Chapter 78 - Intruder

Rae found a nice spot in the park garden,then sat down on a small blanket. The warm sun and the fresh air felt great on her skin.

As Mya had requested, they had continued to head further south in to Galas. They had been moving around frequently but they were now staying in a small inn in the Storm Forrest pack territory until they decided their next move. To try and remain hidden from those that might have known their true identities, they decided to continue using their fake names rather than their real ones.

Gabriel, who had been stuck to Rae like glue the whole time, had accompanied her to the park, but he was feeling a bit anxious with her being out in the open. She could feel the anxiousness in him

"Relax Quinn, if you stay on edge like that all the time, you're going to make yourself sick."

"I can't help it, we have to be on alert. And call me Gabriel in public, you never know who could be listening in."

Rae sighed. She had been confined to the rooms of various inns that they had stayed in, but she had finally had enough and demanded some fresh air and some sunlight, which Gabriel reluctantly agreed to.

Mya hadn't been feeling well and was resting back at the inn. She had confided in Rae on their journey south, that her gift was shielding. It could be adapted in many ways to create both a physical or mental shield. She had used a mental shield as means of separating Rae from her past but also as a way of hiding her from Colton. With Rae's seal now broken, she was experiencing some recoil from its prolonged activation. She was a bit vague when she told Rae about the side effects of this. Mya's attempts to hide how poorly she was only made Rae worry even more, but not willing to add her to her troubles, Rae had decided to stop harassing her on the subject.

Rae looked back up at Gabriel whilst she was sat down in the grass. He was standing up next to her like some kind of bodyguard, taking in all of the surroundings.

"I thought the trade-off for me being able to sit outside today was that we had to be inconspicuous. You giving death stares to all of the kids trying to play peacefully in the park isn't helping," she moaned.

Sure enough the children playing nearby were either staring at him or giving him a wide birth. His dark scrutinizing gaze had actually caused some of them to start crying. He didn’t seem to care though. In his eyes, any one of them could have been an assassin too.

Rae mentally slapped herself in embarrassment. She had prepared a nice selection of sandwiches and dried fruit to eat, but was now struggling to eat it. So much for a relaxing afternoon out. "Sit down Gabriel before I make you sit down" Rae demanded a bit more authoritatively.

Gabriel couldn't help but feel the pull in her words, so he conceded and sat next to her. She held out a sandwich for him and he smiled appreciatively and took it. He took a big bite and groaned in to it as he enjoyed the taste. "You've always did know how to make a mean sandwich, I'll give you that."

"Thanks" Rae beamed in appreciation.

"Which is amazing, because you're piss poor at cooking anything else. I didn't think it was scientifically possible for soup to catch fire, but you proved me wrong spectacularly with that one."

Gabriel laughed as Rae playfully jabbed him in the ribs. "Hey!" she protested.

Even though Gabriel was making fun at her expense, Rae couldn't help but feel happy to finally have her brother back. The first couple of days since her seal broke, Gabriel had been particularly uptight and formal with her, no doubt influenced by his wolf's reaction to her restored dominant energy, but as each day went by, he found it more natural to relax around her and be more like the brother that she knew.

As the moment passed, he picked up few pieces of dried fruit and popped them in to his mouth. "How are you holding up?" He asked more seriously. "Are any more of your memories starting to return?"

"A few," she responded with a hint of sadness in her voice. She picked at her sandwich as though it might have answers hidden within it. "They're all still fragmented though."

"I'm sure it will come back gradually." Gabriel tried to sound hopeful in his voice, but he had no real way of knowing for sure.

"What are we going to do Gabe? We can't live like this forever, constantly looking over our shoulder, wondering where if everyone is a friend or foe. I know we're deep south now, but if Colton is as determined as you and Mya say he is, what's to stop him from coming here to get me." Her frown deepened as she thought to herself. "I don't want to be responsible for anymore people dying, I..."

"Hey," Gabriel interrupted. "What happened back in Aldia wasn't your fault. You can't blame yourself for that. You survived and were able to make it out of there. Don't feel guilty for surviving. I'm sure that was all your family could have hoped for. I'll make sure it stays that way."

"But what price does everyone else have to pay for my safety? Mya's sick, she needs to see a doctor soon. I can't keep hiding forever whilst other people suffer." Rae tightened her lips as she prepared herself for the inevitable recoil of what she was going to say next.

"I can’t keep being a victim. I'm sure we can find a way out of this if we work together, with Kai's help?"

Gabriel's face instantly darkened. "With his help? All he's done is expose you. Where was his family’s help when the Sirran armies invaded? Where were they when are our families were slaughtered?!”

"Kai was a child Gabe. He was with me the Sirran armies came. Do you really think that Kai's family would have brought him to Alida if they knew the Sirran's were going to invade. They surprised everyone when they attacked."

Gabriel sucked his teeth. She was right, but he was never going to admit it. As far as he was concerned, Kai's interference was the main reason why their simple but comfortable life, was thrown upside down in the first place. Every time Rae stood up for Kai, or whenever he caught site of his claiming mark on her neck, he was painfully reminded that she would always be attached to him in some form.

