Wolfsbane: The Wolf Within

by Bethany Shay Porteous

Hurt washed through me and I bit the inside of my cheek, nodding tightly at him. That was the first time he had ever made me stop touching him.

  I watched him walk out and soon after a hand rested on my shoulder. I looked up at The Luna who smiled down at me gently, taking my hand and giving it a squeeze.

  “It’s okay sweetie,” she soothed. “He’s just having a little tanty. He’ll get over it.”

  “I can understand where he’s coming from,” Trey said loudly. “If it was Grace, I’d be pissed as well. But, at the end of the day, if this is something that needs to be done… if its Evelyn dies, or those witches die, then we should stand behind her and help as much as we can.”

  “Exactly,” Aliyah agreed.

  “The time spent wasted here right now could go on training,” Josh grumbled.

  “Give him time,” the Alpha told everyone. “He’ll be back in fifteen minutes I can guarantee, with a new training plan.”

  “Morgana,” my father said. “What’s she like Evelyn?”

  All eyes turned to me and I felt heat creep its way up my neck. “She’s uh… she’s… at first overwhelming… then after a while she really looks quite normal. She talks normal. I mean I know she’s our creator but there was a time when she was just like us.”

  “Look at Evie,” Grace whistled. “Getting close with the Moon Goddess like it’s no big deal.”

  “Best friends for life,” Aliyah chuckled.

  I shrugged. “She just seemed normal.”

  “Normal,” Sienna gasped.

  “I don’t know what else to say!” I spluttered and waved my hands.

  “It’s okay Evelyn,” The Luna soothed. “You had an experience with the Moon Goddess and for each individual it would mean something so entirely different. You can feel about it however you want to feel about it.”

  I nodded and swallowed. “I thought I was dead at first. I woke up in this white space—there was nothing around at all and no one.”

  “Well you’re related,” Hannah shrugged. “Like, closer than most witches.”

  “What was it like?” Grace asked wide eyed. “Thinking you were dead?”

  “Scary,” I whispered, and I felt emotion coat my voice. “I honestly thought I had pushed my luck too far and it was over.” The room went silent and I sucked in a breath as I looked around before I stood up and cracked my neck. “I’m going to find my mate.”

  “He could be anywhere in the territory,” Grace said.

  Closing my eyes, I placed my hand over Aiden’s bite and allowed myself the faith to believe I could use the magic Morgana said I had. If it was that easy, then I should be able to pinpoint him and go to him. I could already feel the tingles heightening, the same way they did whenever he touched me. The marks connected instantly, and I saw flashes of his wolf, barreling through the forest before he came to a rest, nearly falling into a body of water.

  I concentrated harder and in the corner of his eye I spotted the swinging rope and I flashed my eyes open in victory.

  “He’s at the Falls,” I announced proudly.

  “Wh—” Aliyah started, but I was already leaving the room.

  ∞

  Aiden’s head whipped around quickly as I stumbled into the clearing and in an instant, he had shifted, looking more confused than my family had.

  “We need to talk,” I told him firmly and from behind my back I threw him a pair of shorts.

  “I don’t want you to do it,” he said bluntly.

  “I have to do it Aiden,” I told him. “I’m going to do it. I am strong enough to do this. I know I am.”

  “It doesn’t matter how strong you are Evelyn,” he growled. “All it takes is one moment and they could take you from me, forever this time.”

  “The same could be said when you go out for patrols or go off and fight battles that aren’t yours,” I told him. “I don’t say anything—my heart is on edge the entire time you’re gone Aiden, but I say nothing, because I know it’s what you do. Well I’m a witch, a witch with incredible power, and these two have to be put down.”

  “Evelyn—”

  “Aiden,” I cut him off and cupped his cheeks watching him soften instantly and the vulnerable fear in his eyes surface. “I love you, I really do. I know you’re only trying to protect me, but by trying to stop me, you’re only going to kill me. It’s them or me, and I know what I choose.”

  He stayed silent this time and I searched his eyes for some indication he heard me. After a minute his staring made me nervous and I could feel my cheeks flushing as I realized the look he was giving me.

