"I am coming with you."
That was the response I'd gotten from Eros. Albeit it was different from what I'd expected, I couldn't say yes to his request. "No. Er, the whole point of me going there alone is so that they won't know that I'm half a wolf. I may only be here and know about all these supernatural worlds for less than a year, but I even know that wolves and witches or any magical beings don't coexist."
"Of course, we don't! How could we coexist with them?" he scoffed. "We should inflict fear on them. I mean, you know how dangerous they are. If we don't make them fear us, they could easily mess with us, Xy. Like what that witch did to me and my buddy Seb. I may hate the Night Walkers, but at least they're wolves. Three out of five territories are owned by wolves. We've managed to corner and put them all in the East."
"Yes, what Adelina did was wrong, but not all witches are like that. You can't hate the entire species just because one of them did something bad to you." I let out a deep sigh and then took a seat on my bed. I'd taken Eros to my room so we could tell him in private. "But can't you see that I'm one of them, too?"
"You're not." He shook his head adamantly. "You're one of us. You have a wolf, Xy."
"But I'm also a sorceress!" I said frustratedly. "Are you going to deny that part of me? Not until a week ago, I was just a sorceress. I had no wolf. Was I supposed to be cornered and put in the East with the rest of them, then?"
"It's different. You're different." He started pacing about the room. He knew I was right, but he simply refused to admit it.
"No, it's not." He stopped on his track and our eyes met. "You're just not being fair, Er."
He remained silent for several passing seconds before he opened his mouth again and said, "They're gonna know that you're a wolf, Xy, trust me. You're gonna have your heat pretty soon, especially since you're not marked yet. They're gonna find out and when they do, it's not gonna be pretty, Xy."
"My wolf appears to be missing for weeks now. I doubt she will come out soon and even if she does, I'll talk to her and make her understand. About the heat, I've read about it online and asked Trish, you don't have to worry about it. That's my problem."
"This is mental, Xy." Eros Adler approached me and bent his knee. He was kneeling in front of me, his hands were holding mine. "This is pure madness, so please." His bottom lips trembled slightly, and I watched pain searing in his blue-green eyes. "Please stay. I'm begging you. Stay here and I'll bring Ryker to you. You don't have to learn from those crazy witches."
I held his eyes for a few more seconds before I shook my head, revealing that my answer was still the same. I'd made my decision. "I'm sorry."
"I love you, Xy," said Eros out of the blue, causing my eyes to widen to the point where I'd thought wouldn't be possible.
"What?" I dumbly asked.
"I love you and not as your mate. I've fallen in love with you since—" he shrugged, shaking his head, "since forever, I suppose. I've always been in love with you, even when Crystal and I were still together. I love you and I know I should've told you sooner, way before you got involved with Ryker, but I was such a coward. I don't want to be like that anymore, so here I am telling you exactly how I feel about you."
"This changes nothing. I'm still going, Er."
"Why can't you stay here with me?" He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down. "Am I not enough for you?"
"I—" I bit my bottom lip because I knew that what I was about to say was going to hurt. It would hurt him and possibly break his heart, which was why I was so reluctant to do this, but there was no other choice. It was better for him to know the truth and get hurt than to believe in false hope. "It's not like that. I'm so sorry, Er, but I don't feel that way about you. You're my best friend and I'm so lucky to have you in my life, but Ryker is my mate. He's my soulmate."
"I thought you said you didn't believe in soulmates." His tone was harsh and those blue-green eyes were accusing.
"Maybe I do, or maybe I don't. I don't know. But I love him," I said as I watched Eros slowly rise from his kneeling position and walk away. He placed his fist on the wall and from the side, I could see his jaw tightened. "Perhaps loving him makes me believe in soulmates. I honestly don't know. What I do know is that I love him and I want to find a cure to free him from this mad wolf disease. I know there must be a way to save him, and I have to find it." I stood and walked toward him. Regardless of everything that had happened, Eros had been a really good friend since I was a kid and I loved him, albeit not in the way that he was hoping I did.
"Then what about me?" His voice was so low in volume that it was barely audible. Eros abruptly turned around and linked his arms around me. He pulled me tight against his muscular body. My breasts were pressed against his torso and I swore I could hear his heart racing like a machine gun. One of his hands snaked its way to the back of my neck while the other went down to my lower back. He pulled slightly away so our eyes could meet. "What about my love for you?" His gorgeous blue-green eyes gazed down slightly to my lips before they went back to my eyes. I knew what was about to happen, so when he bent forward, ready to claim my lips, I used my power to stop him and then broke free of his embrace.
