by Mandi Casey
I finally retrieved my hand from his, and we walked together toward the door.
“I appreciate you being so patient, Blake.” Keeping the sarcasm from dripping from my voice was nearly impossible. “You’ve had your entire life, however long that has been, to get used to the idea you’re a werewolf and vampires don’t particularly like you. I’ve only just found these things out. That, and for some odd reason, everyone wants me to be their best friend. It seems no matter what I do, I’m going to seriously tick someone off.”
“Be careful.” His somber gaze met mine.
“Always.” To prove it, I made a great show of locking the door behind him after he promised to check in on me the next day before sundown, before the full moon peaked over the trees and consumed the wills of every wolf in town. He said before leaving that he would prefer me to stay inside because it wasn’t safe out there without someone to look after me. The fact he felt it necessary to tell me what I should and shouldn’t do still irked me. But, I do believe he had good intentions. Tomorrow was a full moon, and even though the wolves generally stayed on their own lands while they hunted, Blake was still worried because the wolf that attacked me had yet to be caught, and he wouldn’t be around to protect me.
Well, he’s just going to have to get used to the fact I’m an independent woman, and I’m going to do whatever the heck crosses my mind, whenever my will decides. I’m not the type to wait until someone else tells me that it’s okay to do something.
Chapter 9
When Blake visited the store the next evening, agitation, protectiveness, and sexual arousal radiated off him like a second skin as he paced the floor. He went over the plan he expected me to follow after work. To do nothing but sit home with Aunt Judith, and not to answer the phone or the door. There was nothing for him to worry about. No one could take better care of me than me. He laughed so hard when he heard that.
“Seriously Sydney, you’re the Selected, and the vampires know we can’t be watching over you tonight, so they may take the opportunity to make their acquaintance.” After he finished his lecture, he left the store, his shoulders still shaking from laughing so hard.
Brianna was next to visit. It was clear she was upset the second she walked into the store. Slumping on the couch next to the fire, Brianna looked like she was holding back tears.
“Hey Sis, what’s got you so upset?” We sat on the couch together in silence, and, unfortunately, the memory of Blake’s kiss kept flashing past in my mind. Yep, he distracted me, the stupid man.
“Sydney, everything was going really well, or so he led me to believe!”
“What do you mean everything was going well? With Michael?”
“Of course with Michael.” She was really upset, resulting in the snarky tone in her voice. “We’ve practically spent every moment together since we met, and now he tells me that he’s going to be busy tonight. He said he has plans that don’t include me. Sydney, he un-invited me to be with him tonight. Can you believe it? That’s so inconsiderate of him.”
Michael did have other plans, but poor Brianna had no clue. It wasn’t the time for me to tell her that he was going to spend the night prowling around his uncle’s land on four legs and taking down any wildlife he ran into.
“Brie, that’s actually great news! I’ve really wanted to spend some alone time with you, and now we can hang out all night like we used to, before I moved up here.” The pained look on her face told me she wasn’t happy about hanging out with me all night and not her boyfriend. “Listen, everyone has their thing. You have school and family. Well, I’m sure there’s going to be times when you can’t always be with him, either. So don’t worry about it. I’m sure he just has to do his thing, and he’ll be back with you tomorrow, just like before. But for now, take advantage of these times when he’s busy to go out and have some girl time. We both need some serious fun, and you know it.”
The red coloring on Brie’s face started to lighten. She rubbed her eyes and sat at the edge of the couch. “I guess you’re right. Michael having something to do doesn’t necessarily mean that things are going sour in our relationship. He wouldn’t give me any details, though, and that bugs me. How’s a girl supposed to not be suspicious when her boyfriend keeps telling her he has ‘stuff’ to do but he won’t tell me what that ‘stuff’ is?”
“I’m sure he’s just being a guy and doesn’t feel he has to give you any details. He’s probably just spending time with his family, and that’s all.”
“Speaking of Michael’s family, Sydney, Blake really likes you. Michael told me so. Maybe we can all go and do something tomorrow? That is if Michael’s done doing his ‘stuff’ before we go home to Chicago.”
It just figured she would use her suffering from Michael not spending time with her to get me to go out with Blake. Having Brianna try to talk me into dating him was a slimy thing to do, but Blake had another thing coming. He wasn’t going to use my sister against me, especially one that didn’t know about his furry business. I’m sure she’d feel a little differently about him, even though he was utterly gorgeous and kissed me senseless. Not to mention he had a body that would make any woman melt.
“Brie, dating your boyfriend’s cousin wouldn’t be a good idea. Of course, he’s really hot, but it’s a little soon to start dating someone right after the big move from Chicago. Getting a grip on my new life here is more important than adding the complications of dating a man into the mix.” From the blank expression on her face, she clearly didn’t get my point. Brianna had always thrown caution to the wind when it came to love, and she didn’t get what my real issues were with Blake. Hopefully she never would.
“Okay, big Sis, I’ll let you figure out on your own that this is just an ordinary little town you now live in, and that there’s more to life than taking care of this store.” She swept her arms up and outward taking measure of Morning Sun, my new pride and joy.
