by Sheryl Lee
Shax did look very pale but she stood up straighter. “I can drive, no worries.”
Axel chuckled. “I’m not letting you loose on the road in your current condition. I meant your version of mist travel, are you up to it?”
Shax frowned. “But what about the car?”
“Someone will return it, or we will get another one. Don’t worry about the car, it’s more important that we get back to the Melbourne house as soon as possible. You are drained, Sunny is in shock and little Zora must be exhausted plus she needs to have her wound treated.”
Shax’s eyes widened. “Zora I’m so sorry. I should have protected you better. All of this is my fault, I should have been able to handle all four of these guys.” She looked at Axel. “Axel to be completely honest I don’t think I have any more energy to spare.”
Axel reached out and smoothed her hair again. “Do not beat yourself up about it Shax. This was unexpected for all of us, but we know now that little Zora has all the skills she needs. That’s a very good thing for her to know especially. Now, Clare will take you back to the house. Samantha you take Powers and Sunny and I will take little Zora here.”
They all obediently formed into little groups and shortly there was no evidence anyone had been in the alley except for a few drops of blood.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
They reformed back at the house together, Zora and Sunny both promptly fainting and causing consternation among the staff. Zora woke to find herself lying on her bed, Powers beside her and Emma examining the knife wound on her arm.
As she opened her eyes Powers leaned forward to smooth a wayward lock of hair from her forehead. “Welcome back,” he said gently. “How are you feeling?”
“Sore, exhausted and confused. What exactly happened in that alley? Ow!”
“Sorry sorry, but I need to be sure your wound is clean.” Emma wore an apologetic expression but the hold she had on Zora’s wounded arm was firm.
Zora glanced down at it and immediately looked away, afraid she was going to faint at the sight of her own blood. That would be an embarrassment Powers would be sure she never lived down.
“Don’t be ridiculous, you’ve never been knifed before, of course it shocks you. And you used up a lot of energy in the fight so you need to rest. There’s some food coming, it should be here soon. In the meantime lie here, Axel will wait for you. He’s really impressed with what you did, we all are.”
“Ok, but how did I do it? I don’t understand. Axel didn’t show me anything like that and I’ve never learnt whatever it was that I did.”
Powers shrugged. “I don’t know how you did it, but Axel will explain.”
“What happened to those rogues? Did the guys take them to the Melbourne pack? What is the pack like anyway, you went to meet them didn’t you?”
Zora was curious, but she was really talking to take her mind off what Emma was doing to her arm.
“They did take them to the Melbourne pack, and Jake is there right now too. The pack is a large one and the leader, Simon, is a tough guy. I’m pretty sure they will get answers from these guys.”
“Done.” Emma started packing away her medical supplies. “It’ll heal fast Zora, your extra healing power will make sure of that. I think you will have a small scar but that will fade.”
Zora looked at the neat bandage that now covered her wound. She felt better now that the cut was out of sight. “Thank you Emma, I appreciate the care you’re taking with me.”
Emma smiled. “No problem Zora, and congratulations on a great fight. Sunny has been telling everyone about it and Clare and Samantha are very impressed with your ability.”
Zora started to sit up, dismayed to find the room swimming around her. “Sunny is ok? She didn’t look so good when we left the alley.”
Powers supported her as she swayed where she sat. “Sunny is in much better condition than you, and Marcus is by her side.”
“I’ll be fine Powers, I just need tea.”
As though she had summoned it, the door opened and one of the kitchen staff entered with a tray laden with tea, sandwiches and cake. Powers helped Zora to one of the chairs by the window where she sat gratefully and accepted a steaming cup.
Emma started to leave the room, saying as she went, “Lord Axel said to take your time and come to the main reception room when you’re ready. Sunny and Shax need some recovery time also, so don’t hurry.”
