“Night
everyone,” Ellie called out from the stairs, receiving a chorus of
goodnights
in return.
Ellie and Alex
spent as much time as they could together. Even though they were
te’sorthene
,
they still had so much to discover about each other. The more Ellie learned
about Alex, the more she felt for him. She knew she was falling in love with
him and he with her. Their bond grew stronger day by day.
As they
entered their room, Alex spun Ellie around so that she stood with her back against
the closed bedroom door. He placed his hands on either side of her, bodily
caging her in.
“Don’t go
tonight,” his deep voice washed over her, his sensual lips capturing hers.
Ellie groaned into his mouth. His voice and that kiss almost knocked her
response out of her mind… almost.
Pulling away
to catch her breath she said, “You know I have to.”
“Ummm… I
know,” he murmured.
Alex leaned
back in, kissing his way across her shoulder and up her neck to nibble on her
earlobe. Ellie tipped her head back to grant him further access. With another
groan, Ellie sought his mouth with her own and reveled in the sensation of his
tongue running along the seam of her lips. Opening her mouth she matched him
move for move. Never breaking the hot kiss, Alex reached down and bodily lifted
her, wrapping her legs around his waist. He walked them over to the bed and,
still not breaking the contact of their mouths, laid Ellie down on it,
following to cover her body with his own.
Only the sound
of Griffin’s voice breaking into her thoughts could have stopped Ellie. “
Your
turn first, Elle.”
Feeling the
shift in her concentration, Alex stopped the kiss pulling back to look her in
the eyes.
“Great
timing. I’ll be out in a sec,”
Ellie answered Griffin. “It’s time,” she
said to Alex.
He puffed out
a breath and buried his face in her neck, inhaling deeply. “Okay,” he accepted.
Levering himself off the bed, he pulled her up with him. “You take care of
yourself out there, baby.” He tenderly brushed a strand of hair out of her
face.
“Always do.” She
stood on tiptoe to give him one last lingering kiss and then shifted into the
falcon before him.
Alex walked
over to their window to open it for her, and she flew out into the night. Ellie
usually took the first patrol, with Alex’s apprehension following her out the
window every time. She’d return home in the early hours of the morning to get
some rest and would find him waiting up for her. He insisted that he couldn’t
sleep until he knew she was home safely. Then he’d tuck her up in bed with him,
snuggling her into his warm embrace.
Ellie grumbled
good-naturedly every single time he waited up for her, but of course she
secretly loved it. Alex managed to give her the space and the respect to make
her own decisions. If anything, the way he was handling the entire situation
not only made her feel loved and protected, but also valued and significant.
A few weeks
later, after school let out for the day, Ellie and Lila were headed to the
parking lot.
Lila was in
the middle of a story about her first date experience. “…So we got to the ice
skating rink and I strapped on Mom’s gorgeous old-fashioned skates. And after
about two laps, my feet started cramping up.”
Ellie giggled.
“No way. Were the skates too small or something?”
“Yeah. We had
to stop. And that poor guy hadn’t really wanted to go ice skating anyway--”
Lila cut off
her next comment when, out of nowhere, a tall man appeared before them. Dressed
all in black, with ebony hair and onyx eyes, his face could be described as
almost beautiful with high, sharp cheek bones and a sensuous mouth. Extremely
handsome… but in a sinister way. He stood directly in front of the two girls
blocking their way.
Ellie came to
an abrupt halt. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lila tense and glance
nervously at her.
Nothing
scared Ellie. She knew she was probably giving
her friend a heart attack when she subtly repositioned her body protectively
between Lila and the creepy stranger.
“I’m honored
that you would come in person, Gideon,” Ellie finally said, bitterness lacing
her words. She felt Lila flinch at the name. She reached back for Lila’s hand,
giving her a reassuring squeeze.
“You know me?”
the dark man asked.
“Yes.”
“Then you know
why I’m here…”
Ellie heard
the smug self-satisfaction. “Not entirely.” Of course Ellie had tapped into
Griffin’s mind reading power the second she’d seen Gideon, but she heard
absolutely nothing. Perhaps that’d been the reason why her ancestors hadn’t
been able to prepare for the attack that decimated their entire clan.
