Fangs vs Claws

by Rua Hasan

  “Some random attack? It was obvious that they tried to take you with them,” my dad pointed out.

  I rolled my eyes.

  Why would they want me? It just doesn’t make sense.

  “I don’t think that’s true. What would they want with me?” I asked while looking at my parents and Aiden.

  Aiden seemed stressed. He had been quiet since we’ve got here, and he kept running his hand through his messy hair. He wanted to know why the rogues attacked and how they got in the pack without anyone noticing them.

  “I don’t know, but until we find out, I’m going to increase your guards,” Aiden said.

  I sighed and rubbed my hands over my face.

  “Is this necessary? All this could just be coincidence,” I told him.

  “Sweetie, I think he’s right. We don’t want to risk it,” my mom said as my dad nodded.

  “Fine,” I muttered.

  I looked out of the window, and it was getting dark. The full moon was shining brightly in the sky with no stars. I felt my stomach grumble in hunger. I didn’t eat much for dinner because of the attack, only one bite of pasta, so I decided to get up and make myself a sandwich in the kitchen. As I got up, Marie got up with me, and we both walked to the kitchen. Once we got there, I opened the fridge and took out a bag of blood to sip on and bread and cheese so I could make a grilled cheese sandwich.

  “Want some?” I asked Marie who was taking a sip from her orange juice.

  She shook her head.

  I grabbed a knife and started to slice the bread when I accidentally cut my finger. I hissed quietly in pain and went to the sink to wash the little scratch. I didn’t want blood all over my food. Even though I’m a vampire, I don’t drink my own blood. That’s just nasty.

  “Hey, immo, are you okay?” Marie asked.

  I nodded.

  “Yeah, just a cut,” I told her then turned around and gasped.

  There standing next to Marie was a guy with pale skin and bags under his eyes. He was looking straight at me. Shivers ran down my spine.

  Who was he? How did he get in here?

  What answered my question was what he was wearing—trousers that looked very old-fashioned, ripped, and dirty, and a brown shirt. His hair was parted in the middle.

  Not again.

  He was a ghost.

  My heart started to pound against my chest as he took one step forward then reached his hand out to grab my shoulder. I stood still, not moving as if I was the prey in a lion’s den.

  Why were they appearing now? What did they want from me?

  Was I being haunted?

  “Immo, are you okay?” Marie asked.

  But I wasn’t paying attention to her. All my thoughts were at the stranger in front of me and what he said before disappearing into thin air.

  “Pick me.”

  Once he was gone, I released a breath that I didn’t even know I was holding.

  What did he mean by that? It felt so familiar like I’ve heard it before.

  Suddenly the memory of the dream I had the other day came to my mind. About the dead that were chasing me. They all said the same thing. But I still didn’t know what that meant.

  I looked down to my finger and realized that the cut was healed.

  “Stella, are you okay?” Marie asked again. She was now in front of me with her hands on each of my shoulder.

  I look up to her as I shook all the thoughts out of my head and gave her a smile.

  “Uh, y–yeah, I’m fine,” I told her, but she didn’t seem convinced.

  “It’s just today’s event tires me, and I’m still shocked about what happened. That’s all.”

  It wasn’t completely a lie; it was true.

  She nodded before putting her cup in the sink and walking out of the kitchen. I sighed to myself as I stared at the spot where the ghost was once standing. I put the bread, cheese, and blood bag back into the fridge, not feeling hungry anymore.

  All I wanted to do was sleep, even though it wasn’t late. Maybe I might relax a bit.

  

  “Stella,” Marie called.

  I rolled over so I had my face in my pillow.

  “Stella.” Her voice was louder.

  I pulled the covers over my head, ignoring her.

  “Stella, get up, or I swear I will not hesitate to get the bucket!” she yelled in my ear.

  I immediately shot up when I heard her say the word bucket. I didn’t want her to pour water all over me again. I gave Marie a sleepy glare.

  “What do you want? Can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?” I said as I rubbed my eyes. I turned my head and noticed Aiden wasn’t beside me. He must have been working. I noticed that the sun was up and the birds were chirping.

  “That’s enough sleep, missy! You went to bed early last night, and you still haven’t gotten up,” she said as she pulled me off the bed.

  Geez, sometimes I think she’s my mother.

  “Wait, what time is it?” I asked.

  “It’s twelve pm. Gosh, I thought you were dead or something,” she said, and I rolled my eyes.

  I wasn’t expecting to sleep in that late.

  “Anyway, go change. We aren’t going to sulk around because of yesterday. We’re going to be productive,” she told me, and I groaned.

  “Oh, come on! Can’t we just stay in our pajamas all day and watch the entire series of The Vampire Diaries while stuffing our faces with Nutella,” I whined, trying to convince her that being productive wasn’t on my to-do list.

  I saw her eyes soften at the thought. Did I mention that Marie was a big fan of The Vampire Diaries and Nutella?

  She shook her head.

  “Nope, ain’t happening. As much as I would love to do that, you are going to march to Aiden’s office and do some Luna work,” she ordered.

  I groaned again.

