Chapter 30: Strengthened Bonds

AARON. Finally, I had peace and quiet. The girls left early, which meant I had practically an entire day to myself in this house. After they left in the morning, I got down to work. I cleaned the kitchen, the living room, and the basement below. I wanted to clean the other rooms, but I didn't want to be scolded for ‘not respecting privacy'. I was dusting the shelves in the living room, and my mind wandered to the conversation I overheard in the morning. Luna had finally told Helena what the scroll was about, and why she was tied to it. There was something about her reaction to where it was hidden that made my blood boil. If she couldn't go alone, I'd go with her. I finished the rest of the cleaning, getting ready to take a shower when I saw a familiar creature prancing around the house. 2 feet tall, short claws, blue skin and eyes, pointed ears. Luna's pet? Okay, maybe not a pet. But what was it? It stared at me from the corner leading to the staircase that led to the basement, and made a squeaky noise. 'Hi there little fella. Are you looking for Luna?" I asked, watching its movements. The creature squeaked louder, making an effort to point towards the kitchen. Its blue eyes glowed, and it looked so….cute. 'Hungry I see. Alright, I think I have some Mac and Cheese left. You want some?" The creature nodded enthusiastically. I chuckled, walking back to the kitchen. I served a portion I felt would be enough for…'her', and passed it over. She glanced at the bowl, probably wondering whether it was good to eat or not. Then, she sank her teeth into the creamy, cheesy goodness. Her blue eyes shone greatly for a brief second, almost blinding me. She began to eat through the bowl very quickly, munching down as fast as I could see. She finished, smacking her lips. Then she scurried over to where I sat, rubbing my forehead. She smelled like nature. That was it. She hopped down, and without any other word, vanished into thin air. It was odd, but she didn't try to kill me so we're good. I plopped down on the couch afterwards, and drifted to a long, long sleep. 'Aaron …." I creased my brows, trying to decipher if I was asleep, or awake. 'Aaron…" I shot open my eyes, heart pounding and claws extended. It was pitch black. I grabbed the lamp beside the tv stand and turned it on, glancing at the clock. 7:10pm. Helena and the rest aren't home yet? Hm. I waltzed over to the kitchen, grabbing her mom's cookbook and flipping through the pages. What would be for dinner tonight? Maybe- 'Ah ha! I told you he wasn't ready to let go!" I heard a familiar giggle outside. 'He was really into you, yunno." That was definitely Luna. 'Oh please. I wasn't even interested." Helena. 'That's because you're too busy thinking about Mr. 'I don't know how to make a first move.' Sheesh, have some fun." Veronica. Soon enough, the three knocked on the front door simultaneously. I speedily opened it, and was met with so many bags I almost fell to the floor. Obviously, Veronica. I dropped the bags, and stood up to close the door when Helena crashed into my chest, face first. She was using her phone when she walked in, so she probably didn't see me coming. The scent of fresh apples wafted into my nose, and like a drug, I leaned into the scent, instinctively wrapping my arms around her waist. She looked up at me, those big brown eyes sending shivers down my spine. Her lips parted slightly, as she took in the situation. She looked so…… alluring. I could just take her right there, couldn't I? Gosh. We stared at each other for what seemed like hours, and I bent my head forward, drunk by her scent. She gasped slightly, and I planted my nose in her hair. I wanted to hold her like this forever. She tapped my chest lightly. 'Um, Aaron?" 'Hm?" I replied. 'Can you um.." That phrase alone brought me back to reality, and I let go of her. Reluctantly. Luckily for both of us, neither Luna nor Veronica saw what happened. Instead, they were having a little conversation in the kitchen. I sat down on the couch as Helena walked to meet them. ‘You can't have her.' ‘She's not your mate' ‘Stop dreaming' My inner wolf taunted. 'Shut it, you idiot." I snarled. I didn't care, I was gonna make her mine. I opened up my laptop, searching up jobs online. Helena had gotten me the laptop, and a mobile phone when she couldn't reach me last night. She said it'd make 'communication easier". Oh well, now I just gotta figure out how to use this thing. The laptop was easier, Luna showed me. 'Hey, are you good?" Helena said, popping out her head from the kitchen door. 'Yeah, why?" 'Because you look like you're about to pop a vein." She giggled, walking towards me. 'What are you doing?" She leaned over, looking at the laptop screen. I had spent the last thirty minutes trying to get out of this silly window, but I couldn't find the close button anywhere. 'Aaron…you didn't tell me you were into this." She giggled even harder. I was looking up job applications and accidentally opened an ad for sex toys. Of course. It just had to be that. Helena laughed for a full minute, and I just stared at her in amusement. She was truly beautiful. 'Okay okay, what were you trying to do?" She asked when she had finally calmed down. 'I'm trying to close the stupid page. I can't find the close button." I replied, crossing my arms. 'It's right here." She pointed at a tiny x on the screen. You have got to be kidding me. 'How am I supposed to click that?" I raised my hands in protest. 'It's doable. Just click with the mouse." She moved the cursor to the tiny dot, and tapped lightly with her fingers. Poof. It was gone. 'That's not fair! I have….big hands." How did humans do this?! 'Your hand isn't touching the screen, the mouse is, just move it." She laughed lightly, bringing my fingers to the mouse pad. Her hands were soft, and her touch was like several jolts of electricity were being passed up my arm. ‘And you said she wasn't my mate.' I gleamed at my inner wolf. He snorted. 'Do you get it now?" Her voice pulled me out of my inner gloating. Her eyes were soft, and it pierced deep into mine. 'Yeah, I do." I didn't get shit. CALEB. 'Marcus, how do you do?" I said, a little amused that he had called me this early. 'I am doing very well Caleb. I'm sorry about my demeanor last week. Man's gotta survive." He said, obviously eating something. 'I understand. You are good though, right? Can't lose another man." I said, pouring wine into my glass. I was at the office, alone, left to my own thoughts. My uncle's demands kept ringing in my head, and I still tried to understand what he was going to gain from that kind of a mission. Jessica had brought me all the research she made on ancient scrolls last night, and I took my time going through each of them. I only found three articles on the Scroll of Vengeance, and they all talked about the same thing. Revenge. Who was Uncle Kelly trying to get revenge on? He had enemies, but enemies could be dealt with easily. What could need such power? In one of the articles, it said that the scroll was around 500 years old. Jeez. 'Yes yes, I'm fine. Have you looked through the files I sent you yet?" Marcus said, cutting my thoughts short. 'Yes, but I'm still confused. He invited me to his house last weekend." 'He has always been so….strange." 'So, was it my Uncle that broke into my house? Why would he do that in the first place?" I asked. 'I don't know why, but all the evidence was traced back to him. He found out I was tailing him, and sent that letter." His thick Italian accent sounded through each of his words. He sounded calmer now, as if the danger from earlier had passed. 'What did he tell you?" 'Something about an ancient scroll." Uncle Kelly was never into artifacts. This was weird. I had to plan out how to retrieve it. Something like that would be heavily guarded. 'Hm. I have a sister who deals with ancient stuff like that. Wanna talk to her?" Marcus offered, his voice sounding a bit distant. 'No, no need. I'll make the drive to Henley tomorrow. Probably give you an update if anything goes wrong. Keep her handy though, I might need her help later on." I hung up. 'Sir? The investors from last week are ready." Jessica said from the office phone. 'I'll be there in five minutes." I took a sip of my wine. The next three months were gonna be fun.