— Elaeya —

“Mrs. Raynolds made something for you,” I said.

He extended his hand and I gave him the bag. Before he had time to open it, his earpiece beeped.

“Yes,” he answered.

It brought our short conversation to a premature stop, and I nodded to him and rose.

Outside, Mark was at his desk and nodded to me, while on the phone himself. There were a few desks back where Eva was, sitting at one, typing furiously on her computer.

A black-haired young woman came towards me with a few files in her hands and stopped in her track a few feet from me. I recognised her from the dinner at Kaden’s parents. Her name is Nadine. Another of his sisters.

“Oh, hey,” she said.

“Hello,” I replied.

She put the files on Mark’s desk. “For Eva,” she muttered to not bother him during his call. He nodded at her and continued his conversation.

“You came to see Kade?” she asked me. I saw her eyes move to my neck and she grinned sunnily at me.

“I just came to give him something. He is busy.”

“He’s always busy. Maybe you’ll help loosen him up a bit.”

I shrugged in non-commitment.

Behind me, the office door flew open and Kaden walked out.

“I’m going to Blakeden for a while. I don’t know when I’ll be back. Transfer everything to Brandon,” he told Mark, who got on his feet and nodded, then inclined his head, and Kaden walked by.

“Hey,” he told Nadine and wrapped an arm around my waist. “I’m borrowing her for a second.” And he dragged me further down the corridor.

“Sure,” she said behind our back.

“You want to see Blakeden?” he asked me.

“Sure,” I replied. “Won’t I be in the way?”

“Nah, I might not have the time to give you a full tour though.”

“It is fine.”

He nodded. He was holding the bag I had brought him in his other hand.

A few heads were turning our way as we passed by, and he slipped his arm off my waist. Most people inclined their heads politely to him, he did no such thing. I had no idea what the protocol was for me to do. I did not read any of this in the books, at least not yet.

Back outside, Sam was by the car, near the door. He opened the door closest to us, nodded at me with a smile, and went around to open the door on the other side.

Kaden pushed his hand against my back, guiding me to the closest door, and went around the car to sit on the other side.

Of all the peoples I crossed paths with so far, other than Kaden, Sam was probably the one I was most comfortable with.

We got in the car and moved towards Blakeden.

Kaden took one of the breakfast burritos out, took a bite, and swallow a third of it in one go. He then pulled the coffee thermos cup from the bag, and took a long pull appreciatively.

I let him eat while he had a bit of time, and looked as the landscape morph from manicured woodlands to more developed area, until we reached the old cobblestone streets of Blakeden. I know now than this town has existed for centuries, in one form or another. Most of the buildings were two or three stories high and packed tightly together. There were a lot of small shops of all kinds at street level, and the diversity of them was staggering. It went from normal fresh produce stands to occult shops. People did not seem to try very hard at hiding their preternatural nature either. I could smell humans here, but their smell was not as predominant as it is in most cities. On the contrary, I suspected humans to be a minority. Many probably even knew of the supernatural world, as evident by what little concealment seems to be the norm around here.

The streets were tight and the expensive black sedan had to be driven slowly with care through some of them.

Kaden went through the three burritos in record time.

“Do you always eat this quickly?” I asked him.

He shrugged. “Sometimes.”

Sam parked the car in between two big buildings, one with an old stone facade, and the other with a pale wood one.

“You don’t have to come in with me,” Kaden told me. “If you don’t want to precipitate introductions.”

“It’s already happening,” I said looking at the people walking on the sidewalk.

“What is happening?” he asked me.

“Eva introduced me as the future Luna of Blakemore twice today,”

He sighed. “I’ll talk to her.”

“Some people saw us walk together, I had my picture taken today. I will probably not be able to keep my identity secret for very long.”

He said nothing, I kept looking at the passerby. This town seemed like a very interesting place.

“It is only a matter of time until someone other than your father recognise what I am.”

“I’m finding you a bodyguard today,” he told me. “I can reorganize security fairly rapidly.”

I nodded. The sun was way high in the sky, it looked like this will be one of the last warm days of summer. The breeze had this northbound smell to it. Tonight will be a cold night.

“Are you angry?” he asked me.

I turned to look at him and shook my head. “I don’t think I’m ready, but I have to be. If I wait I will never be ready and it will happen regardless.”

