Se connecterElenaThe mountain house had been turned into something else by the time they got back from the venue. Long trestle tables ran across the lawn under white cloths that moved in the breeze, flowers covered every surface, and strings of lights had been hung between the trees waiting for the dark. The guests were already there. Some were friends from campus, neighbours, people from the hospital, pack members Elena had not seen since she was small. They were here to celebrate her.Nathan and Mateo disappeared inside the moment they got out of the car, and Elena did not see either of them again for an hour. She found Lila and Harper at one of the lawn tables with three glasses already out and one already poured for her.“Sit down, Mrs. Cruz, B.A.”“Lila.”“Mrs. Bachelor of Arts.”“Stop it. Well same to you too , we all made it”Serah came over with her camera and pulled Elena out of the chair for another set of photos, and by the time Elena got back to the table both her glasses had been re
ElenaElena woke before the sun was up. The house was quiet. She pulled on a robe and went down the corridor barefoot and started down the stairs, thinking about coffee.A few months ago she had not believed she would see this day. She had sat her finals anyway, and she had passed every one of them, and today she was graduating from college.She reached the bottom of the staircase and stopped.The living room had been turned inside out overnight. There were flowers along the windowsills and balloons clustered at the corners of the ceiling and a banner stretched across the back wall that read CONGRATULATIONS ELENA in gold letters a foot tall, and the coffee table had been pushed against the sofa to make room for a long trestle table already covered in a white cloth. The smell of something baking was coming from the kitchen.“SURPRISE!”Nathan came running out of the kitchen at full sprint with his arms above his head, and Alexander was a step behind him in a clean shirt with his hair s
ElenaThe lecturer was wrapping up when Elena realised she had not written a single line of notes for the last half hour. She was sitting in her usual seat at the back of the lecture hall with Lila on one side of her and Harper on the other, and Professor Chen was saying something about the final exam schedule and the deadline for the portfolio submission.It’s been weeks since she attended any lecture or thought about school.The lecturer dismissed the class and the rows ahead of her broke up into chairs scraping and bags being zipped and a hundred small conversations starting at once, and Lila reached across and tapped Elena’s notebook.“Lunch.”“Lunch.”“You are buying. I am broke.”“You are always broke.”“I am a starving student. Have some compassion.”Harper was already on her feet with both of their bags slung over her shoulder, and Elena packed her notebook and her pen and followed them down the steps of the lecture hall and out into the corridor.The canteen was full. They go
ElenaElena barely slept. Every time she closed her eyes she heard Miguel’s voice again. I am not your real father. The words followed her through the night until morning finally arrived, and by the time she came downstairs she had already decided she would leave after breakfast.The house smelled of coffee and fresh bread. Miguel was sitting at the dining table with a newspaper folded beside him and a mug between his hands, and Serah stood by the stove, moving food onto plates. Neither of them spoke when Elena entered.The silence felt different now as though nobody knew where to begin.Elena pulled out a chair and sat down, and Serah immediately reached for another plate.“I made your favorite.”“Thanks.” Elena nodded.Miguel opened his mouth and closed it again, and a few seconds later he tried once more. “You slept alright?”“No.”His shoulders dropped slightly and nobody spoke after that. Serah carried the food over and sat down, and the three of them picked at breakfast. Elena m
Miguel pushed his chair back and went into the living room. Elena followed him. “Dad, I need to talk to you about something “ “If it’s about you and that man, I do not want to speak about it.” “No, Dad. It’s about me.” She turned to face them both. Serah had come in behind her and stopped in the doorway. “I never knew we came from a powerful bloodline. Or is there anything you’re keeping from me.” Miguel’s hand came up over his eyes. Serah moved past Elena and sat down on the sofa and patted the cushion beside her. “Come and sit down, baby. You just got in. You need to rest.” “I don’t need to rest. I don’t want to. I just need answers.” Elena sat down beside her anyway. “Ever since I went to Ravenwood so many things have changed around me. I always thought I was dormant. Like you both made me believe. You told me that was the reason I couldn’t be like my mates. I shifted for the first time and it was too violent to be ordinary. I show strength that isn’t ordinary. I h
Elena The drive to Crescent Ridge took just under three hours, and Alexander did not say much the whole way. He held her hand on the gearshift and changed lanes with his thumb hooked under hers, and she rested her head against the window and watched Ravenwood thin out behind them into commuter towns and then into farmland and then into the long stretch of woods that marked the edge of the pack lands she had grown up in. He turned off the main road onto the lane that led to her parents’ house and she sat up. The wooden fence had been repainted since the last time she had been home. The mailbox had a new flag. Her mother’s herb pots were still on the front step. Alexander pulled into the driveway and put the car in park and turned to her. “I will be on the phone the whole way back,” he said. “Call me when you need me.” “I will.” “And Elena.” “Yes.” “Whatever happens, we’ll figure it out” She pressed her hand against his cheek and he turned his mouth into her palm and ki







