Survivor

Chapter 15

Aaron looked past the bars at Nikita, who was poking at her food.

Benji had made her lunch after she had agreed to stay in his mansion until she got rid of the collar. However, Torin had only approved to that if she would stay in the cell. He said that the risk that Sam could activate the E-collar and Nikita would attack them if it happened was too high. Aaron knew he was right, but he hated cages and felt awful for Nikita. She had been one of the shapeshifters in the battles and had to go through a hell of a lot. Now she was locked up again. He just felt bad about it.

"Nikita? Is everything okay?"

The brown-haired woman lifted her eyes from the plate.

"Hmm? Yes, all good. I'm just not really hungry. But tell Benji thanks for the food."

Aaron was pretty sure she was lying to him, but he couldn't blame her. Of all the people in this house, he was also the one who kept the most to himself about what was going on in his head. Pushing himself up from the ground, he walked towards the cage.

"I'm really sorry you have to stay in here now. I wish there was a better solution."

Nikita handed him the nearly full plate through a horizontal gap in the bars, while she shrugged her shoulders.

"It's not like I'm not used to it. I just hope it doesn't take Benji too long to figure out how to take the collar off without it killing me."

Aaron didn't miss the bitterness in her voice, but he remained silent as he pulled the cellar door shut behind him. He knew there was nothing he could do for her right now, but trust Benji's technical skills. Torin's suggestion to go on patrol was a distraction he gladly agreed to.

Before walking out the door, he took his black leather jacket off the hook. Running his fingers over the four slits sewn together on the back of the jacket, he smiled. Since a big part of the forest behind the mansion belonged to Benji's property as well, they were able to shift there without the risk of encountering a noisy human or a hunter.

One day when they were out there, Torin had shifted before Aaron and had playfully jumped on his back. He hadn't intended to damage Aaron's jacket, he had just instinctively clung to him to avoid falling down. His razor-sharp claws went right through the fake leather. Aaron had been so happy that day and the jacket was a physical memory of the joy he had felt back then. So even though Torin had wanted to buy him a new one he had declined repeatably. He loved that jacket. And it honestly looked pretty badass.

A soft knock on his room door snapped Aaron out of his thoughts. Instinctively he took a deep breath, figuring out who the person behind the dark wood was. Aaron knew that it was Torin before he even opened the door.

"Are you ready?"

Aaron quickly slipped into the jacket and then stepped through the open front door to Torin who was already waiting for him. They wanted to check if Sam was lurking around nearby. Nikita had told them the name of the hotel where they were staying at, and it was too close for their taste to not control the area. Besides, patrolling their territory was something they already did regularly, it was part of a jaguars nature.

"What do you think of her?"

The question made Torin shrug his shoulders. He buried his hands in the pockets of his pants and walked down the driveway.

"Honestly, I don't know. Apart from the scars, she seems fine, as if these four years had done nothing to her. She's too calm, too controlled. What I'm worried about is the fact that I don't think that will last forever. I don't want you or Benji to be there when she explodes. And she will at some point. Something is going to trigger her and when that moment comes, it's going to be real bad with all the fighting skills and trauma she has."

"It's crazy that she survived all those years. She must have lost every bit of hesitation when it comes to killing."

Torin didn't reply, just nodded. He had killed enough people himself, both humans and shapeshifters, to not mind another one. If it meant protecting the ones he cared about or righting a wrong, he would do whatever he deemed necessary.

At the end of their patrol, neither of them had been able to pick up a trace of Sam in the vicinity of the Benji's mansion. Something both of them were very relieved about. However, the feeling didn't last long for Aaron as Torin headed back towards the main road and not towards their home. Aaron stopped, eyebrows drawn together. When Torin looked at him, he shook his head.

"Whatever you're up to, the answer is no. I want to go home."

Torin sighed. He had expected this reaction.

"I'm sure you'll like the place. The club opened just a few weeks ago and the owners know Benji. We can always have a private lounge if it gets too much for you."

"Or we just don't go there in the first place."

"Come on Aaron. We also go in via the back entrance and at the time right now there aren't that many people there anyway. Just one drink! We haven't been anywhere in ages."

Aaron shook his head again.

"Just go with Benji. You know I don't like crowds."

"I know, but see it an exercise. You don't have to order anything if you don't want to. Spend some time outside of the mansion, you're always either there or in the forest."

The white-haired man let out a long sigh. Just the thought of being surrounded by so many people sent a shiver down his spine. He nodded regardless, trying to ignore the anxiety that spread in his stomach. Torin only wanted to help, he knew that.

"One drink. After you finish it, we leave."

Torin's eyes lit up. He hadn't thought that Aaron would actually agree. Before he could change his mind, Torin wrapped his arm around his shoulders and pulled him into the side street where the back entrance was. A few people smoked outside the door, the cigarettes glowing orange at dusk.

As they walked past the smokers, a few snippets of conversation wafted over to them. Torin barely noticed them, but Aaron rammed his feet into the ground, stopping dead in his tracks. The sudden halt almost caused Torin to stumble before he caught himself. Irritated, he turned to look at the white-haired man, brows drawn together.

Aaron stared at the smokers with wide eyes. He stepped away from Torin and towards the small group, his ribcage expanding with deep breaths as he figured out the different smells lingering in the air.

Suddenly Aaron gasped and began to shake violently. Before Torin could even react, Aaron flung himself around and ran for the main street. Torin caught a glimpse of his face as sprinted by him. Pure terror was etched into his expression and the sight turned Torins blood to ice.

Without thinking twice, he rushed after Aaron. Torin couldn't see him, due to his head start. But he knew that Aaron always hid deep in the forest when he had yet another panic attack, so that was his best guess. He ran all the way back to the mansion until he arrived at the tree line. Concentrating briefly, he landed on his paws a few moments later. He didn't care about his clothes, he needed his jaguar senses to find Aaron in the large area. Taking in a deep breath, he picked up Aaron's smell a little later and followed it into dense forest until he stopped in front of a tree. He looked up at the trunk and spotted Aaron's white fur among the green leaves.

Torin's claws bored into the bark of the tree as he pulled himself up. Aaron had climbed up pretty high and was laying in a wide branch fork. When he noticed Torin, he grumbled softly. The white jaguar trembled and even when Torin pressed his muzzle against his shoulder reassuringly, the shaking continued. Only a heavy sigh came from Aaron as he rested his head back on his paws and closed his eyes.

Torin knew that Aaron wouldn't explain to him later what had happened. He never did, never talked about the panic attacks, the nightmares, or the circumstances of how Torin had found him.

But it didn't matter to him. He would protect Aaron with his life, no matter what.