by Reese Morgan
It certainly made it easier to breathe. And think.
Her eyes fluttered open as the hands roamed down her chest and cupped her ribs. With speed and efficiently only an expert could possess, her savior dug his fingers into her ribcage and snapped her improperly healed ribs back into place.
The man who stood above her had familiar black hair, long and unruly. The beard was familiar, though it seemed longer than its usual stubble length.
“Cole…” Hayden slurred, her eyes tearing with relief.
Her breath caught when he gazed down at her. The eyes that stared back weren’t the familiar forest-green, but a cold, clear blue. This wasn’t Cole.
“You’ll be fine,” the man reassured decisively.
He reached down and pressed a hand against her eyes, willing them to close. When he removed it, she had fallen unconscious a second time.
16. Chapter Sixteen
“The pack. Find them.”
Cole’s distressed plea was the first thing Hayden remembered as she roused from unconsciousness. The memories from earlier were choppy, obscure, making it hard for her to recollect the details of what had happened.
Inhaling levelly, Hayden continued to feign sleep while willing herself to feel Cole through their link. But when she tried to focus on him, there was nothing but emptiness. Cold terror clung to her, instantly making her feel exposed and vulnerable. His familiar presence was always a constant whisper in the back of her mind, so much so that she rarely noticed it anymore. To have it suddenly torn from her was implausible.
However, after she recovered from her initial shock, Hayden realized it was no ordinary emptiness. It was not hollow or desolate, but filled with a faint echo of Cole’s presence. It was as if he were buried behind a soundproof wall and veiled behind cloudy lens.
When Hayden experienced silver poisoning, she hadn’t been able to feel Cole, but Cole had still sensed her. He’d been able to find her with this faint connection. Naturally, she had to do the same for him. She’d find him. She had to, needed to.
“Hayden?”
Her eyes snapped open at the call, immediately noticing the dark sky. The last time she’d closed her eyes, it was late morning. It was hard to believe she was out that long. She’d… she’d broken her neck, she remembered. Was that why her head was spinning?
Above her, Celeste crouched. Her pale hand pressed against Hayden’s forehead and obvious concern lined her face. “Do you feel alright?
Hayden struggled for words, her tongue heavy and her throat sore. “W-where…?”
Celeste’s eyebrows furrowed with an emotion akin to pity. “The rogues attacked.” She rocked back to her heels. “Nicolas and his rogues—”
“Evan, Tracer.” Hayden struggled to sit up, pressing her eyes closed when the world spun. Her limbs seemed heavier than normal and her head was foggy. “They have Cole,” she whispered, her voice cracking with raw emotion.
“They had you too.”
She opened an eye and studied the other woman across from her. Celeste’s normally poised appearance was now worn and shabby. Dried blood and dirt smeared her face and her strawberry-colored hair was in disarray, with long strands falling from her pony and framing her face.
Hayden pressed her fingers against her forehead and surveyed the scene over Celeste’s shoulder. A few members of the woman’s pack were sitting around a small campfire, roasting something that looked suspiciously like wild turkey. They appeared quiet, solemn, and their eyes kept sneaking glances at their Alpha.
Quite frankly, Hayden couldn’t make heads or tails of it.
“But…” she trailed off, trying to connect her lost memories. “But they left me. I remember. They only wanted Cole. But why?”
“They had you too. Nicolas had you.” Celeste frowned and leaned closer to Hayden. “You were badly injured. When the rogues attacked the cabin, many of us were separated. I—we—stumbled upon you by luck. I’m sorry. We didn’t see Cole with you.”
“Nicolas,” Hayden repeated dully.
Celeste began to explain in more detail about how the rogues attacked the cabin shortly after she left Cole and Hayden in the woods. But Hayden was more interested in Nicolas. Though it was hard to remember clearly, she distinctively recalled not being able to breathe and the indescribable pain.
That man, the rogue who had been with Evan and Tracer, had snapped her neck. As Hayden struggled to remember being healed, an image of a rugged Cole came into mind. But that was impossible. Cole had been sedated and defeated by the rogues.
