Chapter 111


    3rd person


    Paisley waited for the pain; ?he waited for the ckness closing in to beplete, or for the


    monster approaching her to bite her in half- but neither came. When she started to lose consciousness,


    her muscles rxed enough for her foot to be freed from the rocks, but it was already toote. She


    floated freely now, however her lungs were quickly filling with water, and she no longer had the energy


    to try and swim.


    She’d resigned herself to being some aquatic predator’s dinner, but she had to wonder how much


    longer it would take -the creature swimming towards her had appeared to be only feet away. Surely she


    should be dead by now? The next thing she knew a massive warm body was swimming beneath her,


    and then she was being lifted to the surface. When her head broke through the rapids, water spewed


    from her l!ps, expelled from her lungs by forceful contractions as she coughed and sputtered.


    She clutched the pillowy object beneath her, content to simply close her eyes and rest as it carried her


    along. Still, after the initial exhaustion and confusion wore off, she remembered her siblings, and lifted


    her head. She didn’t have the first clue what the creature supporting her was – she’d never seen


    anything like it. It was gray and as round as a balloon, with wide flippers and arge rounded tail. She


    couldn’t see its face, she was sprawled like a starfish over it’s warm back, and she was too tired and


    afraid to risk moving.


    They were gliding through forests of river grasses, and as Paisley squinted into the distance she could


    see the other pups up ahead. They’d halted their log ride against some boulders and were standing on


    the rocks, seemingly caught in the middle of a heated argument.


    We have to go back!” Riley was insisting.


    “But how!?” Parker cried, “we can’t swim stronger than the current!”


    “I don’t know, but we have to find a way!” Riley insisted.


    “She’s right!” Ryder agreed, “we can’t leave her.”


    “I don’t want to leave her neither!” Parker argued,


    “l just can’t figure out how – Paisley!?”


    The other two pups whipped their heads around to follow the direction of his gaze, their voices soom


    joining their brother’s. “Paisley!” They eximed, “


    Thank the Goddess.”


    “You guys,” Paisley gasped, clutching at her living raft forfort as she tried to stay awake. “I don’


    think I likes swimming.”


    “Where do you think they are, right now?” Jane asked, folding her arms around herself protectively.


    Do you think they’re feeding them? Do you think they’re hurt?”


    “I don’t know, baby.” Ethan frowned, reaching over to rest his hand on Jane’s thigh as he drove. They


    were on their way to speak with the policemander and the Alpha’s private investigator, with Eric


    and Linda in the back seat. Still, Jane didn’t seem to care that they had an audience, all she could think


    about was her pups. Eric had been a powerful distraction, but now that he was safely in their corner,


    her mind was drifting back to the children. “But lI know this much, if we’re right and they took them


    abroad out of fear for me, then they’re probably too afraid to harm them either.”


    This didn’t seem tofort Jane. “How did we let this happen?” She questioned, devastated beyond


    words. “What kind of parents let their pups be taken this way?”


    “You can’t think like that, Jane.” Linda advised, leaning forward to squeeze her friend’s shoulder. “I


    know it’s hard, but you can’t help them if you’re wallowing in depression. It’s not that it isn’t natural or


    valid, you just have to push it aside for the time being.”


    “Spoken like someone who doesn’t have pups.”


    Jane snapped back, instantly regretting her words. “l’m sorry, Linda, I didn’t mean that. I shouldn’t have


    said it.


    “It’s okay.” Linda promised, though her hand had tensed on Jane’s shoulder. “You’re under a lot of


    stress.


    “No, it’s not okay.” Jane argued. “I’mshing out at you when I should beshing out at myself. They


    left the apartment because I threw a tantrum and walked out. It’s my fault this is happening”


    “It’s not your fault.” Eric assured her. “It’s Eve’s fault, the trafficker’s fault.”


    C0ntent ? 2024 (N/?)velDrama.Org.


    “Don’t do that!” Jane begged, “Don’t cate me just because you don’t want me to feel bad,I should


    feel bad. Sometimes feeling bad is a sign that you earned your guilt fair and square.”


