The Faerie Slayer
Chapter 19

I was simply out of words. I did not care to question him further. I wanted to be away from him, I needed to go back inside and find Ben who can hopefully shed some regularity back into my currently upside down life. I rushed inside and dived head first into the bathrooms. I scrubbed the now dried blood and dirt off of my palms. I hadn't drank much but already my head was dizzy. I looked around for Ben through sweaty bodies of drunken teens. I used my cellphone to text him a dozen times and finally found him seated at the table with the rest of Matt's band. He immediately stood up when he seen me.

"Are you alright?" He questioned the look of distraught on my face. I had forgotten to regain my composure. I wanted to never tell Ben if what I had just witnessed.

"Why haven't you texted me back? I texted you like 10 times."

He took his phone out of his pocket and swore under his breath," it's dead."

I merely nodded and bobbed my hair as normally as I could muster with the music. Ben reached for my arm," do you think we can talk now? About that thing I've been meaning to tell you about?"

"Yes!" I replied almost desperately. Anything that will take my mind off of my bird-murdering flower-manipulating boyfriend. I grabbed his fingers and led us through the mob once again, this time aggressively. I did not hesitate to push or nudge against the force that is wasted teens and eventually I was able to see a glimpse of the moonlight night through the entry way. Finally outside, I was able to breath again. I must had forgotten about Ben's presence because when he finally spoke to alert me of it I practically jumped out of my skin.

"Crap!" I screamed out and he shot me a look of confusion.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I am, just jumpy."

"Where's Caleb?"

I don't know and I don't care.

"I think he's still smoking."

"You think? Weren't you with him?"

"Come on Ben, tell me what you've been meaning to," I urged to change the topic of discussion and he sighed.

"Alright," he began to pace and I wondered about what could it be. Immediately my brain began to assume.

Maybe he's had a secret relationship with a teacher of ours, or maybe he's gay? Maybe he also can control plants and little birdies.

"I've been meaning to tell you this since the 3rd grade," he began," ever since I could begin to comprehend and understand my feelings."

I nodded but I was more mystified. So it's not a secret relationship with our teacher.

"Out with it Ben," I said and suddenly realized that I was not being as reassuring as I usually am. I placed a hand on his shoulder and halted his nervous pacing," whatever it is, we'll be best friends no matter what, you know that."

He nodded and turned his entire body to face me. I couldn't help but stress about whatever it was that my best friend had been keeping from me since the third grade. When he finally revealed his secret, my initial thought, caught in the middle of my subconsciousness and the surface of my true thoughts were, did I somehow somewhere along the timeline of our friendship, perhaps suspected this?

"I'm in love with you, Aubrette Fawn."

Kade's Pov

At the Odin Pack reserve, my father had released a statement to all of the citizens after an emergency pack meeting to follow up after the release of the news article. A new headline stated that there would be bounty hunters paid in commission by the tax payers dollar to find and trap any wolf that they could find. This would mean that mortals would be coming into our land, scavenging through our forests and land in search of a lone wolf or two to claim the prize money. The release concluded by my father and Luce Atlas instructed for there to be no shifting for the next two weeks. We were to remain in human form for the next fourteen days until things were to cool down and this would blow over. No one was about to transition unless the situation absolutely required it. For the next few weeks we would be under the watch of any mortal that had theirs suspicions and theories about our reserve. A couple of years ago our land was paraded by a group of around twenty something humans who held up signs and sticks of fire on a night where there was a new moon and chanted," murdering shapeshifters!"

The police found no context to their beliefs and arrested the theorists for trespassing. They apologized and left us to our reserve. We hadn't had an issue with the other side since then. I hated to be the trigger of it all, as instructed by my father alongside the other leaders, the rules for the next little while were very clear:

•Remain indoors after nine pm when there is a full moon.

•Shifting is permitted unless absolutely necessary

•Anyone with an upcoming Neturi Ritual is to travel by car up north, nearby the Canadian Border and join our friends from the Irving Pack in Vermont.

•If you stumble across a bounty hunter, or a theorist, remain amenable and cooperative in all cases. Alert the patrols immediately.

I hoped that this would be abandoned sooner rather then later so that things could go back to how they were, although in situations like this, there is always the weighted stress of the 'what ifs.'

What if this blows over and everyone forgets, and there is still that one obsessive mortal theorist who lingered around for just enough time to watch us drop our guard again?

