Bloodstone Pack - 5 days earlier...

I sat on the living room floor watching Noah play with Peggy who brought her favourite dolly named 'Trixie' to the tea party I was currently hosting for them. Peggy was directing the whole scene of course, telling us what order we had to eat our 'imaginary' cakes and just exactly what we should wear and talk about at our swarey. I raised my eye brow inquisitively and giggled to myself as I watched Noah loose interest quite early on. A typical boy! Peggy, sure enough was a complete fire cracker, every game we played had to be exactly how she saw it in her head and I think my son was getting fed up with it all.

My son... I looked over at him as he pretended to throw his tea on top of Peggy's head... which would of course create a complete drama in itself. As soon as I saw Peggy's arms fold in front of her chest and her lip pout out I was lost. They were adorable and I knew just by watching them both bring so much joy and laughter into the house, that this was exactly what I had been missing. I loved being Noah's mother and the last month alone showed me just how lost I would be without him. He was perfect and Liam had never been happier than to come home and have Noah reach up to him and call him 'dada'. It brought a tear to my eye to see how complete he had made us since coming here.

But, if I was honest with myself I felt like crying for a completely different reason every moment that Noah was not taking up my time or attention. As soon as the space around me would go quiet I would think about Violet and the horrible words I had said to her. Then I would berate myself and feel like there was a reason I could never conceive in the first place... maybe this was my punishment because I was indeed a horrible person. Who could possibly say what I did to someone they called a friend? I cringe to myself as I think back to some of things I had said during my fight with Violet. I wish I could get her face out of my head.. the one that showed all the hurt, pain and anguish that only I had inflicted in that moment and the silence that followed.. had she not been through enough?

Peggy continued to cut her imaginary cake for me as I felt a calm and warming hand touch my shoulder. I felt a wave of love and I looked up and smiled as I looked into the eyes of the one man who could literally take away any pain and make it all better again with just a simple touch. My smile faded as I was reminded of how lucky I was to even have a mate who accepted me for all of my flaws. Realisation of how much Violet was deprived of hurt... a tear rolled down my face and I swatted it away quickly trying avoid his knowing gaze.

"Shhh my love... I sent Alec out to try and find her. We'll bring her back safe and sound in no time"... he cooed into my neck.

Peggy stood up and dragged Noah over to the snack table I created for them a few hours ago and began to munch on a few pieces of chopped fruit. It gave us the privacy i so desperately needed. I felt a lump in my throat and I turned on the floor away from the children so they would not have to see me cry. Liam rubbed my back but he could not rub away the pain or the disgust I felt with myself.

"Whattttt... if shheeeess hurt?!" I said through croaked sobs quiely. "It would all be becoz of meeeee"... I sniffled and the flow of water could not be stifled anymore. It had been two days since she left the pack and I was beside myself ever since Alec came to tell us that she had left. Not only had I ruined my friendship with Voilet but i had also ruined the second chance mate for Alec. The man was beside himself. If he had not been as loyal as he was to Liam as his Alpha, I'm sure he would have followed her anywhere. I had no opportunity to apologise as he avoided me like the plague and knowing she had no where else to go made me feel even worse. Liam hugged me closer to him and asked Noah and Peggy to go and find a few toys to bring down and play with us from their rooms upstairs.

Once they were out of sight, Liam turned me to face him. He was crouched down to my level on the floor but his height still towered above my own. He smiled again but the look in his eyes was the same one it had been for the last three days. He was disappointed in me and he was trying not to show it. I knew I had behaved irrationally that day and I know me calling Noah our 'son' had disturbed him, especially when we had no idea whether his family were still alive or not. He felt I was becoming too attached and trying to compensate for my lack of maternal abilities. As soon as I had fought with Violet he took me to one side to tell me there and then away from prying ears that he himself did not trust our new guests and told me that I should be opening my eyes as a Luna and putting the packs safety first before jumping to conclusions. I could not live in selfish pursuits as this packs leader. It hurt to hear him chastise me like that, after all, it was the first time Liam had ever spoken to me that way before, and, it hurt. But as always he went along with my selfish whims because he loves me. Never quite wanting to speak his mind so as not to upset me. I never took that for granted but I was consumed with guilt and I had no idea how to resolve the situation now that Violet was gone. I just hoped that our scouts managed to find Violets tracks and convince her to return here.. to the pack. I really did miss our friendship.

"If I know anything about Violet, it's that she's a fighter. She'll be fine Anya, I know she will".

He patted the side of my head and I leaned into his palm and closed my eyes. I instantly felt better with his touch. Once the sobs had died down and my breathing went back to normal I wiped my eyes clear as he helped me to rise from the floor. As another female wolf entered the house he asked her to mind the children for us as he led me into his office. Frowning, I followed him. I still had not felt comfortable leaving Noah unattended despite him feeling more relaxed around the house, especially after that episode last week with Peggy. I had this niggling feeling in the back of my head that he was in danger of some sorts. Crazy I know, but my thoughts were not exactly all together recently so I tried to brush it off as I watched my mate close the door behind us and walk towards the open window of his office.

