What do you think about Sean and Rachel's first kiss? And do you think Nick could be right? Any theories?
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE: Watching what was mine get hurt and be taken care of by some other male was driving me crazy. But I had been in crow form when I saw her walk into the pole and couldn’t just shift right there in this public park. Instead, I had to watch as a crowd gathered, a crowd full of males - worse yet, male mutts. One in particular had picked her up and stayed far too close to her for far too long. I sat perched at the top of a tree across the street at the park. I didn’t want to get closer and risk hearing something that would make me more upset. I wouldn’t risk losing my cool. Something felt off about the way she had lost focus and walked into that pole, and I spent a few minutes looking down at the group gathering around her. I was now able to hold this form for hours and was getting stronger. Just being around her, and better yet, touching her, gave me a small surge in my abilities. Like hot weather helping you stretch your muscles, I too stretched my abilities more sm
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO: Nick~ Goddess help us. You would think Evan had never had to tone down his wolf traits in front of humans before. Will I be that bad after my first shift next month? I had been making my backwards shot from across the court when Evan’s scent changed. He was exuding excitement, and one glance over at Jake confirmed it was Rachel. I have no clue what it was about her that made these two this crazy. Jake had had a crush on her for years. Even thinking back to first grade I could remember him teasing her about one thing or another to get her to chase him. They chased each other over all kinds of things back then. He seemed alright when she had moved, but when she came back to start 6th grade, you could see it all over his face. He was totally smitten. We were just pups back then. And while we knew about fated mates, it all felt so far away. I mean I had had a few crushes myself on a few human girls throughout middle school, but Jake - he never changed his mind. He
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE: I was trapped under glass and surrounded by freezing cold water. I tried to breathe and only water entered my lungs, my eyes bulging out in panic. It was dark with just a sliver of light and I was frantically moving my hands along the glass feeling for a way out. My lungs burned with the need to breathe and my throat was coated in salt. I couldn’t feel for a way out and started banging my fists on the glass. I banged over, and over, and over again with the same result, nothing. I felt myself getting both cold and warm all over, my joints going numb. My eyes closed. And I felt so sleepy. If I could only just rest for a moment. My eyes flickered and for an instant I thought I saw a gray wolf looking down at me, through the glass. I started to drift away as I heard the wolf howling, its nails digging away between us. And I had my last thought - that’s not glass, it’s ice. I woke up drenched in sweat. The breeze coming in only chilled me further and I felt my body
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR: It turned out I had sprained my ankle. Some people sprained their ankles doing things like gymnastics, or doing acrobatics. I did it walking down some steps that I’ve walked down plenty of times before. I had stayed home through the next two days, my mom encouraging me to take a break. She was convinced I had misstepped because I was stressed from school or tired. And she wasn’t totally wrong about the latter. It was now Wednesday afternoon. I had been able to take short naps throughout these past few days and I knew I was catching up on sleep. But I still had the worst time trying to sleep through the night the last two nights. I repeated the drowning nightmare, and when I finally managed to fall asleep again, I had a similar dream of falling to my death from a tall building. Both nights. Awful. It was mid-afternoon and I was responding to one of Ally’s texts. She had been trying to keep me updated on all things Pacific in my absence. It was actually pretty
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE: I dreamt about a wolf, a big gray wolf, who was running at top speed through a forest. It was weaving skillfully around trees and rocks, and over a stream. It reached another stream and dipped its head to take a drink. When it looked up I saw its eyes, they were black with moving swirls of gold in them. It probably should have looked frightening but for some reason its eyes just drew me in further. I felt at ease and wanted to reach out and run my fingers through its fur. It turned and looked right at me and we stared at each other for a moment before we heard a howl far away and it took off running once more. It was the first break in endless nightmares I’d had in a few nights, and the full amount of sleep I got this time made me feel better about my decision to go back to school today. Moving around on crutches took practice and I was still terrible at it. Taking a shower was a whole ordeal too, so I had needed to wake up even earlier than normal to give mysel
