SWNOVELS Chapter Chapter Nine
The Alpha put me in the big bedroom I’d woken up in. When I asked him how long he intended to keep me there - after all, I still had college to attend to, and so what if I had some Spirit inside me, I still needed my education - he said until Apollo would arrive from wherever.
Meanwhile, I was permitted to hang around in the mansion as long as I didn’t shatter any windows again. I wanted to yell at them in response that if they didn’t piss me off then no windows would shatter again, but I forced myself to swallow my tongue. I knew more fury on my part wouldn’t help the situation.
Maria explained that because my Spirit had been sleeping through all my life, until she woke it up with her healing abilities, the Spirit’s emotions had been intertwined with mine and created all of my problems with anger management and whatnot. But now that everything was finally out, my Spirit calmed down. In fact, she didn’t speak to me again in the hours after the storm, I didn’t feel her presence at all. I knew that if I became angry, then she would return with full force.
That evening, I sat in the dining hall, at a long table, next to Maria and a werewolf called Greg. Greg was in his late twenties, and he was as hot as only werewolves could be, with a tall, muscular figure. He was a serious man who rarely smiled. I knew he was one of the Alpha’s closest companions, which said a lot about his strength - much like how Strider was pasted to the Alpha’s side all the time, which was odd on itself; Strider, after all, was just a Guard - which was a high rank, but not high enough to act as he did with the Alpha. He even sat next to him at the meal, chatting with him as though they’d been friends for a long time. I didn’t have to be a genius to understand Strider’s relationship with the Alpha had more to it than meets the eye.
They were, in fact, friends.
My heart squeezed in my chest as I thought that while taking a piece of chicken with my fork, putting it in my plate. I wish I knew what real friendship felt like. My friendship with Charlotte was a mere default; my relationship with Hazel, Jane and Ethan was nothing more than acquaintances. I didn’t get to know any of them deeply - except Charlotte, maybe, but still. Did they care about me being gone for a whole day? Did they sit together at the college dining hall, eating dinner, and thinking of me? Did they give a shit?
I knew for certain they didn’t. But it was all right - I was used to being alone. Even when I’d been with Charlotte before college, I was actually alone.
To take my head off this dark route, I glanced at Samantha, who was sitting a few chairs away next to another beautiful she-wolf, whose name was Cora, I heard earlier, and who was part of the local Millennium Force. The two chatted and giggled among themselves, shouting their friendship to everyone in the room. Everyone had someone to talk to here, like a big wolf community; Brom, another of the Alpha’s companions, talked to Greg about their favorite wolven soccer team; Maria, Albert and another pretty werewolf called Melinda spoke about their jobs; and of course, Strider and the Alpha, who shared this intimacy only true friends did
I just sat there all by myself, staring at my plate, shoving the food into my mouth. The sound of chatter and laughter around me made me flinch, fold into myself, and feel lonelier than ever before. I’d always known werewolves were family-and-friends creatures, but never saw it for myself until now. They just cared nothing about humans or “Spirits” like me, apparently. If things were different, I would’ve had many friends in college.
Or maybe not. I wasn’t the most forthcoming person to begin with, after all.
The hall’s doors opened and a werewolf entered, her face somber. The chatter died down and everyone turned to look at her. The Alpha rose from his seat, his eyes locked on the woman, and he asked, “What is it, Sally?”
Sally took a deep breath. “Apollo has arrive, Alpha.”
Whispers broke through the table, cutting the silence. The air turned expectant. “I understand,” the Alpha said, giving Sally a small smile that made her blush. “Thank you.”
“Y-You’re welcome,” the she-wolf said, lowering her gaze. The Alpha stepped toward her and stopped a little too close. He put one hand on her shoulder, another on her cheek, and before I could avert my gaze, he put his lips against hers.
My eyes widened, and something inside me broke. What it was - I couldn’t say, but I did know that something else inside me move. Oh no, I though, panic rising to the surface, calm down, Spirit! It’s just a kiss! So what if they’re together? It doesn’t matter! Relax!
My name isn’t ‘Spirit’, you silly girl! The Spirit retorted in a snap.
Tempest, I thought back in desperation, Tempest, please…
She growled with evident dissatisfaction but retreated nonetheless, thank God. I sighed in relief, and was happy to see that the couple in question wasn’t kissing anymore. Sally now seemed embarrassed but happy, which was a good look on her already beautiful face. Her blonde hair was frizzled around her head, and her blue eyes were sparkling, and her feelings for the Alpha were evident.
