Unraveling Soren by Marisa Maichel (books under 200 pages txt) 📕

gesturing for me to follow him. We walked until we reached the lake. I saw minnows swimming in the shallows, the occasional splash of a fish or a frog in the lake.

“There are no second chances in love,” Apollo began. “And there are none in life.”

“People get second chances all the time,” I said.

“Yes, but, here’s what I mean: A father abuses his children. Do they forgive him? Once they become teenagers, they won’t. They’ll see him for what he is- pond scum. But when they are children, they hope. They hope he will get better, that he will get help. All families fight. Everyone makes mistakes. Everyone is rude to somebody else at some point, sometimes without meaning to be. But true abuse is unforgivable.”

“What’s your point?”

“I just gave it to you, silly. Pay attention. I did something unforgivable, Reese. My sons never forgave me for it. Only Alexander is still alive, and he wants me dead. Think about it. Evan forgave you, but he’s with someone else.”

“Hey, I introduced them. I wanted them to be together. He’s meant to be with Reid.”

“Are you sure? Are you sure you did not make a mistake?”

“Hey, I’m happy with Sarah. I wasn’t happy with Evan.”

“There you go. Happiness is key. True relationships are not just fucking all the time, although there is that in a lot of romantic relationships. I have dated thousands of women, and I fucked each one eventually. I also fucked up. I thought a relationship was all about sex. It isn’t. There needs to be trust, respect, and communication.”

“It was your own fault,” I said. He grabbed my throat.

“Do not say anything like that ever again,” he growled through clenched teeth. “I know it was my fault. I don’t need an eighteen-year-old telling me that.”

“I’m sorry,” I breathed. Then something hard knocked into us.

I rolled a few yards, then looked up. Father was pounding the shit out of Apollo.

“Father!” I shouted. He barely reacted. “FATHER!”

This time he looked at me. His eyes were bright red, the pupils slits. His fangs were piercing his lips.

“Son,” he muttered, his voice deeper than normal. He growled at Apollo. “No more lessons. If you touch him again, I will rip your head off.”

“Good riddance! I want to die, anyway,” Apollo exclaimed. “Just kill me already so I can be with my beloved Kida.”

“You don’t deserve to live,” Father said. “But it would be crueler to kill you. So I’m letting you off with a warning. Do not touch Reese again. Do not go near him.”

I stood up and dusted myself off, then started to follow Father back to the house. He scooped me up, bridal-style, and then ran back to the house.

A strange man was waiting in the backyard.

“Good to see you in one piece,” said the man. He was huge. He was as big as Uncle Soren, with long black hair tied back, and piercing yellow eyes with slitted pupils.

“Hello, Shadowfang,” Father said.

I was stunned. “Shadowfang?”

He nodded. “Some familiars, like myself, can change our appearance. I only recently acquired the ability to do this. Hell, you have to be well over a hundred years old to be able to do it. Mishka and the kittens can’t do it yet. They’re too young.”

I looked at my cat/man in amazement.

“So what are you going to do as a human?”

He shrugged. “Mostly hang out with other familiars. There’s a hangout place in some warlock’s house. Friend of Krauvas’. Your friend Mason goes there sometimes to pick up ingredients for Krauvas or himself. I’ve already gotten a birth certificate, a driver’s license, and a credit card.”

“How long have you been able to do this?”

“About two weeks. I didn’t tell you before because I didn’t want to startle you. It was a shock. I just woke up one day and I was human. I thought I was dreaming. But Frodo and Belle told me that they watched my change. Maybe the camera caught it. I don’t know.”

“What camera?”

“Oh, your father installed security cameras in every room, including the dungeons and your room.”

I looked at Father, who was intently studying a patch of dead grass.

“You know to avoid the dungeons, right?” I said to my cat.

“Yes, and I told Mishka and the kittens that, as well. Even if they do get stuck down there, we can communicate telepathically, kind of like vampires. No one is going to get stuck there.”

He sniffed the air. “My nose works even better. There’s a damn coyote about three miles away. That’s still too close. Maybe I can scare him off.”

He started to shrink. His ears became furry and pointed, whiskers growing from his nose. His mouth formed into a triangle, and his hands and feet became paws. Soon, his clothes were bigger than him, and he became a cat again.

He started running, I presumed, in the direction of the coyote.

“Don’t get eaten!” I called out. He paused and gave me a disgusted look before continuing.

“Familiars.” Father shook his head. “Your grandmother would have loved him.”

Sarah was in the living room.

“Louis let me in,” she said. “Who was that guy?”

“That was Shadowfang,” I said, and I told her what he could do.

“Wow,” she said. “So he can turn into a human when he wants to?”

“Yep,” I said, popping the P. “What are you up to?”

“I just got back from the doctor. She prescribed another medication.”

“Another one? How many are you taking now?”

“Well, there’s birth control, antidepressants, anti-anxiety, and one for anger issues. I’m also taking one for PTSD now.”

She looked ashamed at this.

“Well, you’re taking it because you need it, right?” I said. “And you’re not taking more than you should, right?”

“No, I really watch how much I take. If it looks like I need more, then I just go to my room for a while.”

“And the medication takes everything away?” Father asked.

