Chapter 11: Is This It?


    I can''t turn and I''ve no idea why. I''m as weak and powerless as Juan said I was…. because of me,


    Colton will perish tonight too. He''ll feel this pain, he''ll know I''m suffering and as soon as my heart stops,


    his will too. I failed to keep my mate safe, by failing to save myself and I don''t deserve his love, his


    bond.


    I''m sorry, my love. You were right. I''m no warrior.


    I doubt he''ll even hear me, as along with my ability to turn, my mind link is silent and has been since I


    lost him upstairs. I close my eyes, trying hard to connect to him, to feel him inside my head onest


    time, but there is only deathly silence in the recess of my brain as fingers encircle my throat and I wait


    for the inevitable squeeze to end it all.


    My blurry vision focuses in front of me, straining across thewn in ast-ditch attempt to see the world


    I''m leaving behind. As he begins to choke the air out of my body, slowly, enjoying the power, savoring


    it, smug about theck of my fight because I have nothing left. Truly sick.


    My eyes settle on the chaosid before me, and my heart implodes with what I see, the devastation too


    much for me to reallypute. Tears rolling down my face as sadness numbs out everything else. A


    quiet peace filling my senses as shock and reality hit, to shield me from the horror of what I''m


    witnessing.


    There are bodies everywhere. The unwanteds, the guardians, side by side, no care as to whether one


    was important or not. There''s blood, debris, and the lifeless souls of my reject pack, strewn wherever


    the eye strays. Headless, maimed. Some torn to pieces, some just bleeding out from wounds across


    their throats and already dead. Dark fluid taints it all, blood in the shadows, stains everything as far as I


    can see. Chaos everywhere. It''s a massacre we never sawing, and they hit the weakest in our


    kingdom, the ones who had no defenses. Most of us were just children, or teenagers, and we never


    stood a chance.


    This is it for us. My story is finally over.


    I close my eyes and ept fate, choking slowly, no longer panic strewn but epting, as blood sours


    out my sense of taste and I gag and fumble at the grass beneath my palms. Hot and sticky with my


    own life essence. Struggling to breathe, heart giving in, unable to fight while my body is broken and


    shattered. Paused and waiting for the final snap to end this agony and suffering.


    The sudden wrenching of the hands around my neck makes me spasm in response, so in tune with the


    final blow, but instead of a relief from this ne to the next, I''m set free. Dropped hastily so my face


    collides with the damp stinking grass and the taste of my own blood is rammed backward as I inhale it


    forcefully. My throat released, and the sh of air that wooshes by me turns my gaze to follow


    impulsively. Weakly following the path of whatever just flew by me.


    A ck sh of snarling fur, a huge beast in utter rage, taking down the form of the man that held me


    captive and I can tell it''s Colton as his scent follows on the wind. That instant innerpletion only his


    presence can bring me, and a tiny ounce of my heart is restored. I slump my head down on my cheek


    to watch him, as I can''t do anything much else.


    He''s ruthless, a true warrior, and one of the biggest of the pack as he towers at three times the size of


    my assaulter on his hind legs. Within seconds, without any obvious effort, or fight, he tears the man


    apart from limb to limb, no hesitation, as though merely pulling apart a piece of damp paper towel.


    Scattering him across the back wall in a vile dark red spray of body parts, with an almost explosion like


    drama.


    Snarling, seething so his teeth glint in the moonlight devilishly and he turns viciously, before throwing


    its head across the courtyard, with enough force that it clears the wallpletely. It''s an act of rage


    and fury, and he throws his own massive head back, letting the most terrifying, stomach churning howl,


    erupt from deep within his body, alerting his kindreds that they shoulde.


    The noise fills the air, echoes insanely, overtakes the silence and chaos as more of my brethren clear


    the walls effortlessly, like water over rocks, scaling and flowing smoothly in from all directions tond in


    the courtyard. Pouring from every avenue into the small space. Flooding all I can see with the forms of


    wolves of all sizes and shades and packs from every corner of the mountain. Uniting for amon


    enemy.


    I try to get up, relief overwhelming me that they''vee to our aid, our saviors are here, but I can''t


    move. My hands are bloody and ripped up, my body is weak, smashed internally, and I can''t feel my


    legs anymore. So drained of my life force that I''m ebbing away into nothingness. Try as I might… I can''t


    move.


    Lorey? Baby…. Lorey … nooo. The ck beast is over me now, turning me gently with massive wed


    paws, so I face those glowing ember eyes to fall into his safety and care. He calms from snarling teeth


    to human form instantly. In a blink, from ferocious to handsome and familiar. Suddenly smaller, naked


    before me, in the dark night sky and a look of utter despair washing over that furrowed brow and tear-


    filled eyes.


    ''I''m sorry.'' Is all I can splutter as I cough up blood and shudder with the effort, too consumed with


    fatigue to do anything else. Colton stifles a sob, scrunching his face up, and cradles me close. Picking


    me up as carefully as he can and pulling me against him gently, his own pain at me being like this


    filtering back to me and weighing upon me tenfold. Sharing our agony, and I can feel his heart


    shredding for me. The devastation tearing through him at what he sees.


