Chapter 20

((You all owe me BIG TIME, because I’m uploading another long chapter when my last upload was two days ago. You’re welcome.

You can all pay me back by reading my lovely little rant at the end…it’ll make me feel better if you guys read it. :)

The song is best listened to around the later part of the chapter after the scene in the forest. You’ll know what I’m talking about when you get there.

Sorry for errors, vote/comment, yada yada))

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“Your father is in a coma, Skylar.”

I could only stare in Alpha Brett in dismay, refusing to believe the words coming out of his mouth.  My father, pale and motionless in a cot in the infirmary, was something I had never expected to see. Pack Doctors, having an Affinity unlike normal werewolves, had a superior self-healing ability than anyone but an Alpha. My father had never been sick (not that werewolves were prone to sickness after childhood, anyways). He had never had any sort of medical condition. In fact, when I thought of the epitome of ‘health’, my father came to mind.

Yet here he was, nearly lifeless in the cot right in front of me. Alpha Brett had pulled out a chair for me and I sank into it slowly. I gingerly reached out and rested my hand on my father’s arm, almost wincing from the lack of heat emanating from his skin.

“…how?” I asked softly. The last I’d heard, my father had been treating Maria after she’d been attacked. When Alpha Brett ordered me to come to the infirmary immediately because something happened to my father, it was as if the ground was collapsing under my feet. Could anything else go wrong?

“Maria was barely coherent as Alexander was attacked while she was still weak. She said the vampires took some of his blood and injected him with a substance. Whatever it was, there must be some silver infused, because his Wolf isn’t healing him.”

He indicated my father’s upturned arm. The veins were dark and stood out against his pale skin; it was as if there was poison pumping through my father’s veins.

“There obviously wasn’t that much silver because it didn’t kill him. Your father’s Affinity is strong. He would have a better chance of recuperating than anyone else in the pack if he hadn’t been drained from helping Maria.” The Alpha’s tone was flat and clipped. I could sense the tension simmering underneath his tone, and I knew why: Anne was missing, too.

It had taken a while to notice the blonde’s absence, as Maria had not been coherent enough to talk. In fact, it was several hours after Maria’s arrival to the infirmary, but sometime before my father was attacked, that the pack was notified that Anne’s scent was stale. She was known to wander off on her own sometimes, but when her father could not break her mental barricade to contact her, he knew something was wrong. Now the whole pack was in a near-panic state. Two werewolves injured (one of which currently in a coma), and the Alpha’s daughter missing.

I barely noticed when Alpha Brett strode off, presumably to renew his search for his daughter, leaving me and my mother alone with the prone figure in front of us.

My mother’s brilliant blue eyes were red-rimmed, her curls in disarray. She was crying softly and refusing to look at anything in particular. I couldn’t blame her; it was her Mate, after all. The thought of my own Mate caused a lump to rise in my throat and I quickly brushed the image of Gabriel’s face out of my mind. My own flesh and blood was suffering in front of me, and that had to take priority.

I dimly registered the sound of the door opening and closing, followed by shuffling footsteps. I spun around to see a haggard Maria limp in. She still looked tired and strained from her contact with silver; in fact, I was surprised she was moving at all.

She slowly walked over to the bed nearest my father’s and eased herself in.

“I needed…I just needed some fresh air,” she said quietly, dark eyes dull. “Skylar, I’m so-”

“Don’t Maria. It’s not your fault. It’s mine. I waited outside while my father was treating you but Alpha Brett told me to go home, to get some sleep until you were awake. I shouldn’t have listened, maybe I would have been able to stop them…”

She shook her head quickly. “You wouldn’t have been able to. Those vampires were in and out in half a minute, maybe less. They barely even woke me up and I couldn’t smell them. I’d never seen anyone move that fast.” A flicker of fear crossed her expression.

I gritted my teeth. “What happened, Maria?” I was sure she’d told the story already but I wanted to hear it. I needed to hear it.

The brunette sighed, lowering herself into a horizontal position on the cot. “After you and Will argued, I confronted him. He said some upsetting things so I went to the forest. Anne followed me. We were talking, and all of a sudden he was there.”

“Who?”

“Vampire. Tall, lighter brown hair, creepy blue-green eyes. He seemed really strong, and really….evil. I didn’t even catch his scent, he just snuck up on us.”

