Enchanter

Chapter Eighteen

"As proud of you as I am for standing up to him, I still wonder if that was a little harsh," Azalea commented.

"A little?" Raven scoffed. "He didn't know, Anton. Give him a break. He's your mate, and he is trying to help you."

"I'm afraid that sometimes saying no means 'no for now,' not just plain 'no.' For all we know, he could have wanted to tell the Alpha over there before asking us, thinking it would help. Sometimes you have to be harsh to make sure your points get across, even if it means coming across as a jerk. People should just respect the words you say, but it isn't always the case. I couldn't risk it," he defended.

Azalea and Raven faced one another and shrugged. They understood where he was coming from. They, too, were afraid of outsiders knowing their secret. If it were not for Aaric being his mate, they wouldn't have trusted the pack either. They needed to make sure they were well protected until the day they could unlatch arrived.

Snatching the mirror off the wall above the dresser, Anton carried it into the closet. He was sure the side room was somewhere inside, so he began to feel around the back wall. When he found a small hole to grab onto behind the dress shirts, he quickly slid it to the right. Dragging the mirror inside, he scanned the inside of the small side room. There was a little table in the middle and hooks aligned the wall.

"What kind of kinky shit is he into?" Raven questioned as she turned on the dim lightbulb hanging in the middle of the room. "That boy is nasty."

"This is not a kinky thing," Azalea responded as Anton stepped in a dry, crusty pile of blood.

Hanging the mirror on the wall, Anton walked to the table where Raven was busy emptying their bag out onto the table. "Surely there is something in here to use for invisibility," he muttered as he began to read the labels.

"You are still intending to leave?" Raven pouted.

"What are we supposed to do? We need to head out and search. We can't do that when Mr. Clingy is fawning all over me," he argued.

"Why can't he come along? Because you're more powerful than he is?"

Anton nodded. "Exactly. You saw what happened down there. I could have killed that Alpha, and he did nothing wrong. He was just trying to help. If someone were to hurt anyone in Solar Summit or its allies, my powers could grow out of control and hurt even more people. Who's to say I am not the one to hurt them in the first place?" he nonchalantly explained. "We have to leave."

"I wish you wouldn't," Raven sighed. She placed her chin on her arms on the table and pouted up at Anton. "He loves you."

"Good for him," he commented, but it was quite clear he wasn't fully there with her. He was far too busy focusing on the vials before him.

"Do you love him?"

"Yes," he answered as he lowered one of the bottles. "What's your point?"

"Then stay for him. Let him help. It's all he wants. I mean, he's getting the packs to help keep an eye out for the Bleeding Rosebud. What if they find it while we're gone? How would they let us know? Not to mention how they are already proving their loyalty to you by helping us search for it. They love and care about you, and they want for you to be happy and safe, and we all know the only way that can happen is when the two of you unlatch. Just let them help," she pleaded.

Raven always had a great judgement of character. She could read a person's loyalty just by looking into their eyes. The fact she trusted the pack explicitly, though partly due to how Aaric was his mate, proved how they could be considered incredible allies to have on their side. He wasn't planning on going against her better judgement anytime soon.