Filed to story: Sorry Alpha I Am Wolfless Novel
All three of them, Mom, Dad, and Lex, were looking at me with angry eyes. The temperature in the room was suddenly boiling hot. I felt like there was literally a fire blazing inches in front of me. It wasn’t physically burning me though, probably since they weren’t touching me right now. That, or I was starting to control this new ability of mine already. I knew what this heat meant though. It was anger. A burning hot rage that was directed at that man that threatened me and touched me in the dream.
“Talia, can you describe those men? Can you tell us what they looked like? And any names?” Dad was getting back to work mode first. He knew that I would never forget those men, they were burned into my memories forever.
“I can draw them.” I nodded at him. “That will be even better. And I only got one name.” I told him with sadness in my voice. “Only one was called by name, and it could have been a fake name.”
“What was his name?” Dad asked, still wanting to know.
“Fritz. That was the only name that I heard. But I will draw what they look like and what their tools looked like.” I started to get up again, but then I remembered that I couldn’t move. “Oh.” I felt defeated.
“You need to get your strength back.” Lex knelt in front of me. “You need to eat something. Isn’t that what your teacher said. After visions you need to eat something with lots of sugar in it.”
“Her teacher?” Mom sounded confused.
“I will explain in a moment.” He was heading toward the door. “Let me tell Abigail to get her some food first.” He was out of the room before my mom and dad could say anymore.
“Talia, what happened with your teacher? Dad asked. The rage was subsiding now and his emotions were like a cool breeze now. Calm and gentle.
“I was in my third class of the day, Ancient European Studies lecture when I had the vision. When I woke up, Mr. Amadeus was there, trying to calm me down. I was in a bit of a hysterical mood. He soothed me with his magic and even carried me to the office when I couldn’t walk.”
“Amadeus?” Mom thought about him for a moment, her hand on her chin and her eyes closed. “He is a warlock, correct? He must have known people before that have had visions. If he knows how to deal with the effects after the fact.”
“Yes, that is him.” I nodded at her. “He was very helpful and kind when I was having the vision. He dismissed the class and made them leave so that they wouldn’t be gawking at me the entire time. And that is what brought the principal into the classroom. The other kids were roaming the halls when they should have been learning.”
“Well, I am glad that he was there to help you.” Mom took my hand as she seemed to relax a little. “I guess it’s a good thing you were in his class rather than that of a shifter. They wouldn’t have known what was happening to you.”
“Yes, I agree. I am lucky that he was there with me. And Ada too. She was trying to stop my arms that were flailing around my head as I tried to fight off the man that was grabbing me in the vision.” I shivered then, but it had nothing to do with being cold. In fact, I wasn’t cold anymore at all. I was, however, scared when I remembered the way that man’s hand felt against my wrist. It was like that of a normal hand, nothing actually off about it physically, but I could feel the sexual desire and murderous rage in him at the same time. I could feel all that was wrong with him with just the way that he was grabbing my arm, and it terrified me more than I had ever been in my entire life.
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Talia
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Lex came back into the room when I was shivering. He must have seen it right away. His eyes were as sharp as our wolf eyes were. Maybe even sharper.
“Are you still cold, Talia?” He asked me with worry in his voice.
“No, I’m not.” I answered him honestly and that just made him look even more concerned.
“I have brought you some juice. Abigail is preparing lunch at the moment, and there will be a sweet option available for you as well. For now though, the juice will help you to feel better.” He came over and knelt in front of me again. He was so tall that even when he was kneeling in front of me while I sat on the couch, I was still shorter than him. I hoped that I grew a little more. My dad was tall, and so was Reagan. Rika was a little taller than me as well, a little taller than mom is. I love my mom, but I want to be taller than she is. I don’t want to look like a dwarf next to my guards forever. Well, next to Lex. Rudy was more normal in height.
…..
Lex pressed the glass of juice into my hands and urged me to take a drink from it. I lifted it to my lips and sipped on it. It was good, and the sweetness seemed to be instantly spreading throughout my body. It was already starting to make me feel better. At least, until Lex grabbed my wrist and looked at it with pure rage in his eyes.
“Talia, what is this?” His voice was deep and angry as it rumbled through me and the room.
“What?” I asked him, not sure what he was talking about.
“This.” He moved my arm up so that I could see it, his hands completely gentle and tender as they gripped me.
There, on my wrist, was a bruise. Not just any bruise though, no this was a bruise in the shape of a hand. It looked like someone had grabbed a hold of my arm and squeezed very tightly while pulling and yanking on my arm. I hadn’t noticed them before. Perhaps they were still developing from that vision or something. They were there now though, and there was only one possible way that they had gotten there.
The bruises were too large to have been Ada’s. And Mr. Amadeus didn’t grab me roughly at all. These bruises were from that man in my vision.
“I..I..I don’t know what is happening to me.” I looked up into Lex’s eyes, fear filling me at the thought of what was happening to me. “Th..th..these bruises, th..they are fr..from the vision. Th..th..they are from when th..that man gr..grabbed me.”
“It was just a vision, but he was able to hurt you like this?!” Lex was angry.
“Talia, this isn’t good. These visions are getting dangerous.” Dad was just as angry and worried as Lex was. They both cared for me so much. I often felt like Lex cared for me like a second father. He was always there to look out for me and take care of me. It was nice knowing that he was here with me.
“We should try to prevent anymore visions from happening.” Mom put her hand on my hair, stroking it gently to soothe me, and probably herself as well. “This is getting to be more than just scary images. This is starting to hurt you.”
“I..I know that, M..Mom.” I was trembling again. I didn’t know why. Maybe it was the shock settling in. Maybe it was that the adrenaline from earlier was leaving me, and I was able to start feeling more of the emotions now. Maybe it was something else. I didn’t know the cause behind my trembling, but I knew that I couldn’t show them that I was scared right now. These visions were coming to me for a reason. I was meant to help my parents. I was meant to help stop these monsters.
“Talia, you can’t keep-.” I don’t know what my mom was about to say, but I cut her off before she got that far.
“No Mom. I will not stop the visions. Even if I knew how, I wouldn’t.” I was shaking my head as I refused to accept that. “These visions are meant for me. If I had known in the beginning, I might have been able to save Andrea and the others. I didn’t though, and that will haunt me forever. This time though, the vision showed me my friends. People that I know and care about. And I am not going to let them get hurt. That is my duty, my responsibility. And if fate sees fit to show me another vision and another and another, I will save those people time and time again until we can stop these monsters from ever hurting anyone else.”
I don’t know if what I was doing was being righteous, stupid, or something in between, but I knew that I was not going to listen to a single word in opposition of what I had decided. I loved my family, but they were not going to stop me from doing the right thing.
“Talia, I understand that determination of yours. I know that you want to do the right thing. That is admirable and all, but I will not risk you in all of this, sweetheart.” I didn’t like how my mom was talking to me right then. She was patronizing me. She was treating me like a little child.
“Mom!” I stood up and faced her, almost evenly matched in height. “I am not going to be persuaded otherwise. I am not going to give up on this. I will see this through to the end. I will, without fail, find these monsters and stop them. Even if I have to do it by myself. Even if I am all alone, I will stop these men. I am the only one that has seen them and lived to tell the tale.”