by Sara Snow
“This isn’t what we agreed on.”
I frowned and pressed myself to the wall beside the door before peeping inside. Sure enough, Axel was standing with his back to the door, his hair loose around his shoulders. I couldn't see whom he was speaking to, but I had a strong suspicion about who it might be.
“Plans change,” I heard Olcan respond in his usual indifferent tone, and I edged closer to the door.
“My father has been ill for a while, and I’ve already taken over as Alpha. You know that.”
This was news to me and I had a feeling it would be news to Xavier as well. I pressed myself closer to the wall instead of looking into the room and risking being seen. Did they know I was standing here? Surely, they could smell me, or were they too engrossed in their conversation to notice?
“I can’t leave my pack and go to Romania. Can you even say how long I'll have to stay there? No, you have no idea."
Olcan sighed. “This isn’t up for debate, Axel. I think it’s obvious that you can’t be left behind. You are the girl’s mate as well. Your presence will be needed.”
“This is up for debate. This is not the deal we made. This is a bad time for me to leave my people,” Axel growled.
“Deals change! A lot has changed! This was a bad time for me to drop everything to come here, but here I am. She is a problem, Axel, much more than you had portrayed, and more than any of us had thought.”
“Because she knows Lovette? This is how she is treated because of that? You don’t know what she knows.”
“Exactly!” Olcan yelled. “No one knows what she knows! No one knows who she is!” My eyes fluttered as I looked down, his words cutting through me. “I need to know what she knows, everything that she knows.” His voice grew deep and threatening, and I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms. “And I will learn it all, even if I have to cut it from her skull myself. I don’t give a fuck about her being your mate or Xavier’s. She’s not one of us, and she never will be. You’re both alphas-to-be. In fact, you’re already an acting alpha, so act like it.”
Was Olcan saying what I thought he was saying? Was he talking about killing me? He couldn’t be. No. My heartbeat spiked as I continued to listen, but they were no longer speaking. As the silence stretched on, I started to panic that maybe they had finally realized I was eavesdropping right outside the door. I had just started to move away when Axel’s voice met my ears, his voice as low as Olcan’s.
“What are you saying, Olcan?”
“Don’t tell me that now after all this you actually care about what happens to her, Axel. I’m here because you brought me here. Xavier is already too close to her and that will be taken care of, but don't you join him, Axel. You'll meet the same fate, and I don't want to lose yet another promising Alpha, especially one who understands the Council's vision. A human can't be mated to a wolf. Period. Imagine the chaos and uncertainty within the wolf community if something like this ever got out. We must understand how this happened and how to prevent it from happening again.”
I turned away slowly on tiptoe until I felt like I was far enough away from the room. Then I started running. I have to get out of here. I can’t stay here. I can’t! I ran down the stairs to get to the second floor but as I rounded a corner, I heard whispering. I stopped running, my chest rising and falling rapidly as I listened, but the whispering had stopped.
I started walking down the dimly lit hall, the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end as the faint whispering started once more. I spun around in time to see a black shadow disappear inside the wall to my left. My eyes widened as I immediately turned and started running. Ghost or not, I wasn’t sticking around to find out.
I pumped my legs as the feeling of being chased grew worse. I heard a scream, much like the ones I had heard during that vision inside my mind. I skidded to a halt as the world around me fell away, and I was once again at that place in my mind with all the humans running in fear.
I rubbed at my eyes, and when I opened them, I was in the hall once more.
What the hell is going on?
“Ruby?” The voice hadn’t registered until I had spun around and my fist was caught inches away from crushing a nose. Xavier’s head tilted to the side; his brows knitted as he lowered my fist. “What are you doing?” I threw myself at him and buried my face in his chest. “Ruby, you’re freaking me out. Why were you running like that?”
“Something was…” I looked up at him. “We have to leave, Xavier.”
He stared down at me sadly. "We have to go, Ruby. We don't have a choice."
I untangled myself from him as I shook my head. He had no idea what was about to happen. “They’re going to kill me.” His expression of pity didn’t change, and I felt like punching him in the face for real. “I’m not being paranoid, Xavier. I heard Olcan say it aloud. He’s going to kill me. I don’t know exactly what he has planned for you, but I doubt it’ll be pleasant.”
His face slowly morphed into one of confusion and anger. “What are you talking about? You heard Olcan talking when? To whom?"
"Just now, on the third floor, he was talking to Axel. He wants to know what I know, and he's prepared to do anything to get that information. He said I'm not one of you and I never will be. , He doesn't care that I'm mated to you and Axel. All he wants to find out is how I'm mated to a wolf, to begin with, and how to stop it from happening again. He has no plans of ever letting any wolves get a whiff about our mate bond. He's going to kill me, Xavier. We have to leave now."
He stepped away from me, his face turning red with rage. With his black T-shirt and jeans and the semi-darkness around us, he blended into the shadows around us easily while pacing back and forth. “Axel's the Alpha now because his dad is sick," I said, and as I expected, he turned to me with confusion written on his face. Obviously, that was news to him, too. “He’s mad about being forced to leave his pack behind to come with us, but Olcan doesn’t care about that either. He doesn’t care about any of us.”
