It’s Funny How Love Starts (IFHLS Book 1)

Alexia’s POV

We were cuddling in the bed, enjoying each other’s presence in silence when a scream made us jump from bed.

“What was that?” I said, already going towards the door. It was a female screaming so it could only be Jessabelle. “Something’s wrong.”

“Stay here. I’ll go check.” Lucas said giving me a look that meant I wasn’t allowed to come out and I didn’t know if it was my instinct or not but I felt like I should stay inside. Something was definitely wrong.

Lucas came back in a few second with Jace following closely behind him. They didn’t look pleased at all.

“What happened? Is Jessabelle OK?” I asked but they didn’t answer me.

“Take her away somewhere far and safe from here,” Lucas said, getting into his Alpha mode. I called the pack so they should be here any minute. Where the heck is Amos?”

“Isn’t he supposed to guard her every waking hour?” Jace questioned. “Ugh, come on Alexia,” he ushered me. I didn’t want to leave Lucas. I didn’t even know what was going on.

“Can anyone tell me what’s happening?” I said, hating how I was left out in the cold.

“The hunters are invading the house. Stupid humans. When will they learn?” Jace said, annoyed.

“You guys need to go now,” Lucas pushed me to Jace. “I’ll make a conversion, and then you two go to the garage and get the fastest vehicle and hit it. Go south to the safe house by the beach and wait for me there.”

“What about Zane?” Where the heck was he?

“Don’t worry about Zane. We got to go Alexia,” Jace said urgently. “I can hear them coming up now.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll find him and we’ll go get you but for now, please go with Jace.” Lucas kissed my head quickly and gave one last nod to Jace. He then opened the door as soon as the hunter was about to open the knob.

Lucas levitated the guy and used him as a body shield just before a round of silver bullets was fired. I screamed but Jace covered his hand over my mouth, dragging me to the window. He kicked it, scattering broken glass but he hastily brushed it off.

“I’ll go down first and I’ll catch you,” he said quickly before he jumped the two story house. I didn’t know how he managed to stand up after that but there he was, signaling me to do the same. I took a leap of faith and shifted my weight on the windowsill and let go, closing my eyes as the ground rushed beneath me.

“You can open your eyes now.” I did as Jace said and found myself in his arms. “Come on, we don’t have much time.” He put me down gently and we made a run for the garage. A car suddenly swerved in front of us and the driver’s window pulled down.

“Hey, get in.” It was Phoebe who was in the car as well as Zane but he seemed to be asleep. I was pushed into the backseat with Zane and Jace quickly took his seat next to Phoebe.

“What’s Zane doing here?” If Jace had Zane in the car then why didn’t he tell Lucas?

“I found him while I was getting a car. He was so tired he could barely hold himself up. I had him sleep and it’s a good thing he listened,” she said, looking worried.

Zane looked alright and I was going to wake him up but Phoebe said he was tired so I let him be. The car ride took so long that it was hard not to think of Lucas. Was he alright? Where the heck were Travis and Jessabelle? Where was Amos? There were so many unanswered questions.

I sighed. The only thing I could do now was hope. Since Phoebe and Jace seemed too busy looking on the road, I watched the scenery roll by the passenger window. We passed a sign indicating that we were heading north.

“Jace, I thought the safe house was south?” I shifted uncomfortably in my seat as he slowly turned to me.

“We’re not going to any safe house,” he said coldly.

“Jace, where are we going?” I asked, growing more irritated. How will Lucas know where we are?

“Somewhere far from the estate. That’s what Lucas wanted.”

“Yeah, but he said there was a safe house south.”

“I’m sorry, Alexia,” Jace said and turned back to the front. What did he mean sorry?

“Jace. What’s going on?” I slightly nudged Zane, trying to get him to wake but he I noticed he was unconscious. He was barely breathing. “What’s wrong with Zane? He won’t move. I think he’s unconscious.”

