Storm woke up to the gentle sensation of Kaden kissing her forehead. She blinked, adjusting to the soft morning light filtering through the curtains. A new day already? How long had she slept?Kaden's deep, reassuring voice broke the morning silence.“Good morning, Storm. How are you feeling now? Do you still have headaches?”Storm shook her head. “I’m fine.” She sat up on the bed, enjoying the feeling of Kaden’s hands on her skin. She burrowed into his arms the more.“Any more dreams?” Kaden asked, welcoming her into his arms. He drew circles on her waist which was bare of clothing, as her blouse had ridden up.Storm shook her head.Why did he smell so good this morning? She sniffed his polo, not quitting when Kaden chuckled. The voice that reverberated around his chest was soothing to her ears.Her mate.Why had it taken so long for her to find this out? If she had known, she would have probably gotten rid of this ache in between her legs a long time ago, probably when she had met
Whilst the last class of the day dwindled to an end, with the lecturer giving a good old story about his earlier days in med school, Storm’s mind ruminated on the several changes that had taken place in the clan and in her life since the past two weeks. The past two weeks have been uneventful really, and void of tension to an extent. Peaceful if she would dare to say. If she didn’t know better, if she hadn't had those dreams where her significant other had told her things to come, she might have called these days the best days of her life. The dreams hadn’t repeated itself, neither had the other dreams, nor the nightmares. The calm before the storm. She thought, reclining deeper into her chair. But then she couldn’t deny the good things. The relationship between her and Kaden had improved exponentially. As a matter of fact, since that last time when he had taken her to his place after her stay at the hospital, she hadn’t left. She had moved her things to his place to the chagrin of
The vampire. The silence over the past two weeks from the demon gave her more concern than Kaden not touching her—except for the kisses on her cheeks and her forehead. Sometimes, he gave her a full blown mouth kiss, but then, just at the moment when she was riled up, when she wanted more from him, he pulled away as if knowing she was about to hold him fast to her. She had caught him one time, murmuring ‘two weeks more, and it will be over’, and although she didn’t understand what he was talking about, except they would all be going to the pack he was exiled from that period, she didn’t complain or push her thoughts that he touch her. She had seen the restraint all over his rippled face, and was aware that the reason why he didn’t touch her wasn't because she was un-delectable, but because of some honor and duty. She had let him have the field day. The vampire silence was another matter altogether. It unsettled her the most. She wasn’t sure if the vampire was the master that Jes
“Hey…” Storm sighed when she heard Louise’s voice, just as she was packing her bag to get out of the class. She signaled her friend with an eyeroll to get going, that she would meet her outside, and then she turned aside to stare at the intruder. She didn’t reply to his greeting.”Are you still angry that I tried to kiss you? It had been nothing. I am sorry.” Storm would have believed that lame ass apology, if she wasn’t aware that Louise, even at this moment, was trying to compel her to stay still, to yearn for his touch, whilst he said whatever he wanted.No matter how Storm tried to understand why Louise would result to such underhanded tactics despite his handsomeness, she could come up with nothing, only that he liked the control and power it gave him, the thrill of controlling someone's senses. A bully. Storm hated bullies. “Okay, apology accepted.” She said, even though it was anything but that. She slung the bag pack along her shoulders, and stepped away from Louise’s circ
Storm watched Louise watch her. What now? She thought, aware that he was perusing her, that he was gauging her, that he was wondering what she was, just as she was wondering what he was, that the main reason for his following her wasn't that lame ass apology, or the care for her ex boss, but for this: to know how she had found that he was using compulsion.She knew that he was drafting the best way to come up with the question. “Is there anything else? I want to be going.” Storm said, cussing mentally when she saw the smirk that appeared on Louise’s lips then. “Aren’t you waiting for Jutul?” Storm only shrugged her shoulders, just before she asked a damning question.“Why did you use the compulsion on my friend?” “Your friend or your driver? Or is it your guard?” Storm ignored the question, because Jutul was actually all of the above, but then, Louise didn’t need to know that. “Well, nothing really. I never asked him for anything, not that there was anything to ask. I was just
Storm didn’t wait for Jutul to get to the parking garage, before telling him to stop the car. She got down, and immediately hurried to the back door where the old woman had been slotted in. The old woman was sleeping. Storm raised her eyebrows in incredulity, noting the countenance of the woman. The old woman was sleeping like she had no care in the world, like she hadn’t just dropped a bomb on Storm’s head this afternoon. Storm knew she couldn’t wait for the woman to be awake at her own clock. Time was ticking. She tapped the woman on the lap. “Get up….” She didn’t know the old woman’s name, so she stuttered and looked at Jutul. “Call Kaden, and the others…” She frowned as she spoke, so Jutul could understand the others she was talking about. And although he didn’t know what was going on, for Storm hadn’t given him a heads up even whilst they had been in the car—-she had just been muttering to herself—he knew that it was an emergency, and so he hurried away. He ran with all of hi
