As soon as the game was over, Bates was on his feet."I think I'm gunna head home, boys and girls," he said, stretching."I've endured a trauma tonight that has left me needing some rest."Luca just shook his head as he stood up, Blaine following suit with a wide yawn. We followed each other upstairs to the living room."It is way past my bedtime," I said looking at the clock and noticing it was nearly midnight."You're an old woman," Bates told me, walking towards the front door."I like to get up early," I defended.I flipped on the porch light.As soon as I stepped out onto the front porch with Bates, I froze. There was a mangy, ash-blond wolf in Luca's front yard, staring at us with eyes that glowed in the porch light.Before I could say a word, Luca ripped past me and leapt from the porch, skipping all three steps down as he shifted mid-air into a large wolf with thick, black fur. His clothes landed in strips of fabric next to me, but I hardly had time to notice before a growl th
"Would you stop digging through my underwear?!"Bates withdrew his hand from the box grasping a nude thong."This shit looks like dental floss," he laughed as I snatched it away.We were upstairs organizing all of my clothes into boxes; underwear in one, shorts in another, tank tops separated from t-shirts, and so on.It had been three days since I'd seen Luca or anyone else for that matter besides Bates and I was going crazy. He was like the younger brother I never had, except he was older than I was and a very large, grown man.Yet I still felt like punching him in the face half the time."You're so annoying," I told him, as he placed one of my bras over his chest like he was trying it on."Are tits like dicks for girls?" He asked me.I scowled."What kind of a question is that?""Do girls measure bra sizes the way guys do their dick? Like, if someone has bigger boobs than someone else, does that make her more alpha?" He clarified."Maybe in middle school," I answered.He looked dow
As it turns out, 'the bug' was the dune buggy in Luca's garage. A golf cart on steroids, it had oversized tires, seatbelts, and the capabilities of going "wicked fast", according to Bates."This is a terrible idea," Blaine said for the hundredth time as Bates helped buckle me in."Don't be a wiener," Bates told him, getting into the driver's seat.Blaine sighed before getting into the backseat."I need a helmet," he muttered."No, you'll be fine," Bates assured him."I'Il be gentle."With that, he started the engine and smashed the gas pedal giving me whiplash as I was yanked back into the seat. I praised God for the blessing that the seatbelt was for the next five minutes. Bates whipped in between trees and across fields like he was trying to kill us, giggling like a six-year-old boy the entire time.Suddenly, he slammed on breaks in a spot in the middle of the forest that looked like nothing at all, sending dust flying around us.I looked at Bates, my hair in my face and scowled."W
Luca was still seething.I sat in silence, unable to wrap my mind around Johnathan's words and nearly giving myself a headache trying to decipher the riddle I felt like he'd given me.Getting out of the bug, I followed Blaine, Bates and Luca to the door at the base of the tower. When we walked inside, my eyes took a moment to adjust fromthe bright sunshine to the darkness.The entire structure was just level after level of mesh, metal flooring with desks of computers and monitors occupied by people wearing headsets and headphones. A tall spiral staircase shot up from the center of the floor.I followed Bates, Blaine and Luca all the way up to the top, passing each floor. When we reached the top, I finally caught a glimpse of daylight through the window that ran the entire circumference of thebuilding, allowing me to see the men who circled the outside of the water tower and surveilled the land below.Lincoln was standing behind a desk, looking at a digital map when Luca walked up to
I couldn't have packed my bag any quicker than I did.I was ready to escape and not have to think about anything going on around me.Luca was still outside on the phone when I came downstairs with my duffle bag in hand."Sorry, I had to give a few people a heads up that I would be gone," he told me, walking inside."Give me a second to pack a bag and we'll leave."I nodded as he jogged off into his bedroom. Making myself a quick snack, I was done eating by the time Luca came back into the kitchen."We'll need to bring a few things to eat with us," Luca told me."To eat?" I asked."Where are we going?""Pretty far up into the mountains," he replied."I can make due on the river, but I'm assuming you don't want to eat fish for every meal."I grimaced, shaking my head. I didn't have a problem eating fish, but I certainly didn't want it for breakfast.Luca went to his garage and got a cooler that he brought back inside so we could stock up on food."Ready?" He asked as we loaded the last
"We've got to stop."I leaned against a boulder, trying to catch my breath."How much farther?" I asked breathlessly.Luca turned to me from where he stood a few feet in front of me on the trail, thumbs tucked under his backpack straps."Less than half a mile," he answered."C'mon, we can rest at the top."I could tell he was annoyed.Clearly, I didn't have the stamina to climb a mountain in less than an hour, much less keep up with someone who did."I hate hiking," I admitted, taking a gulp from my water bottle."That would have been nice to know before we got more than halfway up a mountain," he said sarcastically."I was just trying to be a good sport," I admitted, standing straight to continue walking."You've done a terrible job at it," he laughed, walking next to me."I could still see where we parked the truck behind you when you started complaining.""This view better be spectacular," I wheezed, feeling my side cramp."It'll be worth it."Luca took my hand in his and basically
