I woke up in Mike's bedroom. I was in his bed and noticed that some blankets had scorched burnt marks on them. I started looking for Mike and then noticed him sleeping on the couch. I gave a sigh of relief and got out of bed.
I tried tiptoeing out if his room, but he woke up before I got to the door.
"Where do you think you're going, Liz?", I heard him say behind me.
I turned around and walked back to the bed.
"I didn't want to wake you, Mike", I said as I sat down.
"How about you tell me what happened last night?" He leaned forward and eyed me suspiciously.
I avoided looking at him. Just thinking about what happened last night brought tears to my eyes. He noticed and came to sit next to me on the bed.
"Liz, talk to me, please", he said with pleading eyes.
I couldn't stop the tears. "Mike, do you think I make myself too easily availableto guys?"
He looked shocked when he heard my question. "Why the hell would you ask me that, Liz? Of course I don't think that of you. Did someone say that to you? Give me their name and I promise I will deal with them!"
I couldn't answer him. I didn't want to tell him that my best friend had essentially called me a whore. I didn't want to tell him that I secretly agreed with Mathew because only a whore would have feelings for an engaged man and stay friends with him. I didn't want to tell him that I was stupid enough to call someone my best friend after having known them for only 3 months.
"I think I'm a jinx, Mike", I said as I took a box of tissues from him. I hadn't even answered his question." I think I'm the reason the witches attacked the pack yesterday and captured and killed all those people. Mike, everything I touch starts to crumble. You shouldn't be my friend." Tears kept streaming down my face. I knew this was the truth. I have been spreading my bad luck and I have been trying to deny it all this time.
Mike drew me in for a hug.
"Liz, you are not a jinx", he said while stroking my hair. "Tell me who is saying all these terrible things to you. I promise I am going to shut them up!"
I looked up at him and he pushed a few strands of hair out of my face.
"My best friend and the guy I am madly in love with told me I'm a whore. He said I'm the reason his life is falling apart, Mike. I think he's right. Mike, there's something wrong with me, and I need to stop denying it before more people get hurt."
"I'm going to kill him", Mike said through gritted teeth. He stood up and went towards the door.
I grabbed his hand just as he was about to walk out of the room.
"Mike, you need to promise me that you won't tell anyone about this; not even Mathew."
I was desperately pleading with him. If I was indeed bad luck, I needed to figure out how I could stop it from spreading.
"You risked your life to save him, Liz and instead of thanking you he calls you a whore?", Mike said with a roar. "And then he blames you for his life falling apart? He is a crappy friend and I'm going to knock some sense into him!"
Mike tried getting out of the room again, but I dragged him back inside.
"Please, Mike. Please promise me you won't tell anyone! I'm begging you!" I was on the floor, dragging his arm and trying to stop him from leaving the room.
Mike put his head in his hands and shook his head. "Okay, if it means that much to you then I promise I won't tell anyone." He sat back down on the bed. "But you can't believe any of that stuff Liz! You are not bad luck. Mathew is just an ass hole."
I gave a big sigh of relief. "Thanks, Mike."
After convincing Mike that I would be fine on my own, I went back to my room and took a shower.
I started rummaging through the clothes Jonathan had given me. He just gave me the basics; a few jeans, shorts, leggings, boots and jackets. I put on some shorts and a t-shirt. The shirt was a size or two too small so it was really tight on me and hugged my breasts firmly. I wore my hair loose and let my curls hang all the way to my butt.
When I got out of my room, Mike was waiting for me at the door.
"I thought I'd wait for you and make sure you don't get lost on your way to get breakfast", he said with a smile. "Thanks, Mike", I said as we headed downstairs.
We got to the kitchen, and found Jonathan and Audrey making out in a chair.
"Uhm! Uhm", I cleared my throat loudly. Audrey jumped up.
"Hey you two!", she said as she came to give me a hug.
"You guys just missed breakfast, but I can ask the cooks to make you something if you'd like?", Jonathan said as he grabbed Audrey's waist.
"No thanks", I said to him.
"I'm good for now. I'll just have a big lunch. I need to go to training. Liz, are you going to be okay?", Mike asked me.
