⫷ ARIA ⫸
My head aches like nothing else. Before I can truly grasp what the hell just happened, strong arms scoop me up and pull my against a hard chest. With my ear against James, I can hear how rapid his heart beats. His fingers run through my hair, and that alone soothes the pounding between my temples. I fall limp in his embrace, letting everything else fade into the background.
"Aria, you need to be careful," Payton's voice drifts in.
James growls. "Stay back."
I grip onto his shirt, realizing the wet stain if from my tears. "It's okay. I'm okay." His arms tighten around my body, but I still manage to lift my head and meet Payton's gaze. A rare thing, to see concern shine through the ice in her gaze. "What do I need to be careful about?"
"From what I understand, a magic user's power source is also their greatest weakness. Yours is your mind; you can tap into your magic through emotion. It makes sense; you tend to evade any heavy topics."
I sniffle. "Not true."
"Oh, yep, that's definitely true," Kasey comments from a few paces away.
"Because its emotion you need to tap into, you need to be careful," Payton continues. "If you let emotion control you, your magic may become unstable."
"So... really, it's a good thing I'm emotionally stunted, right?"
She shrugs. "I suppose. You'll need to learn balance. I've heard of magic users who's power source was their mind." Payton trails off and looks away from me.
This can't be good. "Go on."
She still doesn't look at me. "One of them killed herself young. The other lost balance and became mentally unstable. For the safety of everyone, he was killed by hunters in the area. Inevitably, if you use too much magic, your brain will shatter."
I grimace. "Okay. Can't I just... never use it?"
"It depends on why these rogues are after you. Clearly they are interested in your powers."
"They want to control her." Everyone turns their attention to Caleb. Kasey trots over to stand beside him and takes his hand, causing a slight blush to light up his cheeks. "With the wolf gene, you can be controlled by an alpha. The witch gene gives you power beyond the physical nature of a wolf. Centuries ago, there was a war between two packs. The winner had hybrids."
James rests his chin on the top of my head. "You think the rogues are planning a war? For what purpose?"
"A rebellion?" Caleb guesses.
Kasey frowns as she rests her head against his arm. "Maybe they're tired of being seen as less than because they aren't part of an official pack. I mean, technically I'm a rogue, and I've been spit on by some nasty pack wolves."
Caleb tenses. "In this pack?"
"Nope. Just some wolves I ran into along my travels. Mom insists I'm still part of our home pack whenever I visit, but it isn't the same. I've felt like a rogue ever since I left for university."
I frowned at my friend. Who, in their right mind, would treat this bubbly girl like anything less than the amazing girl she is. Before I can voice my thoughts, Caleb beats me to it. "You're part of this pack now," is all he says, but it's all Kasey needs to smile like she just won a million dollars.
"I'll need to inform my father on everything," Payton explains to all of us. "If there is a chance of a war, he needs to know. Everyone in the hunting community needs to know."
James' growl is lower that time. "As long as we both know who the true enemy is."
She doesn't relent in her glare. "Both mine and my father's enemy are any supernatural creatures who pose a threat to humans. Remember that." Her glare shifts to me, causing me to shrink in James' hold. "You're naive, Aria, so you may not believe me when I say this, but you can't trust Carlos."
"Because he's a rogue?" I blurt.
"No; because he is a murderer. He has killed innocents, and he will continue to kill. If I lay eyes on that mutt again, I will not hesitate to kill him." With that as her goodbye, she stalks off toward the direction of her car.
"We can't trust her," James states.
I flinch. "We can't?"
He shakes his head. "No. It doesn't matter if she's your friend; she hates our kind."
Kasey pouts. "If she hated us, she wouldn't have been my friend in the first place."
"She probably became your friend the same reason you became hers." James pauses. "Keep your enemies close, right?"
Her frown grows. "I don't care. She's my friend no matter what you say."
My thoughts wander to the conversation. "Is it true? About Carlos?"
James hesitates as he looks down at me. "Yeah."
I tense. I'm feeling mixed emotions; as of right now, Carlos is the only other person who knows what I'm going through. I don't know him that well, but I feel secure knowing that I'm not alone.
I manage to get out of James' hold and start walking into the house, feeling him behind me. "Where are you going?"
"I still need to call him. He needs to know what he is."
James creases his eyebrows. "Why are you so concerned about him?"
"Because he's the only one I know who is like me."
