Chapter Twenty-Seven

Dylan

My skull pulsates like a limb finally being allowed blood after it's circulation was cut off. I can feel my blood rolling down my scalp and onto the back of my neck in thick slow moving ribbons. Every effort to open my eyes is thwarted by the dots clouding my vision so I decide to keep them closed.

Attempting to reach for the sore spot on my head, I realize my hands are bound together and then again tied to my feet.

"Sorry about all of this," a familiar voice echoes around the walls.

My ears ache at how loud he is but I know that voice from anywhere.

"Connor," I whisper, unable to find my voice. "Please... help me."

I hear his footsteps growing closer and closer until I can feel his body heat against mine. It's a heavy contrast to the cold wetness of the floor I'm on.

"Shh," he chides, smoothing my hair before laying my head against his chest, "It'll all be over soon and then we can be together."

My heart rate speeds at his words while his remains completely steady. His heart's pace is calm against my ear alerting me he fully believes everything he's saying.

I take another chance at opening my eyes, pushing past the dots that fill my sight. Widening then closing my eyes I blink my way into clarity.

Cave. That's the only word that comes to mind as I take in our surroundings for the first time. The walls are made completely of stone, covered in what looks like rust or dirt. The ground itself is brown and damp and feels as cold and hard as ice.

"W-Where are we?" I mutter, I know he can hear me with the amount of echo in this place. Even still he's so close he can probably hear my thoughts.

"A collapsed mine shaft in the woods," Connor explains hopping to his feet.

It's blowing my mind watching him now. He's waltzing around like we're sitting in a hotel room in the Hilton rather than a dank abandoned hideaway in the woods. His demeanor is completely different, no longer is he the insecure troubled boy I grew so fond of. Now... well I don't know who he is.

"Derek and I found this place when we were younger. It was going to be our fort. We were just making headway on clearing it when," he stops and breathes deeply as if to calm himself, "he came back."

The amount of venom he said the word with sends ice down my spine. I watch in horror as his eyes turn black and his claws extend. Simultaneously he punches one of the walls and a growl erupts from his chest pinging off of every surface around us making it that much louder and menacing.

I scream, an involuntary action, but it draws his attention.

His features soften and return to normal almost instantly. "No no no," his voice is calmer now, soothing almost, "You don't have to be afraid of me. I would never hurt you. I'm nothing like him."

Wild rumbling in my chest and a flurry of thoughts flooding my mind are my body's responses to his words. He's talking about Karter. The realization must be all over my face because he smirks, gliding the back of his hand down my face lovingly before he stands.

"I see you've finally put two and two together," he affirms, checking his cell phone. "To be honest I'm surprised it took you this long. I always thought you were more intelligent, it's one of the things I love about you."

When I don't respond he continues.

"In fact I thought you were on to me a few times but no, you couldn't see past the act I was putting on. I did a great job too huh? Playing right into your insatiable need to help people and pick up the pieces for them even if your own world is falling apart. That's yet another thing I love about you Dylan."

Hearing him say those words makes me want to throw up. I'm one more confession of love from blowing chunks all over the walls.

"What are you doing?"

He shakes his head as if it's so obvious. "The dominos have been in place since the day I shot him. He should have died then and I would've risen to my rightful place but somehow he pulled through. Unlucky for him I had a backup plan. A domino a day, one fell right into another, breaking his image with the pack after his attack and then his heart by poisoning his grandmother and most of the elders who could refute my Alpha title. I wanted all of this to happen weeks ago, I was just missing one thing... you."

My eyes widen and my throat is as dry as the desert. "M-Me? What do I have to do with this?"

He laughs, "Everything! Don't you see? You made all of this possible! I had everything planned to the letter; from the poisoning of the pack, to pinning it on the Dark Wood Tribe, capturing them, all of it. I was going to sneak in and unleash them on the pack while I killed him. Once the dust settled I'd pin the crime on the dead Dark Wood members and become the new Alpha. Everything would've been perfect. But when he hid the location of the pack from everyone besides Grey it was back to the drawing board."

Breathing is getting harder to do. My chest is caving in and sweat is forming at the top of my back. I have to get out of here and warn Dean if everything hasn't gone to hell already.

"I thought about torturing Grey for the location but then I'd have to kill him," he continues, "I kind of actually like him so that would've been a drag. But I never counted on you, my silent unknowing partner in crime. When you left him it gave me the perfect opportunity to slide in and get the information I needed from him. He'd been lying in bed for days like a sloth. All it took were a few words of persuasion and he gave up the location like that." He snaps his fingers in front of his face.

