Chapter 41

Silver’s POV

Flashes of light appeared in my vision and an intense ache appeared in my temple. I let out a troubled cry as I buckled over, not sure what was happening. There must have been mistletoe in my drink; but how did this happen?

How could Shirley possibly know what mistletoe does to me?

Nobody paid me any attention because all the rich folks were in their own worlds while they sipped their cocktails and mingled. It wasn’t until my hair grew white and my face transformed that somebody finally took notice. For a moment, I was too stunned and in too much pain to move, but then I heard the gasps and the screaming as others began to take notice of me.

“A monster!!!”

“Who is that monster!!”

“We need gamma security in here right away!!

I could hear the shouting and the shuffling of feet as the gamma security barged into the room, trying to find the target. Everyone else’s words faded away; I knew Elliot was trying to say something to me as well, but I could hardly hear him between the gasps of horror from everyone else, the gamma security shouting, and Shirley's chuckling. Not to mention the pain in my head and the relentless flashes of light.

I felt a pair of hands on my shoulder; I knew immediately that it was Elliot but something inside of me snapped and I flinched away from him. I blinked and saw the looks of horror on everybody’s faces; they all pointed and called me names while the gammas shoved their way through the crowd.

I knew I couldn’t stay here any longer. Without much thought, I ran.

I shoved my way through the crowd and ran as fast as I could out of the banquet. I could hear the feet getting louder as I was being chased. Tears sprang from my eyes and my chest ached as my lungs fought to stay intact. Everybody now knew my secret, there was no doubt about that, and just as I feared they all thought of me as a monster.

A sob escaped my lips as I ran.

“Where did she go?!” I heard one of the gammas yelling at the others.

“I think she went this way!!”

My heart hammered wildly in my chest as I continued to run; only pausing a moment when more flashes of light appeared in my vision. I winced as pain coursed through my head, nearly paralyzing me on the spot. But I had to keep going; I had to keep moving.

I’m not sure where I ran to or how far away from the banquet I was, but I could hear the trampling of feet that didn’t sound entirely human. I was frozen on the spot while the flashes of bright and colorful light went through my vision and then it cleared only slightly for me to see my surroundings.

At first, I saw the dirt on the ground I stood on, and then I saw the wooden fence posts. I looked up and saw the bleachers that were fairly empty only because most were at the banquet, but I knew immediately where I was.

“Look out!!” I heard someone shouting from behind me.

I whipped around to see a ton of racehorses running in my direction.

I was at the pack horse racetrack. My heart leaped into my throat; they were going so fast and with the ache in my head along with my vision being blinded by flashes of lights, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to get out of the way in time.

“I think she went into the racetrack!” I heard someone shouting from a short distance.

Before I could comprehend anything more, I felt a hand wrap around my wrist. I let out a strangled scream, but another hand clasped around my mouth, keeping me silent. Just as the horses reached me, seconds before they trampled over my body, I was pulled off the track. I struggled for a moment, but I was in too much pain to really put up a big fight and I found myself going limp against this stranger.

There was no doubt in my mind he was taking me to the gammas; maybe he was a gamma.

He kept his hand around my mouth and his other arm around my waist as he pulled in behind the bleachers. It was a small and dark place, not seen from any other area on the racetrack.

When he released me, I fell to the ground, tears springing from my eyes, and my body trembled uncontrollably.

“Hey, it’s okay…” I heard a familiar voice.

My body tensed for a moment and when I felt his warm hands brushing the hair out of my face and tucking it behind my ear, relief flooded into me.

“Elliot?” I gasped, nearly flinging myself into his arms.

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest.

“Where did she go?!” I heard the gamma yelling at the others.

“I swear, I thought she went in here,” the other said.

The shuffling of feet disappeared while they searched the perimeter.

My entire body trembled out of fear.

“Just stay calm; it’s going to be okay,” Elliot whispered in my ear. “They don’t know it was you, so you’ll be safe once you transform back.”

I nodded against his chest, hating that my tears were soaking into his nice suit. I will have to apologize for this later.

I winced as more pain slammed into my temple.

Elliot’s rough and calloused fingers ran up the side of my face and massaged the side of my head, relieving some of the pain and tension. I could already feel my body relaxing into his as I clung to him.

“That’s it,” he whispered to me. “Let me help you like you always help me.”

I sniffled, finally finding my voice I asked, “I help you?”

I could feel him smiling as he pressed his lips against my forehead.

“All the time,” he answered simply.

“How?” I asked, peeking up at him through my wet lashes.

He wiped the tears off my cheeks with his thumbs as he continued to massage my head. I was momentarily startled to see the red light surrounding him like a bright aura. It wasn’t a painful flash in my vision like it had been, but it was settled and perfectly outlining him.

A long time ago, I encountered a Seer who had told me I had a special gift; I could see scents. I went to her the first time I transformed when I turned 18. She couldn’t tell me much more other than that, but she told me if I kept practicing, I could eventually control this power. I wasn’t sure how to practice such a thing, but at this very moment, while my mind and body were calm listening to Elliot’s words and feeling his warm touch, it felt controlled.

It was almost as if Elliot was the calm in the middle of this chaos.

“I’ve suffered from insomnia my entire life. The best sleep I’ve had was when you were by my side. I can’t really explain it, but something about your scent and your body… it calms me. Being away from you is almost painful for both me and my wolf. So, yes, you help me a lot. I owe you for that.”

My cheeks warmed from his sentimental words, and I found myself leaning into him. As I looked into his eyes, I didn’t feel like a monster. I no longer felt the pain in my temple and the flashing of light was gone. I knew I still looked strange because of the transformation, but there was this tugging inside of me that drew me towards him regardless of what this might look like. It was an aching need I couldn’t explain but there was a part of me that didn’t want to explain it.

At least not right now.

“I don’t think she’s here, Boss,” I heard one of the gammas saying nearly.

“Shit,” the other gamma, the leader, muttered. “Let’s go back to the banquet. We’ll have to explain to the Alpha that we let her escape.”

With those words left in the air, I heard their feet descending from the area. I let out a breath of relief. Elliot’s eyes never left mine though; it was like he hadn’t even heard them in the first place.

He put his fingers under my chin and lifted my head so my gaze would meet his. My cheeks warmed even more under the intensity of his stare.

There was something in his eyes that wasn’t there before; he wasn’t the ruthless and cruel Alpha I had heard so much about from those around the pack. He wasn’t indifferent; he was genuine, kind, and caring. He made my heart swell in a way that it never has before.

I couldn’t exactly tell what was in his eyes when he looked at me though; could it be love?

Could Elliot possibly love me?

His lips were on mine before I could think too much about that thought.