by Jen L. Grey
As we came down the stairs with our luggage, I couldn’t help feeling bad for us leaving earlier than planned. Rage had assured me it was okay, so I didn’t make a fuss about staying. Honestly, I wanted to get back to my dorm and have time to think.
“I hate that you guys are going, but we understand.” Audrey wrapped her arms around Rage and kissed his cheek. “You better call us when you get there.”
“Son, don’t you think you should go say goodbye to the pack?” Matthew patted him on the shoulder. “I can call everyone to gather so you can tell them goodbye.”
“No, we need to get going.” Rage stood tall as if he was going to have to stand his ground.
“This will be your pack someday.” Matthew’s tone took an edge.
Rage hadn’t left my side ever since the phone call. I was doing better until we got back to the room I was staying in and hysteria took over once more. He packed our stuff for me as I tried to pull myself together. “Go on.”
“It’s not necessary.” Rage stood his ground. “You know that I wasn’t sure if I would want to follow in your footsteps, and this trip made my final decision.”
“If you aren’t alpha, then you’ll have to submit to someone else.” Matthew kept his eyes on his son.
“I’m sorry, but this pack isn’t for me.” Rage took my hand and wrapped an arm around Cole. “Cole said something earlier that cleared all my confusion. I have another pack that fits me better.”
A couple of months ago, Rage had brought up his doubts about his father’s pack. Seeing how some of the members reacted to Cole, I understood where he was coming from. Although I hadn’t known he came to a decision, at the same time, I wasn’t surprised.
“Well, alright then.” Matthew let out a huff and pulled his son in for a hug. “I hate that you came to that choice, but you must follow your own path.”
“So does that mean, I have a chance now?” Stone’s eyes came alive more than I’d seen the entire trip.
“Yeah, just as long as you’re stronger than everyone else.” Matthew laughed and patted his shoulder.
“Thank you both for having me.” They didn’t have a choice when it came down to it since I was their son’s mate, but they had made an effort to make me feel like part of their family.
“Dear, you’re a part of us now.” Audrey gave me a hug. “I’m finally getting the daughter I had always wanted.”
“Thank you.” I didn’t know what more to say.
“Call us if you need anything.” Matthew gave me a side hug. “I can’t wait to see you when you return.”
“And me too, right?” Cole hollered as he came down the stairs.
“Sure.” Matthew chuckled and stepped out of the way.
“Uh … bye, sis?” Stone shrugged and didn’t close the distance between us.
“Bye.”
“Alright, we’ll see you on the flip side.” Cole opened the door and sauntered out. “Thanks for having me.”
Rage followed after him, loading our things into the Audi’s trunk.
“Hey, Raven,” Audrey called after me.
“Yeah?”
“Look, I don’t know what happened with your mother.” A small frown tugged at the corners of her mouth. “But I do know she was a good person. She began acting distant right before her disappearance, but I could never get her to tell me why. All I’m trying to say is she was a good person, and I doubt that’s changed. She must have her reasons.”
This was the exact conversation I didn’t want to have and why we were leaving. “That’s the thing. I don’t know what her reasons were either, and she kept me in the dark. Even now, both she and my dad won’t tell me.”
“Just remember, sometimes people do hurtful things trying to protect those they love the most.” She bit her bottom lip and sighed. “You guys have a safe trip back. When you two start planning the wedding, let us know.”
“We will. And Merry Christmas.” It was surreal that this day was not only the best day of my life, but it was also the worst. I didn’t know what the hell to do.
Chapter Eighteen
It was the second week in January, and our classes were set to start back up the next day. It was strange that I hadn’t heard from Jess the whole break. Even when I had tried calling her to tell her the good news, there was no answer. I’d hoped that she worked through whatever had been plaguing her.
The guys went to the pizza parlor in town, but I had told them I wasn’t up for it. Rage tried to stay with me, but I told him that I needed to be here by myself. Jess had to be coming back tonight, and I wanted to talk to her badly.
