But I had survived.
I awoke the next morning to Tegan’s beautiful voice calling up the stairs. It was time for school. Dread filled my stomach, making it feel like a bowling ball hung inside it. Almost as bad as facing my death was facing a school full of hormonal, gossipy teenagers.
Finally, I willed myself to get out of bed and swallow my pride.
The three of us rode together so we could answer inquiries together and make sure our stories matched up. I personally liked the idea of safety in numbers.
The day wasn’t as bad as I had imagined it to be. We arrived at school to excited, relieved friends. All except Lacey, who avoided us. Even Beth and I picked up right where we had left off as though our friendship had never been put on hold. I learned Emma and Kate were heading up the prom committee, and they filled me in on all the juicy details I had missed from the day-to-day high school rumors.
“Some people even said you and Grey had run away to elope!” Emma exclaimed.
I hadn’t thought of that. The runaway part was true enough, though I would marry him any day. I smiled to myself. Mund rolled his eyes at me.
“Sorry, Emma. Nothing that terribly interesting. Our grandparents were very ill, and we went to spend time with them,” Mund replied. “And luckily, Baran was able to find Grey and convince him to come back home safe and sound.”
Grey punched Mund in the shoulder far harder than a human could have withstood, but Mund barely budged. And he punched him right back. Human bones would have crushed under the blows. It was unreal to think Grey was one of us now.
“Grey, I’m terribly sorry for your loss. Your father was a great man. And to die so horribly at the mouth of such a beastly creature . . .” Emma’s voice trailed off as she shook her head. Little did she know we were the same beasts she referred to and her blood smelled just as sweet to us.
Mund offered his elbow to escort Emma to class. Pulling the attention off Grey’s emotionless face—well, emotionless to everyone else. I could see the storm of emotions that flickered through his eyes. I lightly touched my fingers to his, and he grabbed on as we followed the others to class. He didn’t say anything—he didn’t have to. I knew he was torn up.
It got easier after that. Still, we faced endless questions about where Grey went when he had “run away.” He claimed he drove to California on his bike. Everyone bought the rebel-without-a-cause scenario.
They didn’t know him at all.
He had followed me to the ends of the frozen earth. To save me. He wasn’t selfish and unsure, as they all assumed, but I couldn’t possibly tell any of them the truth. They could never fathom the depths of the truth that surrounded us.
The morning hours passed by quickly as we repeated our story over and over again. So many times, I almost began to believe it myself. Lunch soon came as they continued to grill us. I started to tune them all out as I studied my tasteless lunch.
“So Grey, did you ask Ashling to prom?” Beth said in her less-than-subtle way. She had him for a brief moment. He looked honestly shocked, but he recovered quickly. He dropped to his knees at my feet, right there in the middle of the cafeteria, exaggerating the movement as he pushed up the sleeves of my sweater. He lightly kissed the back of my hands with his warm lips.
“Oh sweet and beautiful Lady Ashling, will you do me the honor of being my lady at prom?” he asked, loud enough for the entire room to cease talking and watch the spectacle.
I felt my face blush to match the color of my hair. I tried to pull my hands away from his grip, to hide my face and embarrassment in them. But he didn’t release me.
“Please, Lady Ashling, wilt thou leave me so unsatisfied?”
A laugh burst from my chest, a most unladylike sound. He was playing it all up for our audience of eager youth. He flipped my hand over, kissing my wrists one and then the other—where his crest would one day go. Only Mund and I recognized the subtle gesture. My flesh smoldered where his skin touched mine.
I snatched my wrists away as I nervously pulled my wild hair out of my face and up into bun. Twisting and untwisting it. I had to find a way out of this ridiculous display.
“Ashling! You got a tattoo!” Kate said.
They leaned in to see the mark. Kate’s thin hands pulled mine free from obstructing her view. She examined the intricate crest. I would have been happy their attentions had been redirected from Grey’s prom spectacle, if only they had not been redirected to me.
