C H A P T E R T W E N T Y - S I X
The next few days were torture for Athena. Jake didn't go to school, he left the house before she got up and came back long after dark. She knew he was always close- he had to be.
Athena knew she didn't have to make an effort for school. There was no mate to find, and she had attended the school for almost two weeks. There were no new impressions to make. She numbly shuffled down the hall but stopped when Maeve called out to her as she padded swiftly down the hallway.
"Hey! Are you alright? You've been... quiet. And where's Jake? Isn't he always with you?"
"Hi. Im fine. Im not sure where he is." Athena replied curtly, she didn't want to talk to anyone.
"Oh um. Us girls were wondering if you wanted to go shopping with us tomorrow. The boys are coming too. Paisley's boyfriend Jack is back in town and so is Alpha- I mean Hunter." She stuttered but quickly corrected herself, not quick enough though. Athena caught the way she almost said Alpha.
But I thought Ryan made sure there were no packs around. Ripley stated, confused.
"What did you say?" Athena pressed, slightly leaning closer.
"I said do you want to-"
"No not that, did you say," She looked around quickly before whispering, "Alpha?"
"What- How do you-" Athena yanked Maeve into the nearest bathroom, quickly scanning to make sure no one was in there.
"Are you..." Athena trailed off, hoping Maeve would continue.
"No freaking way." Maeve gasped.
"Are you a werewolf?"
"You're a werewolf?" They both asked at the same time.
"Oh my Goddess oh my Goddess I think I'm going to faint. You are a wolf? What pack are you from? Why couldn't I smell you? Are you a rogue? What about Jake?" She threw her questions at Athena, but was quickly shushed.
"Yes I am a wolf. Jake is too. We're from... well it's complicated. But we aren't rogues. How come I couldn't smell you? Who else is a wolf? Is your 'boyfriend'," Athena used her fingers as quotation marks, "A wolf too? Is he your mate?" Everything was happening too quickly for Athena to comprehend.
Maeve eased herself back against the sinks, her jaw slack. Athena started to panic. She wanted to know what was going through her friend's mind, to tell her the answer to her unasked question. Maeve's face quickly morphed into one of complete recognition. Please don't say it. Please don't say it.
"You are the princess arent you?"
Athena's heart raced in fear, she had been caught. Oh shit, just play it cool like you always do. Ripley assured her.
"What? No! You're-you're being stupid. I'm not-"
"I knew it! I knew I recognised you when you started here." Maeve danced around in a circle, chanting loudly. She suddenly stopped and turned to Athena. "Your hair is different though. Why?" She questioned, confused.
Athena lifted her shirt slightly to reveal the almost healed scar across her stomach. "Fine. This is why." Maeve gasped in shock and touched the wound gently. Athena winced.
"What happened? Who knows about this?" She stared at the scar even after Athena let her shirt drop back over it.
Athena stepped closer, lowering her voice. "Have you ever heard of Hades? God of the Underworld?"
Maeve's eyebrows furrowed. "Yes, who hasn't? What does he have to do with this?"
"Well, he came to my room back home and attacked me." Athena recited the whole story. From Jake returning home, to leaving on Friday. She decided to leave out the part about Dakota. From what Ryan had told her, werewolves were pretty scared of hellhounds. Maeve listened intently to the whole story, gasping where necessary.
"So, yeah. That's what happened. That's why I'm here and why I'm hidden. You have to promise, swear on your own life, that you will not tell a soul about this. No-one. Not the other girls, not your mate. Promise." Athena stared intently at her friend, not realising Maeve beginning to cower away and lower her eyes in submission as her friend leant over her. Athena reeled back, blinking.
"Sorry, I-. Sorry." Athena looked down guiltily. She didn't mean to use her aura on Maeve, but it was important that she understood. Out of all of Athena's new friends, she found Maeve the most trustworthy.
"Well, I guess none of us have been completely honest with each other then." Maeve smiled, laughing gently. Her eyes were still cast downwards in respect, causing Athena to frown.
"Please don't."
"Don't what?" Maeve looked up, confused.
"Please don't act like I am superior to you now. I never meant to use my authority against you. This is the reason why I didn't have normal friends back home, they were always too scared to act normally around me." Athena laughed gently, a memory of her childhood had surfaced.
"Except for Jake it seems." Maeve's statement brought the painful reality back to Athena. She and Jake were still not on speaking terms.
Athena was about to respond before the door to the bathroom opened. A group of girls were talking, not paying attention to who else were with them. With incredible speed, Athena dragged Maeve into one of the cubicles with her- quickly locking the door behind them.
"I'm telling you, it was terrifying. This huge wolf just jumped out of nowhere. I thought I was going to die." Athena immediately recognised the cheerleader's voice. Ashley. She was telling her friends about their encounter in the forest, when Athena had protected her from the two men and... Jake. She quickly held her finger to her lips when Maeve was about to whisper something, silencing her.
"No way! I knew those woods were dangerous. Why were you even there Ashley?" One of her friends, Wendy, questioned.
"I-I was taking a walk! But I got lost." Ashley was fumbling with her words. So none of her friends knew what she had done. Maeve started to whisper again, causing Athena to pull them together and slap a hand over her friend's mouth.
"You got lost? How? You grew up here." Wendy pressed further.
"Yes I got lost, okay?" She snapped back to her friend. "The wolf, it was big and pure white. Luckily it ran off. I couldn't bring myself to tell my dad though. He would have been furious. You know how protective he is of his little princess." They began to disperse from the bathroom, leaving Athena and Maeve alone once again.
Athena released her hand from around Maeve's mouth, exiting the cubicle.
"A wolf? I have to call my brother. The humans cannot know about us. What kind of idiotic, irresponsible, son of a bitch would-"
"It was me!" Athena hushed her friend quickly.
"What? Why on earth would you show yourself to a human Athena? You are so stupid!" Maeve was becoming panicked. Athena frowned at the insult.
"I was out running. She was being attacked by-" It suddenly clicked. Athena stared at her friend again. "Didn't you say she stole some money from someone? What was his name?"
"Rick Wilder, why? What does this have to do with you revealing yourself to a human? You idiot." Athena growled lowly at the insult again, her eyes flashing gold. Maeve lowered her eyes once again, muttering an apology.
Athena remembered where she had heard his name before. Ryan had talked about how they were nothing but trouble. "When I found her, she was being attacked by three people. I think two of them were Rick Wilder's goons. He is the Alpha of the Dark Waters pack, correct? They were saying about how she stole from them. I think they took her to the forest to kill her." Maeve's eyes widened.
"You said there were three people. What about the other one? How do you know he wasn't part of Wilder's pack?" She stepped towards Athena curiously.
"I-I just don't think he was with them." Maeve narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Wait, surely they would have know they were trespassing on your pack land?" Her narrowed gaze suddenly dropped. With averted eyes, Maeve stayed quiet.
"Maeve," Athena knew she wouldn't be able to resist her command. Her wolf wouldn't allow it. "Maeve tell me. Now, please." She could see Maeve having an internal battle with herself, before her wolf got the better of her and she was forced to reply.
"Okay fine. Our pack doesn't actually exist. We were supposed to have been eradicated during a war, but a new Alpha stepped up. Now, we stay hidden from the rest of the supernatural world." Athena was shocked. She did not expect that. "You keep my secret, and I'll keep yours."
Maeve looked hopefully into Athena's eyes.
"Deal."