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Chapter 107: Aiden
“This feels silly,” I confess. Sarah is sprawled back against the pillows, her hair splayed out in an aura about her head. Her feet are in my lap as I sit cross-legged on the end of the bed. Her toenails are painted silver, sparkling gently in the dimmed light of the bedroom. She’s given me a pot of body cream to use, something that smells of sandalwood, bergamot and jasmine. The scent fills the room as soon as I take the lid off, woody and spicy.
“It’s not hard. Dab some of the cream on your hands. Rub them together to get it nice and warm.”
The heat makes the scent even stronger, mingling with Sarah’s own natural moss and resin. I fill my lungs with it. Maybe that’s not the best thing to do, because my jeans are going to get pretty uncomfortable if I keep doing that.
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Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 108 Part 1: Sarah
Aiden seems a little preoccupied over breakfast, and it becomes clear why when he leans forwards a bit over his coffee. “Uh, so. Did you want to talk to the rest of the Pack before you meet them? Because there’s the phone, or the Pack link. I don't know what you’d prefer.” I give the question some thought. It seems more personal to speak mind to mind than to meet in person. Do I want to jump straight in with that? The others all met before the Pack was formed. They were friends first. Aiden and I, we met in the flesh before anything else happened. Then again, how often have I thought that interactions would go differently if people could speak to me first, without seeing me? Even some of those who do their best not to be prejudiced still seem to struggle with treating me no differently than anyone else. Would it be better to strip away the visible surface and
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Nothing happens. Does the time of day, or night, make a difference? It has never seemed to bother Bellmouth, but he’s a dog. The Horseman’s horse only seems to appear at night, although the Horseman himself has shown up at other times. Perhaps the rules for each ghost are different? The kettle is boiling. I reach to get down a mug, turn back to the kettle, and end up almost dropping the mug. Mary is standing there, looking at the kettle with a mixture of distrust and fascination. The kettle at Backmarsh heats on the hob, I remember. Mine here is electric and has no visible means of heating. “It’s not magic,” I tell her. “The base there, it’s something like a warming pan that you’d put hot coals in. It’s not exactly the same. It uses the same stuff that the lights use, instead of coals, and that heats the water in the jug.”
Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 109 Part 1: Aiden
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Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 109 Part 2: Aiden
That was probably a stupid idea. The threat level in the room just jumped from zero to eight. Maybe nine. Not ten, because nobody has attacked me. Yet. “Just so you know,” I say out loud, “anyone can choose not to hear me. I can’t force you to listen. You can block me out. I’m here to help, not to take charge.”Russel in particular still looks furious. Christy places her hand on his arm.“Think about this,” I say quickly, before someone tries taking a swing at me. “Haven’t you ever had to meet with a werewolf from another Pack to talk, when you’d much rather have been able to do it at a distance? Had times when things went bad because someone snapped and lashed out, mostly because the other person was right there in front of them? Or wanted to be able to talk to someone, couldn’t trust the
Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 110: Sarah
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Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 111: Aiden
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Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 112: Sarah
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Rhapsody for a Wolf Chapter 113: Aiden
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