by Reese Morgan
She heard Julian screaming, his high-pitched voice breaking as he tried to wrestle Nolan off her. All she could think about was Nicolas and Cole. She was too late. Celeste would reach them and execute them in their tiny, confined cells like animals.
Meanwhile, her life would end by Nolan’s fist.
Julian somehow managed to wrestle Nolan off her, though the Carrier grabbed him around his ankle and tugged him to the ground. Nolan’s sheer prowess was unmatched. She imagined, even if he hadn’t voluntarily sacrificed himself to Celeste’s experiments, he’d be an unstoppable force.
She scrambled up, her palms so sweaty the knife nearly dropped from her hand.
Nolan growled, turning towards her.
She raised her weapon and aimed for his temple.
Only, Logan intentionally fused himself between her and Nolan at the last second. Incredulously, she watched as her blade sunk resolutely into her father’s temple. Time seemed to stand still—motionless—as cruel acceptance warped Logan’s face.
“I won…” he slurred sluggishly. “I have the final victory over Celeste.” Fierce triumph contorted his expression before he closed his eyes. “I do love you, you know.”
Hayden screamed out a sob as he collapsed, feeling her world collapse with him.
Nolan stared at Logan’s limp body, his eyes wide as he comprehended the scene. Logan’s death was a tragedy for him. Without Logan, Celeste did not exist. If Celeste did not exist, he no longer had access to the serum he relied on so heavily.
In Nolan’s state of disbelief, Julian grabbed her arm and pulled her away.
Hayden’s dead weight caused them to stumble, forcing Julian to slide her across the floor and out into the hallway. Dimly, she realized she was sobbing.
“Stop, Hayden!” He shook her aggressively. “It was his decision!”
Behind Julian, Hayden spied the huddled form of a once majestic woman. Her sobs quieted into hysterical gasps as she observed Celeste in all her trembling glory.
Her brother turned to see what held her attention.
Hayden remembered the night she thought she’d lost Cole. Though they had not completed the bond as lifemates, she’d felt his ‘passing’ with such clarity. She could only imagine what Celeste experienced after decades, upon decades of companionship with Logan.
Celeste curled against the wall, her knees drawn to her chest. Her facial features were slack and a sickly sheen of sweat gathered across her face. Next to her was a pile of vomit.
Her body would give out shortly. Alternatively, she’d kill herself before the end.
Not even Celeste could survive the loss of her counterpart.
There was something oddly liberating about the sight before her. A regal, arrogant woman now rendered into something unstable and vulnerable.
She was looking at her father’s last victory over Celeste.
“No. Leave her,” Hayden ordered as soon as Julian made a move. “Let her suffer.”
Celeste did not look up upon their arrival. Like a child, she rocked herself back and forth, no longer present on this earth. However, that did not mean the taint she created was gone, for Hayden heard the rushed footsteps approach them from around the corner.
Nolan.
Hayden scrambled off the floor and followed Julian.
They sprinted down the hallways, both weaponless, both shaken.
Up ahead, towards the prison cells, an alarm blared shrilly. She cupped her ears against the earsplitting sound, frightened and entirely out of her element. Just as they neared the entrance to the prison, a powerful explosion erupted.
Hayden braced herself against the wall as the base trembled violently.
The florescent lights collapsed throughout the compound, immediately casting the halls and rooms in complete darkness. Alarms continued blaring and the sprinklers turned on, identifying a fire on the premises.
Nicolas. Cole.
She reached for the door, feeling its scalding heat without touching. A whispered denial slipped past her lips. Not them too. She was too late.
Wet footsteps appeared behind them and a growl of utter rage sent them running.
Hayden glanced over her shoulder, spying Nolan lunging crazily after them. Usually Celeste’s most deadpan Carrier, Nolan appeared frighteningly expressive. Utter hate and bloodlust carved deeply into his face as he advanced quicker. Around his lips, he salivated.
