Chapter 135
Heather
I spun, stomping back toward my cousins’ house, but Raphael stopped me.
"Are you okay?" He asked as he gripped my arm.
"No." I snapped, jerking away from him.
That was rude. I needed to calm down, but this whole seeing the future thing had totally thrown me for a loop.
I took a breath and tried to calm down. "I’m sorry, but I’m so beyond not okay. We need to go back to your house."
He looked from the lit up windows, then back to me.
"I swear. We need to go back. I just..." I started walking again.
"Okay. Okay. We’ll go."
I was already walking. Nothing could drag me back there.
In my normal visions, I was always removed—distant from what was happening. This was like living the same moment twice. Or almost the same thing. Like déjà vu on crack.
But what was even more disturbing was seeing the ass-Hoel with Luciana. Was he the reason she wanted me here so bad? Was it revenge for ruining his attempt at a coup? Or was he really teaming up with Luciana?
If someone had asked me a few hours ago if that was even possible, I would’ve said the idea was nuts. Luciana hated the Weres. But if I trusted the vision—and I did—Mr. Hoel was standing in the schoolhouse right now. With her. At a coven meeting.
If Mr. Hoel was plotting with Luciana, I had to tread carefully. He’d almost gotten four of the top alphas killed. He’d sold our location to the vampires. His endgame had always been about power, and I’d bet my life that his plan was still the same. Everything I’d overheard during my vision backed this up. He was making another play to get more power, take down the Seven, and out supernaturals to the rest of the world.
Only this time, he was using Luciana to divide the pack. Same story, different day. So, how did I beat him this time? The stakes were higher. Fighting the witches would only result in lots of people dying on both sides.
That wasn’t the way to come out to the humans. Showing them our violent side would make them afraid. It’d be witch hunts all over again.
So many scenarios ran through my head that I hadn’t even noticed Raphael had stopped walking until he spoke. "What the hell happened back there? Why did you chicken out?"
I wasn’t ready to talk about it, but I guessed it was unavoidable. "No. I just...no." I didn’t know how to put what happened into words. "I had the worst déjà vu. It was like the Matrix had a huge fucking glitch."
"A glitch in the Matrix?"
This was going to sound totally insane. Hearing what future visions were like was totally different from experiencing one.
I needed more visions like I needed a hole in the head.
I waited until we were down the road a little more. I didn’t want to be overheard. "I guess I had a vision. We went to the schoolhouse, but as soon as you put your ear to the wall, they knew we were there. Anyhow, it was turning into a bad scene—Luciana and the others were pissed. Then I jolted back to where we were right before you asked me if I was okay for the second time. In the exact same spot."
A slow grin spread across his face. "See. You can do it. See the future. We should start testing it out. We should—"
I tuned him out as I stared up at the stars. It was a clear night, and now that we were far away from the meeting—a quiet one, too. If I closed my eyes, I’d bet I could forget the last fifteen minutes had happened.
For about the millionth time, I wished Brent were here.
Oh no. I had to get word to him. He had to know that the pack was in danger.
"You wouldn’t happen to have a cell that works?" I asked. Even if I couldn’t really talk to him, he needed to know that Mr. Hoel was here and working with Luciana.
"No service out here. And Luciana is the only one who knows how to turn our phone on. But..."
I knew it. He’d been holding out on me. "Please. Just this once. I need to talk to Brent. He has to know what I just saw."
"The only landline that’s always turned on is in Luciana’s house. She’s busy at the meeting and Daniel’s at our house—"
"You mean Daniel has a working phone?" And he hadn’t told me? He was so going to hear about this.
"And Internet. All of us have to ask permission before we make a call and she goes over the log on every phone bill."
What was this? A fascist regime? No wonder they hadn’t told me about the phone. The more I learned about Luciana, the more I confirmed that she was a complete psychopath.
"I’ll be gone before she gets the next phone bill. You can put all the blame on me."
He thought for a second, and I crossed my fingers. Short of leaving this compound, I wasn’t sure what to do. But getting word to Brent was imperative.
"This way," he said finally, and I let out a sigh of relief.