“Nicolas and the others are long gone. Not all of us made it out intact, but we’ll recover again.” Celeste looked positively determined as she recollected the attack.
“Nicolas,” Hayden repeated again, suddenly remembering the cold blue eyes boring into her as the hands snapped her neck and ribs back into place.
He had healed her. Nicolas had healed her.
Celeste’s pale gaze narrowed on Hayden. “Are you sure you’re feeling alright, Hayden? They didn’t do any permanent damage to your head, did they?” She leaned closer and Hayden had the unmistakable urge to cower backwards in distrust. “You look peaked.”
Nicolas had been the one to heal her, Hayden remembered. She also remembered seeing him before the rogues attacked Cole. She knew he’d been alone. She hadn’t sensed a threat from him and he hadn’t shown himself when Evan and Tracer had attacked. If he were the mastermind behind it all, he would have made sure to mock his younger brother.
A hand curled around Hayden’s arm and gently hoisted her off the ground. “Come. You need to eat something.”
Hayden reared back, the very mention of food nauseating her. “I need to find my pack!” she hissed passionately. “I need to find Cole!” Unwanted tears sprang to her eyes at the mention of Cole, worried sick about what they intended to do to him.
“Now is not the time to crumble, Hayden.” Celeste remained calm in the face of Hayden’s panic. “An Alpha needs to know how to stand on her own.”
At the curt admission, Hayden stilled entirely and allowed Celeste to drag her to the fire. Unbeknownst to Celeste, she’d used the same words Cole had once spoken. Even though Hayden wanted to protest against the instruction, she knew she had to approach things with a level head.
In the same position, Cole wouldn’t be crumbling. By now, he would have already gathered the pack and begun to search for Hayden. It was what he did when the Hunters forced the werewolves out of Albertville. It was what she should be doing.
Hayden immediately felt ashamed. She’d been unconscious for too long, too inactive.
“I need to find the pack,” Hayden insisted again, this time adopting a rational tone. Somehow, she managed to quell her panic. “I need to find my pack.”
Celeste ushered her to a spot around the fire. “I know.” The members of her pack made room for both of them. “I intend to help you find them. There are members missing amongst my own pack as well. They are likely with yours.”
Hayden blinked, gazing at Celeste’s pack again. For the first time, she noticed the diminished numbers. They all appeared battle weary and on edge. Most surprisingly, Sophia, Celeste’s beta, was missing.
Blowing out an exasperated breath, Hayden declined the offered turkey and turned her attention fully onto Celeste. “Does this mean you’ll join the traditional werewolves against… Nicolas?”
Despite the credibility of Celeste’s story, Hayden couldn’t shake away the apprehension in her stomach. She knew something wasn’t adding up. She had a strong premonition that Nicolas was not behind this.
A few of the females exhaled in amusement over Hayden’s inquiry. “The traditional werewolves are destructive pacifists,” one of the females proclaimed fervently. “They consider everyone beneath them and then proceed to destroy them.”
Voices of agreement murmured around the fire and Hayden’s trepidation grew. Celeste didn’t seem surprised at the outspoken opinions of her pack. If anything, she appeared in accordance
.
As if sensing Hayden’s growing unease, Celeste waved a hand to silence her pack members. "It's true.” With the firelight reflecting ominously off her green eyes, she pinned Hayden with a disconcerting stare. “Who are the traditional werewolves to assume they are the collective voice of all the werewolves? Why must we stay hidden from the humans when we could take an authoritative position in society? There would be no need to live in fear. We could live side-by-side with humans. How attractive would it be to have a world without Hunters? There would be no more mass murders, no more massacres of our kind.”
Even though Hayden knew better, she found it difficult to look away from Celeste. The woman had a way with words, a way of captivating her audience. Her stare was direct and compelling, forcing Hayden to hang on to her words with a baited breath.
With a flick of her wrist, Celeste reached over and traced a long, manicured finger across the scar on Hayden’s neck. “And why do the traditional werewolves get to decide who lives and who dies? What right did they have to hunt you down and kill you? They didn’t even know you, but your fate was already decided as soon as you were deemed a rogue.”
