DARK ALLIANCE (Scarlett of the wolves #3)

Chapter 3

It was four in the morning and the sun wasn’t quite up when I awoke.

I crossed the hallway and entered the bathroom to slip into the shower.

When I was done, I put on some black pants and a T-shirt and lingered with my hand over my wolf-woman pendant.

Elgin was so present in my mind… I would fall asleep and wake up with him. I missed him fiercely. I couldn’t blame him for leaving and it pissed me off, I should have hated him. But no... Because deep inside me, I knew he still loved me. And that’s what kept me going.

I bent down to pick up my towel from the floor and leapt up when I heard a deafening din of shattering glass behind me. I turned and simultaneously moved two meters away, so fast that I was shaken. Knowing that you have such abilities is one thing, applying them is another thousand times more destabilizing. I had just avoided Morel who had suddenly landed in my room through the bay window.

He was still lying on the ground, his arms and wings outstretched. I ran to him.

“Are you okay?” I asked, kneeling.

He slowly turned his head towards me and let out a mad burst of laughter. He seemed unable to stop. Baffled, I held out my hand to help him up. He took it and dusted his pants while folding his wings.

I looked at the broken window. Hundreds of shards of glass littered the floor and the wooden frame was completely torn from the wall. I approached cautiously to look out. Corwin appeared in front of me flying, mischief in his eyes.

“Sorry, Scarlett, I pushed him a little too hard.”

“But… why did you do that?”

Corwin grinned and scratched his head.

“Well, to play!”

Morel jumped nimbly onto the windowsill and threw himself on his brother. The two of them set off in an aerial battle that I didn’t understand at all.

Rucker abruptly opened the door. Obviously, he hadn’t woken up as early as I did. His hair was messy and he was wearing blue and white striped pyjama pants.

I burst out laughing.

“What? What’s so funny?” he fumed.

I tried to regain my seriousness to answer him as respectfully as possible. Nevertheless, I looked at him again from head to toe.

“You can’t imagine how all my ideas about vampires are falling one by one...”

“Yeah...”

Frowning, he looked at the state of the room.

“What did those two do again?”

“They were playing…”

He approached the window and screamed as a father would have done:

“Morel, Corwin! Get back here, right now! Hurry or I’ll come to get you!”

His voice was so thunderous that even I didn’t want to move a muscle.

Two seconds later, the boys came sheepishly to the gaping opening, shoulders slumped heavily.

“This is the tenth time in three months that I have to change the windows of this house! What do you think? That it seems completely normal for a glazier to fix windows every two weeks when they don’t even face the street? What’s supposed to do so much damage, eh? A meteorite?”

Morel and Corwin bowed their heads in shame. It hurt my heart. They were only children after all. We do stupid things when we are kids.

“Rucker…” I dared. “It’s not so bad.”

Notice, if I had done something like that at their age, my father would have grounded me for several weeks or several months...

He turned to me and sighed in despair.

“Clean up this mess. We’ll have that fixed soon...”

The boys landed barefoot on the broken glass.

“But they can’t do that,” I worried. “They’re going to get hurt. There’s glass everywhere!”

Rucker’s lips curved into a beautiful smile, revealing perfect teeth.

“You still have so much to learn...”

He fixed his gaze on my bare feet.

I bowed my head.

For a few minutes, I had been walking on the pieces of glass without realizing it. I didn’t feel them. Instinctively, I lifted my feet to check if I was bleeding. Oh no... A few shards had simply sunk into my flesh, forming a sparkling sole.

My surprised expression made Rucker laugh loudly.

“I’m coming back,” he said before leaving the room.

When he reappeared, he was holding an empty bowl in his hands.

He walked over to the bed, sat cross-legged in the centre of the mattress, and held out his hand to me.

“Come over here, girl,” he invited me in a soft voice.

 The boys laughed at us and sped out of the room only to reappear a few minutes later, carrying brooms and dustpans. They began to pick up the debris on the ground.

“Show me your feet,” Rucker said.

I walked a little closer to him and stretched out a leg.

“Do you know that you can’t be hurt by such small things?”

He gently took my heel in the palm of his hand and, with the other, began to carefully and delicately remove the broken glass which he tossed into the bowl.

“Apparently,” I whispered, amazed.

Now and then I glanced at my foot to see how it was. When the first was cleaned, he opened his hand so that I held out the other. With as much patience as before, he worked to make it clear.

“Thank you.”

“But please. It’s not often that I have the opportunity to take care of such pretty feet!”

He gave me a wink and looked at the window, which now looked like a huge hole. He sighed.

“You won’t be able to sleep in this room anymore. I’ll help you get your things up to the second floor.”

On the second floor, he walked to the end of a vast hallway, immensely high and lit the entire length by large skylights. The style was radically different from the rest of the house. Everything here was modern and uncluttered, without any lack of taste.

