Chapter 46
I TAKE A DETOUR INSTEAD.
It's quiet this time of evening. The sun has disappeared from the horizon, a crescent moon draped to the east.
I can't catch a glimpse of it this far into the woodland, but the canopy overhead narrows the view into a beautiful contrast of moonlit treetops against a starry night sky, glittered splashes of color I can't begin to name twinkling back.
Dad left me about an hour ago when the last rays of sunlight still stretched across the sky. It's dark out now.
I'm on patrol tonight and I've got just over an hour to kill before the set time for the interrogation.
This is the part of nighttime patrol I enjoy the most.
The swift silence that comes with the arrival of dusk like the world is preparing to tuck in for the night.
The change in wind as the last of the day's heat fizzles out in place of a comforting coolness.
The choir of cicadas, crickets, and hooting owls.
The screech and shrieks of bats fluttering across the darkness and crashing into tree branches.
There's a peacefulness that allows me to think.
Staying on the path cutting through the woodland lit by solar-powered garden lights staked into the ground, I nod my head in greeting to the two Weres on patrol who pass by me. The second one I pass stops me to relay a message from my father.
He's already at the incarceration compound, along with Beta Chad and Commander Rick. They're awaiting Alpha's arrival.
Translation: Don't be later than the alpha.
Continuing along the peaceful stroll while diligently carrying out my assigned duty, I think of Jace. Different scenarios play out when I entertain the thought of showing him who I really am and each one is more devastating than the last.
His entire outlook on me could change.
He could go running for the hills, screaming 'Monster!' at the top of his lungs.
He could freak out, grab something and whack me over the head with it before he runs for the hills screaming 'Monster!'
He could walk away and never speak to me again.
He could possibly become so frightened by my true-born form and try to kill me himself out of pure terror.
His mind could fracture trying to wrap around the reality that humans aren't the only apex predators crawling around in the world.
But there is also a chance that he could accept what I am. He could love me even more than I love him, enough to safeguard the secret of werewolves, and learn about his place in my life. He could give it a chance and let me save him.
Out of all the possible scenarios – though I haven't figured out how to tell him – I'm hoping for the last.
I won't fault him if he decides to run, walk, or crawl away from me but I hope his love for me is enough to withstand the reality-shattering knowledge he'll come into soon.
And I hope he understands that it could potentially save his life and maybe that of his parents' too. Because the Conners adore their son and I don't think they'll survive losing him very well – Kathryn, in particular.
Kathryn Conner has a quiet strength about her that is easily overlooked and admirable.
But if I've learned anything about loss and grief and what it can do to people, sometimes it's the strongest who break easiest.
You don't see it right away. They're good at hiding it.
They smile too much; laugh like all is right with the world.
They're the first to lend a helping hand.
The first to run to you when you're in need.
They keep moving.
But inside, they're beyond repair.
I think Jace would hate that for his mother.
Heaving a heavy sigh, lost in thought and truly uncertain of what my next move would be, I rub my fingers into the sides of my head against the dull throb of a headache.
This week has been one roller coaster after the other. It feels like I can't catch a break. When one thing settles, another pops up, and I have to deal with it.
I hope this coming week will be easier. It's the final week of school and I may not even go since there isn't much to do.
I'm not in any clubs since I can't be bothered to socialize much outside of my immediate circle.
I don't play sports since people irritate me quite easily and I'm afraid of flying off the rails.
In that regard, I hold the utmost respect for Carter. I have no idea how he does it.
But that's our dynamic. He's the outgoing social butterfly who people love being around. I'm the reclusive asshole who has to be dragged out of my house.
If I go to school, it'll be solely to see Jace.
Besides, I have to talk to him anyway. With how things went on Friday, I haven't contacted him though he's reached out plenty.
He's upset and hurting. I said some messed up things to him in the sick bay.
Didn't give him a chance to explain himself.
Then that fiasco with Blake put a dampener on my mood for the entire weekend.
He's seen the nasty side of me but lately, it feels like that's all he sees of me. I'd rather avoid him until I can sort my shit out than have him look at me like some kind of monster.
The light breeze rustles the tree leaves, whipping at my clothes and ruffling my hair.
It's rejuvenating and fresh. The wind pushes a few fireflies across the path.
Some dip low, disappearing in the shrub and grass skirting the dirt path, fluttering around the garden lights.
Others float on the breeze, drifting up and up toward the nearby trees.
A branch overhead creaks. A shadow moves.
My breath catches and my steps halt.
That branch. It doesn't creak from wind alone.
Snapping my head toward the spot in the trees where I saw the flicker of a shadow, a curse flies out of my mouth and I duck, rolling out of the way. A knife embeds itself into the grass blade first.
Fuck!
The shadow lurches and swings, using the branches to its advantage to maintain distance from me. Snatching the knife from the grass, I take chase. Whoever is up in the trees doesn't belong in Marcana. And they're fast. Agile.
The person dances through branches as if they're on flat ground, swinging from tree to tree.
When there's too large a gap to the next tree, the person jumps down. They land with a thud on their feet, the impact driving them to a roll but they're up and sprinting through the woodland again, zipping between trees.
The trespasser is dressed in black tactical gear, their face covered. With them moving so quickly, it's a bit difficult to get any kind of read on them.
