Book of the Hidden (4 page)

     
"Ummm... Shouldn't we go through the front door? Tell them we're leaving?" Seth looked at her shocked.

     
"Do you have the money for this place?"

     
He glanced nervously at the door as though expecting authorities to come bursting through it. Blinking, he turned back to the window. "No."

     
"Okay then." She hopped out of the window. "You need to learn how to get along in this world now." She scowled, anger coursing through her veins.

     
Seth climbed through, sitting on the window sill. "Why? I won't be like this for long" And he fell to his feet.

     
Vivian looked down at the rock-filled ground. She dug a hole in it with the toe of her boot furiously. "Yeah...." She shrugged and closed the window, turning around to walk to her car.

     
"What?" He followed behind her.

     
She shook her head pulling her key out of her pocket. "Nothing. You're right. You won't be lycanthrope for long so never mind," pulling on the handle of the driver side and sinking into the seat.

     
With the slam of the door he sat beside her. "Tell me what you meant by that. I want to know."

     
She couldn't believe how vulnerable he was. Before the change she was just as vulnerable. Vivian shook her head, and started the engine. "You’ll know soon enough. Let's just go get the book. "
You will have plenty of time to worry later
she thought, and they drove off in silence.

     
Past the shacks and small communities of sleeping homes was a field that stretched back into a small forest. To anyone else it would look like any ordinary field of green, thick grass, and sprouting yellow wild flowers. But to Vivian it was home.

     
“Ummm... Why did we stop?” Seth looked across her at the field.

     
Vivian clutched the keys in her hand, the sharp edges digging into her palm. “We’re here.” Pulling on the latch, she stepped out of the jeep.

     
He gave a short laugh. “Right!” he stared around, trying to find the joke in it all.

     
“I’m serious” she said as she slammed the door.

     
Seth furrowed his brows and looked around again. “Vivian.... It’s empty.”

     
She allowed a smile to creep on her lips. “That’s what you think. Now, stop looking around and follow me.” Vivian turned around, and began walking out onto the field hearing the grunting sounds of Seth heaving himself over the door.

     
No human knew that this field even existed and had not changed in more than five hundred years. If someone tried to cut the long grass, it would only grow back a few seconds later. This simple ordinary-looking field was the greatest enchantment of their kind. It kept her family hidden away from the rest of the world - away from humans, and those that hunted them. A cold shiver ran up Vivian’s spine at the thought and she shoved the stray idea from her mind. Looking around she realized that she was in the middle of the field. Seth stood beside her gazing around bewildered, yet with curiosity.

     
“You ready?” Vivian looked up at him.

     
His eyes wandered across the field expectantly, but she pushed aside a patch of grass to reveal a moss covered stone with a large sandstone door and a silver handle. She smiled running her hand over the door and turned to see Seth’s face, eyes wide in disbelief and a slightly dropped jaw.

     
Turning the handle, the door creaked as she opened it, walking down the steps and into the darkness, Seth following close behind her. A few steps down, flaming torches burned in their brackets illuminating the walls and stairways. Soon, the air became stifling hot and a trickle of sweat beaded her forehead making its way down the side of her face.

Once they were at the bottom of the stairs, they came to an arched oak door much different from the one outside. She turned to glance at Seth, then opened the door to a circular room filled with various colored cushioned chairs and couches. The temperature and atmosphere of the room suddenly changed and was dark and musty. It smelled like morning fog, but was cool and damp and Vivian wiped the remaining trickle of sweat that was still making its way down her cheek.

People were everywhere talking but went immediately quiet when Seth and Vivian walked in. Eyes peered intently and curiously at them, causing a feeling of discomfort.

A lean girl with very wavy light brown hair ran over from a red chair. Sometimes Vivian forgot that her sister and she didn’t look much alike, aside from the hair color and their hazel eyes. Jean was an inch taller than her and had the mannerisms associated with that of leadership and authority, characteristics Vivian had encouraged being she was a year younger, and felt was her responsibility being the little sister.

     
“Jean!” Vivian said in a desperate tone, but her sister’s face did not change.

     
“How dare you! You bring a human here?!” Jean looked at Seth out of the corner of her eye disapprovingly.

     
Vivian grasped Jean’s arms and led the three of them upstairs through a cold, black, stone hallway and turned into an empty room shutting the door behind them.
 
She was anxious to get away from the staring faces of the others. Pressing her back against the door she kept her head down gazing at the mud on her boots. She really didn’t want to make her sister mad.

     
“Viv! Look at me!” Jean’s voice was harsh and raised, a tone above what she normally spoke and Vivian was forced to raise her head. “Now... What’s going on? Why would you ever bring a human here? Are you crazy? Why?” She had taken a step forward peering down at her.

