Silver Rain

Chapter 18

Olivia found it increasingly hard to keep her eyes open as they scoured the streets of Brookside. It was nearly three in the morning and they had not found a single clue as to where the witches were hiding. The narrow, cobblestone alleys were cloaked in an eerie silence, the kind that made every rustling leaf and a distant hoot of an owl amplified.

Despite growing up in Brookside, she had discovered places that she never passed or heard of. The town seemed to morph in the dead of night, revealing hidden nooks and crannies that felt both familiar and strange. The town that had once been her home now felt like a prison, trapping her in a cycle of fear and uncertainty.

"Anything?" Felix's voice broke through her thoughts. He was peering into a narrow alley, his face drawn with worry.

"Nothing," Olivia peered behind Felix, refusing to get any closer to him. "It's like it's a wild goose chase."

Calvin emerged from a side street, shaking his head. "Same here. We might be better off heading back,"

Olivia sighed, glancing at her phone. The hours had slipped away, and their energy was flagging. Calvin would run a hand over his face as if to make sure he was awake while Felix would pause and blink hard to get the sleep out of them. No amount of caffeine would be able to revive the three of them.

"What time is it?" Felix asked glancing over at her.

"Time for you to get a watch," She cracked a tired smile, but when neither Felix nor Calvin returned it, she grumbled something incoherent. "Near the witching hour,"

"Let's try to get some sort of sleep before the sun is up," Calvin started towards the direction of the car. "We're not vampires,"

With the state they were in, if anything came in contact with them, they'd be dead. It seemed like they knew that too.

They trudged back to the car, each step heavier than the last. It wasn't unlike them to be quiet against the night. The two men were always listening, smelling, and lurking. Trying to find anything with their heightened senses. Both wolves were a well-oiled machine as if they had done this a million times before. Olivia wondered how many times they had gone on missions with their pack. Or if they just preferred it with the two of them.

They had yelled at Olivia the first night, seemingly because she was making too much of a ruckus. She knew her presence was unsettling to them, something that neither were used to having. But the fact that they had agreed to work together spoke volumes about the gravity of the situation. She had quickly learned to tread lightly, both literally and figuratively, around the two wolves. She knew where to step, how to breathe quietly, when to talk, and when the right time to point something out.

And when she did speak, it was to bite back at something Felix had said. He was always telling her where to stand, how to move and when she was doing it wrong, and--his favorite--reminding her how human she was. It had grated on her nerves, a constant reminder of who and what she was not.

They reached the car, a luxury sedan that looked out of place in the midst of Brookside's rougher alleys. Olivia slid into the back seat, her muscles protesting with every movement, and sank into the leather upholstery with a sigh. Felix took the driver's seat, and Calvin settled in beside him, the silence between them thick with exhaustion and unspoken tension.

Olivia had continually tried to find the furthest spot from Felix. Avoiding him at all costs because if she touched him, she might very well just throw herself at him. She couldn't trust her body, mind, or mouth anymore. The only thing she trusted was her head telling her that Felix was not her destination.

She was so angry at him for leaving her in his office alone, shirtless. So angry for not addressing her because of it and treating her like nothing happened. She had fumed for days at his side, which was the only thing fueling her search for the Coven. She refused to touch him or get near him because if she felt the shock that indefinitely reverberated through her body every time they touched, she knew she'd forgive him and let him make the same mistake over and over again.