"So?"
I glare at him as I pull out my phone. Instead of answering him, I dial Carlos' number and wait as it rings. It goes to voicemail. I try again. Nothing.
"Guess he's busy." James has a smirk on his face. "Oh well."
"I have a bad feeling," I say out loud. "Carlos was desperate to find out what we are. He wouldn't just keep ignoring my calls all of a sudden."
"Maybe he really is busy."
"I don't know..." I bite at the inside of my cheek.
James places his hands on my arms. "Don't worry too much about it. You've got enough to stress about as it is."
I let out a sigh. "You're right. It's probably nothing.
⫷⫸
Days go by. Payton insisted practicing my magic would strengthen my mind and result in me not losing it later on in life. It didn't matter what she said; any sign that I had even an ounce of magic disappeared.
James mentioned how he contacted his father to update him on everything that was happening. As for Carlos, he still wouldn't answer any of my calls. Even Payton isn't coming around as often as before. My parents have yet to contact me.
The only silver lining is the fact that Kasey is staying in the house, and she's the kind of support I sometimes rely on.
It took many hours, but I managed to convince her to go out with Caleb. I'd feel bad for him, but I have a sneaking suspicion that he secretly loves the attention she gives him. So, the two of them deserved a nice little date.
With Kasey gone and James busy in his office, that leaves me in a very dangerous position; bored. So very, very bored. Of course, I know I can be a bit of a snoop when I try to be. Thoughts cloud my mind, I hum a bit for distraction, and suddenly I end up with my face inches away from a portrait hung in a closed- off room.
I stare up at a woman's portrait hung on the wall in a dark room. Dust clung to everything; the piano in the corner, the bookshelves to my right, and the piles of painting utensils thrown carelessly on the tables. I don't care about that stuff, though, only this woman who poses like a queen.
She looks like James.
"Well, well, aren't we nosey?" I jump at a voice behind me and spin around to see Finn. "Nobody comes in here. It makes poor Alpha a little uncomfortable."
"Why are you so creepy?"
His eyebrows raise. "Creepy? I think you have me confused with Caleb." Finn steps closer to me. "Gem has been asking where you were. She's getting annoying. Would you be a dear and shut her up for me?"
I narrow my eyes at him. "You're also rude."
"Rude and honest are sometimes mixed." His eyes flicker up to the portrait behind me. "Some say she was the most beautiful in the Foniás pack. Others say she was a better manipulator than her father. So good, that she convinced everyone that her beauty outranked everyone else's."
My eyes drift back to the photo. Chestnut hair curled against her rosy cheeks. She isn't smiling in this portrait; her full lips rest in a straight line, green eyes not truly looking anywhere in particular. "Who is she?" I ask as I stare at the seated girl with delicate hands placed on her lap.
"Not my story to tell."
I turn to see a smirk on his lips. "Then why bring her up at all?"
He lifts one shoulder in a shrug. "It's not often we get to talk about her." He steps farther into the room with his golden brown eyes stuck on me. "That isn't why I followed you here."
"Oh?" I shift uncomfortably. "Then why?"
"A little birdie told me some interesting information that I think you would like to know."
I sigh. "Are you going to tell me or are you going to keep being weird?"
"I'll tell you, sure, but not without a price."
I grimace. "Go on."
"Someday, I may need you on my side. Even if its James who opposes me, I'll need you to back me up. Deal?"
I pause a moment as I assess his calm demeanor. "All I have to do is back you up?"
"Yep. That's all."
I fold my arms across his chest. Sure, making a deal with this guy may be a not-so-smart thing for me to do. That pesky need to satisfy my curiosity spikes, nearly enough that I scream my answer at him. "Fine," I manage to reply. "Deal. This information better be interesting."
His expression remains. "James knows where Carlos is."
"Excuse me?"
"Carlos is in danger. Apparently, he's been captured by the same rogues who are after you, for the same exact reason. That's all I have for you. Whether or not you decide to confront our loving Alpha, that is up to you." With a smirk, he spins on his heels and prances out of the room.
I stare after him with my jaw nearly grazing the dusty floors. In no way can I believe that guy. James would tell me if Carlos got captured. He would. I know he would. Despite those thoughts of encouragement, I can't help but feel a heaviness in the air. Walking down the lone halls, the hairs on my arms poke up from the eeriness contaminating the atmosphere.
Something isn't right.
