A V I V A

"Hey, Mom." I greet her as she descends from the stairs. She gives me a small nod of acknowledgement. I can't help but feel a pang of hurt. What's up with her?

It's been about more than a week since Alec had told me everything he knew about his species, and I haven't seen him since. I didn't even catch a glimpse of him at school, and I didn't see Paige either. Maybe they're in that Demon Kingdom, which I now know as Kairan, and discussing that whole intense fight that went down. Or maybe they're walking the grounds of the gardens together. Either way, I must admit that I miss the night talks I had with Alec, or playing board games I used to hate at two in the morning.

My injuries have healed quite nicely. My once black and blue back is a light yellow; barely noticeable if I were to wear a backless dress. The burn on my arm is completely gone, only leaving a small scar. The cuts have completely vanished. My body still aches a little bit from time to time, but it's a huge improvement. Who knew Alec could be such a good nurse? I'll have to thank him later, because I don't think I did before. Well, I hope I can thank him. I don't even when he'll be back, or if he'll be back at all.

Faith's presence pulls me away from my thoughts as I turn my attention to her. I've only spoken to my little sister a few times in a couple of days, since my mind has been distracting me with all sorts of thoughts and wonders. She's all dressed up, but for what, I don't know. Faith slips on a pair of white heels, looking as elegant as ever with her golden and white gown and her long hair presented in a neat braid crown. Her cheeks sparkle with blush and her lips are coated with a bit of pink lip gloss.

"Why are you staring at me?" I find her staring back at me with a questioning look. "And why are you not ready?"

I push off from the wall I was leaning against and cross my arms over my chest. "The real question is, why are you ready at all?"

Faith arches a brow at me and opens her mouth to speak, but Dad beats her to it. "Have you already forgotten about the Alpha Elections?"

I did.

"I did not." I stand up straighter.

Dad adjusts his tie. "Then I presume you know that the elections have been cancelled and that we are leaving in less than an hour to congratulate your cousin on becoming the new Alpha."

"What?"

Mom appears by his side, frowning at me. "The news was announced last night at dinner, Aviva. Were you not paying attention at all?"

"No, I wasn't. I'm sorry," I shift my gaze to the floor, ashamed. "My mind was elsewhere."

"For the past week?" She sighs and moves to stand in front of me, her black sequin covered dress shining as she does so. "Whatever it is that's distracting you, it has to stop. You're an important Supernatural. You should always know what's going on."

I pull my sleeves down over my hands. I think she already knows about what's been bothering me. She probably knows everything about it, but she won't tell me. Mom can be a very secretive woman when she wants to be.

"Now go get dressed. I've laid out a dress on your bed, I want you to wear that." Mom demands.

I don't respond, but I obey and go back to my room. Just like she said, a pastel pink gown is waiting for me. When I slip it on, I notice that it's not just one colour, but the pink spills into rose gold at the bottom of the skirt. I've never minded the colour, but too much of it makes me gag. At least it's a simple gown.

I sit on my bed and stare at my reflection once I've finished with my hair and makeup, but I'm not admiring myself. Instead, my thoughts are yet again filled with Alec and Paige. Where are they, really? Is Alec okay? From experience, I know that Paige is not very friendly, and she is very violent. Or maybe that's how all Demons are like, and Alec and Carl are just different from the rest. I wonder how Kairan looks like. Enchanting? Dark? Chilling? If Paige doesn't manage to kill me first, the curiosity certainly will.

How are Alec's parents like? And his older brother? He mentioned before that he's a jerk. That's pretty much all I know about him.

"Ready, sweetheart?" Dad knocks on the door. I stride across the room and collect my purse, then open up the door and smile.

"Yeah," I say.

When we get to Weylen's mansion, there's already so many cars parked outside and inside the gates. Becoming an Alpha is a huge deal. You're given more responsibilities, obviously, but recently there have been a few Werewolves rebelling against Wey's family. In some towns, other Werewolves have been ripped to shreds in the safety of their own homes. I've seen pictures of it all, and it's absolutely terrifying.

"Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. Marieur." Hakan, the butler, waves as we enter the ballroom. He winks at me and Faith. We smile in return. "You'll find our new Alpha in the center of the room."

"Thank you, Hakan." Mom says.

We move through the crowd rather swiftly. Faith holds onto my hand so that she doesn't get lost. I spot Wey's dad first, grinning proudly at his son. When he sees us, he taps his wife's shoulder and hooks his arm with hers. They walk over to us, embracing us with tight hugs.

"You girls are so beautiful." Aunt Jen says, kissing Faith's cheek and stroking my hair.

"It's been a while since my favourite nieces have visited." Uncle Azen laughs.

"Well, we've been . . . pretty busy, lately. But I'm sure things have been more hectic for you." I say.

"Things haven't been hectic for us at all." Faith murmers quietly. You mean for you and our parents, I want to say.

Thankfully, my aunt and uncle don't seem to hear her remark. "Ah, yes. Too many issues to stress over." Azen smiles sadly.

"So I've heard," I reply, glancing over at Mom and Dad. They're chatting with Weylen. "How come the elections were cancelled?"

"There were new attacks," Azen pauses, trying to find the right words. But he still can't seem to, so he just blurts out, "all of the other candidates were slaughtered."

A gasp escapes my lips and Faith shivers beside me. Before I can ask any other questions, Weylen appears by my side. The three of us walk away from our parents.

I grin at him. "So how does being the new Alpha feel like?"

"In all honesty, it doesn't feel right." He admits.

"Why?"

"You know I'm a very competitive guy, Vi. I didn't want to win like this. I like a little challenge. And they're all dead. I'm only Alpha because they died. That's pretty messed up, if you ask me." Wey explains, watching Faith walk off to stuff her face with chocolates.

"Yeah, but that's not your fault." I frown.

He shakes his head. "You know, I've noticed something. The Werewolves that are doing this, they aren't from around here. Their scent isn't familiar to me. It isn't familiar to anyone else, either."

"They're probably from someplace else." I say.

"Yeah, but where?"

That's what I would like to know, too.

"Anyways, forget it for now," Weylen says, chuckling at a drunk couple a few feet away from us. "What's up with Alec? I haven't seen him in a while."

"He's probably sick, or something." I say that a bit too quickly. Wey sends me a sideways glance, but he shrugs it off.

"Maybe. But there's something about him that feels off, don't you think?"

Oh, I don't think. I know.

♡♡♡

Hello my loves! Once again, I am so sorry for the long wait. Where do you think Alec's at? Or Paige? Do you find these attacks Azen has mentioned suspicious? Hmm, I certainly do.

Don't forget to vote and comment!

❤ Chloe