Rae knew that she wasn't going to get Gabriel to ever say a good word about Kai but she knew that she couldn't live a life where they were constantly paranoid. They would need more allies to find a way to survive this, and her mate was always going to be her first option.

She had been missing Kai like crazy. Tara hadn't stopped sulking since they parted ways. She hadn't spoken to him since she inadvertently pulled him in to her dream world, several nights back. She had been trying to connect with him since then but she was still struggling to control it consciously.

Feeling that the atmosphere between them had taken downward turn, Rae dusted the crumbs off her lap, and sat up. "Come on, lets head back to the inn and check in on Mya."


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"Had a nice picnic my dear?" Lily, the old innkeeper asked.

"Yes, lovely thanks" Rae responded warmly. "Thanks for the dried a fruit that you gave us.”

"You're very welcome." Lily, placed another small bag of dried fruit on the counter. "Take some up to your auntie too. I hope she feels better soon."

Rae and Gabriel walked up the stairs towards Mya's room, to check in on her. She had developed a fever recently. Gabriel ran a fresh cold compress under the tap and then placed it on her forehead. Mya quietly thanked him then fell back to sleep.

Rae tried to suppress a yawn to mask her tiredness. Her broken seal had taken a toll on her too.

Gabriel spotted the tiredness in her eyes. "Why don't you go rest too Ady, I'll keep watch over her."

Feeling satisfied with that, Rae went back to her room. As soon as her head touched her pillow, she quickly went off to sleep.


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It was the evening when Rae started to stir from her little nap. A draft coming in through the window had woken her up. As she sat up in the bed, her bedside lamp shuddered as someone else moved in the room.

Rae shot out of the bed just as a blonde male shifter swung a knife at her. His knife pierced the bed as he narrowly missed her. Rae rolled on to the floor beside the bed. She tugged hard at the quilt, which sent him rolling on to the floor on the other side of the bed.

The adrenaline inside her started racing as the unknown quickly shifter rose back to his feet. She tried to mindlink Gabriel but got no response.

"Who are you?!" she shouted at her attacker.

The blonde shifter said nothing and instead lunged across the bed with the knife, trying to slash her. She held up her arm and successfully blocked his strike, but he swiftly countered it with a punch to the side of her face which sent her rolling back. She could taste blood in her mouth.

The shifter followed up quickly and leapt across the bed to get at her. Rae jumped backwards against the wall to give herself some space from him. She scanned the room quickly for something to defend herself and picked up the wooden floor length lamp. She held on to the base and swung it at him. She hit him square in the chest and he groaned loudly as the wooden pole splintered against him. She went in for a second strike but this time around he grabbed it and broke it completely in half with his knee. He pulled the remnants of the wooden pole out of her hands and threw it across the room. He flattened his palm and grabbed the top of her head with his free hand and slammed her in to the wall, pinning her in place. He flipped the knife around in his other hand then brought it up to her throat.

Rae dropped to her knees to get out of his grasp, just as he swiped the knife up at her. She kicked him right in the balls which made him howl as he dropped to the floor. The knife went spinning across the floor, out of his hand. Seeing her chance, Rae made a run for it around him to try and leave the room.

The male grabbed her foot as she ran past him and she fell down hard on to the floor beside him. They were now both tussling on the floor, scrambling for the knife that was both just slightly out of their reach. He grabbed her hair, pinning her to the floor and then used his other hand to reach for the knife.

"Oh no you don't!" Rae shouted and she pulled her feet up and kicked him off her. Freed from his hold she scurried across on the floor over to the knife just as he lunged at her again. Rae stabbed him in the shoulder and twisted the knife. He screamed out in pain.

"You tricky little bitch!" he called out. With the knife still embedded in his shoulder he clasped his hands around her neck and squeezed.

Rae desperately tried to push him off of her, but with his full body weight pressing down on her, she knew that she was fighting a losing battle. It was then that she noticed the Star Howlers pack tattoo on his forearm. 'He's from the CCTV video!' she told herself. Panic set in when she realised that she couldn't break free. "Night night princess," he said mockingly.

As the light in her eyes starting to dim, the male was suddenly thrown off her and back in to the wall. Rae coughed in relief as she welcomed air back in to her chests. There were a series of intense growls as the shifter tried to fight off somebody else in the room. In her semi-conscious state, it was hard to make out exactly what was happening, but after a few more growls, her attacker dropped to the floor with a thump.

The other male he was fighting with started to approach her in the darkness. Unaware if this was another enemy, she grabbed the damaged lamp post and launched it at him. He swiftly blocked it as she made a mad dash to the door.

“No, wait!” he called out. He grabbed her by the wrist just before she made it to the door. His touch instantly sent tingles down her arm. Before she could react, he pulled her in to his chest as his peppermint and oak smell enveloped her like a security blanket.

"It’s okay, I’ve got you. You're okay now." Up close, she could see his red eyes change back to blue.

That smell and his touch was all the confirmation that she needed. She wrapped her arms around his waist in relief. Kai had come for her, just like he had promised.