The Plan

RORY

Sweat covers my body and my heart is pounding. I look around, disoriented, to see where I am. Our bedroom. Everett isn’t in bed with me. Oh, goddess, is it true, is he…?

I turn on the lamp and make myself look at the floor. There’s no corpse there, no pool of cooled blood. Only the woven rug Everett had gotten as a gift when he became Alpha.

~He’s fine, he’s just gotten caught up in pack business, he’ll be home soon.~ The haunting image of Everett’s body in front of me brings me to tears. My heart aches at the thought of losing him.

Lucius was right; it can’t be a coincidence that I heard Xander and Nemesis. The memory of their ghastly faces hovering over me sends a chill through me.

There has to be a connection between all of this and them. I just have to figure out what it all means. If I only had some help… ~Help!~ I remember my dream, the part before Nemesis took it over.

Nemesis obviously doesn’t want me to meet with the woman who was calling me. She tried to scare me off with those nightmare visions. That just makes me more determined to make it happen.

Who was that she-wolf? I’ve seen her before in the spirit realm, but only briefly. She wants me to come see her. Could she be the woods witch Orion mentioned?

She might just be able to give me the answers I need. Looking over at Everett’s side of the bed, I know he isn’t going to agree. He is never going to allow me to leave the pack lands.

I know the danger that is out there and I am scared. Even after my multiple deaths, I’m not comfortable with dying. It’s still possible that one day I won’t be able to return from the spirit realm.

The thought of losing Everett scares me more and I know I must go. I’ll talk to him as soon as I can. It’d be good to learn a little more about this woods witch before I visit her.

When morning finally comes, after another night of very little sleep, my body and mind are exhausted. Everett came back late, but he’s gone again already.

I make another trip to the library to look for any books that might help, thinking about how best to approach asking him about visiting a witch.

Everett was overprotective before but since everything that happened with Professor Xander and Nemesis, he has gotten ten times worse. I know he means well but he can’t protect me from everything.

Besides, I’m not the only one who needs to be protected. We are still no closer to finding out where that virus came from or who it might infect. Worst of all, we don’t know how to cure it.

Page after page and I still find nothing of any use. After looking through the library a third time, I am convinced that the she-wolf is our only answer. Which means I need to talk to Everett.

Of course, he surprises me with a visit as soon as I decide that. No time to chicken out now. He gives me a sympathetic smile. “Any luck?”

The sight of him instantly brightens my day. I shake my head as he walks toward me.

He gives me a hug. “Don’t worry, little one, we’ll figure this out. Unfortunately, we haven’t had better luck than you have so far. Mia didn’t know anything and I can’t find anyone else who’s sick.”

It’s good news that no one else is sick, but frustrating that none of our leads are paying off. I pull back from the hug to look into his face. “What are you planning to do now?”

“We’re making plans to restructure the search for Xander’s body. I think it’s time to start putting more of our people on it. I don’t like him appearing to you now.” His brow is furrowed with worry.

“What about me?” I ask, frowning. Is he leaving me out? I’m the Luna, I should be helping. If he’s seriously leaving me out, then I won’t feel bad if I end up needing to go behind his back.

He lifts my chin with his finger and kisses me. For a moment, I forget to think. “You keep yourself safe. That’s my main priority, Aurora. I love you,” he says with a smile.

“I love you,” I say, tapping my fingers nervously on his chest. “But… Well, I did have another idea, of something I could do, but it’s not exactly ‘sitting at home’.”

Everett tilts his head curiously. “Oh? What’s that?” He seems open to the possibility.

I decide to start slowly, see how he feels about this woman, if he even knows about her. “Have you heard of a woods witch who lives near here?”

He laughs. “Yes, she’s got a hut a few miles away from the edges of our territory. The pups like to tell each other stories about her, say she can do curses or love spells, that kind of nonsense.”

I’m shocked that she really is so close, and I’ve never heard of her. “So, you don’t believe it? Have you met her? Isn’t it strange for her to live in a hut like that by herself, so near to a pack?”

I know the answer is yes. Rogues don’t build homes like that; they certainly don’t stay in one place for long. A mysterious she-wolf lives not half an hour away, and no one thinks it’s important?

“I don’t need to meet her. She’s just a rogue like any other.” His voice and eyes are like steel. There’s no reasoning with Everett when it comes to rogues. He’s not going to agree to my plan.

My heart sinks, but I push on. “I don’t think that’s true. I’ve seen her in the spirit realm, and last night I had a dream where she called me, offering to help.”

