27. Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Elim
I walked downstairs to meet my cousin Adrien and Chris. I found Violet there, too, and I furrowed my brows. She looked like she was ready for training, though I knew Chris told her he was helping tonight. She didn’t think...
“Bells said the more people that helped, the higher the chances of catching it. I want to help.” Her voice reached me as I approached the second floor and I stopped.
She couldn’t come help. She could get seriously hurt.
“No. Absolutely not! I’ve faced that thing, Violet. It’s fast and violent. After a few nights without food, it’s going to be even worse.” Chris tried to put his foot down, and I was holding my breath to see if it worked.
“What? When did you face it?”
Chris looked uncomfortable at her question for a moment. His eyes met mine briefly as I started down the steps to the ground floor before looking down at Violet. Was he going to tell her what happened that night?
“It doesn’t matter. You’re not ready. I won’t let you put yourself at risk.”
I was relieved he avoided telling her what he was doing in the forest when he met the demon dog. That would crush Violet.
“You’re not my father, Chris,” Violet challenged.
“I’m in charge of your safety,” Chris countered.
“You were fired from that job, big guy.” Violet crossed her arms, knowing she had that argument won.
I did my best not to chuckle. In the month I’d been here, I’d seen her coming out of her shell little by little. If I thought I liked her when I first met her, it was nothing to what I felt for her now.
But, she was in love with Chris. It was clear as day and I didn’t push, because I could see Chris was a good guy who would treat her well, though he did seem a little bit of a grump.
When they broke up, I thought for one glorious day I might have a chance, but it didn’t take me long to realize their breakup was a mistake. In a lot of ways, Chris reminded me of my father.
Mom was the vampire queen for a while. Then, my biological father was killed and the vampire community thought she, too, was killed while pregnant with me. At the time, Mom had been working with Dad to find the person who framed her for my grandfather’s murder. He was just a normal guard, trained by my grandfather, the man who also trained Aunt Kassie, but he wasn’t anyone important.
When everything went down, Dad followed Mom underground to protect us. We lived in Canada because the nights were long in the winter, and that far north, it was winter for a long time. It was also not highly populated, so her identity was safe.
I still remember to this day how it was growing up. Mom accepted Dad long before Dad allowed himself to love her like he wanted to. He didn’t think he was a person worthy of a queen. He thought she deserved better and fought against his feelings for years, causing both of them to hurt unnecessarily.
Experiencing that growing up turned out to be my downfall when I got here, and I saw the same thing happening between Violet and Chris.
Anyone could see they were in love with each other, and it was boggling to me at first why Chris would give her up so quickly. When Violet explained, though, I saw Dad’s actions reflected in everything Chris did and I knew I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t try to get in the middle of them, because if Chris loved Violet even a tenth of how much Dad loved Mom, Violet was a lucky woman.
I never planned to meddle, but every night, I watched Chris following Violet, making sure she was safe even though it wasn’t his job anymore. When Violet was still miserable after two weeks, I thought a little bit of jealousy would do the trick. That’s all I had planned to do.
But then I saw the fight leave Chris as he waited for the demon dog to kill him and I had to step in. I had to make him see reason before Violet lost him. I knew once he accepted that the only thing that mattered was that they loved each other, things would be fine.
Not feeling like he didn’t deserve her, wasn’t really a bad thing in a relationship that wasn’t blessed by the Moon Goddess. I saw it every day with Mom and Dad. No one worked harder to earn his place at Mom’s side than Dad, and no one loved him more for it than Mom. It would be the same with them. No one was going to work or love Violet harder than Chris.
It wasn’t a disproportionate love as one might think of that kind of dynamic. Mom reciprocated all of Dad’s efforts to show her how much he loved her by doing the same. The kind of woman Violet was, I knew it would be similar with them.
So, I didn’t regret helping Violet and Chris the way I did because of the example I had grown up with at home. I knew it was the right move, but I can’t say it left me feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.
It did hurt. I had never been one to believe in love at first sight, but I felt that with Violet. That was why I’d been so sure she might be my mate. I still believed there was someone out there for me, but for right now, I was allowing myself a little bit of an internal pity party whenever I saw them together.
I was happy for them, but I also wasn’t a saint. I liked Chris, but I was enjoying seeing him as speechless as he was in this moment. Violet wasn’t as meek as I thought she was when I first met her, and good for her. She would make Chris earn every gray hair he got from trying to keep her safe, and I was going to enjoy watching any of those moments that I could.
“Violet, come on. You know you’re not ready for that,” Chris tried to appeal to her common sense.
“You said ‘anyone can be a warrior.’”
I laughed at the spot-on imitation she did of Chris, calling her attention to me.
“Will you tell him I can help?” she asked.
“I don’t think it’s wise, Violet. You haven’t done a lot of cardio and you broke your leg a few weeks ago. What happens if this thing catches you?”
Chris looked smug behind Violet’s back while she was busy glaring at me.
“I have my shield,” she challenged.
