I don't question Leslie and I help drag her body to a safer and less exposed area, but she does not stop mumbling about the scene around us. Growls and screams eventually become all you can hear as one species attack another. I'm not brave enough to look back, even as a strange feeling moves through me that urges me to help the pack.

Once I had my friend safe, I would just that. My brows furrowing as I lock eyes with a Lycan running my way, and quickly I am gesturing for their help. The male scoops Leslie into his arms, assessing her with curious eyes—the pack doctor doesn't wait for my word as he begins sprinting to the house with her.

I take a deep breath, a habit I've never grown out of, before facing the destruction I am about to throw myself into. My mind runs, trying to find the reason behind this attack. Ivan was behind this, no doubt...was my brother involved?

The thought has my blood boiling, and the focus I'd once had on standing beside my mate in battle turns into me finding Xanth. How dare he? My feet carry me swiftly across the territory, avoiding any creatures in my way as they try to defeat one another.

None of the vampires come for me, even when their eyes meet mine, they stay a good distance away. Their leader must have given them specific orders.

Once I see the small concrete building that houses a significant number of cages I rush forward, my shoulder meets the door that usually requires a key to get through. It bends easily to my assault, molding with every hit as I grunt. It works hard to fend off my anger, even though its true purpose is to keep anyone from getting out.

Instead, it's met with a creature full of frantic fury, the screams and curses of those creatures inside only add fuel to my fire. The image of my brother begging me for mercy had my body hitting hard, using more force while I soak in the fear that is soon to coat the air. Did they think I was some wild animal trying to come in? Or did my brother enlighten them on the attack, the one he'd more than likely helped orchestrate?

The door eventually falls, making a loud sound that sends the people caged into an even louder song of shouting their concern.

I clench my fists and move slowly into the darkroom, my vision being fine in dim lighting, but the opened doorway does give enough light for my eyes not to need much adjustment. I hear the whispers, the cries, and the begging of creatures who want to be released. My eyes and mind pay them no attention, but I do quickly note the last set of bars is the only ones not being shaken by a desperate mad man in need of freedom. There is a set of hands wrapped around two of the poles, I take my time approaching.

Xanth is leaning back when I have a full visual of his cage, eyes closed as he whispers phrases I can barely pick up. My heart drops at the sound of his desperate voice, my mother and father's name rolling off his tongue as if he has not gone centuries without using them.

I'd choke on the words if I tried to say them because unlike my brother all I could taste was guilt when those names passed my lips. When the memories of my past surface I am not brought peace because I had watched the death of them. The rape of my mother, the destruction of the male who chose my nightmare over me.

Was he...praying? I shake away the thought that my brother, who'd spent this life with the man attacking my pack, was still somewhere inside of the monster that had been created. I expect him to finish his mindless ranting and open his eyes. Surely, he was putting on a show for me, my anger rises every time he asks for forgiveness from parents we no longer have.

The family slaughter by his friend. The thought of Ivan makes me irate.

"What the fuck, brother!" My arms reach through the bars, allowing me to watch as his eyes widen with confusion as I pull him roughly against the metal.

He grunts, years of animalistic nature kick in and make him bare his fangs at me. I feel his hands wrap around my forearms. I'd thought he would try to push me off, or even break the bones to make me release him. Xanth does neither and we are left staring at one another with a mixture of anger, and a touch of sorrow that I cannot seem to hide.

Oh, how I wish things were different.

I should not be standing here longing for the impossible while my pack is under attack, but this is the first time I've been in front of my brother without the beady eyes of his leader or my mate's heated gaze. We are, in most ways, alone. The creatures around us don't stop their screaming or pleading but they don't ruin this strange moment that is so thoroughly mixed with hatred and love.

My only family is standing in front of me, and I know that soon I will need to rid this pack of the danger that he can bring. Much like the night before, my heart is pushing feelings through me, but these are not welcome. I'm practically planning my brother's death, and he's holding onto my arms like he's scared to let go.

Those fangs are out, but he isn't attacking. Or speaking. I need him to speak, to yell, and make me kill him. Just like the female he'd brought here I would wait for the first sign of violence to come from him. Unlike the young child, I rid this world of yesterday, however, I would not bait him into it.

Out of everything that's been done to me, of all the things I have done to others whether it be good or bad...hurting Xanth would leave a deeper mark than any. If I had to end the life of someone, I'd spent so very long-missing, it would ruin me.

"What do you think they would do if they were here with us now?" The question is whispered, his tone makes my heart feel heavier as he stares into my eyes like a child seeking the answers that will set him free. A moment of weakness, or a distraction from what he has done.

I don't allow myself to get caught up in his question, knowing that once we start that conversation it will not end with me walking out to help my mate. Your feelings can wait.

"Why are you helping him destroy this pack, Xanth? Why can't you both just leave us alone?" I'd meant for my voice to come out menacing, but instead, it is weak—something I will no longer allow myself to be. He appears confused for a moment, but easily hides the expression with a scowl. My brother seems to come back to himself, those once desperate hands releasing me as though I have the plague.