  Where is the immature Marie when you need her? Oh yeah, I know. When Liam steals her food.

  “Fine, whatever,” I muttered and made my way to the closet. But before I went in, I turned to look at Marie.

  “Then what are you doing today?” I asked.

  She gave me a smirk.

  “I have a date to get to,” she told me.

  My eyes widened in shock.

  “Really?” I asked.

  She nodded her head excitedly.

  “With who?” I asked.

  “You don’t know him. We went to school together,” she answered.

  I smiled at her and told her good luck before walking into the closest.

  I grabbed some clothes and went to the bathroom. I did my daily routine, took a shower, put mascara because I felt like it, and wore my clothes. I got out and decided to see if Aiden needed any help in his office.

  I walked down the hallway and to his office door, knocking on it before going in. It was a mess in there. Papers were everywhere as Aiden was working on his laptop. He had bags under his eyes and very messy hair, probably from running his hands through them.

  Once I closed the door, he noticed me.

  “Stella, what are you doing here?” he asked.

  “I thought I could help. After all, I’m not Luna for nothing,” I told him as I walked to a couch in front of his desk and took a seat.

  It looked like Aiden was too tired to refuse.

  Did he even sleep?

  You know what, since I’ve mentioned it, I don’t remember Aiden coming to bed last night.

  “Did you even get some sleep?” I asked.

  He shook his head.

  “Nope, I had so much work to do, especially with what happened yesterday.” he grumbled more to himself.

  “Don’t beat yourself over it,” I told him as I grabbed some papers I could work on.

  What I said must have gotten him mad because I saw his eyes darken a bit.

  “Don’t beat myself over it? Stella, rogues are popping up everywhere, but that’s not the problem,” he said as his voice got louder.

  “The problem is that they w
ant you for some reason, and they’ve been coming into the pack, and I don’t know how,” he finished.

  I sighed and rubbed my face.

  “Gosh, I know, I know! But what would they want with me? I think you guys are just overreacting,” I argued.

  “It just doesn’t make sense. A rogue attack happens, and you jump to conclusions. They just probably knew that I was your mate and wanted to piss you off,” I told him.

  He was silent and ran his hand through his hair.

  “I’m still giving you more guards. I’m not risking anything,” he told me.

  I rolled my eyes.

  I swear he never learns, but if it will help calm his nerves, then fine, whatever.

  “If it helps you sleep at night,” I muttered to myself.

  “What did you say?” he asked.

  “Uh, uh-oh, I said let’s get started with these papers,” I told him.

  He gave me a glare before shaking his head at me then returning to what he was doing before.

  

  Four hours and a lot of effort later, we were done with all the paperwork. It was four very boring long hours, and I thought I was going to pass out if I stayed in Aiden’s office for another second. We spent the hours looking through applications for new pack members and checking on some papers Aiden will use for some future pack meetings. Also, we looked through some letters he received from other Alphas.

  “Ugh, finally! I don’t know how you can cope with that,” I said as I stretched my arms and started to walk to the hall.

  “You get used to it,” Aiden said from behind me.

  We walked to the living room and saw Liam sitting on the couch watching TV. I went to the kitchen to grab a snack. I found some chocolate chip cookies in the cabinet and walked back to the living room where Aiden and Liam were having a conversation.

  I sat down and began to watch TV, but the front door slamming open caught my attention. Everyone in the room turned their heads to see Marie stomping toward us.

  She was wearing a pretty white dress with her hair curled. She had on simple makeup that brought out the beauty of her face, but she looked angry for some reason.

  Didn’t she have a date today?

  “You!”

  She pointed at Liam.

  She ran up to him, tackled him to the ground, and tried to scratch his face. Aiden got up immediately and pulled her off Liam, but she was too persistent.

  “Let me at him!” she shouted as Aiden pulled her away from Liam.

  “I swear, once I get my hands on you, Liam White, you’re dead!” she screamed.

  I rushed over to her.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  She glared at Liam who had a grin on his face.

  “Wipe that grin off your face before I slap it off for you, punk!” she growled.

  “Marie, calm down,” I told her.

  “Calm down? How can I calm down when he told Jack that I’m crazy!” she yelled as she sent death glares to Liam.

  Jack must have been the guy who she was going on a date with.

  I whipped my head toward Liam and gave him an are-you-crazy look.

  “And why would you do that?” I asked.

  He put his hands up in surrender.

  “Hey, I was just stating the fact, didn’t want the poor guy to get scared,” he told us and grinned to himself.

  “Really! You just had to do that? I freaking got stood up!” she yelled at him.

  Marie used all her force to yank her arm out of Aiden’s hold and tackle Liam to the ground once again. But this time, no one stopped her.

  “That wasn’t cool, dude,” Aiden told Liam before walking out of the living room with me following behind him. I didn’t want to witness a murder case.

  Chapter 29

  I looked around to see trees everywhere. They were in all types of sizes. Big and small, thin and thick. There were squirrels climbing on trunks and birds flying from one branch to another. I took a step forward as the wind hit my skin, causing me to shiver.

