Chapter 29: Elinor

What is she up to, Sixine?

I trust him, but… We all have faults in our qualities. Six is passionate and impulsive, and we’ve seen where that can take us.

However, she acts, at least. While Neeve and I wander around in this sordid jail, with no more ideas than that to get out of this absolute mess.

I can’t define the emotions that have been driving my friend since she woke up. She suffers from her physical injuries, that’s obvious, and displays a cranky smile. But I know that there are other bruises, elsewhere, in her heart and on her ego, which weaken her.

And me? Me? I don’t know where I am either. My exhausted mind keeps replaying the past few weeks, over and over, like a tape that we would rewind to infinity.

I want this whole thing to stop. We have suffered too much, and we have dragged innocent people into our misfortune. Granted, we hadn’t asked for anything either, but was that reason enough to involve the Bretton pack? Does Cooper deserve to have to manage us in addition to his responsibilities? Does Jaxson deserve to die on the decision of his own brother? And Masha...

The serene, smiling face of the young wolf passes before my eyes, reddened by the tears that keep flowing. Her kindness, her infectious joy for life, and the simple way she was about to make room for me in her pack. But on this vision are superimposed the devastated features of Jake, upset with grief and despair, beside the dead body of his friend.

All this reminds me that nothing has been cleared up between Cooper and me. This attraction that we feel for each other… And, earlier, in the bedroom, when I felt his emotions so strongly that it took my breath away.

But how could we still clear up anything? It was already complicated when the girls and I concealed our origin from the pack, but now that everyone knows our true nature...

No, the best thing that could happen to us is if Cooper agrees to let us go. Get us out of this jail. But I know his dilemma. Spare witches who tricked him? Impossible.

With a heavy sigh, I sit down on my bed. The springs squeak under my weight as I lean back against the damp oozing wall. I take my head in my hands, and grab my hair. I want to scream. Everything is too confused inside me.

"Neeve…"

"Mmm?" `

But noises resound and interrupt my confession. The door at the end of the corridor opens, and Sixine comes crashing down on the concrete floor. Behind her sounded Jake’s contemptuous laughter.

"I’ve brought your friend back. Are we good? No one wants to try their luck anymore?"

At our silence, he laughs again, before leaning over our friend, grabbing her by the hair, dragging her down the hall to our cell.

"Stand back," he said, waving his wrist. "And if you get the urge to be clever, remember that I have this."

With a triumphant gesture, he shows off his protective stones. If they are all equipped, we will never be able to use our magic to escape.

Keeping silent, we comply and we move against the back wall. I clench my fists, and I feel Neeve do the same. We can only understand Jake’s desperation, but here he clearly takes pleasure in making Sixine suffer.

As soon as he has closed the door of our cell, we rush to our friend.

"Six, how are you?" Neeve asks her.

Sitting on the cold floor, she rubs her scalp, grimacing.

"My hair hurts."

From the cell next door, Jaxson’s voice rises, worried.

"Girls, how are you?"

"Yes, yes," says Sixine. "We’re okay."

As for me, I contemplate my two best friends, and my heart swells with a new emotion. I am so happy that, whatever the circumstances, we manage to find each other.

"Girls…"

"What?"

"I love you, you know."

These simple words make both raise big, serious eyes to me. The sparkling grey eyes of Sixine, and the hazelnut jewels of Neeve.

I return my attention to Sixine, who suddenly seems to be agitated.

"Six…"

"I have something to tell you, girls."

Surprised, I nod my head to encourage her to continue.

"I made a proposal to Cooper. I offered him our help in his conflict with the vampires, in exchange for our freedom and Jaxson’s life."

My heart beats wildly. Did Alpha Bretton agree? Would that be a good thing? If so, we would be betraying all our laws. One does not mix. One does not betray.

"And?" I asked, in a trembling voice.

"He refused."

A wave of disappointment washes over me. I fall heavily on my buttocks.

Damn, it’s a mess in my head...

"But …" continues Sixine in a low voice, "he made me a counter-proposal."

"Go ahead, Six, spit it out, we can’t take it anymore," Neeve groans.

She’s not wrong. It was then that Sixine fixed her gaze on me.

"He wants you. As a companion."

My heart is torn. Surprise? Of joy? Of fear? Sadness? I don’t know, but a silly smile blooms on my lips.

"Okay," I said simply.

But inside, it’s devastation. A hurricane of conflicting emotions. A heartbreak. But do I have a choice? Can I refuse the sacrifice that Cooper demands of me and thus condemn my friends, my sisters, to a terrible fate, perhaps to death? No, no, I can’t do that.

"Eli, are you okay?" Neeve asks me. "You know very well that we haven’t asked you to accept. And that we will never let you do anything against your will. Do we agree?"

"I just need... to think a little."

I get up, turn on myself, and go back and forth between the bars and the wall.

