Alpha Killian's p.o.v
I stared into the empty cell. The only proof that Claire had once been here was her delicate scent wafting in the air, getting weaker by the second."She's gone." My voice came out strong, but I could feel myself losing control.My Beta snapped me out of my misery, "They couldn't have left that long ago. Her scent is still fresh."I turned to the rest of the warriors, "Are any of you skilled at tracking?"They looked around at eachother in silence when one man stepped forward. He had to be in his mid thirties, the lines on his face accompanied his many scars."I've got a knack for it." He nodded, walking up to the cell and breathing deeply.I turned to my Beta, "Go back to the dungeons, get more information from Blake. Link me if he says anything useful." I growled, turning my attention to the tracker.The tracker walked into the empty cell, his eyes closed*Claire's p.o.v*"Killian." His name left my lips as I heard the thundering foot steps closed in.My hands gripped the cell bars tightly, waiting for the moment they rounded the corner and I could find the face of my mate.My hope fizzled when a familiar face appeared in front of the rusted bars.The big man from earlier had a cruel sneer on his face."Expecting your mate?" He grinned at me.My stomach was twisting itself into knots. The big man unlocked my cell and I scrambled to get away from him. I needed to stay here and wait for Killian. If they moved me I wasn't sure he'd ever find me or my body if things went south."Get away from me!" I growled, pressing my back against the earthen wall.The big guy sneered, a syringe in his hand. "No can do, mutt. We need to get a move on before your rabid mate gets here."He grabbed me by the shoulder and forced the syringe i
*Killian's p.o.v*Our fast pace came to a halt as we approached the house in the middle of the woods. It was the perfect location for a safe house. Completely off any pack's territory and far enough away from town to subdue any suspicion. Each of us shifted into our human form and slipped on a pair of sweatpants."What would you have us do, Alpha?" The tracker turned and asked. The rest of the men's eyes were on my own.I grimaced at the house only twenty feet away. "Kill them all. If you see Damien, capture him. I want him alive." I growled, mind-linking them an image of Damien I pulled from Claire.I watched as a big man came out into the porch, and I didn't hesitate. I launched myself through the brush and across the yard of the house. The man registered me a moment too late. I felt my nails extend into claws as I shoved them into the man's eye sockets.The man reeked of urine and panic as he struggled to rem
*Claire's p.o.v*I gripped the soft comforter under my fingers and smiled at the wonderful dream I had. In my dream, Killian had found me and had taken me into his arms. His touch melted away the horrific week I had and burned the bad memories from my mind. His lips were pressed against my own and it felt like I had never left his side.My body jolted into a sitting position as my memories flooded through my mind. My heart was hammering and I felt ecstatic. It hadn't been a dream. My eyes darted around at the familiar room. The room Killian and I had shared for so long, the room I had given him my heart, mark and body.His scent filled my nose and the hammering of my heart slowed. I was finally able to focus and jumped as I saw two familiar faces beaming at me.Kira and Maria were grinning so hard I wondered if their faces hurt. A girl I hadn't met before stood at their side, a relieved smile painting her delicate face.
*Killian's p.o.v*I knew something was wrong the moment I came into the pack house.Everything looked exactly the same as I left it, and yet something was still picking at me.It was like a hole had begun forming in my chest and I hadn't noticed it yet."Do you smell that?" Titan's voice called out in my head.I lifted my nose to the air and stiffened as the smell of fresh blood registered in my mind.Not just fresh blood; Claire's blood.The night she tried to end her life, the smell of her blood seared itself into my head. I couldn't forget the smell even if I tried. As Claire actively went to therapy and improved, my fear for her life had diminished. She had become happy with me and the life she had finally claimed.Titan's strength and speed slammed into me, and I bolted up the stairs. I couldn't place my finger on what was worse, having Claire kidnapped or smelling
*Killian's p.o.v*"How could she do this?" Travis was at a loss for words. He sat on the floor with Kira's head in his lap.I shook my head. I couldn't focus knowing Claire was lingering between life and death.I felt completely torn. Torn between my duty towards my mate, and my duty towards my pack.Titan desperately wanted to be with Claire at this moment, all reasoning had left him. While I wanted nothing more than to be at our mates side, I needed to find out how this happened.The threat of war lingered over the heads of everyone in this pack, and it was my duty to minimize the damage as best I could.I knew a war was coming. I could feel it in my bones.I had multiple groups of warriors stationed all around the pack perimeters, ready to alert me when the hunters brought the fight to us.I stood from the floor and walked over to the second unconscious body.The ra
*Claire's p.o.v*I opened my eyes and cringed against the bright light.I was seriously getting tired of getting hurt, knocked out, or passing out.I knew I was in the hospital when the smell of cleaner and sanitizer filled my nose. Something was stuck in my wrist, irritating my veins.My first reaction was to rip the obstruction away and frantically search for Killian. I was a little upset seeing that he wasn't here, but I knew it had to be something important that took him away."Luna." Someone off to the side called out to me. I ignored them and picked at the IV taped onto my wrist."Luna, leave that in!" An older man's voice called out. His hand grasped my own gently and peeled it away.I looked into the eyes of the man, and had no clue who he was."I'm the pack doctor, Luna." The man said, reading the confusion on my face.My entire body felt sore. My torso radiat
My breath caught in my throat as the last person I wanted to see came into my hospital room."Maria." I choked out. My eyes were peeled on her every movement as she sauntered into the room.She wasn't alone.She had a guy with her. someone I hadn't seen before. I glanced at him wearily and she caught my gaze."That's my mate. The one I told you about." A small but cruel smile formed on her face.I ran my eyes over her so-called mate. He was most definitely a werewolf. His build was large and muscular like one, and he had the scent of a werewolf."What the hell, Maria?" I growled, my eyes flickering between her and her mate.Maria did the last thing I would have expected, she giggled."Surprised?" She snickered. "You and your kind deserve what's coming.""Keep her talking, Claire." Sierra snapped. "Killian's out there fighting and Kira won't get here in time. We're on our own."
I didn't have the time I needed to process what just happened.Sierra pushed me forward, keeping my legs from collapsing out from under me.I had just killed someone. Someone who tried to kill me, but that didn't change the fact that I had taken a life.I peeled off the hospital gown in haste, and grabbed a random set of scrubs sitting in a basket. The scrubs were baggy on me, but that didn't matter. It was better than running into a fight in a hospital gown.I stumbled out of the hospital room and down the hall, everything around me feeling like a haze."You need to snap out of it." Sierra barked, and I cringed at her hostile tone. "We need to find Killian."That was one thing we agreed on. I didn't care if there was a war going on, I needed to find him and make sure he wouldn't become one of the casualties.I followed the trail of blood that began just outside of my hospital room. My stomach twis