Chapter 19

AURORA

“I can’t believe him. He knew I’d smell him eventually,” Rin grumbled, crossing his arms and leaning back against the table.

We’d retreated to the den after our encounter with Rayne, but things were far from resolved. Rin had been stewing for the past hour, and I’d mostly kept quiet, unsure of what to say. Even though Rayne had taken the fall for my not telling Rin about our previous meeting, I still felt a pang of guilt.

I knew I had to try and make things right. I didn’t like the thought of Rin being mad at me, even if he wasn’t saying it outright. I’d had enough anger directed at me in my life.

“I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you about meeting him before. I didn’t mean to keep it from you,” I said, trying to apologize.

“I know you didn’t, and I don’t blame you. I know my brother. It doesn’t surprise me that he didn’t want you to tell me he was here. He can be as sneaky as me when he wants to be,” Rin replied.

“Do you think he’ll try to make you go home?” I asked.

“I don’t know. But Rayne isn’t the type to just show up and leave, especially when he’s been searching for me.”

I sank into one of the plush chairs, staring at my lap. “I should’ve told you when it happened,” I murmured.

Rin came over to me, kneeling in front of me and taking my hands. “Stop blaming yourself. I’m not blaming you. There’s no need for blame. The only reason I’m upset is because of what’s happening and what he might be planning with you.”

“What he’s planning with me? What do you mean?” I asked, though I had a sinking feeling I knew the answer.

Rin slowly stood up. “I don’t like accusing Rayne of anything, but I know how things can get between alphas, especially when it comes to women. Even though I claimed you and connected you to me, it doesn’t mean Rayne won’t try to muscle in if he decides he’s interested in you. It’s even worse because he’s my twin. Technically, he could challenge me,” he explained.

“You mean Rayne could try to take me from you?”

This was a new one. From what Rin had told me, once an alpha claimed a beta, she was his. End of story.

“Yes and no. It’s complicated, and I don’t know if I can explain it right now with everything else going on. As much as I hate to admit it, Rayne was right about this being suspicious, and I can see why Jekia might link it to what happened when we were kids,” Rin said.

“Jekia thinks it’s connected to when those lycans attacked you and destroyed the palace. But I thought you got rid of them,” I said.

“We did,” Rin confirmed, “but there was always something about that attack that didn’t add up to our father, and as we’ve grown older, Rayne and I have felt the same way. It wasn’t the lycans that destroyed the palace where we were born. It was a mountain troll.”

I tilted my head. “A mountain troll?”

“Yes. Let me explain. You know how big feral creatures can get in this world. You’ve seen it since you’ve been here with me. Mountain trolls are huge. They usually live around the mountain peaks, hence their name. Our home was far from the mountains. Those mountains are on the southern outskirts of the lands, so it should’ve been impossible for that troll to get to the palace unnoticed,” Rin explained.

“Maybe the lycans used magic to transport it. There seems to be a lot of magic items and spells used on this side,” I suggested.

Rin nodded. “That’s true, but that’s not the kind of magic the lycans were known to use. While all creatures on this side know about magic, spells tend to be more specialized depending on who’s using them, and spells that could transport such a huge creature from one place to another so quickly were beyond the lycans’ understanding. Emelio confirmed that.”

“Which means something else was helping them and sent that troll to the palace.”

“Exactly.”

“And you have an idea of what or who that something else was.”

Rin shook his head, looking conflicted.

“Jekia does, but he’s never told me or Rayne. He’s always said it was safer not to talk about it. But it seems that hasn’t worked out for us. If these deaths are connected, then whatever helped the lycans has returned,” he admitted.

As much as I didn’t want to think about it, this didn’t leave us with many options. If whatever this creature was could transport a creature big enough to destroy a palace, and could kill creatures like a splinter that easily, then what chance did we have against it?

“Maybe it would be better if we went back to your family. If something’s that strong…,” I began.

“No, there’s no need for that,” Rin cut me off.

“Rin!”

“I’m not going back just because something’s happening. Jekia can handle it. He always has, and this doesn’t need to involve me any more than it already does.”

“But Rin, what if that thing comes here and tries to come after us?” I pleaded.

Rin was adamant. “I can handle whatever comes my way. I’m not as naive as that splinter or the ogre. Plus, I’ve severed my ties to the throne, so they have no reason to come after me. This will all pass soon, and until then, it’s Jekia’s problem,” he stated.

As much as I wanted to argue, I held back, afraid of pushing him too far. As ridiculous as it sounds, I was scared he might change his mind and leave me, or worse, decide to control me like my parents had.

I couldn’t bear that. It would shatter me if it happened, so I’d do anything to avoid it.

The day turned into night, and we didn’t speak any more about the afternoon’s events. I mostly kept quiet, still trying to make sense of everything. The image of the butterfly and the woman was still imprinted in my mind.

What was that all about? Why did I see that?

I’ve never been one to dismiss anything as mere coincidence. Maybe it was a habit I picked up from living with my parents. It was always safer not to ignore the unusual with them because it usually led to trouble for me.