Just outside of my bedroom, where I'm about to enter, is when I see James striding down the hall with his face in his phone. He's typing furiously, as if the conversation he has is of utmost importance. So important that he doesn't notice me until he just about passes me.
James blinks several times. "Aria? Hey. You hungry? I was going to shower, then make something to eat." My hesitation makes his eyebrows pull together. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"
I swallow the lump in my throat. "Do you know where Carlos is, James?"
He frowns at my question, but I can see the concern swarming in his sea-foam green eyes. "You know I don't."
He's lying. I swallow again. Intuition, how cruel it may be, forces me to ask another question I had been wondering. "And my parents? Do you know where they are?"
His frown deepens. "Why are you asking me these questions, Aria?" Evading the answer.
"Why are you lying to me?"
James pauses a long moment, long enough that I see his concern turn into full on worry. He reaches for me, but I pull away before he can make contact. For some reason, I don't feel guilt when the hurt flashes in his eyes. "Carlos has been captured by the rogues, but I'm guessing you already know this."
"And my parents?"
His jaw tenses. "Aria..."
"Answer my question, James. Where the hell are my parents?"
James' eyes trail away from me, down to the space between us. "I'm just trying to keep you safe."
"Dammit, James, answer me!"
He turns his head. "They've also been captured."
Ever since Payton broke through my emotional wall, they flow through me a lot easier. Painfully so, as if all of my emotions have become heightened. Though now, with the onslaught of true betrayal, it's all too overwhelming for me to show it on my face. Everything goes blank, like I'm a zombie.
James notices; he tries to reach for me again, but I step out of his reach.
Something stirs inside of me; a familiar sensation when I first used my magic. Instead of harnessing it, I shove it back down inside of me. "I need space," I whisper. "You need to leave me alone for a while." Before he can say anything, I shove past him and slam my bedroom door in his face.
There, sitting on my bed, is a neatly folded note. Numb down to my toes, I trudge over to it to read.
'Meet me out by the lake at midnight. I know what Finn told you, but there's a lot more to it. I hate to go behind James' back, but this is beyond what he thinks is right.'
-Gem'
Hours later, I climb down the vines beside my balcony; I know creeping down the stairs will walk up Mr. Paranoid. He tried to come sleep with me, but was met with a locked door and a stubborn need to ignore anything he said.
I run through the night. Ever since I shifted, running became a lot easier on my lungs. No longer a burning flare, I could run both longer and faster. All good things, considering I need to make it to the outer edge of the pack's territory. I'd been to the lake a few times; Gem hauled me there, ready to convince me that it was the best place to swim, ever.
Another good thing about this wolfie business is the fact that I can see through the dark forest like its nobodies business. I step over fallen leaves as the smell of pine and wood lifts my senses. Old me would have tumbles and ran smack into trees.
The forest calms my racing heart. At the back of my mind, where I keep the thoughts boxed up for now, is the anger involving James. Out of all the things to keep me in the dark for, he decided to not tell me about my parent's being taken by rogues.
I shake my head in order to preserve my content mood. Through the break in the forest, I see the sparkling reflection of the moon on the surface of the calm water. Gem paces in front of it. When she sees me, her eyes widen in... well, I'm not sure. I can never tell what goes through that girl's head.
"You came?" Her voice quivers.
"Um... yes. You asked me to." Her silence causes a shiver to run down my arms. "Why'd you want to meet so far from the house? Feel like swimming?" My attempt at lightening the mood fell on deaf ears.
Gem fidgets with her hands. "Yeah! That's it. I felt like swimming. You know, so we can destress. I've got loads to tell you, you know?" Her eyes flicker around her.
"Gem... what's wrong?"
"What? N-nothing's wrong. Why would something be wrong?"
"You're acting like a crazy person."
She pulls on a tight smile. "I... This is just very important information. That's it."
"What is it, then?"
"They're... um... they're..." The light in her eyes dims to nothing. Her smile, now a frown. "Here. They're here."
"What do you me-" A hand from behind clasps around my mouth. The fear spikes a fit of spasms in my body, but the person behind me is too strong to fend off in my surprise. In front of me, Gem simply stares with tears streaming down her cheeks.
"I'm so sorry," she whimpers. "They know where my parents are... I have to find them."
They drag me deeper into the forest until I see nothing but trees. Slowly, Gem's sobs dim against the rustle of leaves.