With his foot, he pushed open a mahogany door and we entered a room that opened on the same side as the previous one. It was almost twice as high.

“There, princess! You’ll be better off here than down there. There’s an adjoining bathroom.”

“Whoa… Did you choose the decor?”

“You like it?”

“It’s amazing.”

The floor was covered with large glossy brown tiles on which was placed a white, Berber carpet. The walls were also white, stripped of any picture frames. A huge designer four-poster bed, a white lacquered wood wall cupboard, a welcoming office area, an English armchair in white leather, a reading lamp, a large mirror framed in ebony… this room was magnificent.

“If you don’t like it, we can change two or three things.”

I was speechless.

“Why?”

He threw all my clothes on the bed and, starting to put them away in the walk-in closet, he said to me with the most detached look in the world:

“This is your home, so you have the right to have a space that you like.”

“Rucker, I….”

“Well, you like it, yes or no?”

“Obviously!”

“Then that’s perfect. I’ll let you put this all away, I’ll get the rest of your stuff.”

I nodded and sat down on the bed, confused.

Rucker returned a few minutes later with a stack of shoeboxes and other clothes.

“Here. There was also this.”

He handed me my old satchel, which he carried over his shoulder.

“It’s really in bad shape. If you want, we can buy you another one and...”

I threw the bag into the closet and turned sharply to Rucker.

“Stop that!”

He raised his left eyebrow.

“Look, I’m grateful for everything you do for me, for all of this. (I indicated the room with a wave of my hand.) But you don’t have to. I’m not a princess, not a high-ranking figure, you don’t owe me anything! Don’t treat me like I’m important.”

I would have cried in frustration, but as it was no longer part of my physical possibilities….

Rucker walked over and took my hand in his, pulling me over to the edge of the bed. I sit there with him.

“Scarlett, Scarlett… I don’t want to embarrass you. I apologize if that’s what I did.”

“No that’s not it…”

“So what?”

“I don’t want to be a burden on anyone. You don’t have to take responsibility for what happened to me.”

He sighed.

“It’s true, I’m not responsible, but I’ll take care of you as I promised and...”

“You don’t have to,” I cut him off. “He won’t be here to see if you’ve kept your word!”

He narrowed his eyes softly and, furtively, his irises liquefied.

“It’s not him I’m talking about, but me.”

My eyebrows furrowed.

“Long before the commitment I made to him, I promised you that I would always be there for you. You remember that?”

I sighed and nodded. I remembered it perfectly, we were in a pub with the pack after being attacked by two dark angels, Julia and me. It was the day after Minah’s funeral.

“And think again, Scarlett,” he said, “sooner or later he’ll come and see if I kept my promise.”

This idea alone succeeds in making my heart beat faster.

“You think?”

“I’m sure. But I don’t promise to welcome him, that coward!”

And it begins again…

“Rucker… Do you know what I would like?”

“No…”

With his eyebrow still raised, it looked like he expected me to ask for something impossible. And really, I think he wasn’t wrong.

“That you all finally get along.”

He burst into a cynical laugh.

“Sometimes, girl, you can be very, very funny. At your age, normally, we no longer believe in Santa Claus. (He paused for a moment, sighing.) You say “you”… don’t you care?”

“No. Because I like dark angels and I like werewolves. Just being a vampire doesn’t change that, that’s how it is.”

He almost choked.

“As you wish. It’s up to you. But I’ll give you some good advice, Scarlett. Don’t go talking about this to everyone. Some of our fellows wouldn’t like your way of thinking at all.”

I shrug my shoulders silently and get up to put my laundry away in this huge closet. We could almost have included my Mini! And on this point...

“My car is still parked in a parking lot in St Andrews, do you think I could pick it up?”

“No.”

I dropped two shoe boxes that skidded under the bed.

“And for what reason?”

“I’ll go get it for you. You’re banned from leaving. Well... as long as you’re not ready.”

“Oh, I see. I’m a bad little girl, I’m being punished!”

With annoyance, I opened the outside pocket of my wallet to get the keys and throw them in his hands.

“Don’t get upset, it’s not a punishment. It’s for your own good and especially for the poor humans that you would meet on your way.”

“I won’t drink human blood,” I said with certainty. “Get that into your head!”

“Yes, of course. That’s what you’re saying now because you’re not tempted. But did you see yesterday? And they were at least a mile away! What will you do with the poor guy who accidentally brushes against your arm?”

I shrug my shoulders again. I knew he was right and it was unbearable to me. I didn’t want to imagine that I might want to at some point.

“Scarlett, I never said it would be easy, far from it. You’ll have to fight every day to get there. Corwin and Morel had long months of struggle, but today they could sleep in the same bed as a human without even thinking about eating them!”

