Chapter 14 - Westley
I just stared at her. She couldn’t seriously be trying to run away a second time, right now, could she? I thought we were finally getting along, and she was starting to feel settled. Besides, we’d slept together. Did that mean anything?
I curled my hands up tightly. “I ask again, what the hell are you doing?”
She didn’t answer me, so I stepped closer. I was trying to remain calm, but now I was pissed. As if dealing with these false alarms weren’t enough.
But I could see she was panicked from the look in her eyes and the way her arms were shaking. She looked so small as she stood there in the hallway with the bags in her arms. She looked like she was ready to cry.
It didn’t make sense. If she were trying to run for it, she would be calmer. She would have been more calculated, while this seemed emotional.
I felt my shoulders drop. “Ella, what’s going on? Why are you packing again?”
She shook her head. “We have to go. I… I can’t explain.
“Why?” I stepped closer. “Why can’t you explain?”
She shook her head again, and this time a few tears broke free. My heart twisted at the sight of it, and I knew there was something else. I bent down, reaching for the bag. Her fingers curled around it tightly like it was a lifeline. I looked at her, watching her bottom lip curl in slightly.
“What happened? Talk to me.”
I watched a few more tears break free. I finally pulled the bag free, taking both of her hands. “Talk to me, Ella.”
“It was an accident,” she whispered. “I swear. I didn’t mean to do it.”
My stomach dropped a little lower at this. She would never hurt anyone, so now I was starting to wonder what she did. “What happened? Who did you hurt?”
She swallowed. “I was leaving the healer center because I went to check on Hazel.” She wiped at her eyes, but more replaced them.
So, she hadn’t stayed put. I could have figured that might happen; she didn’t like being told what to do.
“Are you scared I’m going to be pissed about that?”
She shook her head. “Kyle was there.”
Oh, for fuck sake. Of course, he was. Because the man clearly didn’t get to leave her alone. I wiped at her eyes. “Breathe. Tell me what happened.”
“He was being an ass and saying stuff. I just pushed him, I swear. I didn’t mean…”
I reached up, cupping her face. “It’s okay.”
She shook her head. “I used magic on him.”
My hands froze at her words. “You what?” Last I heard, neither of them had magic. It was why I didn’t understand why everyone thought they were evil. How could they be causing issues when they didn’t have any powers?
She sniffled. “I don’t even know how. I don’t have any magic.”
She was a witch, and Nora and Jade had come into their magic late. It wasn’t like it wasn’t the first time this would have happened. “Maybe you’re just like the others.”
She shook her head. “No, our mother had our magic stripped away when we were little. It’s not possible. It’s physically not possible.”
“Wait, what?” Had I heard her right? Was that even possible?
She shook her head, pulling away from me. “I threw him into his truck. Dented it. Hazel and I have to leave. He’s going to tell everyone, and everyone will come for us. I won’t be able to deny it.”
“Gabriella, take a breath. That’s not going to happen.”
“It is,” she said, tears falling. “He has evidence to prove that I’m dangerous.”
“You’re not dangerous.”
“I threw him into his truck and dented it, Westley. I am. I clearly don’t have any control.”
“Sweetie, you’re just coming into your magic. You didn’t know you had any. You didn’t even show signs. This is all explainable.”
She fell quiet, and she looked down. “I did… I mean, I’ve been feeling the pull for a while now.”
I blinked at her. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
She shrugged. “Because it can’t be possible.
Hazel and I don’t have magic anymore. I never even felt it before, so I just figured it had to be something else.
” She looked down at the bag. “Westley, you have to let me do this. This is the only way for us to stay safe. No one is going to believe me over him.”
I ground my teeth together, hating that once more she was trying to run instead of fight for herself. “No, we’re putting an end to this.”
“How?” she whispered.
“I’ll call a meeting with Brandon and Kaleb.”
