Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2 SIENNA It was a dream… Of course, it was. I was already the Head of the Coven, Kahlan did not betray me and Harmony is still my best friend. I probably just passed out after the celebration party that the three of us planned for me.   I turned in the bed, feeling that the sheets were rougher than usual and inhaling the fresh air. It smells like forest and peppermint… and so not like my room usually smells.   I opened my eyes and faced the harsh reality. I was not in my home! Neither was I at the main mansion at the Coven. I was looking at a wooden ceiling… wooden. None of the places I knew had wooden ceilings! What the hell?   Sitting up in the bed, I quickly looked around. It was some kind of a cottage and judging from the scenery from the window next to me, it stood in the middle of the woods.   Woods! The memories from yesterday flooded my brain. The car that pushed mine, the accident, the rogues! Someone tried to kill me! And they tried really hard!   And then I remembered the…thing… Black as the night itself, looking like a wolf but definitely not a werewolf! It had spikes all over its back and a few were on his head as well. This creature… I had never seen anything like it! And the way it killed those rogues was just brutal.    On the other hand, it was exactly what saved my life. Now I just needed to find out what happened after that.   Checking myself, I found a few scratches and bruises in different places. But nothing major. Another good thing was that I had all my clothes on. Except for the shoes that were neatly put right under the bed I found myself at.    I pulled my boots on quickly and carefully walked out of the room, trying to choose the wood panels on the floor that were closest to the wall not to create extra noise. I checked my magical reserve on the way and everything was fully restored and at my disposal. Which was great, meaning that I could protect myself if I had to. Yet somehow, I felt safe in this place. However odd that was…   I walked into a small passage and saw that there was another room with a desk and some books inside in front of this one. It was empty. And so was the open plan living room and kitchen. Everything was small but cozy. A wooden kitchen, a sofa in front of a fireplace, fur rugs over the floor… And absolutely no one around. I felt a bit like Goldilocks, who wandered around an empty house of some stranger.   It was raining outside but the entrance door was opened and I came closer to look for the owner of this place. And that was when I saw him…   In front of the house, under the pouring rain, a man was pulling himself up on a bar that was set between two tree branches. His back and one arm were covered in black tattoos that had a mesmerizing pattern and his muscles flexed beautifully as he was working out. Crystals of water were running down his bronze skin and his blonde hair seemed messy. I should have run or on the contrary, let him know I was there, but I just stood frozen with an open mouth watching me.    For a second there it seemed like his tattoo moved and I gasped in shock. At the same moment, he turned his head and saw me, his eyes dangerously glowing red.   He was next to me in less than a second. I grew up between werewolves and was used to these kinds of tricks. But none of them was that fast!   That stranger looked oddly familiar. Extremely well-built, he was also amazingly handsome. Straight strong facial features and blue eyes, very tall and muscular, he looked like he was in his late twenties. He was not the kind of man that was easy to forget, yet he reminded me of someone badly. I just didn’t know who…   “Hi!” I waved awkwardly and he did not say anything in return.   Awkward…   “So,” I chirped, taking a step back, “I guess I have to thank you for saving me.”    “Hmm,” was the first sound that he made, while his face wasn’t still expressing much, “All right. You can thank me.”   Somehow I didn’t like anymore where all this was going, taking another step back as he took one forward and closed the door behind him. He was soaking wet from the rain and now his body was glistening in the light coming from the window.    “W-well,” I tried to pull a smile, “Thank you very much. It was so nice of you… Thanks again.”   I didn’t know why I mumbled like a guilty child. Maybe his expressionless face and firm gaze that did not leave me even for a second played a role in that? His aura was pressing and I didn’t want to offend him by scanning it properly without his permission. I still didn’t even know what he was exactly.   “Is that it?” he asked me, arching his brow.   “Erm, yeah… What else can I…” I stopped without finishing the sentence as the sound of thunder distracted me.   “I don’t know,” a vague smile touched his lips just for a second, “There are many ways a woman can thank a man for saving her…”   He looked me up and down and I swallowed a lump that formed in my throat. Was he implying what I thought that he was implying?!   “And one of them would be saying thank you,” I crossed my hands on my chest, “So, THANK YOU. VERY MUCH. Are we good now?”   I was already prepared to strike him with a fireball or strong gust of wind, when he smirked and stepped away. He walked to the sofa and grabbed a towel that was hanging on its corner, drying his face and chest with it.   This was probably the strangest encounter in my life.   “Who are you exactly?” I couldn’t help myself but ask.   “That’s a bit of a rude question considering you are in my house,” the man chuckled, “Who are you?”   “That’s a bit of a rude question considering I spent a night in your house,” I retorted and he looked at me, amused this time.   “In my house,” he pointed out, “Not in my bed.”   “Phew,” I brushed a non-existed drop of sweat from my forehead, “Glad we figured that out.”    Suddenly, a Billie Eilish song sounded from somewhere and I recognized my “You should see me in a crown” ringtone, getting slightly embarrassed by the choice now. I tried to look for my phone but couldn’t see it anywhere. That was when my strange companion walked to the small tea table behind the sofa and opened a tiny drawer, getting my phone out. For some reason, his face changed when he looked at it but he still handed it to me.    I saw a picture of my brother Kieran in his ugly Christmas sweater that I took last year. He begged me to delete it many times since it wasn’t appropriate for the Alpha King and all that. And that was the main reason why I left it and even made it his profile pic on my phone.   The stranger suddenly looked uncomfortable and I realized that he probably knew who Kieran was.   “It’s just my brother,” I decided to clarify for some reason. It was probably stupid but there were no dangerous vibes from him.   “You want to thank me?” he stretched his hand, offering me the phone that already stopped calling, “You need to leave. The sooner the better.”   My lips parted in shock.    Then again, not everybody wanted to kiss the Alpha King’s *ss and he was in his right. He did save my life. I owed him at least this.    “Okay,” I nodded, “Thanks for your help again.”   For a second there I thought that he would try and stop me, but he did no such thing.   I bit my lips since it was still raining outside but still marched to the door. I was a Grayson, for Gods’ sake! We don’t beg and we don’t ask! We kick *ss!   I opened the door, ready to walk into the storm when something huge landed on my shoulders.  I turned around and saw my saviour, placing what looked like a waterproof jacket with a hood onto me.   “Sorry, little one,” he said with some kind of regret in his voice, “This is all I can give you now.”   “Th-thanks,” I mumbled, accepting his sudden gift when I accidentally touched his fingers and his whole body shuddered from this.   I put on the jacket properly and wanted to say something else when he spoke first.   “If you walk for a mile and a half to the East, you will walk out on the main road. Your brother can take you from there.”   I decided not to thank him this time. He was making me walk quite the distance in the rain after all. So, I just nodded and walked out…       He did not lie at all and I found the road pretty fast. Luckily, I was a good runner and my dad loved to train us all like true warriors since we were little. Those kinds of obstacles were nothing.    Luckily, I didn’t have to wait for long either. And soon my brother’s car pulled over right next to me, the door opening automatically to let me in.    “Jesus, Sienna!” Kieran growled, “What the hell happened to you?!”