Ezra glanced at Haley. Sam came closer to sit on the arm of the couch.

"What do you mean, sweetheart?" Ezra asked me softly.

"That's why she hates me. I took him away from her. That's why everyone hates me," I said, feeling my eyes water. I looked down as a tear fell on my hands and whispered. "You're going to hate me, too."

Tears flowed faster. My eyes swam. Warm hands cupped my face. He wiped the tears away. "No one is going to hate you, Orla"

I shook my head furiously. He dropped his hand to my shoulders. "You're going to hate me, just like everyone else. Just like my mom."

My throat tightened painfully, and a sob escaped. Then I was pressed into a hard chest, Ezra's hand rubbed my back and my head. I cried harder, tears falling as fast as words.

"I killed him. I swear it-it wasn't on purpose. I was just p-playing and he wanted to take it from m-me, but then there was- there was a boom and then blood and screaming and- I tried to wake him up but -but-"

"Ssh. It's okay now. Shh," Ezra soothed while rubbing my back. My insides felt raw and battered. I didn't know how long my sobs lasted. At one point, I forgot why I was even crying.

The solemn silence was disrupted by my occasional hiccup. I was so tired. My sobs quieted down after a few minutes, and the bloody memories of that day were buried beneath another wave of wooziness.

There was a knock on the door before it opened. I turned my head on Ezra's chest. Zach, Ashley and another guy walked in. The new guy, with brown hair and green eyes, looked between Ezra and me, looking surprised.

"Everything is in place, Ezra," Zach said.

I pulled away from Ezra. It was getting too hot. I wiped my face and shrugged off my jacket.

"It's too hot," I mumbled, standing on the couch. I felt too hot, and my clothes felt tight. Were they so tight when I first wore them? They must have shrunk, or maybe I got fat. I did eat those brownies after all. A giggle escaped. I slapped both hands over my mouth and looked wide-eyed at the others.

Too hot. I pulled the bottom of my top up. I wanted to take it off.

"Whoa!"

Three sets of hands grabbed my own. Haley, Sam and Ezra looked at me with saucer eyes. "It's too hot," I explained, tugging harder, but they didn't let me. "I want to take it off."

A growl filled the room. I giggled, looking at Ezra's chest. "Why does it do that?"

"Oh, dear," Ashley muttered. I laughed harder, I couldn't seem to stop. It felt good.

"Haley, come along, please," Ezra said, scooping me up in one swift move. Whoa, he was so strong! He also looked very angry. Would he start growling again? That was so weird. And so funny. I wanted him to growl again, so I should make him even more angry.

I poked his chest. Poke. Poke. Poke. He climbed up the steps calmly. I poked his shoulder, then his cheek. I poked his cheek again and giggled. "It's prickly."

His eyes smiled. He was no longer angry, but I liked his smiling eyes more than his growl so that was okay.

Once in my room, Ezra put me down and left. Haley dragged me to my closet and helped me change. I wanted to go to bed naked, but Haley wouldn't let me. She was no fun.

Several arguments later, I was dressed in a pair of flannel pajama pants and a t-shirt. I dropped on my bed, spread like a starfish, and looked at the ceiling. It moved, but not as much as before.

"I'm too hot, Haley."

"You can't take anymore off," she said, covering me with a sheet. "Unless you want a mark on your neck before the morning."

"Mark?" I asked, my hand went to the bandage on my neck.

"Forget it. Do you want anything? I should probably get you more water."

Water sounded good. I gulped. I was thirsty.

A few seconds later, Ezra walked in with four bottles of water. I grinned at Haley. "It's like he read your mind!"

She sighed and nodded. "Pretty much."

Ezra opened a bottle and gave it to me. I gulped down the water, its coolness soothing my throat.

"What are you going to do?" Haley whispered. "If she remembers everything tomorrow, you know she'll figure us out."

"I don't know," Ezra said, taking the empty bottle from my hands.

Haley sighed and brushed her hand over my hair once. "I'll be downstairs," she said and left the room.

Ezra sat down on the bed, his back hunched. I moved to sit next to him and lowered my head to catch his eyes. They were full of fear and anger and guilt. I didn't like seeing him like that.

