Chapter Four

“Just please tell me the truth. You guys are scaring me. Why is the wolf here?” Layla said as she sat down after the rest of her family did the same. Nathaniel sat next to Layla as she continued to pick at the skin on her finger joints, a nervous habit she has had since she was a child.

“We know there was an accident and that Aiden bite you.” Nathaniel said, but it still left Layla with a little answer.

“Okay…” Layla said nervously for the rest of the story that would follow.

“It has been pack-law for centuries now, that no wolf may bite a human, a specially a woman.” Nathaniel said. Layla’s heartbeat picked up at the look on Nathaniel’s face. It was clear he didn’t want to say the rest.

“The reasoning behind this law was because wolves who bit woman would only cause two certain outcomes. Either the woman would change into a wolf, or she would die in the process and even if she did happen to shift her mental state would deteriorate as time passed.” Nathaniel said. Layla frowned at his confession, and she knew there was one more thing he was holding off to tell her.

“What happens with the woman after the mental state has worsen?” Layla asked, Nathaniel wasn’t the one that answer, but rather her brother, Eric.

“The wolves take her out, since she is a danger to herself and others.” Eric spoke, but his eyes watched the three wolves that sat opposite them. The room was silent for a while, Layla was trying to process it all, but she didn’t even know where to start, before she could draw to a conclusion, one of the wolves spoke.

“Layla, I am Jackson Harris. I am the Alpha of the pack. I know that all of this must be very scary for you, but I swear my pack will do everything in its powers to help you survive this.”

“Those promises seem empty now.” Eric said. Eric has always been one to speak his mind and be straight forward about his belief. It was clear that he was angry and frustrated with the wolves and what they had done to Layla, but right now there was no time to fight, because they all had to focus on the important goal, to save Layla.

“Eric, this is not the time.” Nathaniel spoke. His voice still calm, but the tension in his shoulders told another story.

“We need to find a way to prevent Layla form the shift. If we can do that, it will save her from the dangers of becoming a wolf.” Nicholas said and took a hold of Eric’s hand. Trying to relay that there is still hope in this situation.

“The packs before us, have never written about a human not shifting after the bite, so that option is nor available.” Jackson said. There was no one that wanted to resolve this matter more than him, as an alpha your pack are stronger than a family and if Layla shifted it would place that family in danger. The wolves and the clan started to speak over one another, all of them given opinions, facts, and possibilities, but it fell on death ears when it came to Layla. She had just found out that she might die, and the reason why was so unclear. Why did this happen to her, why did the wolf break their law because of her. The frustration Layla felt as well as the anger all come rushing to the surface.

“Why?” Layla said, her voice was soft, but the anger was clear. Everyone stopped speaking and looked at the small human girl.

“Why did you do it?” Layla asked again, this time looking straight up at Aiden. It was the first time she had looked at him without any fear. Aiden pushed himself up, moving from leaning on the door frame to his feet. He dropped his arms that were crossed and for that moment it was only them in the room. Layla stood up from the sofa and took a few steps closer to him. Their height and size difference might have brought the fear back to Layla, but she was too angry too even realized it. Aiden’s black hair looked messy, as if he had been running his hands through his hair nervously and he had a very faint bruise on his left cheek, that happened during William and his fight.

“Why would you go out of your way to break your pack law.” Layla asked, unshed tears burning her throat. Layla was furious, annoyed, and mostly scared after hearing that her young nineteen-year-old life would come to an end so quickly.

“I was just trying to do the right thing.” Aiden spoke. His voice ruff and deep. Layla scoffed and wiped away the tears, that gathered in her waterline, in frustration.

“What about the thing you have done was supposed to be ‘the right thing.’” Layla asked her heartbeat speeding up at her anger. Aiden didn’t answer. He knew that no matter the intentions were, he had messed up and that Layla had all the right to be angry and hurt by his actions.

