Chapter 16 #2
“Give me his contact info.” Rett grins. “I’m not promising to do anything other than think about it,” I warn, but it’s no use. The fucker knows he’s got me.
He hands back my mobile, then rolls his shoulders back. “How about a tour of the house?”
“Sure.”
If I thought this place looked enormous from the outside, I was mistaken.
The house is downright gigantic. Seriously.
It stretches back much farther than I’d realised, and there’s a basement level.
It’s not your average dingy basement where you store random stuff you’re sure you’ll need again at some point either.
No, the pack house basement is an entire level with multiple rooms and a high ceiling.
It must be a pain in the arse to heat in the winter.
The same could be said for the rest of the house—it’s got that drafty old manor feel but with modern appliances.
“This is the sparring room.” Garrett leads me through a set of double doors into a cavernous space with an honest to goodness boxing ring in the centre.
There are shifters dotted around the space.
Some are even practicing with weapons, and I’m unable to contain my shock when my eyes land on the pair of shifters closest to us.
“Is that a sword?”
Rett chuckles. “Yeah. Don’t forget supes live long lives. Some of the older pack members like to keep their old-school skills sharp—no pun intended.”
Noticing our attention, they lower their weapons, and the taller of the two women wearing black leggings and a sports bra walks towards us, her light tawny-brown skin glistening with sweat.
“Alpha, who’s your guest?”
“This is Jared. He’s an old friend. Jared, meet Neith. She’s on the town’s protection team.”
Her pin-straight ponytail swishes when she cocks her head, dark-brown eyes assessing me. “You’re not a shifter.” Her pupils slant, then revert to circles so quickly I almost miss it. She’s not a wolf shifter like Rett then.
“No,” I reply, looking to Garrett for reassurance.
“You seem weak, but my instincts tell me you’re powerful. Why?”
“Oh,” I tug the dampening amulet out from beneath my henley. “Probably because I’m wearing this.”
“Are you aware your friend’s amulet is unsafe?” she asks Garrett, completely ignoring me.
“We’re handling it.”
Neith purses her lips in disapproval. “I recommend hiring a witch to deactivate the spells on it when you are done… handling it.”
“I will,” Garrett replies sternly, a muscle in his jaw ticking. She leaves without another word.
“She seems… intense.”
“It happens.” Rett shrugs off his irritation. “Supes with more than two centuries under their belt are a little different. They either end up like Neith, fixated on rules and propriety, or they go in the complete opposite direction and leave a trail of chaos wherever they go.”
“There’s no middle ground?”
“Sure, but where’s the fun in that?” He grins. “Personally, I quite like the sound of shaking things up.”
I roll my eyes. “Of course you do.”
“Come on.” He slaps a palm on my shoulder, steering me back through the doors. “Let me show you the library.”
“You have a library, and it wasn’t the first room you took me to?” I ask with mock-outrage. “You’re already living dangerously.”
Tour complete, we head back to the ground floor. We ran into a couple more pack members who, thankfully, were much friendlier than Neith. I’m glad Garrett has a good mix of people around him.
“I should head out—it’s almost time for my lesson with Hux.”
“How are those going?”
“Not great.” My lips flatten into a line of displeasure. “Hux says I’m doing well but I can’t stop thinking about the power surge.”
“That must have been frightening.”
“Yeah.” I swallow around the lump in my throat. “Losing control like that… I don’t want to hurt anyone.”
Rett lays a comforting hand on my shoulder. “You won’t. If Hux says you’re doing well, then trust that. He wouldn’t lie about something this important—not even to make you feel better.”
“That’s good to know.” My cheeks puff with my long exhale.
“There’s just been so much to take in. I’m trying my best, but it doesn’t feel like enough.
The Halloween festival’s only a month away, and I’m nowhere near ready to try taking this thing off again.
” My fingertips brush over the familiar amber stone in question.
“You’ve only been practicing for a few days. Cut yourself some slack.”
“Fine, you might have a point,” I reluctantly concede.
Garrett pats my shoulder, then releases me. “I didn’t get to where I am just because of my pretty face.”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re a wise, almighty pack leader and council member. Don’t expect me to start calling you Alpha.”
He snorts. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” His green eyes turn serious. “You’re strong, Jared. Not because of your powers but because of who you are—remember that.”
“I’ll try. I might need you to remind me sometimes.”
“What are friends for?” He shrugs as though it’s no big deal, but we both know how much his reassurances really mean to me. “Good luck with your lesson.”
“Thanks.” Rain continues to pour down on my drive back into town, but the weather no longer matches my mood.
Talking to Rett helped. The ever-present clouds in my mind have parted enough for the sun to peek through.
I’m not OK, not yet, but I will be. I’ll call the therapist Garrett recommended after my lesson with Hux.
The Raven—I still can’t believe he’s a fear demon—has stolen enough from me.
I won’t let his darkness stain the new life I’m building here.