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"She probably had a good reason to leave," Theo reassured me on our way back to the packhouse. I nodded my head, but I did not speak — I could not speak. It was like I was in a daze, the world suddenly turned to fog. I felt abandoned, abandoned by Ma.

She was a mother and a wife. She had a job she loved, and a family that adored her. She would have no reason to leave. So, why did she? And, why did she leave without so much as a trace?

None of it made sense. The Ma I knew and loved would never leave me and Pa behind. She just wouldn't.

Firmly in denial, I sluggishly got out of the car when we reached the pack house. Theo, sensing something was off with me (I could tell by the narrowed look he was giving me ) suggested we watch a movie; he said it would be a good way to keep my mind off Ma. He also said I had a whole lifetime's worth of movies to catch up on. I told him I was too tired, and he did not push the matter any further.

As I made my way to my room, I flung off my shoes but did not bother changing my clothes as I collapsed in a heap on the mattress. Before I knew it, I was out like a light. My sleep was restless, my body tossing and turning.

When a resounding boom of thunder echoed throughout my room, I woke up with a start, head looking in every direction despite the lack of light filtering through the room. Exasperated, I thought about taking this time to change into my pajamas, but the thought was fleeting. Instead, I pulled myself under the covers. Sighing, I rolled on my side, pulling my hands up to rest underneath my cheek. Instantly, I was startled. I bolted upright as my hands felt something wet and sticky.

Confused, I reached over and turned on a lamp. As soon as my bedroom was illuminated in light, I screamed. Like molasses, a bright red liquid seeped through my white pillow case, smearing onto the lap I had touched. Had I hit my head?

Checking to see if there was a wound on my skull, I pulled my fingers away to find no blood or gash on my head. In a state of surmounting panic, I forced the pillow off my bed. I couldn't supress the earth shattering scream that escaped my lips. I screamed like my life depended on it.

Underneath my pillow was a handmade doll, clad in chainmail. The doll was torn up, tiny little organs spewed about. A big puddle of blood oozed out of the doll as if it had been freshly killed on my bed. Jumping up, I distanced myself.

That's when I noticed a peculiar looking strip of paper, untouched from the blood. With shaky hands, I unfolded the paper, leaning to the side to swallow the bile rising in my throat.

The note read:

Time is ticking. Don't let it run out. Or else your Pa will pay the price.

Crumbling up the paper, I slid it into my pocket; it took a few tries, my fingers having a hard time cooperating with my mind. My gut told me the Council did this. While the paper did not state who left the vile doll under my pillow, there was no other reasonable explanation: the Council had planted it. They were going to kill Pa if I did not bring them a witch.

I should have been surprised at this revelation, but I could not force myself to feign surprise at the fact this act no longer seemed out of character for the leaders of my homeland. The Council would not make light of my lack of progress when the fate of our homelands rested on my shoulder.

Pulling me from my thoughts, someone came tumbling through the door."What happened? Are you okay?"

It was Theo.

He sounded out of breath, my hand hovering over my pocket protectively. Instead of speaking, I shakily pointed my hand towards my bed. Theo quickly flashed into my field of vision, going to take a closer look.

"Are you okay?" Theo asked again.

I stared at him blankly, unable to answer. Truth was, I did not know if I was okay or not. I had never seen a sight so vile before. The chainmail reminded me of Pa; he often wore chainmail when he was in the forge. That's how I knew the doll was supposed to symbolize Pa and what the Council would do to him if I failed.

Theo moved closer to me, his hands rubbing soothing circles into my arm before pulling me into a hug. I was stunned by his bold action, but his tight embrace felt so comforting. I reciprocated the hug, closing my eyes to try and get the rotten image of the doll out of my mind.

"It's alright," Theo murmured into my ear before breaking away from our embrace. "We'll find out who did this. They won't get away with it."

I silently nodded my head. "Who do you think did this?"

Theo shrugged his shoulder, turning his head towards the bedroom door. "It's too early to tell, but I promise you, Sage, I will find out who did this. I won't let them get away."

As Theo finished his sentence, Flynn walked into the room, his face twisted sternly. He was dressed in exercise clothes, sweat thick on his forehead. The roots of his hair were drenched; he had clearly been training before my discovery interrupted him.

"Flynn, see if you can pick up any foreign scents on the doll. Maybe you can track down where it came from. I'll be back to help once I get Sage settled," Theo then turned towards me. "Do you want to pack anything?"

I tilted my head in confusion, furrowing my eyebrows. Before I could say anything, Theo continued, "you'll be staying at my house from now on. I don't care if it causes more suspicions. Your safety is more important."

I didn't fight back, knowing I wouldn't be able to sleep soundly in the Alpha Wing for a while. In response, I slowly made my way over to my closet and packed a few of the clothes I liked best. I still had not been able to obtain clothes I picked out on my own, but these clothes would do. Once the bag that was on the top shelf of the closet was moderately packed with clothes, I went to the bathroom and packed up my toiletries, washing my blood covered hand off in the process.