  This place looks so familiar. Where have I seen it before?

  I continued to walk through the forest. The only sounds come from singing birds and the cracking of leaves broken branches as I stepped on them. I couldn’t remember how I got there. Everything was a blur. I saw something blue out in the distance, so I walked faster. It felt like I had been walking for hours, but it only took a few seconds. I walked past the last tree and stepped into a big beautiful meadow.

  And in the center of it was a lake. Its water looked clean enough to swim in and was so clear that I could see the fish swimming in it.

  Then I remembered the place and why it looked so familiar.

  I used to come here with Alice many years ago. It felt like ages since I had last been here.

  But why am I here? If I remember correctly, this is in the center of Ervin.

  I walked toward the water and looked at my reflection. I looked like present myself, not my high school self.

  So this cannot be a memory of some sort.

  Something behind me caught my attention.

  I turned around almost immediately and gasped. Tears formed in my eyes as I looked at the person standing in front of me.

  This can’t be. How can she be standing right in front of me?

  Is this a dream?

  No, it feels too real.

  “Alice?”

  My voice came out as a whisper.

  She looked the same as ever, with her blue eyes shining as bright as the sky. And her short hair coming down to her neck. She gave me a big smile that showed her white teeth.

  I felt a tear roll down my cheek.

  “This can’t be. How are you here?” I said, my voice shaking as I took a step toward her.

  She ran up to me and gave me a bone-crushing hug. I wrapped my arms around her shoulder and hugged her back.

  This feels so real. But it doesn’t make sense.

  We pulled away as tears ran down both our eyes.

  “I missed you so much,” she spoke.

  “I miss you too, but how’re you here? Is this a dream?” I asked as I pinched myself.

  She shook her head immediately.

  “No, it’s not!” she said.

  “Well, it’s not real either, but this definitely isn’t a dream,” she told me.

  I raised an eyebrow.

  “What do you mean?” I asked. “If this isn’t a dream but isn’t real, then what is it?”

  “What I mean is—when you wake up, don’t doubt the things I’m going to say to you right now,” she warned me.

  I felt confused but nodded anyway.

  “I don’t have much time, Stella. You have to know what’s going on over here,” she said quickly.

  “Going on where?” I asked.

  “I don’t have an exact name for that, but it’s a place where the dead stays, and they want you to pick them,” she told me.

  I was getting confused more by the second.

  “Alice, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I told her. I noticed the wind was increasing, and the temperature was dropping as clouds filled the sky.

  Crows were now flying above us, and the trees around us were disappearing.

  “Listen, Stella, and I want you to listen closely,” she said as she grabbed both my shoulders and looked straight into my eyes.

  I nodded.

  “You are different,” she said quickly.

  She glanced at her feet. They were gone. Alice was disappearing along with our surroundings.

  “Alice! What’s going on?” I asked her as panic took over me.

  “Just listen to me!” she said.

  “You’re not normal, Stella! You’re special, and you can do special things,” she said, but now her knees were gone.

  I felt the tears behind my eyes return. I didn’t want to lose her again. I just saw her after all these years, and I certainly know that this wasn’t a dream. I just wanted to hug her to death and tell her all the things that
happened throughout the years. I wanted to ask her about Mason and see her blush when she talks about him.

  I wanted to live the moment when everything was okay, and I felt complete.

  “But he’s after you! He wants her back, and he will do anything to have her back, even if it means by getting to you,” Alice rambled.

  What?

  “Stella! Don’t let him get to you!” she yelled. Now her stomach was gone, and she was fading.

  I felt tears run down my cheeks as my vision blurred from the panic. I did not want to say goodbye.

  “Don’t let who get to me?” I asked.

  Her face was the only thing left of her.

  “The Alpha!” she yelled.

  I took one step forward and went to grab her shoulder, but my hands went right through her as if she was a ghost.

  “Alpha Ar—” Before she could continue, she disappeared. The only thing left was silence.

  And my beating heart.

  I fell to the ground and sobbed. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye. I had so many questions I had to ask her, like what the hell is happening and who on earth wants me. But most of all, I just wanted my best friend back.

  My mind was all over the place as I took in her words.

  The ground beneath me began to shake and rumble. I got up and took one step forward but retreated when the ground started to crack. I walked backward, avoiding the cracks, but every second, they got bigger and bigger. The ground was now split into two, and I turned around and ran. I ran as fast as I can, hearing the ground crack from behind me. I looked behind me, which was a very bad idea because I ended up tripping on a stone.

  I fell to the ground using my hands for support. I heard the cracking get closer until the next thing I knew I was falling.

  

  My eyes shot open as my heartbeat quickened against my chest. I felt something wet running down my cheek and moved my hands to wipe it off. I looked at my surroundings and sighed in relief when I noticed I was in my room, in Aiden’s arms.

  I don’t think I had ever been this happy to find myself in his arms.

  I wiped the sweat off my face and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes.

  What a nightmare.

  The words that Alice told me were flowing through my head.

  “What I mean is—when you wake up, don’t doubt the things I’m going to say to you right now.”