And Then There Were Four by Lilith Carrie

Taking one step after the other, I wandered around the room, admiring everything there was to admire. From hand-carved tables with toppled chairs, tons of books that littered the floor, as well dust that laid blanketed upon every surface in the area. Never had I seen something so old and beautiful at the same time. I let my fingers brush over some of the multicolored spines as my feet crunched upon scattered papers, I was curious as to what had happened here to leave it in such chaos. "So within all of this, you think we will find what I need to figure everything out?"

My words bounced off the walls, and as I turned to look at Silas from over my shoulder, he stood watching me. "In a way, I suppose."

"In a way?" I repeated, furrowing my brow, "what do you mean?"

Stepping forward, his arms falling at his sides he stared at me, and the intensity of that stare made my breath catch in my throat. I didn't understand what it was about him that made my heart flutter like it did, but twhen he stepped inches in front of me, a wave of nervousness washed over me I hadn't expected.

"In order for you to find out about current things... I think it's best for you to learn about the past. About the gods, and more importantly about who you are, Cassie. Odin and the others have been hiding the truth, but it's wrong."

His words confused me, and the sincerity in his eyes let me know he was telling the truth. Yet, knowing Odin-my grandfather-and the others were hiding things from me didn't sit well in my stomach. "Why are they hiding things from me?"

He brushed his hand down my shoulder gently before moving a strand of hair from my face. "Because they don't think you're ready to know. I was ordered never to tell you, but I can't keep things from you... not with..."

On a heavy exhale, he didn't finish his sentence, but with the way he was looking at me, I could almost tell what he was going to say. He was going to tell me how he cared about me, but I didn't need him to tell me for me to know. I should have been disgusted with him advancing on me because I was supposed to be with Lucas but I wasn't.

Part of me wanted him to kiss me... part of me wanted him to take me and make me his.

"Tell me who Anna is, Silas," I whispered, clearing my throat and trying to divert the sexual tension currently flowing between us. Hedet a small smirk cross his lips as he stepped back, and picked up a chair setting it up right then gesturing for me to take a seat.

"If you want to know, I will tell you," he replied as I took a seat in the offered chair, watching him move about the room to a bookcase as if he had been here so many times before. "You know this place well?"

Chuckling sounded from within the bookshelves as he popped his head back out and looked at me. "You can say that."

"What do you mean?" I asked, opening my mouth only for him to quickly come striding toward me with a brown book covered in emerald stones.

"I can explain everything in time... for now, first things first-Anna."

He took a seat next to me and flipped the book open to a drawing of a woman with reddish brown hajk and blue eyes. She was strikingly beautiful, but what stayed with me the most is how much she looked just like me—or well, a mixture of my mother and me.

"This is Anna?" I asked, tearing my gaze from the book only to see him staring intently at the woman as if seeing her face brought back memories he hadn't seen in forever. "You knew her, didn't you?" Blinking quickly, he averted his gaze from the woman and frowned. "Something like that. Anyways... I guess it's best to start from the beginning."

I didn't bother to say anything, and as I watched him flip the pages, I settled in for whatever story he had to tell me. If it would help me get closer to figuring out what was wrong with Lucas, then so be it.

"So a thousand years ago, there

were two people who ruled your kind in a way the world had never seen. The Alpha's name was Bjorn, and his Luna was the lovely Anna. She never wanted to be his, and her union to him was actually formed in a blood promise her mother had made before she was born in return for Bjorn saving her life. He was a man many feared, but over time, Anna grew to love him and she was the only one who could control Bjorn when he lost his mind."