Blue Violet (Book #1 of the Svatura Series)

by Abigail Owen

  “What do you mean ‘nothing’?”

  “I mean nothing. I couldn’t find a single thing. Not a track, not a scent, no trace. Are you sure…?” He turned to face her, trailing off as Ellie was already shaking her head.

  “I know what I saw.” Ellie blew out a heavy breath. She’d been so sure that something was coming today. She’d been a crazy nut, focused only on her worry.

  “The Jenners and Pierces suspect something’s up with you, by the way,” Griffin said, as he pulled his sweatshirt over his head and tossed it on the back of a chair.

  “Oh?” Ellie eyed her brother through narrowed eyes and sat on the couch.

  “It’s partly why Alex tried to talk you.”

  Ellie’s suspicious look turned furious. She glared at her brother as she tried to decide which made her angrier… the fact that Griffin listened to the Jenners and Pierces or that the kiss Alex gave her apparently was just some kind of ploy or ruse.

  “Sorry about listening in on them. But I was concerned about you, and the Jenners and Pierces happen to think of you more than any others at the school.” He jumped up, headed into the kitchen and started pulling out stuff to make dinner.

  “Why not just ask me directly?” she asked through gritted teeth as she followed him.

  “You were a bit… spacey all day. It seemed like a good idea to see how others were seeing you.”

  Ellie grimaced and shrugged. She supposed she could understand that.

  “Look on it as good news that none of them seemed to notice my poking around in their heads,” he added, opening the refrigerator.

  Ellie made a face. “I guess.”

  “And I don’t think he kissed you to use or delay you.”

  ”Thanks for the insight, but it’s none of your business.” Ellie knew Griffin wouldn’t approve of her feelings for Alex and she wasn’t in the mood for an argument right now.

  He looked over his shoulder at her. “From what I could tell, he was worried about you.”

  “Worried?” Ellie’s eyebrows knitted together. “About what?”

  “A couple of things. He seems to think he put you in danger. And he’s worried about me.”

  “Why would he worry about you?”

  “He doesn’t know I’m your brother.” He reached for a green pepper, washed it, and started chopping.

  Ellie picked up a strip and munched on it. “Yeah. But why would that worry him?”

  “He thinks I’m some sort of boyfriend or something.”

  “Oh.” Ellie frowned. Sure they’d kept Griffin hidden initially. And he still didn’t spend much time with any of her friends except Brian and Juliette. Adelaide and Nate knew her relationship to Griffin by now; she’d just figured Alex would, too. And it hadn’t occurred to her to say anything to him on their runs.

  A delighted smile spread across her face. “So he’s jealous? That’s so…great!”

  Griffin groaned. “I don’t pretend to understand you, Ellie. How about we get back to the bigger problem?”

  “Oh yeah!” Ellie pulled her thoughts back to the more immediate issue. “I’ll take watch tonight. You just spent all day out tracking.”

  “Alright,” Griffin agreed, tossing the chopped veggies into a sizzling pan. “I’m pretty beat. It takes a lot of concentration to use your power continuously like that.”

  Ellie walked over and wrapped her arms around her brother giving him a big bear hug. “Thank you. I know you didn’t want to get involved originally. And I haven’t really thanked you yet... So thank you.”

  In typical Griffin fashion, he gave her a brief hug back. “No problem,” he whispered.

  As she started her watch that evening in her falcon form, Ellie’s concern for the Jenners and Pierces had her heading directly over to their property. She spent about an hour circling the area looking for any sign of the wolves. Seeing nothing, she decided to see if she could track them from the ground. She started with the last place she and Griffin had spotted them.

  As soon as she arrived at the right spot, she blurred and shimmered, morphing from falcon to jaguar. Once she settled into the shape of the massive black cat, she sniffed the air…nothing. She sniffed again…still nothing. She shifted back into her human form and continued to look around, oblivious to her close proximity to the houses. She was crouched directly across a large field from the back of one of the homes, when she looked up and saw Alex. He stood by a window, looking her way.

