Chapter 6
1956 Words
“Let go of me!” I shriek as we stumble out into a cathedral-like building, the air thick with the scent of incense and old stone. Elijah, in his wolf form, had yanked me through the portal with his fangs, and now I whirl around, instinctively poised to strike. But before my fist can connect, he’s human again. “I’m not going anywhere with you!”
He grabs hold of my wrist. “You need to calm down.”
“I told you I didn’t want to come here!” My voice bounces off the confines of the cavernous hallway. “Take me back. Now!”
“So you can run in front of another truck?”
“Anything is better than being here,” I scream. “Please, send me back. I won’t be a problem. I—”
A long whistle cuts through the air, followed by a snicker. “Another pup, Eli?”
I turn to glare at the boy who spoke. Holy crap. He’s a giant, towering over me at seven feet—if not more—bearing an amused expression on his face.
“Let me guess, you got this one from the suburbs?” the boy wonders.
“A motel.” Elijah expels a weary breath. “It’s not what you think.”
“Did you forget to use your enchantment?”
“I did use it on her. She somehow bypassed it,” Elijah gripes. “I need to get her to—”
Before he can finish, I lunge, sinking my teeth into his hand with all the strength I can muster. The taste of blood floods my mouth, metallic and sharp.
Elijah lets out a strangled cry, spitting out a string of curses as he wrenches his hand away from me, glaring with a mix of pain and shock.
The other boy doubles over in a fit of laughter, his booming voice echoing through the vast chamber. “This is gold, man! You’ve really got your hands full with this one.” He wipes away a tear, his mirth only growing louder as Elijah struggles to regain his composure.
“Shut up, Cass,” Elijah snaps, his eyes steady on me as I back away. “There’s no point in running. You can’t get out of the grounds. Stop making it so hard on yourself and come with me.”
“The hell I am,” I shoot back. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
The tall boy scratches the back of his neck, amused by my predicament. “You sure you don’t need help, Eli?”
“I can handle this,” Elijah retaliates. “Go get Humphrey. She needs to check this one out.”
“Why? Why not send her to the commons?” Cass inquires. “Give her some time to cool off, and she’ll figure out that no one here will try to eat her.”
“I can’t.” Elijah inches toward me. “I need to take her to Humphrey.”
“Why?” Cass queries further. “What’s so special about this one that she needs Humphrey’s attention?”
“It’s a long story,” Elijah sighs, glaring at Cass. “Can you just go? As in, now?”
“Fine, man,” Cass smirks at me. “Good luck chasing this one across the courtyard. I bet you fifty she’s going to outshine that Jaxon boy.”
Elijah murmurs another string of curses before he edges toward me, like he’s approaching a wild animal.
My heart feels like it’s about to leap out of my chest, and I have a feeling I’m about to do something irrational—not that anything about my circumstances is rational to begin with. “Why am I truly here?”
“Exactly what I told you. We’re trying to help you and figure out why your mark is different.”
“What’s it to you what happens to me?”
“Because if you run wild, you could become a danger to humans,” he clarifies. “You could die if you don’t know how to contain your magic or the change. That’s what the academy is for. It’s to help you manage all of it.”
“Why me?” my voice quivers. “I don’t get it.”
“I wish I could tell you why the huntress chose you, but I don’t have that answer for you. You can find out if you learn how to tap into your magic. You can talk to her yourself.”
“I can? She will tell me?”
Elijah sighs, tilting his head to the side, pointing at the mark on my neck. “There’s a good chance. Sometimes she doesn’t give direct answers, but I’m positive she’s got something big planned for you. You’re important to her.”
“You think Luca might know? The guy who bit me?”
“I don’t know, but we’ll need your cooperation to find out.” Elijah’s shoulders eases slightly. “I promise you, we are not going to hurt you in any way.”
“Then why did you use magic on me?”
“To keep you calm. I knew it was the only way for you to listen.” A slight smile forms on his lips. “I sense emotions. It’s part of my gift. You’ll develop one too. An ability unique to you.”
“I’ll be able to sense emotions too?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. Or you might be able to do other cool things. But the only way you’ll be able to find out and manage those abilities is if you work with the academy. Stay here and learn.”
“Right.” I peer down the hall, pushing out a deep breath in hopes of calming my racing heartbeat. “What did you mean by ‘you need my neck’? What are you going to do?”