"So I guess I should be thanking you. Or maybe I shouldn't since you came back to him and ruined it all. Had you stayed gone I could've spared you this. I knew after he was gone you would be so overcome with grief you'd need someone to replace him and who better than your best friend Con-Con."

My voice shakes, "Connor why are you doing this?"

"That bḁstard took everything from me! My brother chose him over me and now he's dead! Then the son of a bịtch swoops in and takes my position as Alpha!" He scoffs, "He's a coward and a failure. It all ends today."

Tears spring to my eyes but I refuse to give into them. Shaking them away I plead with him, "Connor please, you don't have to do this. We can just go back to the way things were, I promise. I'll back up any explanation you want to give, I won't let anything happen to you. Just please... Con-Con... don't."

The tense stance he was holding loosens slightly and I start to breathe a little easier. If I can get through to him everything can go back to normal. We can get him the help he needs. I see what's going on with him clearly. Grief, not envy, is the true culprit here. His grief swiftly turned into anger, it's an easier emotion.

I suddenly become very aware of my surroundings and the amount of space between Connor and I that he's quickly eating up. I'm even more aware of the knife in his hand as he approaches me. I curl in on myself and prepare for impact, closing my eyes.

"I already told you I'm not going to hurt you," he says softly, cutting the rope that connected my ankle ties to my wrists.

He helps me to my feet by my arm and starts to pull me towards the entrance. I can see the pool of light at the end of the tunnel and almost cry at the irony.

"Connor please don't do this. We can work something out I promise. I'll leave him if that's what you want. We can run away together just you and me," I try whatever I can to stop him.

The closer we get to the entrance the more of outside I can see. We're in front of a very familiar field that makes my heart skip more beats than what's healthy.

"Please Con-" I start but cut myself off when he stops abruptly.

His strong hands grab both of my shoulders, jerking my head back with the force.

"Shut. Up." he enunciates each word before pressing his lips to mine.

I keep my lips closed tightly, denying him any entrance, but he pulls my hair. I gasp, giving him just enough space to insert his tongue.

His hands grope my body and pull me to him in such a needy way I almost forget he's supposed to be the villain.

When he pulls back I can see his face fully. He's not smug or proud he looks sad and lost. He just needs someone, he needs to feel loved and he's going about getting it in all the wrong ways.

"Connor pl-" I start again only to be silenced by a rag being forced through the space between my lips.

He finishes tying the cloth behind my head before cupping my face, "I asked you nicely to be quiet. Since you want to disobey and continue to beg for his life I'll kill him slowly."

My eyes widen, forcing me to take in my surroundings completely. I'm a little more acquainted with these trees than any others in the world. It blares through my mind that this is the exact spot I'm in in my dreams when I see Dean get shot.

Tears burn my eyes and nose fiercely but I force myself to hold them back, I won't give him the satisfaction.

He helps me to the ground behind a shin height plot of weeds just as a text comes to his phone. Immediately he starts to strip. Gone are his jeans and t-shirt leaving him bare as the day he was born before me.

I try to think of a plan. If I get to him before he can get to Dean this can all be avoided. The ties around my wrists won't budge so I start looking for weaknesses.

I notice his left leg is longer than his right, probably from an old injury. It makes him have a slight limp which I hadn't noticed before. Silently I thank my nursing degree and the countless hours I spent studying the human body.

"Like what you see?" he asks slipping a pair of underwear and cargo shorts on.

He remains topless and I remain stone-faced.

I may feel sorry for him and the terrible way he's dealing with his loss but I won't feed his delusions. It didn't get him to stop before so it definitely won't stop him now, especially not when I have a mouth full of cotton.

The second Dean's scent hits the air my heart drops to my toes.

A devilish smirk graces Connor's lips and his eyes darken. "Show time."

Karter

The place he has her looks dirty and dark. When the camera rolled across the soggy looking floor and panned across to her face my heart nearly stopped. The back of her head was bleeding and seeing it almost made me throw up.

"Meet me in the clearing in the woods, you know the place. By sundown or she's dead."

Replaying Connor's words in my mind fuels my feet to move faster.

Jade and a few other warriors were able to lure the escaped Dark Wood members to the rally point. We had an ambush set up so they're pretty much all out of the way. After checking in with Jade and having her assure me they can handle things I raced towards the field Connor specified.

I have no idea why he would do something like this. I've been nothing but good to him and this is the way he repays me. If he's hurt Dylan I swear to the Goddess he'll die a slow painful death.