  Ellie froze and swore softly under her breath as she slowly stood up. She didn’t think that he could see her at the very edge of the trees, but she couldn’t be certain. She would’ve tried Griffin’s power on him, but she had to be closer to her brother in order to have access to his powers.

  Gingerly, she inched back into the woods until she was sure Alex could no longer possibly be able to see her. As soon as she felt safely hidden, she turned into the falcon and flew home as quickly as possible. Griffin was already waiting for her.

  “He saw you,” he confirmed her worst fear the second she flew in the window. “But he’s not entirely sure of what he saw. Apparently, you were already on his mind.”

  Ellie sat down and buried her head in her hands. “Is he going to say anything to me?”

  Griffin listened for a moment and then shook his head. “He’s still debating it. He won’t come tonight.”

  Ellie groaned and tapped one fingernail on her teeth. “Well, at least tomorrow is Saturday, so he can’t catch me at school. I guess I’ll skip my run in the morning. Unless…”

  Griffin shook his head, following her thoughts, “We shouldn’t tell them. Not quite yet. With that wolf sighting today at school, there’s still too much danger involved in bringing us all together.”

  “But that wolf wasn’t watching me. He was watching Adelaide,” Ellie insisted.

  Griffin placed his hands on her shoulders, calming her agitation. “Trust me please, Ellie. If the Vyusher are after the Jenners and Pierces, maybe we can help. We would have the element of surprise on our side. If they’re after us, then we protect your friends by staying away from them. If your friends are with the Vyusher, then we protect ourselves by keeping our distance. The timing of telling them is as important as the telling.”

  Ellie’s shoulders slumped. Her brother was right. She would protect her friends without hesitation or thought. And she couldn’t argue with Griffin’s logic.

  “Go to bed,” Griffin ordered. “I’ll keep tabs on them until morning.” He glanced outside. “Besides, it’s starting to snow.” Winter and summer apparently battled for dominance during the spring season in the mountains. They’d just had a warm streak, and now the snow had returned.

  Ellie nodded her agreement and went up to bed. She’d had such an emotional day that she fell asleep the second her head hit the pillow.

  The next morning she woke up to the urgent ringing of the doorbell. Groggily she pulled herself out of bed, threw on a robe and some warm slippers, and made her way downstairs. She noticed with bleary eyes the fresh blanket of snow covering everything outside. She also realized that Griffin wasn’t home.

  The doorbell went off again. She went to answer it, shielding her eyes from the sun that bounced off the bright powder.

  “Alex?” Ellie stepped back and tried to hide her astonishment at seeing him standing on her front porch. Her heart thundered and she pulled her robe tighter.

  Alex looked like he hadn’t slept all night. His clothes were wrinkled, and his hair looked as though he’d been running his fingers through it repeatedly. He’d obviously not shaved. He looked so sexy in this mussed up state, she almost couldn’t breathe. But it was more than that. More than just good looks and a confident swagger. She felt this insane connection that made her gravitate toward him...made her want to curl up in his lap and be the one to run fingers through that silky hair. At the same time, she staunchly told herself that those feelings were completely outlandish. Despite some time spent together, they really didn’t know each other all th
at well. And besides, he dropped me like a hot potato, she thought with rising ire, ignoring the fact that he’d thought he was protecting her.

  She guessed he’d decided to confront her about the previous night. “Griffin, you better be out of range not to have warned me that he was coming,” she mentally castigated her brother.

  “Can I help you with something?” she asked as Alex stood there glowering.

  “May I come in?” he asked gruffly.

  “Oh!... uh… sure.” She couldn’t really say no without being rude or arousing his suspicions. Best to play along and act innocent.

  She stood back so he could enter, and they made their way to the living room. He sat on the black leather couch while Ellie took a seat in the chair opposite him.

  “You didn’t go running this morning,” he accused. He leaned forward propping his elbows on his knees and linking his hands together.

  “How would you know?” she snapped back. “You haven’t been running with me in weeks.”

