I am Sam

Slowly waking up to the sound of pure amplification of someone playing a tune on an electric guitar, I don’t even have to guess; I know it’s Caleb. Even with him playing as quietly as possible, and trust me, I never thought it possible for someone like him to do this, the sound is still crystal clear instead of muffled.

The song he’s playing is something I’ve heard before, but I don’t know the name of it. Taking a slow breath, I turn my head toward where I can hear the song being played when my eyes suddenly land on Caleb.

He’s right beside me, seated on the bed and resting against the wall behind him; his knees are drawn up as the guitar rests against his chest, his eyes are closed as his brows furrow with every note he pulls, and I can’t help but feel lost in this moment, a raw glimpse into his soul as his darkness reveals something so beautiful and broken.

He must notice that I’m awake, even though I haven’t said anything; opening his eyes and looking down at me, he continues to play the song, and I see it in his eyes; for just a moment, I see how badly he’s hurting, and I can’t help wishing that I could turn back time for him somehow, to before he lost his brother and his entire life spiraled out of control.

I’m suddenly giving him a curious smile,

“I’ve heard that song before somewhere, but I’ve never heard it played like that,” I say softly. Cocking a brow in my direction, he smirks,

“Oh really, and how is that?”

“Like your soul is bleeding through the cords.”

Caleb swallows hard as he looks away from me, his brows furrowing as he continues to play the song.

“What’s it called?” I ask suddenly,

“Nothing else matters; it’s Metallica.” Nodding, I turn my entire body towards him as I rest my hands under my head,

“It’s beautiful.”

Smirking, he suddenly stops playing as he eyes me warily,

“Beautiful? That’s the first time I’ve heard someone refer to my kind of music as beautiful.” Shrugging, I’m giving him a sympathetic look,

“Well, not all you’re music is, but this song is.” Nodding, he sighs before placing the guitar down on the floor against the wall; turning back to face me, he smirks,

“Be careful little girl; rumours might start flying around that you’re psychotic just like me if you’re into this stuff.” Rolling my eyes at him, I suddenly huff sarcastically,

“Be careful little boy; rumours might start flying around that we’re actually friends.” Narrowing his eyes at me, he abruptly scoffs before bringing his face right up to me, his eyes piercing mine.

“I’m far from little; I could show you if you’d like?” He suddenly dips his head down like he’s going to kiss me when I cup my hand over his mouth; sighing, I cock a brow at him,

“You’re relentless, you know that?”

Suddenly pulling my hand away, he instantly pushes my forefinger into his mouth and sucks it from the base to the tip.

Grimacing; I quickly pull my finger out of his mouth before shaking my head with a groan,

“Is everything about sex to you?”

“Not everything, but I’ve lost my fuck buddy to Noah, and I’ve got needs,” Cocking his head as his eyes meet mine, he suddenly wets his lips, “No one needs to know; I won’t tell you’re mate, it can be our little secret, what do ya say?” He suddenly waggles his eyebrows in the most humorous, dark way, and I can’t help but start giggling at him,

“Yeah, he might not know, but I will. And besides, I like having you as a friend; if Wolf kills you, then who else will torment me over what a sucky fighter I am?”

“I’m not afraid of you’re mate, little one, and besides,” Leaning forward, his body is suddenly right over mine, his breath on my lips, as his dark eyes suddenly express thoughts and desires best left unsaid, “You haven’t ever been fucked by someone like me before, trust me, I’ll drag you into the very pits of sin itself, and you’ll be begging to drown in it with me.” Gulping hard, I’m suddenly groaning in frustration, cupping my hands over my face as I shake my head.

“You’re not being a very good friend, you know that?” Scoffing, he suddenly rolls off of me before getting up and giving me a sinister sideways grin,

“I never said I was good,” I’m about to retort with something when my stomach suddenly rumbles. We both look down simultaneously as it rumbles again; Caleb suddenly smirks as he shakes his head, “Saved by your stomach.” He says as he grabs my arm and yanks me up off the bed to stand as a tiny squeak leaves my lips,

“Where are we going?”

“Kitchen, obviously. ” He shrugs nonchalantly, and all I can do is roll my eyes at him; try as I might to deny it, the truth is that Caleb and I are becoming friends; who would have ever thought?