He had known that I’d been worried about her, especially after I tried calling and texting her multiple times. Even though she was in her Fae world, she had a phone that I could reach her through. It was some kind of fae converter. I wasn’t even sure what that meant.
The clock was ticking, and I began wondering if she was even coming back. I mean she’d have let us know, wouldn’t she. The clock hit ten, and I figured it was time to give up. The last few weeks, I hadn’t been sleeping well. Between learning that my parents had lied to me and Jess not answering my calls, my mind kept running in circles. I hated that it overshadowed the happiness of my engagement. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if my parents knew about it.
Right when I stood and stepped into the hallway leading to my room, the door handle jiggled before opening. Jess stepped into the doorway and halted when her eyes landed on me.
“Were you trying to sneak in?” This had to end tonight. I couldn’t lose my best friend too.
“No.” She shook her head quickly from side to side and then sighed.
“Do you think I’m stupid?” Between her and my parents, maybe I should have taken note that apparently, I came off like a moron.
“Yes.” Then she dropped her luggage and raised her hands in the air. “I mean, no.” She took a deep breath. “Yes, I was lying, and no you aren’t stupid.”
I had to keep my cool. I couldn’t deflect my anger at my parents onto her. “Why didn’t you ever call or at least text me back?” She was even dressed in black, which wasn’t like her.
“I forgot my phone.”
“That’s bullshit.” I could see her bright pink phone in the back pocket of her dark jeans for crying out loud. “You texted Cole, and your phone is right there.”
“How did you know that?” She pulled the phone out of her pocket. “I mean, that I texted Cole.”
“Because I was with him all break.” It seemed as if there were miles between us at this moment. “Why were you lying to me?”
“Look, Raven, I don’t want to talk about it.” Jess grabbed the handle on her rolling luggage and entered the room, closing the door behind her.
“No, you don’t get to make that decision anymore.” There had to be something I was doing to push these people away. I had to know what I’d done.
“Excuse me?” Jess spun on her heels and placed her hands on her hips. “You don’t get to make fucking decisions for me.”
She was right, but dammit. “No, but I need my best friend back.” The truth of the words shocked me. My eyes stung, threatening me with tears.
“Oh, Raven.” Jess pinched the bridge of her nose and sat on the couch. “I’m sorry. I need you too.”
Okay, she was willing to talk now. “Then why are you pushing me away? Did I do something?”
“Of course not.” She leaned over, placing her arms on the top of her legs. “It’s complicated.”
“Well, at the moment, complicated seems to be my thing.” So was not understanding, but we wouldn’t go there right now.
“I’m scared.” Her bright violet eyes looked up at me.
“Why? Did someone threaten you?” If someone was trying to hurt her, they’d have another thing coming.
“What? No.” She threw her hands in the air and groaned. “No, I’m afraid to tell you something.”
That knocked the breath out of me. “Am I that judgmental?” I mean, I k
new I had my faults, but I didn’t think I was that bad.
“God.” She covered her face with her hands. “I keep screwing this up. No, you aren’t judgmental, but I’m afraid you might be over this.”
“Just try me.” I needed our relationship back to normal. “You know I’m always in your corner. I mean, you’re already acting like we aren’t friends. How much worse could it be if you actually told me?”
“You’re right.” She dropped her hands, placing them in her lap, and straightened her shoulders. “I’ve fallen for somebody.”
“Really?” That didn’t make any sense why she would be worried. “That’s great. Does he go here?”
“He does.”
“Have I met him?” At this point, I felt like a detective.
“Yup.” She bit her bottom lip and stared at the ground.
“Well, who is it?” I tried hiding my frustration. At least I was getting somewhere with her now.
She cringed as she said, “Cole.”
I must have heard her wrong. There was no way she could have said his name. He was a vampire. “Cole?”
“Yes, Cole.” Her head slowly raised as her eyes met mine.
