Chapter 1 - Cecelia #2
Still, it’s not like Donna hasn’t faced spite from the pack because she’s my friend. It’s never stopped her, and that’s what I’m most grateful for.
Treading the white, warm beach sand is delightful under my cushioned paws, allowing me to feel a semblance of the freedom Donna has because she isn’t as cautious as I am. She has every reason to be, as long as she’s my friend, but she doesn’t let it get to her.
Maybe that’s why I find flickers of hope in the mundane things all around me, even when I refuse to admit it.
Ahead of me, Donna slows down as we near the shore and shifts into human form, turning toward me with a breezy smile.
“Come on, Cece!” she encourages with a nod toward the beach, knowing that it’s the coercion I need to shift into my human form. It’s something I’ve struggled with in the past; I can’t always control the shift the way I want to.
I close my wolf eyes and take a deep breath through my pointed nostrils, allowing the salty air to fill my lungs and command the transformation. As my fur retracts beneath my skin, I’m crouched on all fours in the sand when a hand comes out to offer me help.
“Thanks,” I whisper sheepishly as I take Donna’s hand and climb to my feet. I dust off the sand on my knees while my best friend begins to undress.
“Hey, what are you doing?!” I chuckle nervously as I watch her strip down to her underwear.
“I told you we’re spending the day at the beach,” she smirks with a mischievous wink. “What fun would it be if we didn’t swim?”
“You’re crazy!” I retort, slowly peeling off my dress.
“And you need to loosen up a bit!” she giggles before stepping out of the pool of her cargo pants and grabbing my wrist just as I fling my dress on the ground.
Despite my reservations, I can’t help but enjoy Donna’s easygoing company as we splash around in the shallow waters, the gentle waves crashing against our toes.
Letting all my inhibitions slip away in the presence of my best friend, who’s always supported and uplifted my spirits, I giggle and enjoy myself for the first time in months.
We haven’t spent much time out here since she started taking classes this summer. It’s only when our arms are exhausted from all the splashing about that we head back to the beach and lie on the sand to soak in the sun.
A long, drawn-out sigh escapes my lips. “How’s college been?”
Donna makes a disgruntled sound that prompts me to open my eyes and squint them at the sun’s brightness before I turn my face.
“It’s fine,” she relents, her lips curling as if tasting something bitter. “I can’t wait to finish my program and start practicing at the clinic.”
I frown. “The pack clinic? You guys went through all of that trouble just for you to be a doctor in Nightmist?” I scoff. “I thought you’d go out into the world. Be the free bird you always wished to be.”
Donna sighs, her lips pursed as if she’s contemplating my remark.
She’d always dreamed of leaving Nightmist once she attained her degree in psychology, and she’d been at the forefront of the vote to allow the Lunaris Pack members to attend college amongst the humans.
She took an oath to keep her identity hidden from the humans, but I can’t imagine her taking an oath to practice in the pack clinic.
“These past few years have made me realize how much I’d miss Nightmist if I ever left. Since Dominic left…”
The mere mention of her older brother’s name startles me, but she doesn’t notice my cheeks paling when she turns her face toward the sun and sighs.
“... I guess I realized the importance of family. I’ve missed him so much, Cecelia,” her voice cracks, and she gulps. “I know if I ever left, it would kill me inside. I’d miss Dominic and our mother. And I’d miss you.”
When Donna turns again with a wavering smile, her eyes are full of sadness. Her bottom lip trembles with worry, and I instinctively place a hand over hers, wanting to offer her comfort.
My soothing smile is forced through the throes of my unease that surfaced the moment she mentioned her brother. He’s not someone I want to waste energy thinking about, but it’s hard to ignore his existence when I’m best friends with his sister.
But I have to hide my personal feelings and provide her the kind of reassurance she effortlessly gives me in my times of need.
“I would miss you too, Dons,” I whisper, reaching for the tear caught in the corner of her eye. “As much as I would love to see you chase your dreams, I’m glad you’re not going anywhere. As long as you’re happy.”
Donna nods tentatively, sniffing back her easy ability to become emotional at the smallest things. But knowing how close she is to her brother, it makes sense that she misses him more than she’s admitted.
He left Nightmist three years ago to join a black ops squad. Like a military camp for werewolves, packs in the New England region of North America send their best soldiers for black ops missions to strengthen ties between the packs and safeguard our existence from other supernatural beings.
Dominic’s decision to leave came as a surprise to Donna, while I couldn’t be more relieved that he was gone.
My heart couldn’t stand the sight of him any longer, but I’ve had to hide my reaction to the slightest mention of his name every time Donna’s brought him up these past few years.
As far as I’m concerned, his departure from Nightmist signified the day I put him to rest. Out of sight, and out of mind.
That’s why moments like these are never easy on me.
