Amira lounges on her bed with her laptop in place in front of her as she works tirelessly on the mountain of assignments she has from the week, briefly thinking back to the days where she spent her Saturday's playing at the park or going to the movies instead of being a shut-in hermit with work all around her.
She hasn't heard anything from Calix since Friday afternoon when leaving class and he mentioned to her that he will be returning to his pack for the weekend and won't be close enough to know if something goes wrong. Which means she was given a stern reminder to avoid Evander, though she doubts he will pop up at her house.
She does wonder if she should mention the weird incident she had when driving home from school, when a suspicious car looked like it followed her from around the college campus right into her home area. But when she had pulled over onto the side of the road, it passed right away and kept going until it disappeared. She had sat there and waited for a few more minutes but it never reappeared the rest of the way home, causing her to assume it was nothing more than her own paranoia from everything going on lately.
Letting out an irritated sigh, she checks the time and sees it's almost midnight, more than enough reason to give her brain a break. She shuts down her laptop and wanders over to her dresser to gather something to wear to bed but stops when she hears a loud bang from outside her window and sees the tree that sits just beyond start to shake violently.
Rushing over she throws the window open and tries to look down, expecting to see a pair of raccoons or something fighting below, but there is nothing. She tries to peer through the darkness and sees something briefly move in the shadows before a chest rumbling growl erupts through the air and she slams the window shut.
She tries to run out of her room, tripping herself briefly before getting to the door and grabbing the baseball bat she keeps behind it and heads for the flashlight in the kitchen drawer downstairs. Once she is equipped she heads outside with shaky hands and legs, the night air deadly quiet and slightly thick as she wanders to the side of her house where her bedroom window is.
Flashing the light around the area, she can barely see any sign of the struggle she heard just a few minutes ago. Walking closer to just under her window, her flashlight is able to catch the glistening of something wet in the grass and spots the splash of red blood on the grey grass. She looks around more and sees another spot with more trailing after it, leading right into the swamp behind her house where the shadows become even thicker.
Another quiet growl sounds from next to her and she turns to shine her light, catching what looks like a giant red fox tail disappearing behind the dense trees. She frantically shines her light around the area again but doesn't catch another glimpse of it, at this point terrified beyond belief that she no longer feels like playing the hero.
Picking up her feet, she high tails it back inside.
~*~
Amira barely gets a wink of sleep the entire night, scared shitless that something is lurking outside her window and settling for sleeping in the guest bedroom at the other end of the hall just to be able to fall asleep a little.
She is making a coffee in the kitchen when there is a knock at the front door. After what happened last night she is hesitant to open the door, but as she gets closer a sense of calming comfort washes over her and she suddenly feels rushed to open it.
"Calix, what are you doing here?"
He pushes his way into the house and looks toward the stairs before grabbing her hand and hauling her up them.
"Where is your room?" he asks.
She points to the end of the hall, and he drags her toward it to push the door open.
"Back a bag for a few weeks, you're coming to stay with me," he says.
"What the hell, why?"
He growls. "I don't have time to explain, Amira, please just do as I say."
"Does this have anything to do with last night? It sounded like there was a fight outside my window, and there was blood on the ground."
Calix suddenly grabs her, his eyes wide with fear.
"Why did you go outside?"
"I'm right, something did happen last night. What?"
He pinches the bridge of his nose and lets out an impatient breath.
"I will explain everything when we get to the pack house, right now I need you to pack a bag and come with me."
She stands her ground. "You can't expect me to go anywhere unless you tell me why. My parents are going to wonder why I left so suddenly, they have no idea who you are."
"There was an unknown person lurking around your house last night, all right? Is that enough reason?" he cries.
"You said you went back to your pack, and you wouldn't be able to sense if there was trouble…how did you know there was someone here? I heard two people fighting last night, who was the red wolf I saw?"
"He isn't a wolf to be feared, that is my Beta, Malachi. I asked him to guard you while I was away, and for good reason clearly."
The realization that Amira had someone guarding outside her window all night without her knowing doesn't sit well with her and she feels the anger bubbling inside of her before the words spill out.
"You had someone hanging outside my window, without even telling me? What is wrong with you, do you not know what boundaries mean?" she cries and fights the urge to hit him in the chest, feeling like it will hurt her more than him.
"Sorry about this, sweetheart," he mutters.
"Wha – ah!" Calix picks up her and throws her over her shoulder like a piece of luggage, still managing to grab her jacket off the back of her chair before heading out the door.
"What are you doing? Put me down!" Amira kicks and screams the entire way out of the house, but Calix completely ignores her.
The red-headed guy from before is hanging around on the porch when they come out but stands up straight when Calix stops in front of him.
"Head back to the pack and get Myla to come pack a bag for her, I'll be right behind you."
"Oh, uh," Malachi calls out, stopping Calix. "Do you think that's a good idea?"
"Why the hell not?"
Malachi shrugs. "I'm just saying, I don't think she will be happy with that task. She'll probably through a fit."
"Whatever then, find another female member willing to do it, I don't care." He turns away and heads to the car.
Amira expects him to put her in the passenger side and anticipates the moment he does and tries to get in from his side, she plans to rush out once the door is unlocked. But her plans are crushed when Calix carries her over to the driver's side and climbs into the car with her on his lap.
"Are you serious? I can sit in my own seat, thank you." She tries pushing off him to crawl over to the passenger side, but he places an arm over her lap and firmly presses her back down. Her ass is pressed into his crotch, undeniably feeling the slight bulge in his jeans.
"I don't trust you not to run into the middle of traffic when you get the chance. It's a short drive." He presses on the gas and launches her back a little.
Once on the road, the bumps cause her to slide a little and the zipper of his jeans are digging into her leg. She tries to move toward the passenger seat again but Calix ends up slamming on the brakes and almost sends her flying forward.
He grabs her arms and leans his forehead against her shoulder, his breathing deep and a little fast.
"I promise the moment we get there, I am willing to beg for your forgiveness and answer any questions you have until the break of dawn, if necessary. I am willing to do whatever it takes for you to understand this situation, but only after I get you to the one place I feel you will be safe, so I can keep myself from going insane." He pauses and takes a deep breath. "But I am also willing to do whatever it takes to get you there, by force or by choice, it doesn't matter to me. So please, stop moving."
A sharp sense of fear runs through her and she folds her hands in her lap to sit back, showing she doesn't plan on moving. Once Calix is satisfied he starts the car again, still keeping a firm grip on her waist. When she feels they are getting close as the swamp area starts to overtake the city scenery, she feels a growl come from Calix's chest.
"Are you okay?" she asks.
He growls again. "Malachi has informed me that there is yet another problem waiting for me when we return. You may have to wait in the car while I deal with it."
"Does this have anything to do with the girl you mentioned earlier, Myla?"
His eyes darken and she knows she is playing with fire, but her curiosity is once again getting the best of her.
"She isn't someone you have to worry about, she can just be a little spoiled sometimes thanks to her brother and likes to throw tantrums when she doesn't get her way," he mutters.
Despite saying this, Amira gets a foreboding sense that this girl will be more trouble for her than he suspects himself.