"Ivans come back for me?" I almost laugh at the hopeful question, shaking my head and jerking him forward once more so he bounces off the cage he's being kept him. He groans.

"Your loyalty to a monster is cute, but he left you for dead." I hiss in his face, taunting him with the fact that he will never be anything more than a pawn in that man's game. "His coven is here, attacking my people and if you had anything to do with it you better start talking."

The shift of confidence happens quickly, as he more leans into the bars rather than away from them. A smirk is so familiar it pains me, but I hide my flinch with a sneer.

"What will you do? Behead me? You think you are so big and mighty because you've become some Lycans whore, don't you? What if—" I laugh, ruining whatever line he thought was about to knock me down.

"I never thought you the jealous type, brother." His brow raises in question and I shrug, releasing him and taking a precautionary step back as I tilt my head. "You were rejected by the Lycan that was created to love you, and you want to call me that for gaining the acceptance of my mate? Letting me be happy isn't easy for you, is it? You saw that I had something you'd never get, so you talked Ivan into coming back and ruin my territory. What would our parents think about you?"

Xanth releases a roar before throwing himself against the bars, and I can't blame him for the urge to attack me. Bringing up mommy would piss just about anyone off, but I stand there smiling so that he doesn't see how much giving those words to his hurt.

Our parents would be disappointed in us both, for different reasons. The beast within my brother is raging, every hit of his body off an indestructible surface has him growling more. Curses and threats leaving the mouth of someone who had once held me as a baby. He'd hugged me when I was sad, cleaned me up when I was bloody and broken. Loved me as a brother should, and I'd idolized him over the others because of his strength.

The way Xanth never let another beat him, whether in mind or war he was a human with more skill and heart than any vampire or Lycan I'd come across. He'd lost himself in that coven, and I wasn't sure I could be mad at him for it. We both did what we had to, to survive, but one of us chose the monster over freedom.

I feel tears prick my vision as I try to remain strong in front of him. I fear that if he got past this barrier, I would not have the ability to end him. The idea that my mother and father, hell. Knowing that my entire family could be watching us killed me, for them to see the survivors trying to kill one another off for what? The answer was not one I could come up with.

"I don't think I have had the pleasure of seeing him squirm like this before." My head snaps to the right, meeting the curious gaze that is locked with mine. I do not move, barely noticing that my brother has stopped his attempts to free himself—I do not bother looking at the traitor that shares my blood.

"Why are you here?" My questions don't seem to appeal to him, an amused smile followed by him rubbing his hands together is all I receive. Those eyes go on with their assault on me, unblinking and making my skin crawl.

I had no want to see inside of his head, fearing that the memories of how he'd made me squirm would come back to haunt me. All I wanted was for this nightmare to be over, for every day I'd lived in fear to be over and never risk returning. Running had been the loneliest time of my life, and I would not go back to that.

"You will never understand the need I have for you, for years I didn't know myself why the human girl who'd run from me kept running through my head every day. But once you want something like I want you...giving it up is not an option." Once again, the vampire manages to disgust me, bile rising in my throat at the realization that would never let me go. I'd done nothing to provoke him, to gain his attention or make him so...obsessed.

"Eira, what is he talking about?" My brother's voice draws my gaze, and I see that he's never heard his leader speak like this and if he had then he'd never known it was about me. His little sister, the one that he'd been told betrayed him. Left him.

"I ran from the coven because Ivan ruined me, Xanth. He didn't save me...or you and the things he did—" My vision blurs at the unspeakable acts that run through my mind, and I see the gears in his head working as I try to put more space between me and my past tormentor.

I would not stand here and let him hurt me but running past him wasn't looking like a successful idea either. Fighting Ivan would not be as easy as I'd like it to be, and just the thought of touching him made me cringe. I wish Alarik was here.

"That can't be right." Xanth doesn't believe his own words, and although I'd hoped my brother would trust me without question, I can't blame him. He's been with Ivan the entire time I'd been running, having a monster's ideals and morals shoved into his head left and right. Hundreds of years of knowing nothing else and having only him.

I almost smile at him, proud that he is at least trying to combat those centuries of what I am sure was brainwashing. For Xanth to think further into the intentions of this beast was all I could ask, even if when this was over, I never got to see him again.

My chance is taken away when Ivan's body rams into mine, and I land on the hard concrete. His familiar frame covers me as one hand grips my hair and pulls my head to the side for a better angle. How many times had he seen me like this a human? I almost let out a scream, tears wanting to come to the surface for the fear of what could happen, but I stop them. I keep any reactions to myself.

I don't allow him the pleasure of seeing me scared. When Alarik had told me to never show a beast like him that side of me again, I'd listened. Those words he'd spoken, and demanded to be followed, would never leave me because it was the faith, he had in me from the beginning. Even if these were my last moments on Earth...Ivan would not see me break.

