Fallen Love
Chapter 22

Chris.

Little Noah came home two days ago, three weeks after the girls left. Miranda and Martin were very worried but had news of their son all the time. Esra got her powers back, Noah’s necklace reappeared and although he didn’t tell me anything about his time with the girls, the jewel at least told me that Esra was using magic again. Which is a relief, because I’d have felt bad if she couldn’t use her powers any more. Nick has heard from Lisa but he doesn’t know when she’ll be back, and poor Emmett doesn’t know what to do, he’s determined to win Lisa back but she’s nowhere to be seen, so frustration is running high. Luckily we weren’t attacked and I hope I can keep on knocking on wood like this for a long time to come. Nick’s parents are back and they’re spending all their time with my parents talking about Esra and what they’re going to tell her, that she’s not going to leave and is going to stay with us, which Casey doesn’t like at all and she’s prepared to kill the witch if she stays. Sometimes I think I see Em roaming around the territory, but I think I’m dreaming. I miss Esra a lot and the fact that I’m no longer connected to her is driving me crazy as I can’t feel her at all. Every night I dream about her coming back, wondering what I’ll say to her when I see her. But I mustn’t get carried away, Esra probably doesn’t have me in her heart, which is totally justified, although I hope she doesn’t hate me. At the moment, Casey’s leaving me alone, I don’t know why, because she likes to stick me around to show everyone that she’s ousted Esra, that she’s the new Luna of the pack, which is absolutely not the case, but letting her believe it leaves me in peace for the moment. I’ll deal with her later.

Sitting at my desk, I turn towards the window and watch the pack go about their business. A knock makes me turn towards the door and invite someone to come in. My parents enter and close the door behind them.

– So, any news?

I look at my mother, my eyebrows furrowed. She knows very well that if she wants information about the witch and the she-wolf it’s Nick who should go and see, not me. I’m sure that even if there was only my number left on earth, she’d never call me.

– Come on, you know I’m the wrong person to go to for that kind of information.

– Right, Chris, we need to talk.

My father let go of his sentence then sat down heavily on the sofa. Normally it’s girls who say that, not guys. Coming from my father, if he wants to have a chat, it’s not to talk about rain or shine. My mother goes along with him like a good soul mate and lets him talk. My mother would beat around the bush and get lost in dialogue, so I might as well leave the talking to my father, who in his role as Alpha is well used to dialogue. We all stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds, and then the former Alpha began.

– When are you planning to leave Casey?

OK, he’s off to a good start. One question, loud and clear. I love my dad, but I’m a bit confused by his question. Although I know full well that my parents don’t like the she-wolf, asking me when she’s leaving is a bit odd.

– I don’t know why?

– She thinks she’s the Luna of the pack and bosses everyone around, even Chris’s kids. That’s unacceptable,” spat my mother.

My mother was quite right, Casey isn’t the Luna of the pack and doesn’t tell anyone what to do, especially not the children. But the less I see of her, the better I feel. She’s trying to get me to make it official, to say it out loud, and then move in here. In my house? Pffff. No way. She thinks I’ve got nothing better to do than manage a she-wolf with a taste for luxury who doesn’t give a damn about her life. No thanks, I can imagine being a better mother to my children. Now that the bond is broken and nothing will ever happen with Esra, unfortunately, well, she can go. But I can see the picture from here, the screaming, the tears, the depression and all that over-acting. I have to take responsibility, the sooner she leaves, the sooner I can concentrate on another problem, which is: witches.

– Is she on the territory? I ask.

– Yes, we saw her not long ago,” Dad replies.