“And you? Could you?”

He shivered, just imagining it.

“No, I wouldn’t be able to, because I’ve tasted human blood. Too often, too long...”

“You never slept with a human?” 

He stretched his lips into a devastating smile.

If that’s how he went about seducing, I already had my answer!

“Sometimes the nights are… very short.”

“Yeah… And werewolves, do you sometimes want to drink their blood?”

For the second time, he choked. And not just a little!

“Do you remember the honey candy from yesterday?”

I grimaced.

“Well, you see, I would still prefer to eat a whole packet!”

“That much…?”

He shivered. It looked more like he was snorting. It was so violent!

“Okay, girl, if you’re done settling in, I’d like to show you something. Another talent.”

“Another one!” I exclaim wryly.

He got up to leave the room. Before going through the door, he turned to me.

“It’s good to see you happier, Scarlett. You’ll see, every day will be better.”

I gave him a weak smile.

 “Don’t get me wrong, Rucker, it seems I have become a wonderful actress. My heart is definitely broken, and no smile that I show will be able to put it back together. Never.”

“Is there a swimsuit with your clothes?”

“Uh yes… I think so.”

“In that case, put it on and meet me downstairs.”

“Shall we swim?”

He nodded with a broad smile and slammed the door.

It was half-past five in the morning. What could be more normal than going for a swim in the North Sea at this time of day?

When we left the house, accompanied by Corwin and Morel, the smell of wet dog persisted, so much so that due to the lack of reaction from the boys, I ended up believing that it was an ambient odour and that they got used to it. Unless it’s about my super sense of smell? Without saying anything, I grimaced and followed them over to the pebble cove, crossing my fingers so that the scent of a human didn’t come to tickle my nostrils. The experience of the day before was still very stinging in my mind.

Corwin and Morel took off their clothes and immediately jumped into the water, followed by Rucker who waited for me to do the same while floating on his back.

With the sunrise, the metal-coloured sea had taken on red and purplish reflections, giving it a magical appearance. I took a few seconds to admire it.

The boys were already very far away and swimming at a remarkable pace. After two minutes, I hardly saw them anymore.

“They are so fast…,” I whispered.

Rucker looked at them in the distance.

I undressed and slowly stepped into this icy water. The softness it gave me was so pleasant that I sighed with well-being. When I was submerged to the shoulders, Rucker approached me.

“Today, I’m going to introduce you to something very special. All vampires can, but not all like to.”

“What?”

“I’m not going to tell you right now or you’ll run away.”

I let out a small laugh between my lips.

“Aren’t you supposed to reassure me?”

“You know you’re not going to die, don’t you?”

“In theory…”

“So, follow me and don’t try to struggle. Otherwise, you won’t enjoy the moment, okay?”

“Ok… you’re not reassuring at all!”

Rucker circled my waist and forced me into the water with him. Instinctively, I took a huge breath of air. After almost a minute, I felt the need to rise to the surface to breathe. But Rucker still held me so tightly. He noticed my discomfort and turned to me. Mouth wide open, he motioned for me to relax and sank deeper.

This time I panicked outright. I moved my arms and legs to make him let me go. Since he was much stronger than me, I couldn’t pull myself away. He stopped swimming to hover and showed me that he was inhaling water and that his lungs were full of it, but that he wasn’t in danger of drowning. Me, my mouth was still closed, with swollen cheeks that threatened to explode like a valve.

He took me by surprise by pressing hard on my abdomen, forcing me to open my mouth wide. Unreasonably, the fear of drowning was so strong that I began to scream, swallowing an astronomical amount of salt water.

Strangely, it was the taste of salt that bothered me the most, because I had just realized that underwater, I didn’t need to breathe.

Rucker finally let go, smiling. He motioned for me to follow him. As I wasn’t swimming yet, just kicking my feet to stay put, he turned around and grabbed my hand. We swam together, sinking deeper and deeper into the depths of the water, passing a multitude of fish that I didn’t know existed.

It wasn’t, however, the Pacific Ocean, in which we were exploring, but this sea so wild, mysterious, dark and silent. The marine flora swayed in a bewitching ballet while many strange molluscs seemed to beat time by clicking their shells. Despite myself, I thought I was a mermaid.

When we came to the surface, long after, I was still captivated and let out a cry of triumph.

Rucker’ eyes were sparkling.

“Did you like it?”

The smile I was showing spoke for itself.

“Shall we race?” he proposed.

“Huh? But... how far?”

“Well, to the shore, of course!”

I turned my head where he was pointing his finger and saw that we were very far from the coast. I didn’t realize that we had travelled such a distance. And how quickly! What was happening to me was getting crazier and crazier.

Rucker won. But I was largely satisfied to have managed to follow him without too much difficulty. I had become quick, nimble as if I could move through any environment with grace and ease.

