– Chapter 159

Selene

There haven’t been many times in my life that I’ve felt like a genius, but I certainly do now. After my success with the reporters outside, I was prepared to take on Dr. Kane, but I never expected to catch him out like this. As alarming and disturbing as his behavior has been throughout our conversation, I’m on the verge of making him admit he was working with Arabella, and that’s only a few steps short of making him admit he’s not Dr. Kane at all, but Frederic.

This man I once trusted, is looking at me as if he’s never seen me before. I’m afraid he’ll try to touch me again or profess his love, but I’m also afraid he might attack. It honestly seems like it could go either way. “I learned what Arabella was planning.” He admits hoarsely, seemingly unable to think of a lie in the moment.

“Because you were working with her.” I suggest. “Because you were helping her drive me away from Bastien.” Suddenly another detail clicks into place, “That’s why she was in the hospital the night she tried to push me down the stairs isn’t it? She was coming to meet you and you made sure she overheard I was pregnant.”

“No.” He immediately denies, “she was never supposed to overhear that.”

“But she was there to meet you.” I press, feeling more powerful than I can remember being in quite some time. Moments ago this man was controlling the room, and now he’s pale and sputtering nervously… because of me – and I didn’t even have to use my powers.

“Yes.” He breathes in resignation. “We were working together. But Selene, you have to understand, it started out about Bastien, but when I met you, I realized we were meant to be together.”

“The Goddess would disagree.” I reply simply. “And so do I.” I’ve been walking a fine line this entire time, needing him to confess to being Frederic Durand, but knowing if I come out and ask or accuse him outright, he’ll deny it. “I don’t understand why you were working with her in the first place. If it was before you met me, what did you have against Bastien, has it always been about the power?”

“That’s it?” He asks, clearly offended. “I tell you I saved your life, and your pups life, and all you care about is why I worked against your husband?”

“Our lives never would have been in danger in the first place if it hadn’t been for your and Arabella’s schemes.” I remind him. “Do you expect me to thank you for that?”

He shakes his head, looking truly disappointed now, “You’re not who I thought you were.”

“That’s the difference between a fantasy and a real person, Thomas.” I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel discouraged not to extract a full confession from him, but I also don’t want to show him all my cards just yet. “I’m not the dream woman you imagined, and Bastien isn’t the villain you’ve made him out to be either.” Turning towards the door, I leave him with one final thought, “The truth is a lot more complicated than you’re making it out to be, I’m here, if you want to talk further. I’d much rather you and I speak this way, than play games in the media.”

He looks truly torn, as if he wants to believe me and strike me at the same time. I’m not sure which feeling will win out, and I don’t want to risk the latter, so I duck out before he can respond.

When I get home I’m excited to share what happened with the others, but I don’t get the chance. As soon as I walk inside, my pup’s voice and the sound of the tv news greets me, and I have a sneaky suspicion I know what the anchors are covering.

“Mommy you’re famous!” Lila cries, flying across the room and into my arms.

Kissing her hello and moving deeping into the apartment, I see my own image on the television screen and wince, I always hate seeing myself in photos and videos. Even so, the scrolling text at the bottom of the screen is nothing short of a glowing compliment, even going so far as to encourage viewers to keep an eye out for investigations into Dr. Kane.

Odette is as complimentary as my daughter, hugging me and sharing, “I’m impressed, they almost never show full interviews like this. It’s always edited down to a few clips. You did so well, Selene.”

“I don’t know where it came from, the words just sort of spilled out of me.” I shrug, blushing.

“And you looked fabulous.” Sophie adds from the couch, “in the rain and all!”

Turning to look at the other figures in the room, I realize the womens’ opinions are not shared. Drake, Aiden, and Donovan are glaring at me with identical expressions of disapproval. Unfortunately for them, there’s only one wolf that can make me quake in my boots these days, and he’s very far away.

“Ah-ah.” Aiden scolds, clearly reading my mind. “We might not scare you Selene, but we’re making a list for Bastien when he gets home.”