Unexplainable fear washed Hayden cold.
His meaty hands outstretched, ready to rip their heads from their shoulders.
They were going to die.
Despite her human mentality bemoaning the miserable situation, adrenaline pushed her to run faster and her canine urged her to rely on her survival skills. No matter how much giving up tempted her, other forces relied on her endurance.
Turning the corner, they nearly ran into another figure.
A puppet.
As Julian and Hayden instinctively went opposite directions, she realized they were holding hands. As they parted, their fingers groped for the other before they both sprinted down separate corridors.
Hayden turned a sharp corner, pushing her legs to their limit. Gunshots sounded in the distance and she dreaded to know their source.
Gradually, the wet footsteps behind her no longer sounded.
He must have followed Julian.
Slowing to a quiet walk, Hayden waded through the flooded corridors. Though she was alone, a strange sensation washed over her. Uncanny shadows clung selfishly in the corners of the corridors, creating a gloomy atmosphere. A hair-raising sense of grim hopelessness washed over her.
It was as if ghosts accompanied her with each step, their presence malevolent and painfully unhappy. She felt the sensation absorb into her body, becoming a part of her.
Through the fall of wet hair, Hayden peeked around the corner of the corridor.
Her vision flashed back to her father.
She hesitantly moved around the corner and down another corridor. Her movements skittish. Like a mouse. She recalled Logan’s eyes dimming, his proud, arrogant smirk still in place as he confessed his love after insanely boasting his victory over his lifemate.
On her arm, she felt Sophia’s frantically beating pulse before it stopped indefinitely.
Hayden exhaled fearfully, staring uncomprehendingly at a door as she passed. A crimson ‘x’ claimed the wood and the smell of werewolf massacre fragranced the air.
Blinking frantically, the ‘x’ and the deathly odor disappeared.
She stumbled forward, desperately groping the wet wall with her fingernails. Asher moved next to her, teasing her with his dimples and his laughter before his head abruptly flew from his shoulders, silencing him for eternity.
Her aunt lay at her feet, a hole in her chest from Hayden’s sword.
Addie.
Hayden moaned as her throat contracted. Across the hallway, she saw Addie stand tall and meet her death proudly. She was the first among many.
Hayden was alone, yet they all followed her.
Their memory, their deaths. Their ghosts.
Cole and Nicolas too.
Her mind spun. Her world in shambles. She wandered around aimlessly, not knowing what to do, what to feel. Where to go.
As she turned the corner, small lights ruthlessly shined in her direction. Hayden squinted against the onslaught of brightness, bringing a shaking hand up to shield her eyes. Just before her sight could adjust, gunfire exploded across the corridor.
Hayden flinched horribly as she felt the bullets disrupt the air so close to her skin.
Her heart hammered wildly, though she could do nothing but stand immobile.
Something heavy dropped directly behind her and the gunfire gradually lessened. One of the gunmen approached her slowly with his rifle raised and ready.
“Sorry bout that,” the man apologized gruffly. “It takes a bit to drop them.”
Zane Donovan’s brusque features finally came into focus. Uncomprehendingly, she watched as he st
epped around her and fired twice more at the downed man. Nolan. Somehow, he’d snuck up behind her.
He would have killed her.
Withdrawing his sword from his belt, Zane let his rifle hang around his neck as he exerted quite a bit of effort decapitating Nolan.
Upon the successful amputation, he cleared his throat and turned to her. “Told you I’d bring backup, kid. You hadn’t believed me. I keep my promises.” His self-sufficient smirk fell as he took note of her trembling body. “You alright?”
Was she alright?
A small, disbelieving scoff escaped her lips.
She looked just beyond his shoulder at the large group of Hunters. There were many of them. In the distance, she could hear more gunshots and realized allies were amongst them. True allies this time.
Celeste and Logan were dead.
Celeste’s Carriers, for the most part, gone.
Her trembling intensified.