“Can you put your shield down faster than the demon dog can run? That thing is faster than I am. There’s a reason I had to call for backup.”
“Bells, tell them!” Violet seethed, looking behind me.
“Tell them what?” Luna Bells asked as she continued down the stairs until she was standing behind me.
“I want to help and they’re being bullies,” Violet huffed, crossing her arms.
“Violet, we just want to keep you safe.” Chris sighed from behind her.
“And I want to help.”
“Nope. Absolutely not. You’re staying inside the pack house while we hunt this thing.” Luna Bells shook her head vigorously as she spoke, making me internally sigh with relief.
“What? Why? You’re helping!”
“I have been training for years, Violet. Adrien is immortal, Chris is pretty much an elite warrior and Elim is immortal and an assassin. You are a graphic designer at the beginning of training to be a warrior. One of these things is not like the others, and I’m not letting that thing get hurt. And by thing, I mean you.” Luna Bells laid down the law.
“How am I supposed to stop being afraid of things if you don’t let me face any of them!”
My heart sank as tears threatened to leave her eyes. I’d seen her cry way too much lately. This wasn’t supposed to be happening anymore.
“Oh, come on, now. There are more ways you can help, than getting all sweaty outside, Vi.” Adrien came out of the kitchen with a bag of popcorn.
“How?”
“Evie set up cameras all over the forest. You can track it on the monitors, and let us know where it’s heading,” my cousin explained.
“How am I supposed to do that from inside the pack house?”
“I brought potions to mind-link between packs. Didn’t I mention yesterday?” Adrien asked.
“No. You didn’t. What kind of potions?” she asked.
“They let you mind-link anyone who’s taken the potion for twenty-four hours. Guardian Moon uses them all the time when we’re looking for one of Alpha’s siblings.”
“It won’t hurt?” Violet asked a little apprehensively, and I bit the inside of my cheek so I wouldn’t laugh.
Chris caught the look on my face and smirked, telling me we were both thinking the same thing. Violet was going to jump head-first against a demon dog but she was scared to drink a potion.
“I mean, it tastes foul, but it doesn’t hurt.”
“Okay,” Violet finally relented.
Adrien winked over at Chris, who was looking relieved Violet agreed to stay behind. We set her up in the room and then drank the vile potion.
‘Testing, testing, one, two, three.’ I was startled as Adrien’s voice filled my head, but the other three smiled at his silliness.
‘H-hello?’ I answered back, unsure of how this worked.
‘Hi,’ Violet answered back.
‘Everyone can hear this?’ I asked.
‘Yep,’ Luna Bells answered this time.
‘Can you hear my thoughts, too?’ I asked with a little bit of panic.
‘Nope. It works like a conversation. We can only hear what you want to tell us. Why? What are you thinking about, cousin?’ Adrien teased, and I felt my face heat.
‘Nothing. Just curious. Will everyone always hear what I say?’ I asked.
‘You can choose to mind-link one person specifically. First, you have to close this one, then open it with only that person,’ Luna Bells explained.
‘How do I get back into this one after?’
‘I can bring you back in if you want to try it?’ Adrien suggested.
‘Umm... maybe later. This is weird.’
“Alright, let’s head out.” Luna Bells shook her head with a smile, clearly amused by my reaction to something that was second nature to her.
“It was weird to me at first, too,” Adrien chuckled.
Well, at least that was a consolation. We walked to the edge of the woods and took up our positions.
‘Any sign, Violet?’ Luna Bells asked.
‘Not so far.’
‘Remember, look unthreatening,’ I warned them. The demon dog was smart. It only took on things it could kill.
We were walking for a few minutes in silence before Violet talked again.
‘Between Bells and Adrien. Something’s moving really fast. It’s hard to track.’
‘I hear it,’ Adrien confirmed.
‘I’ll head your way.’ I jumped into the trees. I was really familiar with the area by now, and could hop from one end to the other fairly easily.
‘Shit, it’s fast!’ Adrien called out.
‘I told you,’ I couldn’t help but rub it in.
‘I thought you just missed me,’ Adrien answered, making me snort.
‘Bells, on your six!’ Adrien called out.
‘Fuck! That hurt!’ she exclaimed.
‘You alright?’ I asked.
‘Chris, behind you!’ she called out instead.
‘Shit!’ I heard Chris huff.
‘I’m almost there. Hang tight! Remember, we want it to head north,’ I reminded them.
‘Which way is north? I’m all turned around.’ Luna Bells’ voice sounded frustrated.
‘Your left, Bells,’ Violet answered.
‘Almost got it,’ Chris grunted in pain.
‘Heading east. Elim, it’s heading your way,’ Violet informed shortly before I heard a rustle to my left.
‘Got it.’ I jumped, landing right on top of it.
The dog snarled and we rolled together. Its claws dug into my shoulder and stomach as it tried to push me away. I barely managed to prevent its teeth from clamping on my neck by releasing it. I stumbled upward, scrambling on my feet and running after it.
‘It’s heading north. Elim’s close,’ Violet let the others know.