As much as the threat makes my insides go to pure mush, just hearing that they still believe Bastien will come home comforts me. I’m not even bothered that he’ll be furious when he learns everything I’ve been up to in his absence, as long as he’s furious with me, I don’t care.

_____________

Helene

“Concentrate, Selene.” Helene’s soothing voice instructs. “Focus on the magic, forget everything else that’s happening in your life right now.”

“Easier said than done.” I snort.

After the scolding I received from Drake and the Beta’s about confronting Dr. Kane without them, I shared what I learned. My information both confirmed their suspicions and shocked them, and ever since they’ve been locked in Bastien’s office planning their next steps. To their credit they aren’t excluding me anymore, but I have so much to do between raising Lila, practicing with Helene, keeping up public appearances and puking up my guts every morning that joining their discussions inevitably gets pushed to the bottom of my agenda.

“Just remember that this is the most important thing you can do to protect your family.” Helene reminds me, “everything else is just window dressings.”

“I’m sure the pack would love to hear their governance referred to that way.” I chuckle.

“You can’t govern them if Blaise Denizen is drinking you like a juice box.” She scolds good-naturedly.

“Fair point.” I concede, dropping my hands in frustration. “But this isn’t working!”

“Because you’re not concentrating.” Helene observes with the sort of detached assessment I’ve come to expect from the ancient witch. “Surely you didn’t think you’d learn to bend shadows overnight.”

“No.” I agree with a huff, “But creating energy bursts happens so naturally, I kind of thought the other stuff would come the same way once I knew how to do it.”

She’s been trying to teach me to use this particular skill for days. It’s not something normal witches can do, but Helene assures me it’s not that different from transfiguring matter- whatever that means. All I know is that she’s confident this is the easiest of the abilities Odette’s books attribute to Volanas, so we’re starting here. Unfortunately, if she’s right and this is the easiest, I’m not too optimistic about learning the other skills.

“Any idiot with an ounce of power can create an energy burst.” She derides, shaking her head. “You have the potential to be great Selene, but getting there is going to take a lot of hard work.”

“I’m trying.” I insist, trying to draw the shadows towards me the way she instructed. You must first draw them to you if you want them to do your bidding. She’d cryptically explained. It seems I’m doomed to only understand a fraction of what my mentor says, but as long as she doesn’t mind, I’m willing to be confused and just pray some of her knowledge will rub off on me.

“You know the problem, Selene.” She says then, studying me closely. “You’re afraid of the shadows.”

“I’m not.” I reply simply, “I lived among them for years, trust me, the shadows and I are old friends.”

“No.” She utters thoughtfully, “they tortured you for years, you were never equals. Familiar is not the same thing as unafraid.” I stop trying to summon them for a moment, staring at the elegant woman while she lectures. “Garrick used them against you, now you have to make them your own. You have to channel them for your own purposes, take control and make them work for you, not against you.”

I throw my hands up in exasperation, “how am I supposed to undo eight years of trauma in a few days. I can’t just rewrite history.”

“Think about everything you’ve accomplished this week alone. Think about what you told me about all those bossy men you just faced down.” She encourages. “Five years ago even one angry authority figure would have made you collapse, but today only the very strongest of wolves can intimidate you. You aren’t that little girl Garrick tormented anymore. Show those shadows who’s boss the way you showed Dr Kane.”

I have to admit she has a point. I’m not the scared little girl I used to be, and this week has proved it more than most.

“Bastien is going to be so proud of you when he comes home.” Helene adds, making my heart swell in my chest. “Don’t you want to show him what you can do?”

It happens then without trying, all the shadows in the room flee their hiding spots to gather around me as if I’m one of their own. Swathed in darkness and studying my own shadow-kissed limbs in awe and confusion, I ask, “How did that even happen, all I did was think of pleasing Bastien?”

“That’s the trick to magic, sweetheart.” Helene grins. “The light calls the dark, and the dark calls the light. You just have to know how to speak their languages.”

Excitement swells in my chest. “What else? What else can you teach me?”