His voice turns terribly deep and he snarls, showing me his growing canines as he glares at the wooden gate. “It’s funny how afraid they are of wolves. Especially as they’re the ones who made us into the monsters they fear so much.”
I really wish I could get into this conversation and get him to explain, but right now I’m afraid he might turn if we get into too much detail.
“Nixon, if I knew about your distaste for witches I would never have brought you along with me.”
“I don’t hate them, it’s the magic making me want to get the fuck out of here; I’m trying really hard to fight it. Don’t you feel it?” He nods towards the gate. I shake my head confused.
“Why don’t you feel it?” He grinds out. He looks as if he’s in pain.
“I don’t know, Nixon. Maybe it’s because I’m not a full blooded wolf? Listen, I have to go in and speak to her; I think you should wait on the outskirts of the woods. I’ll meet you there when I’m done,” I say, moving quickly to open the door. He grabs my hand, pulling me roughly back into the car.
“No! This was a bad idea; I’m not letting you go in there, Angel.” He starts the car as I open my door again.
“Nixon, I’m going to go in there one way or another. If you don’t let me go now… I’ll just sneak out later.” I quickly open the door, jumping out before he has a chance to stop me. I run towards the big gate and hear his door being opened. He’s really fast. Before I know it, arms are wrapped around my waist from behind and I’m being lifted. My back is flush against his chest, my arms trapped under his as he holds me tight. I kick into thin air, growling in frustration as he starts walking back to the car.
“Nixon! Let.me.down!” I grit out.
“No! It’s not safe for us here. There’s only two of us, we need our pack. I’m not letting you go in there alone so forget about it.” He plants me down right in front of his door but I refuse to climb in. I turn and glare at him.
“Nixon, I’m going in whether you like it or not! Their scare-away-wolf spell doesn’t affect me,” I gesture to myself. “You can clearly see that I’m not about to burst at the seams like you are. I need to speak to her, Nixon; I need to know what she knows.” I drop my voice into a pleading tone and I feel him starting to relent.
His frown disappears and so do his canines.
“Your father is going to kill me.” He lets out a deep breath. “I’m giving you an hour. If you’re not out in an hour, I’m coming in. I’ll stay as close as I can, but I’ll be right back here after that hour. I don’t think you’ll be able to use your abilities once you’re in there so we won’t have a mind link. If anything happens just scream; hopefully I’ll hear you.” He leans against the door frame in resignation. “God, I can’t believe I’m letting you do this.”
I bend under his arm and away from the cage his body had me in. “I’ll be out of there before you know it.” I walk towards the wooden gate, looking back in time to see him driving off.
****
I move my hand over the big rusty latch, realising it can only be opened from the inside. Walking to my left, I inspect the concrete wall that surrounds the property. I went through so much trouble to get here, I need to get in.
I find a tree that has attached itself to the wall. The roots cover the side and they’re thick enough for me to grab onto and launch myself up. I peep over the wall; the property is large and has maybe ten or more small brick cottages. There’s a few people walking around but luckily enough the wall I’ve climbed on top of is behind one of the cottages, hiding me from the people below.
I jump on top of the thick wall and climb down the roots on the other side. I can hear people laughing and chatting inside the nearby cottage. I bend down and creep away from the window to avoid detection. I run behind the cottage towards the next cottage looking through the windows.
I don’t remember much about Noelle, but her voice is drummed into my head. I look through the window of the next cottage, peeking between the flowers in the flower bed that sits at the open window. I hear an angelic voice singing a song in a language I don’t know; instantly I know it’s Noelle. She moves around the kitchen slowly, her bangles on her wrists jingling as she goes and stirs something on the stove. The smell of her food is enough to make me close my eyes and delight in the aroma.
“Oomph.” I’m thrown to the ground with a huge body on top of me. Johnny’s training kicks in. I manage to wiggle around enough to get my footing just right. When he moves away I’m able to place my feet on his stomach and kick as hard as I can.