Zane held up a gloved hand towards his men. “Lower your lights. Search the rest of the compound.” His men readily followed his order and Zane shrugged off his coat. “Here.”
Hayden found herself wrapped in the heavy scent of silver.
She did not protest at the warmth.
Vaguely, she followed Zane as he grabbed her elbow and escorted her through the corridors. They came across a few downed puppets, but nothing substantial. Hayden didn’t remember how long it took to venture through the wet halls until they reached the end.
Eventually, the scent of fresh air assaulted her nostrils.
In the back of her mind, the familiar feeling of surrender lingered. Hayden remembered the sweet nothingness and the sheer release she’d felt by letting go. The sensation pulled at her mind, urging her to let go again.
She resisted the urge.
Not yet.
Distinctively, she recalled Zane forcing her to sit. He asked someone to stand with her, though Hayden didn’t remember his name. She remembered seeing the familiar faces of the traditional werewolves as they lingered inside and outside Celeste’s base.
“She’s in shock?”
“Hayden.”
Julian crouched before her, his features solemn and aged. Hayden nodded, though she didn’t know what she was agreeing to. Her pulse slowed and fatigue made her bones and limbs heavy.
Over his head, she suddenly saw them.
Both of them alive and basking in their Slayter glory.
Hayden’s eyes fluttered as she surrendered to the nothingness.
19. Chapter Nineteen
They argued a lot in the beginning. About her.
Hayden vaguely remembered mustering enough energy to eavesdrop, though she knew Cole and Nicolas argued fiercely about her wellbeing.
Nicolas thought Hayden needed to keep going in order to strengthen her mind and regain her balance. Cole, on the other hand, didn’t believe Nicolas was a good influence during her recovery.
Recovery.
It was if they thought she was an addict suffering through withdrawals.
As if someone could truly suffer from tragedy addiction. That meant she’d have to be addicted to blood, death, and utter destruction. Could Hayden truly be addicted to the things that destroyed so many lives around her?
She had dreams, vivid nightmares of those dark, wet corridors. She’d wake up, soaked with sweat and her pulse pounding wildly with anticipation. Her body coiled in her damp sheets, ready and willing to face the lurking danger.
Only, there was no longer any immediate threats.
Or so they reassured her.
They relocated to Albertville, the sleepy town where it all started. Cole and the other Alphas decided to rebuild their homes and resettle in their territories. The house was near completion, back to its original bones and majestic charm.
However, the home was missing one vital piece. Never to be replicated.
Addie.
In her place, others joined the Slayter pack. Others who’d lost their pack, or others who’d lost their Alpha, chose to join the Slayter pack, reassured by its commanding Alpha and supreme pack members.
They were war heroes, after all.
In its original structure, the home was too small to accommodate the added members. In turn, Cole decided to put an addition on the home during its construction. Fortunately, when the home proved too crowded, there was always the abundant stretch of trees surrounding the property.
Hayden escaped there often.
Only, she was never truly alone these days. The pack coddled her, swaddled her with support and protection. Their constant surveillance stifled her.
“Why are you here?” she found herself asking. “Why didn’t you move back south?”
Out of all the new members, Julian Crow remained the mystery to her. Hayden never believed her brother would submit to being anything but an Alpha. Yet, he remained with her, shadowing her as if he were afraid to lose contact.
Julian settled just behind her, against a tree.
“To where? My pack?” he asked scornfully. “They were destroyed in the war.”
Hayden simply pressed her lips together and stared unseeingly at the small pond.
The sun was bright and warm, the colors of summer incredibly vibrant. Green seemed especially dominant in the changing environment as the foliage regained feeling after a long winter season.
“I never told you about that night with Nicolas.”
Upon mention of Nicolas, Hayden looked up from the pond.
Even after everything she’d gone through, her heart still fluttered innocently at the thought of him. She hadn’t seen or spoken to him in months. She assumed he left, unsure how to deal with her fragile state of mind.