“If you want to, I can ask Sam to get you home whilst I do this.”

I shook my head again. “This won’t be as long as you anticipated, there will be three interruptions taking more of your time, but it will be done before lunch, and you will offer to take me somewhere in town to eat.”

He blinked. “I guess I will,” he said a little astounded.

I smiled gently at him. “You should go now, I will look around and wait for you,” I said gesturing at the little shops around us.

“Sam,” Kaden said. He was still sitting at the front, silent. “You stay with her, any sign of troubles you get her in the car, and get her back to my place.”

“Yes, sir,” Sam replied seriously.

Kaden nodded at no one in particular and left the car. He walked maybe ten feet, his black suit a contrast to the light building finishes, he opened a side-door and disappeared inside.

I did not move, Sam waited.

“You want to ask me something,” I finally told him.

He looked at me in the retrovisor.

“I know when to shut up and keep to myself, Miss. I’m not gonna butt in your business.”

I nodded. “But you want to ask.”

He chewed on his tongue.

“Kaden trust you deeply.”

“Maybe,” he replied.

I gave him a look.

He smiled. “How do you know that I want to ask you something?”

“The same way I knew what awaits Kaden this morning,” I told him.

“Do you always know what’s going to happen?”

I shook my head. “I do not always control what I know. I can try more actively to learn about something, but what I will learn and when, is not truly under my control.”

“The boss is worried about your security. Is there a reason to be particularly worried?”

I looked in his eyes in the mirror for an instant. “Possibly.”

“Something I should be aware of?”

“If we ever are under attack, do not stay in my line of fire.”

He blinked.

I bent my head as I opened the door, hiding a smirk.

I heard him leave the car a few beats after me.

I supposed my appearance did not stand out here as much as it ever did anywhere else.

I moved to the closest shop.

“Hey, there pretty lady,” said the shopkeeper. “I got the best and freshest fruits in town. And I have everything form jackfruits from Bangladesh, Haitian mangos, Peruvian pacay, persimmons, pomelo, plantain, mangosteen…” he pointed to various exotic fruits.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m just looking, I don’t have money on me.”

Sam dug in his wallet and wiped out a plastic card.

“Here’s a gentleman,” said the shopkeeper.

“I cannot take your money,” I told Sam.

“It’s not mine,” he told me. “It’s the boss’s.”

He kept his arm extended until I took the card. The shopkeeper looked expectantly at me, so I politely bought two persimmons from him.

I do not remember ever walking around and buying whatever I pleased.

I bit into a persimmon and it was perfect. I offered the other to Sam which he took.

We did not walk very far but we checked a few places, after a couple of blocks I went to the other side of the street and slowly walked my way back to the car. Kaden walked out as we approached.

“We need to go to Simon’s,” he told Sam.

“Interference number one?” Sam asked.

“Apparently.”

We piled back in the car and moved to the next place.

We parked in a residential area. I walked a little around, looking at the yards, the flower-beds, the colourful front doors.

There was a truck by the side of the road where people unloaded furniture, an elderly woman, guiding three men where to put things. One man was inside the house carrying heavy boxes in, one was inside the truck and a young man, barely out of his teen was on the street holding the weight of a heavy commode. As he lowered it, it slipped and Sam rushed and caught it before it crushed his leg.

“I told you to use your legs, not your back,” said the man in the truck.

“It’s okay, I got this,” said Sam.

He helped lower a few other heavy pieces, so I went to make myself useful and piled boxes on the cart they had, to move them.

The oldest of the three came out of the house, took one look at Sam, and said, “Do you want a job?”

“Sorry Sir, but I already have one.”

“You’re not from around here,” he told me.

“No,” I admitted.

“Are you a new member?” asked the man in the truck.

“Not yet.”

The youngest kept looking at me, saying nothing.

“What pack are you applying for?” he said jumping off the truck next to us.

“Blakemore I suppose.”

“No one applies to Blakemore, you’re wasting your time,” said the oldest.

“She isn’t,” said Sam.

The grey-haired man whiffed the air furrowing his eyebrows. “Hybrid?”

“What type?” asked the other. The youngest still looked at me silently, his mouth slightly open.