I nodded for her to go on.

“He wrapped us in silver before we could move, and gagged us so we couldn’t call for help. We were no match for him. He knew my name, and he knew who Anne was, which means he must have been watching everyone for a while. He said something about not wanting Anne to be there, but said she would be collateral damage, just like me. He knocked me out and took Anne.” A palpable sense of guilt appeared in Maria’s dark eyes.

“There was nothing you could’ve done. That was Cain; it had to be. No other vampire would be able to take on two full-grown werewolves at once that quickly.” I couldn’t imagine going face-to-face with the monster like Maria had. The thought made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

She visibly shuddered. “He just radiated evil, Skylar. I can’t explain it any better than that.”

“He’s the oldest vampire. He would be too strong for anyone except an Alpha.” In fact, too strong for anyone except Gabriel, I added inside my head.

“I don’t remember much of being brought back here. When I woke up from one of my dozes there was a different vampire leaning over me. He smothered me so I couldn’t cry out while the other one, Cain or whatever his name is, began to inject…” Maria indicated my father with a jerk of her head, seemingly unable to say more. But I understood.

My mother had remained silent through all of this, but I could see the lines of visible tension in her delicate shoulders. She  sniffed, loudly, taking one of my father’s hands in hers. It was heartbreaking to watch.

“Alpha Brett said they took his blood.” I was stating it more than asking, but I had to know. What the Hell would Cain want with my father’s blood? The thought deeply perturbed me.

Maria nodded mutely.

“And he said you and Anne were collateral damage, not the intended target.” My brain was quickly working to put the pieces together. “He also attacked when my father was at his weakest.” Everything came together with horrifying clarity and I swallowed hard. “So…he wanted my father’s blood all along. That was what he was going for. All of his other actions with you and Anne were leading to this.”

“So why does he still have Anne?” She asked weakly.

I did not want to find out.

---

I stayed by my father’s beside as the sunlight began to creep across the sky, night turning into early morning, then morning transitioning into a bright and hot afternoon. After a few hours, Maria left the infirmary to return home. After she left, I lowered my head and let the guilt wash over me.

This is all my fault, I thought morosely, resting my elbows on the bed nearest my father. He hadn’t moved in all the hours since I’d been here. My mother had fallen into a restless sleep, her hand still placed in his.

You couldn’t have known he’d go after your family, my Wolf tried to reason, but she too seemed subdued.

Yes I could have! He likes to play games; I should have known that anyone close to me would be a direct target!

He could have just wanted Pack Doctor blood regardless of the relation to you.

Then why attack my best friend? He could have attacked anyone in the pack to get my father’s attention.

She couldn’t argue with that logic. I stared down at my father’s face, peaceful in sleep despite the situation. Why did Cain want his blood? I had no doubt it had something to do with my father’s Affinity. Attacking Maria just seemed like Cain’s way of getting at me. He could have killed her, but instead he left her on the fringes of death for my father to heal her. It seemed like he was toying with me, letting me know what power he had over all of us.

I felt a flutter of panic as I took in my father’s stillness, and for the millionth time I wished I had inherited his Affinity. The pack did not have another Doctor to take his place. If he died, we would be lost until another was born with the Affinity. I was worse than useless, and I was sure everyone was thinking the same thing.

There was a she-wolf in the pack, Linda, who worked part-time in the human settlement at a medical clinic to earn money for her family. She could not treat my father as a werewolf’s makeup was completely different than a human’s, but she came in every so often to check his vitals. I caught a waft of her scent as she entered the room, tools in hand. I was grateful to her for trying even though she couldn’t really help him.

I had been feeling feverish the last couple of hours. My skin was prickling, and I felt jumpy. No doubt it was due to all of the stress, but regardless I needed some fresh air.

“I’ll be right back,” I muttered to Linda, quickly exiting the infirmary knowing my father was in good hands.

The gentle breeze and warm air outside were refreshing, but I still felt…odd. I took deep breaths as I attempted to calm myself down and think about what to do. What was wrong with me? Was I coming down with something? Trying to ignore the itching under my skin, I thought about what to do.