“You’re being kidnapped idiot. Your brother was just another tagalong,” Phoebe exploded. “Geez, you ask so many questions.” Her abrupt coldness towards me made me speechless. She was so nice the first time I met her, helping my brother with his injury and all but her snappy attitude was something I would never have thought coming out of Phoebe’s mouth.

“Don’t talk to her like that,” Jace snapped back at Phoebe. Phoebe scowled but didn’t say anything back.

“What are you talking about ‘kidnapped?’ I demanded. “We need to go back for Lucas.”

“I’m sorry but I can’t let that be your life,” Jace said genuinely. “You’re too valuable and you have a greater task to serve. I brought you out of those chains and now you’re free.” Was he crazy or was it just me?

“Do you know what you’re saying? Kidnapping me isn’t going to make me free. What do you even want with me?” I spat. “How can you even betray Lucas.”

“You’re a Bloodwolf. You weren’t meant to be stuck in either one of those societies and some things are more important than some pity friendship.” I could hardly believe that it was Jace talking. The same Jace who was so kind and polite, who was best friends as well as brother-in-law with Lucas. Those things sounded like poison now in my mouth. Jace doesn’t deserve any of it.

“You filthy bastard. How can you even do that? Lexi’s own brother!” The mention of his mate made him flinch. He turned back again, this time with pain and anger reflecting his dark eyes.

“Do not talk of her! I have to do this. I promised.”

“You promised someone you’d kidnap me?” I scoffed. “Some hero you are.”

“You better watch your mouth before I make sure it stays shut forever,” Phoebe threatened. “Can’t we kill her now?” I gasped, feeling all sickly inside which made her grin even further.

“Not now. We have to go to their grave first,” Jace said, eyeing Phoebe to shut up.

“Where are you exactly taking me?!” I said. Suddenly, I felt like the whole car was closing in on me. I would die soon. Heck, I wasn’t even an adult yet. I reached for Zane who was still knocked out and began to shake him, willing for him to wake up.

I began to close my eyes, trying to bring the power to heal whatever was wrong with him. It was hard to concentrate with the fact that I would die soon dangling over my head.

“She’s healing him, stop her,” Phoebe yelled at Jace and I felt hands grabbing me away from Zane, but I succeeded.

Zane coughed, slowly opening his eyes, scanning his surrounding and snapped wide awake when he saw me strangled by Jace.

“Get away from her,” he growled and leaped into action. It was a tight space considering that it was a modest grey Camry but Zane tried his best.

“Don’t move or else she’ll get it,” Jace said and I felt the cold metal of the gun. I struggled more but he cocked the gun which made me sit still. I made some sort of a whimper, attempting to try and get some distance away from me and the gun.

Zane raised his hand and stayed where he was in defeat. He turned to Phoebe in dismay, “I didn’t expect you to be part of this and I was stupid not to notice.”

“Indeed you are an idiot, Zane,” Phoebe said while keeping her eyes on the road. “It’s too bad we couldn’t have a real relationship. You are a cutie and you do well in bed.”

Zane growled at her comment and I had just enough oxygen to choke. Jace loosened up for me to recover but he still held me, his stomach pressed to my back and the gun near his side in case. Zane had been sleeping with Phoebe all this time? She had to be kidding. I looked at Zane with a mixture of betrayal and disgust but his eyes were vacant. Worn out and tired.

The silence drowned on for a good hour and I was still held tightly by Jace. Phoebe finally spoke after what seemed to be ages. “We’re almost here,” she said to Jace.

“Yeah, I can feel it. Turn right after this signal,” Jace instructed and Phoebe did so. I looked through the window and saw rows and rows of gravestones. The deeper we went the fewer graves there were and finally the car stopped to a private section of the graveyard.

It had an eerie feeling like what a graveyard would be like on Halloween. Phoebe opened the door for Jace and then she pointed the gun at Zane. Jace dragged me out of the car and had my hands tied tightly behind my back and my mouth securely gagged.