Determined, I leave my office and the house and ask the members of my pack if they’ve seen her, some of them grumble as they show me in which direction she’s gone and I can see that very few people have her in their hearts. It’s a good thing I’m kicking her out, it’ll lighten everyone’s load. Once in the forest, I concentrate on her scent to find her and follow her, wondering what she’s doing on the edge of the territory because apart from the sentries, there’s no-one else. I hope she hasn’t bumped into a witch, that would be silly. She’s unbearable but I wouldn’t want her to get hurt, I can’t imagine what her father would be like if that happened. Her father’s a naive fool, but when it comes to punching, he’s a great guy. As long as we’re on good terms, let’s carry on, in case Casey gets on his nerves after we split up, I hope he’ll get over it. But I’ve got some good arguments to keep him off my back. He’s clever, but he shouldn’t forget that I’m just as clever. A smell makes me stop dead in my tracks, Emmett? What’s she doing with Emmett in the forest? Oh, I’ve got a bad feeling about this one.

– What are you doing with Casey?

I don’t know if Casey’s onto me, but I can talk to Emmett without her knowing. A thought crosses my mind about Lisa.

– Chris, she wants me to go back to my old pack,” says my Beta.

– My Beta says.

– Yeah, I don’t understand why she’s telling me that.

Deciding to come out of hiding and intervene, Casey is startled when she catches my scent and turns to me in panic.

– So you want my wolf to leave the pack?

With my arms folded, I lean against a tree and watch her bite her lower l*p in panic as the situation closes in on her.

– No, but she must miss her old pack,” she justifies herself.

– I think about them, but I don’t miss them,” says Emmett.

– Why are you talking about her old pack, do you know them?

– No, no, I don’t know them.

Well then, why does she want him to leave? I don’t understand her intentions. A branch creaks and I turn round to see Ethan with his arms folded, staring at Casey.

– She offered to let me join her father’s pack,” he says.

My breathing starts to get heavier. So she didn’t just go and see Emmett, but also Ethan and who knows what else. She’s going to have to reveal her plans now. On her own would be easiest, but in that case using force won’t bother me any more than that.

– Casey, I scold.

– It’s just a proposition.

– Exactly how many people have you proposed to? Emmett asked, coming up beside me.

She shrugged her shoulders to avoid saying a number, but I doubt she did it to just two of my wolves, who happened to be two very talented fighters. All of a sudden she starts looking to the right and then to the left as if someone had just spoken to her. A relieved smile crosses her face as she steps back a little.

– Tell them yes,” she murmurs, looking at me.

As I tried to work out what she meant, several people appeared in a line of six. They stop just before the border of the territory. Most of them are dressed in red capes and I can see men and women of all ages. I realise that they are sorcerers and that Esra knew this day would come, except that we no longer have a magical barrier. Without waiting, I send out a mental alert to hide the children and people who can’t fight. But before I can give any further instructions, a grey-haired woman comes towards us. Ethan having moved closer, we form a trio.

– There’s no point in talking mentally, young man, we just want to have a chat.

– Don’t be angry with me for being so forward.

She doesn’t answer me but smiles to prove my point. I hope the children are safe but when I hear screams coming from the village, I turn to leave but find myself blocked. Shit, no, not again, that’s enough of this method. From the looks on the faces of the guys next to me, they’re stuck too.

– Can you tell me why we’re stuck?

– Let’s see, it seems to me that one of our people told you our intentions. Well, one of us, no, but it won’t be long now.

– Do you really think Esra will come to your camp? Emmett chuckled. Dream on.

The witch lost her smile, not knowing exactly what our relationship is with my soul mate, but I think she’s important to them. On the one hand, when you think that her parents were great wizards and that they led the council of their species, it must freak some people out if she doesn’t join their cause. I have to turn around, I have to, but unfortunately I can’t move a finger. No one’s answering me telepathically and that’s stressing me out enormously, whether it’s the children, the warriors, Nick or my parents. Shit, no wolf can give me a sign. Smoke is coming out of the houses and Tracker is getting restless as he tries to transform, but being blocked is hurting me more physically and mentally. Suddenly the shouting stops and I hear tears of relief. The wizards in front of us close their faces and talk amongst themselves. Strangely, I can’t hear them, but I suspect they’ve muted me. The old woman becomes furious and then turns to us.

– Who are you with? she shouts at us.

– As far as I know, the only undesirable people here are you.