Zora sipped her tea, the hot fragrant brew making her feel better. She reached for one of the sandwiches and realised as she bit into it that she was ravenously hungry. Without further ado she set to cleaning the plate, feeling stronger with every bite. By the time she had finished the sandwiches and was contemplating the cake she was feeling much more normal.
“That’s better, the colour is back in your face now.” Powers smiled in relief, and Zora smiled back at him.
The smile faded as she thought back to the fight, still unable to understand how she had done what she did, or what had compelled her. She didn’t even want to consider the murderous rage she had felt when the werewolf knifed her.
“Don’t think about that, Axel will explain I’m sure. I’m just pleased you were able to defend yourself.”
Swallowing a mouthful of cake Zora asked, “What about Shax? She was fighting and protecting Sunny, and she felt so bad about losing connection with the fairies. Is she ok now?”
“She did feel bad, but I think she’s ok now. She used a lot of energy so she needs the rest too. She’s in her room with Frenchie.”
“I thought magic didn’t work on supernaturals? Shax was using those fireballs and she had some sort of magic rope thing too.”
Powers snaffled a piece of cake before replying. “She is a very powerful witch, I can see why Axel has her along. The more powerful witches can use things like fireballs to slow down another supe, but they don’t do much damage. They can also use manifested things like that rope but again it would not have held the wolf for very long.”
Zora nodded, not really understanding but too tired to ask any more questions.
“Why don’t you go have a shower? You’ll feel much better then. We should go to see Axel soon, there are two defenders and their guardians coming for dinner and we should debrief before then.”
Anxiety swirling in the pit of her stomach, Zora went to do as he suggested, careful not to get the bandage on her arm wet. Once she was clean and felt fresher Powers escorted her to the reception room where Axel was waiting. Sunny was there with Sabrina seated on her shoulder and Marcus beside her. Shax hadn’t arrived yet but the fairy guard were seated together and Jake was standing by the window. She was a little surprised to see him there, she had thought he would still be with the Melbourne pack but she guessed he was here to inform Axel on the rogue weres. He turned as she and Powers entered, his gaze going to the bandage on her arm. However he said nothing and his expression gave nothing away. Zora tried not to let it bother her. She had thought that news of her fighting prowess might have earned Jake’s approval but it seemed not. Perhaps he thought fainting after a knife wound was an unacceptable sign of weakness.
“Zora! Are you ok? I can’t believe you got knifed, you’re like this gangster girl.” Sunny grinned, looking fully recovered from the events of the afternoon. “Remind me never ever to go shopping with any of you lot again, ok?”
Zora smiled at Sunny, grateful as ever for her knack for bringing a touch of humour to events. “I’m fine, Emma says I’ll have a scar, so I guess I’ll have bragging rights.”
A snort from Jake drew her attention. He didn’t comment but the look of disapproval on his face spoke for itself. Zora couldn’t stop herself. “What Jake, what is your problem with me? Am I not tough enough for you? Shouldn’t have fainted perhaps but just bled all over everything without even noticing?”
“You’re too soft for a defender. You have an important role and I haven’t seen any evidence that you’re up for it. For a start you should be much fitter, and you should kno
w all about this world. I know Sunny is not a fully practicing witch, but your role is vital. You are the one who is supposed to lead us to a killer. It is clear now that there is a group of them to deal with so you need to be reliable. I don’t think you are.”
Powers frowned and looked about to reply, but Axel stepped in. “Jake, Zora may appear to you to be weak but allow me to assure you she is not. Zora has strength and abilities that even she is unaware of. She is the strongest defender there is and I for one have complete faith in her. You should too, we cannot have dissent among us and we must all trust one another. There may come a situation where trust is vital.”
Zora sat silently, trying to conceal her dismay. Jake had just voiced her fears and made them seem much more real. Yes she had fought off three men this afternoon but she didn’t know how she had done that and wasn’t sure if she would be able to do it again. There were four rogue weres in custody with the Melbourne branch of the werewolves, another one being watched and one more somewhere out there. That was the ones they knew about and probably there were more. How was she, Zora Hayes, ever going to be capable of facing this threat? Axel, Powers, Jake, and Shax – they were strong and powerful and knew what they were doing. She was just a useless human, they were surely better off choosing a different defender.
