ELIANA.Grief came in the morning. The sun was barely out and gloom hung above like clouds of darkness. The air was humid with a little moisture in the atmosphere from last night’s rain. I leaned against the car, praying and hoping it was all a dream but alas, it wasn’t.It happened.Holding Adam’s lifeless body in my hands, or what was left of it—that happened. The bloody gore, the million thoughts racing through my mind. “You have to call for help, Denver!” I remembered chanting and my voice echoed back to me the next morning like a hangover. “Call someone!”“It’s over, he’s gone.” Denver had replied as the rain beat into us, carrying the flood that flowed from Adam’s mauled body down the road. I had never seen anything quite like it. My first initial thought was that an animal did it but the bites into his neck narrowed it down to a wolf.But from the looks of it, it was not an ordinary wolf. That image kept on replaying in my head over and over through the night. I hadn’t slept
DENVER.I drove the car back to my Pack before coming to an abrupt halt. Pushing the door open, I stormed out of the vehicle and headed straight toward the chamber. My heart was pounding with a fiery rage and my footsteps were heavy enough to crush the dry, crisp leaves beneath my boots.I flung the front door open and the metal clang echoed the fury in my soul. I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms as Eliana's voice kept replaying in my head. "Maybe you're the enemy, Denver." Her words stung like an open wound. "I think it's better we just stay away from each other. You stay on your end and I stay on mine. We don't ever have to cross paths again." How could she think I was the one who killed Adam?Did she not have the slightest idea of who I was? Was I that ruthless and monstrous to her that she thought I would do such a thing?The betrayal sliced through my heart, although I wasn't sure entirely why.I was never one to be moved by what anyone thought about me but eve
ELIANA.“Adam.”The sound of my Grandmother’s voice drifted me out of my thoughts and as I raised my eyes to meet hers, she tried to sit up. “Where is Adam?” She asked again as if I hadn’t heard her the first time.I did. Getting the words out of my lips was just the difficult part.My throat was dry and sour with a hard lump throbbing inside of it. I reached for her tender hands and just as I was about to speak, the door opened. I turned my eyes to Ivan, one of the Pack nurses who usually stopped by to give Nana her medicines.Immediately the door opened, a burst of sunlight filled the room.“You didn’t come home last night” She yawned. Ivan walked up to her bedside, took her temperature and dished out about three different colored pills. He also brought her a plate of porridge to go with. Nana loved oatmeal and porridge, they were her favorite meal.We all had one in the Pack. Ever since we were little, my father trained us to be satisfied and content with natural foods rather than f
ELIANA. “This is the part where I kill you.”At the sound of Denver’s deep voice, there was a rumble in the skies. The air was charged with tension just as he swung across to where the other was. Blake, he’d said. That was his name.Up until this moment, I didn’t even know Denver had a brother. Throughout my stay in Black Mountain, I didn’t see him once, and neither did I hear that name. Which could only mean that they weren’t so close. But watching them tear each other apart wasn’t even on my bingo card.Denver had transformed in a split second, so did Blake. And as soon as the moonlight bathed across their furry skin, the ominous growls of the two wolves reverberated through the night. My eyes charged open but I didn’t leave the shed where Denver had told me to stay.He lunged himself at Blake, slashing across his face with sharp claws. His arms clamped around his neck as Denver aimed to sink his razor-sharp fangs into his brother. But the other, a silver-furred werewolf, a darker
ELIANA. The sirens blared loudly from a distance on this cold autumn morning on the outskirts of Oakland. The wind was in the withered trees and the streets were eery. Why wouldn’t it?News had only just spread that Adam’s body had been found.I mounted the front porch with my arms folded across my chest. I let the breeze sweep through my hair as I swallowed a hard lump down my throat. Shifting my gaze, my eyes fell to my Grandma. She was weeping, utterly broken at the news of Adam’s passing.This was someone who’d stuck with her from the moment she was unlawfully banished from town. He’d sneak out to the cabin with leftover food and was even the first to have the nurses prescribe her some medications. Because let’s face it, Nana was old.She was getting even frailer by the day. But the reason she even made it thus far was because of Adam. I understood her devastation, which made it even harder for me to contain the guilt that ate into my chest. He was devoured by an animal, they sai
ELIANA.“Eliana, wait!” Ivan held out the door as I stormed inside angrily. My fist folded up and my mind was racing with a thousand thoughts.“Eliana!” It took him shouting much louder before I finally came to a halt and with tears in my eyes, I threw a look back at him. “What are you going to do now?” His hands fell to his side and I just shrugged.“Anything but stay here while they’re killing my father slowly. I can’t believe this” I ran my hands through my hair as a tear dropped down mycheeks. “Jaxon must be stopped—““I know that too, we all do. But we have to be wise about it. It has to be at the right time otherwise,” “There is no right time!” I snapped. “You didn’t see my father the other day, I did.” I added.“And I’m not sure how much time he has left, I’m not sure how many doses they have to give him till it’s over but I’m not going to sit back and let it happen” I was about climbing the stairs when Nana wheeled herself out on a chair. Perhaps it was because of the noise b
ELIANA.“Eliana”“Eliana, I’m calling you. Where are you going?” When he reached for my arms, I turned back to face Denver. “Did you really have to come in?” I muttered under my breath.“I had it all under control. Now, Jaxon would be wondering what exactly is going on between the two of us that you had to step in and save the day” I scoffed, detaching my wrist from his.“That’s what you’re worried about?” His hands fell to his hips. “I already told you I can handle all of this by myself—“ “All of what?” He interrupted. “Jaxon!” I raised my voice.“I had it all under control.”“Yeah I clearly saw that” Denver remarked sarcastically and I narrowed my eyes at him. “Come on, Eliana. We’re already passed this. I said I was going to protect you and when I saw him enter the house, I stepped in to protect you” He replied and a light scoff escaped my lips.“That’s the thing Denver,” I paused. “I don’t need you to protect me.”“Six years I spent by myself, all alone. I was doing well protecti
ELIANA.“This is a serum” Ivan stretched out of his hand and in it was a plastic amber bottle. An arch came between my eyes which fell to him. “I might have used the lab back in the Pack to create some sort of antidote for your father” He added. I couldn’t whether to be relieved just yet.“Now, it’s not a total cure. Unless somehow we’re able to stop them from poisoning him, that’s our greatest chance. But this—“ He handed it over to me, clenching my palms right after.“This could slow down the progression of the poison in your father’s system and it could buy us some time until we come up with a plan” He continued. “Ivan” My eyes narrowed thankfully.“I did say we were going to figure something out, didn’t I?” He shrugged.“Thank you” I muttered. I had no idea he was even working on something but it was about time for some good news around here. My gaze fell on the serum as I held tighter around it. “Your father,” Ivan paused. “I’m doing this for him too. He may not have shown it in