He remained silent and I tried to push against his mind to see what had him so lost in his own thoughts. When I noticed the mind block he had erected between us I was instantly confused and upset. Liam NEVER closed his mind to me. Was he truly that upset with my outburst a few days ago that he would shut me out?...he sighed.

"Do you think we should notify Alpha Dimitri that Violet has left our pack"?

It was a question I had thought of asking for a few days now. He had a right to know where she was... even if he could care less. I clenched my fist when I thought about the way he discarded her but now I was no better than he or his 'Chosen Mate' who was Violets former friend. Just another person who let her down, another to add to the list. I cringed.

"I most certainly am not going to let him know Anya. This pack cannot face a war with Redfang". He mused more to himself.

I nodded and stared at the floor.

"Anya... I've been having a few bad dreams as of late and at first I could easily just put them to one side and class them as nonsense... but now?... I'm not so sure." He said quietly with his back still facing me.

Walking over to him I placed my hands on his back to reassure him. Sensing his despondent behaviour which was so unlike him.

"Talk to me my love"... he turned to look at me but there was no smile on his face this time. He looked like a man who was about to loose everything he ever loved and the look in his eyes made me worry and take a calming breath.

"I have had a recurring dream where I fail Bloodstone, I fail my pack and I fail you". He said.

My eyebrows pulled together as I thought of a way to make him happy again. It wasn't often he confided in me. A true Alpha male who lived a life thinking the whole world revolved around him and he was therefore responsible for it. The whole world was on his shoulders in this moment so I decided to not pay too much credence to the dream and not further fuel the flames of his doubts and fears... although it frightened me just the same.

"I dreamt that you died Anya... and that there was nothing I could do about it".

His eyes clouded with tears and he turned back to the window to hide them from me. Outside, the rain clouds gathered and we were standing in silence together and for the first time in a long time, I had no idea what to say to him. The rain bounced from the open windowsill and small droplets dispersed against my arms making me cold.

"What if it's the Moon Goddess.. sending me a warning"? He said.

Deciding to put this to rest I said..

"Nothing will happen to me Liam. You have had a lot on your plate recently and your stressed that's all. I'll take over some of the paper work from now on to help you out a little bit... ok? I know you're also concerned for Alec so I'll try and speak with him later".

Since Alec had sacrificed his mates life to save my own, Liam had always felt like he owed Alec a debt. One which we both did but could not truly repay. Knowing I had ruined his second chance at love left me speechless.

I turned his face to look at me, holding his cheeks between my palms I stretched up onto my tip toes and kissed this wonderful loving mate of mine who always cared for everyone but himself. He closed his eyes and savored the intimate gesture as I knew he would. The big bad wolf turned into a puppy when it was just us two. It's what made me love him so.

"Is this why you have been distant with me"? I said after some time.

He clasped my hands between his and held them between us. Anchoring me to him and holding me still with his gaze.

"Promise me, that you will take care of yourself... because I am nothing without you Anya".

His penetrating gaze almost knocked me over. It was powerful and meaningful. He was truly concerned for me and I smiled again...

"Always... my love. You have had a trying week thats all and I feel I have only added to it for you. We will spend time together this evening, just the two of us.. ok?". He nodded.

As I turned to leave him I heard him say..

"You won't need to worry about Violet honey.. I know that she will forgive you someday". His voice was soft and reassuring as he moved to sit behind his desk.

I nodded once again as words failed me. I closed the door behind me and looked upstairs towards the children's bedrooms. It was on the third floor so I decided to take my time and think about the last couple of days in detail. A smoke screen seemed to have been cleared now that I had made amends with Liam. I was able to look at everything logically. I allowed my mind to wonder back to my argument with Violet that day and what things had looked like before I had entered the living room to find Peggy lying on the couch unconcious.

Violet had said that Peggy had been knocked over on purpose by Matty. But why? Come to think of it, the way Violet was behaving was almost, maternal... protective even. But surely Violet had read the situation wrong. Who would harm a child like that? You would have to be mad! Matty was odd but was he capable of such a thing?

I stopped on the second step of the stairs...... come to think of it.... all of the siblings were a little odd but how did I miss it before?

*******

Alec

I was currently seated on top of a rock In the forest staring off into the woods at the same spot I had said good bye to Violet a couple days ago. A handful of the men were out searching for her under Liam's orders but I myself knew it was hopeless. A woman like Violet isn't found unless she wants to be, that only depressed me even more. I had a chance to go with her and I chose to stay.

Why? I've asked myself this question ever since I watched her turn, shift and run as far away from me as she could. It's not like Liam could not manage the pack without me, hell, it's not like he gives me too much responsibility anyway. I have no other attachments here in Bloodstone apart from my friendship with Liam. I could have left it all behind for her, but I didn't. I was a coward and I knew it. I failed my first mate because I was too blind to see her true intentions and I failed Violet because of the oath I took as beta. Both women whom I had failed due to my loyalty to my Alpha or the pack.

