The night of the 16th of April proved to be a much gloomier night than Maeve could have hoped for. The darkness, while quite pronounced, could never fully prevail against the beauty of artificial lighting as well as the ever-present, ever-bold moon in the sky though.
But Maeve could have given – in how she would have expressed it – a stubborn rat's ass about the look of the night. She walked alone towards the parking lot close to the supermarket and gave Mr. Page's silver hatchback a modestly relieved look. She hadn't been sure it'd still be here. Before she opened the door to the driver's seat, she gave one last look behind her.
She couldn't feel the gnawing sensation that she was being watched.
Aaron and Ryan had either left or were following from a safer distance, away from her sensory range. She imagined it was the latter.
Maeve sighed. She preferred it that way and Aaron seemed to understood that too. He hadn't even offered to accompany her to the car.
Soon, the silver hatchback was on the road. Maeve did her best to focus on the lonely path before the headlights, but her mind kept meandering. She was distracted. Two dates and a name kept revolving in her head over and over.
The 19th.
The 23rd.
And of course, Stephen Bargrove, Aaron's brother – an Alpha.
SCREEE!
"Shit!" Maeve cried as she pressed hard on the brakes. There was a pedestrian crossing up ahead and a youthful pair had been passing. She had almost hit them. They hurled insults and rude hand gestures at her as they passed. Maeve didn't have the heart to bark back at them, much less apologise. She steadied her heart and drove on, her face a tangled mess of art.
She rubbed her neck subconsciously every time she got the chance and pushed her hair back unnecessarily.
"Stephen Bargrove…" she said the name with a bit of contempt. She then recalled what Aaron had told her. The words weren't quite inspiring in her ears.
"My brother is the Alpha of our pack. He sent me and Aaron here to protect you," Aaron had said.
Maeve had found herself flaring at the words 'protect you'. It wasn't because she thought she didn't need protecting – for now at least. She had many thoughts about this, but most supreme of all was…
"Protect me, huh? He wants to be my…backer or whatever, but he can't even be bothered to show himself?" she had said, and when Aaron opened his mouth to voice a counter, she cut him off. "These Alphas that want to support the aspiring Lunas… some of them aren't even from Glendale, are they? They just want a chance at having an IOU from the oh so marvellous Luna, right? Since you say a Luna is more valuable than an Alpha. Really seems to me like your brother sees me more as a prize he'd very much like to fuck after all is said and done."
Aaron had been lost for words. Maeve had hoped Aaron would get enraged, which would somewhat confirm her suspicions, but the son of a bitch did not reveal much. Those damn satin grey eyes grew more mysterious the more she gazed into them.
"Stephen, Ryan and I… our parents aren't originally from Glendale. You're right on that. And sure, some Alphas are only in it for the prospect of…subduing a Luna. But you have the freedom to discern their intentions. In the end, you can choose which Alpha will help you through the trials. It's not set in stone," Aaron had said in a calm voice as irritating to Maeve as the one he used when rebutting her theory that the moon was simply a floating piece of rock. "You'll meet all the Alphas three days from now, during the Vales Gathering. Every vampire, witch and werewolf interested in the trials will be there. From that day till the Day of Moon Bound, you will have ample time to choose your Alpha."
The steering wheel suddenly felt cold to Maeve. Three days from now, on the 19th, there would be a ceremony to acquaint all the relevant parties – foes and friends – with each other. She couldn't have admitted it to Aaron when he announced it, but she was scared witless. She couldn't imagine being around tens or maybe hundreds of werewolves and vampires.
She touched her neck. She suddenly remembered that Tony was still at large. Her impressions of vampires were moulded around that cold, playful, effortlessly terrifying man, matted in darkness.
Then she thought of the witches. She dreaded them so much. What would they be like?
Maeve shook her head.
She was going to meet Stephen Bargrove at the Vales Gathering too.
Because of him, Aaron had refused to elaborate any further about Maeve's parents. He felt that the honour was reserved for his brother who sent him.
"Right. Cause that would be a great ice breaker!" Maeve hissed to herself, her brows furrowing. " 'Oh hie, tell me about how my parents died and my ass is yours.' " Maeve scoffed.
However lame she considered this idea, however, she did appreciate that Aaron had been curt. He was convinced that keeping Maeve till late wouldn't do her much good. Thus, he and Ryan had given her a ride back to the supermarket. Maeve didn't scold them about being stalkers. (It was quite clear that they had been following her from the Pages.)
The silver hatchback pulled into the driveway.
Only when Maeve saw the front door opening to reveal a sour-faced, short girl with sparkling amber did she remember that she had had another half of the day detached from vampires and werewolves.
Bridget didn't need to say a word. Her face said it all.
For a moment, Maeve was paralysed. She had really done it this time. She had just moved in with the Pages and on her first day, she had not only disappeared with their car and was unreachable (Maeve had found that her phone was gone after she was rescued by Aaron and Ryan), but she also hadn't gotten the groceries she was supposed to get from the supermarket.
"I'm speechless," Bridget said, her tiny foot tapping rapidly on the doormat. "Where the eff where you? We must have called like a billion times?"
The word 'we' pinched Maeve hard. She recalled how loving Mr and Mrs Page had been to her.
There were no words she could say to them that would diminish the worry and perhaps doubts that had gone through them because of her. The same was true with Bridget.
Maeve's eyes glistened.
Bridget was still fuming.
"You know, I really hoped that—, oh!"
Maeve was hugging Bridget tight – very tight. At first, Bridget was confused. The sodden sensation that befell her shoulders cleared her fury all at once, however.
Maeve was crying.
'But Maeve never cries,' she thought silently before squeezing the taller girl back.
And they stood in the silent embrace, with Maeve sobbing softly for what felt like an eternity.