Beautiful Creatures Series

Chapter 16: 14

It was almost 6:00 AM when Stanton came into the house quietly, trying not to wake her, but Aurora had been up all night wondering where he had been. “Where have you been?” She demanded as he closed the door. “Why are you, Hummingbird?”

“Why am I up?” She was stunned by the question and the state in which he was in. “Why are you covered in blood?”

“Don’t worry. It’s not mine,” he said, making his way to the washroom, where he peeled off his bloody clothes.

“Not yours? How’s blood, is it?” He didn’t answer as he threw his clothes on the floor and started the shower. Aurora watched him get in and stand under the water, letting it wash the blood away. “God damn it, don’t ignore me. Whose blood is it?” Stanton just shot her a look, and she knew exactly who’s blood it was. “You went back for him, didn’t you?”

“He deserved what he got,” he told her, taking the body wash from the edge of the tub.

“You killed him?”

Stanton washed the blood off his face and then turned to face her. “Not the first time and probably won’t be the last.”

“It’s murder.”

Stanton turned off the shower and grabbed a towel as he got out. “Don’t give me that self-righteous tone. You have killed people too.”

“To protect myself.”

“Bullshit!” He yelled at her making her jump. “You’ve killed people because you lost your temper,” he pointed at his face. “Look… look what that fucker did to me. I can never get my eye back and why because he was afraid that I would give his punk ass a beat down for insulting my girl. I did a public service killing him, one less asshole in the world,” he snarled as he found some clean clothes and got dressed. Aurora watched as he pulled his boots on. It looked like he was leaving again.

“Where are you going now?”

“Work,” he snapped. “The bills don’t pay themselves,” he opened the door and stormed out, slamming the door behind him so hard a picture fell off the wall, and the frame shattered upon impact with the floor.

Oh… that man.

***

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Aurora,” Aster said as she brought a big bowl of popcorn to the coffee table. Aster had the day off. She had left her assistant in command of her bakery in Aspen, claiming that every once and a while, even the boss needed a day off. So, she had invited Aurora over to rent a movie with the girls. “I’m sure they were careful. It’s not the first body the pack has disposed of.”

“Am I the only person who thinks what they did was wrong?” Aurora asked.

“You said yourself you wanted to kill the guy,” Aster pointed out as she sat down on the couch.

“I might have wanted to, but I didn’t.”

“You’re saying you have never killed anyone?” Charlotte asked from her place on the floor where she was sitting cross-legged and picking at the popcorn.

“I have but only in self-defence,” both women stared at her with the same expression, the one saying they weren’t buying her answer. “Ok, maybe 50% self-defence – 50% anger,” both women laughed. “What?”

“Yeah, we have heard that you have a bit of a temper,” Charlotte giggled.

I had a temper?” She demanded

yeah, I can clearly see that’s

anger issue,” she said, reaching for the popcorn. “I’m just worried. Stanton got

when the news came on. Charlotte had been browsing the rentals, but in the background, they could still hear what was playing

and now they were watching the video coverage of the police retrieving the body. The station flashed a file photo of the victim they had gotten from the family. Aurora recognized the victim immediately. It was the man

the guy,” Aurora confirmed. “This is

really bad,” Charlotte confirmed.

Senator is going to want his son’s death investigated,” Aster said. “Were there a

nodded. “The

very first suspect, then you,”

TV says they believe it was an

still going investigate,” Aster

real problem. A dead Senator’s son was killed by wild animals and found floating in a river. That’s going to make national news,” Charlotte pointed

“So.”

to draw hunters,” Aster clarified.

would be a bad thing. “We

her cellphone. “I

***

way things were playing out, but it wasn’t Aurora’s fault. That girl was a frustratingly gorgeous magnet for assholes. He couldn’t blame her for the way others treated her. Life with Aurora would be an ongoing fight, not with her but with every other man walking

of his SUV. He picked the bouquet up and got out of the vehicle.

football jersey with the right side slipping off her shoulder and her hair swept up in one of those sloppy buns. In one hand,

that this was his life or that she was his girl. He never wanted

She rushed over to him and framed his face with her hands pulling him down so she could kiss him hard. Then she pulled back and slapped him across the face with an angry look. Stanton was both excited and

you been? I have been calling you all day, and you have been ignoring me,” Aurora snarled. She was right. He had been ignoring her calls because he hadn’t known what to say to her. Still speechless, he offered her the flowers he had brought. She glanced

yellows mean I’m sorry,”

playful grin. “How

“Google,” he snickered.

to the cupboards looking for something to use

I needed some time to think,” Stanton said as he took a seat at the small kitchen table while she placed the flowers in an unused water pitcher.

cooling in the pan. She brought both to the table, placing a bowl in front

taking up his fork. He was dying

next to him.

question. Gordon had called a few times that day, but Stanton had not answered because he hadn’t felt like talking to anyone. He had every intention of calling his pack leader back later in the evening. “I think he called once or twice, but I didn’t answer,” Stanton was getting a bad feeling. “Is there something going on that I should know about?” Aurora was silent, but the look on her face told Stanton she had something

“The man you killed….”

about him. It’s over. Let us leave

“It’s not over.”

is. Just let the issue die with him.”

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