Chapter 26 Missing
2708 Words
[..]
“Do you really have to go already?” Vicca asked with a sad expression, as she had her arms around Kyan’s neck.
“Yeah, I’m sorry, my dad wants me to help with something important.. You know, wolf stuff and all that can be a bit boring sometimes, but it’s necessary.” Kyan replied with a light shrug, as his hands were resting on her waist, as he proceeded to pull her in for a kiss.
“I know, I just wish you didn’t have to..” she replied when she pulled away and gave him a sad smile.
“.. I wanna spend more time with you.” She added, as Kyan proceeded to bury his nose in the side of her neck.
“Me too.. Did I ever tell you that you smell like sunflowers?” He spoke, making Vicca giggle.
“How about I come back later, when I’m done?” He added as she smiled.
“You promise?” She asked as he nodded his head.
“Okay, I will see you later.” she agreed, as she then kissed him one last time before he headed back towards his home. But when he passed the pack house, he suddenly heard Chase call for him.
“Kyan! Can I ask you something real’ quick?” Chase asked, walking towards Kyan, which made him stop in his tracks.
“Sure, what is it?” He asked, when Chase was in front of him.
“Have you seen Stella today?”
“No, I haven’t, did something happen?” Kyan replied, as Chase was arguing with himself if he should say anything.
“It’s nothing really.. Or it is, Stella and I had a big argument yesterday, ‘cause I made Armaros leave..”
“..she has not been home since and though I know she stayed at my sister’s last night, I fear that she might be planning to run away to be with him, so if you have any idea where she might be, then I need you to tell me Kyan.” Chase explained.
“I don’t, but I might know someone who does.. I’ll try to look into it.” Kyan replied.
“I appreciate it.” Chase added, as he put a hand on Kyan’s shoulder, and gave it a pat.
“You boys have always been so good at looking out for Stella, and I hope that you know, though my methods might seem a bit extreme, I only do what I think is best for her.” Chase stated, as Kyan nodded.
“Thank you, and we do.” Kyan replied.
[Stella’s POV]
As I changed back into my human form, I felt my whole body was electric. I found my clothes and quickly put it on, before Jaze came up to me as he put his shirt on too, and a big smile covered his lips.
“That was so cool! I have never seen a white wolf with blue eyes before,” he exclaimed, as I put on my shoes and smiled.
“Yeah, so I’ve heard.. I must say, it felt wonderful, I can’t believe I have been missing out on this feeling for all those years.” I replied, as I raised myself from the ground again. Something in me just felt like it had connected, like I was feeling more complete.
“I know, right? You seriously need to try it out at night, then you will..” Jaze spoke, but our conversation was cut short as Lior then made a small cough.
“Now, if you two are done, then maybe we can try what I’ve planned.” Lior spoke, as he raised from his seat.
“Right, sorry, I got a little distracted, but I’m ready now.” I replied, as he came over to me.
“Great! Let’s get started then, close your eyes.” He spoke, as I did what he asked.
“Now, normally you just need to focus on a place or a person and how it makes you feel. I know you have done it before, but if you wanna make it work on command, you’ll have to think clearly. When you are scared or angry you get some clearing too, but that kind drains your energy, and it isn’t healthy in the long run.” Lior explained, as I nodded my head.
“I get it,” I replied, as I opened one eye for a moment, and realized he was observing me, so I closed it again while I tried to relax and clear my mind.
“Okay, we go slow. First, I want you to focus on someone close by. The closer they are, the less energy you have to use.” He continued, as I continued to listen closely to his words.
“Okay, that sounds easy enough.” I added, as I decided to focus on Bella, but then I lost focus, when I heard heavy footsteps and Kyan’s voice.
“You wanna run off again!” Kyan yelled, as I looked at him shocked.
“Calm down, Kyan, what got you so worked up?” Jaze asked as he watched Kyan’s expression.
“I talked to your father, Stella, he worries about you, and he said you are mad about what happened with Armaros, but you shouldn’t run away just because of that! Why are you so obsessed with that guy anyway, Stella? He is bad news!” Kyan argued.
