Chapter 7 The Clinic
Tasha:
“Alright,” I said, voice barely above a whisper, my hands still trembling as I glanced at the roadside where the world had rejected me. “I’ll go with you. I… I need answers.”
Neel nodded slowly, his dark eyes studying me carefully. “Good. You must stay calm. No one can see what you are. Not yet.”
I followed him to his car, the night air cold against my skin. My wolf pressed inside, restless, murmuring in its low, harsh tongue: “Claim. Kill. Show them what they lost.” I clenched my hands, forcing the dark urge down. I could not reveal this side—not yet.
The car’s doors closed with a quiet thud, and Neel started driving along the desolate road. The headlights cut through the darkness, illuminating the trees that leaned in as if whispering secrets. I stared out the window, my thoughts spinning, flashes of my family, Rhett, and everything I had lost flooding me.
“Why… why did Noah bring me back?” I asked suddenly, my voice cracking. “Why didn’t he just… let me die?”
Neel’s gaze remained steady on the road. “Because you were not meant to die, Tasha. Your body, your wolf, your power… everything in you was unfinished. But you must understand—coming back changes you. It is not as it was.”
I swallowed, feeling the black fire of my magic stir beneath my skin. My body felt both burning and frozen at the same time, my heartbeat painfully slow, each breath an effort. My wolf pressed harder, growling softly. “Do not trust them. Claim all. Show them their weakness."
I shut my eyes and pressed my palms to my face. “I don’t understand… everything is wrong. They all… they all turned away from me. Rhett… my parents… Ama…”
Neel’s hand rested lightly on the seat beside me. “Focus on the present, Tasha. Not the past. Not the pain. You are here now, with me, and I will help you survive what comes next.”
I opened my eyes and looked at him. “You… you’re not afraid of me?”
“I see what you are,” he said softly. “Not just the surface. You are more than what the others perceive. That is why I am here.”
The road stretched endlessly. I felt the storm inside me....the ache, the rage, the betrayal...pulsing beneath my skin. Sparks of electricity danced faintly along my hands, the wolf’s voice whispering insistently: “Kill them. Take it all.”
I clenched my fists again. “Not yet,” I murmured, forcing control over the violent energy.
After what felt like hours, the car slowed and finally stopped before a tall, isolated facility. Its walls were reinforced, windows small, lights casting eerie glows across the surrounding trees. It felt remote, unreachable, like a fortress built for the forgotten and the dangerous.
“This is it,” Neel said. “Safe. Isolated. No one can reach you here. Not yet.”
I stepped out, feeling the chill of the night bite at my skin. My body hummed faintly with residual magic, my wolf restless, growling softly inside. Sparks tickled my fingers, but I pressed them against my thighs, keeping control.
Neel led me inside. The building smelled faintly of antiseptic and machinery, sterile yet oddly comforting. Lights glimmered softly, and a hum of energy filled the air.
“This will be your space for now,” he said, motioning to a small room with a neatly made bed and minimal furnishings. “We begin with stabilization. You hide your traits because the world cannot see you yet. Not until you are ready.”
I nodded, sitting carefully on the edge of the bed. My body still felt strange...cold and faintly glowing. My arms were paler than before, veins showing faintly under my skin. My chest felt heavy, the slow rhythm of my heart making each breath deliberate and slightly painful. Sparks of electric energy pulsed faintly along my hands, but I held it back, hiding the intensity of the power within me.
“You will learn to control this,” Neel said, kneeling beside me. “Your wolf is strong. Your magic is raw. Both can destroy or protect. You must understand the balance. The world outside… will not forgive mistakes."
“I…” I hesitated, tears prickling my eyes. “I can’t… I can’t trust anyone. Not after what happened. Not my family, not Rhett… no one. They rejected me.”
Neel placed a hand lightly on my shoulder, his eyes steady. “You have been through what no one else can comprehend. That is why I am here. You are not alone anymore.”
The words struck me, but I could not shake the bitter ache in my chest. Memories of my mother’s frantic cries, Ama locking herself away, Rhett moving on with Alexandra… it all pressed in. I swallowed hard, forcing back the surge of despair and rage that wanted to erupt.
“My wolf… it screams,” I admitted, voice low. “It tells me to… to take everything from them. To destroy.”
Neel nodded calmly. “Yes. It will speak to you. But you are stronger than it. You must learn to temper it, guide it, or it will consume you and everyone around you.”
I felt the electricity surge in my hands again, the magic itching to escape, but I pressed my palms to my thighs, forcing control. “I don’t know if I can.”
“You can,” he said firmly. “And you will. But first, you must understand your limits. Your body, your power, your wolf.....everything. We begin now.”
He pressed a button on the wall, and a hidden door slid open, revealing dimly lit corridors lined with equipment, machines humming softly, wires and devices shimmering faintly under soft lights. The scent of metal and energy filled the air.
“Step forward, Tasha,” he instructed.
“This is where you will learn, where you will understand, where you will prepare for the world outside.”
I hesitated at the threshold, the black energy beneath my skin humming, my wolf growling softly. Sparks of electricity danced along my fingers, and I felt the raw power coiled, waiting to be unleashed.
Neel’s gaze remained unwavering. “You are awake. You are alive. You are more than you were. But control is everything. Step forward and claim your path.”
I took a trembling step into the corridor, my chest tight, heartbeat slow but deliberate. My body hummed with raw magic, but I forced it into submission. My wolf pressed, whispering: “Claim it all. Make them remember.”
I clenched my fists, letting the energy settle. “Not yet,” I whispered.
Neel followed, silently, guiding me as we moved into the heart of the facility. Machines lined the walls, equipment designed for hybrids, for those caught between worlds. A faint hum of power filled the space.
“You will learn,” Neel said softly. “You will master what they fear. But you must be careful. One wrong move, and the darkness inside you could destroy everything.”
I swallowed, nodding slowly. My body still burned faintly, my hands tingling with uncontrolled energy. The wolf growled, quiet but insistent, whispering: “Claim him. Claim everything.”
I pressed my palms to my chest, grounding myself. “Not yet,” I whispered again. “I am not ready.”
Neel glanced at me, eyes serious. “Soon, Tasha. Soon you will be ready. And when that time comes, you will understand why you were brought back.”
The corridor stretched endlessly ahead, a mixture of shadows and faint electric hums. I took a deep breath and stepped forward again, the doors sliding shut behind us. Outside, the world could wait. Inside, everything was about to change.
And deep within, my demon whispered:
“Don't tell him. We do not want to control the power,we want to use it...to destroy them all!" And I smirked.