It was around seven in the evening, and Winter sat in a booth across from Cameron in their local diner.
She had a plate full of pancakes set in front of her, doused in layers of syrup, powdered sugar, and whipped cream.
Cam watched in amusement as she stared at it like a child who just got a new game consul placed in front of them.
“Anything for you, sir?” the girl asked, her voice sounding oddly familiar.
But he kept his eyes on Winter. “No, we’re good, thanks.”
And her footsteps padded away.
“You have food,” Winter said, looking to him then, “right?”
“In my pocket,” he said, patting his jeans as an indication.
She then picked up a fork and a knife and started cutting the piles of pancakes into squares.
Cam just watched her eyes sparkle. “How long has it been since you had pancakes?”
“A really long time,” she admitted. “They used to be my favorite.”
“‘Used to?’” he echoed. “They’re not anymore?”
“I haven’t had them since my sister died.” She shrugged.
“Why not?”
She stopped cutting then, staring down at her plate with a bit of sadness washing over her expression. “It was our favorite dish to eat together... Every night, after dinner, we’d sneak out some batter and milk while mom was sleeping and make some... And we’d eat it together.”
“You guys were some rebellious children,” Cam stated sarcastically. “Seriously... Usually kids sneak out candy or something....”
She was silent, but kept on cutting.
“Why’d you stop eating it?” he said then, continuing to examine her expression. “Wouldn’t eating it remind you of her? Give you some nostalgia or something?”
Winter shook her head as a response. “No... I mean, yes, it would’ve given me nostalgia, but it just didn’t seem right....”
“How so?”
“Since I thought she was gone... It didn’t seem right to eat it without her... It didn’t feel the same....”
She probably didn’t understand what she was feeling, but he did.
She blamed herself for her sister’s death all these years... She thought that Amelia killed herself, and Winter thought she could’ve done something to stop it...
Even when she knew her sister was murdered, the self-blame still didn’t subside...
That was one hell of survivors guilt...
He guessed now that she knew Amelia was alive, she allowed herself to eat their favorite food again.
And Cameron smiled when she took a bite, her cheeks lighting as the flavors burst into her mouth...
And he couldn’t help but chuckle when she let out a satisfied, “Mmm....”
“You really like it, huh?” someone’s voice cut through his thoughts, making both him and Winter jump before looking up to the figure.
“Oh, sorry...” the familiar girl said, closing her eyes kindly as another way to apologize, “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Hold on,” Cameron said, scanning the waitress over as Winter shoved another spoonful of pancakes in her mouth. He noticed her long black hair and glistening gold eyes. “You’re... Erica... right?”
She looked shocked for a moment, as if she didn’t recognize him. “Yes....”
Winter would’ve studied her if she didn’t already know how Cameron knew her name.
She was the waitress the took over when that weird girl, Layla stormed off like they called her a deranged pig.
Then a light of recognition beamed in her eyes when she remembered. “Ohhh... it’s you guys....”
Cam only nodded.
“I’m still sorry about that waitress by the way... Don’t worry, we fired her. All of us workers know to always please the customer.”
Told you, Cam said to Winter’s thoughts.
Told me what? she responded.
That they fired her.
She only rolled her eyes.
“Can I get you anything?” She looked to Winter and smiled when she saw she was finishing her last bite. “More pancakes?”
Winter nodded slightly as if embarrassed. “Yes, please.”
Erica chuckled. “Alright, they’ll be out soon.”
And she walked off.
There was silence for a moment, Winter staring at the table where a couple crumbs rested, lost in thought.
She snapped back into the real world when Cameron spoke:
“Kit hasn’t showed in a while.”
She still didn’t move her eyes from the table. “I think you scared him.”
Cam chuckled. “Don’t jinx it.”
Silence.
“He had it coming, you know,” Cam stated, watching Winter’s blank expression.
“Mmmm....”
“Are you still upset about the....”
“Murder spree?” she finished. “Upset’s not really the word. I’m more of....”
“Scared?” he said with a small smile.
“Concerned,” she corrected.
“Ahh....”
She could tell he knew she was lying, but she wasn’t in the mood to defend herself right now.
Suddenly a hand slammed down onto the table, making Winter jump.
They both looked up to see a tall boy with black, wavy hair and bright gold eyes standing there, smirking.
This wasn’t a smug smirk... it gave off terrifying vibes.
“Hey! Winter!” he said, making her brows draw together.
Meanwhile, Cameron looked partially annoyed.
“I’m Jett!” he said, still keeping the energetic tone that made him sound slightly drunk. “You know? From school?”
It suddenly washed over her. “You mean the jock boy who always wears his pants low and is kinda gross?”
She heard Cameron laugh softly under his breath.
“Yeah!” he said, clearly not realizing the insult.
“And the airhead?”
“Yeah!” he said in the same slurry, energetic tone. “I’m so smart.”