Not far from me, I hear the girls talking in low voices. I know they’re looking for a new plan, a way to get the three of us out of here together, and with Jaxson. But they won’t find anything, I know that. Cooper will be ruthless, and his entire pack has protective stones. The Bretton Lair is a maze, and the wolves know the forest inside out. No, there are no other solutions.

So I try to convince myself. To find reasons to stay. Or reasons not to return to Wolf Creek. Take my life back? Go back to the Wiccard? See that little plague of Lise-Ann, her neat braids and her white socks? My drunken evenings and my little pills? I push far from my mind the idea of seeing my parents, and my sister, the desire to hug them as strongly as possible, to tell them that I love them with all my heart, that I am sorry for all the trouble I caused them... I convince myself that I have no future in Wolf Creek. I’ll get lost, that’s for sure… I’ll drown in this everyday life that has never suited me, I’ll sink into the deep malaise that’s been mine for so long.

Whereas here… The withdrawal was extremely violent, every nerve fibre in my body still vibrates at the memory of this suffering. But since then, despite recent events, I have never felt so much like myself. So strong, so sure of myself. And I like it. I love this new Elinor, this true, full and complete Elinor. This Elinor feels life flowing through her veins when… Yes, when Cooper enters the same room as her, when Cooper approaches her, broods over her with his golden gaze, and strokes her with his powerful hand. Even if he behaves like a tyrannical bastard.

Suddenly, I stop pacing. My decision is made, I will stay and thus save my friends. I know what I have to lose if I decide to stay with the Brettons. My family, my friends. Everything that has made up my life until today.

But was I happy? No. And today, I know that I deserve to find my place and a certain form of happiness. I’m not going back to my slump. I will stay among the pack, where the life force shines even under the earth, where the moon is celebrated every month.

The urgency to share this awareness overwhelms me.

"I…I’m going to stay here."

"What do you mean by that?" sniffs Sixine, wrinkling her nose.

"I’m going to stay and become Cooper’s companion."

"What?" Neeve shouts as she jumps to her feet.

Sixine said nothing. She looks pensive, and I wonder why she doesn’t react more.

"I… I was unhappy at Wolf Creek, you know that, don’t you? So maybe here... I don’t know."

"Nice to know," Neeve quips.

"Honey," I said, taking her hands. "It has nothing to do with you. It’s just… I don’t know, I felt out of place. The Wiccard, the sorcerer kids, that damn Lise-Ann…"

"All your bullshit rings false, Eli."

"I know."

Sobs block my throat. It’s so hard. I force myself to continue:

"I... There’s no other solution, and you know that too. You both know that."

"Yeah, well, it’s a bit much to want to become the companion of the Alpha of the pack, given the shit you gave me for the Falck cousins…"

I caress her cheek, as gently as possible.

"And I apologize for that, Neeve. I shouldn’t have reacted like that. You were right. These laws that are imposed on us… They are not natural. We are magical creatures, and we shouldn’t be separated by superstitions."

Neeve’s eyes fill with tears shining like diamonds. She wipes her nose with the back of her sleeve and gives me a faint smile. I know she will take over. She’s probably the strongest of the three of us when it comes to accepting the trials that life throws at us.

I return my attention to Sixine.

"Six…"

But she shakes her head to shut me up and hugs me tight.

"You are so brave, Eli. And maybe later we can…"

"Hush," I tell him. "Everything in its time, don’t you think? And I’m not one of your lost causes, okay?"

"I never saw you as a lost cause."

"Not even a little bit?" I tried to joke.

But my attempt at humour falls flat, so I resume:

"I have to see Cooper."

"Eh?"

"I need to see Cooper now. I will negotiate Jaxson’s life, as well as his freedom.

Sixine shakes my hand to show her gratitude."

"Thank you," she breathes.

I give her a curt nod, get up and grab the bars of our cell. The silver immediately burns my palms.

"Oh!" I yelled with renewed enthusiasm. "Someone there? I want to see Cooper Bretton."

But it’s not Jake who opens the door to the jail. No. They are the two colossi, Tyler and Emmitt. They take a few steps down the hallway, heads bowed. Like two kids caught at fault, they waddle on the spot, hands behind their backs, eyes shifting.

Neeve, who was standing next to me, snorts and returns to her bed.

"Neeve," Tyler whispers. "We want you to know… we want you to know we’re sorry."

But Neeve still doesn’t react, and the silence stretches out, painful and uncomfortable. Finally, I intervene.

"Take me to Cooper. Right away."

I barely recognize my own voice. Never in my class have I shown such authority. With a pitiful nod, Tyler complies and comes to let me in. He must be really shaken, because he doesn’t even have the reflex to grab me and lets me pass in front of him with a sure step.

When I pass Emmitt, I say:

"Hey, boys, cross out Neeve. She exceeded her own superstitions for you, and you only hurt her in return. She will never forgive you."