Caleb’s P.O.V
When I returned back to the school building, I headed straight for the girl’s locker room, with the extra set of clothing that Caroline always kept inside my car in case of unexpected emergencies.
‘How is she holding up?’I had asked Caroline via our mental link.
‘Bring the change of clothes I keep in your car…’ Caroline had spoken almost hesitantly. ‘Aurora’s clothes…they’re ripped.’
I let out an involuntary growl as I clutched the bag with Caroline’s clothes in it, my claws ready to slice through. ‘I know.’ I told her through the link.‘I’ve got the clothes.’
‘Cal, please be calm,’Caroline reminded me gently. ‘She’s scared as it is. We don’t need to terrify her anymore.’
Knocking on the locker room door, I handed Caroline the bag of clothes and waited outside patiently while Aurora got dressed. I tried not to eavesdrop, because that would’ve been the polite thing to do; but every now and then, a sob or a stutter escaped Aurora’s lips and my ears would inevitably pick it up through the quietness all around us. I fisted my hands and shoved them into my jeans pockets.
Each sob made me want to go back after that scumbag! Why had I let him go so easily? That accident could’ve only caused him minor injuries, but my wolf wanted to rip that bastard to shreds! Why hadn’t I responded faster to Caroline’s warning? Why had I been so stupid to not see through to that scumbag’s intensions?
Why…why did I suddenly feel so helpless upon hearing Aurora cry?
We were the only ones left in school now, except for the guards at the gate who didn’t mind us staying behind. They were part of the pack and they knew that as long as I was still here, there was nothing to worry about. Even if they notified my father, I had no reason to lie. And even if they didn’t, I had every intension of notifying my father. I wasn’t going to shy away from taking responsibility for my actions. And I was sure that once my father heard the whole story, he would understand the reason why I did what had to be done.
Ten minutes later, Caroline opened the door wide and told me to keep my distance from Aurora for the time being. She was still reeling from her earlier experience and she knew my presence could be intimidating to most humans. So I leaned against the doorjamb with my hands in my pockets and watched as Caroline went to sit next to her.
Strangely enough, I wanted it to be me. I wanted to be the one comforting her…but I held myself back with teeth-gritting force. I didn’t want to scare her away, especially when my own actions seemed to confuse the fuck out of me.
Aurora was wearing a dark blue cardigan, with a white shirt underneath and black leggings. It looked completely different on her than it did on Caroline, especially because of their physical differences. Aurora was thinner, to the point of looking unhealthy. Was she eating properly? Did she have anyone at home to take care of her?
“You should report him,” Caroline told her gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. “We’ll help you.”
‘That won’t be necessary,’I told Caroline via our mental link. ‘I’ve taken care of the matter. We won’t be hearing from him anytime soon.’
‘It’s still her choice, Cam.’Caroline told me, fixing me with her gaze that told me she will extract every detail possible later on. ‘We need to let her know that she has that choice.’
Before I could answer Caroline, I saw Aurora shaking her head frantically, her short hair flying around her face. “No! There’s no need for that!”
“He tried to hurt you!” I couldn’t help the roughness in my voice, especially as I remembered how the slime had her pinned down to the ground with her clothes ripped down the middle. “You’re going to let him get away with that?”
Aurora looked up at me with her wide blue eyes, paling visibly as she avoided meeting my gaze. She looked startled at first, afraid even, but then her expression shifted to silent determination.
“No one would believe me over the words of a teacher who had been in this school for a decade.” She told me, her expression hardening. “And there’s no point in dragging the two of you into my mess either.”
“Mess?” I asked her incredulously, but before I could say anything else, Caroline’s warning rang loud and clear inside my head.
‘Caleb!’She snapped at me. ‘Aurora is shaken up already. Don’t scream at her!’
‘It wasn’t my intension!’I tried to defend myself, but when I saw how she had flinched back from me, I regretted raising my voice.
Scared? I thought to myself. She should be enraged! She should be asking for the police. She should want to put that bastard in prison so he could rot there for the rest of his life. What she shouldn’t be doing is worried about her voice not being heard! Why was she trying to suffer in silence?
Damnit!
“Are you sure that’s what you want to do, Aurora?” Caroline asked her gently, but her voice was firm. “We can back you up.”
“Please don’t. You know what the whole school thinks of me,” Aurora added in a quiet voice then, looking down at her hands. “The loser girl with the gambler father who borrows money from everyone… if I report, the police will ask questions I won’t be comfortable to answer. And they will ask if I was the one who lured him in. And once they find out that my father had taken money from him…everything will change to be in his favor and I’ll have even more debt to pay. So please…just let me be. Let’s just forget anything ever happened.”
Caroline looked up at me with troubled eyes. I could tell that she wanted to help, but with Aurora putting her foot down, she wouldn’t be able to do much. And neither would I.
“If that’s what you want…” Caroline sighed at last, making me clench my teeth. “But if you ever feel like Mr. Hemming deserves to be punished for what he did…we’ll be by your side instantly. Okay?”
Aurora nodded, but didn’t say anything.
“We’ll drop you home.” I offered, but once again, Aurora shook her head.
“I’ll have to pick up my brother from school.” She sprang up from her seat urgently and grabbed her bag. “And I’m already late for work.”
“You’re going to work? Even after what just happened?” This time, Caroline couldn’t keep the incredulity out of her voice.
“Thank you…” Aurora said instead, backing away from the locker room slowly. “For everything you did for me today…thank you. I hope I can repay the kindness someday.”
“We can-”
Caroline began but Aurora shook her head without even listening to her properly. “I need to leave. Thank you for the clothes…I’ll clean them and return them to you.”
“You can keep them,” Caroline told her, standing up from her seat. “Please. It’s the least we can do for you.”
Aurora didn’t answer for a few moments as she looked down at the clothes, her bag clutched tightly to her chest. But ultimately, she nodded her head with another ‘thank you’, before dashing out the door and disappearing down the hallway.
I turned to Caroline once she was out of sight, both of us looking worried.
“I really can’t believe this.” I sighed, running a hand through my hair.
“Neither can I.” Caroline looked just as shaken as Aurora, but she hid her dilemma well.
By the time both of us came out of the building, Aurora was nowhere to be seen and it bothered me even more. Was she serious about heading to work? Despite the condition she was in?
“Do you think she’s going to be okay?” Caroline’s voice was laced with concern as she looked around the empty parking lot.
“I don’t know.” I told Caroline as I led her back to my car.
“Caleb…”
Caroline’s voice stopped me when I was about to open the door for her, so she could get on. “What is it?”
“What did you do?” She urged. “What did you do to Mr. Hemming?”
“Nothing.” I shrugged, holding the door open for her while she got in. “He did it to himself.”
But above all, I was clear of one thing, Aurora was never going to have to worry about that scumbag ever again.
And even if he dared to set foot in this school ever again…I would make sure of that it was the last thing he did in this life.