  “Aiden—” he cut me off by pressing his lips to mine, dragging me so tightly into his arms I could barely breathe.

  He kissed me with all the emotion he had. Fear, anger, hurt, love… it was all there, and I could feel each feeling course through my mark and resound through me also. My lips moved in sync with his and his hold loosened slightly, becoming more comfortable as I molded into the safety of his arms, allowing myself to be consumed by him.

  He pulled back, his eyes amber and wild and he held my cheeks in his hands. “I love you Evelyn, more than life. If you die, I will end the Moon Goddess myself.”

  “I’m not going to die,” I assured him softly. “You’re going to help me make sure I don’t, okay?”

  He nodded tightly.

  “Oh, and Aiden?” I said quickly.

  “Yes?”

  “Get your ass to the dungeons and let Karla and Sam out,” I ordered. “Or I will.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “I am sorry Evelyn,” Sam murmured. “For everything—after I realized it was you they were after I knew I couldn’t do it. They threatened Karla and I didn’t know what to do. Unfortunately, they took that out of my hands anyway.”

  “Sam,” I started softly. “It’s okay… I understand. You came here under totally different circumstances. You were a rogue and you didn’t have any other income or source of protection. Not that I condone your line of work before realizing, I can understand why you did what you did.”

  “Aiden wanted to kill me,” he quivered.

  “He still does,” I laughed. “He’ll get over it. How is Karla?”

  “Very unhappy,” Sam said. “She feels betrayed… like she doesn’t know where else she can go with the pack now. She feels that she’s risked her life time and time again for the pack and now, to have everyone turn on her so quickly—she’s not sure if she wants to stay.”

  “That’s understandable,” I acknowledged. “I hope she doesn’t leave. Emotions were high.”

  “I know,” Sam agreed. “I’ll talk to her anyway.”

  A comfortable silence settled between us as we walked through the forest, leaves crunching beneath our feet as both our minds drifted to places neither could reach, yet at the same time it felt as if we were both thinking along the same lines. A silent conversation between two unlikely friends, a friendship that started so long ago.

  My mind was running rampant with my new task, handed down to me by Morgana and my anxiety was rising that I still couldn’t reach my wolf. She said I needed my wolf to take them down—so what was I meant to do? No matter what I tried I couldn’t reach her. I was at an impasse with the role I had been given and the fact that my wolf had gone dead on me.

  My father had decided to stay with me in Oregon until all of this was over and of course, Sienna and Aliyah stayed behind as well. Surprisingly Phoenix did too. He was still an enigma I was trying to work out, my little half-brother. He was the silent type, every now and then joining in on banter, but mostly keeping to himself and his books.

  He was the type who would say something when he needed to, otherwise he’d remain in his silent bubble quite happily.

  “How is Aiden taking it all?” Sam asked me.

  “As good as can be expected,” I scoffed as I kicked a rock down the track. “He isn’t happy, let’s just say that. I know he’s trying, for me, but I know he’s stressing and it’s making me stressed.” />
  “The important thing is to focus,” Sam told me. “I know that it’s easy to run on the same mood as your mate, but you need to be able to separate yourself from it and focus on what it is you need to do. This is life or death Evelyn, you need to be in control and know what you’re doing.”

  “That’s all well and good to say,” I laughed dryly. “But, I still don’t have my wolf and that’s a problem. Morgana said I needed my wolf to defeat her daughters. What am I supposed to do? I really don’t know what I’m doing.”

  “Give it time,” Sam assured me. “If the Moon Goddess gave you a job to do, she wouldn’t leave you stranded. Your wolf will show up again when you need her. How does it feel though, to have your mind to yourself again?”

  “Like a gift from above,” I laughed with glee. “Less dark, that’s for sure.”

  “Just take your time Evelyn,” Sam told me. “As scary this all is, the Moon Goddess wouldn’t have given you a job that she didn’t think you could do. You know?”

