Chapter 11

We pulled up in front of the restaurant. According to Donovan and Freddie, they had been here countless times and didn't need any directions whatsoever. The name 'Quartz' flashed in a subtle yet eye-catching manner as I got out of the limo with the rest. From what I was told, there would be total privacy here as the place was reserved for VIP guests; that included those who got backstage passes and the people who performed.

The cold night air bit into my skin as I walked with the others to the entrance where a doorman stood. The limo was taken away by a valet. I hooked my arm around Astelle and studied the building. It was a two-story building, with glass panes that allowed anyone looking to see the lounge that stretched in. I guessed that the tables were further in.

"Good evening!"

"Oh how wonderful of George to let us dine here for free."

"You should try the fish cakes with mint soy sauce. Wonderful combo."

The guests that went in with us, all spoke animatedly. They held Mr. Hall and this place in high regard. That was encouraging, especially since I rarely ate out. Maria wasn't a fan of it, neither was Ben. So I had never gotten comfortably close enough to try to eat food in a restaurant unless they got it for me.

"Welcome to the Quartz. Enjoy your evening." The doorman said once Freddie showed him our passes

He raised the stanchion and we strutted in. My eyes went everywhere yet nowhere at the same time because there was so much to see but our constant movement didn't permit me to study my surroundings more. We didn't have to stop at the front where we would have to request for reservations. An usher glided towards our group and took us straight upstairs

The colour themes were appealing, but honestly, I was so caught up in the smell of food that drifted towards me when we had reached upstairs. There were different booths, each having a sense of intimacy. There was also a small stage where a performer was currently singing a melodic song.

The usher sat Maria, Ben, Cassie and Smith at one booth and the rest of us at another, still next to each other. From where we sat, I had a clear view of the people dancing slowly in two's to the music. I also recognized multiple dancers from the show and waved at some.

"This place is beautiful." I said "And the food smells amazing."

"Oh don't worry shortie cake, it tastes as amazing as it smells." Freddie said from across me, picking up a menu from the polished smooth grey table

I did the same. Astelle hadn't even bothered to wait, she had started going through it the second we sat down.

"How's the chicken here?" she asked "I'm thinking of getting this lemon chicken dish with tomato and capers. Sounds good enough to throwback with some wine."

"Pretty good. The chefs here are top-notch. I doubt there's anything you'd eat here that you wouldn't like." Donovan said, "I'm definitely ready to order something that has lamb and a whole lot of spice."

I blushed as I scanned through the menu. There were so many things to choose from. I had never even heard of most of these dishes.

"You having trouble choosing?" Donovan asked me. I nodded meekly in response

"Oh don't worry. You don't have to make a choice now. Plenty of time to do that." Freddie said

He pressed the middle of the table where a button like thing was. I was confused until it lit up and as if sensing my confusion, he smiled and gestured for me to look to the side. When I did, I saw a waiter coming towards us. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the pressing the button was what summoned him to our table. Talk about quick customer service.

"Good evening sirs, Madames. My name is Raphael and I will be your waiter tonight." he said smiling.

From where I sat, it didn't look like it reached his eyes. He was being strictly professional and wanted to come off as friendly. He also was only looking at Freddie in the eye, meaning his attention was pretty fixed.

"You will be having a 5-course meal tonight consisting of soup, an appetizer, a salad, a main course and of course dessert." My eyes widened as he listed these things off and I heard Astelle mumble beside me about how she must be in heaven "Have you decided on what soups you'll be having?

"Would you mind me ordering for you guys?" Donovan said

"Go ahead. You know what I like." Astelle said shrugging

"It's really not a problem." I replied and in the corner of my eye, I saw the waiter look at me. I turned my head and caught him blatantly gawking. Did I have something on my face?

"I'll have a bowl of radish soup and two bowls of Ajiaco for the ladies." Donovan said

"And I'll have french onion soup. Please make sure the breadsticks aren't too dry." Freddie said, "Also, get us a bottle of your best white wine."

The waiter was able to snap out from whatever daze he was in and jotted down everything. His stance had changed. He had become nervous and I realized this when he stuttered about returning with our orders.

"What's up with him?" Astelle mumbled

"Maybe because your makeup is dripping down your cheeks." Freddie snickered, making Astelle gasp and start rummaging her purse like a crazed woman, probably looking for a mirror

When she realized her makeup was okay, she directed a very mean glare his way which only made him laugh out loud. I smiled and relaxed further into my seat as a conversation was sparked on our table.

The rest of the night went on fine. By the end of it, I had drunk four glasses of wine and had eaten a variety of gourmet food along with enough chocolate mousse to last me a while. The atmosphere in the restaurant still remained cool, but the music had become more upbeat and there were even more people dancing on the dancefloor.

