Interlocked

11: misty evening wind

The morning after I felt like I had awoken out of a coma. Picking my head up off of Elliot's chest I attempted to unravel myself from the arms; this time I was successful.

Once my legs had started working again and I made my way downstairs I found my mom outside on the porch swing. A familiar cup of coffee was in her hands, one she had every morning.

I grabbed one of my own and made my way outside to sit with her. We sat in comfortable silence for a couple of minutes, but my mom was one hell of a talker.

"I hoped you enjoyed yourself last night" She turned and winked at me with a cheeky grin on her face. Blood rushed to my face knowing she knew what happened last night. "Spirits tell all kinds of secrets Hunny, you and I know that best."

After some more laughs from her humiliating me in the best way we state back into a peaceful silence looking at the sunrise. This kind of teasing never really bothered me, although we look nothing like we have always been there for each other. And I know that the subject of mates is hard for my mom since she could never find one.

It has been a dream of hers since she was a child. Having that special someone is life for supernaturals, but I know that being here for her daughter brings her more spirit than anything else.

"How about we settle on fixing the gardens today, yes? You will need a lot more herbs for yourself and Ryder. And/or more little ones running around in the future." She snuck that last part in like I wouldn't hear her, but I accepted it nonetheless. She seemed to be banking on grandkids since I was an only child.

And so we packed up the car ready to go, but not before eating breakfast that Ben cooked. He was always like that, making sure we all ate and had good food.

Me and my mom hopped up into the old beat-up pickup truck that belonged to her, and we started to head into town. We were there for a while picking up herbs and flowers from the garden center, then some groceries asked for my Elliot.

I had started to get worried for the guys after we had been out for a little bit. I've never left them alone in my house so I could only hope they were fine. It was around noon when we arrived back home, lucky my house was still in one piece.

It seemed they were all caught but in their own business. Packs and covens worried for how much longer they would be gone. It was fair for them to complain, I am healed now and it seemed selfish to keep them away for any longer.

This weighed heavily on my shoulders when unloading the plants to the garden. I didn't want to keep them away from their people, but how do we work these three ways? All three groups live far away from each other, Elliot's the furthest since it's in England.

I kept my thoughts near when I went to go up and change into some lighter clothes for gardening. Before opening my door, I could feel a cold draft coming from my room which was weird since I never really open the windows upstairs.

When I opened my door I could tell that something was wrong. The window was almost all the way open and my room was thrown apart. It was like they were looking for something or someone before giving up. Examining my room I saw a note was on the floor, most likely due to the draft.

Picking it up you could see it was no normal note. The paper and ink were very old, it seems like it was from the mid-nineteenth century with the handwriting. I didn't get the chance to read it when I heard boots coming up the old wooden stairs.

Turning around, forcing the note behind my back, Ryder strolled into the room and stopped. He looked around the room slowly then back to me. He didn't seem happy at the state of the room, something I've only seen once or twice from him.

"What happened here? I don't think your tiny self could have flung all these furnishings around." I knew it was a joke at my small height, but I paid no mind to it. "I'm not sure, I could feel a draft from under the door and when I opened it, the room was just like this."

He seemed to ponder on something in his head and I took the chance to stuff the note in the back of my pants, trying not to crush it. Once he was out of his trance he grabbed my hand and led me downstairs, for what I have no clue.

He sat me down on the couch and told me to stay. He walked away shortly after and went to collect the other guys by the looks of it. Elliot and Bentley walked in sweaty like they were dragged from a workout.

"Kerra found her room destroyed like five minutes ago. It seemed like it had happened quite a while ago, like when we were all working." Ryder started out the conversation with all the information he knew so far. The note was still unread in my pants.

"How long ago do you think the attack was? I didn't see or hear anything when I was on the porch earlier working." Bentley seemed confused as the other. It seems like they think the attack was just before me and mom got home.

"Do you think they were witches perhaps? How else could they get past all three of us undetected?" Elliot looked around while he thought. I didn't know where he was working at the time, but Ryder almost seemed to understand and see where he was coming from.

In my time here I had come to learn that not a lot of people like Ryder. They think he is unfit to rule one of the best Covens in America. All because when he was a teenager he messed around with black magic, even though he already got his punishment from that. My eyes drift to his arms, the scars still relevant even after a decade and some years.

They went back and forth on the matter for a while. I think at some point we all came to the same conclusion that we didn't have enough information to know much.

"I will go ahead and start trying to track any types of magic that could be left in the room. And I think it'll be best if the two of you try to scent out the room." Ryder was the first to try and make a plan.

"Elliot come with me. Ben, try to help Kerra set up a spare room for the four of us to sleep in." They nodded at each other and stood up to get to work. Elliot followed Ryder into the garden where he had a special greenhouse set up. I look over to Bentley, confused as to where we can set up a room.

"We will set up the library I guess. It is the only room I have left in the house." It was easier said than done. Over my many years living alone I had collected thousands of books in that one room. It was even enchanted by a witch to make it bigger on the inside.

We tried our best, making a sort of sleepover set up out of spare blankets and pillows. When the other two walked in they didn't seem to mind sleeping on the floor for a couple of days. Bentley had also brought up a good point, while we were sleeping in here it would be hard for people to break into the small windows and this was the perfect place to research. So with that, Bentley and I sat down on the 'bed' and started researching more about different supernaturals. I had almost forgotten about the note until I sat down and felt it poke me.