“I can’t wait for Dom to get back and hear the news,” Donna chirps, sitting upright with a hopeful smile on her face. “I can only imagine how happy he’ll be.”
“I’m sure he will,” I murmur as I sit up beside my best friend.
Gauging the direction of the sun over our heads, I realize that it’s almost lunchtime.
Thank Goddess for the chance to change the subject.
“We should probably head back,” I say, placing a hand on Donna’s shoulder.
“I don’t need Agatha screaming at me again. ”
Donna narrows her eyes at me. “If she’s been bothering you so much, let me deal with her!” She curls her fist beside her face. “I swear if that old hag—”
“It’s okay, Dons. I just want to avoid any trouble, that’s all.”
We both stand up to get dressed again, our bodies dry from the sunbathing. Donna goes on rambling about how much she wishes she could shut Agatha’s mouth, while I assure her that it’s nothing I can’t handle.
After all, I’ve been handling it for twenty-four years, and I’ve had many stolen moments of peace with Donna since we were kids to keep my mind off being the resident punching bag. It’s a fate I’ve come to accept, even though I sometimes wish that I could change it.
But again, there’s only so much one person can do to change the way the pack operates, and it’s not like the others care about me enough to vote for change.
As Donna and I take a stroll through the harbor toward the coastal town where our pack resides, she tells me about her classes and what it’s like to be a werewolf among humans who have no idea what she is.
“Toby always says that there’s more to me than meets the eye,” Donna titters, rolling her eyes playfully. “I always tell him that I’m a mystery, but I bet he has no idea that I’m not human.”
“Toby? Who’s Toby?” I ask with a frown, and Donna’s creamy cheeks instantly turn a rosy shade of pink.
“He’s, er—a friend,” Donna mumbles. “I’m sure I told you about him. He’s a human, and he doesn’t know—”
“Donna!” I exclaim, stopping in my tracks just as we’re about to enter the main part of Nightmist. “You’re supposed to stay away from humans. If the elders find out that you’re friends with them, they might take away your privileges.”
Donna spins around and rolls her eyes. “Oh, please! Imagine if the humans suspected that we were different ‘cause we refused to mingle with them. That would only draw more suspicion. I’m just…” she shrugs. “Keeping up pretenses.”
“You have a point,” I agree with a nod, but Donna’s twinkling eyes indicate that there’s something she’s not telling me. “But don’t get yourself in any trouble. I want you back in one piece, since you decided to stay in Bar.”
My best friend chuckles as she slips her arm through mine, and we continue down the cobblestone path that weaves its way between the pack’s main center and the training arena. She’s about to say something when she opens her mouth, but then turns to me with a frown.
“Do you hear that?” she asks, prompting me to focus my hearing on the chatter that’s coming from the far side of the training arena.
“There isn’t any training scheduled for today,” I say with a frown. “At least, not this time of the day.”
“Exactly,” Donna agrees, pulling me toward the arena. Just as we round the steel fence that cordons off the arena, we notice a commotion near the entrance gate.
Donna gasps. “Is that…?” She glances at me with wide eyes, lightly slapping my wrist. “He didn’t tell me he was coming home…”
“Who?”
She tugs on my arm with a sudden burst of excitement. “It’s Dominic! He’s back!”
I instantly stiffen, just as Donna slips her arm away and rushes toward the crowd gathered at the gate.
“Dominic!” she cries out, flinging her arms around his neck just as he turns.
I’m still frozen, my heart pounding with disruptive, unsteady beats, the heat seeping from my cheeks that had just been kissed by the warm summer sun. Only my eyes move, flicking around to see that the members of the Lunaris Pack who joined black ops have returned and drawn a crowd to welcome them.
It’s only when my eyes meet a pair of raven-dark orbs that my breath catches in my throat. The intensity of that stare arrests my being, keeping me cemented in place as my heart threatens to beat right out of my chest.
Dominic Rivera is back, here to throw my world off its axis and disrupt the little peace I’d found by staying in my lane and doing my best to stay out of trouble.
What’s worse is the glint of recognition that flashes through his brown eyes, which appear darker now as he watches me like a predator who just caught sight of its prey.
What was I hoping for? A miracle? That somehow, Dominic would forget about my existence, just as I refused to acknowledge his, these past three years?
Shivering into myself, I seize the moment when Donna pulls away from Dominic’s arms and begins her excited chatter, probably voicing her surprise at his early return.
That’s when I nimbly slip away, rushing to the pack center, not only to make it back before Agatha scolds me, but also to run away from this disaster.
Dominic Rivera’s return to Nightmist is my worst nightmare come true, and I wasn’t prepared for his surprise arrival. Donna might be ecstatic, but I’m not.
How could I be glad that my worst enemy is back home?