Hidden Truth

Chapter 9

Claire

Fallen leaves crunching on the ground and birds chirping in the trees stirred me awake. A chilly breeze blew past my face as the heat of the sun beat down on me. Slowly opening my eyes, I squinted from the sun. Glancing around I noticed I was still outside on Blake's balcony. I must have fallen asleep while he was getting my tea. The red mug on the table caught my eye. Sitting up on the couch I grabbed the cup to see it was empty.

Rolling to a sitting position, I looked to the tree line to see a deer. The doe vigilantly checked her surroundings before eating from the patch of grass that was not covered by dead leaves. I just stared, looking at her innocence before something scared her off. I watched her white tail disappear behind the thick wall of trees. In the distance a howl filled the area. I always knew of the predators living in the woods but never saw myself living in the middle of it.

Glancing back at the empty cup on the table my mind drifted back to Blake, and where he disappeared to. Pulling the blanket tightly around my shoulders I inhaled the fresh breeze and Blake's scent. Bringing the corner of the blanket to my nose I smelled Blake, and it relaxed my body. I felt secure being around him, and it was weird seeing as I didn't know him, and he was keeping me here. Walking towards the doorway I could hear him in his room talking to someone. I didn't hear any other voices, so I peered around the corner to see him on the phone.

Blake sat there on the edge of the bed, his back facing me. His back was tense as he sat silently listening to the person on the other end. Blake let out a sigh before speaking, "I'm sorry father." His voice sounded dejected. He ran a hand through his hair, and I wished I could comfort him. I could hear muffled yelling from the phone and shrunk back. "Father, Claire is safe, and it won't happen again."

At the mention of my name a pit formed in my stomach. This was all because I tried to run away. Blake was getting the rough end of the stick, between getting clawed at and now being yelled at. I hated that I caused all this trouble for him. The next words from Blake's mouth had me frozen in place and more confused about myself. "We have another problem. When I was fighting off the ferals Claire tapped into her powers to protect me. I don't even think she knew she was doing it."

That weird barrier that was stopping the second strange creature from attacking Blake's back was from me? My head was spinning as I absorbed what Blake was saying. There was no way I was doing that. It wasn't possible. It was outrageous. I zoned out what was going on in the room, so I never noticed Blake hang up the phone and stand from his bed. When he cleared his throat, I snapped my head in his direction to see him staring at me.

"How long have you been standing there," Blake asked. He stalked towards me slowly, watching for any sudden moves. Part of me wanted to run, but I also craved answers.

"You promised to answer my questions," I replied and walked about out on the balcony. I needed to sit before I fell over. Shakily I lowered myself onto the couch and pulled the blanket off. My body was heating up as my mind raced. My head felt heavy, so I looked to the ground, resting my head in my hands. I had so many things I wanted to know. I heard Blake walk out and from the corner of my eye I saw him pull his chair in front of me.

"I owe you that," he whispered and reached out for me. His hand rested on my knee, and he asked softly, "where would you like me to start?" My mind was such a jumbled mess I didn't even know where to start. I think Blake noticed that because he let go of my knee and leaned back in his seat. "How about I start with an overall explanation."

I nodded because that's all I could seem to do. "I'm going to lock the door first, so no one barges in." Blake stood and left the balcony. After hearing the click of the lock, he returned to his seat and let out a sigh. "So, in the world there are four races. There are Vampires, Lycans, Witches, and Humans. Humans are, typically, not aware of the others. As you overheard, you are not human Claire."