10. Autumn
Iknew I couldn’t hide out in my room for forever. It was taking the cowards way, and normally I’d be good with that, but right now I was so very curious.
And curiosity was always my downfall. It sucked me in, chewed me up, and spit my mangled ass back out every single time.
I never did learn from it either.
I had spent an hour going through all of the clothes in the closet and trying different things on. I had never worn brand new, never worn by someone else before me, clothes before. And these all still had the tags on them. Something I wished I hadn’t seen because the cost of everything altogether was quite astronomical and not something I would ever be able to pay them back for. Not that anyone had asked me to pay for anything but still… I did not want it to seem like I was taking advantage of their kindness and generosity.
I picked out a pair of light gray cloth pants that were light, airy, and I thought would feel divine against my skin. A long sleeved black t-shirt that was so light it felt like it weighed next to nothing. A pair of white ankle socks and a matching pair of white cotton panties.
I skipped the bras. Wearing one was so confining and I didn’t think women ever needed to wear a bra, no matter how low your goods were hanging. Being a woman was a beautiful thing and there was no shame in my body. Back at camp, women wrapped theirs in bands and I had never gone for that either.
If people didn’t like it they didn’t have to look at me.
It was the first time in my life I had even worn pants and I very much enjoyed them.
Being here was going to spoil me if I got much more of this treatment. And that was kind of a scary thought that I pushed right out of my mind like a scardy cat.
I took a shower in the bathroom. It was my very first shower ever under running water. It took me a good fifteen minutes to even figure out how to turn the thing on and get the water temperature just right. And that’s to say scorching hot. I probably stood underneath the spray of hot water for another fifteen minutes just standing there enjoying it. I had never had a hot shower before. I had never bathed with warm water before. I had only ever bathed out of a bucket or in the stream with frigid water.
The water was a luxury I never thought I’d experience before.
The soaps and shampoos were divine and smelled lovely. They left me smelling like heaven.
The dark purple towel I wrapped around my body when I stepped out of the shower was the softest, fluffiest thing that had ever touched my skin before.
Was this how normal people lived? Had I been missing out on these things my whole life or was I better off for having lived a simple life without such luxuries?
I wasn’t sure and it was all very confusing because I didn’t know what to think about anything going on in my life anymore.
And that kind of scared me.
I dried off with the fantastically fluffy towel and put brand new clothes on for the very first time in my life.
I would be incredibly stupid to allow myself to get used to it. I needed to remember that things like this didn’t happen for people like me and these men owed me absolutely nothing. They’d get tired of playing heroes to the strange charity case eventually.
And then I’d have to go with the nothing that I’d come here with.
Would they toss me out of their house completely naked, like how I’d arrived here?
I’d lose my mind if I continued to think about it. I’d go completely, batshit crazy.
Nobody needed that, least of all me.
I shook off thoughts that did me no good right now and stepped up to my bedroom door. I pressed my ear up against the wood and quietly whispered a spell that would allow me to hear everyone in the house.
Weirdly enough, it was two female voices I heard and not a single male one. Had all the males left and I’d been left here with Rain’s females whom I had never met before? I had assumed that at least one of the men that I had been introduced to would have stayed behind to babysit me so I wasn’t left here in their house with total strangers.
“We can’t just go up there, barge into her room and introduce ourselves, Ariel.” a woman with a sultry voice said with clear irritation. “Your dad says she’s been traumatized and barely speaks. We need to leave the girl alone and give her her space so she continues to feel safe here.”
There was an angry little huff and then, “Please, Isobel. You and I both know my dad has a serious soft spot for females who’ve been through some shit. You will notice that none of Raven’s crew said shit about staying away from her.”
“Raven and his people didn”t say shit because they assumed that with the two of us there was no need to because they assumed we, of all people, would get it. And they’re right to have thought that because at least I get it. You’re just being fucking nosy because you’re dad said Raven’s got his eye on her and you want to scope her out. I get it, I want to see their female too because I care about them just as much as you do.