There were scant options. I could not help my father; in fact, the nearest source of help was in Gabriel’s pack. Eva. I stiffened as the idea came to me. What if we sent for help to the Black Mountains Pack…would Gabriel allow Eva to cross our borders? Would he do something like that for me, helping the enemy pack?

I felt a flicker of doubt as I remembered Alpha Brett’s blatant hatred for them, but surely he would listen to reason when it came down to someone as important as my father. I glanced around, noting the absence of wolves in the pack village. They must all be looking for Anne. The blonde and I had never gotten along, but still I felt the guilt rise again. It was my fault she was missing. I could’ve argued more and told Alpha Brett that Cain liked to taunt me and play mind games, that he might go after someone close to me. I was selfish to keep my mouth shut.

I reached out a mental probe, finding Alpha Brett’s presence. Alpha Brett? I asked, almost timorously as I thought of what his reaction might be to my previously unheard of proposition.

What, Skylar? I’m a bit busy right now. His tone was quite unwelcoming.

I just had an idea about how we could help my father. I know you don’t like the Black Mountains Pack, but Gabriel might be willing to help since it’s my-

We are NOT asking for help from them! Alpha Brett’s voice rung with dislike and left little room for argument.

But they could send over their Pack Doctor and she could help-

They have made no effort before to be peaceful with us! We do not need our enemies here in a time like this!

Yeah, but Gabriel has a Mate here now. It’s different.

I sensed Alpha Brett’s snarl over the mind link. Absolutely not. And don’t think I’ve forgotten that we need to have a serious talk, Skylar.

With that, he abruptly cut me out. Gritting my teeth as the anger rose, I quickly strode back into the infirmary. What was his problem? Was he too blinded by his own hatred to ask for help in a serious time of need?

I sat down roughly in the chair next to my father as Linda exited, ignoring my mother’s confused stare. I reached forward and determinedly grabbed my father’s hand, mentally reassuring him that it would all be okay. To my surprise, when I grabbed his hand I felt an odd sensation; it was like a brief moment of searing heat, jolting from his hand and shooting up my arm. It left the hairs on my forearm standing straight up and I released my father’s hand in confusion. My arm was tingling as the sensation faded. What was going on? Was that a good sign?

I tentatively grabbed his hand again but the blazing sensation of heat did not reoccur, and I was left staring at his sleeping face, preoccupied.

---

A couple hours later, Anne still had yet to be found, and there was no change with my father.  My mother made me jolt in surprise when she spoke for the first time in a long while.

“Skylar? Do you think….would you mind leaving me alone with your father for a while? I’d just like to talk to him. I don’t know, maybe hearing my voice will help wake him up.” Her eyes were glassy with unshed tears, her beautiful face nearly crumpled in despair. I couldn’t say no to her when she looked like that, so I reluctantly agreed. Perhaps I could rest for a while at home. After Will and I argued I had returned home and taken a shower, trying to wash away my anger, but I’d never been able to sleep because Maria was attacked so soon after dark.

I reluctantly released my father’s hand and, with one last glance at my mother’s morose expression, exited the infirmary and navigated the narrow alleyways between houses to return to my own.

Upon walking in the air seemed stale, the house tense and quiet. I frowned as I entered the living room. Nobody had been here since late last night when we’d received news of my father, yet something was…off. My Wolf whined in the back of my mind. I tensed up, trusting my instincts, as they’d never led me astray before. I glanced around warily, my eyes roving the furniture and the pictures on the walls. Nothing had been touched, so why did I feel as if another presence had been here?

My trepidation increasing, I slowly took the stairs up towards my room. My preoccupation was heightened as I approached the sleeping quarters. I couldn’t quite explain it, it was as if the air had been stirred by a body other than my own. As the hair on the back of my neck began to prickle, I knew I was correct. I had learned to recognize this feeling as I always got it when vampires had been around. My Wolf had a keen sense for other supernatural creatures. Recognizing it made my blood run cold and I slowly pushed open the door to my bedroom. The wooden door creaked ominously as my room’s contents were revealed.

My eyes immediately found the culprit: a small white slip of paper, innocently resting in the exact center of my bed. My bed was immaculately made, sheets tucked in and pillows fluffed, but there was one problem.

I hadn’t made the bed.

