“Right. I’ll be back.” Stone got up and didn’t look back. The grape I was about to eat suddenly seemed a little less appetizing. I set the grape down and stared at the table, feeling unbelievably exposed without Stone’s tall form blocking me from everyone else’s eyes. The sounds of the room were no longer muffled. Too many eyes exploring. Too many words being thrown around. It was too much. Too much. Too much. I pulled my knees to my chest when I felt a hand on my back.
“Are you okay, Audrey?” Nixie’s singsong voice wrapped around me along with her arms. Nixie didn’t make me feel as safe as Stone, though she lessened the stares…the noise. Her touch was so calming and friendly. But when she let go, I’d be in a world of pain. If only she wouldn’t torture me so. She didn’t understand. When I didn’t reply, she removed her hand. I tried to hold back the tearing sound of pain, but I’d only managed to muffle the cry.
It was unnaturally cold where her hand was. Illogical thoughts consumed my mind. I’ll never be touched again. Why would someone want to touch a creature like me? She knows, she knows, she knows. Enjoy the heat now, alone forever. My need to be touched felt like an animalistic instinct. I shrank away from Nixie. Their kindness was all a farce. None of it was real. Fakes, liars, torturers. A new voice drifted in, but the world was closing around me. Dark, dark, dark. It was so dark.
“Nixie! What the hell did you do?” Stone’s words were clipped, his tone angry.
I tried to move away from his voice. Why would anyone want a monster like you? They’re not here to help you. Every touch should be like fire on your scar-ridden body.
“Step away.” Elijah moved around Nixie, ignoring her completely. He pressed his cold fingers under my chin, forcing me to look at him. “Well, isn’t that …interesting.” I wanted to pull away. I whimpered at his icy touch. I inwardly pleaded for him to let go.
“Elijah, I’m warning you. Get away from her.” Elijah looked toward Stone.
“Calm down.” His voice had a new icy edge. He looked back at me.
“Please-” I begged. Let go. He kept his hand on my chin. I wanted to look away. I wanted his hands off of me.
“Interesting…” Finally he released me, and I folded tightly into myself. Nixie moved in and touched my shoulder before Elijah and Stone’s warning.
I passed out after it. It felt like a thousand volts of lightning went coursing through my veins.
Chapter Twelve
Stone
“Don’t touch her.” The warning was too late.
“Sorry,” Nixie muttered regretfully. I felt Charlie behind me, looking at Audrey, whose face was now hidden behind her hair.
“No need to apologize, siren. She was going to pass out anyway.” Nixie never took shit from anyone–well anyone but Elijah, who was still looking at Audrey with an interested gaze. I saw Nixie grind her teeth and shot her a warning glance.
“Elijah.” I knew he was keeping something from us.
“Yes, Stone?” His voice purposefully lifted a slight octave. I ground my teeth, trying to stop my body from shuddering.
“What aren’t you telling us?” It was demanding and dangerous. We had the right to know. I had the right to know.
“I saw something within her. The Vedenins had a wraith put in her as a failsafe. It will take time, but I will be able to get it out.” Elijah turned and left. The Vedenins were the clan we had taken Audrey from, a rival clan. Everyone in the cafeteria was openly looking now at the mystery girl who had passed out. I moved over to her and Nixie.
“Nixie, I need to take her back. You should report to Jacobs.” Nixie flinched at my cold voice. She was as much a part of Jacobs’s special ops team as I was and someone had to inform him what was happening. Nixie looked at me with wet coral eyes.
“It’s the way it has to be.”
She nodded. As I gently removed Audrey from Nixie’s arms, I reminded myself that we knew nothing about this girl. I knew nothing about her, and yet, I couldn’t help to hold her gently.
I wanted to tell Nixie that she could visit because in their short time together, Nixie had formed a type of bond. I could see it. Nixie, as a siren so far from a water well, tended to become slightly possessive and obsessive. Dallas made the mistake of breaking that bond. As I turned away, Charlie moved out of my way, heading back to the table with our other friends.
