Bearly alive

16

Stella

"What are you doing? And what the f**k are you wearing?" Roman growls.

He picks me up by the large bulge strapped to my back, looking at me like he can't figure out if I'm for real or if he's in some sort of a nightmare. The type that involves clowns. With me being the clown obviously.

I must have missed him coming and dropping off the clothes at my door. He probably did it while I was focused on listening to the cry for help. Which reminds me of what I set myself up to do.

"Can I… Excuse me for just a minute." I release the belt I made from a curtain tie, causing the two pillows I had strapped onto my torso to fall, one of them to the ground and one remaining in Roman's fist. He looks at it like he's not believing his eyes.

Taking advantage of my giant warden being stunned, I take the small pile of clothes that caused my literal downfall, and quickly shut myself back into the room, changing at lightning speed. Somehow I just know Roman is not the type of man to walk in while I’m changing. I’m also very glad that wasn’t wishful thinking.

The second I'm back outside I assess the damage to Roman's mood. It doesn't look great, I have to be honest. I’m a little surprised I was able to get back out because he genuinely looks a second away from locking me in that room and throwing away the key.

He curses, clenches his jaw, and in the process manages to s***h his elongating claws into the pillow he's still fisting. That poor woman might just die and there's nothing I can do. I'll be lucky if Roman doesn't snap and ends me too.

"Do you have a death wish?" He hisses.

I wince. What did I say? I feel like I've literally poked the bear and made him wake up before his hibernation was over. The bear ain’t happy, that’s for sure.

I dare to look at Roman and his expression changes. He seems unsure of something, and I would love nothing more than to know what’s going on in his mind.

"Were you coming to see me?"

I nod.

"Was I… Did I…"?

He seems embarrassed, yet annoyed, but I quickly catch on and stop him.

"No. Oh, no. I'm sorry if I woke you up, but I need your help. Someone needs your help."

Even though he looks relieved that I told him I didn't hear him having a nightmare again, his face bears the questioning gaze that tells me he's convinced I'm trying to trick him so I can escape. I’m not, but I also can see how this may look like that.

When I tell him about the woman I heard cry, the way Roman regards me doesn't fill me with much confidence. So I draw another deep breath and lay out my plan B. Not that I really had a plan A to begin with.

"Look, I can stay here. Crank up the voltage on the door, do as you must. I'm not leaving, but please, I beg you, go find her. I can draw you a map." I stammer, laying most of my cards on the table. It ain’t many, but I feel responsible for that person that was asking the universe for help.

"Is that so? And how can you draw me a map if you've never been out there, Stella?"

I purse my lips, unsure of what to do. Some part of me, which must be my wolf, trusts Roman blindly, in spite of who he is. The other is yelling at me for giving away the only thing I’ve never told anyone about. It’s a no brainer on which of the two wins.

"You told me a secret earlier. You told me your brother was a lycan." I watch how Roman's face hardens. He's clearly not impressed with himself for sharing that information with his captive. I truly believe he's going to purge this whole house of anything that contains alcohol, and before he starts doing that now, I speak again.

"I think it's only fair that I share a secret of my own, the reason why I heard the cry and how I can tell where it's coming from." I can tell Roman's interest, or maybe curiosity has been piqued, so I decide to tell him exactly how I can see sound. I begin with the first time I discovered the way of listening in, various times I heard things that no one else did. Obviously, I skipped the part where it kind of leaves me exposed to anything else happening in my immediate proximity, but I didn’t see it as being important enough to lose precious time over.

After listening with an indecipherable expression, Roman still doesn’t speak, most likely mulling over my words and deciding what are the odds that I’m lying. I give him as much time as I can considering that poor woman is still out there. It also has been a little too long since I have focused on hearing her, and I’m growing anxious about her wellbeing.

“Is she still… there?” Roman finally asked, not addressing anything else that I’ve told him about my ability. I read between the lines and know what he means. He wants to know if she's still alive. I guess he’s going to find out about the part I skipped anyway, so here goes nothing.

