Chapter 11：Unhappy news

After a few weeks Marie has adjusted to her new home and schedule. She has begun helping Vale with designing. She decides to take a sketch pad outside for a while for some fresh air and inspiration. Vale is fully engaged in what he is doing so Marie decides not to bother him, besides he can probably hear her anyway, she smiles to herself. Marie sits on the patio for some time sketching when a bush nearby starts to rustle. As Marie looks up to see large, glowing, green eyes staring at her from the bush accompanied by a low snarl. Marie holds her breath, throws her sketchbook at the eyes and leaps for the door. As she pulls the door handle she feels something warm around her ankle as the ground quickly comes towards her. Hitting the ground triggers something in her as she starts to kick and scream for Vale. What in the world is going on? Why is she suddenly being attacked out of the blue?

Vale hears a low snarl outside and rushes for the door. When he opens the door he is shocked to see Marie flailing her fists at a wolf that is inches from her face and snarling as she screams for him to help her. He pushes the beast off of Marie and snarls at him. "Leave her alone!" He is not amused as he helps Marie up and pushes her inside as he closes the door.

Marie rushes to the corner by the door, hugs her knees, hides her face and sobs. What in the world just happened? She doesn't understand why she is being attacked. Those eyes looked oddly familiar, but she is having a hard time placing them. It suddenly hits her and she looks up once she realizes where she recognizes those eyes from. Marie quickly stands and lunges back for the door. When she opens it sure enough one of the young men from the house Max had stopped at was standing there snarling in Vale's face. They looked like an inseparable pair at the house so where was the other one? Just as she is thinking how the other must be near by she is grabbed from behind. Before she can scream a hand is over her mouth, vale looks at her desperately as her world turns dark.

"Where are you taking her?" Vale yells as the two men carry Marie away.

"Call Max" is the only reply he gets as they walk away.

Vale quickly runs to his office and dials Max, It goes straight to voicemail. He throws his phone in frustration as he paces back and forth in his office. What is going on? Why would Max just take her like that? He has so many questions! Vale picks up his phone and try's to call Max a few more times, each time going straight to voicemail. He wants to go find out what is going on but knows he won't be able to until Max decides. Vale sits at his desk with his head in his palms on the verge of tears.

When Marie wakes, she looks around. Her head is feeling fuzzy and she jolts as she remembers what had happened. She stands and looks around for an exit. She finds herself in what looks like a jail cell in an old movie. After searching her small cell for any weaknesses, she sits calmly on the blanket she woke up on. Marie has the strangest feeling of deja vue as she waits for her captors to return. The smell is so familiar to her, yet she can't place where she had smelt it before. After several hours of waiting Marie hears footsteps on the ground outside of her cell, when they stop right in front of her she looks up. There stands Max with a smirk across his face, a smirk that makes Marie feel uneasy. "Max?" Marie manages to speak despite the lump of fear in her throat.

"I found you!" He whispers.

"Max, I don't understand, why am I here?" Marie knew by the fire in his eyes something was amiss. He wasn't the fun loving guy everyone liked right now, he was the ruthless alpha no one should cross.

"Your bloodwork is in, if you haven't guessed. I knew there was a reason you could sense me, why you didn't freak out." He smiles menacingly as he holds up a paper. "In fact we already had your blood on file."

"Max, I honestly don't know what you are talking about." Marie has tears running down her cheeks. Is he going to kill her? What is wrong with her bloodwork?

Max watches her reaction carefully, she does seem to be telling the truth. "Tell me what you remember about your parents." He snarls

"The only thing I remember is my mothers voice screaming my name as the car was rolling. I remember her grabbing me as she screamed. The doctors that saw me all said it was normal to have amnesia after the injuries I had endured. Like I said before, I don't remember anything before that. A song from time to time, her voice as she screamed my name." Marie looks at the ground as she talks.

"What injuries?" Max snarls.

"I was thrown from the car while it was rolling. The doctors said I was pretty cut up and had hit my head a few times." She has never had to explain this to anyone before.

"You said you felt your mother grab you, how were you thrown from the car if she had you?"

"Max! I don't know, like I said, that's all I remember! What is wrong with my bloodwork that I have to be locked in a cage?!" Marie cant help raising her voice in frustration.

"Your my betrothed. We have been engaged since we were children. I'm sending someone to see what is blocking your memories. I hope it isn't too painful." Max doesn't sound genuine as Marie stares at him in confusion.

"That would mean I'm a wolf. I have never turned into a wolf my whole life." Now Marie is worried. "What about Vale?"

"I will be visiting my friend soon, don't worry. He will probably feel quite betrayed as well." Max snarls as he walks away.

