Page 45 of Cry of the Damned
“Well, I never had sex before, so I have nothing to compare it to, but it was amazing.”
“Really? It rarely is on a girl’s first time, unless he knows what he’s doing, and I guess Kall does.”
“He made a big point of making sure I… enjoyed myself.” My cheeks heated, and I felt bad for having this conversation with Bethel and not with my sister, but for some reason, it was less embarrassing with the witch.
“Nice! So you climaxed?”
“Twice.”
“Really nice!”
“I didn’t until my fifth time,” she said, sounding miffed. “It just wasn’t as much fun in the beginning.”
“That sucks.” I pondered my next question for a moment, then decided to ask. “So I guess you and Novuk haven’t…?”
“Nope. That would require him to make a move.” She sighed. “Anyway, I’m afraid that if we do, I’ll be lost to my coven forever. I love him,” she admitted. “I think I always have, but in these last few weeks, it has become evident. He is so tender and good-hearted, and he understands me so well. But my mother would never approve, even if he stopped being a coward.”
“You’ll figure it out, Bethel.”
“I hope so.”
The van suddenly stopped, and Bethel and I rocked back and forth. She clung to my waist while I clung to the shelf in front of me, my heart beating faster. Immediately, Bethel started reciting her spell of concealment.
We barely breathed as we stood, waiting. We had arrived at the Academy gates, and Owen would not be allowed in until the guards checked every inch of the van.
A door slammed shut, and Owen got out of the driver’s seat. I heard the crunch of gravel as people walked around the vehicle. It took a few moments before the back doors were thrown open and light spilled into the dark space.
Our hearts were beating so hard and fast that I could easily hear them, and I could only be grateful that the guards did not possess enhanced senses like I did.
The van rocked from side to side as someone climbed into the back with us. Through the gap in the shelves, I saw a bearded guard wearing a blue uniform with polished buttons. He examined each box, reading the labels carefully and lifting them as if to weigh them to judge their contents.
He worked methodically, checking each shelf and slowly working from the front toward the back. When he stood in front of the stacked boxes that flanked us, he furrowed his brow. Bethel’s spell was causing him to see a second stack of boxes where we stood, but if he looked too closely, the illusion would fall apart.
Leaning closer, he narrowed his eyes and peered straight at me.
My heart took a tumble. He had discovered us. I called my wolf to the surface, ready to fight. Except, his gaze slid right off me, and he began to test the bungee cords.
“I need to look at these,” he announced as he removed the first cord.
“Sure thing,” Owen called, and at this point, he knew to give the others the signal.
The guard had only removed the second bungee cord when a deep howl tore through the quiet of the placid afternoon outside.
“What the hell?!” the guard exclaimed, instantly stopping what he was doing and leaping out of the van. “What was that?”
“Sounded like a damn wildling,” a voice I didn’t recognize said, likely a second guard.
“This close and in the daytime? Where did it come from?”
But no answer came because there was another howl, this time closer.
“There!” the second guard exclaimed. “Call for reinforcements. You. Get this damn van out of the way.”
“Yes, yes,” Owen said, sounding frazzled and scared.
The back door slammed shut, plunging us into darkness once more. Then the engine came to life, and we were moving forward again. I waited for someone to stop the van and tell Owen to turn back around and head to town, but all I heard was gravel crunching as people ran frantically and shouted orders to go after the wildlings.
A moment later, the van came to a stop again. The back doors opened, light spilled in, and Owen started unloading boxes onto a cement platform reserved for that purpose. He’d said that someone would meet him there to receive the order, but after he’d unpacked a few boxes, he spoke under his breath.
