36 The Panther encounter …
L
1
“ What ? ” my eyes widened as my heart began to pound again .
“ What did you say ? ”
“ That table is asking for you and Mrs Grayson , ” Sarah repeated eyeing me strangely .
“ Are you fine though ,
you … ”
“ Why ? ” Nanny cut her off , “ What do they want ? ”
Sarah shrugged , clearly just as puzzled as us .
“ They didn’t say .
They insisted I call the m
ger and also ask
L toe .
”
I and Nanny exchanged worried nces , both of us feeling a knot of unease settling in the pit of our stomachs .
“ Why are we even afraid ? ” Nanny scoffed speaking in our native tongue as she leaned towards me .
“ It’s not like we did anything and you don’t have to worry either , they don’t seem like they’re from Blue Ridge .
”
I nodded , I wanted to tell her about the weird feelings .
va I have been getting by just staring at both men but I
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36 The Panther encounter …
pushed it aside .
We had a business to run , after all .
“ Well , ” Nanny switched to English , straightening her apron .
“ Let’s see what this is about .
”
As we made our way across the café to Xander’s table , I tried to steady my breathing .
I could feel a strange pull toward Xander , the same way I had felt today when he had sat next to me .
Unlike his father , it wasn’t fear … it was a strange attraction – the drooly type .
It was as if an invisible thread connected us , tugging at my very core .
3
–
When we reached the table , Xander’s face lit up with smiles .
“ L ! ” he eximed , shing me a disarming smile .
“ I didn’t know you worked 1.
I was just telling them you’re my ssmate .
”
I gave the neers a hesitant smile , wondering why Xander felt the need to say that .
He was making it sound like a family introduction .
“ Yeah , I’ve been working here for a while .
”
Before the conversation could go any further , Nanny ,
cut in with a businesslike tone .
“ What can we do for
you ? ”
Xander’s father – Mr Dunree sitting across from him
19:27
2010
<
36 The Panther encounter …
smiled at Nanny’s directness .
“ We were wondering if you could handle arge takeout order for tomorrow morning – cakes and coffee for about thirty to fifty people .
”
–
The woman next to him nodded , her perfectly manicured nails tapping on the table .
“ We’re having a celebration tomorrow morning .
We thought starting them off with coffee and cakes would be lovely .
”
The woman turned and reached into her designer bag and pulled out a folded piece of paper , handing it to Nanny .
“ Here’s what we had in mind .
”
Nanny took the list , her eyes scanr
it .
The items
were numerous from the snippets I could see and the order needed to be ready by morning .
She sighed softly and shook her head .
“ I’m sorry , but this is a pretty long list for such short notice .
If the event wereter in the day , we could manage , but by morning? It’s not just possible .
”
The three neers at the table exchanged nces , as disappointment flickered across their faces .
The woman sighed and nodded .
“ That’s understandable .
I am a dummy for thinking this can be done in a blink of
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36 The Panther encounter …
an eye .
I know I should have ced the orders ahead of time .
”
Nanny , seeing their crestfallen expression , quickly added .
“ There’s another café across town that
specializes inrge orders like this .
I’d be happy to give you their information .
”
“ Really ? ” the woman turned to Nanny with eyes filled with gratitude .
“ Thank you so much .
”
“ Don’t mention , ” Miriam chuckled .
“ I’ll go get their
card , give me a moment , ” she turned and started going back to the counter .
Seeing that I wasn’t following her
paused and
asked me in a stern voice .
“ What are you doing , L ?
Let’s go .
”
“ Actually , ” Mr Dupree raised his hand as if to stop me .
“ I was hoping I could talk to L .
Do you have time ? ” he
asked staring at me .
I blinked in surprise , caught off guard by the request .
I hadn’t expected , Mr Dupree to single me out and the sense of unease I’d been feeling all evening spiked .
Before I could respond , Miriam stepped forward , her
voice tense .
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36 The Panther encounter …
“ And why do you need to speak to her? ” she demanded narrowing her eyes .
Mr Dupree raised an eyebrow , amusement dancing in his eyes .
“ My , you’re quite concerned about her , aren’t you ? ”
“ Because I am her mother ,” Miriam replied , giving him a
cold look .
Mr Dupree’s expression shifted , softening with a hint of sympathy as he rose to his feet and bowed slightly towards her .