The weeds slap at my ankles and calves as I approach the clearing letting me know I'm in the right place. I remember this place like the back of my hand. It's right beside the mine shaft Derek and I found when we were about seven. He came back with Connor to "find" it and make it into their clubhouse. He was always that way with him, doing anything to keep a smile on the kid's face. I tried my best to keep it going but I guess it wasn't good enough.

I take a deep breath as I step into the clearing and listen. I can hear multiple heartbeats, rapid like the pitter patter of toddler's feet. Just as I try to make out how many, Dylan's scent floods my senses.

"Dylan!" I yell, throwing caution to the wind. She's here, I can smell her, almost even feel her. She's close.

"Dylan!" I call again, moving further into the clearing this time, following my nose.

"You can call her all you want," Connor shouts, "She can't say anything back!"

I spin around to the sound of his voice, my wolf on edge, preparing to attack.

"Where. Is. She," I bellow, "I'm only asking once Connor."

He laughs, inching just slightly closer, "She's safe, for now. That could change at any moment."

My pulse slows slightly at that but I'm still on high alert. "Why are you doing this Con? I love you, I was there when you were born hell, I held you in my arms! We're family man! You're like a brother to me!"

His eyes narrow and a growl forces it's way through the stillness of the field. "Fủck you! We're not family! We're not brothers! You got my brother killed and then tried to take his place like he never even existed!"

"Connor that's not-" I start to explain but he cuts me off.

"Shut the fủck up! I don't want to hear any more of your lies! This all ends right here right now!"

Millions of thoughts are flying through my mind, I'm so unsure. I can't fight him, I can't kill him. He hasn't hurt Rose and so no matter what he's done he's still my family. I always promised Derek I would keep him safe and protect him.

"Connor please, we can talk about this. I'm not going to fight you. I can't hurt you and you know you can't beat me," I explain calmly hoping to talk him down and off the ledge.

Treachery lights his dark eyes, "Maybe not fair and square but I brought back up."

The air around us shifts and a loud agonizing scream can be heard, distracting me.

I turn my head towards the noise and only turn it back in time to see Connor strike in his half form.

His claws slash my arm as I move away from his attack. Before I can react he's attacking again throwing wild scratches, catching me across the shoulder blade.

My wolf forces his way to the forefront catching Connor's arm mid-strike and planting a powerful blow to his exposed ribs. He flies back, winded, but attacks again with a left kick to my midsection. I catch his leg in the crook of my right arm, use my left to grab the back of his head and drive his body to the grass as my left leg sweeps his grounded foot from under him.

Not wasting a second, he sweeps my feet making me fall and attempts to dive onto me but I roll out of his grasps.

Back on our feet our tactical fight quickly turns into a slug fest. Both of us throw our best combinations until Connor overextends himself going for a right cross. I dip under the hit and my right jab finds it's home against his cheek, knocking him to the ground.

It seems like he's down and possibly knocked out as I approach him. The second I get close enough I see a spray of dirt fly through the air and straight into my eyes.

I stumble back, trying to rid my sight of the grit but also defend myself. Blinking and wiping the dirt away, I'm able to see enough to nearly miss a claw extended strike. The sand is microscopic and yet too sharp to fight through. My eyes are cut with fire as if the sand was mixed with glass.

I resign in the fact that a few granules of sand will probably be the things that get me killed. The idea that something so small could make such a huge difference is almost sad enough to be funny.

A growl suddenly explodes from behind Connor, grabbing both of our attention. Struggling for sight, through blurry eyes I see the most beautiful white wolf I've ever seen leap over him and jump in front of me.

She growls again in warning, her head low to the ground, her fur standing on end. Blood mars her pure white fur around her snout making her look even more fearsome when she snarls at him. However she's not attacking, just warning him back. It registers in my mind that she doesn't want to hurt him. Even after all he's done.

Her snarl makes Connor hesitate but after milliseconds of thinking he attempts to claw her anyway. Dylan grabs his arm between her teeth, her jaws clasping down on his forearm so hard I hear the snap of the bones echo off the forest floor. At the sound birds evacuate from their nests in the trees in a frantic swarm. With a twist of her neck she flips Connor over slamming him to the ground.

His cries penetrate the air as he writhes on the ground in pain. I move towards the two and Dylan steps aside but stays on her guard in case she has to attack again.

Standing over Connor I struggle to push aside every thought of brotherhood I've ever held for him. He would have killed me in cold blood had Dylan not stepped in, I know it without a doubt. It should be easy for me to end him, I've done it countless times before. The only difference, I've never called any of them family before.

"Do it!" Connor roars, interrupting my mental battle. "Just get it over with you fủcking coward!"