I could not think of the 'what if's' for any longer. I had enough worries that I had to deal with today. In addition to the weight of the hurt that I'd conflicted Candice Jazmine with, I was also burdened with the half faerie girl. I had been debating over and over in my head what I would do when it came to Caleb, the trow. The queen of Fey's undercover faerie was busted by my father and his secret accomplice and now it was up to me to rid of him. Originally I had intended for him to live, to waste as much time as I could buy, because as long as we was here, he would be keeping Aubrette safe from the other creatures of the faerie world who wished to see her dead. My time has clearly run out and I decided that tonight would be the night to entrap the trow and perhaps hostel him to the depth of my basement, at least for a few days to buy myself some time with father in regards to Aubrette. Of course, after I do kill the trow, I'd need a plan, a final verdict on what I would be doing with the half girl. It seemed as if every solution I came up with homed a conflict of its own. I could not think of a way to both satisfy father and my duties as the Faerie Slayer of the Odin Pack and simultaneously keep the girl alive. It would have been much easier had I not been driven into a rush of cliff diving every time she seemed to be around. Tonight was the first time that I had touched her, since the night that I had carried her home. Inside of the busy nightclub, she was in a rush to get somewhere. She hadn't looked up to see me after she's ran into the pocket of my chest. I felt her presence mentally before she thudded into my skin. My wolf was altered to say the least, risen with desire and sudden hunger that I could not say I recognized. It only made me ponder on how this shift of emotion could be so one sided. Deep down, did the universe summon a subconscious wind inside of Aubrette every time she'd seen or touched me? Or was I alone in this feeling of distress and desire?

Although I often wondered if it were mere concupiscence or if there were any context to the only seemingly possibly solution that somehow ,Aubrette and I were mates. Just the thought brought faux relief to the animal inside of me. Mere recognition was all it took to stir him wide awake.

The last I had seen of Aubrette and the trow, they were headed outside of the club, hand in hand. By now, Aubrette must have already told him about the battle of the wolf and the snake and Caleb was putting all of the pieces together that he too, is running out of time. He must fulfill his duties to his queen soon, before I, or another creature from the Fey strike again. My plan to kidnap Caleb tonight was quite simple. Sugar and salt for enticement and resistance to his glamour and just enough grinds of dapperling mushrooms to knock him unconscious. I wondered if he had any more of those strange poisonous berries that confined me in place. I had read more about the poisons of the folk and in all of my research I had failed to stumble upon a shedding of light or an explanation. My phone suddenly buzzed. A text message from Candice.

'Are you alright?'

I assumed that she was either referring to the instructions released by my father following the news, or my mothers birthday, or both. Sᴇaʀch Thᴇ FɪndNøvel.ɴᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

'I'm fine.'

'Have you seen Mike.'

'The last time I had seen him was at La Belle after his ritual.'

'Thank you.'

I was about to put my phone away but once again my phone buzzed again.

'Im here if you need me, Kade.'

I didn't respond. Part of suddenly knew that I had just started something that I could not finish. It was going to take another kind of power to be able to look Candice in the eyes and tell her that I don't think that I could ever love her again like I once did. Truth be told, I had wanted to end things a lot sooner then she did, but I could never come to terms with it. I was standing on the other side of the table that Aubrette's friends were hanging out on. when I looked up was when she was returning to the table. She looked anxious and kept wiping her hands on her pants. I wondered if Caleb had done something to her or perhaps told her something about herself.

I didn't waste much time. Her being here meant that Caleb must be alone and so I began my search for the trow. I followed his scent outside, leaning against a tree cigarette in hand, he seemed to be lost in thought. When he'd caught my eye, he began to walk away and I followed.

We'd been walking for a couple of minutes now, and finally we'd reached the end of an alleyway. He stood facing me, back facing a brown and red brick wall that ended just a few feet over his head. At first, I wondered if he would begin to throw more of the berries on the ground. Instead, he said," Aburette told me of her occurrence with the water demon that tried to kill her."

"The snake?" I assumed.

"Yes, the snake. It was obvious that it was sent from someone to kill Aubrette, another faerie."

"But you don't know who?"

"I don't. The queen of Fey and I had no idea that there were others looking to murder the girl. On behalf of the royalty of the people of the folk, I thank you, but now you must retreat."

"To leave you to be the one to end her?"

"I assure you that is not our intention."

"What is then?"

"To bring the girl home, to take back her rightful place alongside her people."

"She will never be safe, not if she's under the constant attack of your people," at this time, the sky had darkened into a thick hazy grey mist that cried small subtle tears.

"The girl will have the protection of the queen. She will be out of your territory, out of Deadwood Creek forever and will not be a burden to the Odin Pack ever again."

"When do you intend to take her back?"

"I've run out of time, I'm under new instructions to bring her back tonight."

I felt my stomach sink to the deepest pit. I could just let him do it, let him take Aubrette to where from she origins. Had it been his intention to kill her, he would have done it already. Father alongside my grandmother and his secret accomplice would find a way to move past their disappointment and eventually carry out new tasks for me to take on. It could teach father a thing or two about keeping things from me, and all would eventually be settled. Aubrette be safe, I return to carrying out my weekly tasks as the Odin Pack Faerie Slayer and and this could be mere memory. The thought of the half girl leaving for eternity beyond unsettled me. It shook me within my deepest cells, bestowed me a feeling of severe malaise and ire.

Of course I did not have to decide this now. For now, my only intention would be to keep Caleb homed by the chains in my basement, just until there was more light to shed. I had to figure out if it were true, if Aubrette was my true mate and if I were willing to let her go and remain alone for all of eternity for the sake of keeping her safe.