– Too kind,” says another witch ironically.

– Get out of my territory, I yell.

My tone didn’t please and the ancestor conjured up a ball of fire levitating above her hand. Still trapped, I’m getting scared. Not just me, because against all odds Casey moved forward.

– We agreed not to kill anyone, especially Chris,” she said tautly.

– Come on, darling, since when is a witch’s word good enough,” she laughed.

– You fooled me,” realised Casey.

– Let’s just say the less you know, the better.

The old crone flicks her wrist back and concentrates on me. Casey holds back.

– You can’t kill an Alpha, it’s against the law,” Emmett shouted.

– My dear boy, the rules are out and honestly who’s stopping me…

Suddenly, without understanding, a shadow passed and a hand crossed the witch’s chest. My eyes went wide, as did those of the guys around me, and after several seconds the hand withdrew and the body fell. With her wide-open, surprised gaze, the old woman wasn’t expecting this.

– Lisa,” shouted a surprised Emmett.

– Hi everyone,” she exclaimed happily.

When I looked up, I was pleasantly surprised to see Lisa with a piece of her spine in her hand. The blockage disappeared and my shoulders rolled back to relieve the pressure. Lisa’s back! Is Esra there too?

Does she know what’s going on in the pack? I hope so. Seeing the surprised looks on the faces of the other wizards and Casey, one man reacted first and threw a fireball without waiting, but the she-wolf’s shield activated, sending it back to its sender. Lisa laughed as she turned to face the line of depraved men.

– Is the master in? Lisa asked.

– He only comes when he has to.

– And your death will make him come?

– Do you think a simple she-wolf could kill us all? scoffed the injured man.

The wizards laughed and mocked the she-wolf, until an arrow pierced the eye of the man who had mocked Lisa. He in turn fell under Lisa’s laughter. Then, without warning, Esra appeared next to her bond and they slapped hands before my witch cut her hand with her small knife and held it back towards me. Silently understanding what she wanted, I cut myself and then gave the knife back to Esra with our b***d mixed in. She immediately set up the protective barrier. Once it’s done, the barrier forms and bodies emerge from nowhere.

– What the hell is that? exclaimed Casey.

– Oh, it must be our welcome present,” joked Esra. We did it properly, don’t worry.

Casey tensed up when Esra replied and pulled out her claws, no sooner had she done so than Em emerged from nowhere to bite her neck. The she-wolf collapsed to the ground, suffocating, then stopped breathing, and Em crossed the barrier to stand in front of the girls. Cheers of surprise made me look up at the wizards, who were staring at Esra’s python.

– A snake,” choked one of them.

– That’s not possible, no snake has been attributed to a sorcerer for over three hundred years,” continued another.

– Three hundred years? That’s so cool,” Lisa enthused.

Em turns to the girls, all happy and proud. I’m surprised to learn that no one has had a snake as a totem for three hundred years, that means the witch is pretty clever. Looking at her, I can see that Esra has changed, in her attitude, her way of speaking, her way of being. She’s no longer the nice girl who doesn’t like violence except when necessary. These three weeks have been beneficial, it seems. I wonder what they did. Noah wouldn’t tell me anything, so I’ll try my luck with the ladies. Seeing that the wizards weren’t trying anything, Emmett took a step towards the girls and lifted Lisa into his arms, causing her to cry out in surprise. When she found the ground beneath her feet, Emmett captured the she-wolf’s lips, causing Esra to open her mouth and eyes wide in astonishment.

It’s actually quite funny to watch, which reminds me that my soulmate is a complete novice in this field. Lisa fell into Emmett’s arms, much to her delight, and once their k**s was over, they turned to us, a little embarrassed.

– OK, the barrier protects us, but this isn’t the right time,” Esra gently scolded them.

– Sorry, I missed her too much,” replies Emmett.

Lisa turns red, making us laugh. But our moment of respite was cut short when the protective barrier began to shake. A man in a cloak is casting spells. You can’t see his face because of the hood, but his aura and hands tell me he’s a sorcerer.