Chapter 10-The Warning

Odett’s POV

  ‘Stop following it,’ Lorilie warned with a frightened growl.

  The streets changed into a coven, then a fairy settlement, then another pack. Each place bore the signs of a struggle, and each was empty. Sam stood at the far end of the last village with his back to me. I ran toward him, though Lorilie pressed against my thoughts.

  “Sam!” I called with growing desperation.

  He turned, but something pulled him backward into the darkness before I could see his face.

  ‘Wake up, Odett!’ Lorilie screamed inside my mind.

  I woke screaming. Zerina reached my door first, Zander behind her. Gaven and Sean crowded the doorway as Joshy pushed past them. Their frightened faces made me pull the blanket over the fresh scratches in my mattress.

  “What happened?” Joshy asked with alarm.

  “Nothing,” I answered too quickly.

  ‘That was a terrible lie,’ Lorilie said with a frustrated huff.

  “You screamed,” Zerina said with a frightened expression.

  “I had a nightmare,” I admitted, keeping my hands on the blanket.

  “What kind of nightmare?” Sean asked.

  “I don’t remember,” I lied with a dismissive shrug.

  “You called Sam’s name,” Zander said with a worried frown.

  “I miss him,” I explained with forced calmness.

  “My mind turned that into something worse while I was sleeping,” I continued with a reassuring expression.

  “Has this happened before?” Joshy asked suspiciously.

  “No,” I lied again.

  I saw Joshy recognize the lie. He looked at the blanket I was gripping, then at the younger four waiting for an answer. He let me keep the secret in front of them, though he did not look pleased.

  ‘Tell them,’ Lorilie pleaded with growing concern.

  “You don’t have to hide things from us,” Zerina reminded me with a gentle expression.

  “I’m not hiding anything,” I insisted with a patient smile.

  “We can stay in here,” Gaven offered with a nervous look.

  “All five of you?” I asked with an amused expression.

  “We can take shifts,” Zander suggested seriously.

  “I don’t need guards while I sleep,” I said with a quiet laugh.

  “Maybe you do,” Sean replied with a thoughtful frown.

  “Go back to bed before Mom and Dad realize everyone is awake,” I warned while looking toward the hallway.

  That convinced them, but Joshy remained after the others left.

  “You aren’t fine,” Joshy said.

  “I had a nightmare,” I replied with a tired sigh.

  “You lied about having them before,” Joshy said with a disappointed look.

  “I can handle it,” I said with more confidence than I felt.

  “Whatever you’re hiding isn’t going to disappear because you refuse to discuss it,” Joshy warned me with a serious expression.

  ‘He is right,’ Lorilie said.

  “I know,” I answered quietly.

  “Do you?” he asked.

  “Yes,” I promised with a reassuring smile.

  He didn’t believe me, but he left.

  ‘Neither do I,’ Lorilie admitted with a disappointed sigh.

  The next evening I found Dad asleep over an unfinished report. I covered him with the blanket from the couch, and his eyes opened before I could step away. He had been tired for weeks, but he still tried to look alert for me.

  “I wasn’t asleep,” Dad said with a tired frown.

  “You were snoring,” I replied with an amused smile.

  “I don’t snore,” he argued.

  “Mom can hear you from the other side of the castle,” I reminded him with a raised eyebrow.

  “She exaggerates,” Dad muttered as he straightened.

  Before Dad closed the folder, I saw dates and locations running down the page. Sam’s name appeared at the bottom. I knew better than to reach for a restricted report, but I stayed by the desk.

  ‘Ask him,’ Lorilie urged with sudden attention.

  “Is this about the unusual reports?” I asked with concern.

  “It’s something the council is handling,” Dad answered carefully.

  “Are we in danger?” I asked.

  “No immediate danger has been confirmed,” Dad said.

  “That sounds like something Uncle Evan would say when he doesn’t want to lie,” I pointed out suspiciously.

  “Your uncle has corrupted all of you,” Dad complained with a tired sigh.

  “You taught us to pay attention,” I reminded him quietly.

  “I also taught you to trust me,” Dad said with a serious look.

  “I do trust you,” I answered honestly.

  “That doesn’t mean I don’t know when you’re hiding something,” I continued.

  “I’m trying to understand it myself before I make you all worry,” Dad said wearily.

  “Does Sam understand it?” I asked.

  “He understands more than he did when he left,” Dad replied carefully.

  “That isn’t the same as saying he found the answer,” I said with a frustrated frown.

  “No, it isn’t,” Dad admitted with a tired expression.

  “Mom said you need to bring him home,” I revealed quietly.

  “You were listening outside my office,” Dad said with an accusing look.

  “The door was open,” I defended myself with an innocent expression.

  “The door was almost closed,” Dad corrected with a knowing look.

  “Is Sam coming home?” I asked instead of answering.

  “We are working on it,” Dad replied.

  “After he finishes the investigation?” I asked.

  “Before he moves into another Alpha King’s territory,” Dad answered firmly.

  “Sam has been away long enough, and the reports are becoming too dangerous for his investigation team to continue moving without reinforcements,” Dad continued with a serious expression.

  Fear tightened around my chest.

  “Bring him home,” I said with a quiet plea.

  “That is the plan,” Dad promised with a serious expression.

  Winter break began the next morning, but the castle grew busier as the Academy emptied. Royal Guards arrived before sunrise, and council members stayed in Dad’s office until late. On the last night of the year, we went outside together to watch enchanted lights fill the sky. For a few minutes, I let myself enjoy standing with my family.

  Behind us, a guard approached Dad.

  “Another report from Sam arrived,” the guard whispered in a voice too low for anyone without enhanced hearing to catch.

  Lorilie went still. Mom saw Dad’s face and followed him inside, leaving the lights reflected in the windows behind them. I stayed with the twins and tried to remember the last night I had fallen asleep without dreading what I might see.

  ‘They are getting worse,’ Lorilie warned.

  I kept telling myself I could control the dreams. Maybe I was afraid; maybe I had overheard too much. But each time I woke, it was harder to dismiss what I had seen as something my own mind had made up.