Powers led her to a chair as far away from Jake as possible, and frowned at her as she sat down. “Do not let what he said affect you like this. You ARE strong and capable and you are the one we need as defender, nobody else. Have faith in yourself and trust in your abilities.” He took the seat next to her and turned his frown onto Jake, who frowned back at him. Zora sighed and worried even more.
Shax chose that moment to blow into the room, Frenchie snuffling and panting at her heels. She looked around at them all; Zora looking worried, Powers protective, Jake aggressive, Sunny apprehensive and Axel irritated. “So,” she said brightly, “What did I miss here?”
Axel sighed and shook his head. “No matter right now Shax, we will talk of it tomorrow. For now, Jake can you tell us all what was learned from the rogue weres, did they talk?”
Jake pulled his gaze from Powers but the frown remained. “They really didn’t give us any useful information. They are all very new, one of them has only changed once. The one you met first is their leader, if you could call it that. He has been a were the longest so he has been guiding the others. We knew about him, but not the others and I’m not sure why they turned rogue so quickly. Perhaps it is because they were changed by a rogue that influenced them but it’s usually after a few changes that they turn. It may have been a strong rogue, capable of hiding them which would explain why we had no knowledge of these ones.” He looked at Sunny and Zora. “We know of all made wolves, we are pack beings so when another wolf is born – so to speak – we feel it. Not all wolves in the whole country of course, but those in our territories. In this case it is the Melbourne wolves who should have felt these newbies.”
Sunny raised her hand tentatively, an action which made Jake smile and served to break some of the tension. “I’m not a teacher Sunny, you don’t need to raise your hand.”
She smiled back. “How do you keep track of the made wolves then? Do all the packs co-ordinate with each other somehow? I mean, do you let all the wolves know how many made wolves you have?”
“We do, we keep records and those records are shared on a database. These three wolves are not on the database from any packs in the country.”
Zora had been about to ask that very question, but she had another one as well. “Jake, how far do the pack territories extend? Are there parts of the country where there are no packs?”
Jake looked a little surprised at her question but gave it some thought before he replied. “We are well represented right around the country. You’d be surprised how many werewolves there are Zora. But now that you ask, it is possible there could be some pockets deep in the desert where we have no representatives or possibly in some of the very small towns.”
Zora nodded. “So is it possible that these three came from a place like that? A place where they may have been changed but there were no others to feel it?”
“I had not thought of it Zora, but yes, in theory that is very possible. Disturbing, but possible.”
Axel stood up and began to pace. “So if a rogue like the one we search for wished for some reason to create more rogues, she could have gone to a place where the werewolves are effectively blind. It’s an interesting idea, and it concerns me in that it makes it sound like our werewolf has a big plan she is putting into effect.”
Jake shrugged. “It’s a possibility but I don’t know why she would bother. She can just make new rogues and hide them. We don’t go searching for all the made weres who drop off our radar, not if they don’t turn rogue before they do.”
“But if you know about them you would surely make all the packs aware of the ones that have chosen to stay away from the main packs. This way, you don’t know how many loners there are or how many of those have gone rogue.” Powers made a valid point, one that Zora could see hit home to Jake.
“That’s a very worrying idea Axel. You’re talking like there could be an army of rogue werewolves out there.”
Axel stopped his pacing and levelled his stare at Jake. “Could there be? Is that possible? We the fairies monitor all of the supernatural races, but we do not interfere and we do not keep any more than a rough count of numbers.”
Jake frowned and thought for a long pause before replying. “In theory it could be true, but I think in practice it would not work so well. Made wolves have many difficulties assimilating the change, they need help and support. Without it they may die, or lose their minds forever in the wolf. I know we have discussed this a little before, and there have been groups of wolves that wished to stay wolf, but they were older and stronger than the ones we currently have in custody. And besides, these seem genuinely to have no idea about any others, they are pretty lost really.”
