Chapter 47
Chapter
Forty-Seven
It was weird heading out of the lair. Even weirder that I was driving in a car down the road.
Laila was with me in the passenger seat, and we were meeting up with Mike and Sabrina, but it still felt off.
Beau refused to cut my hair, and so right now I had it up in a bun.
I was wearing a plain shirt and jeans, but it almost felt like I wasn’t wearing anything.
I’d gotten so used to hiding behind my sweater vests and jackets that going without one was making me even more on edge. Despite knowing I didn’t need it.
After the fight, my body healed, and the only persistent problem was my chest. Today, I had it wrapped back after pumping. I’d probably need to pump again, and I brought the portable pump with me, but we weren’t going too far.
“So, where are we going again?”
“A tea shop.”
Laila raised an eyebrow. “A tea shop?”
I nodded, not glancing at her as I pulled out onto the main road.
We left early, with Candice and Lauren in charge of Kayla.
Normally, I would have wanted to bring her with me, but I didn’t want to chance anything with her.
Dylan could still be watching, despite getting beaten senseless, along with most of his warriors.
He was back at Red River licking his wounds.
When he would be able to move next, we didn’t know, but for now we had a little leeway.
Enough for me to feel comfortable making a trip into the city.
“It’s called The Witches’ Brew. It’s a local hangout for witches.”
Her nose wrinkled, and I chuckled. “Witches are…”
“Don’t let your preconceived notions get in the way, Lai. Most witches aren’t like the ones you’re thinking of. In fact, other witches even shunned those witches. Most of them are just normal people who have access to magic. Just like we are normal, just have access to shifting.”
“Yeah, well…they smell weird.”
Laughing, I shrugged. “They can’t help that. It’s the magic that smells weird. Not the witch themselves. You’ll be able to tell the difference, though, between a powerful witch and a normal one after meeting Selene.”
“She really asked to meet you in person?”
My fingers tapped the steering wheel. I had borrowed Candice’s car, since I wasn’t used to driving a truck like Tyson’s.
She had a luxury SUV, and it felt weird driving such a nice car.
I preferred Sabrina’s well-worn sedan. It was going to get us where we needed to go, probably safer than in Sabrina’s sedan too.
Selene had texted me a few days ago, and we talked on the phone when I could finally get Mike and Sabrina off the line.
Back when Marcus first came home, Tyson had taken five vials of blood from him.
While he was having his own team dissect what was in his blood, I asked him to share some with her. She hadn’t gotten back to me until now.
It was odd that she wanted to talk in person.
The last time I’d seen her, she found out I was an Omega.
Considering the Council didn’t know, and I was unregistered, it made sense.
That was inviting the Council to investigate, and Selene wasn’t on their “good and obedient” witch list. She didn’t have a rap sheet as extensive as Mike’s, but it was close.
We set up a meeting in the city nearest to the lair.
They had a bigger witch community than I realized, but I chose to drive rather than fly.
We stood out and the city had a much harsher penalty for flying.
There were no landing zones except for miles outside the city limits, and it was just going to be easier to drive.
It would actually have taken us longer to fly and walk than it would have to drive.
If we needed to shift, we could. That wouldn’t be an issue.
Once my arm healed, I tried shifting. It hurt to walk on, but that was a few days ago.
My morning runs now stayed within the lair, just in case.
Tyson had taken over and was gone most days now, and I didn’t want to put anymore pressure on him.
Reaching for the leather bracelet, I moved it further up my arm. It didn’t fit right before, but now it was far too big for me. It was the only thing I had left at this point after everything burned or was destroyed. Laila noticed my fidgeting and put her hand over mine.
“I’ll protect you, Colt. No matter what. No one is going to get to you.”
I let out a light chuckle. “I know you will, Lai. I’m not as helpless as I used to be. I’m just nervous. Usually, her meeting in person isn’t a good thing. Usually, it means bad news, or you owe her money.”
“Well, maybe we owe her money?”
Snorting, I shrugged. “Then I’d better get the item too. I haven’t purchased anything lately.”
“Maybe it’s an antidote?”
“That seems too good to be true.”
We drove for another half hour when my phone rang. Laila answered it for me, the speaker filtering through the car.
“Hey. We are almost in the city. Where are you guys?” Sabrina’s voice filled the car.
“I think we are still about another thirty minutes away.” I flipped the touchscreen over to the map. “It’s a half hour, but not to the city. It’s to the specific place Selene is meeting us.”
She hummed. “Yeah, it’s on the opposite side of everything. We should get there around the same time then. How you doing?”
“Fine.”
“He’s nervous.” I growled at Laila, who put up her hands. “What? It’s true. You’ve been on edge since we left the lair. Not even the flight territory.”
Sabrina laughed. “I mean, you have to understand, Lai, he is always on edge. He has to be. That’s not unusual for him. Especially after so many years in hiding. He faces a genuine threat now, and I would be more surprised if he weren’t.”
I smiled. “I love that you know me so well.”
“You didn’t bring Kayla, huh?”
Rolling my eyes, I shook my head. “You know, one would think you’re only my friend now to get to Kayla.”
“Colton, how dare you. I don’t need you to get to Kayla. I’m her godmother. I can bypass you at any time. Plus, I have her sixteen-week present with us. You’ll have to take it back with you.”
“Rin, you aren’t serious. You don’t need to give her a present every month!”
She snorted. “I do. You gonna stop me, wolf?”
Laila laughed, seeing the slump in my shoulders. “No, he is not. She’s so cute, Rin. The only time she cries is when she’s starving.”
“Which is all the time.” I grumbled low.
“That’s true. Still, she’s so much more curious. She is already pushing up and holding her head up when she’s on her tummy. I’m sure you’ve seen the photos, but her smile. I know she looks like Marcus, but for some reason, her smile looks like Colt’s.”