Pinching the bridge of my nose I closed my eyes to try and block out her image from my mind. Her eyes, her hair, her skin... ughhh. This is hopeless. I threw my head back and exhaled. I promised her I would protect Anya and Noah so that's what I'll concentrate on. I'll ignore the pity in Liam's eyes and just throw myself into my position as beta. Start training the men harder and keep an eye on the newbies who gave me the absolute creeps. I never admitted it to Violet but both myself and liam had also been questioning their weird behaviour as of late. Their stories were inconclusive and if I was just being a dick... I couldn't see any similarities to any of them either. Siblings my ass! I was weary of their motives and often voiced my concerns to Liam who seemed to take my advice on board but nothing happened about it, I myself believed them to be strange but relatively harmless. That was until of course Violet accused the butch silent stalker guy 'Matty' of harming one of the pups. Then Liam started to take more of an interest and so did I. We had a few warriors tail them periodically throughout the day. Reporting on their whereabouts, the activities they got up to and whether there was any weird behaviour. Nothing turned up just yet but I could not shake the feeling that I was missing something here. Violet was impulsive I'll give her that. I snorted to myself and smirked. She was quite a wolf, but she wasn't a liar and if she said something happened I believed her. Regardless of my interest in her. I was carried away with thoughts of Vi when I felt a shift in the air around me. I sniffed the air...

Nothing.

Standing up, I pushed myself away from the rock I was sitting on and stood straight, assessing the area around me. Before long there were sqwarks above my head. I looked up and noticed a flock of birds were flying in all directions from the trees above my head. They moved because they sensed a predator, they also moved because something or someone was close by. My eyes widened and I jerked my head in front of me scrutinizing the dark and eerie forest that once seemed peaceful.

Silence filled the glen and goosebumps appeared on the back of my arms. I sniffed, trying to gauge what or who was coming towards me as a sort of presence began to grow. The forest was dark and there were no sounds. It felt off.

I mind linked Liam..

"Liam... I think we are being attacked...."

I barely finished the sentence when ten fully shifted wolves jumped out of the forest towards me.. teeth bared.

********

I rushed out of my office with supernatural speed and shifted into my wolf Rex. I attempted to mind link my warriors but they seemed otherwise pre occupied with the major assault which was currently happening on our packs grounds. My beta alerted me of the threat just as my other warriors mind linked to do the same. I rushed passed the trees to try and reach the entrance to our pack. It appeared we were being attacked on all sides but I had to reach the school which was right next to the border where my warriors were stationed. My priority as Alpha was to protect the weak. I had to believe my wolves could handle our attackers long enough for me get the women and children out of that building. We had prepared for a situation like this. But never in my wildest dreams could I imagine there would be an attack on this scale. This was organised. Wolves were popping out the trees like daisies and I was running out time.

Reaching the town I spotted two brown wolves attack two of our women who had ran out of a shop to my right. Noticing how far away our warriors were I realised that these two rogues must have snuck in around the back. I couldn't believe how fast they had made it into my pack. Almost right underneath our noses. I pounced on the first wolf and ripped out his throat just as he knocked the first woman to the floor. When the second wolf spotted my intervention and proceeded to attack the women I chomped down on his hind leg prohibiting his advance, he hit the floor and I continued to drag him backwards and away from the woman who had fallen on the ground between us. Without thought, I shook my muzzle hard, hearing the break in the rogues leg and I huffed in satisfaction. When he collapsed and whined in pain I sunk my teeth into his head and tore it clean from his body. I then mind linked the women and told them to reach the pack house for safety. They nodded in shock and I continued my run onto the school which was at the end of the road.

There was screaming and carnage all around. Men who were not even trained warriors were shifting to protect the women and the women were either on the ground cowering behind their mates pleading for mercy or running for their lives clutching their pups to them. I noticed ahead that my warriors had created a semi circle around the school but were slowly being backed up by the heavy crowd of rogues which had gathered. There must have been over 80 rogues against 30 or so of my men. They were fighting hard but I could clearly see that we were in trouble and their strength was waning. They were all bloody and injured. There was simply too many of them and with my warriors dispersed and spread out to cover 20 miles of my territory there was no way we could push them back. I charged like a bullet into the centre of the wolves, coming at them from behind and throwing myself into their crowd of cowardly mutts. I tore at their flesh and noticed that my own wolves moral began to pick up at the sight of their Alpha fighting with them. I took down 6 Rogues but just as I knocked one down another three would pounce. I was bitten, scratched and clawed at but I kept going. After a minute or two the rogues started to disperse and push back from me. A few circled and prowled around me and I growled back at them in response. They Snickered and moved their shoulders up and down obviously enjoying the challenge my presence represented. I used the break to asses them all and also what mine and my packs odds were. Glancing over at the school I saw a few of the children looking out of the glass windows with horror in their eyes. Tears streaked down their faces. Each of them calling out to their fathers, brothers and uncles who were currently the only barrier standing between them and certain death. I was losing blood from a few of the open wounds this rabble managed to inflict on me and my wolf and I knew that this fight was stacked against us. Against all of us. The nearest pack was Redfang but they were almost 50 miles away and with my relationship with Dimitri in dire straights, I doubt any messenger of mine would be well received. We were on our own.