“Answer me.” Layla said, a frustrated tear falling down her cheek as she stepped closer to Aiden and pushed him back. Aiden didn’t move from his place, her strength clearly no match for his, but Layla still felt some relief.

“I’m so sorry.” Aiden said, but it wasn’t what Layla wanted to hear.

“I want the reason.” Layla said as she closed the distance between them, her voice tracking as she spoke. Aiden took in a big breath before answering.

“You were going to jump at the waterfall, I just wanted to stop you, I was going for your bag at first. I was just trying to stop you from killing yourself.” Aiden said. His voice still rough and deep. Layla’s eyes widen at his reason, and she stumbled back as the weight of the words hit her. Grace dropped her head in her hands at Aiden’s words and Eric stepped towards the wolves.

“You moron.” Eric spoke. Nicholas was quick to pull him back as he stepped closer to Aiden. Layla took more steps away from Aiden as she run his words in her head again.

“Layla has jumped in that waterfall since she was fifteen. She knows hoe to do. She likes to do it, you idiot. You were saving her from killing herself, you jackass.” Nathaniel stepped in front of his son and placed a firm hand on his chest to help hold him back. Eric’s anger was uncontrollable most times and right now the situation was already tense enough without him.

“You need to take a walk too.” Nathaniel said, his calm voice not breaking from its tone.

“The wolves might have just killed my sister for no reason.” Eric said, his eyes still filled with rage and locked on to the wolves.

“Take a walk.” Nathaniel spoke again, this time his voice held more authority than it already does usually. William was the one to lay down a comforting hand on Layla’s shoulder, but she barely noticed. Aiden eyes were wide with shock because of the information he just received.

“That’s why … that’s why you did it? … You were trying to save me?” Layla asked, but this time Aiden didn’t answer because he was at a loss for words. Layla looked at his eyes and it held the truth in it. He really had done it because he thought he was protecting her. Layla could feel the anger drown out of her as she looked into Aiden’s eyes and a sense of gratitude and pity took its place. The room was silent for quite some time as everyone was processing what just happened.

“This incident might not be as black and white as it seems, but the fact of the matter is that Layla was still bitten, and we need to prepare her for what’s to come.” Jackson said, trying to regain some control of the situation after it had span off the road. Nathaniel and grace shared a worried looked at their daughter, but still nodded in agreement.

“The pack will go over the previous notes the ancestors left and see if there is anything that might help us to give Layla the best change of survival. But for now, she must return with us. It shows that the better the bond between the human and the pack is the better the shifting process will be.”

“Layla isn’t going anywhere.” William said and pulled Layla behind him.

“She needs to be with the pack, if she wants a better change of survival.” Jackson said. None of the Lancaster clan like his proposal, but none of them knew what they could do, to make sure their daughter stayed alive. William looked at the girl behind him, he could see she was not focused on their conversation but rather thing of something else, he tried his hardest, but she had shut him out of her mind.

“What are you thinking?” William asked her. She looked up at him and then at the rest of the people of the room. Her nerves were back as she debated on whether or not she should share her secret. Her eyes returned once again to William and the look in her eyes made him anxious.

“There is a reason I came home. Something happened in Seattle.” Layla said. All the attention was on Layla. She broke eye contact with Will and turned to the wolves.

“What if I don’t shift, like at all?” Layla asked, but Jackson was quick to shut her hopes down.

“It has never happened before. No human hasn’t changed after the bite.” Jackson said, making his point very clear. William was quick to turn Layla’s attention back to him.

“Why did you come back?” William asked.

“There’s a reason I think it’s possible for me to not shift and it is the same reason I left Seattle to come back home...” Layla said. She stopped in the middle of her sentence, not knowing how to explain her reason or how to make her reason sound believable so she rather decided to just show it. She turned around and placed her hand behind the collar of her black crop top and pulled it over her head and underneath the material hid a healed, red scar. A bite mark … a Vampire bite mark.