1| No Cure
I tap my manicured nails on the table and glance at my wrist watch.
11.15 PM.
I let out a frustrated huff and continue tapping my nails as my eyes rake over the herd of humans shaking their posteriors to some upbeat melody. I almost cringe when my eyes land on a couple practically having sex in the middle of the dance floor, as they wildly grind against each other.
Horny idiots.
The intolerable smell of the club and cheap perfume, intermixed with the stinky sweat of humans is doing a number on my senses. And not a good one.
''Will you quit doing that?'', Sienna rolls her eyes at me.
''No. Where do you think Hale is? He was supposed to be here thirty minutes ago.''
''No idea'', she shrugs, ''Probably got caught up somewhere.''
''I am going to rip his head off once he comes. He's already wasted loads of my time.''
I am completely annoyed and itching for a fight to release some of my frustration.
''Just because we're wild animals, doesn't mean we can go around acting like them. He'd fling you in the air even before you lay a hand on him.''
''I-'', I am interrupted by someone panting heavily. Turning around, I find Darren Hale standing behind me and gulping huge amounts of air like his life depends on it.
''Glad to see you're exactly on time Hale.'', I mutter sarcastically.
He rolls his eyes and takes a seat next to Sienna. I slide my glass of water towards him which he heartily gulps down.
''I apologize for the delay. We had new witches joining our coven and I had to monitor their initiation.''
I raise a questioning brow. ''You witches breed like worms. Weren't there any other witches to take care of the initiation?''
''Says the dog about breeding'', he waives me off, ''I am the second in command, I obviously couldn't let the apprentices handle such a hefty task, darling.''
'Shut up Darren. Tell me, did you find the cure?'', Sienna looks at him with hopeful eyes putting an end to our banter.
His grim expression gives everything away as I let out a string of curses. Chewing on my bottom lip, I shake my head in desperation. Glancing at Hale who was already staring at me with apologetic eyes, I sigh heavily.
What the hell are we supposed to do now?
''Look Maneli, searching for a cure is not a piece of cake. Even though I am a witch, it doesn't mean that I am aware of every single magical trick which exists in the universe.''
Sienna opens her mouth to speak but he holds up a finger indicating her to keep quiet.
''I have been rummaging through texts. While, I am not sure when, but I promise you, I'll come up with something as soon as possible.''
I nod at him with a small, reluctant smile. I have to take what I can get. Not like my pack and I have any other options. But no matter how much I curse at him or threaten to claw his head off, I am greatly indebted to him for aiding us, even though he is risking his own life to do so.
I give his hand a slight squeeze. ''Thank you Hale. I don't have words to explain how much I appreciate this.''
He nods as his eyes light up mischievously.
''You don't have to thank me darling. Just tell me if you found your mate yet or do I still have a chance of whisking you away?''
I groan loudly. Hale's amorous feelings are not alien to me. Having known each other since we could walk, we are definitely close, he is one of my closest confidantes. However, his friendship has blossomed into something which I am too hesitant to address for the sake of protecting our friendship.
I never can, in a million years imagine being in a romantic relationship with him simply because he is a witch and I am a Lycanthrope. I have my mate out there, somewhere and so does he. Moreover, I value our friendship too much to take a chance like that.
My wolf and I want to wait for our soulmate.
Hale, however, never lets go of an opportunity to remind me about how he would love for us to be together and I always graciously take the chance to remind him of how I'd break his bones if he brings the same thing up again.
Alas, taking hints isn’t his strongest pursuit.
''Go to hell Hale.'', I grumble. Sienna lets out a low laugh and turns towards him.
''At this point, you should just quit trying. Your efforts aren't reaping any fruits.'', she snickers.
''Well, I am a patient man.'', he winks at me as I stand up.
''We need to go. We can't be out in the open for this long.''
Sienna sighs and nodds in agreement as she quickly pulls Hale into a hug. He walks over to me before pulling me towards himself. I wrapp my arms around him tightly and give him a little squeeze.
''Stay safe darling.'', he whispers and kisses the top of my head. I pull back and wink at him. ''You too hot shot.''
He takes a step back, clicks his fingers and vanishes into thin air. Even after all these years, I still cannot wrap my head around it. As soon as he vanishes, I end up facing a human who is attempting to spew words out of his mouth in complete shock.
''The man, that man-, he-, vanished away.'', the human whispers to me with wide eyes and an open mouth. I smile, nodded and take a step towards him.
I place my hand on his arm and stare straight into his eyes. ''You're too drunk. You didn't see anyone. Now go back home and sleep the night away.'' The man meekly nodds and saunters away towards the exit.
''Tell me you just didn't do it again.''
''I did it again.''
I glance at my sister as her eyes shine bright with disappointment. She constantly reminds me to keep my abilities at bay, more specifically, hidden. What she does not comprehend is how restless my body feels if I do not push it to its limits. The magic cackling through my veins is a constant reminder of what I am capable of.
Before I can utter a word, Sienna grabs my hand and maneuvers our way through the throng of humans. The humid atmosphere of the club is giving me a headache. I press my fingers to my temple lightly hoping to calm myself down. We are almost past the crowd when a humongous body bumps into me, causing me to topple.
