The Twisted Links

Chapter 28

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I will start posting a chapter every Tuesday and Thursday.  

CHAPTER 28

Cub Creek Territory...

Carrie's fingers traced over the raised veins on the back of Dayton's hand. Little by little she became comfortable with her mate. As promised, he didn't try to touch her but would sit with his palm out towards her. They sat in comfortable silence watching the pups playing in the pack's park. Meeting her second mate after so long had been a disaster. 

After Salim's arrival the other day, his wolf, Blake, sensed their mate and took over. Unlike his human, Blake had no hesitancy about loving and cherishing their mate. Unfortunately, the overenthusiastic greeting was unappreciated and caused Carrie to have a panic attack from being grabbed and held so roughly. Carrie's wolf, Faye, loved being manhandled and was more than willing to be molested in the front hall. The mix signals were confusing but luckily Dayton knew how Carrie felt and shoved his brother's wolf away. The two fought briefly before Salim was able to wrench control back from his wolf.

The brothers went for a walk, while Tracy helped calm Carrie and Jonathan's wolf, Eli, demanded that Faye settle down so her human could recover. A stranger here, Jenna sat awkwardly on the steps for more than an hour feeling embarrassed and abandoned. Eventually, the Gamma's mate, Jessie, walked in unaware of the upset and introduced herself to the neglected stranger. Shocked to hear who Jenna was, Jessie smiled and showed Jenna to Salim's room before promising to send her lunch tray since Jenna wanted to rest. Jenna not feeling up to being around the pack in the dining hall without Salim to introduce her as the future Luna. The whole situation was a mess and Salim's behavior was less assuring.

Salim, on the other hand, was upset that his mate was so scared of him. Any thoughts he had of marking another went straight out the window. He knew that he would have to resolve things with Jenna but Carrie came first. He battled his wolf to stay away from their mate until she was ready to let them near. Blake reluctantly agreed and quieted.

Carrie and her wolf also struggled and had to compromise. Having two strong healthy mates was too much for Faye. She was a wolf. She wanted to rub her scent on them, have them mount her, and give her pups. Carrie ended up laughing at the awkward imaginings that had her wolf fangirling over her mates. Her wolf's desires aside, Carrie wanted to get past her own nightmares.

The next time Dayton offered his hand, Carrie took it in her own. Taking a deep breath she stared at their clasped fingers as she examined her feelings. The terror, fear, and nausea that she was expecting did not overwhelm her mind. Warmth, comfort, and the electrifying sparks was all she felt. The shock made her let go almost immediately.

Dayton smiled at her. Pleased that she was trying. "Take as much time as you need." he said with a gentle smile. 

It had only been a day but as Carrie sat pressed up next to Dayton's side, she knew she was home.

Location Unknown...

The older corpses fell to the ground, one by one, in an unmoving heap. Asya and Eesha waited for their friend to wake up while Trish did her nails with the things she had found in the discarded pile of women's purses.

Aysa told them all she knew about Shula's ability to absorb other's powers. Eesha theorized that because Shula had obviously taken a lot of Absalom's power, the creatures were now loyal to her since their original master was dead. They don't recognize anyone as an ally so they hiss warnings to anyone stepping close to Shula.

Six of the undead remained as Shula began to stir.

"Shula!" Aysa called.

"Hmm?" she hummed, still half asleep.

"Wake up!"

Opening her eyes, Shula shrieked at the sight of six pairs of soulless eyes staring back at her. The creature shrieked as well and became restless.

"Stop!" Eesha commanded, halting the Dark Fairy's fight or flight reflex. "You're upsetting them."

"I'm upsetting them!?" Shula gaped incredulously.

"You have the Necromancer's powers and therefore command his minions."

"I don't want to command his minions."

"Well then you either figure out how to cut off their animism or we wait until they 'die.'" Eesha said with a wave towards the dead corpses.

The Dark Fairy wasn't sure how to process that statement. "How long was I asleep?" She asked.

"Almost three hours." Asya replied.

"No." Shula was shocked. "I don't understand."

"What?" Asya asked.

"I-I..." Shula stuttered before taking a deep breath and trying again, "Usually... I don't keep another's powers for this long. Whatever I absorb is given back after a few minutes. I still feel his powers as strong now as when I first touched him."

"He's dead." Trish said bluntly. "There's no one to give powers back to. Looks like you're stuck with them."

Shula felt faint. "H-how do I?" she nodded towards the creatures.

Trish shrugged. "How should I know?"

"You are just all types of helpful." Asya snarked. She may be thankful that Trish saved her life but the fact that she messed it up in the first place still left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"I'm not a Necromancer." Trish replied simply. She understood Asya's resentment and knew that she may never be forgiven but until her last breath, Trish was determined to try to set things right.

"We have to leave." Eesha said standing. Handing a phone to Asya she continued, "Trish and I are still wanted. You two need to go back home."

Hugging Asya, Eesha whispered, "Don't forget to tell the Protector. The Cradle of Life has been compromised. Don't trust the Hunters. Not even Roger Evans."

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Just a little refresher, The Cradle of Life is in an unknown location where the Creator was said to have first formed man. The Born Hunters are trained here. Usually when boys turn 13 or 14 a mark appears on their shoulder. Since it's a generational thing that stays within certain families that are descendants of the original Hunter, the parents know to call the Hunter's Council. Girls are "tested" in their 14th year to see if they have any extraordinary gifts that would indicate that they are the next Protector. If not, then the organization remains a secret unless the parents decide to tell the girls about it or they decide to train the girls to serve in the organization. I hope that made sense. I might try to put another chapter out on Saturday but Tuesday and Thursday are my scheduled days to post.

By the way, I plan to go through my books and pull out pictures because I lost all the images I had saved when my computer went out. I will be adding them to my "Cast Book" that's on my profile.