"Ready?" Theo asked as I walked out of the bathroom.

"Yeah," I responded. Theo came over and took the bag I was holding off my shoulder.

Theo said, "Mina will have to look over the blood and organs to see if it can give us a timeline."

Gulping down a queasy feeling, I said, "you mean, I could have been sleeping on that doll the whole night?"

"It's a possibility," Theo said back to me as we walked further into the packhouse. "That guy you were found with at the car crash—"

"—Memphis," I interrupted as I tried to understand what Theo was getting at.

"Do you have any reason to believe Memphis could have done this?" Theo asked.

"No," I replied without having to think about it. "He would never. Plus, he's squeamish."

"We can't rule anyone out," Theo did not seem as eager as I was to rule Memphis out, but I was positive Memphis would not have done it. While the thought did pop in my mind that he could be here on the Outside because the Council was using him as a henchman, I knew Memphis would never be capable of something so cruel.

When we got to the back door, Theo held the door open for me. Beyond the door was a vast wooden deck. The deck did not span the entirety of the house, however. Turbulent clouds covered the sky like a gray blanket. The rain had let up, but it was still misty outside, a musty layer thick in the air.

"This is how a normal person gets to the backyard," Theo smirked, rusting his hair as he stretched his arms up high.

"Ha ha," I fake laughed, making sure to keep a flat expression on my face as I playfully jabbed my elbow in his direction. "What — What are you doing?"

After having placed my bag down, Theo was slowly taking off his shirt, his toned stomach on display. I quickly looked away, not knowing if he had intended for me to see him like that again, so exposed.

"I'm going to shift," he said casually as I whipped my head back in his direction.

"Why?" Curiosity flooded me. I thought Werewolves only shifted when they were rearing to fight. Granted, I was still not well versed in the world of Werewolves. I had been getting a better grasp on how they lived their lives, but it was slowly being pieced together. "Is it necessary?"

"Unless you want to walk for over an hour," he began, and I quickly shook my head no. "Then I will shift, and I'll carry you the way back to my house."

"That's an... interesting way to put it," I smirked, picking up my bag of belongings Theo placed down, hoisting it up over my shoulder.

I could hear the fair crack and crumble of bones as I imagined Theo's body was controting in every which way as his wolf form took over. My gaze remained on the wooden planks of the deck, not wanting to go over my threshold for startling sights today.

Theo let out a light yap, and I turned towards where he once stood on two legs. Now, he was standing on all fours in the form of a giant black wolf. He tilted his head up, signaling for me to come over. Hesitantly, I placed a stabilizing hand on his fur. It was surprisingly soft, and I couldn't resist giving Theo a pet.

In response, Theo licked my hand, and I laughed. "Maybe I like you in dog form more."

Theo was not happy with my joke, letting out a low growl. I rolled my eyes before haphazardly getting onto Theo's back, thrusting my bag to my chest so that I would not drop it on the way over. Once I had a tight grip on Theo's hair, Theo began to trot out to the forest. The same forest I had escaped only about two months prior.

The ride on Theo was bumpy and anything but smooth. We quickly passed the line of privacy trees — the same privacy trees Theo chose not to use when he shifted forms. Once we were clear of the privacy trees, Theo sprinted through the thick forest, making sure not to run into any branches that would knock me off his back. My hair was flowing in the wind, and I had to huddle close to his body so as to not sting my eyes from the inflow of air whipping into my eyes.

Theo's trots slowed down as a small house came into view. It was a beautiful house, strong white beams lining the porch with a dark navy blue siding covering the exterior. When Theo came to a complete stop, I jumped off while Theo went around the back of his house, appearing fully dressed only minutes later.

He tugged at the cotton fabric of his shirt when he came to greet me back at the front door to his house. Opening the door, I walked through the door, covered in a thin layer of rain. My hair was damp, clinging to the back of my neck.

"Make yourself at home," Theo expressed while I plopped the bag down at my feet. "Mabel — if you remember her from before you jumped out the window — will be here shortly to make you some breakfast. Max and Heath should be here any minute to stand guard. They should be right outside the house if you need anything."

I nodded. Theo did not walk any further than the entryway of his house, like he was getting ready to leave.

"You're not staying?" I asked, half hoping he would say he was staying.

"I need to help Fynn," he reasoned, shifting his stance. "My wolf will not calm down until I find out who left that bloody doll under your pillow."

"You'll keep me in the loop?"

"Yes," but I wasn't so convinced his words carried much truth to them.

"Look," Theo gulped, "on the way here, I was thinking: if I was not in the packhouse when you screamed, I wouldn't have been able to get to you so fast. I know this is a lot for you to take in, but I want you to think about accepting the bond; that way we can be connected permanently through the bond. Just think about it. Please."