I gave him a big smile and patted his back. "It's going to be okay."

The burden in his eyes lightened, and he brushed his fingers across my cheek. Tingles followed his touch.

Something crawled up my throat.

I put a hand on my mouth, my eyes wide. Ezra's eyes widened as well. "Are you going to-"

I nodded. He picked me up. I blinked and I was in the bathroom. I clutched the toilet seat and heaved. Everything came back up. I didn't even want to look. My stomach was trying to leave my body. Ezra was nice enough to hold my hair and rub my back.

After what felt like a long time, I was finally through. My brain felt less foggy, and the world wasn't spinning as much. But I felt suddenly cold.

I climbed to my feet, Ezra holding up most of my weight, and washed my mouth.

"Better?" Ezra asked, his eyes worried.

I gave a slow nod, my eyelids heavy. Bed. Sleep. It was like he read my mind. He gently picked me up. The tingles made me feel better. I closed my eyes and when I opened them, I was in my bed, under the covers.

Ezra turned on the bedside light and turned off the main light. I yawned.

"Sleep. You need rest," he said, hovering near the bed.

My heart picked up. I tried sitting up, but Ezra pushed me down. I gripped his hand. "Stay here. If you go, they'll come again," I whispered. I didn't know why. I just knew that I would be safe with Ezra near.

"No one will hurt you-"

I shook my head. "Please, stay-"

"Alright. I'll stay." He sat on the covers, leaning against the headboard. Relief flooded my chest. Safe. He was here.

I glanced at him. His eyes were soft under the faint light. He didn't look like he wanted to be somewhere else. But just in case he decided to sneak out... I moved my head to his lap and grinned up at him. "Don't go."

His eyes smiled again. He touched my hair. "No one will hurt you. Sleep."

I yawned, between Ezra's warmth and the heaviness of my limbs, I was out before I even realized it.

Ezra's POV:

Orla's breathing deepened. Her pale skin shimmered under the lamplight, her eyelashes like auburn crescents and her lips paler than usual. The bandage on her neck stood out.

I took a deep breath to control my anger. Those blood-sucking bastards.

Sam and I had gone to deal with a young vampire who'd been spotted leading a couple of humans into the woods. We'd dealt with them and seen them safely escorted into our pack cells before going back to the party. Only to find her gone.

The panic that gripped my heart was almost unbearable. I was tracking her scent through the air muddied with alcohol and sweaty bodies when I heard her scream. My heart stopped for a moment.

My feet carried me there in a blink. The sight of that vampire over her and the smell of her blood made me lose myself for a few seconds. When I came to, I was beating the crap out of the vampire. Zach and Sam couldn't hold me back. I had been conscious enough not to shift, however, which was the only reason that bastard was alive. It was all thanks to Orla. My control got better just being near her.

In the last few days, it had gotten more difficult to stay away, to not feel her body close to mine. Keeping a distance was pure torture.

But she didn't know, and so I had to keep her identity a secret from the world, and keep mine a secret from her. Just a little longer.

What happened tonight wouldn't help. Her first encounter with the supernatural world was traumatic. We were lucky she was high out of her mind. Or were we? I still didn't know wether she'd remember what happened tonight.

She had been terrified of those vampires, and rightfully so.

What if she was terrified of me, too? I was a monster as well, albeit a different kind. I couldn't bear that thought. I couldn't bear the thought of seeing fear in her eyes, fear of me.

I ran the back of my fingers down her cheek one last time. Loath to leave but knowing I had to, I moved my legs from under her head and eased it onto the pillow. She didn't stir, deep asleep.

Dimming the light but keeping it on in case she woke up, I snuck out of her room and made my way downstairs. We had much to deal with.

Jason straightened from where he sat at the island. Haley and Ashley looked at me from the couch. I sank into the armchair.

"She's fine," I told them. "Asleep."

Ashely breathed out in relief, sinking into her mate's side beside her.

Haley nodded and rubbed her temples. "I shouldn't have left her alone."

Sam, pacing back and forth, said, "You couldn't have known. This isn't supposed to happen."

"Who made those pot brownies, anyway?" Haley asked.