Goosebumps sprung up and down my arms and I tried not to shiver. It was the middle of the day and I knew the vampires couldn’t reach me here, but the thought of Cain making my bed disturbed me on a deep level. I hesitantly approached the bed, remembering the last time he had left me a ‘gift’. I could only hope he hadn’t put one of Anne’s body parts in a container and sent it to me.

To my small sense of relief, the piece of paper was the only new addition to my room. I swallowed hard and braced myself as I gingerly picked it up. Half of the page was covered in a flowing script that I recognized as Cain’s, assuming Cain had written the note to me in Gabriel’s home when Riley’s heart was left in the box on my bed.

Skylar,

You really need to straighten your room. Although I imagine you’ve been a bit busy, what with taking care of your father and all. Sorry about that, but I needed his blood. Call it scientific curiosity.

I believe I have something—or someone—your pack wants. I know they’re looking for me, but I’m rather hard to track as you know, and they’ll have no luck finding the Alpha’s daughter.

I am, however, available to talk to you. Consider the blonde my bargaining chip. Walk north into the woods immediately after sundown, and keep walking. I’ll find you. Come alone.

I’d hate to see what would happen to this scared little she-wolf if you don’t come, or if you try to lead someone else to me.

I’ll be waiting.

---

Never had a day felt so long.

I hadn’t even debated ignoring the note. At this point, I had seen enough of Cain’s ruthlessness to know he would kill Anne in a heartbeat and leave her there for us to find. If she died, it would be all my fault. If it were anyone else besides Cain I might think they were bluffing, but I knew it would be just as easy for Cain to kill off the pack members one by one until I gave in. I wasn’t going to let any more blood be spilled if I could help it. It didn’t matter that Anne and I had never gotten along; she was my pack member, and she had a Mate out there waiting to meet her one day. She had a father, a mother, and a little brother that loved her. It wasn’t her time to die.

With my rosary to protect me, I would have to trust Raziel’s words that the vampires couldn’t touch me. I knew that I was putting myself in danger, and that Gabriel wouldn’t like it. But Riley was dead, Maria had almost died, and my father was in a coma. I couldn’t take much more. I needed to know what the Hell Cain wanted from me, and I wasn’t going to put my entire pack’s safety at risk because of cowardice. Perhaps I was being reckless, but I didn’t care. I was out of options.

So, I acted like nothing was on my mind besides my father’s health to fool my mother, sitting by his bedside and staring into space as darkness slowly arrived. The rest of the pack was in such a state of panic because of Anne’s disappearance that I knew they’d scarcely notice if I slipped away. I simply told my mother that I was going outside to ‘clear my head’ before it got too dark. In her dreary state, she just nodded, barely registering what I said.

I still felt strange, the blood burning through my veins, as if I were coming down with some sort of rare disease, but I could only attribute it to the stress of the situation. My nerve endings felt frayed but they would keep me alert. I had to be on my guard when meeting Cain.

The patrols and searches for Anne were easier to avoid than I thought. Because it was getting dark, Alpha Brett would not allow smaller search groups to rove the land so the parties were more spread out. I found an area of the woods where my packmates’ scent was fresh so they would not be searching there again anytime soon, and from there I headed north. I walked in a stream for a brief spell as to mask my scent better. My Wolf itched to be free, as she was feeling the same feverish tension I was, but I ignored her. I would meet Cain face-to-face.

The forest grew steadily quieter as I continued, the animals likely scurrying far away from the menace that was lurking nearby. It was fully dark now, the thin moonlight doing little to illuminate the forest floor. Leaves crackled and crunched under my feet as I crossed another stream. I hoped my innate sense of direction was guiding me true.

Not too long after dark, the hairs on my neck stood on end and I knew I was getting close. The forest was deathly still now. The crunching leaves underneath my bare feet seemed disconcertingly loud amidst the silence. I felt a spike of nervousness but attempted to quell it, feeling my rosary warm against my skin and hoping it would be enough to dispel Cain’s evil.

It was not Cain’s scent I caught first; it was Anne’s. I emerged into a clearing to see three figures standing there, bathed in moonlight. Anne was there, bloody and bruised, silver loosely wrapped around her thin torso as a vampire with scraggly hair stood behind her and held her in place. She was slumped, blonde hair falling forward to obscure her features.

