Alice and The Rogue Wolf

Chapter 17

The next morning, I woke up without Jonathan beside me. I must have slept late into the night because, by the time I woke up, the morning sun was firmly established in the sky. Groaning, I rolled over on the empty bed, wondering where he had gone that early in the morning.

"Looking for me?" I heard him ask as he strolled bare-chested with a mug of coffee in his hands which he extended to me.

Just watching the smirk on his face reminded me of last night when he had lay clung to me, with his bare chest keeping me warm, after minutes of making out in the shower.

However, Beneath the lust, I felt unsatiated. I hadn't discovered, until last night, that loving Jonathan was something that I tried to do. I tried to learn to be drawn to him, but deep down, no matter how much I tried, my wolf never saw him as my mate, and there was no way I could change that.

"Yes, I was. Thank you." I collected the steamy mug With a weak smile.

"You know, today you're going to be stuck here with me so we'll have all the time to recreate what happened last night," he teased, perching a kiss on my forehead.

"I would love to," I began, when, like a violent tide, a realization hit me. I had to meet Sophia today, how could I forget? I checked the time and realized I had only two spare hours before the clock struck nine. "But, I have something I have to take care of."

"Brayden?* Jonathan whined, as I stepped into the bedroom.

"Yeah." I quickly put on the shower to drown his voice but he stood up and leaned on the bathroom door.

"I thought I told you to stay out of Brayden's sight. We have what we need, what more do you want?"

"Trying to talk me out of it is going to be hard, considering that my mind is already made up."

His phone rang and he went downstairs to take the call, leaving me to get ready. I mopped off my dripping body, threw on some underwear, and then a pair of blue jeans and a matching shirt.

With still some time on our hands, I fixed up a breakfast of some bacon and omelets before heading out.

My whereabouts and plan to get my memories back had to be kept sinister, and meeting Brayden was the only excuse I could give Jonathan to ease his worry. My shoulders shuddered at the thought of Brayden. After what he did, I still felt like seeing him again and even fancied the thought of reaching out to him, but I struggled to harden my heart. I had a mission ahead of me and I needed a clear head to face what was ahead of me.

The morning rays cracked through my pores as I walked hastily along the already packed road, the ice cream truck slowly coming into sight. People were bustling about in all directions and if not for my quick reflexes, I would have knocked off an older lady who just hopped on the sidewalk.

"Watch where you're going, young lady!" The lady scolded.

"I'm sorry," I apologized, turning to go when she held my hand and pulled me over to the side of the ice cream truck.

"Hey, Alice! I'm Sophia. Come on, we have to get going before someone recognizes me."

I just nodded and trailed behind her until, after a wordless journey, we finally got to her house. It was an old-looking cottage deep in the woods, shielded by tall trees and wild bushes on the side. From a distance, I could not tell it was there, which was for the best considering that, according to Mrs. Polly, Jonathan had placed a ban on her kind.

She waved her hand and the thorny bush parted with just enough space to let me and her walk through before closing back. I was awed by her powers but no more than I was enthusiastic about the house itself.

It was not so spacious in structure, but it was portable enough for one inhabitant. The compound itself was flooded with eye-catching flower pots, which showed evidence of constant attention and also added a lot of decorations to complement the maroon-painted structure. It was the complete opposite of what I had imagined. It was a dark abandoned building with occult symbols laying about and the wind whistling noisily.

A thud as the door creaked open made up jump in fright. I chided myself for losing focus and hastily followed Sophia as she strode slowly into the poorly lighted house, whose only illumination came from the numerous candles which lay in a circular pattern. I strained my eyes but I couldn't make out anything in the room except Mrs. Sophia as she took off the woolen cardigan she wore, disappeared into the dark, and returned with paraphernalia that reached down to her feet.

"Don't worry, your eyes will get used to the dark soon enough, " she said as she settled down, crossing her legs in the candlelight circle. "Take off your shoes and join me."

I hopped out of the leather boots I had on, slowly made my way into the circle, and strode my legs atop each other as well. My heart was thumping but when I saw how composed she was with her eyes shut and her fingers fondling the crystal clear ball she had brought as well, my worry began to wear off. She began whispering lowly and audibly, and soon enough the wind began flowing in, blowing back her black hair and causing the little flames to wave and sway but still remain lit. After minutes of her paranormal display, she turned to face me with her hands still glued to the orb.

"Your memories were not lost in an accident," she began. "Someone had gotten another witch to put a block on your memories some weeks ago. It was meant to erase your memories of three years ago."

I couldn't believe my ears, and my mouth widened in a gape. I was told it was just an accident that caused my memories, so this revelation was confusing, to say the least.

"Why would anyone want to put a block on my memories?" I asked.

She began folding the crystal ball once more while I waited impatiently for a response. Her whisperings became faster and after a suspenseful minute, she opened her eyes with them still fixed on the orb.

"Well, I'm not at liberty to say that."

I sighed despondently. "Well, is there any way I could maybe remove the block on my memories?"

"Yes," she replied, putting off one of the candles with a wave of her hands. "But I have to warn you the ritual I would conduct could cause irrevocable harm to you, and even worse, you could lose your life. I almost lost someone the last time I tried it."

I supported my chin on my palm, thinking about the decision I was about to make. I already knew that the path to getting my memories would be far from rosy, but I never had any inclination that It could result in taking my life in the end.

"I understand what getting my memories back may entail, but is there any chance I have of getting through this safely?" I asked, hoping for a favorable reply.

She hummed an unfamiliar tune for a while, drumming her long dark nails noisily on the crystal ball before putting off another candle. "It rarely happens but there is a one in a million chance that after the ritual, you would get your memories back and at the same time be physically stable."

I exhaled a long and deep sigh. If there was a chance, then I needn't lose all hope. Perhaps, I thought, I could have that one chance, maybe not, but how would I know if I didn't try. Besides, I had a lot to gain, and it was the only way I could get my memories back, so I decided to give it a shot.

"Those memories are so important to me. Living without them is worse than staying dead so I don't have anything to lose. Let's just get over it. The sooner the better, " I explained with a heavy heart.

From the look on her face, I could tell she understood my plight. She muttered some indistinct spells and a paper and pen appeared in my hands.

"I need you to acknowledge that you understand what you're getting into. It's not too late to back out but if you insist, just sign the document."

The conditions outlined in the document sat well with me so I hurriedly supplied my signature on the floating piece of paper and watched it disappear.

"Okay," the witch said standing up. "Before we begin you're going to have to lay down in this circle."

Before I could move, she widened the circumference of the candle-guarded circle. With a drumming heart, I lay back down and watched her c***k her knuckles as she began chanting spells, and knelt beside me.