Shifted

Chapter 4: Cork

As promised, Addie arrived within minutes. As she got out of the car, I shot her a death stare and she smiled back at me in response.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't stop her," Addie whispered to me, glancing at Eleanor. Eleanor obliviously jumped in the car and turned on the radio. "Here," she handed me the keys.

"What? I thought you were coming with us," I pleaded.

"I was going to, but I thought about it as I was driving here. I think this is a journey for you and Elle. You're a Shifter, she's a Regulator. You've both got something that I don't," Addie continued, looking off in the distance, back toward home.

"Here," she added, handing me an envelope. "Dad reserved you a hotel in Cork for a few nights until you figure out where you're going."

"Addie, if you don't come we're going to strangle each other at some point. Also, you've got more going for you than the both of us fools combined," I said miserably, folding and stuffing the envelope in my back pocket.

"I promise, I'll come the second you call and need me, but I'm going to go back to the others. Charlotte shouldn't be left alone through all of this, I'll look out for her. You look out for Eleanor," Addie said. "If I run home, I'll be there in under an hour, don't worry about us. Just keep in touch," she said, tapping the phone in my hand. With that, she snuck in one more quick hug and began running back toward our little cottage in Teer.

I turned back to Eleanor who already had her feet kicked up on the dash, flipping through the radio stations quicker than she could hear them.

"What the heck is Addie doing?" she asked as I lowered myself in the driver's seat, slamming my door shut.

"She thinks we need to do this on our own," I replied dolefully, opening the GPS on my phone. I pulled the folded envelope from my pocket and typed the address on the hotel confirmation into my phone. It would take just over two hours to get there.

"We're going to tear each other apart along the way without her," Eleanor said matter-of-factly.

"That's exactly what I told her. She doesn't seem worried about it."

Eleanor chuckled while reaching for a bag of chips in the backseat. I saw that along with food, Addie had packed us two small duffel bags. Eleanor opened the chip bag, offering me one. Before I could reach my hand out to take one, she pulled it away and grabbed a chip for herself. I smacked her in the leg and she laughed harder, offering me the bag again.

"You're going to be the death of me," I sighed, rolling my eyes as I pulled out of the car park.

We drove through the narrow roads of Ireland for about two hours without stopping. I was so relieved to see Cork's beautiful cathedrals and colorful homes lining the streets. It meant we could finally stretch our legs and I could get away from Eleanor's chatter for a bit. I loved my sister, but she could write a book about the breakfast she ate the previous morning. She had the gift of talking about anything and making it sound interesting.

For me though, all of the talking was tiring. I was the quiet one in the family, always thankful for a pair of headphones and a good book.

Following the directions Addie had given us to the place Dad had reserved, we eventually pulled up to a gorgeous brick hotel that was being overrun by green vines. We drove up the grey cobblestone driveway and parked in front of the hotel. A valet materialized to help us with our car.

"Holy shit," Eleanor whispered. "How did Dad afford this?" I just shrugged at her and handed the valet the keys to the car. More staff pulled our bags from the back, but I grabbed my backpack and threw it over my shoulder. We quickly checked in and walked back out into the cool night to get some fresh air. We headed for the University to walk and stretch our legs.