‘I’m almost there,’ Chris called out.
‘I smell blood,’ Adrien sounded worried.
‘I’m fine. Just get here.’ I jumped back into the trees. It was faster traveling through here than running around everything.
‘I hear it. It’s coming my way, now,’ Luna Bells let us know.
I stopped and listened. Shit. I ran ahead of it, I could hear it behind me and to the left.
‘I see it,’ Adrien said.
‘Wait, don’t attack!’ I called out.
‘I’m not attacking, but it doesn’t look like it wants to stop,’ he answered a little nervously.
‘Fuck. I’m almost there,’ I grunted.
‘I got it!’ There was a thunk ahead of me and then Adrien said, ‘Don’t got it.’
‘Adrien, are you okay?’ Violet’s worried voice came in.
‘Chris, behind you!’ Luna Bells screamed through the mind-link.
I jumped again just as the thing was getting ready to attack Chris. I felt its jaws close around my shoulder, and I groaned but didn’t let go this time. Moments later, I felt a bigger weight falling on top of us, and the jaws disappeared.
‘Fuck! That hurts,’ Chris grunted.
‘Yeah, a little help, guys,’ I called out.
‘I’m right here. Bells, you get the bottom legs. I’ve got the snout. Let go, Chris,’ Adrien instructed.
“If I let go, it’s going to go for Elim’s throat. Start wrapping it. I’ll let go when it can’t open wide anymore. Bells, one of the back paws is digging near a very sensitive area,” Chris advised out loud, making Luna Bells giggle.
“I’m trying. It’s very wiggly,” she answered.
“It is not!” The indignation in Chris’ voice sent Luna Bells laughing again.
“Not your thing, Chris, the demon dog,” she replied before she and Adrien began laughing hysterically, and even I let out a few chuckles through the pain.
“Alright, you can let go of the snout now,” Adrien announced then looked down at me. “I’m going to reach in and try to grab the front leg.”
“It’s dug in pretty good on my side. Be gentle,” I grunted.
“Shit, Elim that’s a little more than dug in,” Adrien said as Chris shifted a little to give my cousin a better look.
“Just pull it. I’ll heal fast.” I grunted in pain when I felt the claws retreating, tearing my flesh more.
“Alright, you guys can let go,” Luna Bells said.
I moved back, happy not to feel the leathery skin and sharp claws. I scrambled up, and Adrien was next to me in an instant.
“You okay? Let me see,” he asked as he viewed the blood on my torso with worry.
“It’s not too bad,” I answered, watching Chris standing up next to me. There were a few claw marks on his upper body and another on his thigh, but otherwise, he looked okay. At least I thought so until I heard Violet through the mind-link.
‘Why are your hands still dripping, Chris?’
“Let me see,” Adrien grabbed his hands. “Shit. They’re shredded. Let’s get you and Elim into the pack house. Helios said there’s likely an anti-coagulant venom in the chupacabra’s mouth so we need to clean the wounds quickly if you want to heal properly.”
I caught a look at his hands before he fisted them with a wince and pushed them back at his sides. Rows of sliced flesh were going across the palms from where he’d held the jaws away from me. I owed him big time.
“It’ll heal. What are we doing with this thing?” he motioned to the demon dog trying to squirm out of its restraints.
“We can’t keep it alive. Helios said if the guardian hasn’t come for it, something didn’t go well and it might not know it was loose. There’s no taming it or releasing it in the wild. It’ll just keep killing,” Adrien stated.
We stood around looking at the depressing-looking creature still wiggling in its bindings.
“It looks so pathetic, though,” Luna Bells voiced what we were all thinking.
“Yeah, well. Pathetic or not, one of these things could do a lot of damage,” Adrien said, kneeling down, grabbing the head of the demon dog and snapping it; the creature finally stilled. “Quick and painless. Let’s get those wounds looked at.”
It was nearing morning by the time Violet and Adrien cleaned and wrapped up our wounds. I was exhausted, and after drinking my dinner while the others snacked on food, I stood up.
“I’m heading to bed. When are you heading back, Adrien?”
“In two days. Are you coming back with me?” he asked.
“I think so. We figured out what the problem with the rogues was, and there haven’t been any more since. Demon dog was the only thing left in my mission.”
“I’ll let Kassie know.” He nodded at me in acknowledgment.
“You’re leaving?” Violet asked, and I was internally happy she might miss me a little, even as friends.
“Yeah. I’ll see you again when you’re back in Crescent Moon, though. Aunt Kassie is going to be training me for a few months at least.” I was looking forward to training with my aunt. I’d seen her spar once or twice with Dad. The matches were ones to behold.
‘Can’t get rid of me that easily,’ I teased her through the mind-link as I was walking up the stairs.
‘You’re going to love it there so much, you’ll never want to leave,’ she assured me.
‘We’ll see. Good night.’
I was excited to go to Guardian Moon. For years, I felt that it was where I was meant to be. Who knew, maybe the Moon Goddess might finally grant me my biggest wish there.