Passion Found

by C Zinnia

  Tiffany was quiet for a moment. “What’s wrong, Mel? You don’t sound like you,” she said.

  “I’m okay. I just really didn’t sleep well last night,” Mel said. “And I haven’t had enough coffee today. You know how I get when I’m caffeine deprived.”

  “This isn’t your sleepy voice. Are you hurt?” Tiffany asked.

  Everyone heard the strain in Tiffany’s voice.

  Eli was the only one who wasn’t surprised by Tiffany’s question. He nodded as though it confirmed a suspicion he had.

  “I’m okay, Mom,” Mel reassured her. Mel was so tired and it was taking a huge amount of effort for her to keep the conversation going.

  “You’re not okay. Tell me what’s wrong,” Tiffany demanded.

  Viola was angry. She didn’t like the way Mel’s mother was talking to her.

  “Nothing’s wrong, Mom,” Mel said.

  “Fine, but I better see you back here safe and sound. You have two days to get up here. I need to see for myself that you’re okay. I know something is wrong. And we’ll get you a phone when you’re up here with your old number. And I need the paperwork about your car to file with your insurance,” Tiffany said.

  “I still don’t have a car to get up there,” Mel said.

  “I can get you a plane ticket to fly out of Roanoke tomorrow. They should be at least able to drive you to Roanoke. Or borrow your girlfriend’s car and drive up,” Tiffany said. “She shouldn’t have any issue with that, right? She can come up too so we can meet her.”

  Mel began; “But-”

  “If you don’t come here, I’ll come down there, understood?” her mother said.

  Mel paused.

  Bruce mouthed ‘Friday.’

  “I’ll be back on Friday,” Mel said.

  Tiffany sighed in frustration. “Fine. Friday it is, but you still better call me every day,” she said. “I love you, Mel. I know you don’t understand why I’m acting like this, but I love you.”

  “I love you too, Mom,” Mel said. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?”

  “Okay,” Tiffany said. “Bye.”

  “Bye,” Mel said.

  Viola had her arms crossed. “You are in no state to drive,” she said.

  “True, but I was going to have to go back at some point, so it might as well be now. At least I can get some of my clothes while we’re up there,” Mel said. “And my job may already have me on schedule for Saturday or Sunday. While we’re up there, I can go ahead and put in my two weeks’ notice at my job. I wanted to do it in person.”

  Viola frowned. “You can’t work,” she said. “Not with your injury.”

  “You can figure it all out when you’re up there,” Dana said.

  “If it’s okay, I can drive you and Viola up there,” Eli offered. “Cindy has been wanting to see Arlington and this is the perfect excuse. Our kids can stay with their grandparents for a few days. Viola can pack long enough to stay for a couple of weeks with you and when y’all are ready to come back, you can either take a car or bus back.”

  “That’s a good idea, right Viola?” Mel asked.

  “I suppose so,” Viola said unhappily.

  “I don’t know how I feel about all of you going up here,” Bruce said.

  “Bruce, there is more to Mel’s family than we realize. I have some theories, but meeting Mel’s mom will help solidify them,” Eli said.

  Bruce looked like he wanted more information, but understood Eli wasn’t ready to provide it quite yet. “Very well,” he said. “But only for three days at the most, including you, Viola. If Mel has to stay up there for a while, y’all can keep in touch by phone. Once this mess with the Master Hunter is over, y’all can go for an extended visit. And we’re still dealing with the issues over at Alpha Mason’s. He’s making the announcement tonight at his pack to name Bubba the next Alpha. We don’t know how Chris and his followers will react to the news. Right now, I’d rather have y’all close by. And with Mabon around the corner, none of y’all need to be gone during that time.”

  “Understood,” Eli said. “I’ll go let Cindy know.”

  Viola wanted to argue with Bruce over the decision, but knew it wasn’t up for discussion. She curtly nodded.

  “Take Mel to bed before she passes out in the kitchen,” Bruce said to Viola as he watched Mel start to sway.

  Viola walked upstairs with Mel. Her hand stayed on Mel’s low back, helping her maintain awareness of the ground.

  Instead of going to the bedroom, Mel was guided to the bathroom. “What’s going on?” she asked weakly.

  “We need to get the paste off of you, amor,” Viola said.

  Viola carefully washed the paste off of Mel’s face and helped Mel shower.

  They went to the room and Viola helped Mel change into clean clothes. They barely got a shirt over Mel’s head before Mel collapsed in their bed.

  Viola joined her and pulled her close. Viola covered Mel’s face with kisses. “I love you, amor. I am so grateful you are in my life and that you are safe,” she said.

  Mel smiled. “I love you too. Thank you for saving me. I used the moves you taught me to escape the hotel room. If it wasn’t for you, Bill would have gotten my powers and I’d be dead,” she said.

  “I taught you, but you were the one who used it,” Viola said. “I’m proud of you. You are my beautiful, strong mate.”

  Mel blushed. “Thank you. And you are my fierce, beautiful mate,” she said. “And a great teacher.”

  Viola kissed her again. “Rest, amor,” Viola said. “Tomorrow is going to be a long day and you need all of the rest you can get.”

  Chapter 31

  Mel stood in front of the door. She took another deep breath. She knew Bill was on the other side of the door. She still didn’t feel quite herself, but she knew she didn’t have time to recover. Bruce wanted answers and Mel couldn’t blame him for it.

  Viola was beside Mel. Her arm was wrapped around Mel’s waist. “You’ve got this,” Viola whispered into her ear.

  “You’re right,” Mel said. She opened the door.

  Bruce and Eli were sitting in chairs across from Bill. For someone who was captured, Bill acted like he owned the place.