Everett’s face grows stormy. I wonder if he’s thinking of the last magician who wanted to ‘help’ me. “If she really is a magic user, then she’s even more dangerous. You shouldn’t go.”

“I’m the pack Luna! You have to let me do something.” I step back out of his arms so I can glare at him properly.

He runs a hand through his hair, agitated. “You can help by staying safe, or researching here. You don’t need some crazy she-wolf.”

“But I really think she has the answers. Nemesis even tried to scare me off!” I plead with him, hoping he’ll understand. I don’t want to have to do this behind his back.

“Aurora, I’m not sending you into the lap of a rogue. Not until the situation is far more desperate than this.” He reaches out to me, but I don’t come into his arms.

“You’re not sending me, I want to go.” I hate it when he acts like he’s the boss of me, like we aren’t partners in this. This is my idea, for Goddess’s sake!

He crosses his arms and raises one eyebrow. “Would you take guards?”

I shake my head. “No. I don’t want to scare her. And I think she wants me to come alone.”

He rolls his eyes. “Of course she does. Aurora, please. She could be working with Nemesis, maybe that’s why you saw her. There’s still plenty of time for us to solve this, don’t go looking for trouble.”

My shoulders slump. I don’t have to pretend to be disappointed, even if I am pretending to agree. “Okay. I guess there’s no real rush.”

“Thank you,” he says, giving me another kiss. “I’ll see you later.”

This evening Everett will be in the office with Lucius and Ace will still be out looking for Professor Xander. I can slip away without them knowing.

That will leave me with at least four hours where no one will be looking for me. I think I can remember how to get to her hut from the dream. I’ll just have to trust my instincts for the rest.

Alone in our room once again, I get an eerie feeling. I try to ignore it but it gets stronger. I feel someone watching me, but it’s impossible.

I lie down on the bed and close my eyes, but I’m unable to relax. Suddenly, my whole body is restless and jittery. I struggle to find a comfortable position, but fail.

Sitting up in bed, I look around the room as a chill comes creeping in from somewhere. I wrap my arms around myself to shield myself from the cold. I can’t stop picturing Professor Xander’s evil smile.

Is he out there somewhere waiting to attack? Was that a dream I had or a glimpse into the future? I need to do something. I haven’t tried Freya today.

I call Freya again. This time, she picks up. She barely has time to say hello before I jump all over her. “Where have you been? Why haven’t you been answering any of my texts or calls?”

“Geez, nice to talk to you too, Rory. For your information, I’ve been a little under the weather.” Freya sounds annoyed and worn.

Guilt gnaws at me. “I’m sorry you’re not feeling good. Sorry for flipping, too, but you scared me! It’s not like you to not answer anyone.”

Freya sighs. “I’ve just been really exhausted. Didn’t have the energy to text. I’m barely awake right now, honestly.”

No energy, just like the kids. But maybe it’s nothing. She’s not a wolf. Maybe it’s a normal illness. “That sounds pretty serious. Have you seen a doctor?”

She blows me off. “I’m just tired, it’s no big deal. Probably a cold or something.”

I try again, worry growing. “Still, it might be good to get a check-up—”

“I said I’m fine, Rory, shit!” she snaps. Then, she sighs again. “Sorry. Been kind of on edge lately. It’s hard to keep up with school right now.”

“That’s all right. I know how stress can be.” I try to sound calm, but my heart is pounding. She doesn’t have a wolf, but she’s still feeling the tension the kids are. It is the same thing.

“Hey, don’t tell Ace about this, all right? I don’t want him flooding me with any more messages. I’m swamped as it is.”

I frown, even though she can’t see me. “Isn’t it nice that he’s worried about you?”

“Too worried! I’m fine, I don’t need fussing.”

“Okay, if you’re sure…” I don’t like it, but I don’t want to cause her any trouble either.

“I’m sure. Listen, Rory, I appreciate you checking on me, but I’m fine. I gotta go.” She sounds like the conversation wiped her out.

“All right. Hope you feel better.” We say goodbye and hang up.

My conversation with Freya has me worried, but I’m not sure if I should say anything to Ace. If he knows something is wrong with her, he will be worried and distracted.

On the other hand, if I were in his shoes and Everett needed help, I would want to know immediately. Freya said not to worry him, so for now I won’t.

I’ll wait to say something until after I talk to the she-wolf. I hope that I will have some kind of answers when I return.

A glance at the clock tells me that I need to get to the dining hall. The time is quickly approaching, and I’m getting nervous.