Ashley shrugged. "Stuff like that happens every year, usually. But humans very rarely get involved."

Supernaturals couldn't get high as quickly as humans did. We would need to consume a considerably larger amount of the substance for it to have the same effect. The same went for alcohol and other drugs. It barely affected us, and the amount consumed had to be big enough.

"Students?" I asked.

"All in their cabins," Jason replied. "No one is allowed out until morning."

"What did you tell the humans?"

"A wild animal was spotted running loose around campus," Jason said. "So I doubt anyone will leave."

"We have a wolf keep an eye on every cabin where a human lives," Zach said. "As much to keep them in as to keep unwanted visitors out."

"This is unusual," Ashley said. "We haven't had an attack like this in years. And two attacks in one night, with more than one vampire involved? That's almost unheard of on campus."

I drummed my fingers on the arm of my chair. "What coven do they belong to?"

"Frederick's coven," Sam replied. "All of them. That, in itself, tells up something."

"It's not random," Haley deduced.

"Sam, can you contact Vlad?" I asked. "We need to talk to him about this."

Sam nodded. "I was going to suggest that. Frederick is getting too lazy and his fledglings are getting too wild. Seeing Vlad will remind him why he should be afraid."

"What do you want to do with the vampires?" Zach asked.

"Send the two we caught at first to Vlad after Sam takes a look at them, I want to know if they did this before. But keep the other two in the cells, I'm not done with them yet," I answered darkly. Those two had touched my mate. I would deal with them personally.

"Is there anything unusual going on recently with the vamps?" Zach asked, his hand over Ashley's shoulder playing with a lock of her hair. "Two attacks in one night means trouble. The fact that they did it in the midst of a party basically on pack lands means they're confident, for whatever reason."

"I'll see what I can find out," Sam said, leaning next to the window.

"I'll snoop around the witches, see if they heard anything unusual," Haley added.

Haley was basically a princess in the world of witches. She came from an ancient and powerful family. Sam was a member of the oldest coven in existence. He was a direct progeny of Vlad, the oldest vampire known to us.

Both of them were among the few people closest to me. I was relieved they took a liking to my Orla. Having their support would be a great advantage.

Although Sam's continuous teasing had ended up with a brawl. The day he flirted with her at lunch made my rage explode out of me in a crashing wave, I managed to restrain myself enough to direct it to my plate and glass. We had had a fight later, where I'd ended up with a fractured rib, which had already healed. Sam fared no better.

We had settled it then. He only saw her as a little sister. Sam was honest, I knew. He knew my parents well, and he had been- was- close to my mother. That gave him a pass to most things others did not dare attempt, like teasing me. Orla was another way for him to do that. The fact that he enjoyed her reactions as well made him do it more often than he should, in my opinion.

"Thank you," I said. "Haley, I would appreciate it if you healed her wound."

Haley's healing abilities were one of the best amongst witches. I didn't want the scar to be there tomorrow. Not for what I had in mind...

Haley nodded, and we lasped into a heavy silence. The topic we really needed to adress was hanging on our heads like a damn guillotine.

"Did she say anything about what happened?" Sam asked, looking between me and the girls. We all shook our heads.

"No. She was really out of it," Haley said. "But maybe we can just say it's her imagination? She's royally stoned."

"She's too smart," Ashley said, shaking her head. "She'll know. She couldn't dream up the entire situation. That's pushing it."

I closed my eyes. She was right. Orla would figure it out in a heartbeat. But I didn't want that. I didn't want her to find out that way.

"Since this already happened, I don't understand why you don't tell her about us, sir," Jason asked, looking confused.

"She'll be petrified," Sam said, his blue eyes sharp with understanding. "Those vampires attacked her and were planning to do God knows what if we hadn't got to her in time. How do you think she'll feel if we said we're the same species as the monsters who wanted to suck her dry."

I ran my fingers through my hair. That only left one option, as much as I hated it. I looked at Sam. He knew.

"That's the only option left," he said through our link.

"Do you really think she would judge us all like that?" Haley asked looking around the room. "I mean, sure, we've only known her for a few days, but I don't think she'd do that."

