Chapter 239: The Kindness of Strangers
Nina
My eyes widened even more as the old man’s words echoed in my head. “No one needs to die. You can fight the dark sister without anyone getting hurt.”
“How… How did you…” I began to stutter, but before I could get anything coherent out of my mouth, the old man suddenly slapped a wad of money down on the table and stood, adjusting his hat.
“Ah,” he said, patting his rounded belly. “Good burger.”
Enzo gave me a confused look, but said nothing. I didn’t know what to say; how had Frank read my mind like that? It must have been a werewolf ability, but… it was so powerful. I supposed that he was a Beta, after all..
But what did he mean when he said But what did he mean when he said that no one would need to die? How did he know for sure?
I had so many questions, but no time to ask them. Frank, without another word, headed out of the diner with Enzo and I on his heels. Enzo shot me another look, but I only shook my head ever so slightly. After that, we climbed back into the car and were on the road again.
As Frank drove, I was still too taken aback to talk about it again. If he was somehow right, and that I could defeat Selena without anyone having to die, then that changed things drastically. But how? How could she be stopped without violence? She was so powerful thanks to her witch powers in combination with her werewolf abilities that I couldn’t possibly think about any other scenario to stop her that didn’t involve violence.
But if Frank was right when he said that I could stop Selena without anyone getting hurt, then that gave me some hope. And maybe hope was what I needed more than anything else.
We eventually made our way onto a highway. The steady droning of the truck’s engine and the lack of curves in the road made it easier to relax, and with a belly full of food, I felt myself drifting off. Even Enzo seemed to be nodding off when I glanced up at him, and it made me feel safe. I didn’t feel afraid to put my head on Enzo’s
shoulder and let sleep take over me for the first time in almost two days as we drove, and Frank didn’t say anything to break the silence. Soon enough, I had fallen into a dreamless slumber that was much needed after going so long without proper rest.
However, I was awoken some time later by the feeling of the truck pulling over onto what felt like gravel.
Enzo and I both jerked our heads up to see that Frank had pulled over on the side of a road. We were no longer on the Highway, but had seemingly returned to the country roads that were thickly wooded with pine trees on either side. The air felt cool and fresh, even inside the truck, and there was a light mist that had settled on the ground. The mist wasn’t thick enough to obscure our sight, but it was just enough to create an oddly calming yet also spooky atmosphere.
“Where are we?” I asked, sitting up and looking around. I didn’t see the Alpha King’s mansion anywhere around – I couldn’t even see the tops of the massive spires poking up above the trees.
“Sorry,” Frank said, putting the truck in park. “This is as far as I’m willin’ to take ya.”
Enzo looked around, then looked over at Frank. “How far out are we?” he asked.
Frank shrugged. “About an hour’s walk. I ain’t goin’ any closer. Yer business ain’t mine, and I’ve gotta get home before it’s dark.”
Frank was right. When I glanced at the clock on the truck’s dashboard, it was already late afternoon. Considering the fact that we had returned to the
werewolf realm before lunchtime, it had been a long day of traveling. And, now that winter was upon us, the sun would be going down soon. The
thought of walking out in these woods in the dark again freaked me out too much to even want to think about it, and I just wanted to get to the Alpha King’s mansion before that happened.
“Thanks, Frank,” I said, managing a weak smile. “We really appreciate your help.”
“Yup.”
Enzo reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, then rifled through it for some cash and held the wad out to Frank. “Here,” he said. “For the gas and the food.”
Frank chuckled again, like more iron pokers raking over more iron coals. ” Keep yer money,” he said, shaking his head. “Just…” He paused then, and for the first time I saw the old man’s yellow eyes fade. They weren’t yellow after all; they were hazel. And, for the first time, his face looked tired and sad. “Just… Get it done,” he said quietly. His hands were still on the steering wheel, and his knuckles were white from gripping it so hard.
I didn’t need to ask what Frank meant. He wanted us to stop Selena and whooter thie “Tuna” are It was clear that people like Frank were suffering because of the things that those two did.
I nodded, and reached out to squeeze the old man’s knotted hand. As I did, his hazel eyes met mine, and I swore I saw a ghost of a smile flashing across his thin lips.
“We’ll try our best,” I said.
After that, Enzo and I got out of the truck. I still had my backpack from my first excursion into the werewolf realm, so we shoved our water and our snacks into it and waved our goodbyes to the old man before we started heading down the road.
As we walked, Enzo and I didn’t let go of each other’s hands once. It almost felt as though we both seemed to be of the belief that if we let go of each other for even a second, we would lose each other again. And neither of us wanted that to happen.
I just hoped that Frank was right. I didn’t want to leave Enzo behind… and if I could find a way to keep that from happening, while still stopping Selena, I would figure something out.
But I still didn’t know who this “Luna” was. “So… What did he say to you earlier, in the diner?” Enzo suddenly asked as we walked. “I know he said something telepathically.”
I bit my lip and stared at the paved road beneath my feet while I walked. I didn’t want to tell Enzo the truth about what Frank said, because it would only reveal that my original plans when coming here were to die with Selena. I was worried that if Enzo found out, he would force us to leave. And I needed to stop Selena, one way or another.
“Well?” Enzo asked.
“He just said that he knows I’m the missing princess,” I lied. “And he wished us luck.”
“Oh.” I couldn’t tell if Enzo believed me or not, but he didn’t pry any further.
“By the way,” I asked, “who is Luna?
I’ve never heard of her before.” Enzo let out a bit of a chuckle. “That’s not her name,” he replied. “It’s an honorary title. It’s the same as a queen.”
I raised my eyebrows, mulling over this information for a bit, before speaking again. “So, this Luna… Do you think that she and Selena are working together?”
Enzo shrugged. “Maybe. I honestly never heard anything bad about the Luna, but, if I’m being honest… I guess I was raised in a pretty privileged way. I never had to worry about things like Frank described.” I nodded. It sounded as though this Luna who was essentially my stepmother as well, I supposed — wasn’t treating the lower classes very well. But why not? What would her purpose be behind that? And why would the Alpha King allow it?
And then, it finally dawned on me: the Luna must have been manipulating the Alpha King. Chances were, she was working with Selena after all.
If that was the case, then this only became that much more sinister.