Throwing the knife though I'm not an excellent marksman with it, the blade flies through the air. I'm pleasantly surprised when it catches the trespasser in the shoulder, stunting them long enough for me to go barreling into them.
At first contact, I realize the assailant is a woman.
She rips the knife out of her shoulder with a hiss, rounding on me with weapon in hand now. Most of her face is hidden behind a black mask, dark eyes peering out filled with intent and focus.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
She tilts her head and though I can't see it, I'm pretty sure she smirks at me.
She lunges, knife first. She makes a slashing motion at my chest.
I duck. Step back again when her leg comes up.
She kicks again with her right, catching my side.
Pain ripples through me, my breathing faltering because she hit me right where Dad did earlier.
She's a skilled fighter. She wrangles me off the path, my back hitting a nearby tree.
Coughing as the impact winds me, I fall to the grass as the knife comes flying toward my head.
It strikes the tree trunk hard enough to send a shock through her arm.
She cries out as the hilt slips, the blade slicing open her gloved palm.
She drops it, seizing her bleeding hand.
Taking advantage of the opening, I throw out a kick. She bows over from the kick to her stomach, grunting. On my feet once more, I slam my fist into the side of her face. She coughs, growling low. When she turns back to me, her eyes a deep, dark pits of fury.
The assassin lunges again. One punch. Two punches. She manages to land the third directly to my chest. I stagger back, stepping to the left as she swings again, my elbow meeting her jaw.
Her head snaps back and she staggers. I don't relent, following with a fist to her stomach.
She bows over, her strength faltering as the wind is knocked out of her.
I grab both sides of her head and slam my forehead into her face.
I hear a crunch and she cries out, blood spurting out of her nose which is now oddly shaped.
She stumbles away, clutching at her nose to staunch the bleeding.
Breathing heavily, my muscles straining with exhaustion from the fight, sweat coats my skin, dripping down the side of my face.
Footsteps come pounding up the path I was on earlier. I hear them before I see them.
Dale's exclamation of shock as he sprints forward.
"Sky!" Laken calls. He speeds up too, only a step behind Dale.
The woman groans on the ground, shuffling away on her elbows. She turns onto her stomach and begins to crawl. She stops, struggling to get away when I press my foot into the center of her lower back.
Dale and Laken meet me now.
"We've got a trespasser," I say to them. "Not sure why she's here but she came armed."
"Laken," Dale says, slipping into that alpha authority that comes naturally to him. "Go alert the others. Sky and I will take care of this."
"There's not enough – Shit!"
A cry rips out of me, more from shock than pain at first. The trespasser took advantage of the distraction, turning onto her side and sinking her claws into my calf. Stumbling away from her, she clambers to her feet.
Laken is already moving, clambering up the closest tree.
The trespasser swings her leg, catching Dale in the stomach. She rounds on me with punches, slashing her claws across my chest. Her elbow meets my nose. She narrowly dodges Dale's clawed hand, jumping up, one foot on his thigh to use as leverage and she takes him down in one sweep.
A roar echoes through the woodland. Loud and piercing, it comes from up in the trees and carries on the wind toward the heart of Marcana.
Laken has just signaled our location to the rest of the pack. It's a tactic used in such cases when we're in trouble.
I hear her curse and I'm about to lunge at her when I catch the glint of a blade in her hand. Dale cries out as it pierces his shoulder. She rips out the dagger and shoves him off. I lunge, latching onto the belt around her hips.
She swings the knife forcing me to let go and she's on her feet. She doesn't get far before she's tackled to the ground again. Laken grabs onto her belt, doing all he can to stop her, but he's outmatched.
He's trained in basic combat as all pack Weres are, but she's got years of experience on him. She's quick to slash the strap of her belt and it comes away; a black pouch attached to it.
Laken topples to the ground with a grunt. He's ready to pursue her when I sprint forward and shove him back.
"Stay with Dale."
I take chase, breathing hard. My muscles protest in exhaustion from the fight and my injuries.
It doesn't help that she's fucking fast. Even with injuries and having taken on three Weres, she zips through the woodland, knocking into my pack mates who responded to Laken's call and have joined the chase.
Some come away with stab wounds. Others narrowly avoid her blade.
The border fence comes into view.
"Fuck! Don't let her escape!" I shout to the others in pursuit.
She spins, throwing her blade. It flies through the air and takes down the Were running alongside me. Thankfully, it's not fatal – only a shoulder wound.
A blur of white races past me. As the she wolf clambers up the border fence, the white wolf leaps and snatches her, clamping its jaws around her ankle.
The she wolf screams out in agony but it's not enough to bring her down. She swipes a clawed hand catching the white wolf in the face.
He snarls and lets go, falling to the ground.
Fuck! She's getting away.
The she wolf falls on the other side of the fence. She clambers to her feet, dark eyes burning like liquid pitch. She tugs off the mask, revealing a face I know I have seen before but cannot place. Her lip is busted, blood coating her teeth.
She spits, grinning. Her gaze finds mine as I grip the fence. My eyes snag on the curious scar on the side of her neck.
It looks, not like a tattoo, but a brand. Scarred white tissue harsh against her skin in the moonlight. Beside me, Ash paces, growling menacingly, his hackles raised, teeth bared.
She laughs. "It doesn't matter. They're dead anyway."
And just like that, she turns and runs off, the dark woodland beyond swallowing her.