Looking into his eyes I see the hurt there. Not because of his physical pain, he's taken worse than that. It's the emotional scars he hasn't let heal. I can't blame him for being misguided, he's just a kid.

I kneel down beside him and place my hand around his throat, placing pressure against his windpipe. I can feel the life leaving his body as he claws at my arm with his one good hand, gasping for air.

His desperate scratching begins to slow and just as he's about to give up I let him breathe.

Reaching for his throat as if checking to insure it's still there, he wheezes, gulping in as much precious air as possible. His eyes are watery and tears slip down his cheeks. I'm not sure if it's from having his air supply cut off or the severity of the moment but it's enough for me.

"Your brother was my best friend and I loved him like a brother. When he died, a part of me died along with him but I made a promise to protect you. I've never broken a promise to D and I'm not going to start now," I state standing to my feet.

He doesn't move. Instead he stares in confusion still clutching his throat although his hand is slacker now.

"I want you to go Connor and never come back. If I see your face again," I pause hating the reality of my next statement, "I will kill you. I won't hesitate. If I see you again, you're dead. Now get the fủck out of here!"

He falters for a moment looking back and forth from me to Dylan. She stares at him impassively for a moment before gesturing with her head towards the woods behind us. Her message is clear. Go.

With that he drops his head and rolls over onto his knees to get up. Pushing up with all of his strength from his unbroken arm he rises to his feet. His movements are all slow and drawn out as if he's waiting for us to change our minds. I wouldn't advise him to hold his breath.

I've only exiled two people before but I have to believe it's better to exist without your pack than to cease to exist completely. Had Connor stayed I would have killed him and in time I'd learn to not regret it.

"Escort Connor to the borders and make sure he doesn't return," I demand through the mind-link to our guards holding the borderline posts.

"Yes Alpha," they both respond, their tones hold confusion but I'll explain to everyone later.

Watching his retreating back I pray to the Goddess that he doesn't return. I would hate to have to break one promise in order to keep another.

"Let's go home," I say, rubbing Dylan's side feeling her soft fur between my fingers.

She nods her head in response and we turn our backs on someone we both once called friend.

*****************************

Hello my good people!!

I hope yall enjoyed the updates! I wanted to do something special for you amazing beauties getting Awake to over 10k! I can't even explain to you how much this means to me. I never thought I would get to 10 reads let alone 10k!! I wanted to reach it before the last chapter of the book and here you guys are getting me there even before I intended!! So thank yall SO much! All the love :)

Anywho...

The end is near people. There are exactly TWO chapters left including an epilogue! But don't fret! This is a trilogy so Awake 2 and 3 are on the way!

I also have an idea for a spin off for Andrea that I'm really excited about! Let me know what yall think!

On to business....

10,105 reads, 427 votes on Awake, That's 1,118 more reads and 64 more votes since last update. I LOVE you KINGS, QUEENS, and IN BETWEENS that read past the Prologue!

51 reads, 2 votes on Revenge, That's 12 more reads and 0 more votes since last update. I'm thinking that I'm going to take this story down. Although I wanted to post it here I'm thinking of looking into doing some publishing so it may have to come down. I'd rather do it now while I haven't posted much of it rather than get you guys super into the story then take it down like I've seen some authors do here. That shit drives me crazy so I don't want to be a hypocrite. Let me know what yall think!

2,622 reads, 92 votes on Our Little Secret. 118 more reads and 6 more votes than last update! Love yall SO much!

1,973 reads, 64 votes on Up In Flames. 147 more reads and 9 more votes than last time!! Thanks guys!

141 reads, 12 votes on Weightless. 76 more reads and 9 more votes than last time!! I'm really happy about the reception of this story! If you haven't checked it out the 1st and 2nd chapters are up :)

I can't thank yall enough!!!!

Dedications...

I dedicated chapter 26 to Tarasplace because she gave me an amazing shout out on her page and we also had a great chat! She writes stories as well guys so go and check them out!

I hope yall enjoyed the climax of the story and were surprised! I dedicated this chapter to ComplexMentality because they were able to pick out Connor as the culprit in chapter 25. I was surprised because I thought I had hid the tiny clues so well!

As for new follower S/O's...

This time we have: Coloredister, Parkerschimdt, TairimiaBlount,IMAFREAKANDPROUD30, Tarasplace, CrystalHughes966, cdrake1300, libby09, ConstantStar, mehtasaloni, perris24, royal888, and boktjej!!!!

Thanks so much for following and I hope I don't disappoint!

Until Next Time,

WBN