~

“You want me to read?” I’m giving him a confused and questioning look.

“Yeah, I’ve already opened eight books on the table over there; time to stop being such a weak ass and start learning about magic.” He retorts, pointing out towards a large wooden desk in the library; turning my head towards it, I’m suddenly raising my brows in surprise. After getting something to eat he decided to bring me here, to the library for some unknown reason. The moment my eyes land on all the books on the table my jaw goes slack in response,

“All those?” I ask in disbelief,

“Yeah, all those.” Walking me over to the desk, he suddenly grips me by my shoulders as he forces me down onto a chair right in front of heaps of really ancient-looking books.

Bringing his lips close to my ear, he suddenly smirks, “You can either read, or we can fuck, you’re choice.” Swallowing down a heavy lump, a small gasp escapes my lips,

“Which book first, or doesn’t it matter?” Smirking, he suddenly pulls away,

“This one,” He says, pointing towards the one right in front of me, “Abjuration, when I get back, I’ll test you on it. And if you don’t know the answers...” A quick air intake suddenly has me swallowing hard when I feel his breath fanning my ear, “Let’s see how badly you want to stay faithful to your wolf mate, Sasha.” The way my name rolls off of his tongue should be illegal. When he finally pushes away from me before turning and heading towards the door, I’m suddenly letting out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. Caleb would easily drag me down to hell with him if I gave him half the chance. His sinful and dark nature is enough to make any girl lose control; being friends with this guy could get me into serious trouble, if I don't keep a level head.

ABJURATION

Protective, dispelling, dismissal...

I’m so engrossed in reading about these abjuration spells that I don’t even realize I’ve been sitting here for the past three hours; it must be late afternoon. And the moment I hear the door open and shut, I’m suddenly speaking to Caleb without even looking up at him; I have my finger firmly placed on the page; I’m not even going to give him a chance to try his dark seductive methods with me,

“Protective spells offer protection against creatures, weapons and forms of magic. Dispelling spells cause the elimination of specific magical effects, like, removing a curse.” Smirking, my brows suddenly furrow, “Do you think I can use this to remove the curse on Wolf?”

But I’m only met with silence.

“Caleb?” I frown the moment I turn my head to look up toward the door, I’m suddenly met with the same black voided eyes from earlier this morning in the forest; he’s standing just a few feet away from me, blocking the door.

Gasping, I’m suddenly back peddling, almost falling over my own feet as I start going backwards away from him, books are falling as I fail my arms about, I’m about to scream when the creature suddenly moves towards me so fast that I’m frozen in place, cupping his white clay covered hand over my mouth, he suddenly shoves me back against the bookshelf behind me. My eyes widen in shock, staring into his dark eyes, his face only inches away from mine. I'm completely terrified.

His dark, voided eyes are intense, not allowing me to look away even if I wanted to. Slowly tilting his head from side to side, his movements are rigid and fidgety, albeit still. The moment he finally speaks, his voice is low and dark,

“When I heard that there was a wolf in the witch’s realm, I had to come to see for myself.” His darkened eyes are still piercing mine, “If you scream, I’ll snap your neck, understand?” Nodding, my brows suddenly come together, panic suddenly shaking me in response.

He slowly lowers his hand from my mouth, and the moment I can open my mouth, I’m still staring up at him in complete silence,

“W-what do you want?” I ask in a whimper,

“To understand.” He responds gravely,

“Understand what?” I can't think of one reason this creature would want me?

“Why you’re here? Why would Ronan keep a wolf in his castle?”

“I’m a half-witch.” I suddenly retort, but it doesn't exactly surprise him,

“So? Ronan isn’t known for keeping things that are impure, so what makes you so special?”

“Nothing,” I say quickly shaking my head,

“You’re lying.” And the moment he brings his face up to the hollow of my throat, he slowly breathes in as he groans; the action instantly makes me wince, I can't catch a scent with him, it's like he doesn't have one.

He's still breathing me in when he suddenly freezes, he takes in another breath, this time slower, more profound than before. His entire body tenses when he pulls his face away and narrows his eyes at me, “You’ve been marked by an Ultima wolf; that’s impossible; they’ve all been killed.” Clenching my jaw, I suddenly look down,

“How do you know that?”

