Chapter 12
Effie Harlow
The cool afternoon wind brushed over my face as we emerged from a staircase that led into an alleyway. The building it was behind, not the same one we entered, led me to believe that the complex spanned further underground than I’d realized.
Tore shrugged off his jacket and draped it over me, pulling me into his arms. I hummed happily at the sweet gesture as he kept me tucked against him.
Ryder and Julian walked ahead, appearing to have a plan, and Dakota and Caedmon followed behind us.
Caedmon was still coming down from the urge to shift, and Dakota appeared to be helping to an extent, keeping him entertained in a conversation.
Since the night of the dinner when Caedmon had stood up to his dad, there was a significant change in their friendship. I could tell that the hurt between them was repairing itself, and I loved that so incredibly much.
“Where are we going?” I asked Tore, his gaze on the streets ahead.
I wasn’t sure how busy it normally was, but it seemed extra busy today, people streaming in and out of businesses.
While it seemed to put Tore on edge, it actually made me more comfortable since it’d be harder for anyone trying to follow us.
Namely the parade of cars that was now a few blocks away.
“Train,” Tore said. “We’re going to take it to London. Shouldn’t take more than a few hours. Ryder can charter a flight from there—apparently he does it often since he owns a property there.”
“It’s where a lot of my assets are,” Ryder explained.
I imagined that before he retired he did a lot of work internationally, although I hadn’t looked into him in an official capacity.
I guess I had that ability now, didn’t I?
Well, I would if I had my laptop with me.
I was pretty sure it could do something like that.
All I’d packed, though, were some mini snow globes and clothes. That was it. I was irritated with myself, feeling like I was grossly unprepared for this type of trip. I really hadn’t known what to expect, though.
“Have you traveled a lot?” I asked Tore curiously. As we moved through the streets, I had a moment where life almost felt normal. Like we were just traveling together for fun.
“No,” Tore admitted. “My family takes pack shit really seriously, so we always stayed in town. Leaving for school was one of the first times I traveled, although I’ve always wanted to. Despite the circumstances, this is pretty cool.”
I titled my head curiously. “Wait, why didn’t I need a passport or anything?”
Tore’s lips pressed up. “You don’t need a lot of shit when you fly private, although you’re right—they should’ve checked at some point…maybe when we landed? I have no idea how that works or if we even need them for the train.”
Nerves invaded my chest, but I had to trust that if Ryder thought it was a good idea, he’d already considered that aspect.
Once again, I found myself ridiculously thankful for his presence.
The man was so capable and knowing, and besides being extremely attracted to him, I found myself captivated and more than a bit in awe of his confidence in everything he did.
Once we arrived at the train station, Tore brought me to a bench to curl up as the others went to figure out tickets.
When a weird blast of coolness passed over my skin, I looked down at my fingers, momentarily seeing them spark with purple energy.
While I wasn’t as exhausted as I’d been with the Homura Stone, I could tell that the magic from the Fengari Stone had left an effect on me.
Although this time I felt more exhilarated than anything else.
I wanted to test out my new powers, but I knew this wasn’t the right place.
I was starting to be able to tell the difference between magic users and humans, and if I was right, there were a lot of humans around us right now.
I didn’t know what their reaction would be to magic and seeing some girl’s hands light up in different colors, but I had to figure the paranormal world and magic were secret for a reason.
“Alright, the train will be here any minute,” Julian said.
He and the others joined us on the bench, most of my mates engaged in a serious discussion.
“We bought an entire car for ourselves, so we’ll be able to spread out.
There should be at least three cabins in it, so if you need to rest you should be able to. ”
I offered him a grateful smile. “I actually feel really good, although…”
“What?” Tore asked curiously.
“I wish I could practice my magic, especially because I can tell I have so much more,” I said. “I was so tired the other day that I didn’t get the opportunity.”
“Maybe once we’re on the train,” Julian suggested. “I doubt there will be many people traveling in the middle of a weekday, as it is.”
That was true. Although it did seem rather busy out….
I nibbled my lip and let out a long, slow sigh. It was a weekday, which meant I should have been on campus, going to class.