Winter heard Cameron let out a noise that was a mix between a choke and a laugh, clearly knowing that Jett didn’t know what airhead meant.
And that he thought Winter was complimenting him.
“Anyway,” Jett said, “the boys want to know where you’ve been!” He nodded to a table across the room.
Three boys who wore the same typical sports jacket waved at her.
“Come on!” Jett said. “Sit with us!”
“She’s not sitting with you,” Cameron stated boldly, the previous laughing expression replaced with a protective glare.
Jett shot him a look. “Suck it, dickhead.”
A sudden panic coursed through Winter when she saw Cameron start getting up in his chair, recognizing the raging fire in his eyes.
So she placed her hand on his, hoping to calm him down before Jett ended up dead.
Cam looked to her then, giving her a angry, What?
Don’t, she mouthed, then looked back to Jett when Cam sat back down.
“Not today, Jett,” she said in a half-rude, half-kind tone.
How did she manage a contradicting voice? She honestly didn’t know, but he still didn’t get the hint.
“Then when?” he wondered stupidly.
“Maybe a century?” she said.
“Ten years?” he wondered.
“Idiot,” Cam muttered, but both of them ignored him.
“No,” she said.
“Months?”
“No.”
“Come on,” he said, faking a pout. “I kind of like you. You’re pretty and hot.”
Winter felt Cameron’s fist clench under her hand.
He was getting a little too angry for comfort...
Cameron, she whispered to his thoughts, hoping the soft voice would calm his possessiveness, not here. I’ve got this, okay?
She managed to give him an assuring smile before looking back to Jett. “I’m busy right now.”
“With what?” he said. “Jackass here?”
Cam shot up from his seat with enough force to bang the table. “You mother f—”
“Cam,” she interrupted, giving him a stern look while she tightened a hold on his wrist.
“Jett,” she snapped, shooting him a look, “I’m not interested. Get the hell out of here.”
He eyed Cameron up and down, disgusted. “Control your tiger, Jesus.”
And he walked off.
Winter exhaled a long sigh through her nose, managing to rub Cameron’s wrist gently with a thumb when she noticed his canines emerging from his lips.
Whether it was his vampire or his wolf coming out, she didn’t know for sure, but she had a suspicion.
Meanwhile, Cameron looked down to her necklace, noticing that the red was pulsing through her shirt like the light of a heart, and he looked back to Jett who was walking away from them, settling into a table and glaring.
“Don’t let him get into your head,” Winter said, noticing his eyes narrow.
She didn’t see her necklace glowing, did she?
When he looked down to Winter’s necklace again, the light was now her normal white anime t-shirt.
He might’ve been out of range of the necklace... but Cameron thought that he gave her the wide ranged one...
Weird...
But when he looked back up to where Jett and his friends were, they were gone.
Huh...
They probably left.
“God...” Winter whispered, shaking her head as if disappointed.
“Have you ever dated before?” Cameron questioned, looking her over suspiciously.
He should’ve been asking her why she was disappointed in him, but this question had been roaming around his mind for ages.
“No...” she admitted, still rubbing his wrist without realizing it, “it’s just... People aren’t always the nicest.”
“You’re telling me,” Cameron stated. “You know what names he called me? Jackass? Dickhead?”
His canines extended past his lips again as he snarled at the front door that they probably left through.
But he looked back down to Winter who was trembling slightly.
“Winter,” he said more harshly than he meant, “calm down, you’re trembling.”
“Says the person who was about to wolf out.”
“He pissed me off,” Cam stated, answering her question from earlier.
The canines were his wolf.
As she suspected.
“He really pissed me off," Cam muttered.
“I know.”
He looked to her then, eyeing her up and down. “How do you know him?”
“You don’t want to know,” she murmured, “trust me.”
“I seriously do.”
“He’s out of my life now,” she said, “so it doesn’t matter.”
“Winter.”
Silence.
“Tell me.”
She was quiet.
“I’ll keep on asking.”
A slight heat of irritation coursed through her.
“Winter.”
She burned.
“Winter.”
She scorched.
“Winter.”
She was on fire.
“Wint—”
“He was the one who tried to rape me when my father died,” she blurted out, something cold forming in her chest.
Cam just stared. “Hold on...” he said. “What?”
“Remember when I told you about that person who pressed a knife to my stomach...?” she whispered, pressing her hand to her navel.
Cameron nodded, eyes darkening with anger.
“It was him... but I managed to escape before he could do anything else... When I woke in the hospital, they said there was nothing wrong down there... so I assumed when I passed out, someone got to me before he could actually do something.”
“He did do something,” Cam stated, voice low despite him managing a soft tone. “He stabbed you, Winter.”
“I know...” she said. “But I just... try to put it past me....”
“Have you told anyone...?” he wondered. “Your mother? Doctors?”
She shook her head. “They only checked as a precaution... No one knew....”
“So it’s been eating you up inside...” he said, watching her eyes glisten with tears.
A small nod.