“For your information, this store has a lot to offer. It would make me really happy if Aunt Judith left me as the sole employee, and she stayed home and worked on things there. You can just worry about your schooling and leave my life to me.”
“Fine. Suit yourself, but you’re totally missing out. Michael is totally hot, but Blake isn’t a bad second.” She winked at me and rose from the couch. “I have some errands to run for Aunt Judith, so I’ll be at the house when I’m done to get ready for our girl outing by nine tonight. It’s still hard to swallow that Michael is so cruel in not feeling it necessary to tell me what he’s up to. But if you say it’s probably nothing, then that’s what I’ll go on for now. All I’m saying is that he will tell me eventually, he better anyways. I’ll see you tonight.” Brianna packed up her purse, stuffing the wet tissues she had littered all over her lap into her pants and jacket pockets, then left.
No other customer had come in while Brianna was at the store. After she left, there was finally some time to read more of Grandmother’s journal. That’s when it hit me. There was a certain heat radiating from the yellowed pages of the leather bound book. Holding the journal was warm and comforting, just like how memories of Grandma always made me feel.
Until you fully understand the powers you have inherited in being the Selected, things will be mystifying. There will be times when the potential of your powers will be more useful than the actual powers themselves. Not knowing who you can trust, who wants to do you harm, who wishes that you didn’t exist will all be very overwhelming. As time goes on, your powers will grow in variation and strength. Each Selected inherits the abilities of the previous Selected and develops her own in addition to those. You will have all of my powers, plus unique ones that your body chemistry will create as you go through life. Most of the time, these abilities will present themselves when they are most needed, in times of great danger and stress. Extreme emotion has brought on a few of my own, and sometimes at the most inopportune times.
The vampires believe in a prophecy that predates the oldest of their kind. The prophecy is wri
tten on the Scrolls of Cuil, the Scrolls of Knowledge. Kieran said he has seen the scrolls, but he does not have them in his possession. The Elders are the ones who protect them and keep them safe. The Elders are the ones who translate and interpret the scrolls. That is how vampire laws are written. The coven leaders, such as Kieran, are the vampires responsible to enforce the laws to ensure the survival of their race and the secrecy of their existence. Kieran said within those scrolls a prophecy is foretold. It is said that an extraordinary woman with exceptional power would one day be the salvation of the entire vampire nation, or their ruin. They believe the blood of this woman, given freely to a vampire, will enable that vampire to walk in the sun and not burn to a crisp.
The Selected is that woman. This is why most of the vampires believe the Selected must be cherished and protected. Some believe the Selected should be kept from putting themselves in dangerous positions, such as associating with the wolves. A small group of vampires believe it is crucial to vampire survival the Selected is locked up in a golden cage. Forever. They feel they are higher beings over the wolves. Because of that, the vampires feel they are the ones who must teach and guide the Selected in the development of her powers.
As the Selected, you must choose if you are going to test your blood, to see if you are the one who takes the vampires into the light. Thus far, each generation of the Selected before you who have chosen to test their blood to see if they were able to grant the vampires the freedom to enjoy the warmth of the sun has not been the one. So far, none of the Selected that have given their blood freely to a vampire has been able to give them that gift. You too must also make that choice. For each Selected, there are varying circumstances that push them toward either the wolves or the vampires. Both have shown their genuine love for their own people and the need for help from the Selected. But both have shown their betrayal against me and amongst each other.
Every move you make as the Selected is watched by the vampires and the wolves. Each encounter with one may be seen as a threat or betrayal by the other. Being the Selected is more difficult and complex than being a politician. There has yet to be found a way to make both parties truly happy and willing to live peaceably amongst each other.
The wolves have their own beliefs where the Selected is concerned. They are aware of the prophecy the vampires hope to one day fulfill. The wolves believe all will be lost if vampires are one day able to walk in the sunlight. They believe no one will be safe from them, humans and wolves alike. However, the wolves have their own sort of prophecy regarding the Selected. They believe that if a werewolf mates with the Selected, the resulting child will no longer be bound by the moon.
The wolves believe the child will bring about a new species of wolves that will have full control over when they change into their wolf form, which will give them a great advantage over the vampires. In human form, the wolves are very strong and have exceptional healing capability. When a werewolf is mortally injured, if they are able to make it to the next full moon, they will heal all injuries during their change into the wolf form. When a wolf sustains an injury while wearing his fur coat, that injury will be healed when they change back into their human form. If they were to come upon a vampire in their human form, they would stand a much greater chance at surviving the encounter if they were able to change into their wolf form at will.
Their strength, speed, and agility would match that of the vampire and the battlefield would be much more level than it currently is. When vampires find a wolf in their human form, they hunt the wolf until they exterminate them. The killings between the wolves and the vampires have slowed recently, but don’t let your guard down. There are always unhappy members on both sides itching to start battling again, aching for that next kill.
Well, that was some serious food for thought. Closing the journal, while holding it in both of my hands, I tried to wrap my head around everything Grandma Maria had said. It was amazing the journal held such comforting warmth, almost as if the book had bathed in the sun on a warm summer day. I had safely tucked the journal back under the counter when the door chimes announced the arrival of a customer.