  Alex’s jaw clenched. “Is your family here?” he asked, glancing around.

  “Not right now.”

  Although she and Griffin had the scenario of him as her guardian and older brother down pat with years of practice, they still found it much easier if people assumed they had parents somewhere.

  Alex cocked his head. “Do you even have a family?” he demanded.

  “Excuse me?” Ellie’s voice squeaked. She cleared her throat, annoyed with herself. “Of course I have a family.”

  “But not here,” he insisted, indicating the house with a wave of his hand.

  “They’re not home right now, no,” she replied, deliberately misunderstanding him.

  “They don’t live here at all, even if they do exist.”

  “What on Earth is this about, Alex?”

  Ellie hopped up and walked across the room to some bookshelves that held several pictures. One of them was her with her parents. A doctored copy of course – Griffin had become a bit of a computer whiz. She presented the framed photograph to Alex with a flourish.

  “My parents,” she said. “If they were here, I would introduce them.”

  Alex stared at the photograph for a long time. “You’re hiding something,” he finally responded, running his fingers through his hair.

  Ellie’s heart turned over. Temptation overwhelmed her. All she wanted was to walk into his arms and tell him everything. But her conversation with Griffin last night was still fresh in her mind. She was terrified she’d put him right in the path of the Vyusher, the last thing she wanted to do, despite his cutting her out of his life over the last weeks. Plus she’d promised Griffin.

  A separate part of her mind remained grudgingly impressed with Alex’s powers of observation. Very few people looked closely enough at anyone to catch little nuances as he had with her. Usually they were too self-centered. But he’d called her out on her vagueness from day one. It had the effect of strengthening the connection she was resisting so desperately.

  “What is it that you think I’m hiding, exactly?” Ellie asked, hands on her hips.

  “You can’t be who you say you are.”

  “I don’t say I’m anyone. I’m just me!” she exclaimed. “Who else would I be?”

  He flashed her a dark look. “I saw you.”

  “Saw me doing what?” Ellie’s confusion was feigned, but her exasperation was authentic.

  “Standing in the woods outside my house.”

  Ellie gave him a dumfounded look. “And when exactly was I supposed to be standing outside your house?”

  “Late last night,” he snapped angrily.

  “Yeah,” she scoffed, “that makes total sense. You really are full of yourself. You know that? You think that some little high school girl likes you so much that she’s just going to stand around your house in the cold, hoping for a glimpse?”

  “I think you’re a damn good liar is what I think.” Alex clenched his fists. He looked like he wanted to shake her.

  Ellie fumed. Forget that he was right. He didn’t know that for sure. And here he was calling her a liar to her face.

  Her eye narrowed and her voice grew cold. “And what exactly am I supposed to be lying about?”

  Alex’s mouth set in a grim line. “I can’t tell you that.”

  Ellie arched an eyebrow. “So let me get this straight…After becoming, well, friends I guess, you suddenly start ignoring me…. We barely say two words to each other in six weeks, and then out of nowhere you kiss me. But based on…” She flung her arms out all akimbo. “…I don’t know what exactly… you come over here to tell me that I’m not who I say I am. That I’m apparently stalking you. And then you call me a liar. But you can’t tell me what you think I’m lying about. Could you be more insulting or more vague?”

  “I guess that’s usually your role, isn’t it? Is anything you’ve ever said to me true?”

  “Ah!” Frustration engulfed Ellie until she couldn’t speak. She just stood there, her hands on her hips, shaking her head and blinking.

  She couldn’t do this, she suddenly realized. She didn’t want to lie to him. She didn’t want to fight with him. But she couldn’t tell him anything. And he was in the same predicament.

  And, just like that, her anger with him turned in on herself and the situation. She started shaking. A violent tremble that signaled a loss of control… and the horrifying possibility of what she might become if she didn’t immediately rein it in. Anger and fear for Alex’s safety warred within her as she struggled to keep her human form.