“Are you
trying to listen to my thoughts, Ellinore?”
his voice rasped in her mind.
Her eyes
widened slightly, but other than that she gave nothing away with her expression
or body language.
“I thought
so
,” the voice continued. “
But don’t worry. We’re blocking your very
talented brother from listening. As well as any communication you may be trying
to send him.”
Ellie didn’t
respond.
“Have you
guessed yet?”
Ellie remained
silent and still. Lila, unable to hear the mental conversation and taking her
cues from Ellie, assumed the same stance.
“It’s you,
Ellinore. You are why I’m here. You are destined to be one of our pack. I’ve
seen you shift myself. You should be with others like you.”
Ellie didn’t
betray the frenzied thoughts in her head by so much as a twitch and returned
his gaze with feigned serenity.
“You have
nothing to say about this?”
Ellie simply
shrugged, catching Lila’s glance at the movement. She deliberately used a
technique that often got Griffin to talk more than he would in most
circumstances. She said nothing when he clearly wanted a conversation. Worked
like a charm every time. She also tapped into Lila’s emotional manipulation
abilities, attempting to rile Gideon… make him feel frustrated.
“You
would’ve joined us sooner, if it weren’t for your brother,”
Gideon
continued, growing agitated.
“I’ve been looking for you since our first
meeting. But your brother is somehow able to block my view of you. Of any of
you.
” He frowned, betraying his irritation. “
I’ve come to offer you a
deal.”
Ellie arched
an eyebrow but still said nothing. She was more concerned with Lila’s safety at
the moment than she was in some arrogant, blowhard shape-shifter.
“You come
with me,
” Gideon said. “
Just
you
. Join our pack. And I will
guarantee the rest of the family safety. We will not harm them as long as you
are with us.”
Ellie, using
Lila’s power to see the truth, could tell that he was being sincere and was
relieved her friend couldn’t hear them right now. “
Why do you want me so
much
?”
“You are a
wolf
,” he answered simply. “
You belong with the Vyusher.”
Her face a
blank mask, Ellie thought quickly. It seemed like something about Griffin’s
powers could be blocking Gideon from knowing the abilities possessed by the
Jenners or Pierces. She wasn’t sure why, but regardless of the reason, she felt
grateful for it at that moment. He knew about Griffin’s mind reading and her
sharing powers, but what else? If he really couldn’t see which skills they
possessed, perhaps she could use her own ability on him.
“I have to
think about this,” she said aloud. “May I have your word that you and your
wolves will not come near any of my family until I’ve had time to make my
decision?”
“You have one
week. We will not approach any of you during that time,” he conceded.
“Shake on it?”
she asked innocently. Gideon hesitated then lifted his arm.
Letting go of
Lila, Ellie moved forward and grasped Gideon’s hand, taking care that he didn’t
feel the electric zap of her power at work. She focused all her energy to
absorb as much about him as she could in that brief amount of time.
Releasing her
grip, Gideon stepped back. Still only speaking through their thoughts, he said,
“
I will see you in the woods outside the Jenner’s house, the place where you
defeated a handful of my pack. Midnight, one week from tonight.
”
With that he
disappeared. No sound. No warning. Just… gone. As if he’d never been standing
there.
Ellie stood
silently for a second, her mind spinning.
“Will you
please tell me what just happened?” Lila’s trembling voice broke in.
“
That
was Gideon.” Ellie tapped her fingernail against her teeth, thinking.
“Well, I
figured that much out for myself. Thanks.” Lila’s hands shook as she ran her
hands through her hair.
“He wanted to
meet me face to face.”
“What?…
Why?