Hayden struggled, but she eventually found her tongue. “But they didn’t. They didn’t kill me.”
A soft smirk crossed Celeste’s lips and her fingernail scraped lightly across Hayden’s scar. “No.” A predatory gleam entered her eyes. “That’s only because you were special. They were impressed with your control, control a newborn rarely possesses.”
Her breath came to an abrupt halt. No matter how much she desired it, Hayden couldn’t look away from those wickedly intense eyes. “How did you know I had control as a newborn?” she whispered suspiciously.
Celeste removed her hand and her smirk turned coy. “The fact of the matter is that traditional werewolves are living too far into the past. It’s time werewolves adapted to modern times. It’s time we take advantage of our available resources.”
Upon hearing the proclamation, Hayden’s suspicions were instantly confirmed. It was a similar viewpoint Devan and Joseph had after they teamed up with Nicolas. It was what Nicolas indirectly hinted at when he and his rogues attacked Albertville last fall.
It was the viewpoint of a rogue. Celeste was one of them.
Suddenly, the blood across Celeste’s face and the disarrayed hair seemed too perfect, too flawlessly messy. The diminished numbers of her pack also seemed too convenient and the blood and dirt smudges on their faces appeared just as seamless.
And Nicolas hadn’t been the one to take Hayden, Celeste had. Considering the large time lapse and dizziness Hayden was experiencing, Celeste likely injected her with the same tranquilizer that injected Cole.
Somehow, the notion of having Celeste as an enemy was upsetting. Celeste didn’t possess intimidating physical prowess, at least as far as Hayden knew, but she possessed manipulation and a flair for seduction. She was smart too, incredibly intelligent.
As much as Hayden wanted to pretend otherwise, she was also saddened by the revelation. She had found a kindred spirit in Celeste. They shared many of the same opinions, even a few viewpoints about the traditional werewolves.
And above all else, Hayden had respected her, admired her even.
She collected her thoughts slowly, making sure to hide her emotions least Celeste take notice and restrain her further. Though the betrayal was hard to swallow, Hayden was more worried about Cole and the pack.
What did Celeste want with Cole? What had Celeste really done to the pack?
Her determination steeled, Hayden looked up at Celeste. Even the woman’s riveting stare couldn’t divert Hayden away from her resolve to find the others.
“I’ve lived as a human for most my life,” Hayden said. “I know they will fear us when they become aware of our existence. And werewolves are not indestructible. Humans can and will destroy us.”
Celeste’s smile faltered, but her eyes became livelier. She knew all pretenses were gone. She had no qualms showing her cards. “Then we’ll just have to create a stronger, more resilient species, won’t we?” She raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t truly think you were naturally gifted with such a superior werewolf, did you?”
Hayden’s eyes widened at the sudden implications.
“Isn’t it odd how you found control relatively easy, despite your newborn status? Haven’t you ever wondered how you absorbed combat training so easily? Or how you’re stronger than the typical female werewolf?” Celeste chuckled lowly at Hayden’s ashen face. “Through Tracer’s venom, you were a surviving member amongst the first batch of prototypes. While not exactly what I desired, I did create you.”
Something suddenly shot from the surrounding trees and hit the bonfire. On impact, a large explosion erupted, engulfing the closer occupants with flames. Hayden was lucky enough to scramble out of the way in time, but a body fell next to her, consumed completely by flame.
A large black wolf soared through the fire and above her, his front claws scratching her cheek in displeasure. Hayden knew she had been lying docile too long. It was her only time to escape.
Celeste made a lunge for Hayden, but the younger female rolled away. She leapt to her feet and sprinted after the black wolf. Frantically, her hands went to her chest and she felt the familiar weight of her knives.
They hadn’t removed them. Celeste’s original plan of fooling Hayden wouldn’t have been nearly as convincing if they’d taken away her weapons. They would have wanted to lull Hayden into a false sense of security.