“You forget that they took Baxter and I in to keep us safe and we stayed here with them. I know I’m a bitch and I don’t have a lot of friends but I consider Raven to be one of them. We can’t fuck this up for them before they’ve even had a chance with her. You and I both know it’s going to take all of them to get the job done. We can’t be pushy, Ariel. This is supposed to be a safe space for her and we aren’t going to mess with that. Okay? Please tell me that you hear me.”
I moved my head away from the door and stepped back. They’d shared a whole lot for me to digest.
That Ariel girl sounded pushy and incredibly intimidating. It was no surprise to me that she was Rain’s daughter. He was exactly the same way.
But Rain had also been very kind to me and his daughter just sounded like she cared. That was a brand new experience for me and it wasn’t one I hated.
I was curious to learn more about this Isobel who’d stayed here before and was likely Rain’s female witch. Had she stayed in my room?
Hmm…
I really did not like the sound of that in the slightest.
Jealousy wasn’t something I was ever used to feeling and I didn’t like the way it made me feel now.
I was a lot better than that and after all I’d been through and been able to overcome I did not believe there was any room for something as stupid as jealousy taking up space in my mind, especially not towards a woman I did not know over men I had no claim to.
That was straight up bullshit and I wasn’t going to allow myself to travel down that road.
One thing was for sure, they were down there not so patiently waiting for me and I couldn’t hide out here like a coward. It wasn’t the person I wanted to be.
This was my new start to my life and I wasn’t going to start it by being a damn coward.
I wanted better for myself.
I deserved better.
And these people deserved the real Autumn after all they were doing for me, it didn’t matter that these were just their friends.
I fidgeted with the hem of my shirt for a second before smoothing down my quickly drying hair. I’d never worn makeup before and even if I wanted to it would be difficult to wear it with the markings on my face. And I never wanted to cover those up. They were a part of who I was as a person and I had lived with them every single day of my life.
If they couldn’t handle looking at them then they simply didn’t need to look at me.
And that was all there was to it.
The two young women I found at the bottom of the stairs were beautiful but slightly dangerous and were intimidating looking.
One of them had dirty blonde hair and the other one had hair so dark I couldn’t tell if it was so dark brown it was almost black or just black, because it looked like a bit of both when she moved under the light.
I wasn’t sure which one was more dangerous and I wasn’t about to take bets on one over the other because they both gave off scary witch vibes.
The dirty blonde had huge green eyes with tattoos crawling up her arms. She also had a very serious scar that also managed to be dainty but stood out that ran along the curve of one of her cheeks.
She had more juice than the other one did.
The dark haired one had big doe eyes that looked innocent and sweet but if you stared into them long enough you could spot the chaos circling in their dark depths. And she was very pregnant.
“Uh… hey.” the blonde greeted me with an awkward little hand wave.
The dark haired one shot her a look that screamed she wanted her friend to shut her mouth and do it right now. “Don’t pay any attention to her. She’s overrated, trust me on that. Her name’s Ariel and mine’s Isobel. You met her father and one of my men earlier. Rain. We’re both female witches, in case you couldn’t tell, and we’re very pleased to meet you.”
I frowned at this Isobel woman. Why in the world would I not be able to tell what she was? I had never met a person before that I couldn’t tell immediately whether they had magic or not and just how powerful they were.
I cocked my head to the side as I studied both her and the baby inside of her before speaking carefully. “I know she’s stronger than you are. Just like I also know the little girl growing inside of you is going to be stronger than she could ever dream of being. But I thought that was obvious.”
Ariel grew alert. “How do you know she’s having a girl?”
I shrugged. “I thought it was obvious because of what kind of magic she’s giving off. Can’t you feel it?”
Ariel shook her head. “No I can’t feel it and I’ve never heard of someone else being able to before.”