He flies in the opposite direction.
Now if he was a wolf I wouldn’t have been able to do that.
“How did you get into our compound, wolf?” He spits out as he manages to stand up straight. His hand rests over his heart as he tries to calm his breathing. He has dark brown hair, his eyes are so light and so green I’m mesmerised for a few moments. He is tall and made of muscle, much like were-boys are built, but I can tell he’s not of the were-kind.
I shake my head clearing my thoughts. “I’m looking for Noelle. I need to speak to her.”
At the mention of her name the boy’s body turns tense before he lunges, tackling me once again and knocking the air out of me.
I growl out of frustration. “Jesus, can I finish my sentence?” I yell from underneath him, as he holds my hands on either side of my head.
“How did you get in here?” He repeats, his eyes glaring at me.
“Fabian, get off of her right now!” I hear Noelle’s admonishing voice behind us.
Fabian looks up quickly, then back down at me but doesn’t move.
“Yes, Fabian. Get off me!” I say, glaring at him. He gives me one last repulsed look before moving away cautiously. I get to my feet and wipe away all the grass that’s on me. Fabian just pissed off the wrong person. I push at his chest one last time; I can tell he really wants to hurt me but he doesn’t.
“Idiot! You just wasted ten minutes of my time,” I growl, then turn to look at Noelle.
She has an amused expression on her face. “Angel, such a surprise to see you, especially here.”
“Well, you’re a very hard person to find.” I continue to wipe the sand and grass off of me. Fabian stands next to Noelle as if to guard her, his arms crossed over his chest.
“There’s a reason for that, my love.” She motions with her hand. “Come, follow me.” Then she turns and walks down the path leading to her cottage. I follow her passing Fabian whose eyes are glued to my every move.
I frown at him. “Dude, chill, I’m not going to eat her,” I say sarcastically. I can tell by the straight line his lips form that my presence is really bothering him.
I notice Noelle is taking me down an alley towards her house, away from prying eyes. I follow Noelle into the kitchen where the smell of whatever she was cooking lingers in the air making my stomach rumble loudly.
“Have a seat, hun,” she says. I take a seat at the little kitchen table and watch her take out a bowl from the cabinet.
“Hun? What the hell, Mom? She’s a wolf?” Fabian says confused.
“Mom?” I say looking between the two, only now noticing the resemblance.
Noelle looks at me then back to Fabian, taking a deep breath she rolls her eyes. “Sit, Fabian!”
He sits down on a bar stool at the counter with a scowl on his face.
She places a bowl in front of me; it’s filled to the brim with Alfredo pasta. “Dig in,” she says.
Don’t mind if I do…
I gulf down as much as I can, not caring about how hot the sauce is or how unfeminine I look. My appetite has increased since I’ve become a wolf that much is clear. I hear Noelle’s little laugh from behind me, but apart from that the kitchen is quiet; I continue to feel Fabian’s eyes on me though. I’m almost done with the last bit and if Fabian’s words hadn’t stopped me I most probably would have licked the bowl clean too.
“Mom… seriously! You’re allowing that into our home.
That mutt should be kicked out like the rest of the dogs,” he spits and I hear his chair scrape against the floor as he stands up. My fork clinks as I drop it into the bowl and I charge for him. A loud angry growl escapes my lips as I tackle him to the floor. We continue to roll around shoving each other until we find ourselves outside the cottage, in the centre of the compound, surrounded by the cottages and the people that live in them.
I’m surprised at how much strength I have against this human; how well I’m holding my own. I can tell by his heavy breathing that he’s battling to keep up and that only encourages me to fight harder. I manage to climb on top straddling him. I raise my hand, but just before I’m about to punch him I feel a sharp pain in my chest and ringing in my ears. I look up to see a girl around my age glaring at me with her palm facing me; her red hair standing out in the blur.