  I chewed my lip as I mulled over his words before I nodded nervously. “That’s true, I guess. I know I’m not alone in this either… I have everyone wanting to help me but also at the end of the day, I can only have so much help…”

  “Then it’s left up to you entirely,” Sam finished solemnly.

  “Yes,” I sighed. “I wish it wasn’t me.”

  “Everyone does,” Sam told me.

  Wishing was nice, I thought sadly as we continued to walk, but I knew that I needed to get down to business and face reality. If I wanted even a shot at living, I needed to at least do that.

  ∞

  “This is way too baggy,” Grace growled as she tried on another robe. “I asked for something smaller!”

  “That is our smallest size,” another student snapped.

  “Well if this is your smallest then poor twig Evelyn is fucked,” Grace said. “Seriously? Why are the robes so massive for?”

  “Do you think you can do a better job?” the human glowered. “Because I don’t even want to be here.”

  “Then why are you?” Grace demanded.

  “Extra credit,” she seethed before dumping the pile of hangers in a loud heap and storming from the room.

  “Be nice Grace,” I told her. “No one wants to be at the school on a weekend working for extra credit.”

  “These robes suck,” she whined. “Does nothing for my figure.”

  “Lucky we’re just graduating and not modeling them then,” I said dryly as I shrugged out of the gown.

  Grace and I left the school building holding our less than impressive burnt orange robes in their garment bags, making our way to Lucy’s jeep. She was somewhere in the school with Geoff doing Morgana knows what, so we leaned up against the metal exterior, Grace whipping out her phone and me staring into nothing as my mind raced with thoughts I had put on hold.

  My wolf was still as silent as ever, no longer even giving so much as a stir within my mind. How was I supposed to fulfill the prophecy without her? Morgana said I would need my wolf, that I’d be stronger with her. She was right in that fact, just as I would be going up against two beings, so would they. They’d need to take down my wolf as well as myself.

  But if I didn’t get her…. I exhaled in frustration as the sun beat down hot on my neck.

  I was still training as before, picking up like nothing had ever happened. My fighting had been somewhat sloppy in the beginning, but I soon picked up on what I had been taught. My self-defense wasn’t a worry for me, it was my magic and that was where Hannah had selflessly volunteered herself to duel with me every day, along with my father and siblings.

  My phone buzzed impatiently in my hand and I peeked at it, noting Hannah had sent a reminder text that we were meeting up to practice in fifteen minutes.

  “Where’s Lucy?’ I complained loudly.

  “I need to get a car,” Grace muttered. “And you need to learn how to drive.”

  “Tried that already,” I said quickly.

  “Just an automatic Evelyn,” Grace said. “You’ve already used your magic to drive… so you could even get a manual—”

  “I’m not going to fake something as serious as driving,” I gasped. “Those things are death machines.”

  “They’re also extremely convenient,” Grace said as she shielded her eyes. “You need to learn to drive Evelyn. It’s part of life.”

  I chewed my lip anxiously as I thought of Aiden’s pained face every time I stalled the truck or hit the brakes too hard. He was nice about it, trying his hardest not to yelp when I’d get to close to the other cars… I suppose I could give it another go…

  “How exciting is it that prom is so close?” Grace changed the subject.

  “I really haven’t even given it any thought,” I admitted. “Or graduation. I’ve kind of been half-possessed for the better part of the last few months. Now I have to plan the end of two of my crazy ancestors. Prom really isn’t a priority thought.”

  “True,” Grace said and clicked her tongue. “But, you should have some fun thoughts, even with all this serious stuff going on. You can’t miss out on senior year, you won’t get this year again.”

  “I’ve already missed most of it,” I muttered bitterly.

  Grace nudged my shoulder and I looked into her wide blue eyes. “So, don’t miss too much more then, okay?”

  “Sorry guys!” Lucy’s voice broke out across the parking lot. “I’m here!”

  “We got your robe,” Grace said.

  “Thank you!” Lucy gasped as she came over and unlocked the Jeep.

