HUNTED

Aila took the phone from Finn, ignoring the flush of anger boiling beneath the surface of his eyes mixed with concern. She knew his anger wasn't directed at her, she could tell. But this didn't stop her from feeling guilty. Everything happened so quickly that she wasn't sure how she felt about it before even answering her mate. Before even placing the phone to her ear, she could feel Damon's rage.

A shiver rippled through her, and she turned her back to Finn, placing the phone to her ear, keeping herself composed while her body tensed, prepared for her ears to burst from his angry voice. Aila readied herself to defend herself. She inhaled deeply and breathed out, almost feeling faint. "Hello?"

Dread, she was feeling dread. She wasn't fearful of Damon, of course not, but Damon was jealous at the best of times, trying hard not to attack men who only looked at her. Now, a man, not only a man but a vampire, had touched her, confessed his feelings to her, brought her jewellery and kissed her cheek. Everything that happened while Finn was on the phone to Damon in the same room.

She gripped the phone harder, and her heart pounded so loudly that she thought it might jump out of her chest and run away.

"I hear ya, this is too much! And he hasn't even said anything!" Malia whisper-shouted and hid again. Aila rolled her eyes. 

"Pussy," Aila replied and waited for Damon's voice on the other end of the call.

It was a tense few seconds; she could hear his barely contained growl. "Aila," He breathed, the growl subsided, and she tried not to flinch from how he said her name. "Would you care if that LEECH was killed?" He said slowly, dangerously low and crisp.

"Damon.." She gulped and stared outside, looking past her reflection in the glass. "I'm sorry you had to hear that. As for the kiss-"

"How.." He began, his voice chilling her to the bone. There was no growling, there was no shouting, he was calm and clear with how he spoke, yet his emotions were skyrocketing. "did he manage to kiss you?"

"He.." She pursed her lips and looked around, noticing Finn still standing guard at the doorway, his arms crossed against his chest, facing away from her. "Finn.." She called to him; he turned around and she gestured for him to close the door. She didn't care about the others knowing, they were her closest friends now, but she felt better for having the door closed, at least. 

Aila sighed and almost raked her hand through her hair but stopped after remembering it was a wig. "Cassius knows my wolf's true name," She muttered.

"HE WHAT!?" Both Damon and Finn shouted, making Aila blink back in surprise at Finn's shaking form and glancing at the phone now pulled away from her ear at Damon's sudden roaring voice.

"I.. don't know what happened, but I couldn't move away, and then when my wolf tried to take control to get me out of the situation, he called to her and commanded her to stop," Aila blurted out before truly understanding what she was saying. It was true she couldn't move; she felt captivated by him, by his eyes, did he use compulsion on her? She frowned; no, Cassius wouldn't do that. But still, she let him get close to her.

He could have so easily in the past used his mind control. It was only now that Malia tried to intervene that he used her true name against them, so he could kiss her cheek. At least he didn't kiss her on the lips, that would destroy any friendship between them, and she would hate him for it. Maybe, Cassius knew that, which is why he hasn't pushed her?

Ugh!

"I can't believe he knows your true name.. Wait, you called him Cassius?" Finn interrupted her thoughts. By now, she had Damon on loudspeaker; he had been reticent. Aila didn't know if she liked that or not; she could feel his burning rage. It was slowly bubbling in the pit of her stomach.

Aila sighed. "That's what he has told me to call him.. It added up to what I was beginning to suspect.."

Finn sat down on the bed, scowling at what she said. Aila could see him thinking deeply to the point she thought a blood vessel might pop in his head. "Cassius.." He murmured.

A knock at the door startled the pair in the room, then the door opened, revealing Ajax and Chase. The pair looking dapper in their own suits, and Finn looking smart wearing a shirt, jeans, and smart shoes. If there wasn't a tense atmosphere in the master bedroom, Aila would have complimented on the three looking so suave. 

Ajax whistled. "I'm getting some really intense vibes going on in here.." He held his hands up and glanced at the pair whose shoulders were stiff.

"Aila," Damon's quiet voice broke through any reply she was about to give and quietening any further discussion from her comrades. "Be safe, angel. Finn, look after her."

"On it," Finn replied instantly. Aila half expected him to salute the phone from how serious his expression was.

Aila parted her lips to reply, but Damon spoke up again. "And Aila.. I will deal with you soon." He hung up, leaving Aila standing there in stunned silence. She expected his fiery self, but instead, he hung up on her with those words hanging in the air.

"Okay, whatever has happened needs to be paused. We need to get going," Chase spoke up, dragging Aila out of her reverie. She placed the cards in her clutch bag and played with her wig a bit, giving herself one last look in the mirror before taking Ajax's outstretched arm. 

Unfortunately, Chase was right, and she needed to push past her spiralling feelings of guilt and anger so she could focus on the rest of the night. Once they met with Cassius and his friend, they could start planning how to skillfully take down the hunters with the most minor casualties.

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