“I’m glad you told me...” he said then, sliding out of his booth and slipping into hers. At some point, she let go of his hand. “Can I... can I hug you...?”
Another nod.
So he wrapped his arms around her, pushing her head gently to his chest to assure her that she was safe.
“Shhh...” he breathed, rubbing her arm up and down when she gripped onto her shirt, where the scar rested on her navel. “It’s alright. You’re okay....”
“I’m sorry...” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to ruin tonight for you... I didn’t even think to give you a present back....” She looked to her necklace as an indication.
“You didn’t ruin it...” he assured her.
In fact, she made him happy... knowing that she allowed herself to confide in him instead of yelling or being defensive...
The trust was building...
And it was the perfect gift...
“You haven’t touched your pancakes,” Cameron pointed out, looking down to the pile of bread that Erica put there at some point.
“I know....”
“Is something up?” he wondered despite the previous moment.
“No...” she lied.
“Jett?”
She slightly winced at the word. “Somewhat....”
“What else?” he said then, sitting up and letting her go.
But he kept one arm around her, just in case she needed more assurance that she was protected.
She was silent for a moment, clearly hesitating.
“Go on,” he said. “Tell me.”
“Cameron...” she whispered, sounding a bit fearful, “what’s a Luna?”
He froze.
“Is it something bad?” she said at his sudden reaction. “Are you going to hurt me?”
“No, no!” he said loudly, shaking his head as well to get the point across. “It’s just... You’re not ready to know yet.”
“I am,” she said boldly, turning to him with a stern expression.
“Winter....”
“Tell me,” she said. “Or I won’t tell you anything else about me. It’s not fair that I have to explain to you everything about me, and you stay secretive.”
He blew out a heavy sigh, shaking his head as if not believing what he was about to say.
“A Luna is when...” he exhaled and rephrased, “you know what a mate is, right?”
She blinked.
“God, you’re oblivious,” he muttered, shaking his head. “A Luna is created when a leader of a werewolf pack, known as the Alpha, falls in love with a girl or boy, depending on sexual attraction and what-not.” He shook his head again, knowing he was rambling. “But what that lover is called in werewolf terms, is a mate. So what Alphas do because we’re possessive, is that we mark them.” He pressed his finger to the nape of her neck. “Right here.”
“Like... you use a marker or....”
“Oh, my God... I really don’t like explaining this when you’re not ready,” he muttered again. “No, Winter. We don’t use a marker.”
“Then....”
“We bite,” he said, pressing his finger to her neck again. “Here. So it leaves a scar, letting other wolves know that you’re off limits, and that you’re the leader of the pack, too.”
She looked partly stunned, but didn’t move away like he expected. “Hold on... two questions....”
He grunted in response, the noise saying, Shoot.
“One: You have a pack? And two: Don’t I have to be a werewolf for this?”
“One, no, I don’t have a pack, but since I’m a loner then that makes me an Alpha.”
Confusion washed over her, wondering if he’d been alone all this time.
“Two,” he continued, “no, you don’t have to be a werewolf for this.”
“Do you have to turn me?” she said.
“No.”
“Do you have to have my permission?”
“Yes.”
“What happens after?” she wondered, hoping she was asking the right questions.
“You become my mate.”
“Your mate?”
A nod.
She still looked partly shocked, something warm yet cold washing over her.
“What about vampires...?” she said then.
“What about them?”
“How do vampires do that? Is that what Amelia meant when she said ‘bride?’”
He chuckled. “Amelia doesn’t know much about vampires. Their quote and quote, ‘mates’ are actually called their, beloved.”
“Beloved?”
Another nod.
“How does that work?” she wondered.
“Why are you so interested in this?” he questioned.
“Just tell me,” she urged.
He sighed. “Werewolves have a more... physical way of showing you they’re theirs—hence the marks—while vampires show it through actions.”
“Actions?”
“They’re protective,” he explained. “In a very... deadly way. If someone hurts their beloved, then they’d kill them in revenge... Basically.”
“How do you... you know....”
“I don’t know,” he said, chuckling. “Please explain, Snowflake.”
“How do you... complete the... beloved process?” she wondered. “With werewolves you mark... what about... vampires?”
“It’s not really a mark?” he said then. “It’s a scent.”
She looked confused.
“There’s this specific scent that vampires place on their beloved,” he explained. “If any other vampire tries to get their hands on their beloved, the scent is to tell them to back off.”
“What does it smell like...?” she wondered curiously.
“Sweet yet bitter,” he answered.
“Like salty chocolate?”
“I guess you could say that.”
She stared for a moment. “Did you... already put the scent on me...?”
“No,” he said, “I need your permission for that, too.”
“Oh....”
A sudden awkward silence filled the room despite the clicking of dishes from the kitchen.
They were the only ones in the seating area... it was eight o’clock and everyone was gone already, the waiters and waitresses getting ready to leave in the back.
“Winter...” he murmured.