  Without another word she turned and headed for the back door, grabbing her keys off the kitchen counter. She had to get away from him and force herself to calm down before something terrible happened.

  Alex, having followed her, grabbed her arm, whipping her around. “Where do you think you’re going?” he demanded.

  “Away from you.” She jerked out of his grip and opened the door, gasping as the cold slapped her in the face. Snow blew everywhere. But she was too upset to care and pushed out into blinding storm, heading for her car, ignoring her bare feet and robe.

  “Not in this weather you’re not.” He grabbed her wrist and started dragging her back toward the house. “You know you suck at driving in the snow.”

  “Let… go… of… me…” Ellie gritted through her teeth as she tried to twist her wrist out of his hand. When he ignored her order and refused to let her go, she leaned over and bit his hand. Hard.

  “Ow!” he howled, and immediately let go. Ellie took off, running for the car again, only this time she made it. She locked the doors as she got in.

  Revving the engine, she put the car in drive and hit the gas, then immediately slammed on her brakes as Alex appeared directly in front of her.

  She glared at him and charged the engine again in warning.

  “Get out of the car, Ellie!” he yelled above the sound of the storm.

  She shook her head no and pressed on the gas again. Alex jumped out of the way just in time. She hadn’t been too concerned that she’d hit him; she would’ve stopped if he hadn’t moved. While her fury at him consumed her at the moment, that didn’t negate the connection she felt with him.

  Ellie gasped as realization tore through her. Oh my God, she thought, he is my te’sorthene. How could I be so stupid?!?

  Ellie had often tried to imagine what it could be like, finding her te’sorthene. And now she knew. Tears blurred her eyes. Panicked by the gravity of her self-revelation, the need to escape increased. She headed down the long drive way to the road, skidding and slipping as she went. A small part of her felt shocked at her awful behavior. She was acting like a total idiot. But at the same time she had never been so angry, and terrified, and worried, and so many other emotions all at once in all her life. And the shaking was getting worse. She had to leave now.

  Between her anger, her tears, and the blizzard raging outside, she didn’t see the tree in her way until it was too late and she plowed the car right into it,
slamming her head on the steering wheel in a violent collision. Through a blur of pain and dizziness, Ellie felt the car rebound off the tree and start skidding backwards…and toward a cliff. Her last irrational thought was, Griffin’s going to kill me, before she sank into blessed oblivion.

  Chapter 18

  “You little idiot,” Ellie heard Alex mutter, although his voice came from far away. She was snuggled up against something warm and solid, and yet she was floating.

  “What were you thinking?” he continued, his voice more tender now and closer to her ear.

  It suddenly occurred to Ellie that he was carrying her. Since being held in his arms so closely aligned with where she truly wished to be, Ellie decided not to open her eyes just yet. Some part of her recognized that he wasn’t touching her skin.

  As her consciousness returned in slow waves, Ellie reveled in the feeling of being exactly where she was supposed to be. Being held by him just felt too wonderful to pass up. She didn’t want the moment to ever end.

  Carefully, she reached up and wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders. Burying her face in the crook of his neck, she breathed him in. Alex smelled of clean soap, a subtle tangy aftershave, and something essentially him. She sighed as his arms tightened around her, pulling her in closer.

  They made it back to the house too soon. Once inside, he laid her gently on the couch in the living room. Reluctantly, Ellie unwrapped her arms from around his neck, her eyes still closed. Alex gently smoothed the hair back from her face. Knowing she couldn’t avoid reality any longer, she opened her eyes with a resigned sigh, looking directly into Alex’s silver-blue gaze.

  “You’ve got a pretty big bump on your head,” he observed.

  With his words, pain finally broke through the fog in Ellie’s head. She winced as she reached up and felt the egg-sized lump on her forehead. “Ow,” she groaned.

  “I’d point out that you brought this on yourself, but you’ve been banged up enough for your trouble, in addition to giving me a heart attack, so I’ll restrain myself. Just… please don’t ever do something like that again.” His gruff concern warmed her slowly from the inside out.