“I feel bad about missing class,” I said for what felt like the millionth time since starting at Silver Falls, before admitting what I’d been holding in for so long. “Actually, I don’t—I feel bad that the teachers are disappointed.”
Julian and Tore shared a look before the first asked, “Do you want to continue at Silver Falls, Effie?”
My knee-jerk reaction was to answer ‘yes,’ but I took a moment to consider the question before I spoke.
Before, I’d been so thrilled to get away from Gerald and Theresa, so terrified of being sent back, that I’d clung to Silver Falls as my only hope for a better life.
But now that I knew there were other options out there—ones that weren’t led by reprehensible men like Hastain—I wondered if a different school may be better.
“I want to study economics,” I said, “but maybe Silver Falls isn’t the right place.”
I also wouldn’t fully admit to it, but I hoped to find a university with a bit more flexibility for class scheduling.
I wasn’t used to formal schooling, so it would be a lot easier to take it at my own pace, especially since…
Well, we had no idea what would happen in the future, but I didn’t want to feel tied down to such an intense schedule.
“There are a lot of other options.” Tore tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “A ton of schools that offer the same thing in places that would be far safer to live in.”
“I like that idea,” I said. “I don’t want to live anywhere near the Whitepaw pack, though—” I emboldened myself, adding, “Especially if we really do plan on settling down and having a family.”
Tore let out a low rumble that caused shivers to roll over my skin and heat to explode in my center. I inhaled sharply at the intensity in his expression, and Julian hummed softly, drawing my chin back as he examined my face with interest.
“That’s a good point, preciosa. I wouldn’t want to risk our children being anywhere near Hastain either.”
“No place for pups,” Tore agreed, making my cheeks heat.
Then I considered what they were giving up for me. “I don’t want you feeling like you have to leave your entire life, especially after years of schooling—”
“No,” Julian warned, running a thumb over my lip. “I’m serious, Effie. No more of that. We want to be here, right by your side. Always. Stop questioning it.”
“Okay.” I knew it would be far healthier to stop feeling insecure about things like that; it had just been branded onto my brain from the Whitepaw situation, so I was still getting used to being…wanted.
The sudden train horn had me sitting up, and we took our place in the line of passengers, my mates surrounding me protectively as we filed out towards the platform. Dakota wrapped an arm around me and pressed his forehead to mine. “I can feel your wolf jumping around.”
“Yeah, my magic is acting up—or wants to,” I admitted. “I need to use it to some extent, I think.”
Actually there was no ‘I think’ about it—it was nearly bursting from my skin.
Dakota nodded, and as the train arrived into the open-air station, the emerald green and gold paint flashed under the sunlight, making it look like something right out of a movie.
The train appeared brand new in everything except its old-fashioned styling, the mountains and forested landscape behind it only making it look that much more idealistic.
I bounced on my toes with excitement as I watched passengers depart the train, being handed luggage by the attendants on their way out.
When the station was cleared of previous passengers, I eagerly approached the door, and when the attendant read my ticket, he pointed to one of the gold cars a few down from us.
I had only taken one train before this—the one up to Kirkwall—and to say this one was different was an understatement. A smile claimed my face as we stepped into a small passageway before going through a set of solid dark doors.
The scent of expensive leather and wood greeted me, the door opening into a cabin that appeared to be a lounge.
There were windows from mid-wall to ceiling that showcased the landscape, and dark leather seats framed each corner of the room.
A dining table sat in the center of the space, a chandelier hanging from the ceiling above.
Walking across the deep red carpet, I went to the back of the lounge and looked down the long hallway.
There were three doors that had to be the cabins the guys had been talking about.
Turning back around, I realized that the room I’d initially viewed as spacious seemed much smaller with all my mates inside of it.
Allowing them to spread out with their bags, I opened the farthest cabin and walked in.
“Wow,” I said as I stepped into the luxurious bedroom, which even had its own bathroom. This was so cool. I wasn’t positive it was better than the jet, as it wouldn’t travel nearly as fast, but I loved it nonetheless.