Eric was shaking where he stood. He didn't know how much more he could destroy. How much more he could take until his wolf finally decided that he had enough. How much longer will this aching pain last.

He knew that one day she would leave him but he had hoped that they would have been together a little longer. Just so he could continue to tell her how much he loved her. He wanted to make sure that Blake knew that he loved her no matter how many times she pushed him away.

To be taken away like this, his hands fisted. I'll kill that son of a bitch, he cursed to himself.

"Eric," Dolph called from behind him.

"What is it?" He growled.

Dolph glared at his Alpha, waiting for what was to come. For the past few days, Dolph has seen what Blake's death had done. For one, Alpha Seth has been lost to his work, refusing to see or speak to anyone. As the Beta of the King, he offered his assistance to the young Alpha. To Dolph's surprise, Beta Blake had finished at least three months' works and wrote dozens of papers on suggesting what could better improve for the future of the back. The rumors of her taken both Beta and Luna roles showed. He wondered how the woman had any time to do anything at all. She was always so laidback and lazy-like it was a wonder how she had done it all.

Secondly, there was her younger brother, Ross. The boy fought and cried to be by his sister's side as the doctors tried everything. Then there was her funeral. The boy would sit by her stone, next to her mother. He sat there in silence for a day without food or water. Dolph had watched over the boy the second day to find him training with the others. With the Hunt just around the corner, the pack couldn't fully grieve their Beta's death. But the boy was a small concern for Dolph, Ross hasn't spoken since that day.

Then there was Eric, his King. Like Alpha Seth and Ross, all three wished to be alone in solitude. Alpha Seth with his work, Ross in training but Eric would destroy everything until he found some way to cop with Beta Blake's death. She was his Mate, his other half, now gone.

"Alpha Seth is having a meeting with the pack about the Hunt tomorrow. You are to attend."

Eric growled "The Hunt?"

"Even with the death of the Black Water Pack's Beta, The ceremony must continue on. It cannot be held back," Dolph made sure not to say her name. If he did, Eric would just go back to destroying everything else.

"I know," Eric made his way to Dolph, "Have you or Trevor found the whereabouts of the Hunter or this Quillon."

"No sir, somehow Quillon and his rogues covered their scent before we could get a close on them. It's as if they vanished." Eric growled at Dolph's answer but he continued on, "As for the Hunter, we found his body by the east river. It seems that someone got to him before we could. We couldn't track down the killer."

"Are you sure? Do you have an idea of how he died?"

"Yes, we believe he was attacked by a wolf but we could not track his/her scent."

Eric looked away from his friend, this was all planned out, but what did they want. "Are there any sighs for rogues in the area?"

"No, they are gone. Alpha Seth had contacted all the other Alpha's in the area and none of them had seen any sighing's of a rogue but that doesn't mean they are taking any chances during the Hunt. There will be extra precautions."

"And this is what the young Alpha wanted to speak to the pack about," he said in an almost mocking way. "Now he wants to play Alpha. Where was he during the attack? Where was he when Blake did everything to protect this Pack? He doesn't deserve to be Alpha. He is nothing but a coward!"

"Alpha, you know as well as anyone that Alpha Seth was fighting off the rogues too. No one escaped the battle without wounds on there body's and blood covering them from head to toe. What had happened was unfortunate but you can't blame him for what happened," Dolph spoke calmly compared to Eric but he knew this was what his friend needed to hear.

Eric diverted his eyes away from Dolph, it took him everything not to hit him square in the jaw, "If I get the chance I will kill every single last rogue and Quillon."

Dolph knew very little about this Quillon, Eric spoke of. All they had was that he had white hair and icy blue eyes with skin as white as snow. Eric knew nothing else about the man or what he spoke about with Beta Blake because he was fighting the other rogues. But there was one thing Dolph and Eric found out and that was what they had based on what the rogue in the Pit had said. Everlasting.

Dolph knew the stories about the Everlasting who supposedly looked like the moon goddess herself. Their hair and skin as white as snow with icy pale blue eyes. It was said that there were at least Twelve Guardians that protected the twelve Packs. No was sure who the Guardians were to protect the Packs from if it was the Packs themselves or was there something else that they did not know that was lost in the tales of the Everlasting.

If the stories of the Everlasting where true then it could be true that this Quillon was looking for one of the Guardians as well as he also could also be one of the Twelve Guardians. But the passably that this was true was zero to none. The tales of the Everlasting are no longer known well by the packs as they once were and there were very few that believed the tales and still told them as Dolph's father had.

Dolph bowed his head as his Alpha walked passed him leading the way back to the Pack and to the Meeting Hall. There he made his way and sat down his chair by the young Alpha.

"Your majesty," Alpha Seth spoke coldly, "I glad that you so kindly made your presence known."

"Watch your tongue boy. I will not hesitate to kill you."

Alpha Seth glared at his King as if to challenge the very thought. It wasn't until he heard his father's warning behind him that made him look away and back to the crowd. Both the Black Water and Royal Blood Pack sat together, all mated couples an unmated male. The past Luna was with the unmated females telling them the same speech the rest of the Packs were about to hear.