The wolf, whom Hayden assumed was Nicolas, disappeared into the trees. Though he remained an invisible shadow, she had enough sense to continue on the path he set out. If he wanted to lead her in another direction, he would simply reveal himself once more until she changed course.
To confirm her assumptions, the black canine abruptly appeared to her left, his massive strides silent but evident against the white snow. He bobbed his head in approval as Hayden veered to her left, blindly following him, blindly trusting him.
Cole would have a conniption.
Quelling her sorrow at the thought, Hayden forced herself to widen her strides and push herself faster than she’d ever gone before. Nicolas didn’t seem to have trouble keeping up, his soft, barely audible pants sounding just ahead of her.
While she didn’t get a sense of her pack members unless it was the full moon, Hayden had the notion Nicolas was leading her to the others. Nevertheless, each step she took, her gut wrenched in protest. The direction they were heading was away from Cole. She wanted desperately to turn around and search for him, but she knew finding the pack was her first priority. Cole would have done the same.
Forging ahead for what seemed like miles, Hayden eventually broke through the trees and came upon the cabin. She lingered in the outskirts of the woods, examining the cabin and the warm glow it emitted from the inside. It was possible the pack was still inside, oblivious to everything, albeit worried over Cole and Hayden’s long absence.
Her high hopes abruptly crumbled when she noticed the wide open door and the smashed window. “Are you sure they’re in there?” she asked Nicolas, who had silently joined her side.
The wolf’s ears twitched at the spoken question. Gradually, he looked up at her, his gaze clearly conveying his bland indifference. Hayden frowned and turned back to the cabin, sniffing the air and keeping a sharp ear open.
It smelt of the pack, and other strangers, but she could also smell traces of Cole. In a nesting area, scents lingered even after their occupants were long gone. And as far as she could hear, everything was silent and still.
But that didn’t mean they weren’t inside.
Hayden escaped the trees and approached the cabin, her steps light and silent. As she climbed the stairs to the cabin, she kept her posture stooped. She peered over the top step and into the open door, searching for an immediate threat.
The smell of blood scented the air and it took all of Hayden’s willpower not to charge inside. As soon as the en
tranceway proved clear, she slithered inside, her eyes dancing from one corner to the other.
The body sprawled in the family room wasn’t a member of Cole’s pack, but of Celeste’s. Apparently, Celeste’s ‘missing pack members’ were sent here to watch over the others but had been thwarted. Hayden felt a brief flicker of smugness, but sobered when the sound of claws striking the hardwood floors resonated across the cabin.
She turned, eyeing Nicolas with disapproval as the wolf gave away their location. Nicolas growled lowly, unimpressed with her glare. He turned his tail with a surprising amount of attitude and retreated further into the house.
Hayden turned in the other direction and entered the kitchen. She spied a pair of legs sticking out from behind the island, submerged in a trail of crimson blood. Swallowing thickly, she assessed her surroundings, deeming it safe to identify the second body.
With measured steps, she approached the prone figure. Inch by inch, the body’s identity began to become clearer. It was another woman with a wicked-looking wound to her chest. It wasn’t Addie. It wasn’t anyone Hayden knew. From the looks of it, she’d been a fierce fighter. She’d died with an enraged frown on her face, her eternal rest certainly not looking very restful.
Hayden’s eyes rose, her wolf sensing the threat before her senses became aware of it. Across from her, the shiny material of the refrigerator revealed a blurry figure standing behind her.
“You’re too predictable.”
As Hayden reached for a knife inside her jacket, the sound of a safety clicked off.
“Put your hands in the air.”
Knowing she had no other choice but to comply, Hayden gradually raised her hands, surrendering her intentions of grabbing a throwing knife. The voice behind her was somewhat familiar, but Hayden couldn’t place it.
“Turn around. Slowly.”
Following the order, she turned and spied Sophia, Celeste’s beta. The woman had a gun aimed unswervingly at Hayden, the muzzle pointed between her eyes. Guns and arrows weren’t usually threats to werewolves, who could usually dodge and swerve quick enough to avoid being shot, but it depended on who wielded the weapon.