"Yea, of course I am". Mike left, but Audrey and Jonathan were eyeing me suspiciously. Jonathan was about to say something, but we heard the elevator door ding open and freaking Mathew stepped out of it.
He was wearing black pants and a dark green shirt that hugged his body and made his green eyes stand out even more. The moment I saw him, I wanted to run out of the kitchen. I got up from my chair and started looking around for the nearest exit.
"Elizabeth, Elizabeth", I heard Mathew calling after me. "Elizabeth, can we please talk?" He grabbed my hand and made me turn to face him. I kept my head down and tried to avoid looking him in the eyes.
"Elizabeth, please give me a chance to talk to you."
I tore my hand out of his and ran to Audrey. I grabbed her hand and started running out of the pack house. "Audrey asked me to help her with something. I have to go!", I said while dragging her behind me as I ran.
When Audrey and I were outside, I finally let go of her hand.
"What was that all about?", she asked with a puzzled look.
"That was me trying to see this pack with its new luna walking by my side", I said while laughing awkwardly.
Audrey giggled when she heard that.
"You know, Jonathan says he wants to officially introduce me to the pack as their future luna." I could tell from Audrey's face that she was nervous.
"That's great news, isn't it?"
"I don't know", she said while shrugging her shoulders. "Werewolves have kept to themselves from other magical creatures for the past 15 years. What if the pack doesn't accept me?"
"If they reject a luna who put her life on the line to save them from witches, then they sure as hell don't deserve you. Audrey, Jonathan and this pack are lucky to have you. For goodness sake, you're immune to the witches' magic!", I said while bumping into her shoulder teasingly.
Audrey laughed.
"We need to figure out why more people are growing immune to the witches' magic", she said. "At first I thought maybe something in New York made us immune, but that doesn't explain why Jonathan and Mike are immune and it doesn't explain why all the warriors we took with us on the rescue mission all got immune."
"You're right. It all seems random", I said to her.
Audrey gave a deep sigh. "Things are rarely random in our world, Elizabeth."
We were both silent for a moment.
"Do you want to do something potentially exciting with me?", Audrey said as she clung onto my hand. I nodded my head excitedly.
"I want to go visit a seer that Elder Anaia told me about. Apparently she's really good at using her gift. Her name is Esther. Wanna come with me to go see her?"
"Yea, of course!", I said to her.
**
The warriors that were guarding Audrey seemed uneasy about taking us to Esther's house. They tried to dissuade us from going, but Audrey insisted and they finally gave in since she is their future luna.
Audrey knocked on the door and a little boy opened for us. It was Ishmael, the little boy from yesterday. He gave me a big bright smile when he saw me and hugged my legs.
"Elizabeth, you're okay!", he yelled with excitement.
I knelt down to hug him. "Of course I'm okay, Ishmael! I'm glad to see you're okay too!", I said as I tapped his nose. He giggled.
"I was scared because mommy said the sun is in trouble." Audrey and I looked at one another and then I turned back to look at Ishmael.
"Ishmael, is your mommy's name Esther?", Audrey asked. Ishmael nodded his head.
"My name is Audrey. I am Elizabeth's friend. Do you mind if we see your mommy?", Audrey said as she also knelt down.
Ishmael looked down. "Nurse Caroline says mommy is sick. She can't have any visitors."
Audrey and I gave each other a concerned look.
"How about you take us to Nurse Caroline, Ishmael?", I said while smiling at him. Ishmael led us through the house all the way to the kitchen. We saw a short brunette young girl with brown eyes. She was a bit skinny and couldn't have been older than 21.
She looked surprised when she saw us, but calmed down when she saw the warriors behind us.
"Hey, Caroline?", Audrey asked while extending her hand to the girl.
"Yea, can I ask who you guys are?", she said as she shook Audrey's hand.
"I'm Audrey and this is my friend Elizabeth. Uhm, I'm Jonathan's mate."
Caroline's eyes grew bigger and she took a step back from us.
"I'm so sorry, luna. I didn't know. I spend most of my time here looking after Ishmael's mom. I meant no disrespect." She looked a bit scared and startled.