My eyes immediately flicked to the vampire I knew must be Cain. He was tall and imposing, his features just as Maria described them. His unnatural eyes burned with such maliciousness I almost took a step back. My Wolf could recognize the aura of pure evil that he emitted, and I tried not to visibly shudder. A lazy smirk made its way across his features as he took me in.

“And here I was, thinking you’d be a no-show,” he drawled lazily.

“What do you want?” was my short response.

“In such a hurry…don’t you want to get to know me first?” The smirk grew. “I’ll have you know, Skylar, that letter took a while to write.”

I did not like his arrogance, the way he was treating this all like a game. My name sounded like poison coming from his lips. I heard the vampire holding Anne snicker cruelly. “Enough playing around,” I snapped, trying to be brave despite my inner turmoil. “Why did you want to meet me here?”

“Call it…scientific curiosity,” Cain said, eyes glinting, echoing the words from the letter.

I stared at him, perplexed, completely unsure where he was going with this.

“Tell me, Skylar….how have you been feeling since your father’s accident?”

I couldn’t prevent the snarl that escaped my chest. “Don’t you dare talk about him,” I snapped furiously.

The vampire cocked his head, raising an eyebrow. “You really don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?”

I only stared at him mutinously, refusing to partake in his game of his.

Cain shook his head slowly. “It must be much more deeply buried than I originally thought…I suppose the blood will have to do for now.” He almost seemed to be talking to himself.

Now I made no attempt to hide my bewilderment. “What are you talking about? What is deeply buried?”

Caine made a tsk-ing noise in his throat. “Now, now, don’t be hasty. If you don’t already know, I’ll have to let you figure it out by yourself.”

“Figure WHAT out?” I was about at the end of my patience. It didn’t escape my notice that Anne had shifted position, whimpering in pain. I didn’t even want to know what they had done to her.

Caine took a step closer, and I had to fight not to move backward.

He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. “Yes, it definitely is different. There’s an edge to it.” He opened his eyes and his lips curled in a sneer. “Although other than that, you dogs all have blood that smells the same. Disgusting.”

I ignored the insult. So he was talking about my blood, then. My eyebrows furrowed; did this have anything to do with the odd way I’d been feeling all day?

“I was hoping that, with your father’s….predicament, it would have emerged. Seems I’ll have to wait.” Before I could put all the pieces together, Cain moved on, his eyes taking on a hungry edge as he examined me. “Or, I could just take you with me. See if I can beat it out of you.” He grinned, and I noticed with a stab of horror that his canines had slightly elongated.

I did not prevent the growl from emerging from my chest. “There’s no way in Hell I’ll go with you,” I snapped.

Cain’s eyebrows rose. “You think you know anything about Hell, dog?” He bared his teeth, his voice hardening. “Your whole species is pathetic. You know nothing of suffering.” His eyes were darkening and I recognized the demon within, making itself known.

My Wolf rose within my consciousness at the insult but I fought her down, seething. “No, you’re the one that is pathetic. Hiding in the shadows like a coward, refusing to face your enemies head-on. Killing those that are weaker than you.” I indicated Anne with a jerk of my head, seeing the furious expression on Cain’s face but recklessly continuing anyways, “You’re despicable!”

In a flash Cain’s face morphed until his eyes were completely black, his fangs bared. In a movement so fast I barely saw it, he lunged at me, claws extended. I scarcely had time to leap backwards although I knew I would be too slow for him. I braced myself for the impact but it never came. Instead, there was a furious hiss as Cain stopped himself mid-lunge and recoiled, face contorted in pain. He landed on all fours and then quickly scurried backwards like an animal. It was then that I realized his demon eyes were fixated on the necklace hidden under my shirt. There was a burning fury etched in his expression.

I drew the cross out, slowly. As soon as it was visible the second vampire snarled and backed away while Cain continued to glare at the necklace.

“That…” He started to say, spitting his words out. “That thing…that was supposed to be destroyed!” I had never seen so much anger in one expression. Cain’s eyes glittered with hatred and I wondered what experience he’d had with my rosary to infuriate him so.

“Well, apparently it wasn’t,” I said coolly, still holding it out. The rosary was so hot it was nearly burning my hand.