Astelle had left immediately after dessert to dance with a strapping young man whom she had sunk her claws into. I could see her hair from where I sat, bright and wild under the white light. Donovan had gone out the balcony to have a quick smoke. Although I didn't like the fact that he smoked, he was greatly reducing and I was being patient with him. He had steadily gone from almost a pack a day to one every three days. It took a lot of effort but I was proud of him still. Maria and Ben had left earlier along with Cassie. Smith had joined our table and was pouring himself another glass of scotch.

Freddie stayed by my side and tapped away at his phone, sneaking glances at me once in a while. I just sat enjoying myself, feeling at ease after such a long time. I was tired yes, but my want to experience the nightlife outside of a place I called home kept me from embracing the urge to just go back and sleep for the rest of the day.

"I want to go to the bathroom." I said, standing to stretch a little before turning to the guys

"Oh I'll come with you." Freddie said

I scrunched up my face and shook my head with a small smirk.

"I'm not going to get kidnapped. I'll be able to find it and make it back on my own just fine."

"I didn't say that. I was just being a nice gentleman."

"There's a big fat sign on your forehead saying 'Liar liar pants on fire'." I turned away from him "I'll be back in 10. Don't even think of following me."

I walked till I got to the hallway we had gone through to get to the seating areas upstairs. The cool breeze nipped at my skin and the sounds of chatter lessened the farther away I got. I found the bathroom quick and took my time to finish up. It was empty so the quiet was much appreciated.

'Psst'

I flushed the toilet and walked to the sink.

'Psstt'

My hair still looked amazing from what I saw in the mirror. Smith had really gone the extra mile to make sure I looked beautiful.

'Are you ignoring me human?! I will give you a bloody migraine if you don't answer me right now!'

'Well someone is feeling attention deprived.'

'Yes! I'm attention deprived! I want to be loved, okay? All I want is a little of your attention and you ignore me! You're so ungrateful!'

'I was talking to you earlier and you ignored me!'

'I was in my thoughts okay! Besides you might have been saying something boring anyways, maybe that's why I wasn't listening.'

'I was asking you if you wanted to eat cooked chicken or get your own catch when we went running later.'

'Oh, errr...'

'Don't even bother yourself anymore. You'll eat whatever I give you!'

'You were much nicer when we met you know. Now you're just hard headed.'

I snickered out loud, running my hands through my hair.

"I could say the same about you Keira. Then again, we know I'm only stubborn mostly because of you."

'Well, you can't live without me. I'm glad we agree on something. I mean I've practically raised you.'

"Yeah I think that's going to far." I giggled and turned to the door, stopping short when I saw someone standing there. Not just someone, but a man.

In that moment, many things alarmed me. One, He was here in the female's toilet. Two, I hadn't heard him come in, neither had I sensed him and he had most definitely heard me talking to myself. Three, he looked like he could tear through concrete with his hands and four, the most prominent reason of all.

He was a werewolf, just like me. A human man I could bring down. A man of my species that looked like him. My chances were pretty slim.

I tried to calm myself down and thought of possible things I could use as a weapon in here. He didn't give me vibes of someone who just came in here for idle chit chat.

"Um, hello." I said "You're in the wrong place sir. I believe the gents are at the other end of hall."

He didn't reply.

'Keira, do we still have our scent covered?'

'Yes. No way he's supposed to know what we are. I say he's a creep.'

If he was a creep, he would look at me with leering eyes. The look on his face didn't give away a thing. In fact, I felt like he was here on purpose. He knew me. How? I didn't know, but by the way things were going, I doubted I would get out of this easily.

'We can take him Ava. Can you hand over control to me a little bit?'

'That'll give us away. We have to assess this situation first. If it starts getting too much and we have to be quick to take him out if need be, you take control.'

'Agreed.'

I walked forward a little and looked up at him.

"Excuse me sir, I think I have to ask you to leave now. You're also blocking the door so if you'd be so kind to move."

His eyes hardened, yet it looked like he was restraining himself. I didn't wait for him to reply and tried to sidestep him, only for his arm to shoot out, but I was quick enough to anticipate that and twisted it to his back. It was tougher than I thought it would be. When Ben taught me self-defence techniques, I had never trained with someone of my species, so holding him the way I was, was difficult for me and made my heart race faster. Another problem was this dress, it didn't make my movements any easier. I had to raise it higher up my leg to let my movements be more flexible.

"Who are you and what do you want?" I asked, looking down at him as my heel was at the back of his knee. He had yet to fall to the ground.

When he didn't answer, I pressed my foot deeper into his knee and twisted it so my heel drove into him more, causing him to fall and groan slightly. I still stayed behind him, tilting my head to look at his face.