"About three days ago we were attacked by rogues and... a Hunter," the crowd started to whisper, "I have sent word to the other Packs and all have said that they have not seen or heard any rogues in the area as well as any Hunter. We can only assume that this was an isolated attack. We cannot take any chances during these years, Hunt. To ensure that you all have a safe Hunt this year we will have all the mated couples make a border around the Hunting grounds to make sure that the rogues don't get through. This year when you have found your mate you must complete the mating in the woods before returning her to the Pack. We cannot take chances if the rogues somehow get into the Hunting grounds. The rogues may try to challenge you before or after you have taken a mate but if you complete the mating then they can not do anything to them. If no female is mated or no males have found a mate, you are to return to your pack before the sunrises. We'll have scouts double check the ground to help escort the unmated female and males back. Any questions?"

Everyone whispered to each other.

"If you have no questions then the meeting is done. Be ready for tomorrow. All mated couples stay behind and we will speak about how the border will be assembled."

The crowed of unmated men moved out of the building, at the sometimes Eric erected from his seat and immediately made his way towards the exit. He couldn't stand to be near that man anymore. Dolph was right when he said it wasn't the young Alpha's fault but that didn't mean he didn't hate him. For one he spoke as if Blake's death didn't affect him. Secondly, he hated that Alpha Seth had spent more time with Blake then he had.

"Your Majesty, where are you going? We still have things to do."

"No you do," Eric turned to Alpha Seth. "I have other engagements."

"What, tiring up my territory with your tantrum. We as Alpha's don't have time to morn losses. All we can do is continue on for the sake of the Pack. You know that better than anyone."

"Fuck. You. You walk around like her death meant nothing. She did most of the work, handle everything before her passing. She throws her life on the line for this pack. All you have done for her was put her six feet down and a shiny gravestone."

"Very mature your majesty, you have no idea what I have done for my Pack. For Blake. She was everything to me. Even now I am doing what she would have wished for me and that is to make sure that everyone in the Pack, as well as everyone in the Hunt, is safe. What are you doing?"

"You. Piece. Of. Shit." Eric growled marching his way to the young Alpha. Alpha Seth senior stood up quickly guarding his son.

While Dolph grabbed hold of Eric and whispered, "Don't do this. Your both hurt." Eric walked away with his fists by his side. Blake wouldn't have wanted him to kill her childhood friend and Alpha. On second thought maybe he should. But the thought of imaging the look on her face if she had known broke his heart. "Damn it," he cursed marching out of the meeting hall.

Eric hated the thought that crossed his mind but it was true. He knows his actions could hurt the Pack. He was out destroying things and stating fights but he couldn't help it. Both he and his wolf were fighting with their grief.

At night he could still see her, hear her, touch her. Sometimes he would sit in the wood and imagine himself in her room. She would always be sitting in her computer chair, wearing nothing but her coffee-stained shirt and shorts. Her hair in a messy bun while her glasses hanging low on her nose. She was always writing in her notepad, lost in her own little world where he wished he could be. And then for a moment just a moment, she would look up from her writing and look a cold look until it slowly softened into a warm smile.

Eric would smile back, always until he felt the warm tears fall down his cheek. He would back a cry until his vision blurred and once he closed his eye to release his tear he would open them to find her gone, still in the woods.

Lost in his thoughts, Eric didn't realize that he walked all the way back to Blake's home. He stood in front of the house for a moment until Dolph spoke up, "Eric?" he had whispered.

Before Eric could reply, Ross stepped out of the house with a bag in his hand. Ross took a moment to look up at Eric before shutting the front door. "Your Majesty," the boy sounded so much older now. Like he was no longer the same boy he saw that day when Blake had snuck up him, surprising him and his Beta.

"Ross," Eric nodded his head to the boy but didn't know what to say to him or to tell him why he was standing in front of his house.

It was Dolph that spoke, "Are you leaving?"

Ross looked at his bag lifting it up slightly before putting it back to his side, "I'm returning to the Pack House. The Luna believes it would be best for me too. Besides, there is no one to go back too." There was a long silent moment between the two males until Ross spoke once more, "I really thought that we were close enough that she would have told me what had bothered her. I had a right to know. I thought that if she found her mate, he could save her. But she would have been taken from me even if the rogue attacked.

"This is all my fault," Ross tried not to cry but it just started to flow out. "If I didn't leave that night, our parents would have not died and Blake wouldn't have been shoot by the Hunter. I killed them, all of this is a fault. I should have been me who died that night. Blake should have never followed me that night. I killed them, I killed Blake," he cried.

Eric ran towards Ross without a thought and wrapped his arms around the boy, holding him close. Eric could hear Ross's bag in the porch as he wrapped his hand around Eric, gripping onto his shirt for dear life.

"This is not your fault. None of this is. It's mine. I couldn't protect her." Ross shook his head no at Eric's words. "Blake wouldn't want you to think this is your fault, she just wanted to protect you as much as she would. She loved you, Ross. And if she could do it all over again I don't think she would have done anything differently."

"I just wished she was still here," the boy whispered trying to hold back the tears as much as he could.

"So do I. So do I" Eric whispered, letting just a tear fall from his face.