“No,” she told him. He looked confused. She explained. “The medication just makes it so I can function normally. The antidepressants don’t take the depression away completely. I may always live with depression. But it makes it so I can ignore it or control it better. It sort of fixes the chemicals in my brain for a day until I need it again. Sorry, I’m not very good at explaining it. But the anti-anxiety and PTSD medication works similarly. It makes it so I can better control my attack or function normally.”

“I see,” Father said. “Well, have you spoken to Principal Turner?”

“You’re not going to believe this, but he blamed us for Kent’s behavior! He threatened to suspend or disband the whole squad. And since I’m co-captain, I got blamed the most. He really doesn’t like you, Reese. He said it was because I was spending too much time with you and I should stop. You should have seen Mom go at him. She practically tore his head off when he said that!”

“Marina was there?”

“Oh, yeah, and a bunch of other parents. They’re going to discuss it at the next PTA meeting.”

“I see.” Father paused. “In that case, I will kill Principal Turner.”

“Dad, no!” I said. “You’re on thin ice already with the cops!”

“What?” Sarah was stunned. “They know?”

“Of course they know…” I said carefully. I looked at her.

“Reese, I’ve known for a while. I know that you asked Mordecai to kill Nales. Thank you.”

She hugged me.

“Of course, sweetheart, I’d do anything for you,” I told her. She smiled at me, showing her white straight teeth. “What does the rest of the squad think?”

“Well, Rachel Griffin’s dad is a lawyer, so he’ll represent us for free. The rest of the girls are applauding me for catching most of it on camera. They want to know why I didn’t go to Principal Turner sooner with the footage.”

“That wasn’t your fault,” I said. “Mother insisted.”

“She did. And now my Xbox is going haywire.”

“You have an Xbox?” Father sounded impressed.

“Yeah. I love playing videogames. I got the Xbox from Dad one Christmas. Didn’t Reese tell you?”

“She totally kicks my ass in every game,” I told Father. He looked even more impressed.

“I don’t know why that’s impressive,” Sarah said. “A lot of girls play videogames. My friends and I beat each other’s high scores all the time.”

“Your friends?” I asked.

“Mostly Ariella, Angela, and Sara.”

“Blynn? You never call her Honey anymore.”

“She hates that nickname, so we’re sticking with Sara. It’s a good thing our names are spelled differently, or we’d be in a world of trouble! The guy she’s seeing was told that she kissed another guy! It’s not true, but he texted me, thinking I was her, calling me a bitch and stuff.”

“That’s whacked,” I said. “I trust you.”

“I know! But once it got cleared up, he was so embarrassed that he texted the wrong Sara. Sara decided he wasn’t the guy for her, after all.”

“Have you spoken to Elliot lately?” I asked.

“No, and I don’t want to. He acted like a total asshole. I have a boyfriend, and I adore him.”

“That’s me,” I grinned cheekily.

“Exactly. But now Britt hates me, which sucks, because we could have been friends.”

“Even though she’s heavier?”

She punched my arm lightly. “Don’t be a jerk. I don’t care how heavy someone is. If they’re a good person, loyal, honest, and communicates well, that’s all I care about. I don’t like drama.”

“You love drama,” I reminded her. “You watch Pretty Little Liars.”

“I don’t like to be in the middle of drama!”

“Okay, my pretty one, if you say so.” I smiled at her. She stood on her toes and pecked my cheek.

“It’s so nice to see young people in love,” Father sighed. “Your chemistry is amazing. I’m glad he wound up with you, Sarah.”

“Thanks,” she beamed.

“Want to go up to my room?” I asked her.

“Sure.”

I took her hand and led her up, where we made out on my bed for about five minutes. I tried to put my tongue in her mouth, but she pulled away and said, “No tongue. I hate tongue.”

I complied with her wishes and used lips instead. She tasted amazing, as always. Like chocolate and mint. I wondered how long ago she’d had her daily mocha. I wrapped my arms around her thin waist. She scooted closer to me. I grasped her hips and pulled her forward.

I growled as the kiss became rougher. I needed her. Only her. My instincts became wild and frazzled, and my fangs started growing. I pulled away, not wanting to hurt her. My belly was tight, my legs wrapped around her like a spider holds its prey. I was no spider, though, and she was not my prey.

I forced myself to relax, my teeth going back into my gums. My heart pounded as I felt my muscles tighten. I forced the wolf in me to relax next.

I am not a predator. I am not a predator. I am not a predator.

But I was a predator, and the love of my life happened to be my natural food source. It was becoming harder and harder to control my urges. A part of me wanted to bite her and drink from her; the other part wanted to make love to her, and yet another part of me wanted to be a gentleman.

I shoved my nose into her hair and took a deep breath. Light brown with streaks of blond. Curly beyond comprehension. I loved the scent of her hair, like Spanish amber and rain.

“It’s raining,” Sarah said.

“Rain, schmain,” I replied. “The rain can go screw itself.”

“Reese!”

“I’m serious, Sarah. I don’t give a damn about the damned rain.”

“Ever since I saw The Notebook, I’ve wanted to kiss in the rain. And then I recently read a book where the two main characters kissed in the rain.”

“What kind of book was that?”

“You wouldn’t like it. It’s too romantic and very general.”

“I want to know the name.”

“Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.”

“Very interesting. But back to us.”

I rolled my hips and pressed my chest against hers. My newly-beating heart beat even faster than before, beyond pounding now.

She pulled off