As they were about to exit the cave, Arya heard loud whispers. Something was calling to her. She felt a whole body vibrate, starting from head and traveling to her toes.
It felt like something hit her from the head and ran down to her toes.
"Rodriguez, you take the lead. I'll come after some time," she said.
Rodriguez nodded and went towards the exit. Arya stayed behind and looked around. She could feel some foreign power trying to contact her.
'You came!' Came a voice.
"Who's there?" Arya asked, looking around.
The strange part was that Arya didn't fear the voice. She was drawn to it. She felt like it was a long, lost part of her own being, long separated, now coming to reconnect.
'It's me!'
"Who? And why do you sound familiar?"
'There is a bowl beside the alter. Go look in it. You will see me.'
Sure enough, there was a silver bowl sitting beside the alter. It seemed part of the crystals and a goblet that also sat there.
Arya went to the sacred alter and looked into the bowl, which seemed to contain some kind of liquid.
Her own reflection stared back at her, but something was different. She had longer, darker hair, glowing skin, and her eyes were pitch black.
She stared at her in both amazement and shock. She was definitely Arya, but different.
"Are you my twin?" Arya asked her reflection. She didn't expect any answer.
"No, I am you. I am a part of you that Kane suppressed years ago, but Alfa awakened when he put Bella to permanent sleep," her reflection replied.
Arya almost jumped back in fright. How could her mirror image talk? Then she remembered why she came here.
Arya knew she had a witch in her, and here she was, trying to communicate.
"What's your name?" Arya asked.
"Elaine. And I'm the part of you who is a dark witch. Once you make your sacrifices, our bond will become stronger."
"Why do you want to kill Alfa?"
"Because he betrayed you! That mut had to protect you, but instead, he killed the one thing that you felt comfortable with," came the reply.
"But I thought you should be happy. I mean, putting Bella away meant you could finally rise!" Arya said curiously.
"Yes, I was happy to finally rise. But then, I felt your pain and emotions. You cried every night for Bella, and Alfa wouldn't even listen to you about finding a way to restore her within us. Your pain was immense. That is the reason I came forward. To help you and protect you."
"Those dreams I had, about grandma, was that you trying to tell me something?"
"No. That dream was solely yours. I can not invade your thoughts and privacy at this stage. We are not yet one."
"Can you read old witch language?" Arya asked. Elaine was a dark witch, so maybe she could actually read it.
"No. But I feel a deep connection to Rodriguez. Something about him is connected to us. I feel like that letter has some sort of truth that ties all of us together. Almost like Rodriguez is destined to work together with us, not just because we promised him Kane, but because there is something else. Maybe a relationship."
"Rodriguez and me? A relationship? Look, Elaine, I'm still Alfa's mate. I..."
"You're getting it wrong, Arya. I don't mean a romantic relationship. I mean a... a.... it's complicated, and I don't want to get your hopes up. That letter will tell us what we need to know!"
"Will I ever get Bella back?" Arya asked, changing the topic.
She had begun feeling uncomfortable. She also felt deeply connected with Rodriguez, but why? Who was he to her?
She was betraying her mate, Alfa, by even thinking of another man... so why can't she put a finger on that feeling? Why was she so comfortable here that she didn't even want to return back to Alfa?
"Elaine, how would we call Kane here without raising suspicion?" Arya asked, remembering that Elaine had promised Rodriguez his head.
"Leave that to me."
"But I want to know what you'll do. We are a team, remember that!"
"I'll inform Rodriguez about any of my plans, so he can tell you. I can't do anything without you, Arya. After the third and final sacrifice, our thoughts would become one, and we would be able to communicate, just like Bella and you could!"
"Speaking of sacrifice, the first full moon is in days. Where will I get the girls?"
"Arya, I will send someone to get a girl. I feel that Alfa will be waiting for us to step outside this territory so he can drag us back. I can not let that happen."
"Why not? I mean, if we're with him, it might be easier to lure Alfa and Kane out, so Rodriguez can take his revenge," Arya said.
It would only make sense that Arya get out and try her best to get Kane and Alfa out somewhere where Rodriguez can finish them off.
"Once they have you, they will not let you go, no matter what. And I want to see them die with my own two eyes."
"I have another question. How can I see you and talk to you through my reflection?" Arya asked the question she wanted to know the answer of from the beginning.
"This is a special concoction made with herbs that the witch hunters used way back to identify if the person in front of them is a human or a witch. This liquid shows your true self," Elaine replied.
"That means I can come here to talk to you anytime."
"Yes. But first you must read the letter. It might give us some information on the book or why Rodriguez is so powerful that even the strongest Alpha's couldn't defeat him in war and take over the pack."
"Yes," Arya agreed. "And it might even tell us why we feel that connection with Rodriguez!"
"You better go. Don't forget I'm with you even if you can not see me."
Arya walked out of the cave to find Rodriguez and his men waiting.
"Everything alright?" Rodriguez asked, worried.
"Everything is great. I met my witch today. She's great. We should get home and start decoding the letter," Arya said, smiling.
"Yes, we should get going," Rodriguez agreed, and without a word turned and walked down the path, toward home.