A few seconds passed in which Cain visibly tried to control himself. It was then that I realized he really did have a short temper; perhaps I could use that to my advantage. He backed away a bit more, keeping a safe distance between himself and the rosary, before his fangs retracted and his eyes returned to their electric green-blue hue.

“Well then,” he said coldly. Cain’s fists were clenched tightly at his sides. “Apparently, there will be a change of plan.” I felt a small blossom of relief as he said that. Obviously he hadn’t known I had the rosary and he’d planned to take me with him, likely to use as a bargaining chip against Gabriel. If I hadn’t had the rosary, I would’ve been in trouble, or I may have never come. No wonder Cain said he thought I’d be a no-show.

“You think I’d walk in here unarmed?” I replied, trying to keep my cool façade although I was trembling inside.

Cain shrugged, the movement almost delicate. “I was hoping. However, since I can’t take you with me, I’m afraid I’ll have to do something else….drastic.” His eyes flicked to the other vampire, who let go of Anne and uncoiled the silver that had been wrapped around her. She crumpled to the ground, landing on her hands and knees, head bowed.

In a burst of motion, Cain leapt over to Anne and grabbed her hair, yanking backwards so she was forced to look up. I felt a tremor of fear as I realized what was about to happen.

“No!” I yelled furiously, tensing up to leap at him. It was as if everything from then happened in slow motion, although it couldn’t have been more than a second.

Anne’s tired, despair-filled hazel eyes flicked up to meet mine as I leapt towards Cain on the far side of the clearing. Her gaze caught and held me. In her orbs I saw more emotions than she’d ever shown me her entire life; fear, resignation, pain, but most of all, sorrow and regret. In that brief second Anne displayed more feeling than I had seen in almost twenty years. The intensity of her expression almost took my breath away, as if she was sending me a silent explanation for everything that had ever happened between us instead of begging me for help. Because she knew I was too late.

As I was mid-leap Cain shoved his arm roughly into Anne’s chest the same way he had Riley’s, and I heard bones snap as he penetrated her structure. With one jerk he ripped her heart out of her body and all emotion in her eyes vanished, leaving her expression vacant.

With a howl of fury I continued my trajectory but in the same movement Cain smoothly leapt out of the way, narrowly avoiding my fevered lunge. He could not retaliate because of my rosary but he hissed menacingly as I landed on all fours and turned to face him, hovering over Anne’s body.

He clutched Anne’s heart in his hand, blood smeared on his pale skin. He let go of the organ and it dropped to the ground with a thump. I felt a wave of grief rise within me as I glared at him, my teeth exposed in a snarl, trying not to Shift. I was torn between the natural instinct to hover over my dead packmate’s body or leap at the attacker.

Cain made the decision for me. He smirked menacingly, eyes dark again as the demon inside of him made itself known. “Next time, Skylar, I suggest you let me stick with my original plan.” He jerked his head to his companion, the vampire with the dark scraggly hair. The vampire turned and vanished into the trees with scarcely a sound. Cain made to follow before glancing over his shoulder. “This little get together was far too short for my liking. I’ll be seeing you soon,” he said, cruelty in his expression, before he too exited the clearing.

I sat over Anne’s body until I was sure they were gone before I let my eyes travel downwards to her corpse. Her lips were slightly parted, hazel eyes wide and empty. There were cuts and bruises all over her fair skin and her hair was matted with dirt. Gently, I reached down and brushed a strand of hair out of her face as I felt another wave of uncontrollable grief crash over me.

This was Anne. The Alpha’s daughter. One of my pack mates. And now she was nothing but an empty shell, her Wolf gone forever. Her Mate was now destined to be alone, and Alpha Brett had lost his only daughter.

I stared down at her sadly. Without the arrogance and haughtiness normally present in her expression, she was beautiful, and almost looked…gentle. I gently reached forward and closed her eyes. I couldn’t stand seeing the profound emptiness that indicated that her soul wasn’t there anymore.

Although her front was splattered with blood and gore, I paid no mind as I lowered my head and rested it against her still-warm figure. Tears blurred my vision and began to trickle unheeded down my cheeks. This was my fault. All my fault. I had provoked Cain somehow and he had killed Anne, who had never done anything to deserve a death like this.

Maybe he had planned on killing Anne no matter what I did. After all, according to Maria he had called her ‘collateral damage’.