The pain she is causing me only makes me angrier; all I came here to do was speak to Noelle. I can understand why these people are so hostile since I did sneak onto their property, but they should at least give me a chance to explain myself. Fabian doesn’t move beneath me, but when I scrunch my face up in pain a smirk forms on his face; he obviously thinks he’s won this round.
I close my eyes feeling the magic working its way through my body. My hands bunch up his shirt on his chest beneath me and I feel the wind picking up. I hear Noelle screaming at the girl to stop. The pain she is causing me slowly dissipates as the magic fills my body clearing my mind and conscience in the process.
I roll my neck, feeling the tension in my shoulders dissipate, the achiness of rolling around on the floor with Fabian fading too. I open my eyes slowly and that seems to do the trick, the smirk on Fabian’s face is wiped clean off.
Now he just looks afraid.
My silver eyes tend to do that to a person.
I look up to the now pale girl. Her hand immediately drops as she takes one step back, then another. I hear yelling and shouting over the wind alongside Noelle’s distant voice telling the other witches not to hurt me, but my eyes remain fixated on the girl who caused my pain.
This is the first time I’m unable to control the magic that surges through me. All I want to do is return the favour, letting her feel the pain she caused me. I know I need to calm myself down and stop this, but I just can’t do it.
I stand up from where I was straddling Fabian moments before. He doesn’t move underneath; he just lays there frozen watching my every move from the ground.
“You need to calm down, sweetie. Phoenix didn’t mean to hurt you. You need to find that strength I know you have and fight it. You need to control the magic… don’t let it control you.” Noelle’s calm voice echoes over the wind. I know she’s right and I’m trying really hard to fight it, but my rage is overpowering my will to stop.
My eyes are zeroed in on the frightened girl cowering behind Noelle. My fists are at my sides, but I can still see from the corner of my eyes the few that watch the spectacle. They start backing away, staring at something behind me; I smell the fear that radiates of them.
Dark blue eyes fill my view, hands cupping my jaw forcing me to look into them. I watch the veins in his neck stick out fighting the pain that grips him. His eyes switch from blue to brown as he keeps his eyes focused on mine.
“Calm down, cupcake… No one’s going to hurt you.” His thumb caresses my jaw in a slow calming rhythm. “Shhh… it’s okay, I’m here. No one’s going to harm you,” he whispers as he brings my head to his vibrating chest.
The wind dies down, my body heavy as I sag against him. I grip his jacket, holding tight as his arms wrap around me to prevent me from falling to the ground.
“Is she alright?” I hear Noelle’s worried voice.
“No, of course she’s not alright! She came here looking for you; she was searching for answers. Your people attacked her for no fucking reason! She wasn’t here to hurt any of you!” I hear Nixon’s loud angry voice and the vibration of his words through his chest against my body.
He picks me up and I wrap my arms around his neck, making sure to keep my eyes closed. I can’t bear to face the fear I caused in these people eyes and the humiliation I feel for losing complete control.
“Wait! Please… I’m sorry. I can help her.” I hear her panicked voice.
Nixon ignores her and continues to walk away from her pleading voice.
“I’m sorry!” I hear her closer now. “Just hold up for a second will you?”
Nixon’s posture tenses, but he continues to walk out of the gate and towards the car.
“No! I told her this was a bad decision and I was right. She never should have come here. You people can’t help her. I’m taking her back to the pack house.”
“Wait!” I hear a new voice. I lift my head up just in time to see the red headed girl run up to Nixon and I. Nixon’s body turns rigid. I turn my head and look down at the small girl as she blocks our path to the car. She’s a true beauty, I’ve never seen anything as pretty as her with that fiery red hair; It definitely makes her stand out amongst these people and the natural earthy colours they’re all dressed in.
Phoenix looks at me with sad eyes. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I thought you would kill Fabian.” She looks down at her hands then back up at me. “I’m sorry… that was a lie. I did mean to hurt you, but only to stop you from hurting Fabian.” Nixon growls, glaring at her.