Slowly lifting his hand up to run his fingers down my jaw line, my eyes suddenly land on something around his wrist, narrowing my eyes at it; I’m suddenly looking up at him in confusion,

Wolf cuffs?

“I can smell him on you,” He says with a low growl that instantly sends a shudder down my spine.

“W-who are you?” His voice is suddenly low and threatening beside my ear when he speaks,

“I’m the one who will bring Ronan and Malvessa down to their knees for what they did.” My brows suddenly knit together in confusion as I look at him; who’s Malvessa?

But before I can ask, a sudden low growl reverberates from him when the door swings wide open,

“Sasha!”

Caleb’s suddenly right there yanking the creature off of me, shoving him back as he stands glaring at him.

“You don’t get to fucking touch her.” And I’ve never heard Caleb’s voice so deep and threatening before. Still, the creature only growls at him, glaring at Caleb as he cocks his head, suddenly revealing sharp elongated canines. Wait, what?”

Caleb suddenly has thorny bushes erupting from his body in thick vines, extending outwards towards the creature in a sudden explosion. Caleb’s cornering him with the thorns, forcing him back against the wall as he stands protectively in front of me, when I suddenly call out to him,

“Caleb, the window.” But before he can stop him, the creature suddenly leaps for the window, breaking through the glass as he jumps out of it, and I’m gasping in horror; it’s at least a ten-foot drop.

Caleb and I suddenly run towards the window; looking down, the creature is already bolting towards the forest.

How did he do that?

Turning to face me, Caleb is suddenly infuriated with himself,

“Stay. Here!” He shouts out before leaping out the window,

“Caleb!” Shouting back in a panic, I’m instantly relieved when vines begin growing out of his arms like a rope; they’re lowering him swiftly to the ground; it’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen.

I watch as Caleb runs after the creature, following him towards the forest.

I’m gulping hard; what should I do? I know he said to stay here, but this creature. I don’t think he’s an Unseelie creature like everyone thought; I think he’s a wolf.

My mind is entirely frantic as I bolt down the stairs; how is it possible that there’s a wolf in the witch’s realm? How did he get here? Weren’t they all banished or something like that?

A thousand things are racing through my mind as I climb the bridge; my lungs are burning, and I’m suddenly sprinting towards the forest. My own wolf suddenly driving me; she’s pushing me harder. And as she ripples through my skin, I’m suddenly picking up his scent, Caleb. I’m bolting towards where he is when the sudden tinge of coppery blood hits my senses, my eyes widen in sudden panic. Did Caleb kill the creature before I could get to them?

These frantic thoughts are suddenly driving me to run faster than I ever have; I can taste the blood on my tongue as I breathe it in; it’s getting stronger the closer I get; it’s so strong that it’s making me want to gag.

When I sprint and leap over a log in my way, the wind is suddenly knocked from me when I skid to a halt; my eyes are instantly wide as I stare down at the horrific scene before me,

“Caleb!”

Dropping to my knees by his side, I’m panting hard, my eyes scanning over his body; there’s so much blood his entire back has been gashed wide open. My hands instantly go to cover the wound, instinctively trying to stop the bleeding, but the damage is far too severe; I can’t cover it, not even with both my hands put together,

“Caleb, Caleb...” I’m suddenly whimpering, but he doesn’t make a sound. He’s bleeding out fast, the blood literally gushing from the open flesh. Shit, shit, shit. What do I do!?

Lifting my hand to feel for a pulse against his neck, I’m instantly relieved that he’s still alive, but barely; it’s so faint. His blood is pooling around him on the ground, he’s dying right before me, and I don’t know what to do.

“Caleb...” Soft whimpers have me pressing my face against his side, but he still doesn’t respond. He’s running out of time; what am I meant to do? If Atlas were here, then he would...

I’m suddenly sitting upright, my eyes wide with recognition; Atlas healed my broken rib that night; he said we could do it because we were spirit elements. Looking back at Caleb, I’m shaking, my hands covered in his blood. Closing my eyes, I’m trying to think of how my elemental power would heal him. I’m trying to focus on my abilities, but nothing’s happening. A low guttural sound of frustration suddenly erupts from me when I hold my hands out.