Once I put a safe distance between us, I dropped my magic and set him free. "I don't have answers to your questions, but that doesn't mean you can force your feelings on me. I'm going and that's final. You can either be my best friend who's loyal and supportive, or you can leave."
I watched emotions passing through those eyes, but they were mostly dominated by confusion and sorrow. It broke my heart to see him like this, and I truly wished I could let him down gently. I wished I knew how to do that. But in my heart, I knew that this was the right choice. There was a time when we needed to tell someone that 'no' means 'no' whether it would break them apart or not, and this was it for me.
°°°°°°°
Two years later . . .
I packed up my things one more time, putting the Book of the Damned into my satchel along with some spare clothes that I'd brought with me when I'd left the packhouse two years ago. My wolf truly hadn't come out ever since the first time I'd shifted which helped me a lot in covering the fact that I was half a wolf and half a sorceress. Thank goodness none of the witches, warlocks, and faes had a super smell either. I'd managed to find a sorceress named Deidre who taught me a lot about runes, spells, potions, and charms. She was the only person around here who knew that I had the Book of the Damned in my possession and did not want to steal it. She'd even warned me about how dangerous it was and to use it with extra caution.
Staring at my phone screen, I bit back a smile. There was only one person I'd been texting during my time here in the East and believe it or not, it wasn't Trish or Davina. It wasn't even Eros.
Morning run. Training. Pack meeting. Helping Lorne rebuild her fence. Back to training. Cooking dinner. Waiting to hear from you. You may think I copied my text from last week but I can assure you that I did not. My day is the same as yesterday or the day before. How was yours? Do let me know if you are alright.
The text was nothing more than a list of things that he'd done but it brought a sense of home. I could almost see him doing all those things. Efficiently too, no doubt. It was Dmitry after all. After giving him a quick reply to inform him that I was alright, I put my phone inside my satchel and sling the strap on my shoulder.
Looking up, my eyes met Deidre's blue eyes. "Do you think I'm ready?" Time had passed so quickly that even now, it felt like it was only yesterday that I'd left the packhouse and bid goodbye to Dmitry, Trish, and my dad. Eros hadn't been there the day I'd left and judging by how our last conversation had gone down, I didn't blame him.
"Yes," said Deidre with an assuring nod. Her eyes glimmered with pride and trust. She'd taught me everything she knew and transferred all of her knowledge to me. "And Blair Balfour will help you cure your mate."
Deidre knew my mate was a wolf even though she didn't know that I too was a wolf. It would be odd to ask around about how to cure Mad Wolf when we witches were supposed to hate werewolves.
"You said that she once cured a wolf who had Mad Wolf before, right?" I asked and my mentor Deidre nodded. "Was it her soulmate too?"
"No." Deidre shook her head and let out a small sigh. "Blair doesn't have a mate and the only reason she even cured that wolf was because she wanted to be the first to cure Mad Wolf. She used to brag about it during coven meetings but since the said wolf wasn't able to present itself as proof, she was left embarrassed. A month later, she got out of the coven and fled to the big city. Last time I heard she was hired by a top-notch firm to do their bidding. I've not heard of her since."
"Would she still live at this address then?" I lifted my phone where I'd kept Blair's address in London that Deidre had given me.
"I'm not sure." She gave me a sad smile. "I tried doing a tracking spell on her but she's a really powerful sorceress, she's covering her track well. I can't find her unless she wants to be found." Deidre put her hand on my shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Find a witch there and let it be known that you wish to find Blair and become her apprentice. You have to showcase your power in some ways. Once the words got out that a young gifted sorceress is looking for her, I'm sure if she's intrigued enough, she will find you."
"That's easier said than done." I took a sharp breath, then shoved my phone into my pocket and grabbed my motorcycle key off the wooden surface. "How do I showcase my power in a big city like London without getting caught and questioned by authority? Unless you're referring to street magic although I doubt that would impress her."
"I know." Deidre smiled and patted my back. "Let's hope she hasn't moved then. I honestly believe she still lives there because it's quite an expensive apartment, I don't think anyone with their right mind would leave that unless they found something better or forced by circumstances."
I nodded, having nothing else to say especially since I hadn't been in London. I'd heard of it from Trish's stories and how wild the Londoners threw a party. "I'm off then." I stepped forward and put my arms around Deidre. "I'm gonna miss you so."
