Filed to story: The Rise Of The Lycan Queen
She laughed again. “No worries. The blood is what I need most. We have vampires sniffing around our coven.”
That was the most information she’d given me before. “That sucks. Good luck with that.”
“You’re one interesting girl.” She pulled a knife from her black dress pocket and held it above my hand. “I can feel the strength and will inside you. Why do you keep wanting to hide it?”
“If you’re going to ask questions, I’ll find someone else.” She handled the exchange as a mutually beneficial arrangement. Now, she was getting nosey, which wasn’t part of the deal. And witches were the worst gossipers of every supernatural race.
“Fine.” She huffed and held my pointer finger with her left hand. “No need to get all grumpy.” As she inserted the dagger into my skin, a drop of blood puddled on the tip of my finger.
The metallic scent swirled in the air, but that was par for the course.
She released my hand and grabbed a small bottle. “Pour some in here.” She twisted the lid off and handed the glass container to me.
“Yeah, I know.” I squeezed my pointer finger, making sure several large drops coated the bottom. “Here you go.”
“Good girl.” She chuckled as she took the bottle and placed the lid back on.
“No dog jokes.” I wasn’t sure how comfortable I was with her changed attitude. “Now, let’s do this. I’m hungry.”
“Ahhh…” Rose pointed at me and nodded. “That’s what your problem is today. Next time, eat before you get here. It’s hard enough to handle you when you aren’t hangry.”
I kept coming back here due to her blunt nature. We knew exactly what side we stood on. “Yeah, yeah. Just do it.”
“Fine.” She grabbed some herbs and crushed them in her hands. She mouthed some words silently and placed the herbs in my hand. “There. Done.”
I’d always wondered what she said for the spell, but she told me only coven members are allowed to hear one another’s spells. Something about trade secrets or some shit like that.
As the magic settled in me, my wolf began to retreat back into her cage. She hated it, but this was the best for both of us. If we were meant to be rulers, fate wouldn’t have intervened.
“You need to be careful.” Something flashed in her eyes. “Were you around anyone today? You have a wolf scent on your skin.”
“What? No.” In all transparency, I made myself not scan for other supernaturals. The more you were attuned to the world, the more you became a target. “At least, I don’t think so.”
“If you’re beginning to make contact with new wolves other than your two caretakers, it’s going to make the magic wear off faster, so you’d better be careful. Your wolf grew beside those two and doesn’t feel threatened.” She grabbed a pink sticky note and wrote down her name and number. “Look, we’ve been doing these charades ever since you were a little girl. I don’t want to see something bad happen to you, so take my number. Call me if you need me, no matter the time.”
“So what will this cost me?” With witches, you had to be careful. They were sneaky as fuck and strong as hell.
“A future favor.” She crossed her arms and stared me down. “I’ve always been able to see glimpses of people’s futures. Even yours. But now when I look at you, all I see is black.”
“Huh.” Black wasn’t usually a good color when tied to magic. “Maybe I’ve escaped death once, and it’s coming back around for me.” I should’ve died that day with my parents. It seemed wrong to live. They died way too soon. The world still needed them. Hell, I still needed them.
“No, it’s not that.” She tilted her head and crossed her arms. “It’s that your future isn’t set in stone yet. You’re about to come to a crossroads. One where a choice has to be made.”
“Let’s be clear.” She was giving me the heebie-jeebies. “My future is set, and there won’t be any changing it.” Kassie or Mona must have come by here and said something to her. “Thanks for this.” I grabbed the sticky note and put it in my jeans pocket. I wasn’t about to turn down an offer like that. Next time I needed her and she wasn’t at the store, I could finally track her down instead of waiting outside the shop like a fucking creeper.
“Be careful.” She forced a sad smile. “I’m sure I’ll see you very soon.”
Something in her words caused a chill to run down my spine.
“Hey, you.” The girl from earlier arched her eyebrow as I took my seat next to her.
Maybe I should’ve taken my chances with Connor. “Hi.” Maybe she’d get the hint.
“I’ve decided I like you.” She flipped her hair over her shoulder. “So, my name is Ella. You’ll need to know my name for this to continue.”
I grabbed my notebook and pencil out of my bag and leaned back in my seat, keeping my eyes forward.
“This is the part where you tell me your name.” She turned her body toward me and tilted her head.
“Not interested.” Maybe if I was blunt, she’d get the hint.
“Hmmm… I heard that guy holler it out in the last class, so technically I know it. But I’m going to pretend I don’t until I hear it from you.” She tapped her lips with her fingertip. “Then, I’ll go with Hope. Because maybe if I call you that, you wouldn’t have such a dark cloud over your head.”
My lips twitched to inch upward, but I bit my tongue.
“Aria.” Connor entered the room with a huge smile on his face. “You must not have seen me Monday. I saved you a seat.” He pointed to the desk that was vacant beside where he had sat the other day.
“No, I saw you.” He needed to get the damn hint. “Just didn’t want to sit there.”
“What?” His mouth dropped, and he shook his head. “Oh, you want to be in the back.” He grinned at me once more. “I get that. I’ll come join you.”
He made his way to the open desk beside me. As he placed his black backpack down, his light blue polo shirt inched up, showing his six-pack.
I had to give him credit. He was hot in the wholesome, all-American way. He had short, dirty-blond hair and blue eyes.
As he slid into the seat, he grinned in my direction. “So… what are you doing later?”
“Gotta wash my hair.” I’d rather go jump off a bridge than do anything with him.
“Oh, well, what about tomorrow?” He bit his bottom lip and scanned my body. “I’d like to pick up where we left off.”
“Not interested.” I wasn’t sure how else to make it clear to him.
“That’s the second time you’ve said that in two minutes.” Ella giggled and shook her head. “I’m kind of offended you lumped me in with him.”
“What the hell does that mean?” Connor frowned at her.
“She’s not interested. Why don’t you get a clue?” Ella rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You’re panting after her like a puppy dog.”
That was a fair analysis.
“Why don’t you mind your own business?” Connor frowned at her.
Thankfully, the professor entered the room. His eyes settled on me for a second. “I’m so glad you made time for us again.”
He was trying to embarrass me. “I’m punctual like that. I’m here when class begins and ends when the time on my schedule is up.”
Ella snorted.