When Storm finally listened to Kaden and turned to face her audience; there was not a gasp , not even from Jutul. He was staring at her blankly, like he did when he saw her every other day. Kaden’s words must have jarred them enough to be statues.What was Jutul doing here though? She was expecting that he would be dismissed by Kaden. Is he among the special group now? Since when? Kaden, noticing Storm’s line of sight, sighed when he saw Jutul. The lad shouldn’t be here. “Jutul, leave...” Jutul nodded without hesitation, about to leave the gathering, when the old woman called him back. “Let him stay. He will be a good right hand to the girl. After all, they already have a good camaraderie.Come here. Let me confirm something.” Jutul exchanged glances with Kaden, as if asking his master for permission. When Kaden nodded, Jutul walked past Casper and Lent, and came to stand before the old woman. The old woman perused him twice, from head to toe, and then touched him on the forehead,
Storm couldn’t believe that she was the one weaving safeguards now, not even by the third time. She watched herself as a distinct personality, muttering magic spells simultaneously with the old woman whilst moving her hands in harmony with the latter, listening to herself speak words she had no idea what their meanings were. Yet, she couldn’t believe it. “You better believe it, Kataigida. You better believe your reality. You better believe the strength that lies within you. You better believe the responsibility that lies on your shoulder. Because it will be needed in the battle ahead, and it will be a shame to your memory if you were to fail again. So, believe.” She heard the old woman say, and sighed, letting her weary hands fall to her sides. The woman had been right. Casting safeguards was tiring, especially as she wasn’t fully at her best yet. She was still coming to terms with her full power. The endeavor had drained her of tremendous energy, both physically, mentally, emoti
Storm could feel her heart pounding hard, but it was more out of excitement than fear. She should be afraid, the bird was a true raptor, but it was magnificent. It had black eyes! Round, shiny, very intelligent black eyes. She stared at it for two full minutes. That wasn't normal, she was certain. Very slowly, so she wouldn't startle the creature, she backed across the room to the desk where she kept her phone. Still looking at the bird, she googled the images of the bird, biting her lips intermittently as she waited.Strangely, the bird was observing her just as intently, an intelligence in its gaze as it watched the phone beep occasionally. When the page opened, Storm glanced at the image of the harpy eagle. The eyes were round and shining with intelligence, but they were not black. The eyes in the picture were a bright amber with a black pupil. She let out her breath slowly. Something was wrong with her bird.‘You aren't blind, though, are you?’ She sent the words, not even kno
After Storm was done eating, she thanked Kaden, and let him have the plates when he stretched his hands to collect them. To hold herself from jumping on him, and demanding that he put her out of her sexual misery, she stood up from the bed and sauntered to the window to look at the forest, and clear her immoral thoughts. He had joined her to eat, and for each time his mouth had closed over a morsel of food, she had jerked subtly, as if the mouth was closing over her twin orbs. In a large oak tree, plenty feet away from her, a bird flapped its mighty wings, drawing her attention. A smile swept past her lips when she became aware that she could sight its distinctive features. She was not the same Storm of a month ago. She was different now, considering the amount of trainings she had submitted too.The bird had a round facial disk with a very pronounced ruff. It wasn't an owl but it was large. Very large. The unusual bird could easily weigh at least twenty pounds. She stared at it
Storm walked into Kaden's treehouse and was immediately struck by how it seemed larger than usual. The wooden walls, which should be plain and simple, were adorned with colorful murals and hand-painted designs. One wall even showcased a sprawling mural of a sunset over a peaceful lake, with vivid oranges and pinks blending into each other. And another wall had a charming depiction of a forest, complete with playful animals like squirrels and birds, all brought to life with bright, cheerful colors.The room was filled with natural light that filtered through the large windows, which had been decorated with flowing curtains in soft, earthy tones. The curtains swayed gently in the breeze, adding a sense of movement to the scene. The wooden floor was covered with cozy rugs that added warmth and comfort to the space.A large, comfy bean bag was positioned in one corner, surrounded by soft pillows. Next to it was a small bookshelf brimming with colorful books, their spines lined up neatly