I woke up that night freezing.At some point as I slept, the duvet shifted down, exposing my bare shoulders. My body had curled into a fetal position and was shivering in the chilled air.I stretched out and sat up slightly, looking over to see the curtains blowing in the frigid breeze that wafted in from the half-open window.That was not open when I went to bed, I thought.In fact, I specifically remembered Luca lighting the fireplace to warm up the room before we got into bed.He certainly wouldn't have cracked a window.I turned over in the bed to see it was empty, the covers pulled back and the sheets laid bare where Luca had once slept. I sat up all the way to see that the fire had been extinguished and the bedroom door was slightly open.Suddenly, I saw a dark figure move in the corner of the room and felt panic begin to set in."Luca?"The shadow returned my question with a slow, deep voice."No"My blood ran cold.Jonathan stepped forward, the moonlight streaming in from the
I woke up, hours later, to the bright sunshine in my eyes. Squinting, I sat up as I realized it was early afternoon. I looked around to see the room was empty, noticing the blood stains all over the sheets and duvet.Remembering what had happened, I was suddenly wide awake. I lifted my hand to my neck and felt the scab that had formed over the wound. Getting off the bed, I walked into the bathroom to inspect it further.God, I'm a mess, I thought, staring at my wild hair and the dried blood caked along my neck and shoulder. I took a washcloth and rubbed at my skin with warm water, exposing the scar and the bruising around it.The mark looked more like a bite than I had anticipated it would. Every mark I had ever seen looked more like a pale, mouth-sized ring. But then again, I had never seen a mark left by an Alpha.Their canines were longer and more prominent, meaning the bite was deeper and left behind more scar tissue.While a mark didn't technically ward off offending males, it w
You can do this, you can do this.My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest.Sweat dripped from every pore, making my hands sweaty as they reached out for the next bar in front of me.You can do this.As my feet landed on the wooden platform, I lowered shaking arms to look at the timer on my wrist.Four and a half minutes left.Chest heaving for air, I reached out and grabbed the salmon ladder bar and shifted my body weight to thrust it into the divider above it-continuing this movement until I was four feet higher and could reach the platform above it.I pulled myself onto the platform, trying not to think about how high I was in the trees.Swallowing my fear, I grabbed the rope in front of me and swung to the next platform that was a few yards away.When I landed, I saw Luca standing on the ground a little more than a hundred feet away.'"Go! Go! Go!" He yelled enthusiastically, hands pumping in the air.I smiled."Let's go! Move it! Hurry!" Fallon screamed next to him,
Luca and I arrived back home later that evening after a long day of meetings, calls, and wellness check-ins with those who had been injured.Even though I was physically drained, it had been good to get out of the house for the first time in two weeks.It had forced me to shower and put on clean clothes that morning, something that I hadn't realized would mentally help me as much as it had. I made a promise to myself I would do those two things every morning moving forward.As we walked through the door, I noticed Luca was carrying the laptop Lincoln had brought to him earlier that day."What's that for?" I asked him.He looked down at the laptop before sighing."There's something we need to talk about and I've been avoiding it for the past few days," he admitted.I followed him into the kitchen and watched as he placed the laptop on the counter, feeling my stomach twist."What's wrong?" I asked."Nothing's wrong," he clarified."It's just heavy stuff."Luca opened the laptop and I sa
The meeting room was cold.The air conditioning was on full blast as the summer had officially begun a week prior with high temperatures virtually unknown by northwestern Montana.That room was the last place I wanted to be, but it wasn't because of the chilled air that came through the vents overhead.I could still see where the pool of blood had blemished the concrete floor where an unconscious Bates had laid two weeks earlier. It looked like someone had tried to scrub it with bleach, but a deep maroon stain was still visible.Bates sat silently in the chair beside me, Dr. Witt standing behind him sterilizing the tool she was about to use to remove the medical staples from his scalp.There were five of the small, silver staples running vertically up the back of his head where it had split into a deep gash.He stared at the table as she gently pushed his head forward."You should just feel a little tug," she warned him.He closed his eyes tight, wincing as she wiggled the first one l