“Get out of the car Zane,” Phoebe instructed him with the gun dangerously pointed at him. I tried to say something but the gag had me pretty good.

Lucas! I need you. Please, I thought out to him but our connection was too weak for me to try and find him. I just hoped he was alright.

The four of us walked through the private land, each tombstone elaborately decorated. What were we doing inside a graveyard? The further we walked the fog started to settle in stronger. Jace finally stopped at two graves that were identical and standing side by side. It was hard to see whose grave it was from the fog but once I caught a glimpse of the words and it stuck to me forever.

Dimitri Klyce and Jamie Klyce. My real parents.

But the real question was. Why were we here?

Jace pulled the gag off and let it dangle on my neck. “What are we doing here?” I spat. I didn’t struggle anymore because I knew it didn’t do me any good and if I was to die soon, it was better to save my energy. Maybe if a miracle happened, I might have a slight chance of escaping.

“Do you know where we are?” Jace asked amused.

“In a graveyard dimwit.” He threw me on the ground for my comment and I couldn’t do anything to slow down the fall since my hands were useless. Phoebe instructed Zane to go next to me and he gladly did, trying to untie the ropes but Phoebe kicked him. “Stop!” I yelled, kneeling next to him to see if he was alright but he waved me off.

“Alexia, attention over here please,” Jace said enjoying the power that he had. “Do you know whose graves these are?” He put one hand over the gravestone of Jamie Klyce and closed his eyes as if he was in a memory no one else could see.

Ask him who killed your parents. The darkness began to swirl inside of me but this was the first time I openly agreed with the darkness. I had a feeling he knew and it was time to get real answers.

“Tell me who killed my parents,” I repeated, keeping my ground.

“The Elders killed your parents,” Jace said, still entranced by the two gravestones.

“I meant my adoptive family.” Jace snapped back into reality and turned towards me.

“You want to know who killed Zane’s parents? You really want to? It was me and Phoebe. We killed them in their own rooms and then burned up the place to cover any evidence,” Jace said, a smirk setting on his face. Zane and I flinched from his lack of sensitivity of his words. “Are you happy now, Alexia? Are you content, finally solving the big mysterious of the day?”Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“You murderer. Both of you.” My eyes blazed with anger and the deep anger building inside of me was emerging.

“How could you? You befriended us only to betray us,” Zane said to both of them, hate overflowing out of him. I didn’t notice it before but I could see the dark anger coming out of him and it only fueled my own even more.

“Why did you? They never did anything to you!”

“They took you away from your real family. Your real family would’ve raised you well and everything would have been perfect!” he spat. Why the hell did he care?

“Yeah, because I would’ve been killed if I lived with them. The Elders finished their family line.”

“They were the ones who bore you into this world.” Jace was fueled up, coming towards me every time he finished his sentence.

“They lost their humanity when they chose to be Bloodwolf. I didn’t have a choice because of them,” I said bitterly.

“They bore you. Doesn’t that show you that they had enough humanity to have a child?” He took another step closer to me.

“But they chose to side with the darkness who made them the half creatures they were.” I couldn’t imagine what they looked like. Whenever I started to remember parts of my broken memories of my childhood, I dismissed them away.

An excitement passed through Jace. “You see. That’s why the darkness is so interested in you. You’re the work that it made. That’s why it’s so easy for it to control you.”

“NO! I’m a Maxilum not a Klyce. My surname died along with my parents.”

“No, that’s where you’re wrong, Alexia,” Jace smiled secretively.

“Why do you want to bring up the past? Why did you drag us to come here today? What’s your intentions?” I braved enough to ask the big questions. “Why? You didn’t even know me back then and I didn’t know my real parents yet you bring me to their grave!”

“Alexia, oh Alexia,” Jace chuckled, bending down to me so that our faces were only an inch apart. “I knew you since the day you were born.” My body felt cold as if all the blood rushed out of me. No, it wasn’t possible. “Zane isn’t your true brother. I am.”