I retrieved Ferrum out of my pocket. I had already rimmed the blade with burnt sugar and crumbs of dapperling mushrooms. I didn't hesitate to fling it towards the trow who ducked and flung itself towards the side. He'd suddenly shifted as I was retrieving another rimmed blade from my suit. The stench of his nature was strong enough to bring tears to my eyes. I threw the second blade and it landed between the bone of his shoulder and neck. He yanked at the metal and tossed it away. He must have not gotten a whiff of the sugar, but the dapperling mushrooms were now in his system. It would take minutes for them to knock him out. He chanted words of enticement, subjecting me to a spell. My gums were coated with salt already, there was nothing he could to do to trap me in a glamour but I decided to play along. I let my eyes stare blankly at him. I released my grip on the dagger and let it hit the ground. I let the trow think that he'd gotten the best of me.

"Come with me," he said," to Sequoia Forest. We can find an Asrai for you to make friends with."

I nodded and played along. He shifted back into his mortal form and I followed behind him, we neared the club, standing just a few feet away from where the crowd began once again. The mushrooms where taking too long to work, I knew I had to do something now, before we were entertainment for two dozen witnesses and were on the news once again tomorrow. I took out a dapperling mushroom from my pockets and wrapped my palms around the mouth of the trow. I forced the poison in through his lips and watched his eyes widen at the realization that his spell had tanked. The amount I had given him was far too large. It was enough to possibly kill him, though I hoped not. He was unconscious in my arms within seconds. An iPhone in his pockets rang and rang. I retrieved the item and on the screen displayed a message that Aubrette had been calling. I put the phone in my pockets and laid his body on the ground nearby a dumpster, ensuring to hide it with some garbage bags and cardboard boxes. My car was parked in the lot behind the club, I'd have to go back to retrieve it so that I could put Caleb in the trunk.

I began my walk back towards the blaring music. I did not go inside, instead I used the alleyway on the other side of the waning nightclub where I zigzagged through a line up of smokers. One of them had halted me with a hand in ny shoulder. I turned to face a smiling mortal with missing teeth and tattooed face.

"Cool outfit man," his legs stumbled to the side as if struggling to hold his weight," where can I get one?"

"It's actually custom," I replied politely and proceeded with my task. At the back of the club was a small parking lot with enough room for three cars but there were five and two motorcycles. Piled side by side and bumper to bumper, it would be close to impossible for me to get out.

I swore under my breath and pondered about what I would do next. Despite the mandates that my father had set out, I could shift and push the cars away from mine. Technically, this was an essential reason to transition. But first, I figured that I would at least ask first if the cars belonged to anybody outside. I went back towards the smokers line and asked one by one if anybody's car was blocking mine. The reply was the same unanimously, that no one knew about the cars. In the beginning of the alley I suddenly caught sight of Aubrette. She seemed flustered, her phone was in her hands and she was typing away as if it would fly away if she didn't.

She must be looking for Caleb, I thought.

Before she would have the time to turn and see me, I disappeared back into the parking lot. I peered around ensuring that there would be no eye nor camera that was going to catch sight of this. Deciding that my last resort was to shift, I prepared myself for a leap when suddenly a phone in my pocket began to ring. It wasn't my phone, but Caleb's.

"What are you doing with Caleb's phone?" Aubrette's voice behind me rose every cell in my body. I turned around to face girl whom looked as if she'd been crying. Even from here I could see that her eyelashes were caught in wet clusters of mascara and her red lips were pouted. My chest was suddenly heavy. I did not want to cause her pain by taking Caleb away, this would be the hardest part of the task, knowing that I was subjecting her to a time of fear, confusion and loss.

It's for her own good , I tried to reason with myself, although I could not be convinced. Had I a better solution to keeping her safe that did not involve letting the queen enslave the girl for life, then I might haven been swayed to believe it.

Maybe I'm selfish, I concluded, and willing to do anything to keep you around, even if it would result in the hinder and burden of everyone else.

"I found it," I replied.

"Where?" Her soft voice was shaking with doubt. It seemed as if it took all that she could muster to keep from breaking down. She rubbed her palms on her thighs. I could not help but mentally swoon at how beautiful she was and how much it ached me to wound her like this.

"In the mens bathroom, inside of the club."

"How long ago?"

"Around fifteen minutes ago."

She yielded her palm out to me. I noticed the cuts on her skin.

What happened, I thought. I wanted to ask, more badly then I'd wanted most things but I resisted. Although the wound was fresh, I attempted to convince myself that it was from the night of the snake attack. That seemed to have fooled my wolf into calming down just a little bit.

"Give it to me," I placed the phone in her grasp and she continued,"have you seen him? My boyfriend?"

"What does he look like?"

"He's got black hair, they are white at the tips. Tall-lanky."

"I haven't."

She took a couple steps closer to me. My breath began to quicken although I refused to hold it in. Inside, my mind had gone into a state of chaos. It felt as if there was a drum being played on the inside of my skull. I simply could not calm down. It was when she'd placed a gentle palm on the bare skin of my arm that I realized that the chaos had just began.

My wolf was stirring as if triggered, my chest thudded to the beat of my fumbling mind. I had never been in a state of panic, fear, confusion and adoration before. This was all that I needed to confirm that Aubrette Evergreen was indeed my mate.

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