RayneDarla showed me her greenhouse and we spent the whole morning there. It was amazing to see all those exotic flowers and plants. She mentioned that her husband brought her a new plant every time he went to another territory, which was quite frequent. She said a lot of them didn't survive because she didn't know how to tend to them properly, but those she kept were beautiful. I liked how everything was organized, and how patient she was showing me everything. She looked very proud of her work and she should be—it was a lonely experience for me. While she showed me around, she told me a little bit about my mother. She told me about some of their experiences together, how brave and sympathetic my mother was, and much more. She was everything I always imagined her to be, if I'm being honest with myself. I already envisioned her as someone courageous and warm-hearted even before I found out her real identity. There are times when I share everyone's hate for MoonWater. They broke my
MaxI kick at the desk and watch everything come crashing down. Pleasure courses through me. Lately, the only thing that makes me calmer is breaking things. Whenever I break something, I feel all my anger being released, and it's better than feeling this all-consuming emptiness that's been haunting my days since Rayne left. I don't know what to do with myself. I haven't been able to sleep and I have barely been able to eat. I wasn't expecting her absence to hit me this hard, so hard that I've become a completely different person. Almost obsessive. I need to have her back. If I don't get her back, I might very well make the world burn. I don't care about what anyone has to say about this either. I know that, by now, everyone knows that it's Rayne that is making me feel this way, even Alaska. Still, she hasn't left the House yet. I'm not sure what she's waiting for but then again, I don't have the time to think about that. Getting Rayne back is nearly impossible these days, and it's
RayneAfter dinner, Darla and I talk a little bit about womanhood. An odd topic, yes, but she doesn’t make it awkward at all. She tells me, under her breath, just about everything she can think of, including topics about personal hygiene amongst other things. Some things I already knew, but others were new to me and I am incredibly grateful for the advice. At the end of our evening together, she pats my hand and says, “You know, having you here is absolutely wonderful. I haven’t had someone to talk to in years.”I nod, unsure of what to say. Then, I add, “It’s great being here, too.”My days here are somewhat full. I’m not holed up in my room and waiting for Veronica to call for me. There is a lot to see and even learn, if that is my wish. Darla is very attentive, and I don’t feel at all like a burden here. She offers me a wide smile and then we rise wordlessly and start toward the stairs. It’s somewhat late and I do feel tired. She senses even this. I wonder if there is ever anyth
RayneVictor isn't wearing a shirt. He cuts into the apple as we maintain eye contact and then slowly brings a wedge up to his mouth. I am sure my face is the color of a tomato right now and I don't know where to look after I was staring for so long. It's become an awkward situation now and there is no getting out of this. "Sorry," I say, "I just wanted water."He gestures at the vastness of the kitchen as if to say 'do as you wish' and I immediately walk toward the large container of water. There are rows of glasses right beside it and I grab a clean one. I turn the tap and watch my glass fill with water. I can feel his eyes on me even though I'm not looking at him. I wonder if it's paranoia. I tip my head back and gulp the water down. I then refill the glass. I hear him eating the apple from somewhere behind me, aware of every little sound that is made in this kitchen. Once I've finished drinking, I put the glass down on the other side of it as I'm not sure where to wash it, and
RayneI caught a rabbit today. I can hardly believe it. I never thought I’d be able to catch anything, much less with a bow and arrow. Victor was patient with me. It took many tries to get this one rabbit. He could have gotten many rabbits and even a deer if he hadn’t spent so much time teaching me, but I’m glad he did. I never would have guessed that I would be able to learn how to hunt anything. Yet I’ve managed. My rabbit is slung over Victor’s shoulder. He has removed the arrow from its small body but there is a bloody gaping hole right at the center. We’re making our ways back to the house. By now, everyone else is probably done. “I’ll teach you how to skin it,” he tells me. “You never know when it might come in handy.”“It’s probably going to take all afternoon,” I comment.“I have time,” he answers mildly. I try not to make too much of it as we walk toward the barn. The whole family is already there, as I guessed. They all turn to look at us as we approach them and Darla
RayneThe time I spent with the AmberMane’s was precious to me. It’s the first time I’ve ever done anything similar, and I have to say that I had a lot of fun. It was good, getting to know them. For the first time in my life, I learned what it was like to be wanted, and welcomed in a place. I never once felt like I was stepping on someone’s toes or that I wasn’t wanted there.Is the experience for me was completely positive. I can’t say the same for Denise. She still hasn’t said a proper word to me and I’m starting to wonder if perhaps she’s mad about something. It’s no secret to me that she didn’t want to come here, but I didn’t expect her to act this way. She’s the one who suggested to come along with me, not the other way around. Therefore, I can’t find an explanation as to why she’s behaving this way.If she wanted to, she could’ve interacted with everyone. But she didn’t. Victor is driving us back and we’re meant to leave in thirty minutes. I’m genuinely sad to leave, so sad
MaxIt took all my courage to come all the way here. It wasn’t an easy journey and a lot of people tried to stop me. But here I am. I’m sitting across from Rayne’s father. I can tell by the way his fists are balled that he wants to lunge at me. The only thing stopping him are the laws. He can’t attack me unprovoked or it’s a reason to start a feud. I came here in peace and technically, our packs don’t have anything against each other. His war was against my father and he gave in at the time. He lost it. I knew that I would never be able to get to her if I didn’t come here. He would never let her leave. Or, as I’ve already figured out, she wouldn’t have come. I sat with him for only five minutes and was informed that Rayne didn’t want anything to do with me. She ended up here because she was running from me. I could tell he was in disbelief. I don’t think anyone expected me to come here looking for her. I assured him earlier on that I didn’t come here to whisk her away. All I wante
RayneI stop dead in my tracks when I see him. Max. He's standing by the door. I didn't even see him standing there. His brows are furrowed and he has this dark look on his face that injects fear straight into my veins. The problem is that he isn’t looking at me. He’s looking at Victor. I look back at him over my shoulder and see that he’s meeting Max’s gaze steadily. Unflinching. A bad feeling forms in my gut and I realize that I have to end this before it escalates. I start walking quickly toward Max, my nervousness at seeing him forgotten. He doesn’t even see me approach him. He’s so busy staring daggers at Victor. It’s only when I’m very near to him that he looks at me, and not because he sees me or anything. It’s the bond. It practically leaps with joy. His expression softens when he looks at me but I can’t let any of that stop me from what I’m about to do, which is tell him to leave. He doesn’t belong here and I don’t know why he would even dare to come. “We need to talk,