The doorbell startled me awake.My arms immediately reached out to find Luca's empty side of the bed.I sat up quickly, seeing the late morning sunshine streaming into the room through the cracks in the curtains covering the window behind his bed.Hearing the murmuring of voices in the living room, I got off the bed and walked over to the ajar door to listen.I heard Luca's mother's voice as she spoke to him, her gentle tone carrying down the hallway."How is she?" Ana asked."Traumatized." Luca answered.She hummed."Poor girl," she said, her voice laced with genuine sympathy."I can't imagine what's going through her head.""Death," Luca told her."She said something last night about wanting to die. It made me so nauseous I could've puked.""After what she witnessed, I'm sure she's confused as to how she's still alive," Ana said."Just give her some time and assurance.""It worries me." he admitted."It's enough to be concerned, but trust the mourning process," she encouraged him.T
I felt a wave of relief wash over me, bringing tears to my eyes I'd thought about him frequently in the past two days. Knowing he was okay eased the heartache slightly."That's good," I whispered.Luca looked at me solemnly."It wasn't your fault," he told me, moving a hand up to my jaw to tilt it towards him.I swallowed the massive knot in the back of my throat as I felt more tears rush to my eyes, blurring my vision. Shaking my head slowly, I began to back away from him but he stepped forward, preventing me from getting too far outside his reach."This was not your fault," he repeated, his voice firmer this time.I felt my bottom lip begin to quiver as a tear rolled down my cheek."He came looking for me," I whispered."If Bates hadn't been there, he wouldn't have gotten hurt-""You don't know that," Luca said."Bates could have easily been caught in the crossfire at the gate if he weren't with you."The intensity behind his eyes made me press back into the doorframe."With everyon
The first conscious thought I remember having was in the upstairs loft.It was dark outside.The moon was hidden by storm clouds, the occasional flash of lightning illuminating the room briefly. I could hear the strong gusts of wind, the rumbling of thunder, and the sheets of rain that pounded into the roof above me.I smelt like paint and misery.The canvas I'd dedicated months to laid in front of me, it's frame mangled and bent. The once carefully detailed collage of colors making up a portrait had been smeared haphazardly with black paint that also coated my hands.Sitting with my back in a corner, knees pulled into my chest, I felt a like a shell of a human.All the emotional energy I owned had been completely spent. I had cried until I couldn't cry anymore. My throat felt like l'd swallowed acid, raw with the screaming that came alongside mourning two traumatic deaths.The only thing I had left was a broken, beating heart.And all I could do was sleep.I didn't want to be awake.
My knees gave out from under me as I fell into the tree I stood next to, leaning on it with my entire body weight.His eyes were open, lifelessly staring into the abyss above him while blood flowed freely from the corner of his mouth into the hands of his daughter who held him.I felt my bottom lip begin to quiver, a feeling washing over me that wavered between grief and shock. Mady looked down at him, tears falling uncontrollably from her eyes, rolling down her chin and neck.Her cry could be heard throughout the forest, making Luca visibly nervous as he looked around us to see who was listening."Mady, we need to get you and Carrie out of here, okay?" He said gently.She fisted her father's flannel shirt in her hands as Luca touched her shoulders, urging her to stand."You can come back to him when it's safe," Luca told her."But right now you need to leave."Mady shook her head, struggling to breathe through her convulsive sobs. I could tell Luca was growing more and more anxious,
My paws bounded out in front of me.Haunches driving into the soil and propelling me forward, I was running quicker than I ever could on two feet.I had Bates's clothes in my mouth, holding them tight against the wind that blew in my face.Thankfully, the oversized clothing hadn't ripped the first time l'd shifted, but I wasn't taking any chances the second time.I bolted through the trees, following the metallic odor of blood that wafted through the pack land. I could only hope I wasn't following the smell of my own injuries.Hearing a deep growl, I skidded to a stop, coming up a portion of the densely wooded area where a large wolf stood in my path.The dark gray wolf stared me down, the fur on his neck standing at attention.I dropped the clothing from my mouth and snarled as a warning for him to move.He stood his ground, maintaining his gaze.Snapping my teeth, I took a few quick steps forward. But his stance remained solid, still blocking the path.A vision of Bates's bloody sku
Before my lungs could fill with air to scream, he lunged at Bates and I, jumping over the table.With a quick shove, Bates pushed against my shoulders and the chair rolled backwards in just enough time to separate us before my dad tackled him to the ground.My bare feet slid across the floor as I rolled backwards, unable to gain enough traction to stop myself before the chair came to an abrupt halt as it hit the wall.The sound of shredding fabric bounced between the concrete walls as Bates shifted into his wolf.I sprinted towards the two of them, watching as my father pinned Bates to the ground with strength that surprised me seeing as Bates had shifted and my father had not.I leapt onto my father's back, arms wrapping around his neck as my weight threw him off balance and we both fell to the floor."Stop!" I screamed, holding onto him as tight as I could while he stood back to his feet.I gasped as he pulled me over his shoulder by my elbow, my arm popping as it was jerked out of