Haley was probably right. But I couldn't risk it. Because fear could make people do uncharacteristic things. I didn't want to lose her before even having her.

"I won't risk it," I said out loud. "I don't want her to find out this way."

I stood up. "Sam, come with me."

Sam followed me upstairs. In front of Orla's door, I could hear her quiet breathing. I held the door knob for too long.

"What is it?" Sam asked.

"I just..it doesn't feel right," I linked him. "I don't want to risk it, but this doesn't fel right either."

Sam sighed. "I don't like it either. You know I hate using my faculty, especially on people I consider friends. But if you don't want to tell her, this is the only option left. It's your decision."

My decision. I just hoped I wouldn't regret it in the future.

I opened the door. Her scent greeted my nose, soothing my wolf. I walked to stand next to the bed. Her hair spilled around her like a pool of scarlet, and her hand extended on the bed next to her, as if reaching for something. She looked so peaceful.

Sam crouched next to the bed and looked at her. "Don't worry. I'll only take the memory of what happened with the vampires and afterward. It'll feel like she forgot because she was high, so I won't have to make new memories."

I nodded. He fisted one hand, extending his fore and middle finger straight, and put them on Orla's temple. He closed his eyes.

Sam was gifted for a vampire. Besides the compulsion that all vampires could perform on humans, Sam had the ability to manipulate memories. He could look into them, change them, lock them or even create new ones.

He would only lock Orla's memories of what happened. Nothing more. But I still didn't like the fact I was doing this to her. But I couldn't let her find out about the supernatural world this way.

Sam frowned. After a few seconds, he blinked hard, took his hand off Orla and straightened up. She didn't even stir.

Without taking his eyes off of her, he linked me, "we need to talk after this."

His words filled me with dread. I lingered in Orla's room after Sam left, just watching her sleep. She looked like an angel. How could someone so vulnerable and powerless shake my world to its core and send my heart into a tornado of emotions I still wasn't ready for?

I ran the back of my finger over her cheek softly, then joined the others downstairs.

"What are we going to tell her?" Ashley asked when I took my earlier seat.

"The truth." I sighed. "Just not all of it."

Sam looked lost in his thoughts. Just what had he seen in her memories?

Jason turned in for the night. Haley turned to me as soon as he left. "What do you think she meant, Ezra? Earlier, about the blood."

I didn't forget. Watching Orla break down that way was heart wrenching. But Orla wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone kill someone. I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to believe it.

"I don't know," I said. Sam's eyes flickered to mine for a second. He knew something.

"I'll spend the night here with Ashley and keep an eye on her," Zach said, standing up.

"I'm sure you were already planning on spending the night," Haley said jokingly. Ashley flipped her off.

Haley stuck her tongue out and jumped to her feet. "I'll go heal her quickly before turning in for the night."

I stood up. Haley waved me off. "I can do a little healing on my own, Ezra. Go see to your prisoners."

I nodded my thanks, and Sam and I left the cabin. Having Zach and Ashley there put my mind at ease. No one would get past them.

I burst into my wolf as soon as we crossed the spell's boundary, tearing up my clothes. Sam ran next to me, wind zipping past us and rippling his black hair.

"What is it, Sam?" I linked him.

His eyes glowed a frost blue in the darkness of the forest. "I saw something when I looked in her memories. Well, I saw a lot of things. But two things stood out."

"And?"

"You know how she talked about killing someone earlier?"

"Yeah," I replied, unease twisting my guts. I ran faster.

"I think I saw that memory. It's an old one, probably from her childhood," he said. "There was a man lying on the floor in a pool of blood. She was trying to wake him up. Her tiny hand was holding a gun. She couldn't be over ten years old, if I had to guess."

Dear God...What had she been through? My heart hurt for her. My thoughts were interrupted by the whistling of us cutting through the wind. "You said two things."

"Yeah. The other thing is from tonight. Although I won't be sure until I take a look at the vamps." Sam hesitated, slowing his steps. "I think she broke through the vampires' compulsion."

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Hello friends. Another chapter. I hope you enjoyed it.

I appreciate every vote and comment, thank you all for your love <3

Until next week!

Much love <3 <3 <3

M.B.