Page 54 of Alpha Power

She nodded. "If you guys hadn't shown up..." She let the words linger in the air, her intention clear. She had been prepared to die that night. She had accepted it and was ready until he showed up.

"For my parents it was a little different though. They loved each other. It killed my father to watch it all happen, day after day, night after excruciating night. But he wasn't strong enough to challenge Barnabas. A high-level Beta vs an Alpha? Forget it. The day my mother found out she was pregnant, she went to see an oracle mage to get a glimpse of possible futures. She never told me what she saw but whatever it was scared her enough to run. With the help of my uncle, my parents managed to slip out undetected and go into hiding. Barnabas was furious. Like any dominant Alpha male, he saw my mother as his and was pissed that she ran off with another man. So, he hunted them down."

She took a deep breath, needing to steady herself for the next part of her story. She raised her glass to her lips, her hand trembling slightly and drank every last drop, despite the horrid taste. The alcohol clouded her mind briefly and she savoured it, even if it tasted like total crap.

"For the first few years of my life, all I remember is running, hiding. There were strict rules. Never shift in public, even if there were Glamours in place. Keep my werewolf hidden any time I left the house. Never talk to other supernatural’s. The list went on and on."

"That thing you did in the club-"

"-hiding my werewolf?"

He nodded. "You had to do that all the time?"

She sighed. "Yes, even years after my parents death I would still keep her slumbered outside of the house, I was just too scared to let her out in case someone got a whiff of her scent. She would have to go days being locked inside, not being able to enjoy the sun on her face or the wind in her fur. It was a tough time for the both of us."

"How did she handle it? How did you handle it?"

Zamorra blew out a harsh breath. "Ohhhh, it was tough. Especially the first few years, but in the end she understood the gravity of the situation we were in. The first few times Barnabas almost caught us made her realise that we had to do it. It wasn't a choice. Her scent was just too distinctive. Other shifters could smell her from kilometres and kilometres away, making it damn near impossible to hide. For me, it was a little different. I just constantly felt like I was missing a part of myself, my soul."

He frowned, confused and she elaborated.

"When she's slumbered, I have no access to her at all. No communication, no tapping into her abilities, nothing. She has to bury herself so deeply inside that it's like she's not even there anymore."

Luther raised his brows in surprise. "Really? I'll be honest, I didn't know shifters were capable of doing something like that - hiding their creatures."

She waved a hand through the air. "I doubt a lot of people know about it outside of the shifter community. It's a pretty well-kept secret, I think."

Did that mean she shouldn't be telling avampirethe secrets of her kind? Probably, but oh well.

"What exactly does it entail?"

"My werewolf has to completely submerge herself into my psyche, blending our minds and scents together so that no one can find hers. It's kinda like she's hiding behind me really. Other supernatural’s can tell I'm something, but without that distinct shifter scent, they've got no clue what."

He nodded in understanding. "It's very intriguing." His fingers tapped lightly on the table as the silence dragged on between them. "Did Barnabas ever find you? Your parents?"

A harsh memory slammed into her like a bad nightmare late at night.

Her werewolf sent a burst of affection through their bond, trying to help soothe the ache in her chest the memories were bringing back.

She lowered her head, staring at the table. "Yes," she whispered quietly. "It was night. Cold and dark. I remember my mother waking me up, my father trying to calm me down. Next thing I know, I'm shoved into a crawl space in the floor. There was a loud bang, screaming, the sounds of fighting, and then nothing. For a while, there was nothing but silence. But then I heard it. My parents, whimpering in pain. I tried to get out, I really did, but the door wouldn't open. No matter what I did, it just wouldn't budge."

The memories flashed through her mind like they were playing on video, the details so clear and vivid she felt like she was reliving it all over again and she couldn't breathe.

"I didn't see him, but I heard him. I would recognise that voice anywhere. Dark. Cold. Malicious. His words have been seared into my brain forever. 'Did you really think you could keep her from me?' I don't know how long I sat there, listening. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get to them. I couldn't leave them behind either, so I sat. I listened. And I heard everything. Every. Excruciating. Thing."

Tears rolled down her cheeks, that horrible pain stabbing her soul over and over again. Her body shook and she tried desperately to stop it.

Luther's face was soft, his eyes kind when she finally raised her head to look at him. She took a few deep breaths, trying to slow down her erratically beating heart.

"It didn't matter what Barnabas did to them, how much he hurt them, they refused to talk. So in the end, he killed them. I can still hear my mother's dying breath, my father telling her how much he loved her, how much he loved us both... I can still hear it all, like it just happened yesterday. He set our house on fire after he was done. I barely got out before the entire place went up in flames. His men kept searching for me, hunting me down, and a few times they almost caught me. But luckily, one day I ran into a demon who needed a favour."

"You know demons are tricksters, right? They always try and find a way to screw over anyone they've made deals with."

"I know, but this demon was cool. He only wanted one thing. In exchange for safe passage to Australia, I did a quick snatch-and-grab job for him. Felt a little bad about it to be honest, but I had to do what I had to do. Barnabas lost track of me after that, and I got to spend a few solid years in peace before that arrogant ass Cade ruined it all."

"Did Barnabas keep looking for you?"

"I don't know, to be honest I just tried to keep to myself and not do anything that would draw attention. I had hoped that after a few years he would just give up, leave me alone. But I don't think that's happened. I don't think that will ever happen."

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