“She’s right.”
Xavier looked over his shoulder to find Natalie standing in the shadows a few steps away from us. She walked forward and into the light, her hands buried in the pockets of her leather jacket.
“Olcan doesn’t care about any of us, but especially not Ruby,” she said as she came to a stop beside Xavier. “He cares about control, and this is quickly becoming something that’s out of his control. You both need to leave.”
“That’s easier said than done, Natalie, and you know that. Today is a full moon, or had you forgotten? That means I can’t shift if we run into trouble. We’ll be sitting ducks if we’re caught. ” he replied. “When Olcan catches us, then we’ll absolutely be screwed, and that might even extend to the whole pack.”
“We can’t stay here, either,” I said to him, and he sighed and pressed a finger to his temple. “There has to be something we can do.”
“There is,” Natalie replied, and Xavier and I looked at her as she turned her back to us. “There is a way you can both leave without Olcan noticing. Just leave it up to me. I’ll cover things here, but be packed and ready to leave in a few hours.”
“Are you sure?” Xavier questioned, and she turned around to face us once more. Her eyes were glossy, and it tugged at my heart because it was clear this was all painful for her. She nodded before walking over to him and hugging him. “But you and dad…”
“Will be fine,” she said to him as she stepped away. “You and Ruby need to stay together, no matter what.” She looked at us both sternly, and we nodded.
She pulled me in for a hug as well, and my eyes began to fill with impending tears. I felt like I was stuck in a nightmare that kept going from bad to worse instead of me waking up to find out it was all a bad dream. "Pack and be ready by midnight. Just meet each other outside and leave. I'll take care of everything. Always remember that I love you both. Trust no one, and try not to worry. I can always find you both at any time and do a mind link. We’ll stay in touch.”<
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She turned away and vanished into the shadows down the hall. “Where will we go?” I asked, and Xavier pulled me to him and kissed the top of my head. My heart was beating so fast I felt like I could faint any minute. “I- I…” I wanted to be strong for him, I wanted to be brave when I needed to be, but the reality was I terrified. I felt betrayed that Axel had conspired with Olcan in planning to kill me, but I’d never say it. I thought that he felt enough of the bond to keep him from wanting to end my life, but I guess I had given him more credit than he deserved. Apparently, he is just like Olcan - all he cares about is power. “I want this all to end.”
He pulled back and kissed me gently on the lips. “It will, but first we need to do this.”
“Will you tell your dad?”
Pain flashed within his eyes, and he shook his head. “I can’t risk him trying to stop me and I’d rather that he have plausible deniability about being involved when Olcan realizes we’ve left. Get packed. I’ll see you soon.”
◆◆◆
Natalie
I had to change my sheets after waking up. They were damp with my sweat, and even my hair was wet. I looked as if I had taken a dip in a pool. Like so many things in the supernatural world, astral projection was definitely not as easy as they made it seem in movies or on TV. After taking a shower, I went looking for Ruby. I didn’t bother going to her room. I already knew she wasn’t there.
Now that they both know what Olcan is up to and are ready to leave, everything is about to fall apart…as it must.
I felt like punching something as I made my way back to my room. Things were already set into motion, and there would be no going back.
I rounded the corner to get to my room and spotted Reika standing by the door. Her eyes remained on me until I stopped before her, my arms crossed over my chest.
“Did you tell them to go?” I heard her ask in my mind, and I nodded.
“Yes,” I replied telepathically, and she stepped aside for me to open my room door. She followed me inside, and I crossed the room to sit by my window. “I told them to leave. They’re getting ready now.”
I previously had no idea Enchanteds could communicate telepathically, but now I had Reika to thank for bestowing that particular piece of useful knowledge. I stared up at the moon hanging low in the sky and a chill passed over my body as Reika pulled up beside me to stare up at the sky as well.
“Do you think Axel will follow them?” She asked me. Her voice in my mind sounded as clear as if she was physically speaking.
"He will," I replied. "No matter how much he tries to act indifferent towards Ruby, the connection he has with her is there. He won't be able to stay away. The more time he spends around her, the stronger the connection grows. So no matter how little he wants to, wherever they go, he'll follow. He might have started some of this all out of selfishness, but he was also trying to be a good alpha, to give his people better lives and a better home to run free. Wolves need space. Now he has learned the real truth about the Council.” I shook my head. "They are all the same, selfish, power-hungry leeches." I looked over at her. "No offense."
She shrugged. "None taken, I merely work for Olcan in matters like this when an Enchanted is needed. At first, I, too, was blind to the Council's true nature. Yet, even after I figured it out, I stayed."
“Why? You could have left and joined a pack.”
