Chapter Two: Magic and Blood

Chapter Two

Sawyer Hawthorne

               I watched. As always, well, at least over the last four years, I was hidden in the shadows and watched every move Aurora Crane made. Tonight was no different. First, she had gone out with her friends for a late dinner. All-female friends, of course. It was a special occasion, and everyone knew it. The next day Aurora turned eighteen, and her father was hosting a massive ball in her honor. That wasn't unusual. Fathers usually doted on their daughters on their birthdays. No, what made this highly suspicious was the ball was to be held in a neutral hotel in the middle of Illyria. Outside the confines of Crane lands.

               It wasn't unusual for large events to be held in neutral territory, but she had never left her kingdom to my knowledge. She glowed a little more than usual tonight, so she must have been excited to the untrained eye. But then again, whenever the party was mentioned, her forehead would slightly crease. Smart, beautiful girl knew something was amiss.

                I'm sure all she could think about was seeing the outside world and not so much the party in her honor. The presents that would be given didn’t matter, but the new people she would meet no doubt excited her. Despite there being two packs powerful in Illyria that all other packs fell in line with, it wasn't as if the two were strangers. Many families were divided between them. Both sides realized the importance of family coming together to celebrate a wedding or a birth or to mourn the loss of a loved one. There were events held several times a year in Wonderland Palace, as we called it.

               Before peace was ever settled, nearly twenty years ago, all sides realized that there needed to be a neutral zone. The four original Alphas called the Fairy Queen, more like invited, begged, and bribed, to come and create a spot where violence and death were not allowed during events. A purely neutral ground on dedicated occasions. No family could break this peace when en route or on the premises. The queen was brilliant and knew how soldiers and generals thought. If you had your invitation key around your neck, you were protected from your enemies until midnight. All events held were over by eleven p.m., even now, to ensure everyone's safety. Since neither side trusted the other despite it being a time of peace. 

               Aurora was dressed like my own personal tormenting siren. Her perfect hourglass figure was encased in a red silk dress. From the bottom left hem to over her right shoulder, there were jeweled beads sewn in. Her blonde hair was half up with massive curls and held back by a diamond-encrusted tiara. For most, this would be an absolute gaudy nightmare of an outfit, but it was beautiful and elegant on her.

               I watched as she talked animatedly to one of her friends between bites of her meal. Her red pouty lips would stretch over her perfectly white teeth as she smiled and then pucker together like a bow when she pursed them to think. She was loved by anyone who met her. Admiring eyes would take a rapid glance and then go back to their own party and plate. 

Despite looking like walking talking sex, no man dared look at her for long. In the heart of Southern Illyria, where only the wolf elite who were among the Alpha’s faithful dared to go, she could have walked outside naked, and none would glance. Everyone knew the wrath that would fall on them and their entire family if anyone messed with the Alpha's daughter. 

               Where her father was just as despicable as mine. She was the opposite. She was warmth, grace, laughter, and goodness. How she ever came from that monster, I will never know. She must have gotten it from her mother. Despite my family taking credit for her mother's death, I had a feeling Oliver had a hand in throwing her into the river. The bruises on her angelic face were legendary. I had no proof of any of this, but that was always my guess. Where she seemed oblivious to the wicked around her, I recognized the world around me along with my own darkness.

I knew that it came from my father. I had blood on my hands to prove my loyalty, but the blood was never shed with a willing heart except for once, but Linus Hawthorne didn't need to know that. Being the second son did have a few advantages. I was often overlooked and ignored, which suited me just fine. I was tall like my father and brother. I was near twenty, and my older brother Archer was twenty-nine. I was the cub they never expected. Only my mother seemed pleased by my birth.

               Archer was as dark and ruthless as my father. He saw power as much of a currency as money. Both we had in abundant supply. I carried out the occasional hit, but mostly my job was to watch, more specifically, watch Aurora. This job could have fallen to any servant, but I made sure it was me. I'd heard stories of her beauty when we were young teenagers, and I was curious. Like Archer and me, she was never shown off in public or had a picture in the media. Both Alphas protected their children by having them faceless. Only those in the highest circles knew who we were. Looking at Aurora, I couldn’t help but wonder how a rose could grow and thrive amongst the thorns? To my surprise, she did.

               Through my years of watching, I'd seen her grow. She was top of her class, won most of the awards her school offered. She was an athlete, and not because her father was Alpha. She was intelligent and creative. How she created art was beyond my comprehension. I felt like I was doing my best just to survive. I knew Aurora was brilliant, but knowing that, I couldn't help but wonder how she didn't know what was going on around her. At night before bed, she would kiss her father's cheek, say I love you, and then go to bed and read two books. One was a small blue book of children’s story, and then the other was a title no doubt picked by her father. Her crown never slipped, and her smile never faltered.

               She was the picture of the obedient, loving daughter. As I said, I was very good at being invisible and even better at being Aurora's shadow.

               We'd never met. Never spoken. Never touched. She never knew I existed, but I had been in love with her since I was fifteen.

               Except she could never be mine. Whether she knew it or not, she belonged to Archer. Her fate was sealed at eight years old. When she turned eighteen, she would marry my devil of a brother and have his children to bring about peace and unity between the packs. Through their union and her sacrifice, the wars would cease forever, the lands would be united, and trade would open. But more importantly to these ambitious men was the prospect of combining powers and taking on the magic of the Seelie Court, the Fae. Which, in my opinion, was not only a mistake but would destroy the wolves' societies.

               This was a marriage bargain written in magic and blood. Neither one of them could escape it if they tried. As I watched Aurora throw her head back, laughing as she headed into one of the playhouses with her friends, I thought this might be her last night of peace and happiness. I prayed to every god and goddess I could think of that my brother would not break and destroy her tomorrow night.

               He didn't deserve her, but then again, neither did I.