Before I looked up over the counter, the temperature drop told me he was no customer. In my opinion, another encounter with the vampires wasn’t something to look forward to. Grandma had written that both the wolves and the vampires wanted something from me that would change their existences. She didn’t say who was more deserving. So far, from my experience with both, neither had been forthcoming about what they wanted from me and why they wanted it. I’m a girl that’s all about honesty, and there wasn’t much room in my life when it came to dealing with those that beat around the bush.
“Ah, Miss Sydney.” Aaron scanned the store, obviously gauging if I were alone or not. “It is very nice to see you again. We should talk, just you and I, without the disturbing presence of that animal acquaintance of yours.”
“That animal happens to be a friend of mine, so you might want to keep your arrogant opinions to yourself.” Attitude dripped from my words. I was still pissed from the last time Aaron had come into the store and tried melting my mind to his whim, or whatever the hell he’d been doing.
Aaron looked a bit affronted and said, “Yes, well, my opinions of the beasts you call friends should not be on the menu for discussion. We will stop discussing them now. There is an evening social that Kieran is hosting tonight, and he would like you to attend.”
“Sorry, I’ve already made plans.” I narrowed my eyes, daring him to question me further about my plans. My bet was that if Aaron really ticked me off, his big boss Kieran wouldn’t like that one bit. Yeah, they needed me, and if they wanted me to play nice, well, they were going to have to play nice, too.
“I see. Kieran is extending his hospitality to you because we are aware the wolves will not be able to watch over you this evening as they have,” he hesitated, and then finished with, “other engagements to attend to.” Aaron’s attempt at not being a pompous jerk was actually amusing. I’m pretty sure he wanted to describe the wolves’ full moon rising events with more degradation and sarcasm than he had. I felt slightly honored, knowing he’d only refrained from being rude for my benefit.
So the vampires knew the wolves had been in contact and watching over me. Why wasn’t this vampire seething with anger because the wolves got to me first? There had to be more to the story about the relations between the wolves and the vampires than what I had read so far.
“What do you mean since they won’t be able to watch over me? Wouldn’t the vampires rather do it themselves anyway?”
A bit of uneasiness shown in his posture. He confirmed my observation when he stalked around the store, pretending to look at the wares for sale.
“Of course, it is the place of the vampires to watch over the Selected, as is only right. Unfortunately, the vampires of Kenosha have a few tribulations that need be attended to before Kieran can fully put his focus to you.”
“What kind of tribulations?”
Aaron continued to walk around the store, with me following not too close behind. He picked up a cross, fashioned from a red-colored stone encircled with silver decorative wire, turned it over, and set it down. The cross didn’t appear to affect him until I spotted a burn mark quickly develop on his palm as he put the cross back where he found it. The mark wouldn’t heal as quickly as a regular vampire injury, according to the journal. Interesting, a little piece of info to tuck into the little box locked away in my brain that was becoming overstuffed with things possibly able to hurt the vampires and werewolves. A girl had to know how to protect herself with all the scary beings lurking about these days.
“The conflicts among the covens are of no concern to you. Kieran is confident the wolves are keeping an eye on you until he is more available to do the job himself. He only offered to have you spend the evening in his company, with people he trusts, because the wolves are not able to watch over you this night. Knights will be sent to watch over you while you participate
in these plans you have made.”
I stood in front of Aaron and put my hands on my hips. “That’s not necessary, and besides, I’ll be with my very human sister, so you and your vampire Knights will stay far away from us. She doesn’t know anything about you, or me, for that matter. So you won’t be going and making a scene where we are and letting her know about you, us. And I’m not asking.” My arms crossed over my chest in emphasis.
Now it was Aaron’s turn to take an aggressive stance. “Sydney, do not confuse yourself into thinking you can dictate to the vampires what we will and will not do when it comes to you and your safety. Some of the tribulations our covens are dealing with involves a rather large nest of rogue vampires in the area. Until we know for certain what the intentions of these rogues are that have recently moved into the area and started to cause us problems, we or the wolves will always be watching over you, regardless of your desires on the matter.”
Now there are rogue vampires and rogue werewolves? And they all might be hunting me? Great, just what a girl wanted to hear. Yeah, thanks, Mom, for insisting on my move to Kenosha. Going out with Brianna, who knew nothing of what was going on, without some sort of protection would be foolish. Everyone kept talking about powers that were at the Selected’s disposal. Exploring them in a darkly lit nightclub with unsuspecting humans all around didn’t sound like a good idea if we were attacked, and as of yet, none of the powers had risen to my attention. In fact, these powers had yet to prove themselves to me that they even existed, especially if, and when, they were needed.
“I’m supposed to go out with my sister tonight for a few drinks and some dancing. One Knight, meaning one, uno, a single, solitary vampire will be allowed to watch over us so we can have a semi-normal evening out. My sister doesn’t know vampires and werewolves exist, and none of you are going to be the ones to tell her. Got it?”
