Chapter Four
~Kalo~
The journey back to the Crimsontooth territory took hours, though most of it passed in a haze as I stared out the window of the van and pretended not to notice the curious glances thrown my way.
The werewolves were friendly enough, teasing each other in the effortless, unspoken rhythm that came from years of shared loyalty, but I didn’t belong to that song. I was a minor chord stuck into their major key, melancholy amidst their high spirits.
When we crossed the border into the United States, the men hid me in the back as I had no passport to hand over.
Since I’d been born thousands of years earlier, I had no identification of any kind, something that might not be an issue living in a werewolf pack but would definitely hinder my options outside of it.
By the time the convoy turned off the highway and wound its way up a narrow forest road, twilight had begun to stretch long shadows across the trees.
The scent of earth and pine filled the air, and for the first time in almost as long as I could remember, I didn’t know what awaited me when we arrived.
As a genie, the magic of my being provided me with an understanding of each new place and each new master. Very little came as a true surprise. But now, I would be stepping into a completely unknown situation, and I found the prospect both refreshing and a little unnerving.
The convoy finally came to a stop in front of a large timber building with wide porches, glowing windows, and the distant sound of chatter drifting out from inside.
Men were already pouring out of the other vehicles, stretching their limbs and calling greetings to those waiting at the door as the side door on our van opened.
I climbed out a little slower. The cool air bit pleasantly at my skin, and I drew in a deep breath, savoring the sensation. Everything felt more raw without the genie’s magic. More mortal.
Despite being in the last car to arrive, Leo already stood by the door, issuing instructions to a few of the others in his calm, measured voice. Even in the half-light, he looked like a man who was completely sure of his place in the world.
The complete opposite of how I felt, in other words.
As if he felt my eyes on him, Leo’s head turned, and when he saw me lingering near the van, he immediately left his post and crossed the space between us. “Are you alright?”
I nodded, though I wasn’t entirely sure it was true. “I’m fine. I’m just not entirely sure where to go now.”
A grimace was his immediate response. “Right. Normally, I’m the one who makes arrangements for guests, but obviously, I haven’t been here, and besides, mates are usually… never mind. It doesn’t matter.”
His fingers twisted in agitation at the bottom of his sweater, giving it a downward tug before he blew out a breath and spoke again.
“I can show you around, if you like?”
Before I had a chance to figure out whether I would like that or not, another man, one who hadn’t been at the Ravenstone pack, called his name from the door.
“Leo, senior leadership is meeting now. Alpha’s orders.”
Leo’s mouth pressed into a thin line, something close to disappointment flickering in his blue eyes before he buried it.
Had I noticed his eyes were blue before? I couldn’t recall, but in the reflected lights from the window, they glimmered almost like sapphires.
“Duty calls,” he said, shrugging in apology. “I have to go, but I’ll ask Evalina to show you to a room. You’ve met her, right?”
I’d been introduced to the petite fairy when she and Felix, her Beta mate, arrived at the Ravenstone pack, so I nodded in confirmation.
“Alright. Wait here, then.”
Leo hesitated, any number of unspoken words lingering in the air between us, but ultimately just nodded once and strode off towards the main building, his posture as straight and purposeful as always.
Around me, the hum of activity had died off.
Everyone from the vans had dispersed, heading into the main house as Leo had done or wandering towards the larger town in the distance, where they presumably lived.
The sun had dipped out of sight, leaving only a mellow glow illuminating the sky when Evalina appeared, her feet barely seeming to touch the ground as she skipped over to me.
A hum of magic surrounded her, a pulsing I could still recognize even though I no longer possessed any magic myself. But unlike my heavy, bottomless power, hers felt softer and more natural. It almost felt soothing.
“They’ve abandoned you out here,” she tsked, throwing a mildly scolding look over her shoulder even though there was no one there to receive it. “Are you hungry?”
“No, thank you. There was plenty to eat in the van.”
“In that case, let me take you to your room. Or would you like a full tour?” She turned back to the house, gesturing for me to follow, so I fell into step beside her.
“Just my room for now. It’s been a long day. I’ve never been in a moving vehicle before.”
Evalina grabbed hold of my arm, her eyes wide as she gasped, “Me too! I mean, today wasn’t my very first time, but I only learned about them recently. They’re bizarre, aren’t they?”
“A little disconcerting,” I confessed. “How is it that they’re new to you too?”
Inside, the pack house was warm and welcoming, and Evalina led me up a wide staircase as she replied.
“Until I met Felix, I lived in the fae realm. It’s a whole different world.
A parallel one, apparently, though don’t ask me to explain exactly what that means.
We had a lot of species and creatures that don’t exist here, but they have a lot of technology we didn’t have.
It’s been a lot to take in, and I’m still learning. ”
On the second floor, a corridor stretched to our left with several different closed doors, and Evalina stopped in front of one of them, knocking once before opening it when no answer came.
The room inside was similar to the guest room where I’d been staying in the Ravenstone pack, with a bed and a dresser, though this one also had a small desk by the window.
“We didn’t have genies, though,” Evalina continued, stepping aside so I could enter the room. “I’d never heard of them until we found out about you.”
“Well, you’re the first fairy I’ve ever met, so I guess that makes us even.”
She beamed with such delight that I couldn’t help smiling back at her with the first genuine smile I’d given anyone all day.
Suddenly, sitting alone in my room for the rest of the evening didn’t feel quite so appealing.
“Would you like to come in for a while? I’m interested in hearing more about this fae realm and how you’ve adapted to living here.”
Bouncing twice on her toes, she stepped inside and closed the door behind her. Gods, she was adorable. “I’m excited not to be the new one here anymore, but there are still a lot of things I don’t know.”
“Don’t worry, I’m sure you…”
A sudden, shrill alarm echoed through the hallways, cutting me off, and the easy warmth of the house vanished in an instant. The piercing sound grated on my nerves, and I could only imagine it was even worse for the werewolves with their superior hearing.
“What’s happening?”
Evalina’s eyes were wide, her mouth forming a perfect O of surprise. “I don’t know. I’ll go find Felix. Stay here.”
She disappeared in a flurry of movement, the door clicking shut behind her as I moved to the window.
There were no bars on the window, nothing forcing me to stay, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of being trapped anyway.
My hands clenched against the edge of the desk as I leaned onto it to peer into the night.
And in the dark forest beyond the house, I could have sworn something was watching me.