Me? He wants me?

Natasha's story was long and complicated, and I was grateful for Memerat's assisting comments in my head. Everything made sense except for that.

"You are shocked that he wants you? Do you truly not understand that you are the most powerful being that has walked the Earth in centuries. I told you, people covet what abilities you have. My vassals never reach the point of self-awareness and age that you have. If this man who Vladimir works for craves power and achieves it by kidnapping shifters, it is no shock that he wants you and your abilities." I inwardly nodded.

"I don't know why he wants you, but... Well I can tell you that the 'soldiers' that are sent to Vladimir by his boss have something wrong with them. Like they're... zombies. Drones. It's almost as if he brainwashes them to do his bidding. Having you for a puppet would be... huge...." Natasha explained.

"She's not a puppet" Alex growled lowly, a dark scowl covering his face. Rather than scolding him like I usually did, I just touched his forearm in an attempt to soothe him. I just didn't feel like fighting right now.

"Alright Natasha, you should rest and heal with Nate. I appreciate you sharing. I am going to go think through things with my Panther and we'll talk more later. Please, don't worry. You're safe here" I said with the best fake smile I could muster. I then turned on my heel and walked out of the kitchen and out of the house. Rather than getting in my car, I rounded the corner of the house and took off sprinting toward the forest. I didn't stop until I reached the small waterfall that I had found on the night of my shift. I stood in the clearing, taking deep breathes to calm my breathing. I looked around the beauty of the scenery but felt no joy, only sadness. I sat down at the edge of the waterfall and pulled my knees to my chest. I let my frustration and confusion consume me. Tears rolled down my face and felt like the world had just fallen onto my shoulders. Everything was falling into place. My parents' deaths came crashing back down on to me as I realized that this crazed, shifter mob boss had probably been the one to kill my parents. I could sense Memerat thinking within my mind but she was not speaking to me or consoling me. It took me a few seconds to realize she was feeling guilty for being my shifter spirit and creating these problems for me. That only made me feel worse, of course. I had shut my eyes and pressed my face into my knees, but when I looked up I was shocked to find my powers creating havoc. Half of the water that should have been falling off the edge was actually rising into the air as droplets. Leaves on trees and rocks and stones floated gracefully through the air like there was no gravity. It was almost beautiful.

A low thud far behind me made me jump a little. I turned around slowly and saw Alex standing calmly and patiently at the edge of the thick brush with both hands resting gently against what must have been one of my forcefields. I blinked a few times and wiped the tears from my face. His expression changed to slight concern and... And something else that I could not pinpoint. I tried to push my depression down long enough to let him in, but in this instance, my powers were fighting me back.

Finally, he was able to cross the invisible wall, but as soon as he stepped inside, it went back up. I gently turned back around and stared over the edge of the cliff, pulling myself into a tighter ball. Alex reached my side and took a seat next to me slowly. He stared at the floating objects without saying a word. When a drop of water floated near his face he gently prodded it with a finger. The water burst into hundreds of little droplets and dispersed in every direction. He placed his hand back on his lap and took a deep breath.

"I don't know what to say... so come here" he said in a hushed whisper, as if he didn't want to disturb the scene around him. Without a second thought, I fell sideways into his open arms. My quiet tears turned into loud whimperings that escalated to wracking sobs. He put one hand in my hair and the other on my back. I felt his head on top of my head, nestled in my hair. I cried until I fell asleep. The last thing I remembered was hearing Alex murmur "what am I going to do with you?".

* * *

I awoke the next morning feeling groggy and emotionally drained. I rolled over onto my stomach, hoping to fall asleep when I realized this room was too dark to be mine. And the silk, black sheets smelled like... Alex. I sat up and looked around the room. Streams of light came through black curtains to my left and right. An alarm clock on the bedside table let me know it was two pm. I had slept most of the day away. I gently got out of bed and found myself in a large pair of boy shorts and a white t shirt.

"I don't remember..." I muttered out loud, but stopped when my brain registered how awful my voice sounded. I padded across the plush carpet to the window and opened the curtains, letting the light shine in the room. After opening the second set of curtains on the other window, I was able to fully see Alex's bedroom. A large , chrome table sat against a wall with a laptop on it. Next to the laptop was a picture of a beautiful woman that looked very similar to Alex. That had to be his mother. A few other personal items, like his wallet and school bag also sat on the table. By the main bedroom door, directly in front of the bed, sat the largest entertainment center I had ever seen. A seventy-two inch flat screen, DVD player, sound system, gaming consoles, and many other electronics lined the main shelves of the Center. To the right and left of these were two ten foot tall bookshelves full of DVDs, games, and books.

