I rolled my eyes. “Fine! But I’m starting to think I was imagining things now…”
Sterling groaned. “I need you safe Natasha.”
I pulled away from him glaring. “You have a girlfriend, you shouldn’t say things like that to me.” Turning on my heel I stormed into the cafeteria, letting the door slam behind me.
I grabbed a thermos from the buffet, taking a huge gulp from the cup, grabbing some food, sticking it onto a plate and sat down. Out of the corner of my eye I seen Sterling watching me, a mixture of worry and annoyance on his face, but I chose to ignore him, turning my back on him and heading to my usual table. Anna and Sophia weren’t there, they were out with their boyfriends.
Finishing my plate of food and sipping on my thermos with the straw until it was empty. I headed for the door after popping my plate and cup away, walking down the driveway to the bus stop.
I had this terrible feeling like someone was watching me but every time I turned around nothing was there, so I ignored it. It took ten minutes for the bus to arrive and when it did, I hopped inside, sitting down as the bus moved along the winding road to town.
The music was pumping loud and excitement filled my veins as I looked around the room at the dancing bodies, walking over to the bar.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asked.
“Just a vodka soda,” I told him.
He poured the drink and set it down on the bench, I took it with a smile and sipping through the straw, looking around the room, Anna or Sophia hadn’t shown up yet. When I finished my drink, I ordered another one.
A few hours passed and they still hadn’t arrived, I was quite drunk dancing on the floor, drinking and having fun. Every now and then I’d turn to see a bald man sitting at the tables watching me with his eyes narrowed slightly, sending a jolt of ice cold fe ar through my veins, I didn’t know why, but when I turned around again he was looking over at someone else I didn’t recognise. The bald man had a scar over his right eye that glistened red, his eyes seemed familiar, but I couldn’t quite understand why or where I’d seen him before, so I kept drinking and dancing until the club closed and stumbled back to the bus stop laughing.
The bus came and it was a short trip back to the academy. I got off the bus, heading up the path to the Academy, shivering from the cold.
The sensation of someone watching me filled my body again, I glanced around, nothing was there. I sped up my pace, heading up to The Hub faster along the driveway. My heart thumped loudly in my ears as terror swept through me, a leaf crunched and a twig snapped from inside the woods, footsteps followed.
My heart lurched and I dug through my bag looking for my notebook, dialling Sterling’s number, hoping and pleading he’d pick up as I ran along the footpath, my heart racing, my boots making it harder to run. I pulled my magic to the surface.
“Tash?” Sterling said through the speaker.
My breathing was heavy, and footsteps followed closely behind me. “Someone’s following me,” I whispered through the fear. “I’m near the gates! Please hel-” my words cut off as someone grabbed me from behind, I dropped my notebook and screamed. A hand covered my mouth, trying to muffle my screams.
“Shut up!” a man I didn’t know said in a low voice at my ear.
I pulled my power to my fingers, throwing a blast of air from my body, he stumbled backwards, I pulled out from his arms, fear pulsing through my veins and I screamed louder. “Help!” I called out.
Another set of arms grabbed me, a sharp sting pressed into my shoulder before I could use my power to push the person off of me, my powers seized up and fell away from my fingertips, I reached out for them but they were numb, I was unable to feel them. My body relaxed and I fell backward into someone’s arms, terror coursing through my veins as everything went black.
***
Bonus Chapter
Sterling Blackwell:
Ring Ring, Ring Ring
The sound of my notebook woke me up, I rolled over, wiping my eyes with the back of my hands, pulling it off my nightstand. Who would call me at this time?
Natasha's name flashed up on the screen, the conversation we had earlier flashed through my mind and panic coursed through me suddenly. I answered, holding it to my ear. "Tash?" I asked, my voice rough from the lack of sleep.
There was no answer, just her heavy breathing and the sound of footsteps. "Someone's following me," she whispered, her voice cracking at the end.
Pure adrenaline flooded my body. Sitting up quickly, pulling on some loose pants from my dresser. "I'm near the gates! Please hel-" her voice cut off suddenly, the sound of her notebook dropping to the ground as she screamed. The sound was of pure terror, and I felt it in my soul.
"Shut up!" a man told her.
She screamed again, even louder. "Help!" she cried.
I ran from my small house as fast as possible, not bothering to shut the front door. She was so far away! I had to make it, I needed to protect her.