  “Well, well, well,” Bill said. “You brought the little witch? I’m glad.” He winked at Mel. “You are more than welcome to get into my head.”

  Mel smiled and it wasn’t kind. “Cute, Bill. You’re forgetting that I am a witch. That means I can read your real feelings,” she said. “You’re scared of me. You’re afraid of what I’ll find out.”

  Bill’s facade faltered. “Go ahead and try,” he said as he spat at her feet. He used a derogatory term that caused Mel’s gut to tighten.

  Viola’s rage felt hot against Mel’s skin. It took everything in Viola to not kill Bill.

  Mel ignored Bill. She sat down beside Bruce. “Viola and Bruce, watch Bill, please,” she said. “Make sure he doesn’t try to do anything.”

  Mel closed her eyes and focused on Bill’s repulsive energy. She was getting confused with Bill’s memories. From childhood traumas to the horrible things he did to all of his werewolf victims, everything went by in a blur.

  Mel saw Bill’s memories racing around her. She felt someone with her. Suddenly, in her mind’s eye she could make out an amorphic form. The color of the blob was so obscure that Mel couldn’t properly define it. Who are you? She asked.

  That is not important, the figure responded. Mel immediately recognized the voice as the one who helped her the day before by telling her to put her emotions in a box and set it on fire. You will know me in time. The question is, who are you?

  I am Mel, Mel answered.

  But who are you? Are you a victim of your baggage? Bill is. Bill allows his traumas to define him. He uses them as an excuse to never recover. He uses them as an excuse to never rise above. Will you do the same? the figure asked.

  I-I hope not, Mel answered. I’m trying not to.

  The figure was quiet for a mom
ent. If only you could be honest with yourself, they said before they disappeared.

  Mel was still swirling through Bill’s thoughts. She needed to focus. She had an idea on how to find the Master Hunter. Where is the Master Hunter? Mel asked within Bill’s memories. She focused on the Master Hunter.

  Bill was at the firing range. He had just finished shooting and was going to his truck. He glanced around. A buddy of his said someone had a job offering for him. The meeting was supposed to happen at the firing range, but the person never showed up. Bill emptied a couple of rounds before deciding he wasn’t going to wait any longer. “What a waste of time,” Bill muttered.

  Bill heard someone come up behind him. He turned around to find a figure.

  Mel couldn’t make out who the person was. All of the features were grossly blurred, including the person’s height. Mel realized Bill had met the Master Hunter at the firing range. Bill just didn’t remember the meeting because the Master Hunter had blocked it from him.

  “If you are remembering this, you have been compromised,” the Master Hunter said. The voice was warped. “You have become obsolete.”

  The scene around Bill, Mel, and the Master Hunter caught fire. The sky, the ground, and the truck were consumed by flames. Mel tried to run from the flames. She cried out because flames burned her skin.

  “Mel,” Viola yelled. “Mel, come back!”

  Mel looked around, desperate for a way to escape.

  “I don’t know who you are, but I’m willing to guess you are a witch since you are able to tap into this memory,” the Master Hunter said. “Congratulations. It is unfortunate that I will never meet you. You would have been a formidable opponent. Instead, you will die here with him.”

  Bill had caught on fire. He screamed as he rolled across the ground. The flames would not abate. The flames consumed him.

  “Mel, you can get out of there! Come on!” Viola called.

  “Call an element,” a figure said.

  Mel gasped and looked over to find the blob was back and standing beside her. She still couldn’t quite make out their form. “What?” she rasped.

  “Call an element,” the figure repeated.

  “Which one?” Mel asked. “How?”

  The figure laughed. “What would you fight fire with?” they quipped.

  “Water,” Mel murmured. She imagined water completely surrounding her. At first, nothing happened. “Come on, Mel. Water.” She thought of Viola and their love. At that same moment, the figure touched her arm. Power flowed through Mel and transformed into an element. She felt the cool liquid rush against her skin. It encompassed her. Mel imagined her body waiting for her beside Viola. She felt the flames brush past her as she left Bill’s mind. None of them singed even one hair on Mel.

  Mel fell into her body. She was drenched with water.

  Bill was dead. His corpse was charred.

  “What just happened? Why are you all wet?” Viola asked, alarmed. Her face had turned almost white as she glanced at Bill. She looked back at Mel and ran her hands over Mel, looking for injuries. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes,” Mel said. “I don’t know what happened.”

  “It’s like he was set on fire from the inside out,” Eli said. His voice shook, showing he was spooked. “What happened inside Bill’s head?”

  Mel told them about the Master Hunter. She opted to keep the other mystery person she met to herself.

  “This just keeps getting more interesting,” Bruce said as he leerily looked at Bill’s corpse.

  “It appears the Master Hunter had placed a spell inside Bill’s head,” Eli said. “When you found the memory that involved the Master Hunter, it triggered the spell. It’s to ensure his identity will always be kept a secret.” He looked at the corpse. “The Master Hunter is stronger than we originally suspected.”

  “How is any of this even possible?” Mel asked. “None of this works in the reality I was taught about.”

  Eli looked at Mel. “Mel, haven’t you learned that nothing is what it seems. Reality doesn’t follow the rules humans try to place on it. Reality doesn’t conform,” Eli said.

  “What are we going to do?” Mel asked.

  “We have to find the Master Hunter. We have to assume that he knows you’re alive and are looking for him. If we don’t find him first, the Master Hunter may make a point to send all of his hunters over here. And I doubt it’ll be as easy as it was this time,” Eli said.

  This was easy? Mel glanced at the charred body. She wondered; What kind of world have I fallen into?

  End Book 2