Chapter Two: Old Geezers and Ghosts
Auriella
I didn't sleep.
Every creak in the floorboards. Every flicker of light. Every gust of wind through my open window had my heart twisting like a knot.
I knew what I saw last night.
That shadow at the edge of the courtyard wasn't my imagination. It was real.
He was real.
And he was watching me.
Probably waiting for the next chance to spew one of his sharp little insults about how I'm just glitter and air. Decorated. Empty.
God, I hated him.
I hated how his voice echoed in my head like it belonged there.
By morning, I looked like shit—but a very expensive kind of shit.
I threw on a red designer blouse I didn't pick out, black jeans that hugged my ass like a second skin, and heels sharp enough to stab the mood out of anyone who crossed me.
Breakfast was a blur. Something about eggs. I didn't touch them.
Because the moment I walked past the dining hall, I heard them.
The council.
Arguing.
Low voices behind the thick doors of the war chamber. The sound made my skin crawl. Like something was coming. Something big.
I leaned in, just for a second.
"…she's not ready—"
"—still no wolf—"
"—can't risk another incident—"
And then dead silence.
Shit.
I stepped back like the floor was on fire just as the doors creaked open and revealed seven men and one woman all staring at me like I'd walked in with a bomb strapped to my chest.
I straightened my back. Chin up. Shoulders perfect. Smile?
Absolutely.
Princess mode: activated.
"Council Elders," I said sweetly, hands clasped like the good little heir. "You summoned me?"
Their faces were stone.
But none of them chided me for last night. Not a single "how dare you sneak into the human sector again, Aurelia." Not even a snide "heard about the alleyway ambush."
Which meant they knew.
And they were ignoring it.
Something was worse than me right now.
I stepped into the chamber, but I didn't get five feet before my gaze locked with his.
My father.
Seated at the head of the obsidian table like a living statue, dressed in black like he was still mourning my mother a decade later. His silver-streaked hair was slicked back, his jaw clenched. And those eyes—ice and fire all at once.
I looked away instantly. Pretended like I didn't see him. Like his presence didn't make my chest tighten and my blood rage.
He hadn't even checked on me since returning. Typical. Probably too busy hunting demons or kissing council ass.
Whatever.
I didn't care.
I didn't.
Because every time I looked into his eyes, all I ever saw was one thing.
Blame.
I was the reason his mate died.
The reason his daughter lived.
The meeting dragged for what felt like a hundred years and six passive-aggressive glares. I nodded through some bullshit about security breaches, external threats, and something about my training needing to become more… efficient.
I almost snorted.
But then one of the elders—the crusty one with the mouth like a dried fig—muttered something about "being prepared for the next phase of the prophecy."
I blinked.
The what now?
But before I could open my mouth and ask, they dismissed me.
Just like that.
Outside, Luna leaned against a marble pillar, scrolling through her phone with the same interest she reserved for watching paint dry.
As soon as I stepped out, she looked up and groaned dramatically.
"You look like you survived war and didn't even win a medal for it."
"Thanks," I muttered. "Good to know I look exactly how I feel."
She pocketed her phone and fell into step beside me as we made our way to the car. "So, what were the old geezers arguing about this morning? You looked like you'd just walked into your own funeral."
I grunted. "I wish. Might've been more exciting."
"You got in trouble for the club?"
"Nope. Not a single scolding. Which means something worse is going on. Which makes me nervous. And I don't do nervous."
"Oh gods," she gasped. "You've developed self-awareness. Should we call a healer?"
I shot her a glare. "Luna, I swear to the moon, I will rearrange your bones."
"Do it. I've always wanted to see what my spine looks like."
We laughed, but mine was thinner than usual.
Because the paranoia hadn't faded.
Not one bit.
My eyes kept darting to every corner of the estate, the back of every hallway, the gleam of every shadow under the trees.
Waiting.
Searching.
He'd seen me last night.
And I had a feeling he wasn't done.
We reached the car and the driver bowed slightly before opening the back door and handing Luna the key.
Luna slid in first, babbling about the school cafeteria changing their supplier and how she refused to eat another "plastic-ass croissant."
But I didn't follow her in right away.
Because I felt it again.
That heat crawling up the back of my neck.
That eerie tension, like something watching me just beyond the veil of this reality.
Slowly… my gaze drifted to the farthest end of the courtyard.
Nothing.
I got into the car disregarding it. Maybe I'm seeing things.
The engine wheezed like it needed holy water and a mechanic, but Luna drove it like it was a Porsche. Wind blasted through the open windows, snatching at my hair, which—thank the Moon—was still intact from this morning's twenty-minute struggle session.
She was talking. Loud. Again.
"There's this new club, Rie," Luna said, practically bouncing behind the wheel. "On the human side. Grand opening. Lights, DJs, drinks that glow in the dark, like actual alien blood type vibes."
I shifted in my seat, tugging my top a little lower, pretending to check my reflection in the side mirror—but mostly trying to hide my smile.
"Uh-huh," I said, playing it cool.
"You're not listening."
"I'm hearing you," I replied, dragging out the words. "Just not dying over it like you are."
Luna shot me a quick side-eye behind her ridiculous pink sunglasses. "You're just mad I found out first. Come on, imagine it. We roll up—first werewolves to ever step foot in the place. Instant icons."
I glanced at her, brow raised. "You think a bunch of sweaty humans grinding under strobe lights is iconic?"
"Babe," she said, her grin wicked, "everything we do is iconic."
I leaned back in my seat, letting the wind whip my hair while I tapped my perfectly glossed nails on my thigh. It wasn't like I wanted to go… but the thought of showing up, dressed to kill, every human guy in that room breaking their neck to look at us?
Not the worst idea Luna's had.
"Will there be drugs?" I asked, lazily.
She blinked. "You're interested."
"I'm bored," I corrected. "There's a difference."
Luna squealed like she'd won. "Oh, we are so going. I already told Callista, and she was big mad. Like jealous-jealous."
I smirked, not because of Callista—I didn't care what she thought—but because Luna knew exactly how to bait me.
"You told her we're going?" I asked, dragging the words out slowly.
"Yup."
"You didn't even ask."
"You would've said no."
"And yet, here I am. Still in the car."
She grinned and tapped the steering wheel like she'd just played her final card. I hated that she was right. It was stupid. Reckless. Probably breaking at least three pack rules. And yet—
The idea of walking into that place, Luna by my side, every head turning, no one knowing what we really were?
Tempting.
"I'm not dancing," I said, flipping my hair over my shoulder.
"You say that every time."
"And I mean it every time."
School finally loomed up ahead—ugly brick walls, flocks of hormonal teenagers loitering around the gates like they were waiting to be executed.
Luna swerved into the lot like a madwoman, nearly clipping the bumper of a sophomore's too-shiny car. She threw it in park and turned to me with the smuggest expression I'd seen all week.
"This weekend," she said, "we break records."
I grabbed my bag, slid my shades down over my eyes, and opened the door.
"I'm not wearing heels," I muttered.
She gasped. "You are excited!"
I didn't answer.
But I didn't say no either.
We stepped out of the car and I felt it again. The intense tension. My eyes searched the place.
The morning fog curled low and thick.
And there it was.
A silhouette.
Tall.
Still.
Not moving. Not blinking.
Not human.
Just standing there.
Watching.
The hairs on my arms lifted. My throat went dry.
"Luna," I whispered.
She leaned out. "What?"
I looked back.
Gone.
The fog was empty.
But I knew what I saw.
And somehow, the silence that followed was louder than all the council members combined.
[TO BE CONTINUED…]