The guilt was almost unmanageable. I stayed like that for nearly half an hour, lost in my emotion, cradling Anne’s still figure in my arms, before I realized I would have to tell the rest of the pack that she was dead, dead because of me.

Letting all of my emotions well forth and my Wolf come to the forefront of my consciousness, I tilted my head up and let my grief emerge in a long, drawn-out howl.

---

The rest of the night was heartbreakingly silent. Alpha Brett had taken one look at Anne’s body before all emotion was wiped clean from his face. He had carried her body to his house and had not emerged since. At others’ urging, I had returned home to change clothes and shower, although I scarcely remembered doing so. I was standing outside the infirmary now, staring into the distance as sunrise approached. I felt like my life was in shambles.

I needed Gabriel.

My packmates were looking at me with emotions ranging from pity to fury. I knew some of them blamed me, but I didn’t care. I blamed myself too, although the more I thought about it, the more I was convinced that Cain would have killed her either way. Jack came by at one point and got the entire story from me and I told him everything from the letter to the events in the clearing. A grief-stricken Maria had wandered over eventually, looking lost. I had pulled her to me and refused to let her go, and we cried together as the first rays of the sun began to light up the sky. I couldn’t imagine what she was going through; she was a lot closer to Anne than I was.

Sometime later, I noticed a commotion nearby. A large group was approaching the infirmary, and I heard angry shouting. Alpha Brett was at the forefront of the group, Jack beside him, appearing as if he was trying to reason with him. I caught the end of his words as they approached,

“Brett, think about what you’re doing! You-”

“Shut up!” Alpha Brett snapped. Maria and I stood up, concerned. I had never heard Alpha Brett speak to his Beta like that.

Alpha Brett was practically sprinting towards us and I felt a spike of nervousness as I saw what his eyes were fixated on: me.

We walked out to meet them halfway. “Alpha, what’s going on?” Maria asked, sorrow laced in her tone.

I opened my mouth to say something but I never got the chance. Alpha Brett lunged at me in a blur of motion, striking me on the side of the face with his fist. I was thrown backwards like a rag doll and I collided with the ground about ten feet away. Wincing at the explosion of pain in my cheek, I attempted to roll to absorb the main impact, throwing up dust all around me. I struggled to my feet, clutching my cheek as the pain spread.

“What the HELL, Brett? Are you crazy?” Jack snapped, looking at me with a horrified expression. My eyes met Alpha Brett’s and I was frightened at what I saw there: raw, burning fury, mixed with pain that ran deeper than I could ever imagine.

“…You,” he spit out, ignoring his Beta completely.

I stared at him, opening and closing my mouth. What was I supposed to say?

“This is all your fault. We were fine until YOU came back!”

“Brett, it isn’t Skylar, it’s the vampires-“

“Silence! Stop arguing!” The Alpha roared at his Beta, putting a Command in his tone.

“Alpha Brett, I….” I trailed off, completely lost. It was my fault, wasn’t it? I couldn’t defend myself.

“What, Skylar? What pathetic excuse do you have now?” He was almost sneering cruelly at this point. “My daughter is dead. DEAD! Because you led those fucking bloodsuckers right to us! And you willingly did what they told you to do in that stupid letter!”

“They were going to kill her if I didn’t-”

“Yeah, well she’s dead now!” He roared, and his voice nearly broke. The pain on Alpha Brett’s face was palpable. I couldn’t imagine what he was going through, what my father would do if he were in Alpha Brett’s situation.

“I’m sorry….”

“Sorry does not fucking cut it. You are going to tell me everything Skylar, or I will exile you right here and now!”

The werewolves around us gasped. I could sense more and more of them approaching to see what was going on.

I looked down at the ground, trying to fight my rising emotion. What could I tell him? I couldn’t tell him that Gabriel was part Angel, he probably wouldn’t believe me anyways, and I had promised Raziel. But I couldn’t lie to my pack after everything that had just happened….

“Why are the vampires here? What do they want? TELL ME THE TRUTH!” He roared, using the Command.

“They want Gabriel’s blood,” I blurt out, unable to fight the Command. I frantically thought for words to say that wouldn’t reveal my Mate’s heritage. “They need his blood to become invincible, and they were going after his mother but she got away from them, so now Cain has a personal vendetta against Gabriel.” All of that was true, I thought, hopefully it was enough.