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX: The rest of my morning went by pretty uneventfully. Well, other than me taking much longer to move around with these crutches. Sean walked with me nearly everywhere though, so I was not lacking company. I swear, he nearly picked me up a few times. It took a lot of convincing for him to tone down his worry. It was lunch now and I was sitting out with Marsha, Ally, and Maxine, they were catching me up on things I had missed. I had caught up with Kyle earlier at break and he had filled me in on some funny things in his unusual way of storytelling. He was still keeping Vance at bay and I was so grateful. Thankfully I hadn’t missed the big fall event, Food Fest, which was tomorrow. We had shorter class times and a few events throughout our breaks that I was looking forward to. All the clubs in Pacific would have booths and would be raising money for their clubs and the school in general. Sean came back to the bench and sat on the floor by my leg. “What are you d
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN: I had probably tested my luck that night when I had opened the window. I had just needed to be closer to her, could almost feel her amplifying my power, and I got away from myself. Thankfully she hadn’t seen me. If I weren’t paying as much attention she would have caught me, a hovering bird in a dark cloud of magic slowly opening her window. I didn’t know how long I could last like this. There was no way I would be able to share her with anyone else. She needed to be mine. Just mine. I will watch over her again tonight. The nightmares began again. This time it was a mix between things. I was walking through a forest, following a large wolf walking ahead of me. It was leading me to a figure, a woman, far off into a field. But before we could get close enough for me to make out anything else I was covered by birds, dark birds. They started coming toward me a few at a time, then more arrived. And the wolf continued on without waiting for me. I tried to call out an
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT: The next day after school Sean helped me out to his car again. I kept asking him what exactly he had planned and he of course wouldn’t tell me. I asked again anyway. “Your questioning hasn’t gotten me to budge all day and it’s not going to start now,” he teased me. He booped my nose. “Did you just boop me?” I asked, crossing my arms. “Maybe, but if I did you had it coming,” he laughed and buckled in his seatbelt. He drove us to the highway but this time we went south. “Are we going to a beach?” I asked, he shook his head. “Are we… going to a restaurant?” I asked. He just laughed and replied, “That’s it, I’m saying ‘no’ to everything you guess. I’m not letting you ruin your surprise.” “Alright, alright,” I said, hands up in defeat. “Be like that.” He continued to drive down the highway and turned up his music, skipping a few songs until he got to one he knew I couldn’t help but sing to and I side-eyed him for it. But after a few bars I sang alo
CHAPTER 147 - Rachel~ I dreamed about the moon. Like I have a hundred times now. But this time it was full, and lit up everything around the forest. I recognized the area, it was our packlands. But parts were slightly different. We didn’t have a lake. I ran over in wolf form to see a lovely lady by the lake. I recognized her right away. Selene. “Rachel! Angeline!” She greeted us. “It’s been a while!” We padded over and sat next to her. “We’re all so proud of you and the pack. And I’m especially excited for your little one, she’s going to be a strong, strong wolf,” she said gleefully. I let out a surprised sound. “Yes! Sorry to spoil the surprise, I know it’s very early. But yes, it’s a girl. And you both are going to raise her to be tough and caring like her mom,” she said with pride. I rested my head on her arm. She got quiet for a while and I looked up at her after a few minutes, seeing an odd look on her face. “I’m sorry - I wish I was just meeting you with som
CHAPTER 146: Rachel~ My skin was itching to get back to Jake. Knowing they were likely out of their cells and making adjustments to our plan gave me some hope, but every touch from this disgusting being made me want to scream. Alright, on my mark, I heard Jake say. Wait. What? I looked around and confirmed Jake wasn’t around. And his voice sounded like it was coming from… in my head? Paul drags me along further and starts unlocking a door. We’ve got to be getting closer to wherever they’re keeping Meg and my mom. Could I- could I be getting some connection to him? Like how the others link? Jake?, I ask the ethos. There’s nothing for a minute. Rachel?, Jake asks back. Woah. How are you doing that?, he asks. I don’t know, I just heard you, I explained. Paul hauled the heavy door open and I gasped. My mom and sister were on the ground in a heap like forgotten laundry. I fell forward and reached into the cell they were in, trying to grab my mom’s hand. “Dove, g
CHAPTER 145: Jake~ As much as I think this could work, Aamon is absolutely livid that Rachel is about to be out of sight. Things have been working as she planned so far. Simon screaming down here brought Rosalind down as thought. I have to give it to the guy - he played ‘seizure guy’ very well. Then in the middle of things there was some shouting up top. Likely from the fire Elise set. Which meant that Kyle was pretending to surrender himself and if Rachel was right, Paul wouldn’t be able to fight the urge to have groveling at his feet. Which left Sophie. She was right outside my cell, watching Rosalind move Paul around in this cell, trying spells to stop him from freaking out, not realizing Ally had thrown him something he now had in his cheek like a squirrel that would ward off unwanted magic. “They’re kind of a mess, aren’t they?” I say beside her. “I would have expected more from a Luna in training…” She turned to face me with a look of defiance. “Desperate times…” I t