"And so am I," replied Deidre, sounding a bit teared up. "Take care of yourself out there, Fleur." She called me using my birth name, the name I'd been using for the last two years here in the hope that no one would link me to Xyrra Lancaster or Xyrra Ashcroft, Alpha Ryker's human mate. "London is a big city. Unlike here in the East where you can freely use your magic in the wood and community, you need to be careful. Most witches try to blend in the big cities like that not because they're afraid to expose the paranormal world to humans but because in big cities, there are predators of all kinds. Wolves, vampires, and even those that you might think don't exist."
"Oh, come on, Deidre." I pulled back and gave her a reassuring smile. "I've made up my mind and you also told me that I'm ready. Why are you trying to change my mind now? Also, I've never seen any vampires, I'm pretty sure just like the rumor mills, the wolves have rendered them to extinction."
"Just because they're rumored to be extinct doesn't mean there's none left." Deidre combed my hair with her fingers in her motherly way then cupped one side of my face. Sometimes being with her made me wonder if this was how it felt to have a mother. "I know you're ready and I'm not trying to sway you, Dearest. I just want you to be extra careful, alright? Promise me that you will be."
"I promise."
Deidre kissed my forehead and then walked with me on my way out of her cabin. I held her hand for one last time. "Thank you. Truly."
She pulled out a small pendant with a beautiful jade and attached it to my charm bracelet. I summoned a bit of magic on my fingertip, something that I'd learned from Deidre, and let my magic touch the pendant. I felt the magic on that pendant and looked up to meet Deidre's eyes. "You've charmed it."
Deidre bobbed her head. "This is for your protection and to give me a bit of peace."
"Thank you." I hugged her one more time before heading toward my motorcycle which was parked at the side of the cabin. Once I was on my bike with my helmet on, I started the engine and was ready for a long journey to London.
After six hours on the road, I finally reached London around four in the afternoon. London's traffic was a pain in the arse and even though Google Maps informed me that it should be a twenty-five minutes drive to Blair Balfour's apartment, in actuality it took me nearly an hour, especially with this god awful rain which drenched me from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. Luckily I was a sorceress so once I parked my bike and got into the apartment lobby, I made my way to the toilet before using my magic to dry my wet clothes. I let my hair a bit wet to avoid suspicion although to be fair, the receptionist didn't even glance at me but I played it safe because of the security cameras around.
"Hi," I greeted the receptionist who finally looked up from her phone screen.
"Good afternoon. May I help you?"
"My name is Fleur and I'm looking for Blair Balfour. She lives here on the thirtieth floor. Could you let her know that I'm here?"
The receptionist eyed me up and down. "Are you here for a consultation?" Her voice had that condescending tone in it, along with disbelief.
No. "Yes. I've made an appointment," I lied.
"I'll let her know but there's no guarantee she will let you in. She's quite picky with her clients." The receptionist lady picked up the phone and pressed several buttons. "What did you say your last name was again?"
Shite. "I didn't."
"Hmph." Then the receptionist informed me to wait on the sofa while she informed Blair. If I didn't know better, I'd guess that this receptionist was working for Blair Balfour and not the building management. Still, I waited and waited. Only to have her call me five minutes later with bad news. "Miss Balfour said that she has no appointment with anyone with the name of Fleur. I am afraid I must ask you to leave."
"That's not a problem. Thanks anyway." My hand dug up my satchel to find my motorcycle key and when I couldn't find it, I opened the flap and looked down while continuing to walk towards the exit. I pulled it out and nearly knocked someone on the way. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry." I looked at the person who I'd just bumped into and blinked. This was impossible. She wasn't supposed to be here.
"Xyrra?"
I nodded. "Tiffany?" I frowned as I watched Tiffany Summers, Ryker's older sister's lips curled into a pleasant smile.
Tiffany lived in the U.S. after marrying a rich American tycoon. She had married someone who wasn't her mate. Someone she loved. So much that she'd left all the supernatural world behind and lived amongst humans. None of her children knew about her side of the family and how her family, the Cromwell, besides being the oldest and richest family in all England, was also a family of werewolves and carried the Alpha line of The Ethereal.
The question remained, why on Earth was Tiffany all the way here in London and above all else, in the building where Blair Balfour lived? Was she also trying to get Blair to cure her brother? Or was she here with a different agenda in mind?
°°°°°°°
Dear Readers, the time jump (albeit annoying) is necessary. This way Xyrra returned with more knowledge than before which is much needed considering what will happen next (;