The Alpha, however, remained stoic, blank, inscrutable. “Bring him in,” he suddenly said, his voice a little less indifferent than his expression.
Inside the room walked one of the hottest human men I’d ever seen, whose beauty was almost equal to that of a werewolf, if not entirely equal. How was that possible?
Apparently, it was possibly when a man had smooth brown hair, chocolate-brown eyes, tanned skin, wolf-like strength if his prominent muscles were anything to go by, and a great height, about Strider’s, to be exact. I wondered how could this man be Apollo, when he only seemed to be twenty-something, and not thousands of years old. An immortal perk, perhaps?
“Fred!” the man called with a wide smile that revealed a row of bright white teeth, and I was shocked to see the Alpha sending him a rare smile in return, a smile I’d only seen him wear when he was with Strider - a true, friendly smile - and the two hugged in that men-would-be-men manner. Strider was suddenly there too, and the new man turned to look at him. “Stridey!” he said, hugging him too.
“Apollo,” Strider grinned, “it’s good to see you, man.”
“Absolutely,” the Alpha nodded, still smiling.
Apollo wrapped his arms around his friends’ shoulders. “I’m really excited,” he said, winking at Samantha and Cora, who flushed and giggled, making me wonder where Lethal Samantha had gone to. “Now, where’s my new ward?” he asked as his eyes scanned the table, passing over me as if I was transparent.
As if he was a werewolf.
“Er, bro, you missed her,” Strider murmured, pointing over at me. I kept my cool and stared directly at Apollo, refusing to succumb to embarrassment.
The smile on Apollo’s face disappeared, replaced by disappointment. “I thought she would be pretty,” he said shamelessly, “certainly not a fat, freckled redhead.”
It felt like someone stomped on my fragile self-esteem, what was left of it anyway. I tensed, my eyes narrowing, and a boiling fury rose inside me. Tempest came alive with a road, her emotions demanding to shatter the windows, shake the walls, and cause as much chaos as I could.
Yet, even though it was more tempting than I’d ever thought it would be, I differentiated her emotions from mine. I closed my eyes, shaking from self-restraint, and tried to calm Tempest down unsuccessfully. She wanted to take charge and attack Apollo, pluck his eyes out, strangle his neck -
“Oh well,” Apollo said derisively, “I’ll have to make do with a fat redhead. Although I must admit she has some potential - “
“You didn’t come here to fuck her, man,” Strider cut him off, “so what if she’s not much to look at? What did you expect from a human girl? The other race’s females are never as pretty as female werewolves. You should’ve seen that cow, Charlotte - “
“Boys!” Maria scolded, her angry voice making me open my eyes and look at hers, which were the glowing green of her wolf. “Stop it! In case you’re not aware, Angela is sitting right here and she can hear you!”
I didn’t know if I felt relieved Maria defended me, or pathetic, because I needed others to fight my wars for me. My feelings aside, Maria’s words turned out to be pretty effective since Strider, Apollo and the Alpha stared at the Healer with stunned silence, before glancing at me. I felt pain in my palms, and when I looked down to my fisted hands, I saw my nails dug through my skin from how hard I curled them. Better hurting myself than others, like Tempest was still demanding to do.
“I’m not a redhead,” I blurted out, raising my eyes to Apollo, who seemed surprised I even spoke. “My hair is light brown with a few reddish highlights. It’s not red.” I stood up. “I’m done here. Have a great evening.” I turned my back to everyone and stepped toward the door on the other side of the hall that would lead me back to my room.
“I haven’t released you yet, Angela,” the Alpha’s low voice behind me made me freeze before my hand reached the door handle. “We need to talk about the next stage in the plan, since, as you now know, you have the Spirit of Chaos.”
“It can wait,” I said stubbornly, while Tempest snarled, my name isn’t ‘Spirit of Chaos’, you asshole. I smiled bitterly, and turned my head to stare at the wolves and the human in the room. “Besides, her name is not the Spirit of Chaos. She has a name, and it’s Tempest.” My smile was gone an instant later. “If you don’t mind, I should, even need, to leave. Tempest feels like causing disasters in the world tonight, and sadly, I cannot allow her to behead you all, no matter how tempting it is. Now, excuse me.”
And with these words I left the room and dramatically shut the door behind me.