Marie is left by herself the rest of the night. She quietly cry's herself to sleep, not knowing what tomorrow will hold.

Max storms off and runs through the woods to cool his nerves. She looks confused and scared, should he buy that? What if it is a trick? He stands outside Vale's place for a few minutes before ringing the bell, hows he going to explain this?

Vale runs for the door when the bell rings and is furious when he sees Max, he can feel himself shaking as he stands in the doorway. "What the hell? Where did you take her?"

Max puts his hand on Vale's shoulder and gives him a tired smile as he pushes past Vale. He walks to the kitchen and grabs a soda from the fridge. Vale follows him as his anger and worry slowly rise to a level of rage he has never felt before. "Max?!" He snarls. "We have been friends for a long time, but this is crossing so many lines! Where is she?!"

"Safe for now, we have a lot to talk about." Max pats the spot next to him for Vale to sit.

"No thanks, I'll stand."

"Marie is actually one of us. We already had her DNA on file. The fingerprints everything, she is my betrothed. Our fathers had a signed contract for our marriage." He sits forward with his elbows on his knees.

Vale's rage instantly turns to numbness as what Max has just said sinks in. He can feel his heart breaking as he sits, he knows what is coming next. "She won't be allowed to marry me, will she?" He can't even look at Max.

"Unfortunately, the contract was a blood contract, sealed with a spell. The magic is binding, I'm trying to figure out what is going on with her. She says she doesn't remember anything before the accident and that she has never turned into a wolf. I know she has because we used to run together with our parents, what do you know?"

"I never sensed she was from our world. She doesn't smell like a wolf." Vale is simply confused now.

"Well we have to figure out the spell that has been cast on her, the doc seems to think her mother did it." He pats Vale on the back. "This sucks."

A ray of sunshine hits Marie in the face and she turns away from it. Why should she bother getting up? What is she even? Her whole life has been a lie, raised as a human. She has never been anything but human, but blood doesn't lie. Did her adoptive parents know about this? Marie is pulled from her thoughts when she hears footsteps at her door. She sits, turns her head to see who has come and sees the old man with his two body guards. She turns her head back and lays back down."I don't want any funny business, I'm here to examine you and look for any traces of a spell. These two will restrain you if you try to fight or run. You understand?" The old man addresses Marie as if she were a dangerous criminal. Marie nods her head and she hears the sound of keys and the door creaking. "I'm sorry but I'm going to have to ask you to remove your clothing, You can keep your undergarments on." Marie responds by sitting up and pulling her dress over her head. The old man thoroughly checks her skin for any marks that seem out of place. He takes some notes on a notepad then checks her scalp. She sees him make another note and he hands her dress back to her. "I'm going to be in the other room, if you need anything, call me. My name is Alexander, I need to look over a few things and I will be back." Marie nods and lays back down, not bothering with the dress. Alexander stands, leaves her cell, the keys clang on the bars and Marie is again left with only her thoughts.

Alexander sits at a desk in the room adjacent to Marie's cell. He tells one of the boys to take her some food and water as he starts looking through his notes. He remembers her mother, she was a powerful witch, but what spell could keep ones true nature hidden? Alexander spends hours looking through his notes and spell books. Finally he stands and stretches, he needs to go to his library, he knows which book he needs. When he goes to check on Marie, she hasn't moved. "Marie dear, starving yourself will do no good. You need to eat child." He shakes his head when she doesn't respond. "Get Max on the phone!" He yells as he walks away.

Max and Vale sit in silence until Max's phone starts to buzz. "What?" Max answers and sits forward as he listens. "Ok. Bring her here. I'll stay with her." Max hangs up and looks at Vale. "Can you handle it?" Vale simply nods and locks himself in his room.

Marie hears the door to her cell being opened again and she is nudged. "Get up." She is told gruffly. Must be the body guard, she sighs as she stands and turns towards him. He seems a bit concerned with her lack of motivation as she allows him to lead her away. Marie is placed in the back seat of a car and she is taken home. It is already dark when the car is parked, she looks at the house to see Max waiting on the patio. She is helped out of the car and lead to Max who looks her up and down. "Where are her clothes?" He looks at Alexander.

"She wouldn't put them back on, also she hasn't eaten or drunk anything. Might want to get her started on an IV drip." He hands Max a bag. "You want one of them to stay?" He nods towards the two bodyguards.

"No, I've got it." He takes the bag, takes Marie by the hand and leads her to her room. She doesn't fight him at all. "You need to shower Marie." He looks at her, but she doesn't move. "Marie" he sighs and pulls her to the bathroom, starts the shower and looks at her sternly. "I will be back in ten minutes. You will shower, I'm right outside so don't try anything."

