-Jaden-
So apparently, the problem was that a born werewolf couldn't be a Walker. Only two Walkers or a Walker and a human could have a Walker child. Jack was a born werewolf, so...
"We don't have any idea who's controlling the shadows," Mrs. Bundt sighed over the phone. She was speaking with her husband, who was on his way back home now. With the other Spirit Walkers.
I started to feel a bit too uncomfortable.
Once she ended the call, I stood up, wrapping my arms over my chest. "What would a Shadow Walker want from us?" I asked. "Our pack is new and poor and unimportant to everyone else. All we have is our lands and each other. So why is there a Shadow Walker interested in us? Why is he using Thorns to get to us?"
"You have a lot of questions I can't answer," she breathed out. "We have a council, you see. We have our own laws and rulers, and I'm just a... a..." she trailed of, looking a bit stressed. "I'm just an underpaid security guard," she finally said with a humorless laugh.
"What does that mean?" Oliver asked with a curious voice.
Mrs. Bundt smiled at him, and sat down on her chair. "My husband and I volunteered to stay here when everyone else left. There always must be a Spirit Walker in our sacred land, and since we wanted to stay close to you, we agreed to stay."
"Why did the rest leave?" Oliver asked.
"There's nothing here, really," she said quietly. "Our ranks are growing thin, and there's not enough of us to protect our lands. I'm guessing there's only ten thousand of us left around the whole world. Most of us are needed elsewhere, and there hasn't been a Shadow Walker here in... in almost twenty years, I think. We really don't have anything significant here, except... well..."
"Except the damn thing you refuse to tell us about," I muttered in annoyance.
"Yes," she smiled. "You could ask your father about it. I can't talk about it, but he can. It's your birthright to know, but I'm afraid your parents also have the right to choose when to tell you about it."
That was not the answer I wanted, but now that I thought about it, I had the feeling she literally couldn't talk about it, just like Oliver couldn't tell us about Jack.
I turned to look at Oliver, who was already looking at me. He had a confused expression on his face – he had looked like that the entire day – but he was taking everything really well. I still couldn't believe Jack had told him to follow us. I hadn't even noticed it! And I really was going to break Jack's arms for even going near Oliver.
"So... what do the Shadow Walkers usually want?" Oliver asked, turning to look at Mrs. Bundt.
"Power. And they definitely want our lands. Spirits like to gather around where we live, and Shadow Walkers want them. Just like Shadow Walkers used to be Spirit Walkers, the shadows used to be spirits. The good ones can't be turned into shadows, but there's a lot of bad spirits out there, wanting the eternal life the Shadow Walkers promise to give them."
At that point, Oliver started rubbing his temples. I felt sorry for him. There was so much he didn't know, and so much to take in all at once.
"Everything is so confusing," he admitted silently.
"It's all right. You don't need to worry about these things. I will teach you everything I know, in time," Mrs. Bundt spoke with a kind smile on her face. "I'm so happy I finally have the chance to talk with you about all this."
"I'm sorry I didn't listen," Oliver said. "Back then..."
"What you saw at that house would have driven anyone mad. They are true nightmares, and you saw two people you trusted turning into those things," Mrs. Bundt spoke with a sad voice.
Oliver nodded slowly. I was angry, but I couldn't point my anger at anyone. I was so mad that he got hurt, and I really wanted to find those people, his foster parents. I didn't even know what happened exactly, but I knew it was bad. I could still feel what Oliver was feeling, maybe because he was my mate or because I still had his Echo in me, and whenever his foster parents were mentioned his fear got worse.
"I can't believe I didn't notice anything weird about me," Oliver suddenly said.
Mrs. Bundt laughed lightly, and shook her head. "That reminds me of the first time Miss Washington noticed something was off with you..."
"What happened?" Oliver asked.
"It happened almost three years ago. I was running errands and left her in charge, and when I got back she came running to me, panicking, and told me she lost you. She said she could have sworn she saw you walking upstairs a moment ago, but you weren't there anymore... And at that same moment you came walking down, freaking her out even more," Mrs. Bundt said. "It would've been fine, but it started happening again and again, so eventually, I had to tell her about us."
"She knows?" Oliver asked with wide eyes.
"She and a few others," she nodded. "But you see, this town is our land. Supernatural beings like living in here because it's so peaceful under our protections. For example, Stella is a witch, and Mrs. Bentley's grandmother got turned into a zombie by accident, so it was easy to tell them. But Miss. Washington had no idea, so it took me quite long to calm her down after she saw you disappearing in thin air."
"O-Oh..." Oliver muttered.
"You didn't phase out often at home, but at school... Well, we got a lot of calls that you never arrived, even when one of us dropped you off," Mrs. Bundt said.
"That explains why I felt so invisible there..." Oliver muttered, and I started hating myself now.
"Now you know the truth, and I can teach you," Mrs. Bundt said. "But first, I need to deal with that Shadow Walker. This town is my responsibility."
"In the meantime, you have us," Tilly told Oliver with a smile. "We can teach you a thing or two as well."
"But what are we going to do now?" Oliver asked. "About Jack? Is he still after me?"