"What do you want?" I asked lowly, twisting his arm even more and making him visibly wince in pain. It was nice to see that my own physical strength was enough to elicit slight pain from someone like him

He mumbled something and I focused on him totally again, thinking I didn't hear him right.

"I'm sorry, what was that?"

"I said.." he looked me in the eyes with an emotion I couldn't place "...I know who you are. I know what you are."

Panic shot through my spine and a thousand thoughts crashed into my mind at once. This wasn't the time for me to bend or show fear, I had to stay as calm as I did from the beginning or I would slip up.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Who was this man anyway? I hadn't seen him at the show. From what I knew, the only werewolf whom I had met tonight was that female. The crowd consisted of humans only, as far as I knew. So how did he get into this restaurant?

"Ava, from the Blue Moon Pack. Disappeared about 5 years ago. Destined to be with the Alpha."

What the actual heck

No.

How did this even happen?

"Yes my name is Ava, but I don't know this pack, neither do I know this so-called Alpha. What is that anyway?" I knew I had never been a good liar, but my coolness covered any doubt he might have had for my explanation. Saying my name was the only honest thing because he may have confirmed from people here that that was actually my name and lying about it now would make my story sound like more of a lie

His chuckle echoed.

"Well ma'am, my Alpha knows you and from the looks of things, even if you don't know him, I'll still have to take you to him anyways."

Take me to him?

'Oh hell no.'

Keira took control suddenly and with a strength I knew wasn't solely my own, snapped his neck. The sound bounced off the walls, along with the sound of my heavy breathing. I looked down at his body, watching for a moment the rise and fall of his chest. He would live, but his neck wouldn't be the same again, that's for sure.

I took back control and walked out without turning back. The hallway was now eerily quiet and didn't give me the peace that I felt when I first crossed it. I tensed as I suddenly heard footsteps coming from the dining area to my direction, but relaxed when I saw Freddie and Donovan.

"Hey Shortie cake. We were just coming to get you." Donovan said

The relief that coursed through me was unmatched by anything else.

"Guys, we have to get out of here. Where are Astelle and Smith?" I said worriedly

"Calm down, did something happen?" they asked at the same time

"I can't explain here. It's not safe here. We have to leave right now! I have to leave!"

They exchanged looks before nodding at each other. Freddie reached out and grabbed my hand and tugged me till I was under his arm

"I'll get Astelle. She's still dancing. Smith already went down to the limo a few minutes ago. Keep her safe." Donovan said to Freddie and went back inside

I tried to control my breathing and take my rushed steps steadily so I wouldn't trip over my gown on the stairs. I kept my head low, all the while trying to think of how I had been found out. How they knew who I was. How close was he? Could he smell my fear?

The air outside wasn't as welcoming as I would have hoped. If anything, I felt my hope quickly recede into the depths of my soul and felt even more exposed under the shining lights. The limo was parked in front and I was pushed in, Freddie getting in behind me. I rubbed my arms and faintly heard Smith asking if everything was okay. Although I was too far gone to answer. My eyes darted outside and I checked for any shadow of a man lurking.

'I can't sense him. You need to calm down.'

I knew better. I knew I should calm down and not appear weak. Yet the thought of being so close to him finding me or already being found by him was enough for me to want to be swallowed up by the ground. Keira tried to stay strong for me but I felt it through our connection that she was afraid too.

"Ava!" I turned my head sharply to the sound of my name being called and realized that everyone was in the car now. I almost wanted to laugh at Astelle's smudged makeup and unruly hair, but the urge to cry was greater

"T-There was a m-man." I said lowly. It had been so damn long I stuttered "In the b-bathroom. He said..."

They looked at me expectantly. Astelle grabbed a hold of my hands and whispered to me that it was going to be okay. I felt so weak and I hated it. I hated feeling like the old Ava. Taking deep breaths, I slowed down my breathing as I felt the car begin to move.

"He knows I'm here." I said, "He knows where I am and he's likely close by."

"Who knows?" Smith asked, but I saw the dawning of realisation in the eyes of the others

"What do we do?" Astelle asked

Donovan reached under the seat and pulled out something. It wasn't until the click of the safety reached my ears that I concluded what it was. A gun.

"We're going to protect her." he mumbled in all seriousness. He rolled down the partition and instructed the driver to pass all the busy roads and go faster. By this time of the night, I doubted the roads would be as busy as we needed them to be

"What the hell?! Can you guys please explain to me what's going on?!" Smithy exclaimed, looking panicked

"You guys won't be able to even if he comes. He won't be alone." I said, running a hand through my hair "I don't want you guys getting hurt at all. I could just disappear again, maybe lay low for a while."

