CHAPTER 373: 373-FORCED TO PERFORM A MISSION

Clementine:

I was taken to the hall. There was still noise from the storm hitting the windows.

One day the storm would end, and then we would probably be asked to go back to the North to slay the shadow earth eater.

So much had happened in such a short time that I felt conflicted about my emotions.

I knew I wanted Ian more than ever. After every fight, I realized I could not live without him.

However, I did not understand why he thought I was kissing Troy until I started to think about the situation, the place he was standing in, and the way Troy had blown air on my face.

Of course he saw it as me kissing him.

"How would you feel if you have a problem with someone and Ian doesn’t distance himself from her?" My wolf snapped at me, upset that I had gotten myself into that situation and that I had gotten too close to Troy for Ian to see it and react.

I would have never liked it if I had seen Ian with Oriana.

I had been hurt even when the others talked to Oriana. Even small jokes made me annoyed when she laughed.

Yet I thought it was fine for me to hug others, to let them kiss me, to let them blow air on my face, to stand so close.

It all felt wrong, and I felt like a terrible girlfriend.

I told myself that once I finished whatever conversation I was called here for, I would go back and speak with Ian no matter what.

I would explain everything, and we would fix this. I wanted to be in his arms again.

When Miss Lenora took me to the basement, I became worried.

I wondered what they wanted. When I reached the lower floor, I saw Miss Rue and Mr. Rick standing across a big table waiting for me.

Miss Lenora took her seat before I could. I sat down and gave Miss Rue a nod.

She looked upset. They were letting her go until the new crusaders arrived, and the thought was horrible because it meant I was agreeing that I would die soon.

"Clementine, you already know that you will be asked to transition in a few days, right?" Mr. Rick remarked, almost like he wanted to get the words out quickly.

I nodded.

"Well, before that, remember there was a pending punishment," he continued and I frowned.

"Oh, please do not tell me you forgot about it. I am talking about the one where you were going to be sent alone to the North," Mr. Rick told me.

As soon as he said it, I felt something tighten in my chest. I had almost forgotten about it.

"And if I say no?" I asked, leaning back in the chair.

"Well then, you will face the punishment. You will be thrown into the North anyway. We gave you all a fair chance to choose whether to stay in the mainland forever, be released from the North, or go back. The decision went against you. So now you want to back down, just because you are scared to return to the North?" Mr. Rick remarked, leaning further back in his seat and giving me a smug look.

"What is the task?" I replied, realizing it was true.

They had given us a fair chance, and because of Joshua, we lost it.

"There is a watch hidden from the North people and from everyone’s eyes. The watch has a golden pattern, and it is placed among four more watches. We want you to retrieve it for us. We will give you more details later," Ms. Lenora explained, showing me a piece of paper with a picture of the watch on it.

It looked like one of those old pocket watches with a silver chain hanging from it.

The watch seemed embedded in some kind of stone wall.

"Okay, so I can go back to my room for now," I stated, but as soon as I started to stand, Ms. Lenora shook her head and gestured for me to sit again.

"You will not return to your room, because in the next few minutes we will explain the task. It is important, because there have been rumors that the watch can reverse time once and change everything before returning to their real time. It depends on the person holding it. They can choose what time, year, or place they want to go to, and that can cause a lot of trouble if it goes into the wrong hands," Mr. Rick explained.

"You think a monster would retrieve it?" I questioned, folding my arms across my chest.

"No, not really. The rumors are getting out. We do not believe the watch works, but the others do. If the rumors spread, pack members from the South, West, and even East will try to go to the North. They will do it by boarding the train or trying to enter through other secured routes, and in the process they will leave openings for monsters to come out. We need to stop the disaster before it grows, and we need your help," Ms. Lenora clarified.

I began to nod.

"Okay, wait here. We will get more details about the watch," Mr. Rick told me.

I wondered if the task would be simple, because they had not mentioned any monster.

Ms. Lenora stepped out and left. The silence that followed was uncomfortable.

I wished Mr. Rick would leave too so I could speak with Miss Rue. I needed to talk to her.

I did not want to return after she was gone.

Ms. Lenora returned holding a piece of paper.

"Here are the directions. It is an easy route. There is no monster protecting the watch, so you will just go in and out," she told me, placing a map in front of me.

The area looked new, but if there was no monster, I could slip in and out.

"This task will not take more than an hour if you are fast, which we know you are," Mr. Rick added.

At this point, it seemed like a simple task.

I started to rise again.

"So now can I go back to my room?"

Mr. Rick and Ms. Lenora shared a glance.

"Not really. We are taking you to the North right now," Ms. Lenora replied.