Storm’s mind kept conjuring up provocative images, as she and Kaden walked hand in hand around the clan. The kiss they had shared in her room still tingled on her lips, still kept heat in her blood, still made her hunger for more. She inhaled sharply when Kaden turned and stared at her, his eyes brimming with the emotions that she was sure was playing out in her own mind. For a second, she feared that he might have peeked into her dirty mind, but then she remembered that they were not bonded yet, not in that sense. It brought her swift relief which came with a coating of abashed-ness seen in the coloring of her cheeks and necks, something that wasn’t lost on Kaden who was battling to hold on to his honor. He cussed at himself for closing her lips with his earlier, knowing what could happen from there. But she had been speaking, and her luscious mouth had been like water in a desert land; he had been parched so much that he couldn’t have been able to help himself. And now, the stirr
All through the week, Storm only concentrated on the books Kaden had given her, or rather on the first book she had collected from the pile. Jutul had done the same, concentrating on the second book he had picked. Both had only taken breaks when they wanted to eat or when they wanted to train with Casper for an hour. To assuage Kaden’s caveman jealousy, all the reading had been in the dining downstairs, and yet they weren’t close enough to whatever the books were on about. They weren’t close to the end either, and the transcribers were doing a poor job, despite Jiraq’s input sometimes. It was then that Storm had learnt that Jiraq wasn’t done with the book either. ‘What are you doing with one of the hardest books in the pile?” had been his first question when she had solicited for his help. He had gone ahead to pick up a smaller book, written in English, for her and Jutul to start with, but she had declined—she had grown attached to the old book. And she had vowed to bring it to a fi
Storm groaned tiredly; under the full weight of the knowledge she had been absorbing for the past four hours. Kaden had been true to his word, and with the help of Jiraq, had bundled more than thirty books which smelt of oldness into her room this morning, just before she dressed for school. “For those written in old language, Jiraq was kind enough to let you have his transcriber, so that you can better understand it. You can check them out after classes today.” Kaden had said, when he had stepped into her room with a fellow whom she knew went by the name, Micheal, Liam’s younger brother. She had found out right after Liam’s recuperation weeks ago, about the wicked action on the young fellow who didn’t look a year older than her. The first book on the pile had gotten her attention after the duo had left the room, and picking it up, she had decided to peek at a page, then return to her preparation for school. But a page had turned to two pages, and then five pages, until school was
Storm was chatting with Lucy and Justin, in their phone group , around a time when she should be sleeping, when she heard her name being droned in her ears. “S-t-o-r-m” She furrowed her eyebrows, and looked around the room she shared with Kaden sometimes. There was no one. The voice sounded familiar, and until she felt the eeriness in the room, she didn’t know who it was. The vampire.She got up from the empty bed, and sauntered toward the door, needing to get to Kaden as soon as possible, but the door wouldn’t budge. She stamped her foot on the floor out of frustration, as fear suddenly took root in her mind and body. Where was he when she needed him? Why hadn’t he spent the night with her? She wondered, never minding that she had been one to ask they sleep on separate beds tonight, after he had returned from his meeting with his people, after she had returned from seeing her friends off with Lent. The voice called for her name again, and she shuddered before she could help it, h
There was a stark naked silence in the room after Jutul’s declaration. So stark was it, that Storm felt her ears ringing with deep silence, deep silence and an unclothed unbelief. They were lying? If she didn’t know of Jutul’s gifts, she would have berated him for speaking against her friends. But she knew. She knew he was telling the truth—there wasn’t a need to lie. And she still was finding it hard to believe. Lucy and Justin had planned a lie, and had come to convince them of it? All for what? To gain information on what was going on in the clan? Was their school even on break? Then, the silence was broken by Kaden’s voice which had descended to a certain chillness that informed Storm that her mate was angry, very angry, at being made a fool of. “Lent, place a call to the school’s authorities, and find out if the school is really on break…” Lucy’s dark laughter interrupted his statement, and brought Storm’s attention to her. “So y’all would rather believe Storm’s newest friend
Of course they wouldn’t. Storm thought, looking at Lucy squarely for the first time since she had entered the room. Her friend was still bubbling in age-old anger, and was still carrying a grudge against her.And since, Storm knew she couldn’t do much about it—because what Lucy was demanding was unattainable—she let the latter think that she wasn’t bothered by it. It would help with them leaving earlier. Having seen what exactly was at play here, what evil forces were at play here, she wasn’t about to risk the lives of her friends. She wasn’t about to have their blood on her head, because she wanted them to be included in every facet of her life. It was better they thought she was against them; it was better they believed that she didn’t value their friendship.“So, why are you here, Lucy?” She schooled her face to a cold aloofness, unfazed when Justin let out a cuss word, whilst darting a glance between Lucy and her. There was a minute silence, where Lucy scanned Storm’s features;