Xanth, hopefully, would tell my mate of my bravery. My parents would be proud to see their little girl stay strong after so many years of running. I'd run for so long instead of standing my ground, and that's not what I'd been taught. I'd been raised to survive, not cower.

This time I am fighting, kicking my legs, and dragging my nails down his arms as he prepares to bite into me. My head is trying to thrash back and forth, and I can tell Ivan is having to work hard to keep me down, my body bucking beneath him like a bull.

Alarik would kill him, whether I died here in this jail-like building or not my mate would end his life. That once disturbing voice in my head reassures me, and within seconds I have a monster's fangs in my neck.

I'm half expecting to blackout as the male on top of me ferociously begins feeding, with no mercy as those teeth seem to extend further and further into me. My brother is yelling from the cell, his arms reaching out desperately as he tries to grip the man he'd respected for so very long—the one trying to kill his sister.

The first sign that something is incredibly wrong, is the sudden amount of strength that pours into me. I do not have time to question it as my kicking and fighting managed to get Ivan off me, his body sprawled a few feet away after I'd effectively kicked him. He's staring at me wide-eyed, my blood covering his chin and I clench my jaw to keep myself from groaning in pain.

This is when fear finally enters me, my eyes giving way to the thoughts going through my head as an involuntary grunt leaves my now shaking body.

"Eira!" My mate's voice sends my body even further off the deep end.

I feel my chest rising, and the sudden warmth that overcomes me has a pained breath leaving my chest. My mouth falls open into a confused cry as yesterday's events pick up where they left off.

The shifting of one bone after another is no better or worse than former times, but when they stop going back into their original place...I lose it. My once put together persona is now replaced by the realization of what is about to happen. Ivan bit a mated vampire, one that was in between her shift into a Lycan.

This is it. I'll either die changing or become my new form. Fear. So much fear fills my body that I feel vomit rise in my throat. I wanted this, after mating Alarik, I knew what was to come—but not like this.

My body tries to flip, wanting to crawl away from the curious eyes of those around me but I am incapable. Instead, I am on all fours and screaming at the floor as my back is rising—snapping into a position I've never known. One that makes my skin rip, my ribs ache, and my vision becomes blurry.

Eventually, my eyesight is clear again, but that brings me no comfort as I stare at the bloodied ground in horror. Brows furrowed as I wait for the next assault on my body.

I did not want to be awake for this.

The skin on my hands is moving, seeming to separate and I feel myself choking back more vomit at the horrific sight. Sweet fucks, I never wanted this. My screams come out like a broken moan, and anyone trying to talk to me, more so yelling at me, is easily drowned out by the pain that is circulating into every inch of the body I'd known for so long.

The body is now elongating, stretching, and curling back up again with every distressing sound and break.

I cry out again as a familiar scene unfolds, the teeth I'd watched come into place that day in my mate's mirror are now scattered across the concrete. My jaw aches, so much of my blood covers the ground that I can barely make out the white objects that had already been ruined one of my days here. Would I be growing new teeth every day now?

Agonizing minutes pass, each piece of me breaking only to fit together in an entirely different way a few moments later. I barely notice when my cries turn to whines, the hands that were once in my vision are white paws. My humanoid chest is no longer full and heaving, it is the only fur.

No part of me is the same.

When the shift is over, I stay very still, fearful that one move would send me back into the form I'd lived so many years in. I did not want to feel the pain of becoming that again, as it would be no better than what I am now.

I do my best to stay focused as I struggle to not fall, the new stance is very new and my body aches to lay down for a nap. I'm avoiding teeth and ripped clothing as I become steady.

The comforting sound of my mate calling for me grabs my attention, and for the first time that disturbing voice I'd heard so many times comes without an insult or threat of harm.

Walk to him.

I do not question the demand, instead, my legs work to turn me towards the male that makes my unfamiliar mouth spread with a predatory smile. Covered in blood, scratched, and bitten into...he's the hottest thing I've ever seen. In this form, I can see every inch clearer than before, and as a vampire, I'd had perfect vision. This new body would take a lot of getting used to.

I growl out my approval and take small steps in his direction. I'm close, so excited to enjoy the warmth of his arms around me even if I am a four-legged animal at the time. I feel no less beautiful in this form, with the way Alarik looks at me I know he's still imagining the night before. In no way disgusted by the fur and even deadlier teeth, I've grown.

The movement beside him catches my eye, the predator I've become seeming to care more about his safety than being wrapped in his arms. My body aches to fall against him, to let the male I love to protect me, but I am drawn towards the vampire next to him. Nature bringing me there, and then my heart goes from warm and wanting to cold and bloodthirsty.

There's a split second of confusion before my growls start, cracking sounds that don't seem right at first but eventually they fall into a rhythm. I feel my body tensing as I stare at Ivan with narrowed eyes, my teeth bared at him. The man does not seem worried there is a smile on his face as he looks over my new form which only angers me even more.

"That is a beautiful mutt, Alarik. Maybe you—" When I lunge for his throat, I am surprised that he doesn't have time to react.