"You don't have to apologise. You didn't do anything wrong, Caroline. We were wondering if we could talk to Esther."
"Luna", she stopped talking and then looked down at Ishmael.
"Hey buddy, how about you go play for a bit. These warriors will keep you safe and they'll do ANYTHING you want them to", I said as I knelt down to talk to Ishmael. He didn't even respond. He just ran out of the kitchen and dragged the warriors with him.
Caroline gave us an awkward smile.
"Luna, Esther is not well. I'm afraid she can't have any visitors."
"Can I ask what's wrong with her?", Audrey asked.
Caroline gestured for us to sit down.
"Five years ago the witches attacked our pack. It was their first attack and it was also their deadliest attack. Esther is a seer and she saw all the death and suffering that was to come. In her visions, she also saw and experienced the death of her mate. The visions alone caused her so much pain, they almost killed her. She had to live through the death of her pack members and her mate in her visions and...well, also in real life."
"How old was Ishmael when...when his dad passed away?", I asked.
"He was barely a few months old. Esther just hasn't been the same ever since. She stopped taking care of herself and also neglected her little boy. Since then, Alpha Gideon has assigned nurses to help her and Ishmael. Actually, a process is currently under way to get Ishmael adopted by another family."
Audrey and I gave a deep sigh.
"I'd like to see her. I'm also a seer and...I just need to see her", Audrey said.
"If you insist, luna." Caroline then led us to a bedroom in a corner of the house.
When we entered the room, we saw a pale woman with light brown hair sitting in a chair. She couldn't have been older than me. She was looking out of a window and had a blanket on her lap. Audrey and I sat down next to her. Her eyes were a lifeless brown-ish colour. She looked soulless.
I held her hand. "Esther?" She didn't say anything. She didn't even turn, didn't flinch. She didn't react in any way whatsoever.
"Esther, my name is Audrey. I'm here because Elder Anaia said you and I can help one another." Esther just continued looking out the window.
"Esther, Ishmael told us you said the sun is in trouble. Did you see this in a vision?", Audrey asked. This made Esther flinch and a tear rolled down her face. Audrey wiped away her tear and suddenly Esther grabbed Audrey's hand.
"You, you have been cloacked. Please, the prophecy, the suffering. So much suffering, so much death. The warlock, he's here. He's already here." Esther was sobbing uncontrollably. She wouldn't let go of Audrey's hand.
"Esther, what is cloaking me? What is the prophecy? Who is the warlock?", Audrey asked her while shouting.
Esther just kept crying. She turned and faced me.
"You will die. The Moon Godess says you will die. You will die. You will die." Esther's voice was hoarse and she couldn't stop crying.
I stepped away from her. I didn't want to be near her after hearing what she said.
Audrey looked into Esther's eyes. Her eyes started glowing with a white light and she grabbed Esther's hand. She managed to get out of Esther's grip and held her other hand as well. The light shining from Audrey's eyes was lighting up the entire room. It seemed to be calming Esther. She wasn't crying or screaming anymore.
When Audrey's eyes got back to normal, she rested her forehead against Esther's forehead. Esther closed her eyes and tears trickled down her eyes. When Esther opened her eyes, colour had returned to them. She looked like she had a soul again. Esther smiled at Audrey.
"Thank you. Thank you so much", Esther said with tears falling from her eyes.
"What just happened?", Caroline said with a shocked expression.
"Where's my son?", Esther suddenly asked.
"I'll go get him", Caroline responded. She looked scared and seemed like she wanted to get out of that room.
I was standing some distance away from Esther. I was still startled by what she had said to me.
Ishmael came running into the room. When he saw his mom, he stopped at the door and then ran to her and gave her a hug. Esther picked him up and gave him a tight hug. She started kissing him all over his face and Ishmael was giggling.
Esther finally looked up at Audrey.
"You come from a long line of seers. Your parents were seers, so were your grandparents and great grandparents. In fact, you are the first in your family to be mated to a non-seer." Esther had a calm look on her face and was running her hands through Ishmael's hair while talking.
"Yea, that's true", Audrey said.