I can’t. She is my other half and I need her in my life like I need air to breathe.
I sense the men approach before I see them and through the cloud of tears pouring out of my eyes, I take notice to the man taking up position in front of both myself and Hadley.
Hadley pulls back and looks me over, the tears we both have seem to have subsided for the time being. I can tell when she notices the scars that cover my body as she takes a sharp breath. She lifts her arm, running her thumb over the smaller scars I have on my forearm. Her tears come out fast and I grab both of her hands in mine and look her dead in the eyes.
“It’s okay, Hads. I’m okay.”
“Wh-o? Who did this… to you?” She says on a hiccup.
I don’t want to tell her. From what I can see she is an officer. She’d want to seek justice and I just can’t let Monster get his hands on her too. He would destroy her and the last thing I want is for her to experience all of the pain and torture I went through. Not when she has already gone through such terrible things in her up-bringing.
I give her a slight smile. “It doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is that I am here. I am alive, and here with you.”
She doesn’t reply, just nods her head. I ask her the one thing I need to know… I feel so selfish for not even asking.
“Mom… Dad?” I say looking at her, but she just lowers her head to her chest and starts to shake her head.
“I’m so sorry, Oksana. They passed away a few years after you went missing.”
My heart feels like someone just sank a knife through it. The pain is like nothing I have ever felt before. I can’t help the emotions that flood through my body. I throw my head back and scream. Or at least, I thought I did. A scream is not what greets me. A scream came out, but it was a howl that followed suit. It sounds sad and in pain which is exactly how I feel. Both Wyatt and his twin who were just moments before in human form are now shifting. As soon as four legs hit the floor, they howl with me.
Hadley just gives me a look that says ‘what the fuck.’ No fear in her eyes, just utter bafflement.
The man she came with approaches squatting down at his knees and peers back and forth at the two of us and then speaks,
“I didn’t know the two of you knew each other, but I feel the need to reintroduce you. Hadley this is Oksana, and this Oksana is Hadley… your sister.”
11
Oksana
“What?” I look at him and say almost too quietly for anyone to hear.
Sister?
“She is indeed your sister. There is quite a lot I need to explain to the two of you.”
Could my life get any crazier right now? Werewolves, and whatever the hell Killian is which I assume to know the answer to because let’s be real… only a few mystical creatures or horror stories, however you perceive it… talk about beings who need blood. Those beings are what we know as vampires.
Then I have some guy who looks like something out of a fairytale tell me that Hadley, my best friend, is actually my sister. I mean… with everything I’ve witnessed lately… who knows, he may be in fact telling the truth.
“I’m listening. Expl -” My sentence is cut off by Killian.
“We have to get out of here. More will be coming, and the ones down will awaken. I know my father, he…” I gasp out loud, interrupting him. There’s no way I can allow him to talk. Not now. Not after he just said that!
“Your father? Your father is the one…” I trail off. Killian approaches me, grabbing my shoulders and then places both of his hands on my neck. It’s almost like he wants…, no needs to look in my eyes to say the words that will escape his lips next.
“Oksana, there are many things about our world that you don’t fully understand. Things that I know I want to explain to you, and I’m sure Wyatt feels the same. Just know neither of us will ever, ever hurt you.”
I want to push him away, to tell him never to touch me again, but deep down his words ring true. I don’t know how I know this. That he’s being genuine in telling me the truth and not some lie to make me feel better, but I just do. I let out a deep breath and give him a nod that says okay.
“Let’s get out of here,” he says to the group and we all start to head to the vehicle but Hadley being Hadley…
“Wait a god damn minute. What in the hell is going on? I need some explanations and I need them now!”
I turn and walk back to her.
“Hadley, we really need to get out of here. I know you have a lot of questions. I do as well, but there is someone after me… the same person who has held me captive for these past few years and believe me when I say… this man… he is not to be trifled with. He is dangerous and a sadist. Please, just… trust me?”
“Fine… but I am not letting this go.”
“I promise.” I say to her and we follow the men to the car.
When all of us are standing outside of the car, I question how all of us were going to fit. Wyatt and his twin… whose name I still don’t freaking know are gargantuan in human form. In wolf form, they are almost as large as the vehicle. The other two guys aren’t small either.
I look over to the wolves.
“Change back please.”
I turn back into the direction of the rest of the group, not wanting to witness or hear the noises of the shift. It makes my stomach turn each time.
“How are we to fit?” I ask no one in particular.
“Don’t worry about me,�
� the man who came with Hadley says and then with a small flash of sparkled light, he shrinks in size and resting on his back are a pair of wings.
Hadley starts to laugh hysterically.
“I called you Tinkerbell when I first met you, but now… you actually are… my god. I must be losing it. This… must be some crazy ass dream I am having.” She says in between laughs.
Then she takes notice of a naked Wyatt and Elliot. Her almost eyes bulge out of her head.
“Yes, I am most definitely losing it.”
I go over to Hadley and direct her to the driver’s side door, opening it for her.
We don’t have time for this and if she knew everything I went through, everything I had suffered, everything I have recently seen… she would be just as scared for her life as I am. I can’t go back. I just can’t.
She gets in and starts the car, staring off into space as if her mind is blank. I race around the other side and hop into the passenger side and the little fairy follows suit, plopping down on my shoulder.
Aw, he’s so cute.
I look behind me and see the men getting into the back. Twin behind Hadley, Killian in the middle and Wyatt behind me. I look over to Hadley who has both hands on the steering wheel just staring outside the front windshield.
“Hads?” I reach over grabbing her hand. “It’s okay, Hadley. I am here. Everything is okay.” I tell her, trying to reassure her that even though she is seeing things she never thought possible, I am here. No matter what we will face whatever challenges we have together. I didn’t have anyone to comfort me when I first made contact with Wyatt. I didn’t have someone to hold my hand and tell me everything was going to be okay. I faced it head on, plus that little voice inside my head wasn’t taking no for an answer. The little voice was commanding me, pushing me to take what was mine and that’s exactly what I did.