Work, why won’t you work?

Frustrated I want to try again; I have to try again when something rustles from the bushes in front of me; looking up, my entire body tenses when I see him standing there, the creature from earlier. He’s staring at me, slowly tilting his head from side to side as he steadily looks me over in confusion,

“Why do you care so much if he lives or dies?” His question instantly irks me,

“You did this!” I snap at him, suddenly furious instead of scared. Looking down at Caleb, the creature suddenly looks amused,

“I defended myself.” And his comment only infuriates me,

“Why are you even here?!” There’s suddenly anger and darkness within the black voids of his eyes,

“He took something from me, and for that, he deserves to die,” He seethes, his entire body tensing as he glares down at Caleb’s still bleeding form. My brows furrow as I blink back in confusion. The moment the creature comes at us, seemingly ready to attack Caleb again, something instinctive suddenly happens as I instantly scream out a word I remember from the book earlier.

“Stit!” I instantly place so much command behind that word, my hand flying out towards him in defense.

The creature suddenly being flung back a few paces, his eyes wide as he stares at me in agitation.

“Why would you protect him?!” My eyes have entirely glazed over with blue swirls of my element, bouncing off me in sparks of electricity as I stare down at Caleb. We are wholly surrounded by an invisible forcefield I must have conjured up.

“He’s my friend,” I whisper before looking back at the creature.

Narrowing his eyes at me, he suddenly gives a low growl,

“You choose wrong, young she-wolf. His heart is bound with the darkness of his true mate.” Before I can say anything, he instantly retreats back; the moment he disappears from view entirely, I slowly begin to feel the forcefield weakening as I lower my hand until it completely disappears.

His words run rampant in my head, but I cannot give them more thought now. Caleb is still bleeding out, and the moment my eyes lower to him, I can feel the tears suddenly wanting to fall. But I instantly force them back, my jaw clenching as I drop my hands over his still gushing wounds. Suddenly deciding at that very moment to turn my emotions off, I refuse to cry; I need to focus if this will work.

My hands are covering his wounds, pinching my eyes shut; I’m biting down against my lower lip so hard that I can taste the blood. I’m focusing on his injury, the blood gushing from it. I’m focusing on the very fibres of his open flesh knitting itself back together; I can see it in my mind’s eye as it stitches together. As the bleeding becomes less and less until it finally stops.

I can feel the warmth of my element taking over my body; it’s running down my arms straight into my hands. The heat gets hotter the more I focus on Caleb’s wounds being stitched back together, a tingly sensation echoing through me from my belly.

When I suddenly hear him groan, my eyes fly open, looking from my hands to him and back to my hands again. I blink back in shock and astonishment when I move them away. His wound is completely healed; it’s closed, with only three red scars from where the injuries had been. I’m still looking at my hands in disbelief when Caleb groans again.

“Caleb,” Slowly cupping his face in my bloody hands, I’m suddenly crying, and right now, I don’t care; he’s awake, alive, he isn’t dead, thank goddess, he isn’t dead.

“The creature...” He suddenly grumbles,

“Shh, it’s okay; he’s gone,” I whisper as I smile down at him through my tear-streaked eyes,

“How?” He grumbles again as he slowly turns onto his side to look at me; he’s as pale as a sheet and incredibly weak.

“I...” I begin to say as I bring my hands back up to my face to inspect them once again, “I think I did it,”

“Did what?” He asks, furrowing his brows in confusion,

“I think I conjured up a abjuration forcefield,” I say, looking up to where it had been just moments ago, “And I think I might have healed you.” I’m suddenly looking back down at him as my brows furrow in disbelief; a slight grin slowly creeps up at the corners of his mouth when he smirks,

“Not such a fucking weak ass after all, huh?” A sudden smile starts creeping up at the corners of my mouth; as I chuckle and suddenly hick up through some more tears. I still can’t believe I did that. The moment I switched off my emotions and focused... I’m suddenly wondering what else I can do if I were to actually become focused; and switched off my emotions.