“I’ll think about it,” she answered before he could finish.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjk3oyc2IeG
*****
Cameron and Winter had moved to a new hotel that night, him claiming that it was dangerous to live in the same place for long periods of time when Dante’s assassins were hunting her.
But especially because they had that incident with the police earlier, but he didn’t really feel like mentioning it.
Winter was lying on the couch upside down, kicking her legs up in the air as an attempt to get her energy out.
This was something she learned at school. Kicking legs, bouncing them... it helped channel her anxiety.
Cameron was in the bathroom. He’d been in there for about two minutes and Winter knew he’d be out soon...
Running wasn’t an option, not when he could read her mind, and especially when the bathroom was right next to the front door, and she was in the living space across the room.
She blew out a sigh, wondering what she could do to pass the time.
She wasn’t necessarily bored... she just had so many things happen to her in the past couple weeks that she couldn’t even comprehend.
Her sister was alive... vampires, werewolves, angels, demons, witches existed...
And, oh yeah... she was an angel.
Don’t forget that her father was secretly a psychopath who’d been killing people she loved every year on November fourth.
Why that specific day?
She decided to aim her gaze to something more interesting than the white, speckled ceiling and looked to a marble table that glistened with the lamps in the room.
But wait... there was something silver placed on top... glowing in the moonlight through the window...
Something inside Winter jumped.
Cameron’s cellphone.
She got up at an instant, shooting her gaze to the bathroom door to see if he was still in there...
He was.
So she crept over to the phone, picking it up and feeling the cool metal press to her hand.
Who would she call? 9-1-1?
No...
Her eyes widened.
She knew just who to call...
She opened the flip-phone, pressing in numbers in the dial key-pad, hoping she had enough time before Cameron came out.
Also hoping that this number was still correct...
And that she’d pick up...
Winter bit her lip, wondering if she should run off to a bedroom or something... so maybe she had a little more time to talk to her...
Even if it was two seconds...
Half a minute almost went by, every ring that passed making Winter’s hope slowly cloud over with ice...
But at the last possible moment, the line clicked, and a familiar voice said, “Hello?”
Winter just breathed, a sudden rush of shock freezing over.
“Hello?” they said again. “If this is a telemarketer, I swear to God....”
At last, she found her words. “A... Amelia...?”
“That’s me,” she said, sounding slightly suspicious. “Who’s this?”
“It...” Winter stuttered, “it’s me....”
“Who?”
She felt tears warm her face, but she still managed to speak. “Winter....”
There was silence for a moment, and she thought Amelia hung up...
The hope was clouding over again...
But then she heard a door close from the other line, and she knew Amelia stepped outside to talk.
She mainly could tell due to the gentle breeze blowing into the microphone.
“Are you okay?” Amelia wondered. “You sound a little out of it.”
Winter felt the urge to scream at her sister for leaving her in the alley, but a completely different set of words escaped her mouth. “Yes... I’m okay... I just wanted to hear your voice....”
Amelia was silent for a moment. “It’s nice to hear yours, as well.”
More tears slipped from Winter’s eyes, but she spoke, “I miss you....”
“I miss you, too, sis,” Amelia said. “I’m sure Cameron explained why I ran off, yeah?”
She nodded despite knowing Amelia couldn’t see her. “Yeah.”
“You know...” she uttered, “Sophia’s the one who saved me... I hadn’t died yet actually... When the police thought I was dead, she managed to take me from the morgue, and actually took me to Lily. You know Lily, right?”
“The... leader of the Angel race...?” Winter whispered.
“Yeah, though we didn’t really see Lily. We just went to her castle and they did some weird ritual and healed me back to normal.”
“I’m glad you’re alive,” Winter choked, sobs catching in her throat.
“Hey, hey...” Amelia whispered, attempting to calm her down, “don’t cry, okay? I know how much all this hurts, but you know I’d never leave you behind, right?”
“Yes...” she murmured.
“Winter, I love you.”
“I love you, too....”
They were silent again.
“Can... can you say it again...?” Winter whispered.
“Say what?”
“That... you love me...?”
Amelia exhaled a chuckle. “Of course, Sis. Winter, I lo—”
All the sudden, the cellphone was snatched from Winter’s hand, and she looked up in shock at the person who stole it.
Cameron was standing above her, giving her a menacing glare despite her cheeks being drenched.
“Who is it?” he demanded.
She stood then, holding out her hand with the same glare, but with unshed tears. “My sister. Give it back.”
He only walked off with it, though didn’t press the “end call” button.
She followed him, storming up from behind him when he turned around to give her a stern look. “Go back to the couch.”
“Are you mad at me?” she questioned sharply. “For calling my sister who I thought was dead?”
He nodded to the couch again, but there was something undecipherable to his gaze. “Go.”
She shook her head in disbelief, storming back to the couch and collapsing back onto it, feeling a fiery anger as well as an icy fear spiraling inside her.
She didn’t even know what he did with the phone, she didn’t care.
