Chapter 4

“Violet,” her mother yelled as soon as she saw the man drag Violet into the living room. 

“Hey! You let her go right now,” her father jumped in.

“Shut up,” the man, who had been demanding the information, told them then pointed to a chair. 

“Mom,” Violet shouted back and tried to go over to her, but the man that held her shoved her in a chair so hard her head snapped back against the back. If it hadn’t been plush, she might have been hurt. Well, honestly she still hurt. She tried to get up and go over to her mother, but the man growled at her. Like it was a real growl. Violet sucked in a breath and pressed herself into the chair. Who were these people?

Her mother stood, glaring at the man demanding the information. He seemed to be the leader of them all. “Don’t you dare lay a hand on her! If any harm comes to her the alpha will tear you apart. Do you hear me?”

Violet looked at her mother confused. What the hell was going on?

The men laughed. “I think he’ll let me do whatever I want with her,” one said with a leering glance in Violet’s direction. He laughed again when he saw Violet’s reaction. The confused one, however, now was Violet’s mom.

With a look of suspicion, she glared at them. “The alpha didn’t send you,” she said as if she knew and wasn’t guessing. 

Violet was about to ask her what was going on when her father suddenly jumped to his feet and tackled the man closest to him. “You won’t hurt my family,” he demanded. 

Violet’s mouth dropped open and her breath froze in her chest as she watched her mother punch the guy next to her. A violent fight broke out and somehow that wasn’t the worst part. The bodies of the two men her mother attack rippled as if it was suddenly made of Jello. A startled squeak escaped Violet as she watched the men’s faces change into something definitely not human. She slapped her hands over her mouth, watching the transformation trickled down their shoulders and arms. This had to be a nightmare, right? This couldn’t be happening. Her parents didn’t seem as horrified as she was as they continued to fight the monsters. However, the monsters were winning. The one her father tackled punched her father so hard it made Violet’s bones hurt. He hit her father again, and again. 

“Stewart,” her mother yelled at the same time Violet screamed, “Dad!”

Violet tried to run over to him, but the leering man slapped a hand on her shoulder and pushed her back down into the chair with a laugh. The one mom hit forced her down to her knees. 

“That is quite enough,” the leader said in a loud, commanding voice. He walked over to Violet’s mother. “The alpha wanted me to tell you. It’s been fun, but all things must come to an end.” Without hesitation or a hint of remorse, the man pulled out a gun and shot her mother in the head.

Violet screamed. Again trying to get to her, but once again forced back down. “No! No! Mom!”  She covered her mouth with her hands again, tears streaming down her face. This had to be a nightmare! This couldn’t be real! Mom! Oh God, Mom! The leader walked over to her father still lying on the floor. No! No, no, no, no! Please God, no! Violet closed her eyes, praying as hard as she could that something or someone would stop him. The shot tore through the room and Violet jumped, feeling as if she had been the one hit by the bullet, screaming into her hands. Tears flowed from her. Let her wake up! This had to be a nightmare. It couldn’t be real.

The sound of footsteps made Violet open her eyes. She watched as the leader now walked over to her. Her eyes dropped to the gun in his hand. She was next. He was going to kill her. A sob escaped her and while silently she begged him to not hurt her, she didn’t voice a single plea. Violet knew he wouldn’t be moved. He was going to kill her just like he had her parents. Violet turned her attention to her mother laying on the ground. A crimson pool ever growing around her. Still crying she looked back at the man. He stopped in front of her but before he could lift the gun, the sound of breaking glass broke through the eerie silence. Several wolves leap through the now broken window. With a curse, the leader turned and shot at several of the wolves before the gun clicked, now empty. 

A large gray wolf tackled him, his teeth sinking into the flesh of his shoulder. The leader cried out, dropping the gun to shove the wolf off him. “God damn it. Time to go, boys!” He kicked another wolf which was trying to sink his teeth into his leg. He and the others fled out of the living room. All the other wolves were hot on their heels. All but one, she realized. Unsure what to do or think Violet stayed still, watching to see what it would do. 

Like the men before, the wolf’s body seemed to tremble and bubble, like Jello. The hair fell from its body, disintegrating as it fell. The wolf changed into the shape of a man. One knee the man panted in what sounded like pained breaths. He was completely in the nude. Not moving he looked up at her. Violet gasped. It was the man from the party. The one that had been talking to her father.

“Hello Violet,” he said, his voice gruff. As if speaking hurt. “Are you alright? Did they hurt you?” Not trusting herself to speak, she shook her head slowly. Still not standing, he said, “My name is Jeremy. I’m a friend of your parents.”

Swallowing, Violet lowered her hands from her mouth. “My mom… dad… What’s going on?” she asked, her voice strained and shaking. 

“That is… a complicated explanation.”

An unfamiliar man walked into the living room. Violet sucked in a breath tensed and pushed back in her chair at the sight of him. The man, Jeremy, held up a hand. “It’s okay, Violet. He’s one of mine.” 

The man seemed to ignore Violet as he handed Jeremy some clothing. “Sorry, Sir, but they got away.” 

Jeremy growled and spat several curses. “Thanks, Ian. Can you keep an eye on her as I dress?” He stood, using the clothes to cover himself. Violet hugged herself, glancing over at the man. This all still felt so surreal. This had to be a nightmare. It couldn’t be real. Her parents couldn’t be dead. People don’t turn into wolves or monsters. They simply couldn’t. That’s not how the real world worked. When Jeremy came back into the living room he kneeled in front of Violet once more. “I think it’s time for some explanation. How about we go somewhere else. You don’t need to see them like this.” 

Nodding, Violet stood, though as she did her knees started to give out. Jeremy caught her arm, helping her to her feet. “That’s alright,” he said softly. “You’re going to be alright, Violet. Just follow me and don’t look.”

Again, she nodded and did as he told her. She kept her eyes on the floor as he guided her out of the living room and into the dining room. Violet sat in her chair. Seeing the two empty chairs where her parents sat, tears welled up in her eyes. 

“As I said before, I’m a friend of your parents. We have been working together as well.”

“Working together? On what?” she asked, confused. Her father was military and her mother a doctor.

“First, I should explain what I and the others with me are. We’re werewolves, Violet.”

Violet stared at him. “Werewolves?” Seriously? Though, that would explain what she saw with her eyes. But… they weren’t real.

“Yes, we’re not quite like what you see in T.V. and movies, but yes, werewolves are real and your parents were helping me take down the alpha. Now, he is like the monsters you see in the movies. He must have discovered we were working together because he was the one who sent those men here tonight. The men that killed your family.” Violet pressed her lips together to keep the sob in her throat. Tears streamed down her cheeks. “I know tonight has been…unimaginable,” he said and patted her hand. “But I don’t think you’ll be safe staying here. You should come with us. Once the alpha learns you survived he will stop at nothing to see you dead.” 

More tears slid silently down her cheeks as she looked at her lap. Her fingers trembled as she laced them together. She nodded that she understood, looking up at Jeremy. “But what about my parents? We can’t…we can’t leave them like that.”

“Don’t worry, my men will take care of them. We’ll make sure they are put to rest as they deserve.”