Now it made sense. All the weird tension between them, how she stopped wanting to hang out with us, and even why she didn’t want to tell me. I had to remain calm. “But you’re different races.”
“You don’t think I know that.” She raised her voice at me, something she’d never done before. “I didn’t mean for it to happen. It’s not like I asked for this. It’s just we have so much in common and he’s … well … you know.”
“How does he feel?” It hurt that he hadn’t talked to me either. Not only were my parents keeping secrets from me, but two of my best friends were as well.
“The same, but he’s better at pretending. With his parents being so uninvolved in his life, he’s always had to put on an act. He loves you too much to put you into an awkward situation.” She leaned back, her ash blonde hair contrasting against her black shirt. “That’s why we decided to take a break.”
The image of the dead half-breed the guys and I had to clean up that night flashed in my head. “I just don’t want something bad to happen to you guys, especially if you got serious.”
“Yes, I know.” She huffed and tapped her foot on the ground. “Half-breeds are horrible and others would judge our interracial relationship. I’m well aware. I sit in the same class as you.”
It bothered me because if the half-breeds weren’t an issue, Cole and she made an amazing couple. They had similar personalities, but Jess was more level headed most of the time. “I’m sorry.” I wished I could encourage them. I mean, it would have been nice to have another couple in the group.
Those words deflated Jess. Her whole body sagged as if the load she was bearing was too much. “Me too.”
“Thank you for telling me.” Unlike my parents, she had confided in me. “I wish I could do something to make it better.”
“I’m such an idiot.” Jess gave me a sad smile. “I shouldn’t have been a chicken, and I should have told you. I’m sorry.”
For the first time in weeks, my friend was sitting in front of me. “Hey, you were dealing with a lot. There isn’t anything to apologize for.” I sat next to her on the couch and wrapped my arm around her, pulling her into a hug.
“Well, how was your Christmas?” As she pulled back, her eyes locked on my diamond. “Is that an engagement ring?”
“Maybe.” I couldn’t hide the smile in my voice. I finally had someone I could celebrate it with.
“Oh my God.” She grabbed my hand and lifted it closer to her face. “I’m such an ass. That’s why you kept calling.”
“Well, that, and I wanted to check on you.” I didn’t want to make her feel any worse.
“Now give me all the details.” Her eyes brightened, and she leaned toward me, ready for the story.
“And that’s yet another reason why half-breeds are such a menace.” Professor Shaw underlined unbalanced on the board. “Any type of interracial couple could result in a hybrid and should be frowned upon.”
I couldn’t help but glance at Jess as the teacher droned on and on about this subject. After the talk Jess and I had, it did appear odd that this class even existed. It seemed that the whole reason was to beat the subject into our brains—brainwashing. Why couldn’t this subject be a side note in another class?
Jess doodled in her spiral notebook, acting as if she was taking notes. Her long hair acted as a curtain.
Today, I couldn’t even pretend to concentrate on the lecture. I didn’t understand how two such great people couldn’t be together. How could it be so bad?
“Hey, let’s go.” Rage arched an eyebrow at me.
Crap. Class was over. I hadn’t been able to talk to him about everything last night since Jess and I talked until the wee hours of the morning. I stood and hurried out the door.
“Are you okay?” Rage asked as we strolled in the hall.
Jess was right on our heels, so I didn’t want to say anything, especially with other supernatural ears listening.
“Yeah. Just a little distracted.” That wasn’t a lie.
“That’s not a good thing to be here at Bloodshed.” Isadora appeared in front of me, her words just as sharp as her features. “So I take it you didn’t retain anything from this new, exciting class?”
“Sorry, just a lot happened over break, so I spaced out for a minute.” It felt like she was fishing for something. “It won’t happen again.”
“Make sure it doesn’t.” She nodded her head at Rage and passed by, entering the classroom.
“She always gives me the creeps.” Jess murmured when she caught up to me.