Fear had me running faster than I'd ever ran before, I just hoped she was able to get out of there. She was strong, and fast. There was a fire inside her that I had never seen before, it was what drew me to her.
There was no sound coming through the notebook now, and that left me with an unsettling feeling in my stomach that I couldn't handle. I had no clue who would be following her or why, but it couldn't have been anything good. I just wished she hadn't gone out tonight.
Running past The Hub and down the driveway in a burst of vampire speed, I kept my eyes peeled, searching for her.
I ended the call on the notebook, calling her back. A faint ringing came from up ahead, closer to the school gates, I sped off in the direction I heard it, looking around for Natasha.
There was a cold chill through the air, her notebook laid on the ground smashed, dirt covering it. I picked it up, brushing it off, hitting the ignore button so it'd stop ringing.
There was a trail in the dirt from where she was dragged off, her boots digging into the dirt. A strand of her soft long black hair blew away. Her strawberry and coconut scent drifted through the breeze, along with two others I didn't recognise.
My blood turned ice cold.
I wasn't there for her. I didn't save her.
I ran my hands through my hair, bending down as I screamed, furious at myself for not stopping her from going, for not trying harder. For letting her push me away when we came back, for hurting her and letting her cry herself to sleep at night and letting her believe I didn't care about her or the nights we spent in Bora Bora, even though it was tearing me apart inside not to be with her. I don't even know why I got with Melissa anymore, I didn't feel even an ounce towards her of how I felt about Natasha Marshall.
Why weren't her friends with her? Why didn't they stop this? Why didn't Isaac protect her?
Standing up, I looked around, hoping for some sort of clue as to where they would have taken her, seeing nothing. I sped back to the teacher's housing, jumping over the high fence, heading to Claudia Nightwing's house at the end. I pounded on her door. "Claudia!" I yelled, pounding on her door.
Tristan Bradshaw came stumbling out of his house, running his hands over his eyes, looking at me like I was crazy. I slammed my fist down on the door harder, hearing the sound of the wood splintering a little.
Claudia Nightwing answered the door looking pissed, her red hair hung down past her shoulders messily. "What the hell is this about?" she demanded angrily, pulling her dressing gown tighter around her as she tied it around her waist.
"Natasha Marshall has been taken!" I told her. "She told me earlier today she felt like someone was watching her, then she called me tonight saying someone was following her again while walking up from the bus stop, I ran to her, but by the time I got there her notebook was laying in the dirt and she was gone." I handed her the broken tablet.
Claudia's eyes widened and she gasped. "We need to sound the alarms! We need to get Dwayne Rushford!" she pulled her shoes on, grabbing her keys. "We n
eed to alert the werewolves and get the Alphas to start the hunt! We can't have this getting into the media!" She hurried forward.
"Fuck," Tristan Bradshaw muttered, running his hands through his hair. "What do you want me to do?"
"Go to Dwayne, tell him what's happened!" Claudia told him, Tristan sped off in a blur.
Claudia raced up to The Hub, I followed along silently, she entered her office, opening a hidden compartment on her desk, shoving her key into a bright red lock and turning the key. Sirens blasted through the whole Academy all at once, the sound was loud and pierced my skull. "I'm going to find her friends, she was meant to meet up with them, they might be able to tell me something."
"Go," Claudia commanded. "I need to fill in the staff."
Speeding off to the vampire dormitories, I raced up to Anna Clarke's room on the fifth floor.
Walking past Natasha's room, my heart twisted painfully and I sighed. I needed her more than anything else in this world.
I knocked roughly on Anna's door. Someone groaned inside, the sound of footsteps as they padded to the door and Isaac pulled it open, looking at me in surprise. "What the fuck is going on?" he asked, confused. "What's that noise?"
"Where's Anna Clarke?" I demanded. Anna padded up softly behind him, pulling a dressing gown on.
"What's wrong?" she asked, her blonde brows knitting together with worry.
"Were you with Natasha Marshall tonight?" I asked, not bothering answering their questions, because I was pissed at them for not protecting her.
Anna shook her head. "It got late after dinner and we just came back here, I forgot to message her." Anna frowned. "Why?"
I scowled down at her, Isaac's body stiffened and he looked like he wanted to kill me, stepping in front of Anna. He had guts, I had to give him that. "You're friend you've been ignoring for the last few weeks got abducted!" I yelled at them, furiously.