  I stared at Lucy for a moment, taking in her shiny blonde hair and noted the way it seemed to gleam a little bit brighter than usual. Her skin had a flawless looking glow to it and her usual feisty aura seemed mellow and cool. I frowned deeply as a mild pinky mist rested around her abdomen and a lump rested in my throat as my eyes flashed to hers.

  “Are we going?” Grace demanded from the Jeep.

  “Yes!” Lucy called out, her eyes holding mine tightly. “Later,” she mouthed at me before flouncing off to the driver’s side.

  I dazedly got in the backseat, trying to ignore the nervous glances Lucy threw at me through the rear mirror.

  She couldn’t be pregnant…. and if she was, how had no one else scented it?

  By the time we pulled up out the front, Hannah was already waiting for me on the porch with Aiden and my father and I quickly scrambled out of the car, Lucy now wedged into the back of my mind as I tried to focus myself for the grueling session I was about to face against my family.

  “Sorry!” Lucy called out from the Jeep. “She’s late because of me!”

  My father simply waved, and Lucy floored it away from the house, Grace hardly having shut the door properly.

  “Weird,” Grace mumbled before shrugging. “Okay, I’ll take these inside and you get down to business with your voodoo stuff!” Grace messily removed the robes from me and I winced as she bunched them up in her arms and rushed inside.

  The Luna would throw a fit.

  I made my way up to the porch where Hannah gave me a small smile and my father set down his coffee, rubbing his hands on his jeans as his serious down-to-business face came on.

  “Are we ready?” he asked enthusiastically, and I felt nerves bubble within me. “I’ll take your face as a yes. Evelyn, just remember you took down Salem with your own magic, all you need to do is believe in it and harness it. You know how powerful you can be, yours is more connected to the Earth though, which is where it’s trickier to help you learn it.”

  “Seeing as we really learn from our books,” Hannah explained. “But, you’ve had your moments when your power has been you. The battle, that night, you had every bit of control. You had the will of the magic running through you. Those are the moments you need to remember.”

  “Your sister and Phoenix went into town,” my father said. “Today your goal is to protect your mate from our magic, and yourself at the same time.”

&nb
sp; “Huh?” I gasped.

  “You need to shield Aiden and yourself while actively fighting back,” Hannah told me. “Now we obviously aren’t going to be shooting lethal blows at you, but Danyeela and Tatiana will be. So, if you get hit you lose instantly and that means you’re dead and it’s over.”

  “Nice,” Aiden said dryly.

  Morgana help me, I pleaded. I usually only had to defend my siblings, not Aiden!

  “Is it safe to do this out here?” my father asked.

  “We should go into the back,” Aiden suggested. “Just to be on the safe side. Next time we can go out to the clearing.”

  As we walked around the back of the house, Aiden’s hand slipped into mine and I felt that familiar warmth spread through my body and I instantly calmed, squeezing his hand gently. Aiden was still here and still willing to help me, and that was all I needed.

  Now I just needed to make sure he didn’t get hurt for his good deed.

  We centered ourselves in the middle of the yard and I loosened up my muscles as my nerves only seemed to grow stronger.

  “Now Evelyn,” my father started. “This will hurt, you need to at least feel some pain to motivate yourself to work harder.”

  I grit my teeth and nodded, and I watched as Aiden’s face paled somewhat, giving me a weak smile of determination.

  “Okay,” I told them.

  “It’s important to remember your adrenaline will kick in the moment it all starts,” Hannah said. “Which means you need to keep yourself focused and calm, even though you’ll be frantic to defend yourself. You’ll die quicker or get hurt worse being a scrambled mess. Watch how they interact with each other when they perform, you’ll find they’ll work from the other.”

  “Alright,” my father said. “Let’s put this to the test.”

  “Ready to defend Evelyn,” Hannah instructed.

  Closing my eyes, I planted my feet and made sure I was separated from my thoughts. I needed to be focused on what I was doing. I couldn’t think about Aiden—I needed to think about defending him and myself, while not losing concentration.

  When the first attack came I surprised myself, feeling it through the energy of the earth, following a direct path from behind me.