“What about the lawyer? The one with the fairy watch in place? How does he fit into all of this? We didn’t even know he was a supe, it was like he had a cloaking spell.” Shax was looking more serious than Zora had ever seen her, and even Frenchie was staring at Jake as though waiting for an answer.
Jake sighed and shook his head. “I don’t know, there has never been a case like his. I really don’t think he is in any way connected to the newbies in custody. Maybe he is some sort of aberration. We will wait and see what we learn from the fairies about him.”
Zora sank lower into her chair. She hadn’t really expected any revelations from the rogues in custody but had hoped for some clarity. She wondered if she had overpowered the three because they were new and didn’t really know what they were doing. Although their auras were very similar she remembered.
“Axel?” Looking over to her Axel smiled gently. “Yes little Zora, you have thought of something?”
She shrugged diffidently. “I don’t know if it’s of any use, but the auras of all the rogue werewolves were very similar – dark muddy shades of green and red. The man I saw in the street had black in his as well.”
Jake started a little in surprise and Zora repressed a small arrow of satisfaction, keeping her gaze on Axel’s face. His expression gave nothing away, but he took his time to answer her.
“It is a valid point little Zora, however I believe you will find that all rogue weres have these colourations in their auras.” She deflated a little, but kept her attention focused on him as he continued. “However it is useful information that even the rogue that we almost did not detect has the same aura. It means that those of us who can see auras will be able to spot a rogue even if there are more of them which can hide their other side.”
Moving to the window Axel stood silently for a couple of minutes, before turning back to face the room. “We will leave it here for now, as we have guests coming for dinner and we all need to refresh before then. Everyone, please go and relax, dinner will be at seven. Littl
e Zora, can you remain? I wish to talk to you some more.” Zora pushed down the anxiety that rose up at the thought of Axel wanting to talk to her and nodded obediently. The rest of their group filed out of the room, Powers hesitating at the door but leaving wordlessly at a look from Axel. Once they were alone Axel seated himself on the lounge and patted the seat beside him in invitation. Zora moved to comply and waited for him to speak.
“Little Zora, may I ask what you felt when you were fighting? I mean what compelled you to fight? Shax said that you pushed her aside to meet the attack of the first rogue.”
Zora thought back to that moment. “My pendant flared with heat, and somehow I just knew what he was going to do. Believe me, I was as surprised as anyone when I found myself in the middle of a fight.”
Nodding without surprise Axel asked, “What about when you were knifed? What were you thinking then?” Zora looked at him in surprise, but Axel just waited for her reply, his expression unreadable. She squirmed in her seat, the remembered emotions making her feel extremely uncomfortable.
“It was the strangest feeling, I have never felt anything like it, yet at the same time it was so familiar. I was angry, so angry that he had cut me. And I felt like he was the focus for that anger, that I wanted to -” She paused, searching for words to describe how she had felt, “I don’t really know, I felt like I wanted to release something onto him.” Staring up at Axel’s face she asked, “What was it that I wanted to release Axel? It was as though my pendant was urging me to do something and I was going to do it, but you arrived at that very instant and it all stopped.”
Axel gazed at her fondly. “You are exceptional little Zora, never ever forget it. Do not let Jake fill you with doubts about your destiny or your ability.” Zora frowned at him; it was hard to take his words to heart since what Jake had said was what she herself felt. Seeing the frown Axel smiled a little before continuing. “Remember little Zora, we the fairies are of Gaia and we act on behalf of her. When I unblocked your abilities I also enhanced them, at the behest of Gaia. She knew you would need them. Little Zora, we the fairies do not see the future, but sometimes Gaia allows us a little knowledge. Believe me, you have all the abilities you need to carry out our quest. You underestimate your physical strength but more than that you underestimate your mental strength. Try not to do that in future.”