Chapter 32 - Flickedy-Flicker

As Jaun’s words trailed off, Rose leaned in, trying to hear what they were saying.

Henry’s attention was still very much on Rose. Though his eyes would flicker to his men as they spoke. The men all leaning in toward the center of the table as they spoke conspiratorially. Kai placed a plate in front of her, “You eat too. We’re all going to need our strength tonight.”

Rose swallowed hard. The thought of eating made her stomach churn. She was way too anxious to think about eating anything. Pushing the plate away, she smiled at her son. “Thank you, Kai. I appreciate the concern, but I’m not hungry. You eat.” She focused harder on trying to hear what the guys at the table were talking about. Wondering, would they continue if she went over there and inserted herself into the conversation?

The more she focused on trying to hear them, the more her head throbbed and hurt. She felt… odd. Then the lights flickered, flickedy-flickering-flick. She looked around, surprised that no one else seemed to notice. Once they were done, and the lights stabilized again, the pressure that had been building in her head melted away. To her surprise, she was able to hear them, clear as day, as if she were sitting in the center of the conversation. Henry watched her, as if he were the only one to notice something was off.

“I’m not entirely sure what I’ve found.” Aiden said, scratching his head as he placed a note book in the center of the table. This caught Henry’s attention enough that he turned around to focus on what Aiden was saying. “Those files you got access to are old. Henry. Long since buried. They haven’t been touched since your father had access. He locked them, encrypting the files to make them nearly impossible to open. I was able to get into a few though. And what I found is quite disturbing.” Henry leaned in, folding his arms over the table. As he did, and as Aiden turned the page in his notebook, the lights flick-flick-flickedy-flicker flicked.

“Nightmares aren’t born like us. They’re not real shifters. That’s why they can only shift at night. The first was born, of the old tribe. A true werewolf. As we know, there are very few of them left today. They were hunted and killed because they lost all reason during their shift, and were going to have the entire world know we exist. As we grew into technology, information was getting around more and more quickly, and people were starting to talk. They bred this poor young woman to vampires. For years. Breading her and her children to the monsters of the night until they finally got what they wanted. From what I can tell, it was Vanderbend heading up these experiments. But that would make him much older than he looked. Even old enough to question if he also isn’t something different than a normal shifter. But, these things are the eventual end of this. Or, at the very least, where they stand now. There is mention that they may be trying to add other supernatural means to this lineage.” Aiden’s eyes pivoted toward Rose and Kai. “The question is, what’s the next piece they’re trying to add? And is that why Rose isn’t able to shift? Maybe, she’s not a shifter, but their next conquest. Maybe that’s why no one can tell the two of you mated? If she’s not a shifter, and something else, it wouldn’t work the same.”

“But I can feel it…” Henry’s brow drew down and he looked back at them. The lights flick-flick-flickerty-flicker-flicked. And this time, Kai drew in a deep breath.

“What was that?” He looked around the room, but no one else seemed to react to the lights.

“Shhh, I can see it too. No one else seems to be able to.” Rose said, her eyes meeting Henry’s as he looked back at her.

“So, are we to assume that Rose really doesn’t know anything about all this? I’m wondering if Evelyn knows more than she’s letting on. Like she’s a huge piece to this ever growing puzzle and holds the key to unlocking what’s really going on here.” Aiden said, in a low voice Rose knew she shouldn’t have been able to hear from where she sat.

She stood, walking toward them. She didn’t miss the way Aiden’s lips pressed together. “I swear to you all, I don’t know what they’re doing. I’ve lived my life believing that I was just a normal person. Do you really think I’m part of some experiment?” She raised her arms, “There’s absolutely nothing special about me. I’m average in every way. I’m not even that pretty.”

A flash of anger lit Henry’s face for just a moment before it softened and he rose from his chair to pull her into his embrace. “You are more special than you think, my love.” He said, kissing the top of her crazy mahogany curls.

“To be honest, I’m having a hard time believing you could make it through your entire life and not know what you are.”

“Maybe she not anything?” Brooks said, “I mean, the only thing that we can really say that is different from her and a normal human is that heat. It’s enough to drive us all crazy. Maybe she’s a mix of shifter and human? I mean, breeders used to be a thing too, but they were nearly breed out because of our desire for them? Maybe this is what they’re trying to add to the mix. That desire we can’t seem to get away from?”

Aiden shook his head, “I have reason to believe that she’s a witch. And the older they get, the more likely their powers are going to come out. She definitely should have found it before now. Witches that don’t use their power have a tendency to over saturate with it, and it comes out, one way or another. The heat, in my opinion, is how hers is showing itself. She wanted Henry to want her, and is manipulating him into doing so.”

The words were a knife in her heart. Aiden thought she was trying to get Henry to love her through manipulation? “I would never.” She whispered, and Henry hugged her tighter.

“If my theory is correct, you could. And you wouldn’t really understand it due to the secrecy your mother has you wrapped in. So secret, even you don’t know. I believe Evelyn hold the real key to this mystery. But there’s more than just shifters and nightmares wrapped in this fold. There’s a good chance vampires and magic users could be too. Point is, we have to avoid a bite at all costs. We could find ourselves in worse trouble than we knew. If you think the desire to serve your alpha is huge, the vampires hold and control goes two levels beyond that. And we’ll never be able to see the light of day again.”

“But we’ve seen them all out during the day.” Henry said, pulling his chair out and sitting before pulling Rose onto his lap. Kai came over to join them. The lights flickered in that familiar cadence again.

“True, but we don’t know how it will affect us, considering we’re already shifters. I don’t think any of them are truly like us. They’re a mixture of this abomination that are the nightmares.” Aiden said. Rose bit her lip, pulling away from Henry and going toward the basement door. “What are you doing?”

“If any of this is true, then it sounds like I have many questions for my mother.” Rose said, turning the cold door handle.