What made it his right to take that away from her? Why did he have to do that?
He was an asshole! He couldn’t control her for her whole life!
She would ignore him for the rest of the night, and when he’d least expect it, she would leave.
Yes. Yes, she would.
There was nothing he could do that would make up for this.
Nothing would fix this pain.
Nothing.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPTEmQiI9pK
*****
Thirty minutes later, Winter laid belly-down on the couch, cheek pressed to the leather while she continued to plan Cameron’s demise.
Since he took the phone, he hadn’t made a single effort to talk to her or tell her why he took the phone so harshly and demanded that she’d lay on the couch again.
Why did she love him again?
A sudden knock burst through her eardrums, making her thoughts shatter with curiosity.
Though she didn’t answer it, deciding to test Cameron and see if he’d open the door for whoever was out there.
It probably was a telemarketer or those stupid assassins.
Though she wasn’t really sure if they were... assassins... they were more hired to kidnap her than kill...
And she could tell there was a variety of them...
Mainly werewolves and vampires...
She hadn’t seen any girls... which probably meant there were no witches...
Other than that weird girl in the hoodie who kept on popping up out of nowhere...
Who was she?
But she heard a distant, “One second!” shatter her thoughts.
It was Cameron talking to whoever was at the door from his bedroom, clearly knowing that Winter was too pissed to answer it.
Why did he even bother getting two rooms? He always seemed to be holding her when she woke even if she’d gone to bed alone the night before...
He’d always be snuggling with her... lying with her...
Or watching her...
Then his padding footsteps echoed through the room as he walked to the door, not even sparing Winter a glance as he pried it open.
What pissy mood was he in?
He didn’t have a right to be angry!
“Were you followed?” she heard him whisper to whoever was out there.
Winter propped herself up with an elbow, deciding to watch the front door curiously.
She wondered who was out there... but Cameron had the door blocking her sight, the edge of the wood pressing his large frame to the wall.
She didn’t hear whoever stood there speak—even when he asked them a question—so she just assumed they nodded or shook their head.
And they sure as hell better not have been followed.
“Is she pissed?” someone whispered to him, though she couldn’t tell from the level of their voice whether it was masculine or feminine.
“Oh, yeah,” Cam admitted, “for the last thirty minutes. As expected. I’ve been ignoring her so she’d stay mad.”
Her rage peaked.
He did that on purpose?
“Come on,” he uttered then. “She’d be happy to see you.”
Who was out there? She felt like she was staring the answer right in the face.
But all the sudden, her body froze in place when a girl stepped in the room. She was short with long, naturally straight black hair, who wore dark blue jeans and a tight hoodie.
Amelia...
Though, Sophia wasn’t with her...
Winter shot up from the couch before even thinking the moment through, throwing her arms around her sister who only smiled and held her back.
“I still can’t wrap my head around you being alive...” Winter whispered.
“And I still can’t wrap my head around you wearing the same dress for the past three days.”
“It’s okay,” Winter assured her sister, “Cameron’s been washing it every night... I’ve been alternating between my middle school clothes and—”
“Hold on,” Amelia uttered, pushing Winter away for a moment to look her deeply in the eyes, “you mean the anime skirts and the anime t-shirts?”
A nod.
“Why are you wearing your middle school clothes? I thought you were more of a jeans girl now.”
“Actually,” Cameron corrected, making her and Winter look at him quizzically, “she hates jeans. Actually finds them insufferable. Her favorite clothes are layered skirts with laces or frills, layered dresses with built in corsets, or handmade dresses. And that dress she’s wearing, is handmade. I got it for her a while ago. I know she’s been eyeing it for a while.”
Winter looked back to her sister who seemed slightly horrified. “He can read my mind...” she explained. “It gets irritating sometimes....”
“I can’t believe I didn’t know that,” Amelia stated. “I’m your twin.”
“I’m a good liar,” Winter said with an innocent smile.
“That, I know.” Amelia chuckled.
And they hugged each other back.
“I’ve missed you...” Amelia murmured.
Winter buried her face into her shoulder. “I’ve missed you, too... More than you can imagine....”
But she looked up then, seeing Cameron standing there with a soft smile...
Sad almost...
He pissed her off on purpose, so she wouldn’t get suspicious... He set up this surprise for her...
But she noticed the look in his eyes... the dark blue that looked almost grey... He was upset...
Why was he sad...?
But then it hit her like a slap to the face...
He had a sister... one that he was really close to, a younger one...
One that was actually dead... and one that wouldn’t come back...
A sudden cold feeling stirred inside her, and she smiled back at him, managing to let her sister go and grab both their hands, dragging them to the couch without either of them protesting.
All three settled down onto the leather sofa, Cameron on the left, Amelia on the right, and Winter in the middle.
“Cameron,” Winter said, gesturing to her sister, “this is Amelia, my sister. I’ve talked to you about her, right?”
“A bit,” he said.