"No! I will not let you run for your life again!" Donovan said

"The only way to keep you safe is to run!"

"I swear, if you guys don't tell me what's going on, I'll get out of this moving car.."

Smith's words were cut short as the limo suddenly lifted off the ground and began to somersault. My eyes widened and I saw and heard everything in slow motion. Everyone was screaming, but Donovan and Freddie held me to them along with Astelle and Smith.

Was this how everything was going to end?

With the ones I love in danger. The ones who showed me what love was and what it meant to be a family.

I vaguely registered my head hitting the roof very hard, but it was the fear in Astelle's eyes that kept me from focusing on my own.

I didn't want to lose my best friend...

'Promise me...'

'Hold on to them tight'

'...you will always fight for yourself...'

I held on to them tight and handed control over to Keira. They each looked at me. Blood was gushing from Freddie's arm and he was saying something. There was no need for me to hear or understand. I knew what I had to do as the space around us got smaller and smaller.

I was not going to let my family die here.

'...the way we will always be ready to fight for you.'

I shut my eyes tight and a wave of warmth swept through me, effectively leaving me a bit breathless. It suddenly became too hot, but the car had stopped spinning finally. I held onto them for my dear life.

"Ava." I heard faintly and slightly turned my head, I opened my eyes to see Freddie looking at me in wonder "Oh it's you Keira. How did..?"

How? What did he mean how?

His eyes darted around and I noticed the ball of light we were encased in. What was going on? How did this happen? Were we still in the car? What was this?

"How did you know it was me?"

"Your eyes are much lighter than hers are. Very enchanting."

"I've always known you were my favourite twin."

Leave it to her to joke at a time like this. Keira receded into the back of my mind and let me take the forefront once more. I stopped focusing on the ball of light around us and looked at everyone. They looked at me the same way Freddie did.

"A-Are you guys okay?" I asked, trembling

Astelle nodded and clung onto Smith's arm as her body shook and I breathed out a sigh of relief. The ball of light slowly vanished around us and I watched it trickle away into the air like snowflakes. The surrounding of the car appeared and I was further confused as to what just happened.

"What just happened?" I asked

"You." Donovan answered

"What?" Me?

"When you held unto us, you suddenly started bringing out light and that happened." Astelle said with a small voice "I think it kept us from getting hurt further."

My confusion rose even more but I didn't have time to dwell on it as a sharp pain shot through my head, making me grimace in pain.

"We can talk about this later. We have to get out. Don, push the door a bit more. We should be able to squeeze through."

He turned his body and pushed the door repeatedly. It didn't take long before it came off.

"Okay girls, you go first. Astelle you're closer. Don't worry about the glass, just crawl through as carefully as possible."

Astelle was a ball of nerves but squeezed herself through without any problems. I turned my head as much as I could to see through the partition and felt the urge to throw up once I saw the driver's lifeless body there. He wasn't as lucky and the thought that he wouldn't return to his family was heart wrenching enough for me.

"You next Ava."

I took a deep breath and squeezed myself past him and through the door. I crawled till I was next to Astelle.

"Thank God we're alive." she said "I'm too young to die this way. I'm supposed to go out with a huge bang."

I smiled slightly, despite the fear I felt from myself and her.

"Yeah, you have to have fireworks taped to your calves or else it wouldn't be spectacular." I said, hugging her close

We remained silent as the boys squeezed themselves through one by one. The road we were on was clear of people for some reason and we were very lucky the car hadn't exploded. It would have been a stupid tragedy after such a wonderful night.

We sat together, with Donovan on the phone calling the ambulance.

"The road is fucking clear, what would have made us somersault like that?" Freddie asked out loud, sounding frustrated

It could have been anything. I never knew how these kinds of accidents happened. I didn't even want to think because I was so tired. The sound of ringing in my ears was loud and the pounding only increased.

"Wait, who's that?" I heard Smith ask

I tried to turn to look at where he pointed at, but my vision was blurry. I could hardly see a thing, but shapes. I fell forwards, clutching my head. I felt Astelle's hand on my back and heard voices suddenly, talking all at once.

I felt myself losing consciousness slowly, but surely. The echoes of voices were all around me and before I knew it I started hearing bodies drop one by one. I reached out my arm and tried to scream, yet nothing came out. It was like I wasn't in control of my body anymore. I heard growls all around and detected multiple scents at once. Why the hell was this happening?

Everything stopped and I felt myself being carried into someone's arms. My body felt electrified and I leaned in instinctively, without even knowing who it was. I was so warm and felt so safe. I looked up as a hand cupped my face, the fingers leaving sparks on my skin. My vision finally focused to lock on to ocean blue eyes. I knew these eyes so well.

"X-Xander."

"Hello, my love."