”
Ellie sighed
and resumed walking to the parking lot. “Apparently something about Griffin’s
shield has some hidden facet that works to block Gideon’s tracker. At least, I
think
he has a tracker.” She glanced at Lila, who’d fallen into step beside her. “It
seems like Gideon has someone in his pack, I don’t think it’s him, who can see
anyone with our powers. Anywhere in the world. Although they see us better when
we’re gathered in groups. The larger the group, the easier it is to hone in on
us. But as soon as Griffin and I arrived in town, the Vyusher tracker could no
longer see any of us. It forced them to recon in person to try to figure out
how many of us there are, what our powers are, that kind of thing. Gideon
eventually decided to come in person. I tried to get a read on Gideon’s power,
but something odd seemed to be preventing me. I could see bits and pieces, but
none of them seemed like his actual ability.” Ellie pursed her lips,
frustrated.
“I can see
that you’re holding something back, Ellie,” Lila said with a knowing look. “But
I assume you have good reasons.”
“I do,” Ellie
replied. “Let’s get to the car and get home. We all need to talk through this
together.”
As they
rounded the corner of the building, Ellie could see Alex practically pacing in
the parking lot with Nate and Adelaide watching him apprehensively. As soon as
they approached him, he said, “Where have you been? Griffin sent me a mental
message that he suddenly couldn’t access your thoughts.” Alex clearly attempted
to control his apprehension.
Lila and Ellie
glanced at each other.
“Let’s get
home first, and then we’ll tell you all about it,” Ellie suggested.
Alex looked
ready to argue with her.
“Go with your
sisters, Alex,” Ellie gently urged him. “I’ll be right in front of you.”
Finally he
nodded his agreement and hustled his sisters and Nate into the car.
As soon as
they arrived home, Lila told the others about their encounter with Gideon.
Griffin looked
both stunned and worried. “
Why couldn’t I hear him
?” Ellie heard him
wonder.
Aloud she
explained to him, “He seemed to be blocking your power, Griffin. Or someone in
his pack was.”
“And how do
you know that exactly?” Alex’s asked.
“He told me.
When I tried to read his mind.”
“She also
shook his hand,” Lila piped up.
Ellie shot her
friend a look.
“Ellie, I
suggest you explain before Alex and Griffin both have a conniption,” Hugh
advised calmly.
She walked
over to Alex and wrapped her arms around his neck. He didn’t hesitate to pull
her in closer and bury his face in her hair.
“I’m fine. I’m
still here,” she whispered in his ear.
He gave her a
tender squeeze. “You take too many chances.”
“It wasn’t my
choice to confront Gideon. He found
us
. I just did what I could with the
opportunity.” Pulling back, she took his face between her hands and gave him a
gentle kiss. She turned to the others. “Gideon wants me to join his pack.”
Everyone
started talking at once, and Alex laughed, though it was a bitter sound. “Well,
he can go to hell and get bent on his way down!”
“He gave me an
offer,” Ellie continued calmly. “If I go with him willingly, he promises safety
for the rest of you… forever.”
Dead silence.
“I’m confident
in his sincerity in this offer,” Ellie added, scrutinizing each of their faces.
They all
looked to Lila for confirmation, who just shrugged. “The conversation was
mostly telepathic. I didn’t really hear much. He didn’t lie once during the
discussion though,” Lila confirmed somewhat reluctantly.
“You weren’t
intending to tell us?” Griffin half-asked, half-accused.
“No,” Ellie
admitted, shifting uneasily on her feet.
“What changed
your mind?”
“All of you.”
Ellie nodded her head around the room. “I wasn’t going to tell you. I was
planning to go with him to protect you. But I realized that you’re my family
now, and I couldn’t do that to you. You all deserve a choice in this.”
“If you think
we’re letting you go, you’re quite mistaken,” Dexter declared. Ellie gave him a
surprised look. Of everyone there, he’d remained the most distant. Even Ramsey
had warmed up to her after she’d opened up the potential of his powers to him.
Dexter participated, he joined in…but he always acted slightly reserved. Ellie
hadn’t been sure of her position with him, so this show of support from him now
meant a lot.
“I second that
sentiment,” Hugh added.
“Just so we’re
clear… I go with them, and we’re all safe. I stay and it’s a guaranteed battle.
Some or all of us could die. Are you willing to risk that?” Ellie moved to
Griffin’s side, taking his hand.