Hybrid

EIGHTEEN

⫷ ARIA ⫸

"So... you're a werewolf?" Gem's voice cuts through the thickening silence. "That's totally cool and all... I mean, now you can really be part of the pack! Not that you weren't before... but..." She trails off and looks down. "It'll suck when you finally shift."

"I did some research," Caleb states, much like a teacher would to his class. "In order to surpress a werewolf's wolf spirit, one would need a very strong coven of witches to perform the spell. To keep it lasting for 19 years..." He shakes his head. "Your parents must be acquainted with really strong witches."

"I wouldn't know," I say with a sigh. My eyes focus on the long and narrow table meant for meetings. James, seated at the end of the table to my right, shifts at the defeat in my tone. "Carlos told me that my mom was running away from this leader of rogues. Apparently, the one that's after me now."

Caleb nods from across the table. "That makes sense. Since this alleged leader couldn't find your mother, he, or she, decided to go after you."

James clenches his fist. "We need to find this guy and kill him."

"They're always on the move, apparently," I add. "They're hard to find."

"I'll continue researching," Caleb suggests.

"That's the best we can do for now," James grits through clenched teeth. "We need to keep our guards up. As much as I hate it, my father said he'd help us. In the meantime, we need to worry about when Aria shifts for the first time."

Gem fiddles with her hands that rest on the table's surface. I'm surprised she doesn't get whiplash by how quickly her head snaps from side to side to look between all of us. "I heard that if you postpone the first shift, it's impossible to control them. Their wolf takes complete control, and they're usually very pissed for being locked away."

"We'll need to lock her up," James suggests. "Just until she gets under control."

"That's the thing... What if she doesn't? What if the wolf overpowers Aria and she's stuck like that... forever?" Gem's voice increases in volume.

I wring my hands together, though my eyes stay rested on the table. Emotions war in my brain, some stronger than others. I don't know how to feel.

You should be furious, a voice at the back of my head raises in volume. All of them. They're not helping you. Don't you see it? They don't think you're strong enough.

My hands clench into fists. This anger, its like a sweet drug wafted under my nose. Anger is powerful. I've seen it before; how someone can go from sad and weak to angry and strong. It pulses through my bloodstream. My sharp nails dig deep into my palms until beads of blood trickle out.

James' nose twitches. "Aria?" His eyes narrow at my clenched fists. "Aria, calm down."

"I'm calm." The lie doesn't sit well with me. My muscles twitch and spasm, willing me to flip the table in a totally unnecessary tantrum. Oh, but how that anger fuels energy in my body. I'm drawn to it. "I'm calm," I repeat after they don't look away from me.

James reaches for my arm, but I jerk away from him. "Aria, fight the anger. The power isn't worth it."

He lies. With this power, you can protect yourself. I see the black wolf in my mind, I can feel its teeth digging into my flesh. With this power, I could have protected myself. I could have protected myself from him; the guy who took what didn't belong to him. I imagine it now; ripping his head clean from his body.

"I could do it," I mutter, mostly to myself. Little by little, my conscious mind slips from me, as if I'm falling into dreamland. Dreamland feels nice, though. Real nice. No fear. No sadness. No confusion. "I could kill him for what he did to me."