He paused in front of a white house four houses down and across the street from his own house. "I’m going to get you the portable from inside. Probably better if we stay out here in case she comes back."
"Sure." Even given the circumstances, I was nearly giddy with the thought of hearing Brent’s voice.
Raphael reappeared a second later with the phone in his hand. "Be fast. I don’t know how much time we have before the meeting ends."
I nodded. "I appreciate it." I quickly dialed Brent’s cell.
Serena answered. "Brent’s phone."
Why did she have his phone? "Hey, it’s me."
"Heather?"
"Yeah."
"Oh my God. Hang on. I’ll get him. Just give me one second." I heard doors slam as she moved through the building.
"What’s going on? How is he? Why do you have his phone?"
I heard her and Xander arguing but it was muffled, so I couldn’t hear what they were saying. A second later, Xander’ voice came on the phone. "Hey. So Brent’s been a mess. He’s locked in the feral cages. We’re heading to them now. I’ll put you on speaker and hopefully he’ll change forms."
My heart dropped. "What do you mean he’s in the cages?"
"The lack of the bond has been really hard on him. Just hang on a sec. Let me get him for you."
The sound of doors clanging closed echoed through the phone.
"All right," Xander said. "I’m putting you on speaker."
"Brent?" I said.
"Oh thank God," Serena murmured, her voice sounded tinny.
"Cherie."
I gasped at the gravelly tone in his voice. "What’s going on? Why are you in the cages?"
He muttered something in French.
I really was going to have to learn his language.
"English," I said as I rubbed my forehead. There were too many things going wrong tonight.
He paused his ramblings and switched to something I could actually understand. "It’s hard for me, this distance thing," Brent said. "I was okay at first, but I just... I was going to break the deal—go get you—so Dr. Gonzales drugged me. I woke up here. It’s easier as the wolf...if I order something as a human, it’s hard for everyone. They have to obey... How are you?"
I winced. I was better than him, that was for sure. "I’m okay. Worried about you now."
"How are they treating you? Are you eating enough?"
"I’m fine. I’m having some weird vision stuff though. I just wanted to talk to you. I don’t have long. The coven’s having a meeting and I’m using Luciana’s phone—the only one on the compound."
"Merde. That doesn’t sound like a good idea."
"I’m glad I took the risk. You need to not be in the cages." I closed my eyes and pictured him. I wished I could actually see him. I’d been able to reach him over distances a few times before, if I concentrated, but with the bond silent...
"Don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay as soon as we’re back together." He was lying.
I didn’t need our bond to know that. If he’d been knocked out and locked up, he was so far beyond fine it wasn’t even funny. "What’s wrong with your visions?" He asked.
Explaining that would take way too much time. "It doesn’t matter. The important thing is that Mr. Hoel is here, spouting his usual bull and plotting with the coven. This is bigger than we thought."
Brent let out a string of curses.
"And if you’re in that cage, then you’re not keeping an eye on the pack."
Raphael tapped his wrist. I turned my back on him.
"I’ve used up all my time. You’ve got to figure out what’s going on in the pack. If Mr. Hoel is back, then that means there could be another revolt on the way."
"Merde. You’re right. I’m going to do better. It’s hard, but... I have a few ideas about what he might be planning, but joining forces with the coven? There’s a piece that we’re missing, and you can’t come home until you figure it out. I think—"
"You need to get off the phone. You’re pushing it," Raphael said.
I shot him a look. "I know," I said to Raphael. "I’ve got to go, Brent. It’s not safe for me to be on the phone."
"Go. Be careful. I love you."
"I love you, too."
"Bye, cherie."
"Bye." I hung up and gave Raphael the phone and he disappeared back inside Luciana’s house.
Raphael came back outside from Luciana’s house and started speed-walking back to his place. "The farther away we get from here the better."
I tended to agree with him. I had to jog to keep up, but I didn’t mind the exercise.
Tonight had been a real awakening, and not just because of the visions. I’d been hanging around my cousins’ house, content to learn witchy things with Daniel, but there were bigger things going on.
Before I thought that might be the case, but now I knew and my priorities were changing.