Chapter 16 16
Third Person POV
Hazel followed Noah from behind; she kept wondering what the two of them meant by saying he wasn't going to be alright; she was really bothered about him this time but had no way off expressing it.
"Noah, are you sure there isn't a problem?" She asked once more, and Noah turned around in a gentle smile as he faced her. "There isn't a problem that the master wouldn't be able to solve," he replied.
She decided to keep quiet and stop asking questions; it seemed no matter how she asked, she wouldn't be told. Noah took her up the stairs and guided her into a massive bedroom; the place was much too lavish and rich in taste to be just a room.
"This is your room, ma'am." Noah stood at the door, bowing slightly. For a brief moment, Hazel forgot about her worries; her fingers traced the bed, feeling the texture of the soft linen used.
This had to be the most lavish room we had ever been in. "It's beautiful, Noah. Thank you," she said. Noah simply smiled and bowed his head even lower, then he turned around and left the room, closing the door behind him.
Hazel sat on her bed, bothered by the entire thing that had happened tonight. She knew she could sneak out and spy on Draven, but he was too sharp and would notice, and then there's also Noah, who seemed to be everywhere at all times.
She laid down her head flat on the table, randomly hearing the sound of glass breaking, then something else fell down. She wasn't sure what it was, but it seemed Draven was throwing things around for his own good.
Hazel went and stood by her window, enjoying the feeling of the full moon on her skin. She felt almost complete and whole again. The moon had that effect on her, especially if it was a full moon.
Like tonight, while she was lost in thought, a window glass shattered somewhere around the house. She looked down and saw a dark shape moving just below the glass that was broken.
She wondered if the members of the pack would do something like steal from the alpha on the very first day. Led by her curiosity, she slowly opened the door, looking out into the dark hallway.
She had no idea why the mansion was so dark today, but if she had to guess, it was mostly intentional, so she left it as it was.
"Draven?"
"Noah." She called out, expecting to hear a response, but none came. She looked around a bit more confidently, searching for the place where she heard the glass break. She got to the hall, the same one that she had entered not too long ago.
"Anybody here?"
"Hello?" But she was answered with the echoes of her own voice. The moonlight streamed into the hall, lighting up the hall with an Erie silver glow. She loved it.
She walked around a corner and saw broken pieces of window glass. She looked around then up, and she saw it then. The place where Draven had stood was a broken window pane, wide enough for anyone smaller than Draven to pass through easily.
She walked up the stairs gradually until she came to face the window glass. The wind pushed itself in gently caressing her skin, throwing her hair in itself.
"Noah?" She called one more time; she understood that something serious was happening and she was being left out; she didn't like being left out of things.
She stepped forward a bit but more and saw the expanse of the forest before her. She took a deep breath and jumped through the broken window. The air flapped in her face as she fell just where the remaining shards of glass could be seen.
She was careful not to harden herself. She stood up and looked at the ground. To her surprise, she saw paw prints everywhere in the ground; someone had changed into their wolf.
She wasn't sure if it was Draven because she couldn't think of a reason why he would. She began walking in the direction of the wolf; his scent was strong, a bit stronger than usual.
She slowly walked into the forest; she wasn't bothered by the trees and darkness; the only thing that truly scared her was Noah popping up from behind her, asking her where she had been or was going to.
The further she walked, the more ominous it felt. A certain wrongness was about her; she could smell blood, no bloodlust. She stopped herself almost immediately. If bloodlust was enough for her to smell it, then there was a killer nearby.
She consciously took each step like she meant it, making no sound. She kept looking deep into the shadows, into the forest, turning around, hoping, expecting something far off in the distance.
She saw a pair of bright red eyes. She shone towards her direction, fixated slowly on her. She stood where she was, waiting in horror. For some reason she felt if she ran, she would be hunted by that beast.
Slowly the eyes approached her from the darkness; the closer it came, the bigger Hazel realised it was. She had seen this wolf only once, but somehow it seemed a lot bigger and more deadly.
"Draven? What's the matter?" she asked but got no reply. Instead, the wolf in front of her growled, saliva dripping from its mouth as it looked at Hazel.
She took a few steps back; she wasn't sure why, but she knew that wasn't the Draven she knew. As if sending her desire to run, the wolf lunged itself at her, claws slashed where she had been previously.
She ran with all her might, jumping over twigs and roots. She wished she could change into her wolf and escape even faster, but she hadn't brought out her wolf in four years; she had lost her connection with it.
With two huge leaps, the black wolf with bloody eyes caught up to her; it's fangs directed at her neck. Hazel turned around, losing her balance; all she saw were the fangs and teeth of the black wolf in her face.
From the depths of her shadow, another black wolf shot up from it, ramming itself into the jaw of the monstrous wolf.
She looked at both of them in confusion, of which she wasn't sure; one had red eyes and wanted her dead, while the other had black eyes and an even darker fur than she had ever seen before.
"Run, Hazel." She heard Noah's voice from the second wolf that had come; she didn't need to be told twice. Hazel ran with everything in her. She tripped a few times, but she never stopped running. Finally, she reached the mansion.
She simply jumped in through another glass window, breaking it to pieces. She didn't care about anything except getting away from that beast.
As soon as she broke through the glass window, she rolled over the rug of the hall, coming to a stop. Deep in the forest, she heard a howl so loud and dangerous that she found her feet and stood watching, hoping the wolf hadn't come all the way here by following her scent.
She gradually healed herself, slowly, the scratches and wounds she got from her fall. The entire mansion was quiet just as it had always been, till she saw the silhouette of a man.
He also followed the broken window panes, entering the room. He staggered a bit but found his footing, then found a chair to sit in. He was covered in wounds and cuts, although nothing so serious that it would be life-threatening.
Hazel ran towards his side, hoping he was alright. "Noah, what the hell was that?"
"Are you okay?" She asked him in a rush. Noah smiled gently as she asked, his lip was cut as he spoke, blood dripping from it lightly.
"I hope the lady is alright; I tried my best to protect you," he replied. He began closing his eyes slowly as if about to faint.
"No, no, no, not now," she shook him, but it made no difference. He held both his hands and felt how cold there were—abnormally cold. Waters complexion became even paler with every passing second.
She noticed that his wounds and cuts were slowly disappearing the paler he got. Under the moonlight, he looked almost beautiful, but Hazel was too bothered to observe that.
Slowly his eyes began to open, his colour returned, and the extreme cold that grasped him gradually left as he became warmer. Hazel had never seen anything like it before, but sitting right in front of her, Noah was completely healed.
"Noah, what was that monster that was trying to kill us?" She asked, and with a sigh, Noah looked at her sadly while he held her face.
"That monster is Draven."