“So you’re telling me that my daughter DIED because the vampires are going after YOUR MATE, our WORST ENEMY?” He accented the words with hand gestures, his face a mask of fury. I tried not to cower under his wrath.

“Yes,” I whispered, unable to lie to him.

“Has he known about this? That they need an Alpha’s blood?” He was shaking.

“Yes.”

A furious snarl escaped from Alpha Brett’s chest. His eyes were pitch black now and I knew he was fighting the Shift; all of the grief and stress made him, like any Alpha, volatile.

“I’ll fucking kill him,” he hissed, shaking. I blinked at him, horrified, hoping I heard wrong.

“No you can’t-“

“YES I DAMN WELL CAN! Because of THAT BASTARD, our pack is getting attacked, my own daughter was killed and your father is in a coma!” Spittle was flying out of his mouth, he looked insane. “I have dealt with his cruelty, his pack’s oppression, for years and years now without fighting! I have hated every second of it but I’ve done it, but I’m not going to anymore. My little girl is dead because of him. Because of your. Fucking. Mate.”

The grief had caused him to snap, to lose all sense of reason. Jack looked like he was mentally pleading with him, but due to the Command, he couldn’t argue.

“If you challenge him, he’ll kill you!” I pled desperately, ignoring the fact that several of the wolves around us were agreeing with Alpha Brett’s words. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to protect my Mate…the fact was, he was stronger than Alpha Brett, and I knew it. If an Alpha trespassed on Gabriel’s territory he would kill without a second thought. It was allowed under werewolf law, and Gabriel was proud and ruthless.

“Not if I kill him first. I suggest you shut your mouth Skylar, you’ve caused enough damage.” He shot me a look filled with so much hatred I winced and backed away.

“Jack, stay here. You three, with me.” Using his Command, Alpha Brett indicated the three wolves nearest him. Without another word they turned and began to leave, Maria, Jack and I standing there in horror.

Alpha Brett was using his anger as fuel, thinking he was invincible, grieving so badly that he did not care about the consequences, which I knew would be severe. As the group began to head off, I heard Alpha Brett give a furious howl, along with the words,

“We are going to challenge this bastard and get him out of this territory once and for all. For Anne.”

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A/N: Okay, I’m SO SORRY there is no Gabriel in this chapter, but I PROMISE he will be in the next one. Pinky swear. :) Also, I know this is a depressing chapter. I can honestly tell you that this will be the saddest chapter for a while. What did you think? Too long, too short, too rushed, too drawn out?

I’m just going to rant for a bit. I’ve gotten an overwhelming number of positive feedback and comments, and that’s great. I’ve also gotten a couple helpful minor critiques, which I also don’t mind.

However, there is one thing that irks me. Please don’t tell me “you’re dragging it out too long” or “the romance is too slow”. Honestly, that’s just your opinion. I don’t think it’s moving too slow at all. I have told you all NUMEROUS times that my werewolf story is different, and I want the romance to be “realistic”. There are certain stories suited for the whole love at first sight thing, but not this one. You have to remember, Gabriel has been her ENEMY for YEARS AND YEARS. You can’t expect them to make out when they first meet.

Even so, I’m aware that their relationship has been developing for a long time. I did this deliberately. I’m trying to keep it suspenseful and dramatic. I tend to lose interest in stories if the characters fall in love too quickly. If Skylar and Gabriel do get together, it will be just that much better because you all have been waiting so long. And I promise, it won’t be dragged out for another 20 chapters or anywhere close to that.

Leaving rude comments (I haven’t gotten very many, so this does not apply to 99% of you) about how I’m writing my story is just…..annoying. I’ll write it how I want to write it. I’m not getting paid to do this so I’m not going to cater to how a tiny number of readers want it. If the readers like it (which the vast majority of you do), great. If not…well, it’s not for everyone I guess.

-sigh- I hate having to do these, and I’m sorry. But I feel better typing it out. Thank you to all of those who are patient and supportive. This early update is for you.

MULTIMEDIA:

Another picture of Anne >>>>>>>>

A really sad piano song that goes with Anne’s death, called “It’s Hard to Say Goodbye”