“I’m sorry for hurting you though,” she quickly blurts out, her big brown eyes finding Nixon’s. I feel his body tense even more under her gaze.
I watch the weird exchange between Nixon and Phoenix as they stare at each other.
Nixon shakes his head to obviously clear his thoughts before clearing his throat. He moves to get past the girl, but the small girl side steps him.
“Move, little witch,” Nixon snarls, and the girl takes a step out of the way. As Nixon walks past I reach out and give her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. I’m too exhausted to find words to accept her apology, but hopefully she understands the gesture.
Nixon opens the door and places me into the front seat buckling me in. My body is exhausted and I can barely keep my eyes open. I haven’t been able to hear my wolf since I got here, but I’m guessing the spell they’ve cast over the compound has something to do with it.
I close my eyes and lean against the window hearing Nixon and Fabian’s yelling.
Nixon climbs in the car, slamming the door with a growl.
The tyres spin as he drives away leaving a cloud of dust behind us.
****
As we hit the exit of the woods, Nixon reaches over and grabs my hand. Squeezing it once he says, “Next time, you fucking listen to me.”
I don’t bother responding; we both know I’m still going to do what I have to do to find out how to control the magic within me. I’m stubborn like that.
Nixon parks his car just outside his cabin. I move to get out of the car, but when my feet touch the ground my body feels heavy and I’m unable to hold my weight. Strong warm arms wrap around me holding me in place. I smell a familiar spicy scent tainted with a flowery perfume and immediately push against his chest.
“Get away from me!” I find my footing and grab hold of the door. I watch Nixon making his way over to my side looking angry as hell.
Talon turns his glare to Nixon, shoving him a step or two back.
“What the hell happened to her? What did you do?” Talon says in a deep dangerous tone, baring his canines.
Nixon’s eyes turn dark. “Oh! So now you’re worried about your mate? Where were you this morning when I had to-”
“Nixon, no!” I interrupt him. Talon isn’t aware of my abilities and there’s way too much going on between us to add another thing to the mix. Both sets of blue eye turn to look at me.
“No! Say what you were going to say, I want to hear it.” Talon shoves Nixon again and a low hiss leaves Nixon’s mouth.
“Stop it, both of you!” I yell at them. My energy is finally coming back and my irritation is at fu
ll force. Of course both of them ignore me as they continue to stand off against one another.
“Talon, I’ve had a shitty morning and you’re playing with my patience. Back the fuck off,” Nixon states.
Talon turns to me, his face marred with confusion as he looks my body over obviously noticing the dirt on my clothes from my earlier scuffle with Fabian. His hands reach out and he tries to bring me into his chest; I can feel Faith’s eagerness to be held by him. As soon as the flowery scent wafts through my nostrils again, my hands come up and my head shakes. I shove against his shoulder as I move around him.
“I can’t do this right now, Talon. You need to leave.”
He grabs my upper arm, turns me harshly and his eyes darken. I shrug him off and move toward Nixon who stands rigid at my side.
“Is that what you really want? Me to stay away?” He pulls me harshly against his hard chest and I push away from him yet again. Nixon pulls me behind him, his body shaking with rage and his eyes black.
“Answer me?” Talon screams.
The smell of Lucy’s perfume still lingers in the air and it’s enough to make up my mind. I look between Nixon and Talon’s angry faces and nod.
He curses and shouts out menacingly, “So fucking be it… Lexi!”
Chapter 6
It took me a while to shower, not because I was that dirty but because my mind kept drifting to thoughts of Talon and Tyler. I refuse to let their behaviour towards me have an effect, or that’s what I try convincing myself of as I sit on the shower floor frozen in place, thinking of the words both have thrown my way these past few days. Faith continues to encourage me, reminding me that their wolves are outraged that the twins have yet to accept me as their mate. This it seems is the reason behind the twins taking their anger out on me.
Angel Blackwood Page 6