It took me twenty minutes to get her to agree, but she eventually did. I called Brandon and told him we needed an urgent meeting and to make sure Kaleb was part of it. We were heading over to the city hall just minutes later.
I took Gabriella inside and found that Brandon and Kaleb were waiting for us in the meeting room. Brandon was sitting in a chair, flipping through papers, and Kaleb stood behind him, pacing back and forth.
“Thanks for coming here quickly.”
“I was already here,” Brandon said, not looking up from his papers as he flipped to the next page.
“I had to drive here, but I was already on my way,” Kaleb said, his eyes flicking to Gabriella. His eyes knitted together, and his voice dropped. I watched his body language shift. “What happened?”
Brandon’s head snapped up at the way Kaleb spoke, and his eyes went instantly to Gabriella. I could see Brandon’s demeanor shift into a more serious one, and he sat up a little straighter. They both then looked at me. “What happened?”
I let Gabriella explain what was going on.
She told them about how Hazel and she had been getting bullied since they arrived here.
She explained who was bothering her and how they had tried just keeping quiet, thinking they would eventually tire and move on.
She was just getting to the part of what happened when we heard someone outside the doors.
“The Alpha is in a private meeting right now. You can’t go in there.”
The doors threw open, and Kyle stepped into the space. Behind him stood a handful of others who I knew were close friends of his. I frowned, watching as Gabriella tensed up in her chair.
“She’s a witch!” Kyle yelled. “She just used black magic on me! Look at the condition my truck is in! It’s dented because of her!” He pulled his shirt up, revealing bruising along his entire chest. I smirked, proud of Gabriella. “I’m bruised because she threw me! She used her magic and threw me.”
Gabriella looked down at her hands, her shoulder shaking. “What?” Brandon asked, looking confused now. “Wait a second, you have magic?”
Kyle nodded his head, still pointing a finger at her. “She just used dark magic on me! She threw me into my truck for no good reason, Brandon! She has been acting out and behaving dangerously for months. Ever since she and her sister arrived here.”
I watched her hands curl into tight fists now, and she bit hard on her lower lip. I placed my hands on her shoulders and narrowed my eyes at Kyle. I had let this go too long, and damage was done, but there wasn’t going to be any more.
Kaleb sighed, irritated now. “You do realize we were in a meeting, right? You can’t just barge in here like this, Kyle.”
Kyle raised his voice. “This is urgent. You don’t need to hear her side and think she is innocent when she isn’t. She’s a witch. A dangerous one.” Kyle stepped forward. “You need to lock her up before she kills someone. She could have killed me. You saw the bruises!”
“Do you have any actual evidence to back up that statement?” I asked. “You know, since you said she’s been dangerous for months now. What exactly has she done that was dangerous?”
“Why are you backing her up?” Ian asked, moving from the hallway, getting closer to Kyle. “Did she get dirt on you? Put some spell over you? That would explain your sudden marriage to her.”
I felt a coldness settle over me, seeing the way they were twisting all of this.
“Ivan, I would be careful what bullshit you want to spill. Because, unlike you two, watching an innocent person for fun, I do it for a living, and the shit I have on you two could ruin that perfect image you worked so hard on creating.” My voice came out sharp and warning.
Ivan froze, his face paling.
Kyle, however, did not back down. “You’re trying to protect someone who is going to rip this pack apart. Do you not realize you married a monster? She did this to me, imagine what will happen if we don’t do something.”
I growled, my hands tightening on Gabriella’s chair.
“I’m protecting someone you have spent months targeting.
And I’ve had enough of it,” I snapped, my voice echoing around the space.
“You have single-handedly made sure that they couldn’t climb the ladder.
I have personally seen you gang up on my wife on several occasions.
I saw Hazel when she got a busted lip because she got caught up on her way out of work.
Those bruises on your body were deserved because you cornered her! ”
I thought it was odd how both of them made decent money but couldn’t get out of their crummy apartment. Well, that was because all their applications were blocked. I had looked into a lot of things since they moved in, and things didn’t add up. For two people who should be so happy, they weren’t.