    ''You have to turn, please. It''s the only way you can survive these wounds. Turn for me. Don''t give up.


    Don''t leave me, baby.'' The desperation in his voice ravages my heart, but I''m too weak, and I''ve lost


    too much blood. I''m so cold, so numb that even his touch can''t warm me as it should and I cry softly,


    with desperation because I know, as soon as I slip away, his own heart will cease to beat. I can''t let him


    die at my hands; I have to save myself to save him. He doesn''t deserve this, he never did anything


    wrong, he came for me. He came to save me.


    I have to try just one more time, to give everything I have into healing myself, but it''s futile. I don''t even


    know how to turn, let alone if I can. It''s like there is a disconnect and my abilities fail me. I muster any


    willpower I can but it''s like that veil of power is still weighing down, oppressing me and I can''t fight it.


    ''I can''t. I don''t know how.'' Tears roll down my sodden face as I let out a useless breathy whisper. So


    ashamed of my own inability to ever be a match for his strength and power. Colton stares at me, his


    face suddenly straightening as he sobers instantly, he looks to his own hand, curled around my


    shoulder, an instant twinge of his cheek muscle and then a frown that I can''t read.


    Colton doesn''t wait, something registering on his face and he furrows his brow with determination,


    pushing the softness aside. He picks me up, even though I cry out in renewed agony of this new torture


    and holds me tight. Pain slicing through my wounds as I cry out at what he''s doing, writhing, and


    shuddering with the sheer pain it inflicts upon me. I push my hands to his chest to beg him to let go,


    because it''s too much and my body can''t take more. ss stuck in my wounds, prating deeper


    with the pressure of his embrace and I howl out in despair because he''s only hurting me more.


    "I''m sorry, baby. I have to." Pulling us to standing, he starts running for the nearest entrance to the


    courtyard. His focus intent as he scans the wall and moves us as fast as he can to the nearest gate. It''s


    a human run, not hyper speed and he hauls ass to get me outside the perimeter of the enclosed


    garden and building. I don''t understand and all I can do is cling on and stiffen and sob at the


    movements that bring me no end of agony.


    His mind syncs with mine as soon as we are free from the confines of the courtyard, I feel it. Shocked


    with the sudden presence of him inside my head even though he doesn''t say anything at all. A change


    to the weight on my chest and the dull fog of my brain as he skids down to his knees, scraping across


    the tarmac, taking me down with him as soon as he feels the bond return so effortlessly.


    "Try now. Trust me, you have to try. Focus on me, think of yourself as you were the night of your


    turning. The pain, the tion of your new form, will it, baby, will it! Turn!" He begs,mands and


    alpha tones me all at the same time. Desperation in his plea and I''m powerless to disobey him.


    Something about taking me away from the house makes me feel differently, like a suppression is lifted


    from my soul and my head clears just enough. That internal foggy pain that held me weak moves


    aside, like lifting a foot from my chest and with a little effort, my body starts to tingle.


    "That''s it…your eyes…keep going. You can do this…it''s not hard. Fight for me." He catches my hand


    and holds it in his loosely, waiting, watching, silently pushing me on with a look of fear in his eye that


    maybe it''s toote. It causes chaos in my heart, to see him so afraid.


    I focus all my effort on pushing, some deep inner need in me to unite with my wolf again, and as soon


    as I open my mouth to utter the words ''I think it''s working'', I arch in his arms and convulse as my body


    transforms me into the one thing that can save me. Right on the stroke of my human heart giving out


    and sucker punches me back into thend of the living in the most painful kind of way.


    I gasp as I inhale loudly, coughing out, sying my limbs and shuddering viciously as he catches me in


    his arms and then immediately lets me go to twist and turn onto my belly. I wretch, gag, at the same


    time, before vomiting a crap ton of blood and mucus right over the top of Colton''s naked thighs as I''ve


    no control over aim. My wolf body ejects all that internal damage, as though somehow healing is just


    the process of getting rid of the messy bits I no longer need, and I''m covered in my own mess. Matting


    my leg fur and clinging disgustingly around me.


    I scramble away from him so as not to make this worse, finding myself on all fours, suddenly


    rejuvenated as pain diminishes and I wheeze, inhaling my lungs fully. The transformation heals me as


    fast as it possibly. From head to foot. Cuts close up, bones crack and reform, my lungs expand fully,


    enabling me to breathe once more and within minutes, I stand up as though I didn''t just go through hell


    and near death in the bloody mess I left back there. Shaken, sore all over as it fades away properly, but


    completely healed.


    I slump down on the ground and almost immediately revert to human form, as I don''t have the energy


    or the skill to sustain my true form yet. That took so much out of my wolf to literally save my life and I''m


    spent. Exhaling with a strangled cry of relief and emotion as everything hits me hard. Like being in a


    train wreck, only it''s all mental now the physical has been brushed away.


    This is property ? of N?velDrama.Org.