“It’s beautiful. It’s almost the color of blood,” Kate said as she ran her small fingers over my skin. “What does it mean?”
“Family crest,” I mumbled and sat down.
“Did it hurt?” Emma asked.
“Like you wouldn’t believe.” I shivered at the memory.
Grey, now standing, grabbed my hand and pulled me back up into his rock-hard body. “You can’t get away that easily,” he said with a smile. “What say you to my proposal?” His scent danced with mine around our bodies, and I could feel his heart beating in my chest. Underneath his overly confident exterior, I knew he still needed my confirmation.
“With all my heart.”
He smiled as he released me. I quickly gathered my books. I had enough public displays for one day. I was willing to be early to class to avoid this nonsense.
“Is that a yes?” he asked.
A naughty little grin curled my lips. “Figure it out,” I replied and walked away to class—leaving him standing there in the middle of a room full of our curious peers. I could almost hear their heads turning back and forth, watching him and watching me walk away. I felt triumphant. But I knew he would get me back later . . . I yearned for it.
At least now I had a reason to wear the dress I had brought home with me, I grinned to myself. I heard Emma, Kate, Kelsey, and Beth’s footsteps behind me as they ran to catch up. I could identify each of their individual footsteps; it was as individual as their fingerprints to my keen ears.
“You should have seen his face!”
“It was perfect.”
“I can’t believe you walked away from him like that!”
I laughed.
“Oh, but you should have seen Lacey,” Emma said. “I think she may have burst into flames.”
Kelsey replied, “She hates you something fierce for stealing Grey away from her.”
I stopped dead in my tracks and abruptly turned to face my friends. It was obvious some of them didn’t approve of Grey and me, but I didn’t care.
“You cannot steal someone who doesn’t want to be stolen.”
Kelsey slowed down her pace and didn’t keep up with the rest of us. I noted the change in her but didn’t have time to figure it out. I glanced at her as we ducked into class. The others were continuing to jabber on, but Kelsey kept her distance, pretending to read.
I was about to walk over to ask her what was going on, but the teacher walked in and brought the class to order. Had I been too harsh? Perhaps I should have been more apologetic for Grey and me, but why should I have to apologize for falling in love? You can’t help whom you love.
I didn’t hear a word the teacher said. Looking back, it was hard to even say what class I was in. It wasn’t until I was back home with everyone that I realized I was still worrying about it. Something had changed between Kelsey and me. My bold remark had hurt her in some way. I still didn’t understand girl logic well enough to comprehend what sacred crime I had committed. In some way, I suppose Grey and I had broken up the group of friends I had first met in Ryan’s garage. Now they felt they needed to choose sides. If the tables were turned, whose side would I have chosen?
If Kelsey chose Lacey, I couldn’t blame her for her choice, but it still hurt.
The division between us grew over the next few weeks as she started sitting with Lacey and Nikki on the other side of the lunchroom. The others commented on it but didn’t dwell. Lines had been drawn and sides chosen, and thus high school continued in its adolescent way.
Grey and I were inseparabl
e. Almost losing him really changed me. I felt as though I had grown old in one single breath, and there was no turning back the clock. I knew, without a doubt, what fear truly felt like. Before, I might have fretted over silly things like a teenager. Now I knew love, loss, and true horror.
I had lived through Adomnan’s torture. It was my real-life nightmare, and it didn’t stop after I took his breath. It continued, playing over and over again in my mind. He dared to think he could touch my body without my permission—the thought still sent chills down my spine and filled me with pure rage.
I had never killed before. It was surprisingly easy to make the decision to take his life, as though he were nothing more than a common thief. But that was all he was. He may have been born to power, but royalty he was not. He had forsaken his sacred vows to Old Mother and could no longer say he was one of us. Releasing his soul from his body made me feel as though my own soul had aged. I was no longer the innocent sixteen-year-old I once was. I felt different now. My hatred of him did end with him, but protecting myself from his attack had a haunting effect.