“You like to talk big, Kyle, but I don’t think you understand what that means. When you rally people with your voice, you should probably have something to back it up.”
Kyle laughed. “You have no idea who you are dealing with. You have no idea who she is.”
“No, I have a very clear image of who Hazel and Gabriella are. Have either of them hurt anyone? Hmm? Have either of them started a fight with anyone? Have they attacked anyone?”
“I was attacked today!”
“Let’s all try to take a breath,” Kaleb said, waving his hands, trying to calm the space.
“Because you were bullying her,” I growled back. “She was protecting herself. And if I had been there, you would be in worse shape.”
“She is painting me as the monster when it’s her,” he yelled, pointing his hand at her. “Her and her sister both.” He turned to Brandon. “You’re the Alpha. Do something.”
Brandon looked tired, like this was the last thing he wanted to deal with.
“I would beg to differ,” a new voice spoke up, and the crowd cleared as the witches stood there.
I recognized Chelsey and Marie. Hazel stood with them, looking pissed.
Chelsey, the main witch that everyone went to and trusted, looked at Kyle with disgust. “I have seen and heard plenty to know that you’re nothing but a fearful little man. ”
Kyle’s face went red with rage. “You disgusting…”
“Enough,” Brandon spoke up, and the space went quiet. He slowly got out of his chair and looked at Chelsey. “I would love to have this in private, but since you have decided to make this public, Chelsey, you were saying?”
She crossed her arms. “I have helped heal plenty of marks and bruises on both girls because of Kyle and his friends. This has been going on for months.”
“They are witches,” Kyle yelled.
“Gabriella and I had our powers stripped away when we were children,” Hazel added. “We have not had or used magic in years. If my sister has magic, it’s new to both of us. We have done nothing dangerous or harmful to this pack.”
Chelsey nodded. “It’s honestly impossible that they get their magic back, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen.
And if she has never used magic before, it’s going to come out powerful, just like Jade and Nora.
Chelsey looked at the small crowd. “How exactly is Gabriella different from Nora and Jade, who almost all of you love now?”
The crowd remained quiet. They all looked uncomfortable, looking towards the ground.
She pursed her lips together. “That’s what I thought.” She turned around, looking at Kyle. “You, sir, are barking up the wrong tree. And if you continue, I will have no problem using what I can in my power to fuck your life up as much as you’ve fucked up theirs.”
Kyle turned to Brandon. “Do you hear her? She’s threatening me.”
“That’s enough,” Brandon said, his eyes narrowing on Kyle.
“Kyle, do you honestly expect me to believe your words over all of these? People that I work closely with and respect?” Brandon pinched his eyes.
“These healers have worked endless hours with us, time healing our people. Hazel and Gabriella have done nothing wrong; they have never stepped out of line. Out of all the people we took in, not a single thing has been concerning, so you want me to believe that for months they have been involved with the darkness, ruining everything?”
Kyle searched for words but just fumbled around.
Brandon curled his hands together into fists.
“Everyone out. I need to speak with Kyle alone.” He looked at everyone else.
“And let this be a reminder to everyone else. I don’t stand for secrets, and I don’t stand for bullying.
If you have an issue, you bring it to me. ”
I watched as the space cleared out, but Brandon pulled his hand up, stopping Gabriella and me. He looked at Brandon. “If I hear one more thing about you bothering either of them.” Brandon stepped closer to Kyle, his voice dipping. “I will remove you from this pack.”
I watched Kyle’s face finally go pale. Brandon waved us off, and I took Gabriella’s hand, guiding her out of the room.
In the hallway, I pulled her to a stop. “Are you okay?”
She looked at me for a moment before she slowly nodded her head. “Yeah, I’m actually good. Thank you.” She gave me a smile. “For all of this.”