The two of them gushed over my daughter for the next twenty minutes, even when we both navigated through the city.
I realized Sabrina wasn’t driving with how much she was talking.
Usually, she would pause more in traffic, or when she was trying to figure out where to turn.
Mike was driving, and I wondered what happened if she got him to drive.
“We are pulling up now.”
Mike’s voice finally came over the line. He didn’t sound happy. My lips pursed into a thin line as Laila gave our ETA. There was a bit of traffic while we were going through their downtown, but it settled the further we drove west.
The tea shop was easy to pick out when we got close enough.
Although it was much larger, they built it to resemble a witch’s hut, adorning it with flowers and moss.
Everything looked slightly askew in different places, playing up the whimsy of it far more than I knew were canonically livable.
However, this was a fairytale version of witches.
Which I’m sure brought in a lot more to the tea shop than just witches.
It was a front, much like Selene’s shop in the mall.
If you went in asking for tea service, you’d get it.
You wouldn’t realize anything was wrong or that they used it for more than just that.
It was a meeting place and a haven for witches.
We’d actually had to get permission to enter, simply because we were shifters.
They almost denied Laila, but I said she was my bodyguard since I was being hunted by my own kind.
Reluctantly, they gave their permission.
Sabrina and Mike were standing against her car in the parking lot.
She smiled and waved as I pulled up and parked two cars down from them.
Laila was out first, running up and hugging her tight.
Grabbing my wallet and keys, I stepped out of the car and locked behind me.
Mike came up to me, and I raised an eyebrow at him.
“Everything okay?”
He gave me a quick shake before nodding to the car. “Drive go okay?”
I nodded. “I didn’t run into anything. Not that Dylan is in any condition to be mobilizing anyone after what happened. Plus, I don’t think Selene would allow them to use her. She’d kick their asses. All of them. It’s only the Council that’s an issue, and she could just move shops at that point.”
“True. Her wanting to meet in person doesn’t sit well with me though.”
“It’s nice to get out?” I offered him, smiling.
Suddenly, his arms wrapped around me, and he hugged me. “I’m glad you were okay after that. I saw them moving, but I didn’t understand until it was too late.” His sigh fanned over my head. “You still look too thin.”
Snorting, I hugged him back. “I’m fine. You just got used to me looking like a balloon.”
“It really felt like a long time.”
“Nine months is a long time, Mike. Too long.”
He finally smirked. “Let’s get in and get this over with.”
Sabrina pounced on me after she finished going over everything they were wearing with Laila. She hugged me tight, giving me a swift kiss on the cheek. Rolling my eyes, I picked her up and spun her around.
“I missed you too, Rin.”
“Ah! I forgot you could do this! Ugh, I missed this.”
Mike corralled everyone to the front of the tea shop. “Come on, let’s go in.”
We got to the door, and immediately one of the staff blocked us.
They were about to tell us to go elsewhere when someone came up behind her and shook her head.
Moving out of the way, all four of us stepped in.
There were a few people sitting down for tea, but the only ones who looked up were witches.
“Colton Alford?”
I stepped up, smiling. “That’s me. Do you need my ID?”
She shook her head. “I need to have you fill out a contract, along with your friends.”
Nodding, I kept Laila close to me. She fell into her full knight mode, her eyes constantly scanning the room for any danger. The woman, a witch and a strong one at that, stepped behind the bar and pulled out contracts. It hummed with magical energy, and I looked down at the information.
It was pretty standard. Anything you see and hear that wasn’t related to our business would be kept to ourselves.
Saw someone you know? No, you didn’t. Don’t skip out on the bill.
Pretty normal stuff. I shifted my hand, slicing my thumb and pressing it into the page.
This helped because it also ensured that my identity would remain private.
Everyone did the same, though Laila had a little more trouble, since she had to pull up a scale. After signing the contracts, she stuffed them behind the bar and then pulled out the menus.
“Order what you like, dears, and we will bring it to your room. Selene requested a private room for you in the back.”
I skimmed the menu, but I had already looked it over online. They had an incredible list of teas and blends, from black, white, green, oolong, herbal, and more. Laila looked completely lost at the menu, with Mike and Sabrina not doing much better.
“Sabrina will have the blended peaches and cream; Laila will have the white tangerine; Mike, you probably would like the Assam black tea. I’ll take the Keemun black.
For food, I’ll take the full-size smoked salmon, small order of goat cheese and sun-dried tomatoes, and a plain scone with fruit and cream. ”
Everyone looked at me as if I were crazy.
Except for the one taking our order. They also weren’t used to me stepping up.
Usually, I’d shrink myself behind Mike. I didn’t need to do that here.
No one could detect my scent, and although I appeared more like an Omega than ever before right now; I wasn’t afraid.
After everyone got their food orders in, the young witch who had barred us from entering took us through the winding back rooms. It was about as curvy as the entire building, but I had a feeling that was on purpose.
The entire building felt like a living thing, and if I had to guess, easily shifted forms to help if someone was being attacked or hunted.
“Right here.”
I thanked her and stepped in. Selene stood up, seeing me, and then rushed over, throwing her arms around me. Chuckling, I wrapped my arms around her.
“I missed you so much. I was so stupid, and I was scared and I…” Her blubbering made everything else she said inaudible.
“It’s okay, Selene. You had every right. Thank you for helping us even though you knew it was me.”
She shook her head. “You using the Alford name rather than Fisher helped keep it more of a secret. Still, I would have helped you. You know I would have.” Selene reached out and squeezed Sabrina’s hand. “Come in. Let’s sit. You guys ordered everything already, right?”
“Thanks to Colt. Apparently, he’s suddenly a master of tea.” Sabrina stepped fully into the room, Mike the last as he shut the door behind him.