“Amelia,” Winter continued, waving to the vampire, “this is Cameron, he’s my boyfriend... currently....”
“I could tell,” she responded with a small smile.
“Amelia and I are fraternal twins,” Winter explained to Cameron, “we have different facial structure and our hair type is different... Hers is easily manageable whereas mine looks like a tumbleweed most of the time.”
“Winter,” Amelia protested, but she put up a hand to stop her.
“Amelia and I love similar things, but I’m more of a nerd, whereas she has the beauty.”
“You flatter me,” Amelia mumbled.
But Winter ignored her. “Amelia, this is Cameron.” She gestured to him like he were a prize on a gameshow, making both Cameron and Amelia’s lips twitch. “He’s a hybrid, as you know, and he can also read my mind, as you know. He’s also extremely irritating and hard to deal with, and I don’t know how I deal with him, but I love him still.”
“How you deal with it is by punching me in the face and trying to escape,” he added.
She shot him a look, silently communicating, Shut up.
He only smiled.
“There. Introductions done.” She pressed her back to the seat. “Now talk both of you while I go make some ice cream.”
She sat up then, starting to the kitchen.
“Say,” Winter said, looking over to them both with sparkling eyes, “if I put blood in a cup, put a popsicle stick in it, and froze it, would it make a good blood popsicle?”
Cameron had to hold back a laugh. “I mean... you can try it.”
Winter turned back to the fridge, starting her experiment.
“She always had an imagination,” Amelia said to Cameron in a low voice so Winter wouldn’t hear. “I remember when she’d try to make a cake with bread flour....”
“Was it good?” Cameron wondered curiously.
“It looked like crap, but surprisingly, she got the flavors right. I couldn’t get any of our friends to eat it, but mom and I finished it in two days.”
“So she’s a good cook?” he wondered.
“When she wants to be,” Amelia answered. “She has these projects she starts then tosses them. She and I are very alike, actually. We love electronic music, we love to draw and read, but when it comes to creativity, that’s all her.”
“She’s special in her own way,” Cameron said softly, staring up at her with a kind smile. “It’s what I love about her. She isn’t afraid to be herself.”
“I bet you also like her because she doesn’t fall on her knees when she sees you,” Amelia said then. “Most girls would with someone looking as handsome as you.”
“You are right with that one,” he answered. “And she does the exact opposite, she flat out attacks me.”
Amelia’s brows raised.
“A couple times, she’s tried to escape, and I’ve been trying to stop her, but she has quite the arm.”
Amelia laughed. “Yeah, she’s been practicing her fighting for a while. She wants to be strong enough to protect herself, but she doesn’t know that she needs people to protect her, too. Emotionally.”
“I know,” he said. “It’s hard to get her to ease up.”
Winter came running to them, sitting in the middle like she was before.
“So?” Cam said. “How did it work?”
“Do you know how a freezer works?” she questioned, faking a sharp tone. “It has to freeze first, dummy.”
Cam looked to Amelia, brows raised.
She does this all the time, he mouthed.
He meant the playfulness mixed with snotty sarcasm.
Amelia only chuckled.
“What’s so funny?” Winter wondered.
“You,” Cam said, making her give him a suspicious look. “You’re just different.”
“Why do you always come up with things that don’t make sense?” she questioned. “Elaborate.”
“Most girls would swoon watching me eat cereal,” he explained. “Sometimes they swoon just watching me read on the train.”
Winter looked to Amelia. “Do you even know what ‘swoon’ means?”
She shook her head.
“Would that book you’re reading happen to be a dictionary?” she said, tilting her head to the side.
“It doesn’t matter what book I’m reading,” he said, leaning back against the sofa while Amelia watched them in amusement. “A lot of girls think I’m hot.”
“Self-centered is more the word,” she muttered.
Amelia let out a choking sound.
“She’s hard to get through,” Cam stated to Amelia. “Especially in public, but I know she loves me.”
“Love is a strong word,” Winter stated.
“Alright,” he said, correcting himself, “I know she desires me.”
She shot him a look. “That’s an even stronger word, and really creepy.”
“You always say what you mean, not mean what you say,” he stated.
She blinked. “What the hell does that mean?”
“I don’t know,” he said, sitting back. “I just saw that phrase on TV.”
“See?” Winter said, gesturing to Cameron with a wave. “All looks, no smarts.”
“Really?” he said. “No smarts?”
“I know you’re hooking me into something,” Winter stated. “Stop it.”
“Then tell me I’m smart and take it back.”
“That would feed your ego,” she said.
“Why is that bad?”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “Because it’s already the size of Jupiter. I bet in an hour, it would be a solar system.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOqXgJ8QOXO
*****
An hour passed, and it was currently eleven in the evening, the moonlight drowned out by the soft yellow lamps warming the room.
Winter was sound asleep on Cameron’s lap, breathing softly as he stroked her hair in gentle motions.