The sun is starting to set, turning the sky an array of colors. Streaks of orange, pink, and purple are scattered across it.

Sitting across from Mama, it’s hard to concentrate. I hate hiding things from her. I glance around the dining hall at all the people who might be in danger of getting sick.

It feels wrong to keep it a secret, even though I know it’s the right thing to do…for now. But maybe not for much longer.

“Are you okay, sweetheart?” Mama asks, snapping me out of my thoughts.

“I’m just worried about Freya. She sounded strange when I talked to her earlier,” I say, hoping she won’t ask too many questions.

“Strange how?” she asks, looking worried.

“I don’t know. Tired and distracted.”

“She is probably worried about exams or something. You were the same way when you had a test coming up.”

“That’s true,” I agree.

“I’m sure once the semester is over, she will be back to normal.”

It’s nice to see the relief on Mama’s face. She looks relaxed, and I don’t want to ruin that.

I know I have to leave soon, and it takes all my strength not to tell Mama everything. The thought of her getting sick worries me.

“I’m going to go to bed. I’m exhausted. Maybe I’ll get lucky and be able to sleep,” I say.

“Are you sure everything is okay?” she asks, looking more concerned.

“Yes, Mama. Like I said, I’m just tired,” I assure her, knowing it couldn’t be further from the truth.

I say goodnight to Mama and hurry out of the dining hall.

Everett will be at the office for a few more hours. I quickly return to my room, change my clothes, and pull my hair up into a ponytail.

Once I’m out of the pack house, I pull the hood of my shirt up over my head. I keep my head down until I reach the edge of the pack lands.

I know the danger that comes with leaving the pack lands, but I don’t see another choice. We need answers.

It’s getting darker as I enter the forest, which puts me even more on edge. The sounds of breaking twigs underneath my feet and my ragged breaths are all I can hear.

I look around nervously, feeling eyes on me, but see nothing. Picking up the pace, I focus on what’s ahead of me.

There is a light in the distance, and I know I’m getting closer. A rustling of branches catches my attention. I turn to look, but nothing is there. My pulse quickens, and I keep moving. The house isn’t far.

The closer I get, the more I think about turning back. Thoughts of Professor Xander and the last time I trusted a stranger linger in my head.

I see a figure standing on the porch as I approach, still too far to see it clearly. When I get closer, I can see it’s her—the she-wolf.

Instantly, I’m filled with doubt. With every step, my anxiety grows, and I think about turning back. But if there is any hope of figuring this out, I have to talk to her.

I swallow hard and take a deep breath, trying to work up the nerve to speak. The she-wolf silently watches as I walk toward her, adding to the growing tension I feel.

Her face bears no expression. My mind goes blank as I struggle to come up with the words to explain why I’m showing up like this, unannounced. I don’t know if she remembers the dream.

“I’m sorry to bother you, but I need your help,” I say as I reach the porch.

She waves her hand and says, “I know who you are, Rory. And I know why you are here. Follow me.” She turns and heads inside. I follow her, feeling a little nervous.

Professor Xander mentioned witches sometimes. I had an image in my mind of cauldrons and bats. Instead, her home is cozy, with dried herbs hanging from the ceiling and a lot of wooden furniture.

“My name is Mariah. Before we go any further, I must ask something. Nobody knows you’re here. Are you sure you want to do this, Rory?” she asks with a solemn look.

I nod my head without thinking about it. She stands across from me, her silver hair falling around her shoulders. She looks like I thought a witch would, even if her house doesn’t.

“The answers you are looking for aren’t going to be easy to get. It is a dangerous process, and once you start it, there is no turning back. Are you willing to put your life at risk for the sake of your pack?”

There is no choice if I want to protect the people I care about. If there is a way to stop this before more people are affected, I can’t stop until I find it. I take a deep breath and nod my head.

“Very good. Come with me,” she says as she leads me to a small room. I trip on the way, but she doesn’t even look back at me. I honestly appreciate it. I get too much attention for my clumsiness.

It’s completely dark, aside from the glow of flickering candles. A round table with a black cloth draped over it sits in the middle. This feels properly magical.

“Rory, I’m going to ask you one more time. This is a dangerous road you are on. There is no guarantee that you will survive this. Are you sure you want to risk your life for the sake of your pack?”

This time when she says it, she stares into my eyes. Her warnings start to worry me. If I don’t make it, what will happen to Mama and Everett?

But if I don’t at least try, what will happen to all of us? I can do this. I have to do this. No matter what happens to me, I have to do everything I can to save them. “I’m sure.”