The Love of a Lycan

"I declare to you that woman must not depend upon the protection of man, but must be taught to protect herself, and there I take my stand."

-Susan B. Anthony-

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Serefina and Raine arrived at their destination after hours of flight, during the trip they didn't talk at all, if it wasn't a necessary case. 

It wasn't because Raine was having a hard time communicating with Serefina, but the witch didn't really try to make a small talk with her either.

They both looked like strangers to one another. 

Probably before they could start something, the first thing that they needed to work on was the way they interact with each other. 

Raine thought Serefina was still fuming mad because of Torak's sudden arrangement to open his new business plan in the same country as they were at. 

She could see Serefina clenched and unclenched her fist a couple of times, and breathed deeply in order to calm her tensed nerves. 

Called her thoughtless, but Raine enjoyed the sight of Serefina fumed with anger. She had been mostly annoying since the first time they met, and now Torak gave her another headache and annoyed her back, so how could Raine not be consoled with this?

However, she couldn't let the witch know about this, or else her days ahead wouldn't be easy. 

Raine kept walking two steps behind Serefina as her presence was so intimidating. If she could choose, she wanted to be anywhere else on the planet, except beside the witch. Her self-consciousness kept reminding her how uncomfortable she was.

"Can you walk faster? I don't want to be troubled looking for you if you are lost!" Serefina hissed at her and looked at Raine who was shorter than her, through her shoulder, disdainfully. "Torak really spoiled you too much until you can't even move your ass faster than my cat."

The harsh comment made Raine's body fidgeted nervously as the unpleasant memories flew back and filled her head.

Would it be the same as before?

"Raise your chin and look at me!" Serefina suddenly stopped walking and crossed her slender arms in front of her chest provocatively. She seemingly was venting out her anger at Torak to his mate—the girl in front of her.

This witch was about a head taller than Raine and with her red hair, made it seem like her head was flaring with flame, like medusa but with flame.

Raine tugged the strips of her backpack nervously as she stopped a bit further from her. 

"Come closer to me or I assure you, you will not like the things that I would do next." Serefina warned her. She had a temper that was worse than her step sister, Belinda, moreover she wasn't the patient type either.

Raine was aware about what Serefina could do, but would she do something atrocious in front of thousands of people?

She glanced at her surroundings secretly, they were in the airport and lots of people milling around with their suitcase. Not far from them, there were guards and airport police. She would be safe, wouldn't she?

But, before Raine could decide what she would do, she felt her feet move forcefully without her consent. She looked around in panic when she wasn't able to stop herself to move closer towards Serefina.

Only when Raine was standing in front of her, her feet stopped moving and by 'didn't move', her feet literally were not able to move an inch from the spot where she was standing now.

Raine's body started to tremble as her heart called out the only name that crossed her mind every time she felt insecure.

Torak…

Tears began to well up in the corner of her eyes as fear crept in.

"Raise your head and look at me!" Serefina hissed viciously.

And like her feet, her head and eyes moved without her consent to meet Serefina's glaring one. It scared Raine terribly. 

"Do you really think that I can't do anything in an open public space like this?" She waved her hand to her surroundings and scoffed. "Think again."

The feeling of being controlled was awful and Raine didn't like it a bit. She was used to harsh words and physical abuse, but not this type of abuse. 

"When I talk to you, you have to look at me in the eyes like this, understand?!" Serefina squinted her eyes dangerously at Raine like a predator stared at their prey.

Raine wanted to nod her head, but she couldn't move a muscle.

"Answer me." Serefina ordered Raine sternly. 

"Understood…" Raine's voice was barely a whisper when she answered the witch as a tear of fear was rolling down on her cheek. 

Looking at her tears, Serefina scorned with derision. "Crying?" She raised her eyebrows. "Is that the only thing that you can do? Do you really think your tears could stop 'them' from killing you?"

Raine wasn't sure whom Serefina referred to as 'them', but they must be those creatures that had been hunting her for years. 

"If you can't even raise your head to face me, how do you expect that you will survive living in this place? Out of your mad mate's territory! You think Torak will always be here for you in every dangerous situations to save your life!?" Serefina's words were very hard to take in, though there was truth in it.

Raine knew Serefina was right, but her method was too harsh and too rushed for her. Raine needed some time to overcome her trauma and knowing she had to return to her own nightmare and faced the horror in her life again, didn't help her case at all.

"Don't wait for any men to save your ass, you have to save your own ass in order to survive! Understand!?" 

"Understood." Raine blinked her eyes rapidly to hold back her tears as she tried to gulp down the fear that went up to her throat.

Her face flushed with the color of red as her body trembled, if Torak were there, the word of 'mad' wouldn't be enough to describe his emotion, unfortunately he wasn't there. 

"It will be the first and the last time you ever cry in front of me." Serefine remarked sharply.