Page 91 of The Lone Wolf Café
I didn’t know what my father had told them – or hell,offeredthem – in order to get me back. But if they were desperate enough to attack Wisteria Grove in broad daylight, there was little I could do to change their minds. To persuade them I wasn’t worth capturing.
I was what the werewolves wanted.
Which meant I was doomed.
“That’s what I thought,” Juniper growled. “Well, I’m here on Mayor Mariah’s orders—” She extended her hands, fingers spread wide. Sharp, clear crystals bloomed on her palms, growing and expanding like never-ending fractals. “—to retrieve Nettie and bring her to town hall.”
No.
Juniper leered in my direction, taking a step forward. The crystals looked like sparkling daggers in her palms.
Please. No.
There was nothing I could do. I could run. Fight. Hide. But as long as I stayed in Wisteria Grove, my fate was inevitable. Ididn’t belong here, and my father would do whatever it took to bring me home.
And once I was there, I’d never be able to leave again.
Every step Juniper took toward me felt like an eternity. Crystals dripped from her hands, shattering against the hardwood floor like glass. It was as if in her disgust, in her anger, she was overextending her powers. Leaving a beautiful, deadly mess in her wake.
I scrambled backwards, frighteningly aware of how easily she could pin me to the ground with those crystals. Rendering me immobile. Helpless.
Then the ground began to shake.
My feet quivered as the hardwood rocked beneath them with some sort of ethereal energy. At first, I assumed it was an extension of Juniper’s crystal powers, until I looked up and realized she was just as horrified as I was.
A few feet away, Rowena’s gaze dripped pure anger and fury. She unclenched her fists, bending her fingers into claws, and two giant vines burst through the floor, sending wooden splinters spraying in all directions.
“Likehellyou’ll take her,” Rowena hissed.
Juniper stumbled backwards, nearly falling onto the floor as the vines grew in length and thickness until they were nearly as tall as the café ceiling. Then, they sprung in Juniper’s direction, entangling her feet in finger-like protrusions that spread up her calves and thighs.
“Six years,” Rowena continued in her deadly tone. Even I was terrified. I’d never seen her like this before. “You ignore me. Hate me. Barely acknowledge my existence. I loved you like a sister, and when I needed you most, you abandoned me. You know Aster’s death tore me apart. She was my second mother. And yet you acted as ifIwas the one that killed her!”
Gods, this was bad. This was worse than Juniper trying to kidnap me. If I didn’t get Rowena to snap out of her rage, she was going to do something she’d regret. Something no amount of magic could undo.
“I can’t change what I am, Juniper. And neither can Nettie,” Rowena continued. The vines were now all the way up to Juniper’s chest, and she was completely immobile, her limbs and torso locked in place. “You, and the rest of this village, will leave us alone. Or else you’ll–”
“Rowena, stop!”
Her head snapped in my direction. It was enough to quash her fury for a few seconds, and the vines stopped spreading up Juniper’s body. Rowena’s gaze was still full of rage, but I could see the softness lurking in those eyes. The softness she always reserved for me.
“Please. I’m begging you, let Juniper go. We’ll figure something out. This isn’t the way–”
“Why are you telling me to stop?” Rowena snapped. “Juniper was going to steal you away! Bring you back to your father, where you’ll be forcibly bonded to a male you don’t care for, stuck on that island for the rest of your life! I’m trying to protect you!”
I exhaled sharply through my teeth. Even if she did have a point, imprisoning Juniper in vines wasn’t a viable solution to our problems.
The vines continued their journey up Juniper’s body, scrabbling across her flesh like a herd of spiders. My insides twisted. If Rowena covered up Juniper’s nose and mouth…
I had to stop her.
Now.
And clearly, words weren’t going to work.
But there might be something else…
The whole time, I had been able to feel Rowena’s rage, burning through my body as if it were my own. I’d been able to mask it with my own concern, my own inner stability, in order to keep my sanity. It was a technique I’d used since I was young.
