Hanna
I saw him walking through the cloak of fog, his body illuminated by the porch light as he neared the cabin. He saw in the window and stopped short of knocking on the door, his blue eyes shadowed by dark circles.
I wasn’t afraid of death. I wasn’t afraid of the punishnt coming my way. So, when Alpha Ethan arrived on my doorstep, I was ready. I had already surrendered.
He didn’t co inside as I opened the door, slowly, trying not to wake Kacidra, who was asleep on the couch. He tilted his head toward the gravel road, motioning for to follow.
It was the dead of night. The fog hung low and twisted between the sparse trees. The big house, Rowan’s ho, was darkened, not a single light on inside.
Ethan didn’t say a word to as we walked. He kept his hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket, his face forward. I walked calmly beside him with no questions on the tip of my tongue. I knew where we were going, and who he was bringing to see. I knew why he had chosen to do so under the cover of darkness.
Rowan was waiting at the gate to the driveway. He gave a reassuring smile. No words were exchanged, but his eyes were soft, their aning clear.
This would just be a talk. Nothing more.
But I hadn’t spoken a word to Rosalie since the mont I forced her out of my dream. That had been a week ago.
“Is the house empty?” Ethan’s voice rang out through the stillness as he reached the stairs leading up to the front porch.
“Georgia and Talon are staying with Gemma and Ernest, and Vicky—”
Rowan’s voice faded into a murmur as they disappeared into the dark recesses of the house. I started at the front door, the threshold, and a cool shiver ran up the center of my spine.
What could I possibly say to her?
The house was quiet, still. When I entered, I took off my boots and my coat, hanging it by the front door. I let my fingers linger on the fabric for a mont, closing my eyes, trying to rember...
“Are you alright?” It was Rowan’s voice in my ear.
I turned to him, finding him closer than I expected.
“It’s going to be fine,” he whispered, laying a soft kiss on my temple before he turned towards the stairs.
“Is she well?” I whispered in reply, watching as Ethan reached the top of the landing and turned into the master bedroom.
He must have turned on a lamp because soft orange light flooded into the hallway, broken by his shadow as he moved around the room.
“She’s better than she has been. She hasn’t said much—she’s been asking about you.”
“Alright.” I bit the inside of my cheek, looking up into the stairwell.
“Is there anything I should know before we go up? Hanna, we’ve barely spoken since—”
“No, Rowan. I’m sorry. I... I don’t know how to explain what happened.”
He only nodded, squeezing my hand before leading up the stairs.
***
“And then what happened?” Ethan was sitting in a large armchair facing the bed, his elbows resting on his knees as he leaned forward in his chair, watching intently.
I was sitting on the edge of Rosalie’s bed, my back to her, with my hands folded in my lap. I looked over my shoulder, stealing a glance at Rosalie, who was sitting up against the headboard. She gave a soft, encouraging smile.
I watched her for a mont, taking her in. Her hair was piled on the top of her head in a loose bun, and she was wearing a simple camisole nightdress mostly hidden by the thick quilt draped over her lap. She looked frail. The light that was usually behind her eyes was gone.
“We stood over the altar and took each other’s hands. I didn’t think it would work, but... she ca with . When the dream pulled in, I was able to take her with ,” I explained to Ethan, looking back at him.
Rowan was leaning against the far wall, watching us, listening in silence.
“I saw Maeve,” Rosalie whispered, her voice cracking with emotion.
Rowan straightened his back, looking over at Ethan.
“You told ,” Ethan said, his voice firm and edged with what sounded like bitterness.
I hadn’t been to the house in the week since it happened, but I had heard from Kacidra that Rosalie had refused to tell Ethan what happened until he agreed that I would be there to tell my side of things. She was giving a lifeline and the sacrifice for it had been keeping the monts leading up to her death, and resurrection, a secret from her mate. It was hard to wrap my head around.
“She was fine. She was happy, but—” Rosalie tapered off, sighing deeply.
“But what?” Ethan said sharply.
“We were interrupted,” I breathed, feeling a week’s worth of tension leave my shoulders.
“There was a woman, I didn’t recognize her. She... she started to argue with us. We were watching Maeve—”
“What was Maeve doing?” Ethan interrupted Rosalie, his eyes from her to . I knew at that mont I was the one he wanted to hear this from.
“Maeve is sowhere far away, Alpha. She has been for a while. She’s looking for the thing Alpha Damian wants, sothing... I’m not sure the significance. But it’s sothing that belongs to a sacred place. She’s bringing it back to where it belongs, at least, that’s what I gathered from the dream.”
“How do you know these things without actually being able to talk to Maeve?” Ethan was still skeptical about and my powers, and I didn’t bla him. I felt the sa way about myself.
“I just know. I don’t know how. I never had anyone to guide through this, alright?” My tone was heavy, and I could feel the shift in the room as Ethan sized up. I looked into his eyes, a silent challenge. “The woman who attacked in the dream is another Dream Dancer. Her power is trendous. She was waiting for .”
“Waiting for you?” Rowan cut in.