“I am sorry to have bothered you, we have to leave. I wish you a good day,” I told them, so Sam joined me ready to leave.

“You’re leaving to avoid answering the question,” said the old man cleverly. “Are you even applying to Blakemore, or is this some sort of con? We often get riff-raff around town. Things that think they are better than they are.”

“Careful here,” said Sam walking towards the man, his eyes intent.

“We don’t really care about that nonsense hybrid thing,” he said.

Sam started growling.

The old lady was out looking at the situation with wide eyes. Sam was more than a head taller than all of the men and his arms were probably as wide as my waist.

This is the exact moment when Kaden got out of the building and walked on the situation his eyes nothing but slits.

The other man that had been talking to me noticed Kaden and inclined his head, slapping the youngest on the chest for him to do the same.

“What is going on here?” asked Kaden in a menacing tone.

The others noticed their Alpha and the older lady breathed in through her teeth.

“Nothing, we are just leaving,” I told him.

While at the same time Sam said, “Someone has an issue with hybrids.”

Kaden growled. Sam’s growl had been menacing, but Kaden’s… I could smell that the youngest of the three had a small bladder leakage. Everyone was silent, their eyes wide and shying away from his gaze.

“This is not what this pack stands for,” he said, his voice deep and dark.

“I’m… I’m just saying that if she’s not saying what she is, then maybe she’s a problem.” The old man dared say, but he did not dare look at Kaden’s face.

“She said what she is, just not to you. You’re not the one in charge, that is none of your business. She’s under my aegis, here under a personal invitation, and you insulted her.”

Those words sounded like he’s just nailed their collective coffin shut.

“I’m sorry A … A … Alpha.”

“There will be consequences for this.” He took my hand and dragged me to the car, Sam in tow.

“Nothing is going on?” Kaden said turning to me once we were all in the car.

“I did not want to create a scene,” I explained.

“Do you remember that discussion about respect and position we had?” he said between clenched teeth.

Only this time I crossed my arms. “Yes, but you cannot be using this or what just happen to scold me like a child.”

His expression loosens.

“Do not go on blaming this on me,” I told him.

“I’m not,” he reversed course. “I’m just saying, you can’t say nothing is happening when something his clearly happening.”

“I am not going to walk around bullying people into being nice to me.”

“Of course not, but this is not something that should be an issue.”

“If you see no problem with hybrids, it does not mean all those under you think the same thing. You cannot go around controlling people’s thoughts. And even among those who do not care about hybrids, do you think they will think the same when they hear your mate is one? Or when they learn of what I am, do you think they will see no significance in that? If you start getting angry at all who has an issue with me, you are going to spend a whole lot of your life angry,” I told him.

Sam parked the car as we reached the third destination.

“If I bring you nothing but anger, then maybe this is not a good idea after all.”

“What?” he asked confused.

“You should go, you are awaited.”

“They can wait some more, we’re talking,” he told me.

“I am not going anywhere,” I said.

He bit his lip.

A man walked out of the building and walked to the car urgently.

Kaden sighed. “We are not done talking.”

“We are not,” I agreed placidly, and he walked out to deal with the matters at hand.

“If I may, Miss?” asked Sam.

I nodded and sighed.

“His point is valid. People can’t go around insulting you.”

The windows were open, Kaden was still outdoors, and not far enough not to be listening. That might have been even why Sam was continuing the conversation.

I nodded. “But this man knew nothing of my status, or possible status thereof. And I acted suspiciously in front of them all. He was clever enough to notice that I was hiding this information. Wouldn’t this be rational of someone protective of their pack, family, territory?” I asked. “I am not without faults, and if blaming others for my own failures is what being in power within a pack is, then I do not want this.

He was rude, yes, but I am not blameless, and the best courses of actions should have been either, to clear the air with the necessary information, or accept defeat and move away from conflict. I chose the latter because I was unwilling to do what was necessary for the former. To simply be angry and call for punishment is wrong,” I said.

I saw Kaden give a brief glance at the car. He heard this.

“Now that this has been cleared, we can move away from this debacle and finish this,” I dropped my head back, and watched a few cloud pass by from the back window.

“Well, if your timeline is correct, we should deal with the last task soon, because it’s about lunchtime,” Sam said looking at his watch.