• • •
I set Audrey down on the bed. Hair covered her scarred face and I wanted to brush it away. The shirt Nixie gave Audrey was too big for her and fell off her right shoulder displaying three claw marks - jagged, uneven, saw-like tears in her flesh.
Anger so deep engulfed me. I shut the door, barely remembering to lock it. Marcus was coming down the hall.
“Ye alright?” he asked, watching me closely.
“She’s got a wraith in her or something, so be careful what you say if you talk to her,” I explained as I walked past him. My muscles tightened in anger. How many more scars did Audrey have? I couldn’t bring myself to look…but someone else might know. I knew who I had to find. I left her in the cafeteria, but when I got there, she was gone. I told her to report to Jacobs. I was considering punching something. Instead I marched to Jacobs’s office.
Most of the team was already there. I guessed that Jacobs had called them in when Nixie went to report what happened. Dallas stood far away from Nixie who was sitting with a carefree look plastered on her face. Elijah stood rigid next to Jacobs’s desk.
Cole, the Dawon, which was just a bigger, Asian descent were-tiger, was present as well. They were almost always albino tigers. Cole was different, his mother was a witch and he was known to have some of her powers. I noticed not only was Marcus missing, but Anane as well. Jacobs was at his desk, looking twitchy and thoughtful. He kept shifting his weight slightly and his eyes were unfocused. I moved toward Nixie, as Dallas bent down to talk to Cole.
“Is Anane still pissed that she didn’t get to come?” I whispered.
“Of course. How is…” Dallas looked up at me to answer, but as he started to bring up Audrey, my mind became one tracked. Audrey. I was reminded of her other scars. The ones that reached over her shoulder. My stomach turned violently. The pain she must have went through. I turned to Nixie.
“How many scars does she have besides the one on her face?”
Nixie was giving Dallas the evil eye before, but now her eyes were on me.
“Which one…” Nixie’s voice was unusually timid.
“On her shoulder,” I managed through clenched teeth.
“She says four.” We were silent while the others whispered. My body shook. I wanted to roar, instead I tried to breathe. “I can’t … I wonder how young she was when she got them.”
No, I didn’t want to think about that. I didn’t want to think about how old the scars looked. How comfortable she seemed with them. As if it was natural. I knew I would lose control if I did. Luckily, Jacobs cleared his throat as Anane walked in.
“Nice of you to join us, Anane.” Jacobs’s gaze swung to me. “Is Marcus with her?” I nodded. “Good. Elijah already informed me of our guest’s situation.” He paused. Both Anane and Cole looked at him in confusion. “I wasn’t clear about the reason for our mission. Cole, you told me yourself there was something very important there. It was a girl.” I noticed Cole’s jaw tensed. I wasn’t sure why he reacted that way but I let it go to listen to Jacobs.
“Elijah just informed me there is a wraith trapped in her mind. The Vedenins must have implanted one in her long ago. It would have stayed dormant as long as she was with them. She will be pushed to do things she doesn’t want to do. The wraith won’t take over completely, not to the extent that it will kill her, but it would have complete control of her cognition and motor skills. It’s important that, while Elijah works to get the wraith out, we be cautious of what you say around her. And on that note, she has no idea of the extents of the supernatural world-our world.”
“So, she is human?” Anane asked.
I turn
ed to look at her. Her straight blonde hair looked brighter in this lighting. Her face had a natural tan, and her metallic silver eyes watched me closely. Her gaze moved back to Jacobs, and I saw her nose scrunch. The nephilim were as bad as fey when it came to elitism. They especially didn’t care for humans, who they considered the lowest of the low.
“No. We don’t know what she is. And as expected, the Vedenins are now looking for her.”
That caught us all by surprise; even Elijah cocked his head just slightly. As team leader, Jacobs had contact with the head of our clan, Cain Braden, so it wasn’t too odd he would know this. It was more shocking he took so long to inform us.