Grey slipped his body behind mine, pulling my back into his chest, as he sat down on the window seat. His warm arms made me feel safe again, easing my pain.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked as he kissed my earlobe.
“Nothing,” I replied, smiling at him.
27
Perfect by Nature
Prom finally came, and the snow had melted. Beth, Kate, and Emma decided to get ready at my house again, but this time Tegan, Gwyn, and Beth’s mom helped us get ready with pedicures, manicures, and styling our hair. I actually started to feel confident for the first time since Adomnan’s attack, and I was surrounded by people whom I loved. I couldn’t imagine my life without all of them.
I was in awe of my beautiful friends. Even though my friends weren’t werewolves, they still each had a unique beauty I admired.
I stepped into my gown. The keyhole back framed my porcelain skin, and the fluted hem danced around my feet. The gown was completely constructed by hand of crocheted lace over cream satin.
One by one, we went down the stairs to meet our dates. Grey kneeled at the bottom of the stairs waiting for me. He wore a charcoal-gray suit with an almost metallic sheen and a gray dress shirt he left open a few buttons to reveal his sexy skin. The very top of his scar showed—it would endlessly remind me of his sacrifice and his unending love for me.
“Looking into your eyes is like swimming in warm honey,” he said, kissing my wrists.
Baran gave me a hug and whispered in my ear, “You are perfect by nature,” then loudly added, “don’t you be staying out too late!”
I almost laughed.
Beth and James looked adorable together. I was so happy for her, and James doted on her. Kate and Clint looked bored as they waited for the rest of us to go, but it was Emma who had snagged Ryan’s interest. They giggled quietly together as he put her corsage on. Eric had asked a freshman to prom, and he was picking us up with the limo.
It was a weird feeling to be going out with Grey and our friends without having my brother as a chaperone. He and Tegan had decided not to go to prom. Tegan didn’t want to leave Nia behind, but I think they finally trusted Grey and me together. It felt good to have the trust and love of my family.
We took pictures in the yard for Mother. I wished she could have been here with me, but Gwyn captured the moment for her.
We finally arrived and danced the night away like fools with our friends, but time hadn’t erased my pain. Grey felt my pain with me as it washed over us. He wrapped his strong arms around me, holding me tightly in his love, as we slowly turned around the dance floor. I buried my face and my fears into his shoulder. I wasn’t ready to forget.
“Let’s go home,” Grey said.
I nodded my head as I let him lead me out the door. No one noticed our silent escape. I was suddenly filled with a sense of urgency to get home, and we darted across the parking lot.
I stopped dead in my tracks a few blocks from home. I smelled an unfamiliar, smoky scent. We slowed our pace to a walk. The stranger’s scent was thicker with every step. As we turned onto our street, I saw him.
The greasy stranger from the Netherworlds stood between us and our family.
He was leaning causally against the porch. This time he wasn’t draped in a wolf’s skin—instead, he was dressed in a full black tuxedo, but he still wore his top hat. With or without the wolf’s skin, he looked just as menacing.
We stopped on the street in front of the house. I knew he could certainly close the space between us in a heartbeat, but the distance still gave me a sense of security. Grey wrapped his arm around my waist as though he knew my knees were considering falling out from under me.
“Lady Boru, I greatly regret being tardy to the prom. I would have liked to have had a dance,” he said with a smirk.
Grey growled in return.
His hair still held the same wave, but the smell of grease no longer lingered about him. The smoky air of his scent was like strong incense, and it made my head hurt.
“You’re in our way,” Grey said.
He studied Grey again; this time it was clear he was observing him as an opponent. My stomach rolled at the idea. What did this killer want? He turned his attention back to me as he held open his jacket. “I have something of yours,” he said. Inside his coat, I clearly saw Calista’s journal.