“I think she’d be watching for so ti. She knew where to find . But I don’t think... I don’t think she was aning to make herself known. I could feel her there for a while now, I think before... before I ever t you, Rowan. Sotis when I dreamt, I’d hear soone singing. I always thought... I thought it was either my mother, or the Moon Goddess. Now I know I just wasn’t alone up there, or whatever realm the dreams take place. It was her.”
“Who is she?” Ethan asked. I knew by his tone he didn’t fully believe .
“I don’t know her na.”
“If you had to guess,” he replied.
It was an odd question, but a strange feeling swept over . I did know her na; it was on the tip of my tongue. I had heard it recently, spoken aloud.
“Tasia,” I whispered, thinking of the mont over dinner a few weeks ago when Gemma had said it. How could she have possibly known the na?
“And you’re saying this is a real person—”
“She’s very real, Ethan,” Rosalie said behind . “She tried coming through—”
“She saw Queen Rosalie and knew exactly who she was, Alpha. That’s when she attacked.”
“How is that possible?”
“The dreams are physical. They can affect you if you lose control. I used to bring water back from the dream until not long ago, but I learned to control it. Rosalie... she helped . She taught how to control that part of myself. It’s very much like controlling your wolf when you shift. It’s an unearthly power, unnatural. But this woman... took it one step further. She overpowered ; she used my powers against . She knew I couldn’t control both my wolf and the dream and that would... create a break.”
“A break? What do you an?” Ethan looked interested, as though he was finally getting a grasp on what I was trying to say.
Rosalie exhaled, picking at the quilt. “Hanna was holding my hand in the dream. We both thought it was the only way for to continue to stay... inside. Inside of it. When the woman, Tasia, began to circle us, Hanna... pushed out. She let go of my hand, but she—”
“Rowan is the door to my dreams. I just have to think of him. He keeps tethered to our reality. He is my mate. When I realized what was about to happen I said your na, Ethan, so Rosalie would picture you. So she could seek you out. She was gone. Tasia followed her—”
“You’re saying she made it into the temple, physically?” Ethan looked from to Rosalie.
“No, not physically. But she was able to see it. She could see where Rosalie went. She used her powers to move the air to try to harm Kacidra and Shelly. It was a trick, and I fell for it. I shifted because I thought I’d be strong enough to stop her. I gave up my hold on the dream. I surrendered to her without realizing it.”
“She overpowered you,” Ethan repeated, as though to himself.
“Yes. She did.”
“What happened next?” Ethan stood, crossing his arms as his gaze moved over , settling on the side of my face as I turned to look at Rowan.
“I tried to go back in,” Rosalie said. “She was in the temple in her wolf form. I don’t think she even knew I was there, next to her. All I had to do was touch her. But when I did I... I was praying. I asked the Goddess for help, like I had during that battle long ago... I didn’t think—”
Ethan looked shocked, his brow furrowing as his cheeks began to color. “You did what?”
“I summoned her powers, Ethan. To save Hanna.”
I felt the floor drop beneath my feet. I didn’t rember what had happened after I shifted. I rember lunging toward Tasia, and then everything went black. I was stuck in darkness for what felt like a split second, and also an eternity.
“You sacrificed yourself for her—” Ethan said, his voice edged with fury.
“Of course, I did! Do you see what we’re dealing with now, Ethan?” Rosalie stood, wobbling as she gripped the headboard for support.
Ethan started forward, concern lining his face, but she held her hand up to stop him.
“I got rid of Tasia, for now. She wanted , Ethan. Not Hanna. She was curious about her; she ntioned she had never co across another Dream Dancer. But when she saw , saw my hair, put the pieces together... I was the one she wanted. And this isn’t done.”
“We don’t know who she is, Mom,” Rowan said as he began to cross the room.
I was focused on Ethan, however, watching the emotions pass across his face. He was staring at Rosalie, hurt lingering behind his eyes. Sothing that had been buried there for a long, long ti.
“This woman is the threat. Not Damian.” Rosalie concluded, letting go of the headboard and standing on her own, unsupported.
“You don’t have your powers anymore, do you?” I asked her, turning my head to look at her.
She inhaled, shaking her head. “They’re gone.”
“Mine too,” I whispered, secretly relieved. I hadn’t dreamt in a week. I wanted it to stay that way.
“Gemma brought back to life with a necklace Seraphine left for her. A moonstone,” she pointed to the jewelry box on the dresser. “She used my blood to activate it, exactly like I had done with the Moonlight Lily. It’s the only reason I’m alive right now.”
Ethan was standing in silence, his gaze on the floor. He looked up, shifting his gaze from person to person, settling it on Rowan, who had just sat down next to , taking my hand.
Ethan had just opened his mouth to speak when the sound of the front door opening and closing caught his attention. “Rowan, did you not lock the door behind Hanna?”
Rowan stood up and moved toward the door to the bedroom, but not fast enough to step Talon from entering the room in a rush, his face flushed and sweat dampening the hair around his temples.
“It’s Gemma–the baby–Rosalie, she needs you–”
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