“Let’s just say I don’t like hanging around her.” Every time we crossed paths, either something bad had happened or was going to.
We made our way outside to find Cole and Damien standing in the courtyard. Damien leaned against the tree, the red in his hair standing out in the sun.
Cole’s eyes glanced at our group and quickly settled on Jess. “What’s up, my people?”
“Just another day of class.” Rage rolled his eyes and stopped once we reached them. “I’d hate it if I didn’t get to sit next to the prettiest girl in the world.”
“Uh oh. What did you do?” Cole propped his hands on his hips and leaned forward. “Might as well get it all out.”
“Did you just imply Raven was ugly?” Jess tilted her head and pursed her lips.
“What? No.” Cole shook his head and winked at me. “Of course not.”
“It did kind of sound that way.” Damien smirked.
“Of course, now is when you decide to talk and join the conversation.” Cole narrowed his eyes at him.
“I think what Rage said was sweet.” I stood on my tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss to his lips.
“Oh, gag me.” Nate sauntered over and snarled. “You’re too hot for him.”
The day just kept getting better.
“I disagree.” I lifted my left hand and ran my fingers through his hair. My ring caught the sun and sparkled.
“Wait. Are you marrying him?” Nate scoffed and crossed his arms.
“Well, he is my true mate, so it would only make sense.” The more I interacted with the ass, the more I disliked him.
“Such a waste,” Nate grumbled.
“Yeah, you’re a waste of good air so now why don’t you run along.” Cole’s cold demeanor appeared in full force.
“Listen here, Bloodsucker.” Nate took a step toward Cole and snarled. “If anyone wastes air, it’s this little group of yours. You should be sticking to your kind.”
“I do stick with my kind.” Cole used his vampire speed and pushed Nate in the chest hard. “That’s why I have my family right here around me.”
“You’re going to regret that.” Nate reared back and threw a punch. Right before it was about to hit, Cole grabbed his hand and gripped it hard.
“Ow!” Nate cr
ied as his bones began to pop.
“That’s right. Cry like the little bitch you are.” Cole chuckled as he released Nate’s hand.
“Let me guess, you’re going to say some version of you’re going to regret that.” Damien’s bored voice intervened. “Why don’t you cut the shit and leave us alone?”
“It is kind of strange how you obsess over us.” Jess shrugged her shoulders.
“I promise it’s not …”
“Shush, Nate.” Jordan walked over with Madison following behind. “Leave them alone. You have somewhere else you’re supposed to be anyways.”
To say I was shocked when he didn’t argue would be an understatement.
“Fine.” He grumbled and glared back at Cole once more before he strode off.
“Hey, Raven.” Jordan smiled her fake smile and motioned toward her. “Can we have a second?”
“Oh, sure.” I was assuming this had something to do with The Elites. I glanced at Jess whose eyes were wide with surprise. “I’ll be right back.”
Jordan and I moved to the side. Madison started to make her way toward us.
“No, stay there.” Jordan pointed to some benches several yards away.
Madison’s mouth dropped open, and she stopped right in her tracks. “But …”
“It’ll only be a second.” Jordan grabbed my arm and hurried me over to the other side of the courtyard near the woods where no one was near. “We have another target tonight.”
“Target?” When she said it that way, it didn’t sound like we were helping anyone.
“Yeah, before she has time to implode.” Jordan’s annoyance was clear in her tone. “So, meet us at the skating rink so we can pick her up. It’s called Airline. It’ll be similar to the way Dave and Busters went down, but this girl is even younger. All we need to do is get her into the car so we can take her to the safe zone.”
“Will we get to go to the safe area this time?” Ever since that day, it bothered me that I had lied to that guy since they wouldn’t let me follow them. I had no clue where they took him.
“No, you are still proving yourself.” Jordan giggled and patted my arm. “If you don’t mess up, maybe you’ll get a higher position. We’ll meet you and Rage there tonight at six.”