“It doesn’t concern you, Kyan, I’m clearly capable of taking care of myself!” I shot back, as Jaze looked surprised at me.
“Is that really what you plan to do - going away again? Is that the reason why you asked us to do this?” He asked, as he seemed a little disappointed.
“Why are you all so judgmental? You don’t know him like I do – you of all people should understand that, Kyan! How would you feel if someone told you couldn’t be with Vicca!” I yelled.
Kyan opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out, as his eyes then turned to the ground as he sighed.
“That’s what I thought.” I spoke as I sat down, and for a long time, we all just sat in silence.
“You really love him, don’t you?” Lior asked me, as I nodded my head.
“I do, I know you all have a hard time believing it, but Armaros is actually very kind and goodhearted. When he wants to be, it just.. Doesn’t come natural to him. But I know he is more than the bad guy you all believe him to be. I’ve seen it.” I explained, as they all looked thoughtful.
“Then he better be nice to you, or I’m going to kick his àss.” Jaze stated, as a teasing smile came across his lips, as I started to laugh.
“Thanks.. Though I might fear, he probably would kick your àss first.” I grinned, as the awkwardness between us seemed to vanish little by little.
I then looked at Kyan, who was leaning against a tree, as he was looking at me, but he avoided my gaze when I looked at him.
“Kyan.. You might think I’m stupid right now, I am not expecting you to understand.. But the least you can do, is to respect my choice.. I truly love you guys, but without Armaros, I.. I just feel so lost.” I spoke as I sighed and looked the other way.
“I get it..” he spoke as I turned back to him, and he rose from his seat and sat down next to me.
“I might be colored by all the stories I’ve heard throughout my childhood, what our mother went through when she was young, and also everything that happened back there when we tried to get you back..” he spoke as he then turned his face towards me.
“.. But if you truly believe he is right for you, then who am I to judge?” He stated, as I gave him a hug.
“I really do, and I promise you.. He is a really nice guy.” I smiled.
“Anyway, I still don’t think it’s the best plan to run off,” Kyan exclaimed, as I pulled away.
“I know, but I’m just not sure what I should do..” I started to explain, when suddenly the tribe alarm went off, which meant something was going on, something bad, and we all began running back towards the tribe.
[..]
When the alarm went off, Chase stepped outside, as a whole army of demons was standing in front of the pack house.
“Maybe it was a bad idea to let that demon leave.” Drake stated through a mind-link.
“If he plans to take my daughter by force, I’ll make sure to give him a fight he’ll never forget.” Chase replied, as he skimmed the place for any sign of Armaros, but he didn’t seem to be there, making Chase narrow his eyes.
“Keep your guard up, until we know what they want.” Chase ordered through mind-link to all the werewolves nearby.
He stepped closer, as he felt his wolf push to come forward, but then, he was pulled out of it.
“What’s going on here?” Stella spoke, as she walked closer, to where Chase was standing with Vlad, Drake, Charlie, and Jack.
When Chase heard Stella’s voice, he immediately turned to her.
“Stella, don’t come over here, go inside!” He yelled, but Stella frowned confused, when her eyes suddenly caught the sight of Shax.
“Shax!” She blurred out, as she walked even closer, but Drake stepped in and stopped her.
“Don’t get any closer, Stella!” He ordered, as Shax's eyes met Stella’s.
“Oh, hi cupcakes! Good to see you!” Shax spoke, as he smiled at her. Many of the demons had already pulled their weapons out, while a lot of the werewolves’ eyes started to shift.
The Lux Blandas were making light balls, as they all seemingly waited for any given moment for an attack.
“It’s good to see you too, but what are you all doing here?” She asked, as she knitted her eyebrows, as she watched the big group of demons there were gathered.
A few of the faces she already knew, but there were also a lot of them she had never seen before.
“Oh, don’t act so surprised, Armaros is missing and I wanna know what you have done to him!” Damien growled, as he stepped forward, glaring at her with so much anger and venom, that she wasn’t doubting his personal hate towards her.
