Alpha Rose let me go down to the shop to check on my truck, but only if a werewolf was following me. They were rather large, head up to my waist, and had black fur with a white belly. They stayed in their wolf form the entire time.

Mika was surprised to see me, especially with my wolf guard. Killian was even more surprised. And I was surprised to see my truck looking better than ever. He had replaced all four wheels and the windows, cleaned the seats, and was working on the engine. He even managed to fix the heating!

“Okay, now will you tell me what the hell happened?” He asked after I had inspected the repaired truck.

“Well, I stayed at that vampire community with Abraham for a day or two,” I couldn’t actually remember how long I had been there. “Then Alpha Rose came by and discovered that I have, apparently, been dreaming about the God of Ivory Tower, so she took me to her house. Then I got lost in the forest for an entire day. Oh, and we think that Anna was the one to attack my truck and we think she might have been planning to blackmail me with all the money I have…. Money that came from being an underage, personal prostitute for a dozen men.”

Both Killian and Mika stared at me. Even the wolf seemed shocked.

“Anyway, we should be going now,” I slowly backed away, a bit horrified that I had revealed all of that but also relieved that I had finally told other people. “They want me back to the house by lunch.”

“Oh, you are not getting away that easily, young man,” Killian firmly said, stepping towards me. “Raine Swann, what the actual fuck? You can’t just spring something like that on us.”

“Oh, like half this town sprung magic on me within a week?” I scoffed. “Sure I can; I just did. I was an underage prostitute.” My throat tightened as I said it. “It’s, of course, not something I’m proud of, but I’m not going to let anyone use it against me. That part of my life is over, and I will no longer allow it to define me.” That was my hope, anyway. I knew it would take time to heal.

I’m glad you’re finding peace with yourself. From the moment I first saw you entering this town, I knew your soul was troubled. I’m happy to see that trouble lessening. Perhaps, one day, you will tell me the full story of your past life, of what really happened to you. But I will not pry. Just focus on healing for now.

I couldn’t help but smile at Cloud’s gentle voice in my head.

“Well, I’m glad to see you’re more confident,” Mika finally said. “When you first came in, you looked like you were going to vomit all over the place.”

“Yeah, it’s amazing what learning about magic can do to a human,” I smirked, much prouder than I should have been. “Also, Killian, I wanted to ask you. Are you a demon? I haven’t read any of the books on demons yet.”

“Oh, yes, I’m an Iniquarian flame demon,” his tail wagged happily as though he were a puppy. “Iniquar is one of the demonic realms. We flame demons all have distinct colors, although only Lord Satan and any of his kin have blue flames.”

“Okay, throwing Satan into the mix,” I said. “I just found out that a god is after me and you just casually toss in Satan. No biggie.”

“You have nothing to be afraid of,” Killian laughed. “He’s really nice.”

“Well, good,” I said. “What about you, Mika? What species are you?”

“I’m actually half vampire,” she smiled.

“Mm, alpha, I’m betting,” I responded. “I’ve done some research.”

“You are entirely correct,” Mika seemed impressed.

My wolf guard nudged my legs, then gently took my sleeve in their teeth.

I sighed, “Well, I think it’s time for us to go.”

Killian wrapped his arms around me, much to my surprise. “Thanks for telling us about Anna, kid. We’ll make sure to give her an earful when we see her next.”

I shall as well.

“You don’t have to do that,” I answered both Killian and Cloud. “I’m sure the beta vampires will deal with her. I should go.” The wolf kept tugging on my sleeve. I waved bye to them, then followed the wolf out of the shop. I pulled my arm from their mouth.

I miss you. Please come back.

It was strange how I found myself wanting to go back to Cloud. I still had very little idea why he wanted me, why I was important to him, but even I could tell that it was likely in part loneliness and a desire for a compainion. Based on what he had told me about me being connected to him, how he had looked when I left, it was likely. I still had no idea why or how I was connected to him.

You will learn in time. I’ve never been alone like this before. And I’m not exactly used to being worshipped like the citizens of Ivory Tower worship me. I’m not used to being noticed by more than one or two people at a time. But I’ve never been alone. Not completely. Not like this.

I felt a pang of sympathy in my chest. I had grown up in the crowded orphanage, surrounded by others, never having any privacy or quiet. All I had wanted was to be alone. And Cloud was suffering all by himself, loved by the people of Ivory Tower, yet completely unknown. No one but me even knew about his… ‘human’ form. His… very attractive human form. That smokey grey hair, foggy blue eyes, the black choker necklace and his black boots…. The entirety of his existence was just… beautiful.

You know I can read your mind, right?

I tensed and took a deep breath, clenching my fists. I deeply sighed, rubbing my hands together and crossing my arms in a semi-pouting gesture. Reading my mind. Talk about an invasion of privacy.

Not that I don’t love compliments. You’re beautiful too.

My face turned warm, and I looked down.

Aw, scratch that, you’re absolutely adorable.

I just took a deep breath and focused on the street.

When we finally got back to the house, lunch was ready. Again, Cedar and Amber kept teasing each other and making dirty jokes, which made me very uncomfortable. Luckily, their jokes weren’t too inappropriate, and I was able to sit through the entirety of the meal without losing my appetite.

Lunch was actually pretty good: mashed potatoes with creamy gravy and a side of beans. I hadn’t had this much to eat in a long time, so it felt nice to finally get some proper food. I was almost starting to like this town. My truck was almost completely fixed, Alpha Rose and her mates were really nice, and I had learned more about the world of magic. I found myself wanting to know more.

More specifically, I wanted to get to know Cloud. From the sound of it, he was just lonely. I still had no idea why he was almost obsessed with me, why he had made me go through that maze, but I was… mostly sure that he would explain it to me… eventually…. Maybe once I got used to the fact that he was a god. A very beautiful and very lonely god.

Once I was finished with my lunch, I went up to my small room. The moment I closed the door, I knew something was off. It was much colder. The curtains were open. The little string lights were off. The floor under the window was damp.

Someone was in the room.

The moment I realized that, something grabbed me.