“They thought we only took insignificant things because of the mess Dallas made on the other side of the building and they hadn’t bothered to do a full sweep. But once the wraith was activated, they not only realized she was gone but they know she is in another clan’s hands. Elijah, how long will it take to extract the wraith?”
“Well, if I could extract my way, five hours. Your way five days.”
I think we all shivered, expect for Jacobs. Elijah’s way meant he’d go inside her and she probably wouldn’t survive.
“Five days it is.” Jacobs said, looking at no one.
The meeting was over. We all knew it, but none of us moved.
“Why would the Vedenins want her in the first place?” Cole mused, not looking at anyone just asking what was on all of our minds.
I didn’t wait to hear if there was a reply. When Elijah left, I followed. But when he got to Audrey’s room, he stated that he had to work alone and in silence.
Chapter Thirteen
Audrey
The dream-memory was always the same, yet different from reality. We were in the kitchen. No, not “the” kitchen, a kitchen. He was mad at me. Really mad. I was – no - I am wrong. I had done something wrong. Dark, dark eyes…face set in that scowl. I whimpered. I was a child and naïve. A ten year old who wanted to trust her father. No, not my father. I wanted to trust this stranger. He was shrouded in darkness. All but the claws he raked down my face, marking me forever. I cried out. I shouldn’t have.
I woke from the familiar hellish dream-memories quietly as I always did. I wasn’t in whiteness. No, I wasn’t there anymore. They had come. Taken me. A new prison. At least here I didn’t remember the dream in striking detail. White and black was all I had. Tears slipped down silently when I realized that I wasn’t alone. The strangely beautiful one with unsettling yellow eyes that usually sat outside was watching me closely. Strange colors hung closely to him. His whole self made me shift uncomfortably, but his eyes scared me. They were so old, but he was not.
“What’s got ye cryin'?” His voice had a different, very slight accent. “Oh, nae talkin' again. Aw right, I’ll respect that. I’ll try tae ask you yes or nae questions.” He winked at me, which was alarming all on its own. I moved as far from him as I could get and I avoided looking at him. “Dae ye know how ye got those?” He pointed at my scars. I didn’t move my head. “Nae answer? Okay. Dae ye enjoy futbol?”
My eyebrows pinched together for a moment in my confusion as my mouth settled into a grim line. My eyes narrowed slightly. I could almost recall what football was, but not entirely. I did know it wasn’t something I’d experienced often before my time in the white cells. The white was void of everything, but the memories. Horrible, painful memories that screamed at me, even now.
“Mah word, scars! Ye don’t even know what that is. I would nae min' takin' a peek at those memories of yours.”
“You may think you have seen it all Marcus, but you would not want to see in her memories.” Elijah’s cold, flat voice slipped in the small room from the doorway.
“Aye, I suppose ye might be right.” He paused, stroking his hair-covered chin. “But naethin', I fear, could scare me. Nae in ‘er bonnie wee head.”
“You would not be able to handle what horrors invade her mind. That I promise.” I looked at Elijah as he spoke, hints of emotion surged into some of his words. Somehow he knew. He knew my pain. His pitiless, completely black eyes held mine. I didn’t react as they got closer, trapping me, making me uneasy. “Do you know what hides in the deepest corners of your mind?” The question was directed at me, but not really. It was almost as if he was airing his curious thoughts and I was hearing them.
Before I realized what he was doing, he grabbed my head in his far too large and far too uncomfortable hands. Pressure was applied. This wasn’t a loving gesture, nor was it an extremely painful one. “Hmm, it’s been there for years. More of a residue, but dangerous all the same.”
The buzzing started then. Any instinct to react rocketed through my body. No, that wasn’t quite right. My body wasn’t under my control. My head looked up into the boy named Elijah, but his face was blank, unsurprised. He raised an eyebrow ever so slightly. I could see an almost amused look cross his always blank face.
“You stupid fool. You, wraith, are out of your league. I wouldn’t mess with this child’s fragile mind.” It was coming from my mouth, but I wasn’t saying it. I didn’t understand it. Then Elijah did the scariest thing he’d done since I had met him. He smiled. His teeth were sharp and pointed, all of them. His tongue that he ran over his teeth was black and unsettling.