"Wow" I rasped, then tried to clear my throat. I walked toward two doors lining the wall opposite me. I ran my hand along the wall of the first room as I found the light switch. Illumination revealed a clean and crisp white bathroom with black and chrome accessories. The other doorway was Alex's meticulously kept closet.

"So clean" I mumbled. I turned all of the lights off and headed toward the main door. I took a deep breath and opened it, heading into a long hallway. No other doorways lined the walls. I followed the length of the hallway down stairs until it let me out at a small doorway at the back of the Packhouse. Alex's room was at the entirely opposite end of the house than where everyone else lived. I was now in the living room area located downstairs, not a place many people frequented. I made my way into the kitchen, since that is where I heard noise coming from. I found Alex quietly preparing some sort of food. He was wearing a dark green v-neck and charcoal gray sweats. He looked supremely comfortable, but still had his typical scowl on his face. Instead of saying something, I decided to watch him work for a little while. He minced vegetables and basted some sort of meat. Watching his muscles work was mesmerizing . He did everything so fluidly, so gracefully. I couldn't help but stare at his back muscles as he turned around and reached up to grab seasoning from the spice rack. He returned to his vegetables and began to sprinkle various bottled contents ywhen he said, "You're being creepy". He looked up at me in the doorway with a blank expression, but I saw a small smile crack at his mouth.

"Am not... what's so funny?" I asked quietly, trying to keep my voice low so I didn't sound like a frog.

He looked up from his work again and stared at me, actually letting out a soft chuckle this time. I furrowed my brow and glared at him. He was confusing and concerning me.

"You look awful" he said with another laugh. My mouth dropped open at his audacity. I reached up and touch my hair, which was ridiculously tousled and knotted. I looked down at my clothes again and realized that I not only looked like a toddler who put on an older siblings clothing, but that said clothes were also haphazardly hanging off my body.

Alright, maybe he was right...

I sighed and shrugged my shoulders.

He smiled again, which was extremely disarming, since it changed his entire countenance. He went from unapproachable to down right attractive with one facial expression.

"Do you feel better?" he asked. My mind instantly shot back to last night when I broke down and let my emotions reign over my powers. I had felt so depressed and awful that I didn't even want to try to control them. But somehow, the colossal pain in my *ss turned out to be the person I wanted to see the most.

"Yes"

"Good. I called your grandparents earlier and told them they're moving into the Pack House this morning. They came around nine. But I told them you were sleeping and needed rest. Everyone here is banned from this part of the house. They're all upstairs, so you can see them when you're ready or not at all" he explained.

I can't believe he did all this. He took care of all my worries before I was even awake to worry about them.

I dropped my head down and grabbed two fistful's of his shirt. I began wringing my hands.

A chuckle escaped my mouth before I could catch it.

Why him? Of all people, the easiest person for me to despise is the one that's also easiest to fall for.

"If you're going to have a nervous breakdown, tell me so I can nail my pots and pans down" he said with the intent of sarcasm but he actually looked worried.

"I'm fine" I replied quickly with a sad laugh. It was ironically funny to me. I was sad and happy at the same time. At this rate, I'd torch Clement County right off the map. "What are you making?"

"Food" he grunted in reply.

"Obviously, what type of food?"

He stopped mid chop and sighed. "I don't know. My mom made it when I was little. It never had a name." he replied and began chopping again. That answer was not what I was expecting so I shut my mouth and hesitantly pulled out a bar stool so I could sit at the island and watch him. I climbed into my seat and rested my chin on the palm of my hand. With my elbow firmly planted on the marble counter top, I watched him throw sautéed vegetables together with pasta.

"What do you want to do about this headhunter?" He asked going straight to the point. I had expected to panic or become depressed at a reminder of last night, but instead I felt fire and determination. That feeling was only bolstered when he braced both hands on the island and looked at me with confidence, expecting a decision.

"I'm going to kill him" I replied.

"Good girl" he replied with a cocky smirk, and returned to his dish.