The walk down was slow, she was purposely dragging her feet trying to come up with something she could say to get out of the situation. She was going to pretend to agree with everything even if it was pure evil.
She could feel cold drafts coming through as she got further and further down she shivered, wondering how much further until she knew her fate.
She had promised not to say anything, and she would keep that promise. She only prayed he knew and that he wasn't going to do something to make sure she couldn't break it.
After a painfully long and silent climb down the steps they were met with a long tunnel. It stretched in three different directions. Maybe one of them could lead her to safety. Her heart was pounding so hard she could throw up. Trying to gather the will to drop the books and make a run for it.
"Left" his voice was still cold
She looked at him briefly, would she out run him? She was fast but she had no way of knowing if he would be faster.
"You'd end up lost and and probably die from starvation or dehydration. These tunnels is like giant mazes all over the island it took me a couple of years to map them and a lot of them is filled in, being dead ends" he tilted his head smiling, watching her carefully.
She turned left.
Was he a mind-reader or did he have some type of ability to see what she was planning?
She swallowed and continued down the tunnel.
He kept guiding her through the different paths and she made a mental note for each turn. Finally they arrived at a big iron door, he turned the key and it opened with a loud creek.
He pulled her in and closed the door locking it from inside.
The room was pitch black, she could even she her hands in front of her face. So dark she doubted she would be able to see anything in her wolf form.
She listened to him move behind her and she felt him reaching out over her. His body heat in the cold air would be welcomed in any other situation.
"There's no going back after this. Once you've seen this.." he stopped. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath slowing down her heart rate.
If he was going to silence her atleast she wanted to know why she was being silenced.
"Yes" she said without any hesitation and he turned on the lights.
The lights flickered and she prepared herself. There was a hundred things racing through her mind but she did not expect this.
A archive with objects and papers and most of all books, old dusty books.
She scrunched her face.
He was laughing at her expression.
"Disappointed?"
"No I just I didn't expect this" she felt foolish for being nervous.
"I been hearing your heart all the way down here and you're disappointed it wasn't some type of torture room"
She shot him a angry glance
"I'll remember you're hard to impress" he smirked.
She rolled her eyes.
"Smug as always" she muttered it, hoping he wouldn't catch on
If he did he didn't show it.
He grabbed the books from her arms placing them on the desk next to them.
Rubbing her arms she carefully walked down the room. Inspecting the different objects with her eyes. There was bone knifes and skulls looking like someone had poured black thick paint on. She reached out to touch one of the knifes but the Deans hand grabbed her arm.
He shook his head
"Don't touch anything, I don't want you end up possessed or septic from a cut"
She laughed thinking he was joking but his eyes told her he wasn't amused.
"Cursed objects and magic?" She raised an eyebrow. Things like that didn't exist.
Power came from the moon goddess, not through random magic and weird objects.
"Just because the fanatics and humans believe and tries to practice it doesn't make it so" she said thinking he was smarter than that.
"I would think The Dean of the best and most exclusive school would know this" she mocked him now. What a childish thing to waste your time on.
"You can call me Ezra when we are alone you know" his voice had became soft again.
He let her arm go and looked at her "do you really think your gifts is a force of nature or gifted by the moon goddess herself upon your turn? She waits till you're 16 to gift you and sends you off to school or war when you're 18? Come on Amber. I thought you were smarter than that." He used the same tone as she had and it definitely stung a little bit.
She pressed her lips and continued down the room.
"So why are you showing me this?" She had wondered since he pointed out drawings and rituals in the books.
"Because i might need your help"
She turned looking at him and crossed her arms.
"my help?" she had the upper hand now and she was testing it. How badly did he need her help. " I don't really believe in these stuff so I'm not sure how I could assist you"
"Why do you think the book magically appeared for you?" He asked
"I don't know magic?" She threw her arms out, she was being childish and she knew she was. But she was to annoyed to hide it
He sighed.
"Somone wanted you to see it"
"Why me?"
" You don't know who you are?" He looked at her with genially curiousity
Even more annoyed now she took a deep breath "Amber Hutchinson Daughter of Marianne and Dave Hutchinson. Member of alpha Kane's pack east Riverside.."
He put a hand up cutting her off.
"You're the child of a cult"
It was silent for a minute while she was processing what he had just said. The room started to feel alot smaller and she found it difficult to breathe.
"How do you know this?"
"I was informed before your arrival by your Alpha. It's why I watched you at the bonfire and it's why I placed you in the library. I am keeping you close. Safe from others or to figure what you were planning. they have planned your arrival since you turned at 16"
"Why?"
She couldn't believe it. They all knew about it, they knew her birth parents and her origin but one had let her know. And the school, has planned her arrival for 5 years.
"What happened when you turned?" He looked at her.
"Nothing, literally nothing. I shifted like everyone else"
"Were you born with one blue and one green eye?"
"No it changed" she thought on it.
"They told me my birth parents probably had different eyes and my wolf had taken the genes of one while I took the other. It's unusal but not impossible" she wasn't sure who she was trying to convince.