"My friends and I are going after him as soon as they arrive," Mrs. Bundt said and stood up. "They have summoned spirits to help us find him and the Shadow Walker. By the end of the day, we will know exactly who they are, how many there are, and where they are hiding. This ends tonight."
"What are we going to do?" Oliver asked.
Mrs. Bundt peered out of the window again, and took her sweet time before she finally replied. "It's not safe for you out there. I want you to stay here. We can put up protections so strong that even an army of Shadow Walkers can't get through it."
"We're not leaving Oliver alone," I said sternly.
"Yes, I think you three should stay here as well," she nodded. "We still can't rule out the possibility that he'll try to steal someone else's Echo, and since you three will get Jaden's Echoes back soon, he might come after you again."
"Wait – Arch and Tilly had your Echoes as well, right? Why didn't Jack try to steal one from them?" Oliver asked, looking at me.
"Like he could steal anything from us," Tilly spoke with a condescending voice.
"We're always together too," Arch shrugged.
"He's got no balls to come after us," I said.
"Or he needed to do it in secret," Mrs. Bundt said, giving us all a stern look – the one that told us not to be too cocky.
"Right..." Oliver muttered, and we all were silent for a while. "But yeah, it makes sense that he only wants Jaden's Echo then."
"What? How?" I asked, and he turned to look at me.
"Well, whatever the secret is that Mrs. Bundt can't tell us, is your birthright to know. And if that's the only thing in this town that Shadow Walkers could want, then it makes sense that he needs your Echo, and not someone else's," he explained. "He needs to possess you to get that thing, whatever it is. Or your father by the sound of it, but I'm guessing you're a much easier target."
I felt surprisingly stupid at that moment. "I... didn't even think about that."
"That was quite impressive," Tilly chuckled.
"Please – that was easy," Arch muttered. "You two just have muscles instead of brains."
Tilly punched him on his shoulder, and he laughed at it at first, but then he suddenly slouched over in his seat, putting an arm around his stomach, like he was in pain, or sick.
"Arch?" I took a closer look at him.
"It's getting worse again," he muttered. "I... I feel really sick..."
"Are you all right?" Mrs. Bundt asked, and I saw her standing up and coming closer.
"He's a Diviner – this town is making him sick," I told her.
She stopped to stare at Arch, who was now turning pale. "I haven't heard of a Diviner who gets physically sick," she spoke slowly.
"Well, he does," I said. "He can sense danger, and lately it's been getting really bad. He gets physically sick when the sense of danger grows strong."
"I'm fine – I'm really..." Arch mumbled, but he was not fine.
Tilly gave me a worried look. We felt so powerless whenever this was happening. Mrs. Bundt leaned closer and hovered her hand over Arch's head for a moment, before she pulled back.
"That's a strong ability you have," she said quietly. "The human soul in you holds the power, in case you've ever wondered. But the wolf... he's... he's restless. It's like he's in pain, but he's not."
"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked.
"I'm not an expert on werewolves," she said apologetically. "But otherwise both spirits are healthy and strong, so I'm guessing the feel of danger is causing the stress."
"I need to lie down..." Arch muttered. He was now extremely pale and covered in sweat. It rarely got this bad, so I was getting really anxious.
"It's Jack, isn't it," I said in anger. "He's doing something right now. He's the reason for this."
"I'm afraid so," Mrs. Bundt said, and looked at her clock. "Come on guys... What's taking you so long...?" she whispered.
And as if on cue, the front door opened only a short moment later. We all turned to look at the people who were coming in, and I couldn't stop my claws from coming out. I turned to look at Tilly. She was having the same issue with her nature.
"Finally," Mrs. Bundt said, when we were joined by three men and one woman. "Something bad is going on right now. We need to act fast," she spoke with a demanding voice.
"Werewolves," one of the men, a tiny bald guy, breathed out timidly when they spotted us.
"Oh, right – I forgot to mention we're having guests," another short man with a short, brown hair and a pointy nose said. He walked to Mrs. Bundt and placed his hand on her cheek, so I assumed he was Mr. Bundt. "Are you hurt?"
"We don't have time for that," Mrs. Bundt said sternly and pushed his hand away. "We need to find that Shadow Walker."
"You didn't say there would be werewolves here," the bald man said, hiding behind everyone else.
"No one said there would be dwarfs," I snorted.
"We're not dwarfs!" the third one, another small man with a long, gray beard and matching hair, said and pushed past Mr. Bundt.
"Why are you all so... tiny?" Tilly asked, staring at them.
"You bunch are going after Jack?" I asked when I realized they all were only an inch taller than Oliver at most. "But you're... you're hobbits!"
"Spirit Walkers," the bearded man said, poking me in my chest. "For your information, this is the tallest we can get, you rude brute!"
"We really don't have time for this," Mrs. Bundt almost yelled. "We need to protect this house, call the guardians and go after the Shadow Walker!"
"I'm not going anywhere with werewolves!"
"Would you all just settle down!" Mr. Bundt said loudly, and when we all fell silent, he nodded in an approving manner, and turned to look at his wife. "Now, tell me, what the hell is going on in this town?"