Isobel rested her hands over her protruding stomach. “I think you’re the strong one here. And, yes, she’s a girl. Harmony Rayne.”
I shrugged noncommittally. “That’s a beautiful name for a little girl. She’s going to be lucky to actually get to know her biological parents. I hope you keep her.”
They both looked horrified.
“Why wouldn”t she get to know her biological parents?” Ariel asked me with a frown. “Do you not know yours? Where are they right now? Baby girl witches are special and almost like prized possessions in the witch community.”
Isobel snorted rudely. “Not necessarily. Look how well that worked out for you and I. It got you kidnapped and raised by an asshole. My family was murdered and I was tortured for fun by the Council. Shit, Ariel, the Council tried to fuck you up too but they made you a member instead.”
I had no idea what these girls were talking about but they seemed like they’d been through some horrible things.
They seemed nice enough, if a little insane.
But that didn’t mean I wanted to tell them everything about myself. Those weren’t things I was supposed to share and I had already shared too much with the guys who took me out of the woods and welcomed me into their home.
I didn’t think it would hurt to tell them something though. It seemed only fair because they had shared with me. “No, I’ve never met my parents. Or, if I have, they didn’t acknowledge me. We aren’t raised amongst our families in the forest. We’re one big community and the children aren’t raised with their parents. There are rules that are enforced that we all have to live by in order to remain amongst the community.”
I shrugged, suddenly uncomfortable with how they’re both staring at me. “Boys and girls aren’t any different, and the girls certainly aren’t any more special. That’s just how things work there.”
It was the only way of life that I knew.
They both looked at each other, somehow silently communicating, and I grew even more uncomfortable in their presence.
“Female witches are rare,” Ariel said in a gentle voice. “Every coven hopes to eventually get lucky enough to find the right one to join them. Some of them end up in bad places and the Council didn’t help any with that. But, really, most coven’s treat female witches like the truly rare gift that they are. If you stay here long enough you’ll see what I’m talking about because there’s no way Raven and his guys won’t treat you like a queen for however long you’re here for. And, I’d bet my life they offer to have you join their coven. Raven’s not a stupid man and he’s not going to let this opportunity pass him by without at least giving it his best shot.”
“You don’t have to, of course,” Isobel said in a rush. “Nobody expects anything from you and it’s your choice what you do with your life. You’ll have a place to stay whether it’s here or back home with us. We’ll make sure you’re well taken care of even if you choose to be on your own.”
Everything they said sounded like a dream to me. Then again, it all had since I’d woken up in this house.
Almost too good to be true. But wasn’t that how all dreams worked? Unless, of course, they were nightmares. Those seemed more like real life to me.
I looked away from them and out the window. My mind was on overload and I had too much going on in there to concentrate on anything else they said.
The big window behind them showed a beautiful backyard but that wasn’t what captured my attention. There was a strange building out there.
“What is that?” I asked as I pointed at it, hoping they’d understand what I was talking about.
They both turned curious eyes to where I was pointing out the window.
“That’s a greenhouse,” Ariel said, answering me.
A greenhouse.
I got excited at the thought of being able to experience one for myself. I loved plants and watching something grow from a tiny little seed into something else entirely if taken care of properly.
“You can go out there and have a look around,” Isobel told me in that gentle, kind voice of hers. “The guys gave you the run of the house.”
Except for their personal spaces, like their bedrooms. Which was completely understandable.
“Do you want us to go out there with you?” Ariel asked quietly.
I shook my head, no. What I really wanted was some time to myself to wrap my head around everything.
“Fair enough. Let’s get you some shoes for your feet and then you can go outside. We promised the guys we’d look after you but nobody needs a shadow twenty-four seven. Girl, you deserve to breathe a little.”
“Trust her, she would know,” Isobel said with a laugh.
I didn’t trust either of them.
Truly, they were the strangest females I had ever met in my whole life.
But I guessed they seemed nice enough.