"So we're looking for who's café?" asked Lily as she played with her phone, attempting to map out where we were supposed to be headed. But, she groaned in dissatisfaction, pressing at the screen a few more times before shoving it back into her pocket.

She never was one for technology.

We had left almost immediately after my conversation with Paula, but I had stopped by the cells again to check up on Caspian. He refused to speak to me though, just shaking his head and staring at me, looking unsure on what to say.

"Rob's," I told Lily, pulling down a narrow dirt path as I brought the car to a stop, peering through the windscreen to see a beat down looking building in the near distance, a bright red light shining brightly, catching my attention.

I could make out an 'O', but the other letters were flickering and dull. Lily and I had been driving around in circles for a while now, and I was growing increasingly frustrated, unable to find the café Paula had told me about.

The service was poor out here.

A part of me started to wonder if the café even existed, and if Paula had just made it up to send us on a wild goose chase for the fun of it.

"Are we sure we can trust this lady?" questioned Lily, pointing at the coffee shop as we got closer, the sign now much brighter and visible, indicating we had found the correct place.

I just hoped Paula hadn't got up and left.

I shrugged as I parked, turning to Lily with a frown. "No, but that's why we're meeting in public."

I swung the car door open, grimacing to myself as I yanked down my zip up fleece, the fabric looking bulky and lumpy over my chains. I had tied them over my shoulder and around my waist, and although they weren't too heavy for me, they were uncomfortably digging into my side.

I would probably have bruises from them after this.

We hopped out of the car, making our way inside, a few people sat at tables having drinks and food, and I scanned the room, my eyes eventually settling on a frail old lady sat in the corner.

She had a large cup of coffee placed in front of her that looked barely touched, and she widened her eyes as we approached, probably surprised by our size.

Most wolves were much larger than witches, them having evolved with the human size gene, unluckily for them.

"Paula?" I questioned, and she stood herself up, leaning onto her walking stick to balance herself, offering me a small smile.

"It's a pleasure," she said, gesturing for Lily and I to take a seat opposite her, and we slid into the booth, thanking her.

Paula looked much more elderly than I had expected her to be, her skinny and sunken in face looking a little ghostly, her icy white hair pulled back into a neat bun.

Her skin was pitted and wrinkly, the texture reminding me of leather, making me wonder how old she actually was.

She released a loud cough, clutching at her chest in pain as she did so, the sound much harsher and more debilitating than the ones I had heard over the phone, but, Lily and I remained quiet on the subject.

"So, Daniel told me that you know of the dark magic community? Do you mind telling me what that means?" I asked politely, Lily excusing herself and making her way over to the counter, quickly ordering us some drinks from the lady on the other side of it.

"Yes, well, using dark magic is deeply frowned upon within the witch community," Paula began, taking a sip of her coffee, the china cup tremoring in her hands as they shook, and I was concerned that she was going to spill it all over herself. "Most witches wouldn't even think about practising it."

"But some do?"

Paula nodded, humming, watching Lily as she made her way back to our table, having been listening the whole time despite stepping away for a minute.

"I've been involved in dark magic myself, but, not by any choice of my own," Paula said, her face turning serious. "When I was younger, my own Mother began teaching me how to harness my powers, just like most Mother's do, but what I didn't know was that she was actually teaching me how to harness dark magic."

Hearing that Paula actually knew dark magic took me off guard, and I felt Lily staring into my soul from beside me, clearly shocked as well.

If this lady knew dark magic, would she be able to take us despite her old age?

Were we actually in danger right now even though we were in public?

Paula began chuckling, holding up her hands and waving away our concern. "Stop looking at me like that you two. I no longer practise it. My Mother was shunned from the community once people realised what she was teaching me, but, I know a few names of people who were involved in it."

"Would you mind sharing those names?" asked Lily, and Paula furrowed her brows at us, cocking her head.

"Now what do a bunch of werewolves want with all of this information on dark magic? Your wolf friend mentioned it was something to do with your mate, but I don't want to be giving this all out to just anybody."

"I completely understand your concern," I said, nodding a quick 'thank you' at the waiter who brought over our coffees, Lily instantly taking a large gulp of hers, her anxiety putting me off.

"My mate and I were nearly killed by a witch from around here named Ophelia who practised dark magic. My mate has been left in a coma, and we are both in a bit of a predicament with some chains."

Saying the words out loud caused me to wince, and I swallowed harshly as I attempted to push my emotions to the back of my mind.

Paula widened her eyes as I unzipped my fleece half way, gesturing down to the chains that were tightly wrapped around my midsection over my T-shirt, the shining metal catching the light and reflecting onto the table.