She hadn’t asked anyone about him.
His absence hurt her deeply.
“Remember when the Hunters turned on us?” Julian inquired. “Nicolas and I took a long time to return to the others.”
“I remember,” Hayden muttered.
How could she forget?
Cole did not like talk of the war in his household. He did not prohibit it, as he believed it proved therapeutic to speak about the past and relive the memories. Nonetheless, he frowned upon others speaking to Hayden about it and asking her questions.
Perhaps he took cues from her attitude. She never spoke about the war, nor did she want to discuss it with anyone. Not even Cole.
Julian proved to be the exception.
“I went with the other warriors outside the wall to fend off Celeste’s approaching army. As you know, some of the Hunters accompanied us as well. We didn’t know they were enemies at the time.”
Julian paused.
Hayden’s fingers traveled over the grass, feeling the small blades tickle her palms. She did not turn to look at her brother. She knew Julian preferred to recollect things in private with her just listening. Not seeing. Not talking.
She was much the same.
“I got shot,” he admitted. “In the chest.” His voice was thick with emotion. “I was dying, Hayden. I could feel the silver freeze and burn my veins at the same time. I couldn’t breathe and I saw our father just standing there.”
Here, Hayden stiffened with unease.
She never talked about Logan, nor did she even want to think of her father.
“I don’t—”
“Hayden.” Julian pushed off from the tree and looped around to her line of vision. He appeared frustrated. “You’re not the only one who loved and lost him. You can listen to the rest of my story.”
When she did not argue, Julian pulled down his shirt, revealing a silver scar.
“Logan just stood there, staring at me.” Julian shook his head. “At the time, I thought maybe he didn’t really see me, that he was so distracted with the battle. Now it makes sense. He considered me dead weight. Disposable.”
Hayden clenched her jaw and looked back out at the pond.
“He sacrificed himself to save you and me,” she whispered.
“No, he sacrificed himself to s
ave you and get one over on Celeste.” Julian crossed his arms over his chest, watching her closely. “He once told me you were a younger version of himself. He loved only you. I consider that the only reason we’re alive today.”
Her fingers clenched around the grass. “What happened?” she asked numbly. “You were dying and Logan apparently watched you suffer.”
“Nicolas happened.” Julian shifted, following her lead and looking out at the cotton-like seeds floating leisurely over the pond. “He went out of his way and saved me. Flung me over his shoulder and entered the community that was already under fire. He found tonic and watched over me throughout the night.”
Hayden’s brow furrowed. “You sound angry.”
“Of course I’m angry!” Her brother exhaled sharply. “He saved me. In fact, he saved a bunch of other people too! And you know what? No one ever mentions him. After everything, they still don’t trust him and they treat him like an outcast. And you’re not even acknowledging his absence.”
She bristled. “You have no idea—”
“I do have an idea.” He dropped his arms at his sides. “I asked him what I could do to repay my debt to him. He asked me to watch over you whenever he’s not around. Even if I wanted to branch off, I can’t, because I have to make sure you’re safe.”
His angry attitude abruptly crumbled in face of her deadpan expression.
Julian crouched down next to her, his eyes softening. “I think you should find him. You can’t settle down here. You just can’t, Hayden.”
She stood quickly, sensing another werewolf approach. Her hand flew to her chest, feeling the knives underneath her blouse.
The approaching scent was somewhat familiar, though Hayden couldn’t place it.
“At ease, soldier.”
Surprisingly, Kieran broke through the trees and waved his surrender. The North American Alpha was alone, Hayden noted. Not even Rylee Donovan followed her mate.
After the war, the other werewolves agreed to keep the classification of the North American Alpha. Kieran accepted the position and made it his duty to visit packs across the country from time to time.
This was the first time Hayden had seen him since the war.
Oddly enough, he was in the thick of Cole’s territory, not at the pack house. Clearly, he wanted to speak with either Hayden or Julian, though neither option sat well with her.