“You thought we were going to chop it off or something, didn’t you?” he cracks a grin. “We need your neck, with you attached to it. Alive. No funny business, I swear.”
“I don’t get how it is going to help.”
“We need to perform a spell to track the one who marked you. In a nutshell, Humphrey’s going to sprinkle some herbs on your neck and chant. No wolves will get harmed in the process.”
“And this is going to bring Luca here?” I press on.
“Yes. We might be able to get some answers for you. And with some chance, by then when you’ve calmed down enough, I can show you around and how we go about things here. We’re not as rabid and wild as humans claim us to be. If anything, we’re more humane than humans.”
I rub my arms, staring at him. I could run, but from what I understand, there’s no way out, and one of them will catch me eventually. Or I can go with him and get it over with. I puff out another breath. If I don’t stop exhaling so much, I’ll faint. “Fine. Let’s do this.”
Elijah leads me through a narrow corridor bright with candlelight, down several flights of stairs, and into an extensive dark passage.
“Exactly where are we going?” I press a hand to my stomach, worming closer to him. I’m overrun with the sudden fear of getting snatched and dragged into a dungeon somewhere.
“To Humphrey. She’s the werewolf high priestess. Also known as the headmistress of the academy.”
“And does she live down here?”
“No. This is usually where she works during the night.” He turns to face a geometric symbol with a wolf in the center, carved into the stone wall. Raising a hand, he presses a palm against it. A click sounds, and the wall melts away. “She rarely sleeps.”
I stare in awe at the open space where the wall had been. It takes me a few heartbeats to find my voice. “Another werewolf perk?”
“Nah, I can only wish,” he laughs. “She uses potions to keep herself awake. But,” he lowers his voice, “she’s like a hundred and two. We’re pretty sure she’s mixing an anti-aging potion in there as well. Never say it to her face, though—she’s very sensitive about the topic.”
“Okay?”
He slants closer when the door to an ancient-looking office swings open. “You’ll see what I mean.”
As we step in, the scent of burning sandalwood and sweet spice encloses me. My eyes track the source. It’s a small marble bowl burning a range of dried herbs on a wooden desk.
My nose wrinkles. “Isn’t she worried about fire hazards?”
“No, she does not,” a sharp, firm voice makes the muscles in my back tense up. I turn to look toward the obscure part of the room, where the woman spoke from. I can only see the hem of her shamrock-green dress peeking out from underneath the shadows. “That’s the beauty of magic. Especially if you understand how to preserve control over it.”
I bite into my cheek, peeking at Elijah, who shakes his head. I take it as a cue to remain silent.
The woman sighs and gets up. When she steps into the light, I can’t help the gasp that escapes from between my lips.
My hand flies to my mouth. “Your dress is beautiful,” I compliment, attempting to redeem the slip.
The woman—well, should I rather say, girl—offers a sweet smile. “Thank you, dear. I’m quite fond of it.”
I glance at Elijah with a quizzical look.
He nods. “This is the high priestess and headmistress of the academy, Mrs. Humphrey. Mrs. Humphrey, this is Hailey Woods. She’s the new pup I retrieved.”
The girl, with lips painted scarlet, smiles. She doesn’t look a day over ten. Her long, raven curls frame her porcelain-skinned, doll-like face.
“Aren’t you supposed to take her to the dorm and help her settle in?” She pins Elijah with an inquisitive look. “Or did something go wrong?”
“Not exactly.” Elijah sets down both my duffel bags on the floor. I forgot about them. And, come to think of it, I don’t recall seeing him carry them until now. “Let me show you. Hailey?”
I nod, tossing my hair back over my shoulder to expose my neck to Mrs. Humphrey.
She gasps, rounding her desk to get to my side and seizing me by the arm. “My dear girl, the huntress must think highly of you.”
I blink. “How so?”
“You’re granted a very special gift.” She turns to Elijah. “This girl, she isn’t the first. If you paid attention in history class, you’d know what this means, boy.”
Elijah’s cheeks flush. “I didn’t realize history was interesting.”
Mrs. Humphrey’s lips curve down. “The huntress only gifts her most favored followers with this.” She nods toward the marking on my neck. “Only the best of our people, among our rulers and highest stationed, receive this.”
“I don’t follow. I mean, it can’t be,” I waver. “There’s nothing great about me.”
“Not according to our gracious Diana,” Mrs. Humphrey maintains. “Girl, you have no idea what you’re in for.”
- Writer