"Oh my," Paula muttered in dismay, shaking her head and tutting. "And it was Ophelia you said? I know the name. She was shunned years ago for practising. Nobody I know has heard of her since."

"She's currently on the run," I said, quickly zipping my fleece back up as the waiter walked by us again, Lily giving him a quick once over, ensuring he hadn't seen anything he shouldn't have. "She had been mentoring young witches- teaching them dark magic to use against us."

"But she will come after us again. She won't stop until my Luna is dead," Lily pressed, her face glum, and I could tell that she was still dealing with intense guilt about what had happened with Mia.

"She wants her dead? What did your mate do to make Ophelia react in such a way?" Paula asked, intrigued, beginning to splutter again. It caused me to raise a brow at her, quickly grabbing a napkin and passing it to her.

"My mate didn't do a thing. Ophelia is upset that I didn't offer her protection from other wolves, but it was nothing that had been discussed with me. She took it upon herself to seek revenge after I declined. She also murdered my mate's parents."

Paula hummed, swallowing, wiping the corners of her mouth with the napkin. "And you are sure she is practising dark magic? It is not tolerated within the community. Witches want to do all we can to halt the use of it. It messes with the balance and gives us a bad name."

Lily and I nodded, causing Paula to sigh heavily.

"I have seen it for myself. She used dark magic to weld these chains to my mate and I," I said, gesturing to my body. "Anyone else that touches it gets burned."

"I must have a look at them once we are done with our coffee," Paula spoke, taking another shaky sip.

"Is it also possible to summon deceased witches?"

"Why do you ask?" Paula questioned, narrowing her eyes.

"I believe it was what Ophelia used to take me down. She never would have been able to do it alone, but I could hear and feel them touching me until I couldn't move," I explained, well aware that I sounded crazy, something that I was yet to mention to anyone else.

I peered at Lily from the corner of my eye, noticing how she turned to me with a shocked expression, her mouth open slightly, her brows knitted together. She looked annoyed that I hadn't told her.

"Summoning deceased witches is strictly forbidden, even if dark magic isn't involved," Paula told me, shaking her head and clicking her tongue. "It is dangerous. Ophelia could be reprimanded and executed for it."

I raised my brows, shocked that death was still a punishment among witches. I imagined that they would have evolved from that.

I took a few more sips of my coffee along with Lily and Paula, the old lady struggling to finish even more than a quarter of hers before giving up, pushing the cup and saucer away from her.

"Come," instructed Paula as she forced herself up from the bench, her stick wobbling as she tried to steady herself, taking a few seconds to re-gain balance. "We must go somewhere where I can take a look at those chains."

We allowed Paula to go first, her taking small wobbly steps as she began to make her way out of the diner, but, before I could take another step, Lily grabbed my arm and scowled at me.

"I don't like this, Lorenzo. Why is she just telling us all of this stuff when she doesn't even know who we are? It's weird," she whispered, keeping it down so that Paula wouldn't hear.

"Lily, it's our only lead, and as long as we don't give her any information, it should be fine. We just need to remain in public," I told her.

I was aware that the old me wouldn't have trusted Paula one bit, but, I was desperate. I needed to find Ophelia, and discover a way to break the spell on the chains bound to Mia and I.

Paula was our only hope right now.

I wasn't getting much from Caspian, and I was beginning to believe that he really didn't know anything on Ophelia's whereabouts.

"Well, I'm going to ask her why she's helping us. I want to hear her reasoning," Lily huffed, making her way out of the diner, and I sighed, following closely behind.

Paula stood at the entrance, gesturing towards a bench that was placed next to the parking lot, and she slowly made her way over to it, groaning as she sat herself down.

She clutched at her chest painfully as she coughed yet again, the sound dry and scratchy, and I furrowed my brows at her, not hiding the concern on my face.

"Are you okay?" I asked her, and she waved me away, shaking her head.

"Yes, I just shouldn't be doing this much walking," she responded, catching her breath as she rested back against the wood of the bench, shutting her eyes, soaking up the rays from the sun.

"Paula, may I ask you a question please?" asked Lily, perching herself next to her and cocking her head.

"Of course."

"Why are you helping us? It's not that we don't appreciate it, but we have reason to be cautious. We're wolves, and you're a witch. It's not often you see our two species working together."

Paula sighed, nodding and pursing her lips, taking a few seconds before looking up at Lily, her face deeply saddened.

"Because, my dear, I'm dying."

•••

Paula is sweet old lady vibes.

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