Cameron and Amelia still sat on the couch, watching her sleep so peacefully as her chest drifted up and down quietly.
“I’ve never seen her so at peace before...” Amelia whispered, brushing some hair away from Winter’s face. “Not even before all this horror started... She’s always been so distant and quiet.”
“I know,” Cameron responded. “I’m trying to break her out of her shell, but most of the time she doesn’t want to give in.”
“She wants to,” Amelia corrected. “She’s afraid to.”
“I know...” he whispered.
“She’s always been the twin with the imagination,” Amelia said then, “making books and novels, creating realistic drawings out of thin air... I’m more book smarts....” They both watched her sleep in silence for a minute. “She also has a beautiful heart. Deep inside, I can tell she cares about you, she just doesn’t understand the feeling, so she puts up a shield.”
“I can tell,” he answered. “I’ve been slowly breaking it.”
“It’ll take time,” she said. “She’s been through a lot... I can’t imagine what goes through her head....”
“A lot of things...” Cameron responded. “She hates herself... She can’t understand why I’m not letting her go... I’ve tried hinting it, telling her that I love her and that I want to protect her, she knows that, but I can tell she doesn’t understand why....”
“She will,” Amelia assured him. “She’s very stubborn, I can tell you that much.”
They both chuckled.
“Yep,” Cameron answered. “Extremely stubborn.”
“I can tell she loves and cares about you, though, Cameron.”
“How?” he wondered then, even though he knew as well.
“The way she looks at you,” Amelia answered. “She hasn’t looked at any guy like that... Ever... And this,” she gestured to Winter who was asleep on his lap, “ever since we were little, she’s never trusted anyone enough to fall asleep on their lap. She’s always had paranoia issues, which created sleeping issues. Nightmares and whatnot. Mom never knew.”
“Really?” Cam said. “Never?”
“Mom just thought it was grief,” Amelia answered. “Because Winter started telling her after our grandparents died. But it started way before.”
“When?” Cam wondered.
“When she was... five? We were really young, and she never screamed while she had the nightmares, she’d just whimper and I had to wake her up and help her sleep again, but still,” she gestured to her again, “she didn’t let me do this either.”
“Really?” he questioned in astonishment. “Why?”
“Paranoia,” she answered. “She’s always been afraid to let her guard down.”
“What were the nightmares about?” Cameron wondered then. “Did she have a hard childhood?”
Amelia shook her head, eyes darkening.
Then the answer shook him. “Dante.”
A nod.
“He’s been giving her nightmares,” Cameron realized.
Amelia nodded again.
“Can I ask you something?” he wondered, needing to change the subject before he got too angry.
Even though the subject he changed to would probably piss him off more.
“Sure.”
“Do you know what happened that night...?” he said. “When her father died?”
“Yeah,” Amelia whispered, knowing he was talking about their step-father. “She doesn’t, though.”
“What do you mean?”
“I suspect she told you about the guy.” Amelia drew a line across her navel as an indication.
“Yeah.”
“That guy was trying to...” she swallowed something hard, “get to her... but...” she sighed, “Winter was outside in the first place because she was looking for dad. He went to take a walk but hadn’t come back. Mom was sleeping, and of course Winter thought I was dead, so she went out on her own. That was the night I first found her... She started walking down streets with a flashlight, looking for him, but she did actually find his body, but she doesn’t remember.”
“Her mind forced her to forget,” Cameron realized. “To protect itself.”
“Yes,” Amelia nodded. “I lost her when she found the body, but I could hear her screaming for him to wake up.” She looked down to Winter, eyes dulling in sadness. “And then I heard a loud clatter, and a scream. She ran away from the alley with someone chasing her, and I tried to follow her but I lost her again. When I found her, he was on top of her, and she was fighting him while he sliced the knife inside her.” She touched Winter’s navel gently. “She thought she passed out, but really she didn’t. She managed to shove him off and stabbed him multiple times in a panic... but she was still bleeding... I couldn’t move, I was stuck there, watching it happen, but she managed to get up and limp away. I lost her again, deciding instead to look at who attacked her....”
“Who was it?” Cameron wondered even though he knew the answer.
“It was Jett,” she said. “A high school jock who gets what he wants.”
“Wait...” Cameron whispered, shock rattling through him. “You said Winter stabbed him multiple times.”
“Yes.”
“So he should be dead?”
“Yes.”
Cameron’s insides flipped. “He’s not dead... I don’t know how, but he’s not.”
“What do you mean?” Amelia questioned, breathing shallowly. “How is he not dead?”
“He encountered us...” Cameron answered. “At a diner... He made himself seem like an airhead, but really... I don’t think he is... I gave her a necklace,” he touched the blood red pendent on Winter’s shirt, “it was glowing when he was there, but when he left, it stopped....”
“So you’re saying...” Amelia whispered.
“He works for Dante...” Cam answered. “That’s the only explanation... Dante’s been bringing people back to life with black magic... I think he’s one of them....”