“Hold on. I will check.” I awkwardly say before briefly explaining that I’ll look like a person that’s sleepwalking. Completely unaware or able to respond if he says something. Thankfully Roman doesn’t do anything that feels even remotely like mocking me or giving me weird looks. His face remains just as hard yet pensive as before, which is understandable since he is deciding if he should trust me and help out or not.

I feel naked on a soul level by doing this in front of Roman. I willingly leave myself completely exposed and at his mercy while I channel everything I have on hearing the cry for help. I still hear it, which is both good and heartbreaking. And I feel relieved and weightless when I open my eyes and see that aside from watching me carefully and with interest, Roman hasn’t moved a muscle.

I’m not sure if he did it because I told him how unaware I am of what’s happening around me when I focus on the sounds, or he just wanted to keep a close eye on me, but I appreciated him not making any moves.

When I confirm that the woman in need of help is still out there, Roman surprises me again.

“Stay here and don’t even think about touching that f*****g door.” He warns. I grin in return like he didn’t just threaten my life. Then, because he still doesn’t move, I acknowledge his warning and thank him, before explaining again the direction I think he should head. Goddess, I hope I’m not wrong. It’s tricky since I’ve never actually been outside of this house.

Grumbling something, Roman takes his shirt off before disappearing downstairs. I step over the pillows that litter the hallway and follow him a few steps behind, at a safe distance, picking up the shirt with all the intention of folding it, and maybe secretly wanting to sniff it like a stalker while he’s away.

I see Roman turn to look at me with a silent warning, then he slams the door front door shut. Not even a minute later I hear a loud roar. I imagine it’s his bear making his imposing presence known to all the other creatures that roam his woods. Something swells in my chest. I think it’s pride.

I give it a few minutes, then I listen again. I can practically see Roman’s bear running through the woods, but he’s not found her yet. I come back to reality, then concentrate on listening again. It’s noisier now, probably because Roman must have woken up a lot of beasts. It takes me a little longer to tune in, but when I do, it’s worth it, because I can tell Roman has heard the whimpers of pain. The woman’s heart starts beating faster, I can tell she’s even more scared than before. But then Roman is close enough to announce his impending arrival, and she relaxes. She sounds relieved even, if her happy sobs are anything to go by. I come back to reality. Roman’s got her.

Deciding I should make myself useful if Roman brings her to the house, I go back upstairs and pick up the pillows outside my room, then change the sheets on the bed and make sure the bathroom is tidy. I did look for a first aid kit, unsure if the person is a shifter or not, but the best I could find was Roman’s stash of hard liquor and some clean kitchen towels.

Then I set myself to wait some more, despite quite some time has passed.

He’s got her, right? If he has, then why aren’t they here yet?

I avoided trying to listen again, just in case I picked the exact moment when they arrived. With my luck, if I do focus on listening now, that’s exactly what will happen. So I don’t. I just wait.

And wait.

When I realise it’s been over an hour since Roman left, I bite the bullet and concentrate on seeing every sound that is outside of this house. Working my way to where I know Roman went, I’m shocked that I don’t hear any of the closer to Roman’s house. And when I do hear them, I nearly cry because I know I can’t help.

The sounds are muffled, I can’t see or hear clearly, I can’t paint a good mental picture, and I have a strong feeling it’s due to my own emotions. From what I can piece together, Roman is stuck keeping her alive. If he leaves, she dies, and he can’t free her. Free her? I try hard to focus, and a picture of a massive rock pops into my mind. Could it be that she’s trapped underneath? Is it so big that Roman can’t just lift it? What is happening?

My mind races with the dark thoughts that I may have sent Roman into a trap. Fear that Alpha Benjamin is coming after Roman in anger because he took me before I delivered that ridiculous note, plagues me. Eventually, I push myself harder than I have ever done, and for a few seconds, it’s like I’m right there with Roman and the injured woman. Thankfully, there doesn't seem to be anyone else there either.

“Are you praying to your saints, bear? I’m pretty sure I should be the one doing that.”

“Yeah, you should, so maybe do it, because if she can hear me, and better yet, actually comes to help, she is a f*****g saint.”