He nodded. "Special or not you got sent here to my care"
" I don't even gifted" she tried again
He shrugged "who knows"
"I know" pointing at herself "they had me tested" she raised her voice
"And you sure they told you the truth?" He raised one eyebrow making her feel even more dumb.
"So you decided I'm not a secret cult person?" She ignored the question
" I decided you're harmless for now yes" he said with a nodd.
"For now" she clicked her teeth.
He sighed again.
"Believing all this or not, Somone in this building does. And I need to know what's going on, you understand that true or not Somone will die because of this person's beliefs. Somone out there has been reading up on the old ways. And old ways means sacrifices. Somone will get hurt"
his voice told her he believed it to be true. His expression was harsh but she could se the desperation in his eyes.
She caved. "What do you need me to do".
"i have a few ideas on who it could be, I've done my best to research.." he pulled out few papers from a drawer "but he doesn't leave any trace behind"
He pointed at a detailed list of books, classes and even students he thought had the potential to be involved.
She recognised a few names but one stood out.
Mira
There was no possibility she was involved. She had seen her gather herbs for a class once but that's as witchy it could get.
"Nope, there's no way Mira is involved" she shook her head.
"I'm not saying she's involved willingly. But she has connections to the students and the professor I'm interested in" he added.
"I'm not spying on my friend" she couldn't possibly do it.
Mira had been her rock since the first day. Always bringing coffee and talking about guys. Cheering her on when she'd been upset and didn't expect anything in return. She was genuinely a good person.
"I didn't say spy on her. Just be careful"
"I don't like this" he squeezed her arm as of reassuring her it instantly brought her back to her dream. Forcing the images of him and her together she bit her lip
"Ezra.." she began but he stopped her cupping her head with his hands looking straight into her eyes "I wouldn't put you in any danger. And I'm not asking you to betray your friend. I'm making you aware of the situation. By lying to you, leaving you unaware is dangerous"
He sounded concerned. Did he actually care about her?
"Are you saying I'm somehow part of whatever all this is?" She didn't hesitate. If people had been lying to her all her life she could hopefully have atleast one honest person in her life. Even a half truth is more than anyone else had ever given her. Which meant that she trusted him with the truth.
"Yes" they didn't break eye contact.
"You can trust me".
His hand had moved to the side of her neck. Where he had marked her the night before. In her dreams of course, he would never know how much she had been willing to give of herself. How she would cross fire for him that night, how she had became his without hesitation.
He moved his hand to her cheek and she leaned in seeking some comfort.
"Okay" she relaxed under his touch
He smiled stroking her cheek gently "good girl"
Good girl she thought to herself.
I like that
And she smiled back.
The way back up to the library had been as painful as it was going down. It wasn't the exhaustion of climbing all those steps. It had been the constant teasing, reminding her that her heart was beating so hard you thought Somone was playing drums in the tunnels. At one point he had made an attempt to copy her frightened eyes as she searched through an exit in the tunnel's. And how he'd been to amused to let her know she wasn't about to get killed.
"I would definitely been able to catch you" he said at one point " but I would have enjoyed the chase".
She had responded by nearly pushing him down the steps but he didn't budge. Making him even more unbearable.
She had enjoyed it. Just playing around to brighten the mood.
Well up the stairs they peaked out making sure the library was empty. Realising it was getting darker outside she hurried to her desk and saw more books.
She rubbed her temples.
She heard Ezra laughing at the fact.
Back to his smug self he grabbed her clipboard of inventory lists and got back into the role of being The Dean.
Mira stumbled in with a stack of book and threw next to the already big pile on her desk.
"Did you have to put everyone in that fricking list? I been running back and forth atleast 4 times" she glared at Amber and Amber blushed signaling with her eyes towards Ezra.
Ezra looked curiously over the clip book at Mira "should she have left Somone out?"
"No ofcourse not. Im just tired don't mind me" she looked apologetic towards Amber.
He put the clipboard down and amber saw some scribbles next to her notes.
"I would like to get a copy of that and you'll have my support for new orders. I've marked which ones"
She gave a polite nod.
"And Mira?"
"Yes sir" she looked small Infront of him.
"Would you be so kind to come to my office. I have a few books to return" he glanced playfully at Amber but she did her best to ignore it.
"Ofcourse" she rushed to the door waiting for him.
"You can arrange everything tomorrow. You look like you're about to collapse"
"Sorry, I just had a rough night" she excused. It wasn't a complete lie.
"Dreams will do that to you"
She turned red. Did he know?
He couldn't it was a dream.
His eyes told her he did know. There was a spark in them. She's seen it before, in her dreams and that night in the woods near the bonfire. His eyes wandered over her quickly before straightening his his posture and walked up to Mira. Opening the door gently bowing his head for her to walk through it. As she did he turned and to Amber
"Til next time Amber" and with that he closed the door and left her by herself.
She exhaled.
It was just a dream