“There’s one more thing...” Amelia said, “that happened that she doesn’t remember.”
“Go on.”
“I saw her collapse on the sidewalk... and I was going to run to her to take her to a hospital... but someone else got to her first... It was a werewolf... a black one, and it launched past me before I could get to her, and it turned into a boy... A boy with black hair... and pale skin....”
“What are you saying?” Cameron questioned.
“I’m saying,” Amelia answered. “I think it was you who saved her that night... The one that took her to the hospital....”
Cameron was silent.
“You remember, don’t you?” she said then. “You remember saving her.”
He looked down to Winter, an uncomfortable silence filling the room.
“All those times she was almost attacked...” Amelia whispered, “I felt your presence. You were there... as a wolf... Her guardian wolf... How long have you been protecting her?”
Cameron was silent for a moment. “Since she was five....”
“How old are you, Cameron?”
“I’m seventeen....”
“When were you bitten? Or scratched?”
“When I was seventeen....”
“How long have you been seventeen, Cameron?”
“A while....”
“But...” she whispered, looking down to Winter, “you fell in love with her... When?”
“It’s been slowly building....”
They were both silent.
All the sudden, the front door creaked open, and Cameron stiffened, poised to attack, but it was only Sophia walking in, a kind smile on her face.
“Sorry I took so long!” she almost yelled.
“Shhh,” both Cameron and Amelia snapped.
Sophia’s green eyes shifted to Winter, and they widened in shock. “Oh... sorry...” she whispered, “I got you guys some food, though....”
She stepped over to the couch and handed Cameron a bag of blood, and Amelia a raw steak.
“Do you have a bruise?” Cameron questioned then, still stroking Winter’s hair.
“No...” Amelia answered, “I’m a werewolf....”
A sudden shock rattled him. “Hold on... what? You should be a snow angel,” he gestured to Winter, “like her....”
Sophia and Amelia looked to each other, then back at him.
“Story time?” Sophia whispered.
Amelia shook her head, sighing. “Alright... I’ll explain... You know Dante? Our birth father?”
Cameron nodded.
“He’s actually a werewolf,” she explained. “Our mother’s a snow angel... He wanted to breed the ultimate race... Which was half-werewolf, half-snow angel, though it didn’t really work out for him... Their first child was Kit, I’m pretty sure you met him.”
“Yep,” Cameron said.
“He was actually a still born,” she explained. “So Dante attempted to bring him to life with black magic, but he was a newbie to it and the spell went wrong, making Kit a vampire. So Dante tried again,” she waved to Winter and her, “but we were fraternal twins, two different eggs, so the races split off between us,” she waved to Winter, ”snow angel,” then gestured to herself, “werewolf.”
“Huh...” Cameron murmured.
“Yeah...” Amelia uttered, “she’s definitely more powerful than me... Snow angels are hard to come by these days... There are only a few. That’s why mom decided to name her ‘Winter.’”
Cameron looked down to the sleeping girl. “If Dante’s a werewolf... then how are all of his underlings... vampires?”
“The underlings are Kit’s,” Sophia explained. “He’s the leader of the vampires, and Dante’s the leader of the werewolves.”
“So that’s why both races are trying to attack her...” Cameron realized.
“Yep.”
“What about her?” Cameron wondered, gesturing to Sophia.
“What about me?” she wondered.
“She’s an archangel,” Amelia answered. “One of the higher-ups.”
“Oh...” Cameron murmured.
They were silent after that.
“Come on,” Amelia murmured softly, gently running her fingers through Winter’s hair. “Let’s get her to bed.”
Cameron shuffled an arm under her knees, and another under her back, lifting her up and carrying her to her bedroom.
When Amelia pulled back the sheets, he gently deposited Winter into bed, drawing the sheets over her, once more.
All three of them just looked at her for a moment, watching her sleep so peacefully.
“Take good care of my sister,” Amelia whispered. “Break her and I break you.”
Cameron laughed softly. “Neither of us have to worry about any breaking, don’t worry.”
She just patted him gently on the shoulder, turning away and nodding to the front door at Sophia. “Alright, it’s getting late, let’s go.”
Cameron followed them out to the front door, closing and locking the door behind them.
He pressed his back against it, thoughts tumbling through his head...
How would he tell Winter all of this...?
She’ll find out eventually, a small voice in his head assured him. Give her time.
Cameron stepped back to the bedroom, fearing to leave her for even a second, but he saw her still lying in bed, covers drifting up and down gently with her shallow breaths.
He smiled and softly closed the door behind him, stepping over to the bed and getting in next her, propping his back against the headboard and watching the silver moonlight halo around her black locks in the dark room.
“I’ll be right here if you need me,” he whispered to her, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.
He then pulled his laptop out of a bag he left there earlier, and opened it, starting another round of research even though he knew he wouldn’t be able to find squat.
Well... better safe than sorry...
ns 15.158.61.8da2