''Watch it!'', I snap at the burly man.
He mutters a sorry as he squats down to grab the photographs he has dropped on the floor when he collided with me. Sienna bends down to help the man when her hand freezes in mid air.
'Maneli, do not react under any circumstances I am warning you.'
My eyes curiously go straight to the scene, wondering why the hell is she mind linking me even though I am right beside her.
'What is it?'
I almost growl out loud when she pushes the image of the photographs through the mind link to me.
'Get up, don't let him see your face and let's get the hell out of here.'
She nodds quickly before standing up. My wolf is growling and howling at the back of my mind as we almost sprint out of the club. I can sense her wolf pacing anxiously. I have a strong urge to return to the club and rip the man to pieces, however, the safety of my pack holds more importance than my violent tendencies.
We barely speak a word to each other as we swiftly walk towards our home.
Home.
I internally scoff at the word. I have no home. My pack members do not have a home. Our home has long been turned to ashes and dust to the point that nothing remains of it. What is a home without the loved ones anyway? My wolf whimpers as I reminisce my house being set on fire as they chopped my mother's fingers off-
I shake my head to rid myself of the memories. Now is not the time. My brain is swarmed with the thoughts of my pack members. I have to inform them about the photographs. I have to be the bearer of ill news again. My jaw clenches in frustration.
How long do we have to keep running? Like cowards, like damn ninnies?
My thoughts come to a sudden halt as a large hand roughly grabs my arm and another slaps over my mouth to keep me from screaming. I wildly thrash around in the man's hold as I am hauled into an alley.
Always the damned alleys.
I panick as I saw my sister in the same condition as me, flailing her arms and legs, trying to get out of the man's strong hold.
A surge of anger rushes through my veins as I take a whiff of their scents.
Damn, I should have known they'd come. Who else could it be?
I yelp as the man violently pushes me against the wall and sneers at me revealing his filthy sharp teeth. He frees my mouth and pins my arms against the wall.
''Close your mouth. The stench is making me want to puke. The least you could have done was brush your teeth,'', I scrunch my nose in disgust.
''I'd love ripping your hair out and offering them to my Alpha after I give you a slow death.'', he whispers, completely ignoring my request.
I laugh.
''What the hell are you laughing about?'', he scrunches his brows in confusion.
''Sorry to break your little bubble of happiness, but it breaks my heart to tell you that things won't be going that way.'', my face contorts into an expression of mock sadness.
''Huh?''
Since he is already grasping my arms with his hands, my efforts to touch him are saved. Staring straight into his eyes, I focus on his pupils, pinning him to his place.
''Go back to your pack, to your idiot Alpha. Take your dead friend's body back with you as a token of gift from my pack. Spit at your Alpha's feet and tell him what a fucking coward he is who hides behind his soldiers to kill innocent wolves but doesn't have the courage to face them directly. Oh, also, jump down from a building and kill yourself after that. Now, release me.''
He nods and slowly lets me go.
Jerk. I rub my wrists which now sport a bright red color due to his tight hold. A loud thud attracts my attention as I see Sienna struggling to fight the second man. Tears leak out of her eyes as she wildly thrashes around pleading to the man to back off.
My sister is everything but a warrior. That wouldn't normally pose a problem, but in our world, it is be the biggest setback, something which could get you killed in a matter of seconds.
Fury burns through me at the sight of her helpless tears. I swiftly tiptoe towards them, trying not to catch their attention. The man raises his hand with his extended claws to swipe them across her face. She shrieks and tightly shuts her eyes close waiting for the attack.
Before the man can make a move, my claws extend out of my hand and tear through the soft flesh across the man's back. He howls in pain and turns on his heel to growl loudly at me.
The entire fiasco is boring me to no end. Not wishing to waste anymore of my precious time, I sink my claws into his chest pulling his heart out and tossing it at his friend's feet. The man's limp body falls on the floor with a loud thud.
Sienna crashes into me and snakes her arms around me. I hold her tightly to myself as she bawls her eyes out. Kissing her cheek, I pull back to wipe her tears from her face.
''You're the older sister. You should be the one consoling me. Not the other way round.'', I joke.
''I, I was just-, scared, very scared. I really thought I'd die today.'', she whimpers.
''It's alright. It's done. We need to rush back now. It's not safe.''
She nods in affirmation. I clutch onto her hand and step over the man's body. His empty chest cavity, devoid of his heart is oozing blood forming a red puddle on the ground. The sight makes me nauseous. I notice the dead man's companion picking up his body in a daze and dashing into the darkness of the street.
Sienna and I rush towards our temporary house as fast as our legs can carry us in our human form. She releases a sigh of relief as a familiar, old building comes into view.
I almost break the door of our house while knocking. An annoyed face greets me as the door is flung open.
''God Maneli! I thought someone was dying.'', Rhea narrowes her eyes at me.
''Yeah, that someone might be us.''
One look at my bloody hands and Sienna's shaky form and she quietly lets us in without a word.
