Alpha Nocturne’s Contracted Mate by A E Randell
Chapter 241 A Good Friend and Ally
Ann blinked at Lexi in confusion.
“Wait, I don’t understand. What are you saying? Are you related then? And., wait, why would I feel that she’s familiar?”
Lexi stopped and turned to Ann, sighing slightly.
“Because, Papa said that before she died, my mama and yours were good friends. She tried to help her fight against whatever it was that was smothering her soul but… well… you know the rest.” Lexi explained seriously, all humor gone from her face as she suddenly seemed almost melancholy, “So it turns out, both of us have been around the type of energy that Aoife carries with her. Papa thinks she’s a witch too, not like Narcissa or Ada though, the ones that were hunted to extinction around the time that mama., well… you know.” Lexi trailed off sadly.
“But, wait… I thought there were no other witches left. Did they escape then?” Ann asked eagerly.
This information was monumental. Adam’s family had close ties with a so called ‘good’ witch who had helped them with the charms that warded off the dark magick and given his grandmother a reputation for being impervious to evil, but the only thing that remained of that legend was the heirloom jewelry that Ann wore religiously every day now since Narcissa had successfully kidnapped her thanks to her own stupidity “Papa had no idea until he chanced upon Aoife with Felix. He says it has a certain smell to it, like… sunshine and dewy meadows, deep earthy forest scents, you know, that kind of thing, like, nature at its purest.” Lexi explained carefully, “It’s the same branch of magick that my mother had, that the witch’s soul inside me holds.”
Ann nodded gently.
“So it appears that Aoife would indeed be a good friend and ally to have.” Ann mused as they walked a little slower toward her quarters.
“Yes. Papa is sure that she either doesn’t know about Jasper’s transgressions, or that she is powerless to speak out against them. Think about it, the Dubois family must know her parents, and from what Papa says, the witches are proud of their lineage. Each member of their family is like a branch or a root of a tree that gets stronger with each generation as the magick condenses from the parents in each child born. The larger the roots and branches within a family, the more powerful the family and its offspring. If they’ve been living in secret for so long…Ann, what if they’ve threatened to eradicate her family if she speaks against them? What if they have them imprisoned?” Lexi said, biting her lip as she looked at Ann with worry in her eyes.
“Try not to overthink this Lexi. Let’s not jump to conclusions just yet, okay? We don’t know the full story, and hopefully, tonight will bring us a little closer to Aoife. We have a lot of time to get to know her whilst the boys are away. Then, if she feels close enough to us at any point to reach out for help, then we can offer her safe haven if she needs it.” Ann reasoned cautiously, “I know you want to bring Jasper to justice as much as I do, but we can’t afford to make any mistakes when dealing with the Dubois… that includes not jumping to conclusions, Lexi.”
“I know, I just… I feel so damn helpless with all of this. I want to bring that heartless, overgrown poodle to justice, for Alien’s sake. and for the sake of all of his victims.” Lexi exhaled furiously.
Being unable to act as she usually would, was close to torture for Lexi, but she was willing to play the slow game if it meant getting what they needed. If she gained a friend that could help her learn more about her mother and her own lineage then that was just a bonus.
“And we will Lexi, I promise. But right now, I need you to wipe that scowl off your face and get yourself back into the happy-go-lucky Lexi that was here a few minutes ago. Unless you want Aoife to be profoundly unsettled with your brooding.” Ann grinned as she pulled her friend into a hug and gave her a reassuring squeeze.
Lexi sighed as she relaxed into the hug for a moment, before taking a deep breath and pushing away from Ann, regarding her with a mischievous look.
“Fine. As you wish, Queenie, serious Lexi has now been put away safely so that wild Lexi can come out to play.” She grinned wickedly as she continued, “Last one to Aoife’s door has to buy the first round!”
Ann watched her helplessly as Lexi yelled loudly before sprinting off down the corridor. How she was able to run in those heels was completely beyond Ann, there was no way that she was going to beat her even in her flats.
As they arrived at Aoife’s door, slightly out of breath and giggling like teenagers, the door opened to reveal a rather bemused-looking Aoife.
“Are you two okay?” She asked, a slow smile forming on her lips as Ann and Lexi struggled to catch their breath between fits of giggles.
“Yeah,” Ann managed to get out finally, “Lexi decided that immaturity was the way forward tonight with a race to see who would reach your door first.”
“Immature but smart,” Lexi corrected triumphantly, “Now you have to buy the first round, Queenie.” Ann snorted and rolled her eyes.
“The jokes on you Lexi, drinks are on the house tonight courtesy of our incredible bar staff,” Ann retorted with a smirk, laughing again as Lexi’s face fell.
“You mean I ran in these heels, and nearly broke my neck for nothing?!1’ she protested loudly as Aoife giggled behind her hand helplessly.
“If I ran in those heels and that dress though, I think I’d be more worried about spilling out over the top of it,” Aoife commented dryly as Lexi’s head whipped around to look at her in surprise
“And here was me thinking that you were a timid little cutie pie with a respectable background,” She chided teasingly as she leaned forward and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of her bedroom and into the corridor, “I think you’re a dark horse, Aoife.” She continued with a smirk as Ann closed Aoife’s bedroom door as Lexi led her off down the corridor.
“Me?” Aoife squeaked as Lexi peered at her closely.
“Yes, you I have a sneaking suspicion that you’re going to outdrink us all.” Lexi sniggered as Aoife looked over her shoulder at Ann helplessly.
Ann grinned and shrugged, letting Lexi take the lead with conversation as she quickened her pace to catch up with them.
“Queenie and her stunningly beautiful and witty second in command are off duty as of now,” Lexi grinned, “Tonight Aoife, you’re going to be spending time with Ann and Lexi No titles, no stupid restrictions with etiquette and decorum, just plain old Lexi and Ann. I hope you’re prepared for it.”
Aoife seemed to swallow nervously as she looked between Lexi’s predatory eyes that held a wicked glint, and Ann’s now subtly altered demeanor. She briefly wondered if she had done the right thing by accepting their invitation for a girl’s night but tried her best to shake her reservations away.
These two women felt nothing like the aura’s of the few women that frequented the Dubois residence. There didn’t seem to be any pretense in the way that they treated her, nor was there any false niceness. It actually felt like they were being genuine with her which was a nice change
Aoife bit her lip though as her mind filled with self-doubt. If they found out that she was witch born, would they reject her friendship? What if they already knew and just wanted to use her for their own gain? She sighed internally. Only time would tell on those factors, one thing was for sure though, her life certainly seemed to be following the trajectory of the prophecy that her mother had warned her about.
It really was true what they said. There was no fighting fate once it had wrapped its icy fingers around you.