Anna's eyes widened and she shook her head. "No." She shook her head harder, tears falling. "You're joking?"
I stepped forward, looking at Isaac. "I thought you would've been there to protect her," I growled. "That's why I didn't go when she told me she thought she was being followed!"
"What the fuck?" Isaac demanded, looking at me like I was crazy. "What is it to you?"
The look on my face must have told them everything. "Oh... that's who she was seeing in Bora Bora," Anna muttered, gulping.
At this point I couldn't give a fuck who knew, I just needed her back. I needed to hold Tasha in my arms and know she was safe. I couldn't sleep until she was back.
Isaac ran his hand over the back of his neck, looking guilty. "Fuck!"
"I'm guessing Sophia and Nic came back with you two?" I asked, clenching my jaw.
They both nodded, looking at each other guiltily. They fucking should be, Isaac wrapped his arms around Anna as the shock wore off and she sobbed. "I can't believe we didn't go," she muttered into Isaac's chest.
I stormed out, slamming the door shut behind me. People were lining up in the hallways, I moved to Natasha's door, kicking it open. The lock gave way with a snap, the door fell open. People gasped in shock. I went into her bathroom.
"What's going on?" Sophia demanded from outside.
"Natasha is missing, someone took her," Anna whispered behind me, another sob bursting free.
A collective gasp sounded from the corridor. I looked through her washing pile, grabbing a few things I knew she'd worn, they smelt just like her and my heart clenched painfully in my chest as I breathed in her scent, looking around her clean room as I stormed out, walking out the building and heading back to The Hub in a blur of speed.
Dwayne Rushford, Oliver Haynes and about twenty other werewolves, including Grace Locke and Gabriella Luna, stood in the room. They all turned to me as I stormed in. "I grabbed a few of her things while I was over there so they can get familiar with her scent," I told Claudia, she nodded curtly and I started handing her things out amongst the crowd.
"I don't need that," Oliver told me as I went to pass him one of her shirts. "I'd know her scent anywhere."
Anger bubbled through my chest, but I ground my teeth hard, fighting back the urge to pummel him again, passing the shirt to Gabriella Luna instead.
I was glad she was here, her dad was one of the best trackers we'd ever seen in years, and rumour has it she inherited his gift. "We'll head out now," Dwayne said, his shoulders tense. He turned to give the werewolves a sharp nod and they started filing out, one by one. "We'll start searching." Dwayne walked out of the room, they stripped out of their clothes and turned in unison.
Oliver, the big rusty brown wolf, turned to the sky and howled, they all followed, bounding off into the woods, their minds linking with Oliver's.
Walking out from The Hub, I watched as they took off in the direction of where she'd been taken, racing alongside them, ready to help.
Gabriella Luna, a pure white wolf that glowed silver in the moonlight, turned her head to the sky, howling. She found something!
Her paws bounded along the driveway, and out of the Academy's large gates. The letters SA sat in cursive at the very top, entwined to lock in place when they were shut.
Luna ran along the woods, I ran beside her, the rest of the wolves followed along behind her. She dropped down, sniffing, crawling into the woods, throwing her head back and howling as she found something.
Branches covered it, I pulled them off and underneath laid a wrecked black motorbike. It was Ace Hunter's. Fuck! If Ace and Natasha were missing, I had a fairly good idea who took them, and it made my blood run cold, thinking she was at the mercy of them psychos. I should have protected her.
Luna's head snapped up suddenly and she howled, bounding off in the opposite direction, running up a long dirt road. I ran beside her.
There was no way I was staying out of this. I needed to be here. I wasn't going to rest until I had found her and she was in my arms. I wouldn't stop looking for her, I'd die looking for her if that was the case. I'm pretty damn sure I was in love with her and if I had the chance, I'd tell her.
Natasha Marshall's story continues...
Natasha Marshall's story continues in Silverwood Academy book 2...
Natasha Marshall has been adducted... again. Who knew what she had done in her life to deserve this kind of luck?
She wasn't quite sure how she ended up here in this predicament and she's not sure if she'll get back to the academy and see her friends again... or even Sterling.
Will Tasha get free? Who took her and why?
Tasha's life is about to turn upside down again, and she's not sure if her life will ever be the same.
Silverwood Academy Book 1 Page 27