“Apparently you don’t realize whom you are dealing with.” Elijah looked at me with an air of calm, but I was shaking.
I tried to move, to speak, but I was trapped in my own body. I remember this had happened before, when…but it was from fear. That time was fear. This time was different.
“Oh, yes, the great Elijah. I know who you are. You are nothing,” I sneered back. My voice was different, deeper, and it scared me.
“This will be a fun few days,” Elijah hissed before he touched his other hand to my hand.
Pain blinded me to the point that I knew nothing but darkness.
Chapter Fourteen
Stone
The next few days were torture. Elijah was at her side most of the time. Both of them deathly silent until Audrey would scream, whimper, and pass out again. I was stretched to the limit on the third day. I had been staying right outside the door. Elijah had stated when he went in that the chances of the wraith jumping bodies would be higher if another body was available. Nixie would join me, but I could tell she was uncomfortable with Elijah so close. She had bigger issues with wraiths than the rest of us.
I looked over at my siren friend and hoped that she would find peace one day, but I could see that she wanted to go into the room and rip Elijah away. She kept pacing in front of the door. She would stare at it while she moved as if willing it to open. I knew I wanted it to. My muscles shifted, strained, and burned for me to do something. I shifted a lot from my stance, my skin feeling too tight for my body.
“You need to go for a run or something.” Charlie watched as I paced in the hallway outside of Audrey’s room. Elijah had kicked us all out again after the wraith had started to break. I turned to Charlie with a snarl. His teeth lengthened, and he growled right back, eyes flashing red. “Don’t take your anger out on me.”
“Back off, Charlie,” I replied with the same amount of venom in my voice. My body buzzed with energy, just waiting for me to make even the slightest of moves. I shook off the anxiety the best that I could. “Fuck! I don’t know what is wrong with me.”
“I do. You haven’t moved from this spot other than for essentials for a few days. You need to move. You need to get out. You need to run, stretch your muscles.” Charlie calmed down, his eyes returning to their natural, mellow blue state.
I released a strangled breath; I needed to get out of this building.
“Call me if anything changes. Anything, Charlie.”
He nodded, waving me off.
I headed toward the elevator. I knew that I should go grab running clothes and run in my human form, but at this point I needed a better release. My body felt strained and tight. When I got outside, I was glad for the acres that we owned. There
was a forest behind the hotel with a lake near the edge of the property line. The hotel was built in a small city that didn’t garner enough tourists. Most outsiders would drive straight through to get to the next city twenty miles away.
There was plenty of room for all of us to roam. I took off my clothes at the edge of the forest, where a Dryad had created cubby holes in the trees for this exact reason, and placed the bundle inside. I let my body relax, then it began to transform, stretching, the cells shifting, bones extending. My hands came down with a loud slap on the hard ground. They were twice as big and twice as hairy. I took the form of a black leopard and began my descent into the woods.
I didn’t take my cat form very often because the sensitivity that the whiskers offered was hell if it wasn’t needed. I took this form because my legs felt stronger, more power going into every stride. In this form, I could get the run I needed without having to go too far. I caught the scent of wolves out and about a little too late.
The werewolves weren’t too bad when they knew other shifters were out here, but caught off guard, their animal instincts took over. I saw a massive blonde wolf with yellow eyes running to my side. I knew more were going to follow, so I started to focus my mind. I thought of longer legs. I thought of a slightly shorter tail. I thought of pointed ears. I shifted to a black wolf, my eyes probably an ugly shade of brown at my annoyance. The blonde wolf howled and turned away.
I didn’t realize how far I had made it out until I noticed the start of the cabins. Some of the creatures that lived on the base couldn’t live within the metal walls. Not that I blamed them. I didn’t enjoy people being able to get into my mind and hearing my thoughts. Their houses were at least five miles out so that they were out of range. I shook my now longer snout and turned back toward the hotel.
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