    The next thing she knew, the car was pulling over on the side of the road and slowing to a stop. “What


    are you doing?” She asked Ethan, ring at his hands on the wheel. “We need to get there, to learn


    what they’ve figured out.”


    I”‘m not going to listen to you berate yourself like this.” Ethan dered sternly. “We all make mistakes,


    and you and I have made more than our fair share. But the weasel is right, the only people to me


    here are the ones who took them, the ones who are keeping them from us.”


    Jane fought the urge to roll her eyes. They could all say whatever they wanted, but no one in this car


    was a child, they knew their situation didn’t exist in ck and white. It was true that the traffickers were


    responsible, but good parents protected their children from the realities of the world for precisely this


    reason, because the dangers were only too real and pups were too innocent to understand that.


    “Don’t roll your eyes at me, little wolf” Ethan scolded.


    “| didn’t!” Jane eximed in protest.


    “You were thinking about it, I can tell:” He remarked. “I know your every expression, Janey. Don’t you


    forget it.”


    “You can’t punish me for my thoughts” She informed him coolly.


    “Wanna bet?” He asked, a heated look crossing his handsome features.


    “I’m serious, Ethan.” Jane professed, frowning deeply.”This is my fault, maybe not in total, but in part.


    We have to get them back, and you stalling andying down thew or whatever this is, isn’t going to


    help us!”


    “Jane, it isn’t your fault” Ethan repeated firmly.


    And l’m not moving this car until you say so.”


    “Why do you keep doing this to me?” Jane inquired fiercely. “What is it with you and lectures in the


    car?”


    She remembered only too well the way he’d stopped on the way to the hospital when Paisley was in


    surgery, and felt horribly as though they were repeating history.


    “I’m responding to you,” He shrugged. “I don’t believe in waiting to address problems after the fact. If


    you say things like this to me, l’m going to stop whatever we’re doing to deal with it. If you want to stop


    getting lectures in cars, stop berating yourself in cars.”


    “So you’re saying it’s not my fault the pups were taken, but it is my fault you’ve gone into bossy Alpha


    mode?” Jane rified skeptically.


    “I suppose so.” Ethan chuckled, a soft, bittersweet sound. “But did you expect anything different?”


    “No.” To her surprise, Janeughed then too, but almost as soon as the silky sound began, it broke.


    Laughter became sobbing with the flip of a switch, and Ethan could only tsk and pull Jane into his


    arms. In the back seat, Linda and Eric exchanged confused nces, feeling like intruders on a deeply


    intimate moment.


    They weren’t wrong, Ethan and Jane had almost entirely forgotten that the others were present, taking


    comfort in each other as the world fell apart around them.


    Eric couldn’t help but grimace as he watched, and Linda reached over and covered his hand in


    solidarity.


    She was only too familiar with watching the person she loved pursue another, and despite everything


    Eric had done wrong in thest few years, she was far too besotted to hold it against him. Eric smiles


    appreciatively and squeezed her hand in return, offering her an appreciative nod as Jane continued to


    cry. He didn’t really want to watch Ethan embrace her either, and the more time that passed, the more


    apparent it became that he didn’t stand a chance with her.


    In fact, Eric was finally beginning to see that he’d never stood a chance with Jane. Her heart had


    always belonged to Ethan – whether she acknowledged it or not- and it always would. They were a


    team now more than ever, permanently bonded by their children and growing closer every day. It didn’t


    hurt as much as he thought it would to lose Jane. Strangely enough, he felt far more at ease with


    Linda’sforting touch. He was even able to forget why he was so preupied with Jane, when a


    beautiful, intelligent she-wolf with stars in her eyes was sitting next to him.


    Before Eric could ponder any further, Ethan and Jane parted atst. Jane untangled herself from a


    reluctant Ethan’s arms, and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Okay, let’s go.”


    “Are you sure?” Ethan pressed, looking as if he’d like to cuddle her longer.


    I”‘m sure.” Jane confirmed. “I need to know what they’ve discovered. I need to know where the pups


    are.”


    “They might not have anything new to share.”


    Ethan cautioned, clearly trying to manage her expectations.


    “Then why did they call?” Jane countered shrewdly. “No – there’s news, and it’s big enough that they


    didn’t want to tell us over the phone. Let’s go.”