Marie nods and watches as Max stands with his back to the door. Marie washes quickly, turns off the water, wraps herself in a towel, and taps Max on the shoulder. He leads her to the closet and she puts on a big T-shirt and clean underwear. Max is waiting in a chair when she comes out of the closet and watches her as she lays down in her bed. He comes beside the bed and slips something around her ankle. "Lay on your back, I'm putting an IV." Marie gives him her arm and looks away. "Marie you need to eat. Why aren't you even trying?"

"Why? It doesn't matter. I don't even know who I am." She turns away and closes her eyes.

"Well the person you are, that is you. I know I was upset before, but I believe you don't remember." He pats her shoulder. "It's all going to be ok Marie, you'll see. Your back with your people."

"What about Vale? You said we are betrothed, what if we marry someone else?" Marie doesn't open her eyes to keep the tears from falling.

"He would die if you guys tried. It's a binding contract, sealed with powerful magic. Sorry things didn't go as planned." He stands.

"I see." Marie whispers as Max walks away to sit in the chair again.

Vale lays in his bed and covers his face with a pillow. He should have known, when will he ever get a happy ending? He hears the car and when the shower in the room starts he can't take anymore. He slips out the window and runs as fast as he can. By the time he starts to see the suns rays he is so far from home, even he is surprised. Vale spots a cave and briefly wonders if he should even bother before ducking inside and sealing the entrance. He finds a comfortable place to lay and closes his eyes.

When Max is certain Marie is asleep he goes to check on Vale. When he can't find him in the house he assumes he went out for some air and goes back to his chair in Maries room. Pretty soon Max is asleep. When he wakes up he finds Marie looking at him from the bed. She doesn't move as he moves closer. Her IV is almost done and he gets to her side to remove it. "You will be eating today." He gives her a stern look.

"I need to go to the bathroom." She looks as if she has been crying.

"I'll be in the kitchen. Meet me there." Max watches her and heads down the hall when he notices Vale is still not home. He curses under his breath as he calls Vale's number. He hears it ringing from the room and curses again. All he can do is hope that he found somewhere safe to rest. He makes scrambled eggs for Marie and realizes she hasn't come out yet. He puts the eggs on the table and walks to the room to find Marie. She is laying in her bed, he can smell the tears as he gets closer and picks her up. Max takes Marie to the table, sits her in front of the plate of eggs, places the fork in her hand and sits next to her. "Eat." He snarls. She looks at him, sighs heavily and takes a bite. He watches her eat the entire plate and takes her plate to the kitchen. Max brings her a glass of milk. Marie takes it grudgingly and drinks it. Max takes the glass to the kitchen. This woman is going to make him crazy.

Marie sits where max placed her. She is numb, if he makes commands she has to follow them. If what he says is true she belongs to him anyway. She hears his phone ring as she lays her head down on the table. She hears him say "ok, on our way" as he comes around to her and hangs up. He shakes his head, takes her arm and leads her to her closet. She watches him as he picks out a dress and hands it to her. She changes into the dress and puts flats on. Max seems satisfied, takes her hand and leads her to the garage. He takes the keys to one of the cars, puts Marie in the passenger seat and starts driving.

"Marie buckle up." He sounds a little frustrated. Marie buckles her seat belt and he sighs. "Marie, I'm sorry. I hope once you get your memories back everything will be more clear. Also don't try to run, I put an enchanted anklet on you last night. You wont get far, although it seems you have just given up." Now he sounds sad.

"How would you feel if everything you believed about yourself is not true?" She looks at Max seriously.

"I know you are going through something right now, I hope we can find answers for you."

"I think my adoptive parents must have been in on it somehow. How could a medical professional not notice anything? How could they do this to me?! I don't even know if Marie is really my name at this point!" Marie begins to cry. "On top of it all I truly have no one to talk to about anything! I'm not allowed to discuss any of this with my best friend, and you! You locked me in a cage!" She looks at Max as the tears run down her cheeks uncontrollably.

"I know. That was wrong, I thought you may have known more than you let on. I wont do that again. Marie is your name by the way." Max watches the road as he responds to her quietly.

"Where are we going?" Marie wipes her face.

"The doc needs to see you again. He has an idea how to help you."

They ride silently the rest of the way. When they get to the house the two bodyguards come out as max comes around to Marie's door and opens it. They go inside the house and are led to a little room with sea glass hanging all over the ceiling. As the light shines on the glass it throws brightly colored light all across the walls. This feels oddly familiar to Marie as she sits on the little couch, Max sits in the chair in the corner. Alexander sits across from her and takes her hands. "Once we start my dear, there is no stopping."

Marie nods as she readies herself for what is to come.