He must have tracked my scent back here and found the journal where I had abandoned it in the woods to keep it from Adomnan. But why track the path back to where I began, rather than follow the one on which I left? And why were Baran and the others not confronting this stranger? It didn’t make sense.
“Leave the journal on the porch, and get out of our territory,” Grey said. His voice was authoritative. He would make a great leader one day.
“I admire what you’re doing here, but you are far out of your league.”
“Where is my family?” I said.
He smiled. “Inside. They have been waiting for you. So have I.”
“Let me pass,” I said.
“You look just as she said you would, you know.”
“Who are you?” I said.
“My greatest apologies, my lady.” He bowed in respect. “I should have introduced myself in the Netherworlds, but I didn’t get the chance. I am Odin, son of Jarl of the Norse Lands.”
Baran’s large body came out the door and stood next to the stranger. His large hand clapped the stranger on the back. “And the guard of the late Lady Calista,” Baran said, bowing his head to Odin.
“Do you trust the half-breed?” Odin asked Baran.
I felt Grey’s body tense as the anger rippled through his skin. I knew he didn’t like being called a half-breed, nor did he appreciate having his honor called to question. I wrapped my small fingers through his, claiming him. I straightened my shoulders in front of Odin and steeled my face. I wouldn’t succumb to his unwanted inspection with fear. Grey’s tension eased with my touch.
“He is one of my pack,” Baran replied.
Odin nodded and walked into the house. Baran held the door for us, and we walked nervously past him. As we entered, I saw Odin talking quietly with Mund and Quinn. Did they know him as well? Gwyn, Tegan, and Nia were the only ones not in the room. It was a council of men.
“Is she ready to lead?” Odin asked Baran. “She is nothing more than a child.”
Baran nodded.
“I am right here, and I would appreciate if you would have the decency to address me directly,” I said.
“You are the wild one she said you would be,” Odin said.
“You dare to speak to me that way?” I growled. “If you have no real business here, I demand you leave the journal and be gone.”
He smiled. “You have her strength.” His face softened for a moment, as though he were lost in a memory, but it quickly faded, and the seriousness of his expression returned. “I have come to swear my allegiance to yo
u, Princess Ashling Boru. If my life can serve you, you shall have it.”
Grey spat, “Guard of Calista—great job you did protecting her.”
The devil himself couldn’t have had a more menacing face than what consumed Odin’s. “There are moments that distinguish between men and boys. Warriors and the dead. One breath separated me from saving her life. You will not question that again,” he said. His eyes shot to mine, piercing them. “The wolf’s hide I carry with me is Calista’s killer. His body is a reminder to all who cross me. I will not fail again.” Turning to me, he said, “My lady, my soul is yours.”
A territorial growl came from Grey’s chest. He didn’t trust Odin.
“Why do I need your protection, Odin, son of Jarl?”
His head remained bowed as I stood in front of him. The fierceness of Mother pulsed through my veins as I waited for his answer. I felt a surge of strength I had never felt before. My childish fears were slipping away, and a fierce woman was taking her place.
“One whom you trust will betray you. Lady Calista foretold it. I gave my sworn allegiance to protect you when that moment came, and I will not forsake her rule.”
“Why did you not protect me in the Netherworlds?”
He looked up at me with his black eyes that filled with regret. “Until you accept my allegiance, I cannot fight royalty, even to save your life.”
I gagged, remembering Adomnan’s sickening expression as he touched me. “You chose not to stop him, because of some archaic covenant?”
“My vows to Calista do not allow me to step outside the order. Her words still control my actions . . . until I swear my allegiance to you. I wanted to break them, I wanted to shelter you from them, but I didn’t have the right. Even after her death, my vows still rule my actions.”
I turned my back to him with disgust. Laws and rules stopped him from saving me. Saving me from the memories that were burned so deeply into my soul, from having to take Adomnan’s life. The taste of his blood still embodied my mouth. I shook my head.