CHAPTER 144: Rachel~ “Sophie,” I say the name with charged disgust I can’t hide. “You couldn’t just leave and go find something else to do, huh? You had to stick around and try to take what’s mine.” “Yours?!” She screeches. “You mean what you stole from me! I’m supposed to be Luna. Me! I lost my mom and then my dad, and what? You just waltz along and get what’s mine? NEVER.” “So what? Trying to hurt me before by hiring Max wasn’t enough? Now you have to get some more help to do what you can’t handle? Typical Sophie. Can’t do a da*n thing by yourself. You have to wave daddy’s money around to get anything done. Pathetic,” I sneer. She sputters unintelligible words. I’m getting under her skin. “Enough,” Vance’s mom says, her voice cutting through everything. “You can play around when we’re done with our deal.” Sophie bares her teeth at me then turns. At the same time the door down to the dungeon opens again. Who could possibly be joining in on this nonsense? There’s two sets of s
CHAPTER 143: Jake~ It’s the Luna ceremony today. Rachel started getting into the spirit yesterday. She glows around here. And the pack members love her. Even those who were vocally against cross-species interactions. They know what she did out there that day and what she gave up without expecting anything in return. While a few left, including Tiffany’s family - which was expected anyway since Evan’s rejection - things were very different than I had thought they’d ever be. After she came back we all had made plans to leave and start our own little pack, but everyone surprised me. Now here we were. A pack pioneering acceptance of all kinds of love. We even had two newly mated couples join us from up north. A witch and a wolf, and a wolf and a vampire. The last one was nuts to me, but Jeanette had a totally clean background and a highly trusted wolf for a mate. If we ever grow to the point of needing a Delta, I have my eye on her mate, Juniper. A knock comes to the door and
CHAPTER 142: Rachel~ One Month Later It’s moving day. The thought hits me right when I open my eyes. It makes me smile right away in the early morning light. I guess I was too excited to wait for my alarm to go off. I look over and see Meg asleep in her bed, her head to the side, mouth open, and a soft snore coming out when she exhales. It’s all going to be different now. My phone lights up to my side and I don’t even need to read it before I know it’s from Jake. He likely feels that I’m awake. We’ve been getting more in tune lately. I think the bond is on hyperdrive for us. I’m not even a werewolf but I seem to know things too. I know when something’s upsetting him even if I am outside with the pack pups and he’s in his office, and I know when he’s anxiously pacing in his room even if I’m in the kitchen entertaining a visiting pack. We’re still learning about our bond. And he hasn’t even marked me yet, so who knows how much could change. When I came back to life after Th
CHAPTER 141: Rachel~ It felt like nothing. No. Warmth. Dark but warm. Cozy like being wrapped up in my favorite fuzzy blanket at home. Like I’m huddled in warmth on a stormy cold day. “Rachel,” I hear a lovely voice saying my name slowly, like the lyrics of a song I know. I stir. It’s just so cozy here. Can’t I rest just a little longer? “Rachel,” the voice says again. This time there’s a hand on my arm. The feeling has me trying to wake before I can make the decision to do it. “Rachel,” it says once more. It’s dark but warm. But I have to go. I start to stir, to look for the source of the voice. Who is it? Light surrounds me and it feels just as cozy and warm as before but its so bright. My eyes try to open but it’s just too bright. Then a shadow appears, making it darker. I open my eyes and they adjust to see- Oh, it’s not a shadow. It’s a person. I know this person. My mind is groggy like I’ve woken up from a deep stage of sleep. I’m slow. My synapses
CHAPTER 140: Evan~ I kept expecting her to wake up in Jake’s arms. That somehow, his tears would bring her back. But she just lay there, like a ragdoll, in his arms. If it weren’t for how strikingly pale she looked, I would have told anyone she was sleeping. But she didn’t wake up. It’s hours later and Nick was barely able to get Jake inside. We cleared the field as best we could, bringing in the injured and putting the dead together. Amber had removed all traces of The Collective while we had sat there with Jake. I don’t like how shell shocked she was. She didn’t seem to be actually experiencing all of this and I worry for when those feelings will surface. I know she didn’t like those people. But they still raised her. She told me about jokes and kindnesses that she received in little bursts along the years. She’s basically just lost her family. But she doesn’t want to talk about it. She hasn’t even cried about it. And I can’t say I don’t understand that. I can’t even im
CHAPTER 139: Kyle~ I woke up next to the red wolf. Everyone was screaming or howling. It was chaotic and loud, which made everything that much more disorienting. What I saw next killed me. Rachel out on the field alone, with all the shadow Dementor things charging at her. “Rachel!” I’m screaming but no one can hear me. I look to see Jake crawling towards her from too far away. He won’t get there in time. How did it get this bad? How long was I out for? I flail about, my arms and legs pushing to move but I’m not coordinated or strong enough to get anywhere. “Why is no one helping her?!” I scream again, my voice cracking, my throat raw. The red wolf just tugs on my shirt again, trying to bring me inside the packhouse. I have barely any magic left but I send it to the wolf trying to drag me away. “Let go!” I scream. “We have to help her!” I look around frantically for anyone I recognize. Where is Ally? Evan? Nick? There’s so many wolves and people rushing back, I can’t