That’s why this vision was so unsettling. Rin didn’t know what kind of creature could do what this one had done, both in the past and now. If that vision was real, then it might be linked to all of this.

But I couldn’t share my fears with him; not just because I didn’t want to start another argument, but because the stone in my throat was still bothering me. It was easier to keep quiet, though I knew I should probably tell him if it didn’t get better.

I fell asleep with all these thoughts weighing on my mind, and alone. Rin had decided to stay up a bit longer and promised he’d join me soon. I didn’t like sleeping alone, but there wasn’t much I could do about it.

If he was going to join me later, then I could handle it. So, I slipped into my thin white nightgown and crawled into bed.

The den was eerily quiet as I drifted off, hugging his pillow. It was a bit unsettling, but the stress had worn me out enough to ignore it.

But when I woke up, I found myself in the familiar surroundings of my bedroom. I sat up quickly, looking around in disbelief. It couldn’t be. I was in my bed, in the room I’d grown up in!

My heart sank as I realized what was happening, and I tried to call for Rin, but no sound came out. I touched my throat where the stone should’ve been, but it wasn’t there. I also wasn’t wearing the beautiful ring Rin had given me.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I took it all in. Had it all been a dream? Had I never been in that world at all?

I moved to sit on the edge of my bed and buried my face in my hands as I cried silently. I didn’t want it all to be a dream. I wanted to be with Rin forever. I wanted to be happy with him in his world, not miserable in this one.

It took a lot of effort to pull myself together. I finally lifted my head and looked around, listening for any sounds. The room was eerily quiet. The wall clock showed it was seven in the evening.

That was surprising. My parents usually had dinner around this time, and they would never let me sleep through it. The prayers they said before meals were very important to them, and we all had to participate, no exceptions.

I slowly got out of bed and walked over to the door. The lock was on the outside because my mother would lock me in as punishment when I upset her. But it was unlocked, and the door opened easily.

The hallway was dark as I stepped out, and I looked around cautiously, unsure of what was happening. The house was never this quiet. There was always the sound of religious music, loud prayers, or the TV blaring with a preacher shouting about Heaven and Hell.

But now, there was nothing. Just the darkness of the hallway and an unsettling silence.

I walked slowly towards the stairs and looked down. I couldn’t hear any movement in the house, and the creaking of the stairs seemed deafeningly loud as I descended. I wanted to call out to my parents, but my voice failed me when I opened my mouth.

Damn it. Had I really gotten so used to speaking again in that dream?

The downstairs was as empty as the upstairs. There was no sign of my parents anywhere. The TV was off, and everything was neat and tidy as always. There was even an open Bible on the kitchen table where one of them had been reading.

So where were they?

I stopped by the kitchen table, looking at the open Bible. It was open to a page from Revelation, a book my parents often quoted from. But as I looked at it, a deep red stain began to spread across the pages, looking like blood.

I gasped silently and stepped back, bumping into the counter behind me. The room darkened as if the sky outside had clouded over, and I turned to the door leading outside. I felt an irresistible urge to open it, and found myself moving towards it.

The doorknob was icy cold as I turned it, and a gust of cold air hit me as the door swung open. Snow was falling outside, which was strange. It was only September. It shouldn’t have been snowing, or this cold.

I stepped onto the snow-covered grass, which surprisingly didn’t feel cold under my bare feet. I could see a figure standing at the far end of the yard near the fence. I couldn’t make out much about them through the rapidly falling snow, but I could see they were gesturing to me.

“Over here, child,” a woman’s voice whispered.

I took another step forward, wondering what was happening. Was I still dreaming? Was this what they call a dream within a dream?

“Come closer,” the woman urged, her voice echoing in the stillness. I obeyed, my steps slow and hesitant.

The biting cold had faded, replaced by a numbness that spread through my body. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as I drew nearer to the figure. As I got closer, I could see that it was a woman, probably in her twenties. She was dressed in a black cloak and hood, a long red dress peeking out from underneath. Her hands were long and slender, fingers curling and uncurling as she beckoned me. Her face was mostly hidden by the shadow of her hood, only her mouth and chin visible. Strands of white hair peeked out from under the hood.

Just as I was about to reach her, a familiar voice rang out.

“Stop! Don’t go near her!”

~Rin?~

I froze, my surroundings blurring as a throbbing pain erupted in my head. The world around me twisted and warped, and suddenly, I was standing in the middle of a dark forest. My heart pounded in my chest as I looked around, trying to make sense of what was happening. Despite the darkness, I recognized the forest surrounding Rin’s den.

But how had I ended up here? I wasn’t supposed to be able to cross Rin’s barrier without him.

Slowly, I realized I wasn’t alone. The woman was still there, standing a few feet away. Now, I could see her clearly. A cruel smile spread across her face, her mouth stretching unnaturally wide. Soft laughter bubbled from her as she kept her head lowered.

“Come, come to me,” she giggled. Suddenly, her head jerked up, her hood falling back to reveal glowing green eyes. “Let me kill you!”