“Who is that guy?” Jaze asked Stella through a mind link, as she eyed him for a moment.
“Armaros' half brother, Damien, he is a jerk,” Stella stated, making Jaze almost lose his cool.
“He already left yesterday, so why do you ask us?” Charlie growled back. Everyone looked at each other, tensed and ready to attack at any given moment.
“He hadn't shown up after your vampire there came and attacked us, so why should we trust your word!” Amon snapped, as he racked the slide on his gun.
“Calm down, Amon! I wanna hear what Stella has to say first.. I trust what she is saying.. So, Stella, can you please tell us if you know where Armaros is?” Baal asked, as they all stared at her.
“I’m sorry, but it’s true, he did tell me that he would go back yesterday.. I haven’t seen or heard from him since, so I thought he would have gone back to you by now..” Stella explained.
“Bullshít! What is it with you and Shax! Don’t you see she is manipulating you, like she did with Armaros, and where did it bring him?” Damien snapped at them, as he turned back to Stella.
“I want my brother back, or I’ll take something of the same value from you. You have until dawn, then we will be back to collect!” Damien warned, before he turned around, and they walked back into the forest where they came from. Shax gave an apologetic glance, and Baal shrugged lightly.
“Take care, Stella.” Baal spoke, before they both followed the others.
When they were out of sight, Stella turned to her dad, as she looked at him with a skeptical look in her eyes.
“Did you do it, dad?” She asked her father, as he frowned.
“I don’t know what you are talking about, I haven’t..”
“This is all your fault dad, Armaros is missing because of you. If anything has happened to him, I’ll never forgive you!” Stella yelled as she walked away from him, not listening to anything he had to say.
“I can go talk to her, if you'd like?” Jack asked.
He nodded as a small sigh left his lips.
“Yeah, maybe she will listen to you,” Chase answered.
He knew she didn’t trust him anymore, and she had every right not to because he broke that trust.
[Stella’s POV]
“Can I sit here with you?” My uncle Jack asked, as he came over next to me. I gave a small sigh because I knew my father probably had sent him.
“I guess..” I replied plainly, as I was silent for a moment.
“Uncle Jack, did my dad have anything to do with Armaros’ disappearance?” I asked, as he stared back at me.
“I don’t think so, he was pretty eager to make him leave, but I do not believe he ever would do anything like that..” Jack explained.
“I don’t know, Jack.. I’m just not sure if I can trust his word anymore.. He has already lied to me so many times.” I replied.
“I understand.. But can I tell you something?” He asked as I nodded.
“Your dad hasn’t always been like this, but things happened.. Back in the days when your parents first met. I don’t really know how much you know about all that, but their whole life became one big mess. People wanted to hurt your mom for what she is.. Both werewolves, demons, and..”
“The dark wizard, I remember the stories, uncle Jack.” I stated, as I leaned my head on my hands.
“I know you do, but there is more to it in that.. Some of us made some mistakes we aren’t proud of, but despite that, your parents, especially your mother, were able to forgive it. But all that has also made your father wary about whom he trusts and who he doesn’t, and let’s just say, what Carl did hasn’t made it any easier..” He spoke, as he looked at me.
“I know that you have inherited your mother’s good heart, I see a lot of her in you, and that’s why I think you have forgiven Armaros for his mistakes too..” Jack explained, as I looked confused at him.
“What I’m trying to say is that, I believe you know what is right and what is wrong, if you just learn to listen to your gut-feeling.. Then you will know your father wouldn’t do anything like that. He might not like the guy, but I’m pretty sure.. No, I know he would not have done that, and I believe you do too.” Jack added, making me give a slight nod.
“Yeah, maybe you’re right.” I replied, before I got raised from my seat.
“Where are you going?” Jack asked, as I glanced shortly at him.
“Well, you said I remind you of my mother, right? So, I’m gonna do what I believe is the right thing..” I replied before I jogged towards the woods.
- Writer