    Colton scurries over to me and hauls me into his arms without hesitation, the relief evident on his face


    and yanks me close to his chest. Wrapping me up and smoothing his hands over my naked body to


    check for any sign of unhealed marks. There are none. Wolf healing is iparable and almost


    always fully effective. There are only a few things in this world that wolves can''t heal from and none are


    present tonight. He tugs my face to his throat and hugs me with less panic in his touch, exhaling


    heavily as he allows himself a moment of relief that warms me to my core and brings me some calm.


    "The pack have them in retreat. I need to get you to safety and follow them. There are survivors and we


    have to stop them before we lose them." He nuzzles his face against my hair before shifting me,


    making it clear we can''t stay her. He helps me up, pulling me to my feet and leads me bodily, keeping


    me close, to one of the abandoned trucks that are scattered in every street surrounding the school. I


    recognize them as belonging to the Santo family. They must have flooded in from every part of the


    mountain at a moment''s notice.


    "How did you know toe?" I ask weakly as he slides me into the nearest vehicle, pulling a nket


    from the rear and draping it over my naked body as I begin to shiver insanely. I may be healed but my


    body and mind are going into shock from all that has just taken ce and I suddenly feel as though I''m


    in some sort of a dream. Fully aware his taking control is necessity as I don''t have the presence of


    mind to do anything for myself.


    "Your link was broken, and I couldn''t reach you. I knew something was wrong. I could feel your


    confusion, and then your fear. Your pain almost ended me, and I didn''t think I would get here in time…


    They did something to the house. Soon as I got near it, my wolf form struggled to stay. There''s some


    sort of noise or frequency around it. It stops us. I could feel it in the garden, but I couldn''t hear it." He


    closes my door, jumping in the front of the truck and scrambles around for keys, finding them still in the


    ignition, thankfully. Wasting no time in putting it in gear, reversing us at screeching speed as though


    we''re in pursuit of something and high tailing us towards the south road out of this part of the mountain


    valley. Getting me away from here, even if the threat is being chased off in the other direction.


    "Where are we going? Why aren''t you saving anyone else? There are more of us, it''s not only me in


    that home! You can''t leave them behind!" I sit up, panic stricken and sudden concern for the others left


    behind, hitting me in the chest like a freight train as my tears return with a passion and I half sob, half


    choke the words out. My reject pack are back there, they''re the only family I know, whether I liked them


    or not and there are so many innocents among them.


    Colton catches my eyes in the rear-view mirror and looks away quickly, a sadness hitting me right in


    the heart as his emotion silences me with a swift shunt of my stomach. I immediately know what the


    pain and sorrow is in what he doesn''t say. He avoids my eye as I stare at the back of his head, feeling


    him, reading him as he ovees my own senses. Tasting his hesitation and sorrow.


    "There is no one else is there?" I state nkly, numb shock weaving through me and hitting me with


    the gravity of this situation. The weight of reality settling on my shoulders to drag me back down to


    numb calm. He''s in constant link with his pack, they would know about survivors, and I''m guessing the


    fact they''re chasing down the vampires who ran, and no one but Colton is shepherding one of us away,


    means they already checked.


    He shakes his head, unable to look at me and I catch his furrowed brow and the gleam of moisture


    zing his eyes in the mirror over his head. He ups a gear, pushing the truck to dangerous speeds as


    we head out of the valley and up onto the main road that takes us around the perimeter and out to the


    south.


    "We weren''t fast enough…. I almost didn''t get to you in time. We just weren''t ready for something like


    this. I wasted time assembling the pack, when I knew you needed me." He sounds almost ashamed,


    but without the pack, he wouldn''t have been able to fight all of them himself and save me at all. They


    would have taken him down too, as soon as he lost his wolf form in the gardens.


    "All of them… the unwanteds…. the guardians. They''re all gone." It''s not really a question but more of a


    dazed reaction as my mind pushes me into shock at what''s happened, verbalizing the truth, and I


    slump down across the back seat as silent tears begin to fall down my face, diagonally across my


    cheek like sobering cold smears and soak the cold leather of the truck.


    "I''m sorry, Lorey. I know they were all you had. We never knew this wasing." Colton''s voice is


    shaky and low. Shame and regret tainting his normally sexy huskiness. We share the agony, but it


    doesn''t lighten the load. Insides twisting in cruel heartache as it sinks in fully.


    In the blink of an eye... they''re all gone. Just like ten years ago.


    The sad thing was, until this moment, I hadn''t thought they were what I had at all. We were never a


    pack, or a family in my mind before, but now, those others, they matter more than I ever gave them


    credit for. Even Vanka, my roommate of ten lonely years, and I would give anything right now to have


    her get in this truck and blow smoke in my face.


    My heart crashes inside my chest as the most painful debilitating heaviness hits me hard, and I let out


    a mournful sob that turns to a howl as my body turns without my trying. I lie on the back seat breaking


    inside all over again. My body reverting to my wolf form in a bid to heal me from the agony my heart''s


    in. A defense mechanism, because my instincts think I''m dying all over again, how ironic.


    The most heart wrenching howl I''ve ever heard, leaves my own body, fills my ears and echoes into the


    eeriest silence of the dark world around us.


    First my blood family, then my pack, and now my unwanteds.


    Is there nowhere to run where fate won''t deliver me the worst kind of blow and take everyone from me?