Her mouth turned downward. “I could have, but to be blunt, I didn’t have the courage to. I turned a blind eye to their corruption like so many others do in order to ensure my own survival. Because I’m pretty sure my life would have been forfeit if I left. The Council doesn’t hesitate to put a target on the back of anyone they consider to be a threat. I know too much. ” I walked over to my bed and sat down while she remained at the window, her head still held back as she stared up at the sky. “I love the full moon. It is the only time the other wolves experience what it’s like to be us.” She said, and her chuckle echoed loudly in my mind. “I’d never trade what I am to be like them. All of what Olcan had said about Enchanteds playing an honorable role in our society was bullshit. We’re used and looked down on not because we are “precious resources” to them, but because they are jealous and afraid of our power. So what if we can’t change into hairy beasts? We are the goddess’s children. Yet we still live under the thumb of their oppression.”
“Not for much longer,” I replied, and she looked my way. I could see the questions within her eyes, and I quickly looked away. “Are you sure you’ll be able to do what you need to do tonight? Without you putting Olcan and Mathieu into a deep sleep, Xavier and Ruby will be caught.”
“I’ll get it done, Natalie. Just trust me.”
We didn’t speak for a while, my mind taking me elsewhere until Reika crossed the room to sit on the bed beside me. The burning behind my eyes grew worse, and I looked away. Xavier has always been like a brother to me and I’ve grown close to Ruby. It killed me that there wasn’t much more I could do to help them, to prepare them for what was to come.
“I wish there was something more I could do. Something I could tell them to warn them. I wish I could warn everyone, but I can’t. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. I’m bonded by oath. If I interfere with what’s to happen, it’ll only be worse.”
“They’ll be okay, Natalie,” she whispered in my mind again as she took my hand and squeezed it gently. A tear fell from my eye, and I quickly swatted at it.
“If only you knew what I do.”
"That's because you refuse to tell me everything," I said nothing in response and pinned her with a look. “But, but, I know you can’t. You joining that mind link and showing me what had happened with Adolfa, what had happened to you...that was something. I’m just thankful you trusted me enough to show me. I’ve only ever heard rumors about power transfer. To suspect in theory that an Enchanted can pass on her gifts to another is one thing, but to have seen it done with my own eyes is something else. It must have been excruciating. , I suppose the Council is responsible for suppressing information about Enchanted power transfers as well.”
Of course, they wouldn't want something like that to get out. Enchanteds would surely become too powerful if they found out they could take on the powers of another. A loved one that has become too old and was ready to die would pass on their skills to the younger generation. I could see where we would push the boundaries of mortality. I could see the many Enchanteds lives that could be lost if the practice was misused. Not all wolves are like the Council members, and not all Enchantedshave good intentions. It would be chaos. Despite my dislike for the Council, I actually couldn’t fault them for keeping this a closely guarded secret. “It was excruciating, and a life was lost. Yet, for what’s coming, it was completely necessary, and a small price to pay. We are all going to need as much strength as possible for what’s to come.”
“Who is Ruby?” The question caught me off guard, and I pulled my hand away from hers. She turned to face me. “Did she truly know Lovette?”
"She did. You saw that she did." I got up and walked away before turning to face her. "Reika, there are things that I don't know. In fact, there is a lot I don't' know. My job is to keep Xavier, Ruby, and Axel on the right path. That is all."
She didn’t respond and got up. “I understand.” Her voice echoed in my mind as she walked to the door. “It’s time for me to do what I need to do.”
She left, and I returned to my bed, this time plopping down face forward. Despite the full moon and the light, it was blessing the earth with tonight is the beginning of dark times. I'd be setting Xavier, Ruby, and Axel on their path tonight for better or worse, and my job would come to an end. Unfortunately, that will not erase what I know. and That burden I will have to carry with me to the end.
I got up and ran my hand down my clothes. There was one last thing for me to do while Reika performed the sleeping spell on Olcan and Mathieu.
I walked to the center of the room and closed my eyes, and when I reopened them, I k
new they were no longer my typical shade of blue but instead, a milky white. I waved my hand, and what looked like a shimmering sheet of light began to crawl over the walls. Once the room was sealed, I walked over to my closet and removed a small rectangular box from under a pile of clothes.
I sighed as I stared down at the wooden box, strange writings engraved on it that only I could see. “I hate this part. I really hate this part.”
I returned to the middle of the room and sat on the floor. I placed the box in front of me and exhaled as I closed my eyes, fear gripping me in a tight embrace. I knew what I had to do. I didn’t have a choice. I listened to my breathing for a moment before opening my eyes and repeating the words written on the box.
As my chanting grew louder, the words began to glow, one letter at a time. Once all the letters were glowing, I opened the box to reveal a silver dagger. I swallowed as I picked it up and turned it over in my hand. If anyone was watching, they would think I had maybe removed a spell from the box. In fact, I actually summoned this dagger from somewhere else, another plane to be exact.
The double-bladed dagger was warm to the touch. I held its’ crystal-encrusted handle with both hands and closed my eyes. I didn't give myself time to think before I plunged the dagger into my chest.
My body stiffened instantly and, my eyes grew wide from the pain that was burning through my chest. I felt my life force draining away, and my head fell back as I started to scream. Tears began to flow from my eyes, but instead of falling downward, they started to float above me. Suddenly, my head was thrown forward.