     
Vivian took a deep breath. “I didn’t."

     
“What? He’s standing right here, I see him!”

     
“That’s not what I meant,” she said quickly. “He’s not human.”

     
Jean stepped back gazing out of the corner of her eye at Seth. “I don’t understand.”

 
“He’s a werewolf. I went by the old shack, and heard this fight going on. When I got there, I saw Astrid."

     
“Astrid was there?” Jean asked startled.

     
“Yeah, and I found Seth lying there. He’d been bitten and has already been through the change.”

     
Her sister shook her head in disbelief. “Astrid.... That bitch!”

     
“Jean!”

     
“I’m sorry, but she should know the rules! We cannot change anyone. It’s in the book!”

     
This captured Seth’s attention and he briefly considered grabbing her shoulder, but thought better of it. “The book? Really? You have it? Where is it? Can we see it?”

     
As much as Vivian was mad at him, she couldn’t help but smile. It was like watching a little boys eyes light up at Christmas. Jean however, did not have the same reaction.

     
She jabbed her thumb in his direction. “How does he know about the book?”

     
“I told him” Vivian said cautiously.

     
Jean crossed her arms. “Really Viv, do you tell
everyone
about us? Just go around shacks and rescue humans that have been transformed? What is wrong with you? I know we’re supposed to help humans, it’s been done for centuries, but this is too much.”

     
A burning fever rose in her throat. “Stop it Jean! Stop it! I couldn’t leave him lying there.
 
He didn’t ask for this – he has a right to know. When he asked me if there was a way to change back, I told him about the book. He wants to change back. And anyway, Maeve did it!”

     
“Oh really sis, you must be out of your mind!” Jean’s hand lashed out against Vivian’s shoulders pushing her back against the door. For a split second that Jean raised her hand, she thought she was going to hit her, but instead Jean turned on her heel and smacked Seth across the cheek with a loud slap. His head turned sideways, and when he lifted, Vivian could see a bright red hand mark.

     
“You think you’re better than us because you’re human?” Jean rounded on him causing him to stumble backwards, but it was clear when Seth hit the wall that he had enough.

     
“I don’t believe in any of this and even if I did I wouldn’t want to be living with a bunch of freaks!” Seth’s words were dripping with poison.

     
“Then leave!” she made her words slow and deliberate so there was no mistaking them. “Our kind, help you all and you repay us with mockery and spitefulness. You disgust me.”

     
“Help? How do you help us humans?”

     
“Oh, let me count the ways. Some of those car accidents, where it’s a ‘miracle’ that the drivers and passengers survive – that’s us!
 
Our magic is used to slow down the vehicles. People dying from venomous snake bites that remarkably heal with no lasting effects have the venom extracted by our “freaks”. The money that just turns up, is the job of the “freaks”. We help more than you even know.” Her jaw was firm and lips pursed together tightly.

     
Seth’s eyes shot daggers and as he raised his hands to push Jean out of the way he was startled by what he saw. Gray, fur boots replaced what used to be long slender fingers. He let out a ragged breath as he gawked at them. Jean backed away smiling at his defeat and seeing his eyes crying out for help as he looked up, Vivian walked over to him. When she stared into his eyes, the twinkle that was once there was gone replaced by a mixture of sadness and disbelief. She touched his shoulder and said, “I’m sorry.” The pit of her stomach suddenly sickened.

     
“I’m sorry,” Vivian repeated watching as the fur disappeared, and the claws shortened, returning to the resemblance of human hands. He inspected them making sure all indications of the creature were gone. Vivian remembered that Seth had never witnessed his transformation; he had been unconscious the first time it happened.

     
Seth dropped his hands to his sides, his head falling back against the wall with a soft thud. He closed his eyes tightly, and Vivian felt the urge to lay her hand on his shoulder, to hold him and comfort him, but she resisted, shoving her hands deep in her pants pockets.

     
“Hey, relax,” Jean prodded him in the shoulder. “We’ll get you a room here, you can get some sleep, and we will figure out what to do with you in the morning.”

     
He managed a crooked smile and nodded. “Thanks.”

     
“Now, wait outside. I have to talk to Viv real quick.” Jean clutched his shirt, pushing him out of the room, slamming the door behind his retreating back.

     
“What is it?”

     
Jean turned to her. “You got the letter too?”

     
Vivian saw a crumpled paper laying on the nightstand by the bed. “I didn’t save mine though,” she sat on the bed sinking down in the soft mattress.

     
“I save all of them.” Jean said.

     
“Why?”

     
“They’re our family Viv! They’ve been writing for two years, and that’s an obvious sign they still love us –“

     
“Or want to kill us!” Vivian interrupted.