The sun reigned supreme over the sky and had ousted all the clouds. So, instead of drying myself off with the bath towel, I lay down on the rocks and let the salt water drops evaporate sliding down my skin like plastic.

Rucker was watching me intently.

“Are you thirsty?” he asked me.

I sighed.

“No, I’m not thirsty. Should I be?”

He approached me to observe my eyes.

“No, you seem to be doing pretty well, however, your underwater initiation required more energy than you think. Today, you’ll have to eat human food to fill up.”

I made a face and he pinched my cheek.

“You’ll have the right to eat what you want.”

“Awesome… I’m sure eating excrement would have the same effect on me!”

He looked disgusted.

“What an idea!”

“Maybe, but that’s exactly the impression I had yesterday!”

He laughed and lay down on the rock leaning on his elbows while watching his brothers having fun in the distance. Then he closed his eyes to gorge himself on the tranquillity that reigned.

His long hair moved with the light breeze of the wind. The rays of the sun made his skin appear even more golden than usual. He was magnificent.

Almost without thinking, I raised my hand and brushed his shoulder. It was as smooth as mine.

Rucker opened his eyes sharply and caught my gaze. His blue eyes were flamboyant and questioning. I quickly withdrew my fingers, embarrassed.

“Sorry…”

He opened his mouth to say something and closed it again without making a sound. The seconds passed, silent and loaded with I don’t know what. He kept his eyes on me, and for a while, I couldn’t look at him.

Then I decided to break this strange moment.

“When you took care of Minah, did you act the same way with her?”

He opened his mouth to answer and changed his mind.

“Tell me…,” I insisted.

He stealthily closed his eyelids and answered.

“It was my duty to take care of Minah.”

“Because you made her?”

“Yes.”

“But me, you didn’t create me...”

“No, but I made you a promise and I want to keep it.”

“Why? I didn’t do anything for you.”

“Yes, you did an essential thing, extremely rare in human beings: you didn’t judge me. You were scared to death the time I ran into you on the beach and yet you wanted to know me better despite what you were told about me. Believe me, girl, in seven hundred years this had never happened to me!”

“Except with Julia...”

He caught his breath and clenched his jaw.

“Except with Julia, but she wasn’t human. Not like you.”

“Not like me. Yes…”

Throughout our life, we think we can die, be injured, become sick, be alone in the world... but in any case, we can’t imagine becoming a creature such as I was, we never believe it possible to lose our humanity. Even though I knew the reason, I couldn’t help but wonder why… why me?

“Can we talk about what happened at the cemetery? We never broached the subject since I...”

My voice choked and Rucker brushed my cheek.

He didn’t have time to answer. Like two dolphins chasing each other, Morel and Corwin came jumping out of the water to plunge back immediately. The last jump took them straight to the rocks next to us. They were still laughing out loud and snorting like two dogs. The picture was so cheerful. I loved these two kids!

“We’re hungry now!” Morel announced. “Are you coming to eat with us, Scarlett? And you, Perceval, are you coming?”

He and I made an unequivocal grimace.

“It’s for a good cause,” Rucker scoffed. “This time, it’s Morel and Corwin who will take care of your education.”

I wrinkled my nose and began to follow them home.

I already knew I was going to have a bad quarter of an hour.

I grabbed a candy bar with my fingertips as if it were the worst filth and held it up in front of Rucker’s nose accusingly.

“Is this all you buy for them? Cakes, candies and chocolate? Frankly, I’m starting to understand the problem better, when you say that human food isn’t nutritious enough.”

With a broad smile, Rucker bit his lip and shook his head from side to side.

“In addition, she would even tell us how to live as a vampire when she doesn’t even have ten days of experience!”

I laugh with him.

“In any case, young lady, don’t try to divert our attention. At the table!”

The first piece of chocolate I put in my mouth almost knocked me over. I was trembling with all my limbs.

Rucker immediately put another in my hand.

“Don’t worry, you’re not going to die!”

A good joke!

When we had finished this wonderful meal, I began to tidy up and clean the kitchen.

Rucker, Corwin and Morel were looking at me with astonished eyes. In just a few seconds, and without realizing it, I had acted like a tornado. The multitude of sweet wrappers lying around was thrown away and the table wiped down. I had instinctively found the broom in a cupboard and swept the floor.

It wasn’t until Rucker gave a loud laugh that I stopped to look at him, confused.

I shrug my shoulders and carefully folded the tea towel I had in my hands, before placing it on the back of a chair.

“It needs to be done, right?” I grumbled.

“Normally we pay someone for this,” Rucker seemed to apologize. “But until you’re ready, there’s no way that sweet granny will set foot in here.”

Obviously...

“When are we going to finish our talk?” I said.

Rucker nodded and invited me to follow him into the living room.