“ Ah , I see .
My apologies if I caused any
concern .
”
n a gesture of .
Extending his hands towards Nan peace , he said .
“ I’m Xander’s father .
Xander just joined L’s school and they’ve gone quite far in their curriculum .
I was wondering if L could tutor Him .
I’ve spoken to their teachers and they highly rmended her .
Money is not an issue .
”
I blinked , caught off guard by the request .
I hadn’t expected that , though the idea of tutoring Xander felt slightly pleasing to me and I couldn’t tell why .
Miriam eyed Mr Dupree warily but nodded .
“ We’ll think
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it and let you know .
”
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36 The Panther encounter …
With that , the conversation ended .
I and Nanny made
our way back to the counter before the three people who had joined Xander’s table left .
As I resumed serving other customers , the strange feeling was back .
asionally , I would look up at Xander and our gaze
would meet .
I was making conscious efforts not to walk over to him .
As closing time reached , I started cleaning up .
Wiping down tables , mopping the floors and wiping down the machines .
Xander and his father were the only customers left and since we wanted to be polite , we just cleaned our way around them .
e trash to the Sarah left earlier , so I had to tak dumpster out back .
Finally , with the floors swept and everything in ce , what was left for me was to take out the trash bags and I’ll be done for the day .
I hefted the tworge trash bags and headed for the back door the cool night air washed against my skin as I closed my eyes , loving the change from the stuffiness inside .
I had just tossed the bags into the dumpster when a low growl froze me in ce .
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36 The Panther encounter …
“ Well , well .
” A familiar voice drawled from the shadows .
“ Hey , look it’s our friend .
”
I spun around , my heart hammering as I recognized the shifters from before only , they were just three now .
They emerged from the darkness ; their eyes glowing in the dim street light .
They blocked my path and their leader from before came forward .
—
“ Looks like the little bitch got lost , again , ” he sneered “ Or maybe you’re a wolf – aren’t you ? Where is Daddy now ? call him to save you .
”
“ Go ahead ! ” another voice teased “ Shout for him to
come save you .
”
My eyes darted to the café’s back door .
It was too far .
I’d never make it even if I make a dash for it .
Plus , these men were Panthers … they were fast .
“ I don’t want any trouble , gentlemen , ” I said trying to keep my voice steady “ You don’t want anything from me .
I am poor and broke and my body is riddled with incurable diseases .
So , just let me go back inside and I promise , I won’t breathe a word of our encounter to
anyone ,”
Their leaderughed , a harsh , grating sound .
“ Oh , but
36 The Panther encounter …
we do want trouble .
You see , we have a message to send to that new Alpha in town .
And you , little bitch is going to help us deliver it .
Tell him we don’t like his kind around here and that this town belongs to us now , “ .
“ I don’t know him like that ,” I said quietly , my eyes darting back and forth as I tried to assess the situation .
“ You should send him the message yourselves .
I doubt he’d ever listen to me ,” .
“ Really ? ” their leader mocked “ Just tell him anyways .
I have a feeling he might be into you ,” .
“ I don’t want any trouble ,” I said twly backing away from the light .
“ We shal see , ” they crooned in unison their teeth pulled back in glee .
Suddenly , their leader lunged forward with such speed before I could react .
Instinctively , I reached for the discarded broom leaning against the wall – it wasn’t much but it was better than nothing .
I swung the broom with all my might catching the first shifters on the face , momentarily stunning it .
But there were more , and they were faster , stronger .
<
36 The Panther encounter …
a
Just as the second one tried to lunge at me , Mr.
Dupree’s voice came again , he didn’t sound pleased .
“ I thought we already settled this … ”
When I turned , he was at the entrance of the alley and this time he had Xander with him .
The Panthers snarled , backing away but still poised for a fight .
“ Take L and go ! ” Mr Dupree said to Xander who nodded and reached for my hand .
“ C’mon , let’s get out of here ! ”
As we sprinted lightly to the back door , just before the
door closed , I saw Mr Dupree r
–
towards the
panthers – moving with inhuma .
.
speed and grace … “ he struck the first panther , sending it flying into a pile of crates , scattering the bottles in all directions .
I gasped, and turned only to see Xander staring at me with amusement in his eyes .
“ C’mon , ” he said “ My dad hates it when people stare too much .
”
37 The rift in our world …