Caleb groans again when he rolls onto his back, and I can see we’re not out of the woods yet; he’s incredibly pale,

“Caleb, what can I do to help?” Smirking, he shakes his head,

“Nothing; you’ve done more than I ever expected from you. I need to shift. My body needs time to recover, and I can’t do it in my human form.” My brows instantly furrow in response,

“Shift? You mean into the thing that’s inside of you?” I don’t know why but the thought suddenly has me swallowing hard. What if he’s like a demon or something? I mean, I could totally see Caleb rocking a demon vibe, actually. Opening his eyes to look up at me, he suddenly scoffs with a cocky grin,

“Hey, you have a thing inside you too, you know.” Smirking, I roll my eyes before looking down,

“Do you want me to go, leave you alone so you can shift?” Caleb suddenly grabs my hand as I’m about to move away, holding it in his, squeezing it tightly as his eyes instantly find mine.

“Stay, please.”

Swallowing hard, I suddenly nod with a small smile; I’m not scared of whatever is inside of him; I’m just not sure I’m ready for demon Caleb yet.

Giving me a reassuring look, Caleb closes his eyes as he lays his head back against the grass. I’m still holding onto his hand when something starts to happen, his skin begins to change, taking on a greenish shimmer, curiosity suddenly getting the better of me as my free hand lifts up to his face, and I’m slowly pulling his one eyelid back, gasping in amazement the moment I see his eye has a shimmering yellow, the round of his iris now a long black slit.

When he groans and his body arches off the ground, I suddenly jump back, falling straight down against the dirt; my eyes are wide, my jaw dropping as I stare up at him; he’s changing, shimmers of green forming around him like dust as his form begins to grow and change, as if in unison to one another.

Gasping out loud, I can only sit there and stare up as he continues to grow; I’m entirely in shock the moment his shift is complete, when his sizeable scaly head slowly lifts, extending from his long neck, giant body, and long tail. Gulping, my eyes roam down his body, his four legs, his claws for hands and feet.

He lowers his head to me; his yellow eyes are suddenly on mine, a low rumble vibrating from his chest when he gently nudges his forehead into me. Gasping, I swallow hard; I should be petrified, yet I’m not.

My hands suddenly land on the sides of his head; his head is enormous, bigger than even me, and his body must be thirty-five feet long. Blinking back in surprise, I suddenly smirk in astonishment as a slight grin creeps up at the corners of my mouth.

“So you’re a dragon, huh?” Nudging me with his head again, he slowly breathes out through his nostrils as another rumbling sound escapes his chest; he’s magnificent.

I can’t stop looking at him; I feel like pinching myself; I thought I’d seen it all until now.

“You’re big,” I say with a cheeky grin. I know immediately that Caleb would read something suggestive into those words, nudging me again, a low rumble having him close his eyes.

I can see he needs to rest, so when he suddenly lies down and begins curling into himself, I’m about to leave him to sleep, suddenly not fearing for him anymore; any creature that decides to take on Caleb the dragon right now would be out of they’re minds. But still, I’ll probably sit over on the side and just watch over him anyway.

He suddenly swings out his long green tail, hooking it around me before pulling me to him, gasping. I’m suddenly drawn to his side when he comes to rest his large head right beside me, caging me in.

I’m looking into his large yellow eye when I come to finally rest my head against the side of his body, making myself comfortable.

“Pushy dragon.” I suddenly snort with a grin. Huffing, I can literally see the eye roll he gives me, and I can’t help the smile that suddenly spreads wide across my lips.

I’m still staring into his sizeable yellow eye when my own eyes suddenly begin to get heavier; he might be a dragon, but he’s incredibly warm. I truly feel safe with him like this.

The events from earlier are racing through my mind of what the creature said about Ronan and this Malvessa; who was he talking about? And what has Ronan done to him? The last thing he said about Caleb also suddenly worries me; when he said he’s bound to the darkness of his true mate, was he talking about what Eris did? Does he know what she did?

Yawning once my eyes finally close, I’m utterly exhausted after everything that happened; the last thing coming out in a mumble as I slowly drift off to sleep has me tightening my hold on my dragon friend.

“I’m glad you’re not dead.”