I left Yanneek's patio soon after, walking purposefully towards the trees, keeping my gloved fingers in the pockets of the coat Hannes had provided to keep them warm.

I could feel Yanneek's eyes on me, just before I slipped out of his view, curiosity of what laid ahead getting the best of me.

Large footprints from the lycans of Hannes' pack could be seen in the snow, and I hesitated to follow them, but after a moment of thinking, I decided to. I would not go very far however, I just sought to admire some more of nature.

I carried on walking further into the woods, eyes dancing to the footprints every now and then, and back to the trees, the small animals that would flee at my approach, particularly rabbits, which would kick up snow with their hindlegs as they darted past, always startling, but more so, amusing me.

I paused, watched as at least a handful hopped by, taking in the array of colors, the furs which looked so soft if I were to touch.

An almost childlike, giddy laugh crept up my throat, fell past my lips as I crouched low, head cocking as the energetic rabbits ran under a fallen branch, crowding against themselves, as if hoping that I could not see them as a result of their huddling.

I decided to leave them alone, not wanting to cause any more fear and carried on trekking through the snow, taking notice of the different types of trees, the various barks and branches bare of leaves.

When I was a child, I had despised winter, but I was quickly changing my opinion on that. Throughout my time of being imprisoned, I had yearned for freedom, had longed for being able to take a breath of fresh clean air instead of the horrible scent of feces.

My fingers lifted to grasp a handful of snow, squeezing it into my palm and allowing it to drift...right into my face. I sputtered, wiping at my lips and cheeks, stumbling as I did so.

I kept my head low as the strength of the wind increased, only stopping once I realized that I was by the edge of a cliff.

My breath caught in my throat immediately, eyes widening in complete awe at the beautiful scenery before me; large frozen lakes could be seen in the distance, with hills covered with snow and trees.

The evening sky, pink and bright, decorated with hazy clouds, was breathtaking and my eyes stung at the glorious sky. The silence was calming, and I was unable to drag my attention away from the view.

Until I heard a voice.

I hesitated, shaking my head; surely I had heard wrong. But then that voice, husky yet feminine sounded again.

An uncontrollable, severe feeling of the lust for blood to formulate.

My hackles rose, body swaying violently as I faced the men and women walking my way, all of them lycans.

Red blinded my vision, head throbbing in both shock and that venomous wrath as my eyes landed on the source of the voice strengthened tenfold.

I dismissed the presence of the others, keeping my gaze fixated solely on one particular female lycan, whose lips lifted when I strode forward, the wind pounding my face, opened coat flapping and fingers curling and uncurling in preparation.

"Olivia."

Anabelle's next words were garbled when I leapt at her, gripping her neck, feeling her warmth and the rapid beating of her pulse as I held and squeezed it. Her own arms immediately reached forward, her dark eyes becoming pitched black and lips lifting further at my fury.

But before she could touch me, I found myself jerked backwards, lifted clean off my feet, a strong hand gripping the collar of my coat and drawing me away from Anabelle.

"No!" My hiss pierced the air as I struggled in Hannes' hold, spitting at the female who laughed heartily, wrinkles appearing by the corners of glinting eyes and a hand resting on her stomach whilst the men and women by her side looked on in confusion.

Hannes maneuvered my body, only setting me down once we were many feet away. My legs trembled before I straightened, blazing eyes focusing on him.

"What happened to you punishing her, Alpha?" I spat, tilting my head, attempting to side step his large body so I could see Anabelle. I caught sight of her adjusting her coat, wiping at the tears which came as she recovered from laughing.

"You bitch!" My hoarse shriek bounced off the trees, reverberating and Hannes hushed me, crowding me against him, urging me further away from the woman. His actions only infuriated me again and I stepped away from him, repeating my question.

Narrowed honey colored eyes darted behind me, and he gestured to a tree stump. "Have a seat."

"Answer my fucking question, Alpha," I snarled, pushing forward, boots sinking into snow as I maintained his sharpened gaze. Hannes' jaw clenched, body bristling and I gasped when he jerked me forward, a hand going towards the zipper of my coat.

"I spoke to her privately," He growled, yanking the zip up, frowning as it got stuck mid-way, but continuing after getting it fixed. All the while I simply watched him, waiting impatiently, my fingers once again twitching with the need to feel warm blood.

Anabelle's warm blood.

"What she allowed to happen to your parents does not warrant a punishment."

I heaved a breath, unflinching as hands held the top of the coat once it was completely zipped, as if expecting me to run.

"You're joking, aren't you?" I hissed, shaking my head. "Did she tell you what she fucking did-"

"Oh I told him." Her voice brought back a flood of pain and anger, and even Hannes could do little to hold me back as I lunged forward, easily clearing the distance between Anabelle and myself.

My hand lifted, fingers curling into a fist to punch, but she swung an arm, easily sweeping me off my feet and making me soar backwards.

My breath was knocked out of me as I collided into a sturdy tree, the healing bruises on my back stinging as I crumbled to the snow. I distinctly heard Hannes' bellow felt hands on my cheeks, the cold of the snow seeping through my pants.

The world spun and went in and out of focus for several seconds. I blinked rapidly, winded and confused as I saw the face of Willow, the female guard and then Hannes' face, gnashing my teeth as I was gingerly lifted into his arms, held to his chest, the pain in my back increasing.

Hannes’ voice, even though I was in a very distorted state of mind, startled me, his chest vibrating as he issued commands, my own lips twitching in a budding smile at Anabelle's quick words of protests, hearing the crunch of snow as a shuffle ensued, the noises becoming distant as I was carried away.

*********

"Put me down."

Hannes ignored my voice, simply kept walking up the stairs, Willow close behind him. He lowered me to the floor in the bedroom and I faced him, hand rubbing the back of my head, which had also hit into the tree.

"Explain." I bitterly demanded, hearing the door close behind us by Willow.

I sat this time; the pain from my back had become worse. Hannes watched as I gingerly settled on the bed, saw the grimace of pain which flitted across my face but he spoke at my pointed look.

"Your parents had been two of the many protestors who killed my father," Hannes revealed, making me blink in surprise. "Our pack had been present to stop the escalation of violence, and the protestors had bombarded my father and managed to murder him, Olivia. Not only him, but twenty innocent lycans who, at first, had no intentions of harming humans. It is only right that your parents were killed after what they did."

Yanneek's earlier words came to mind, but I dismissed them.

"When did this happen?"

Hannes' voice was tight. "In Westland Town."

My chest constricted and my eyes narrowed as I stood, ignoring the pounding from my head.

"I was there when that protest happened, Hannes," I steadily met his eyes, hoping that he would see my sincerity. "Your father and other lycans had attacked the protestors. My parents had caused no disruptions and had simply marched up and down the streets-"

"Not according to Anabelle," Hannes cut me off, arms folded across his chest. "She was there."

"And so was I." I snapped. "I was there when the lycans stormed into town, out of the shops which they were in and attacked and killed many people there. I can not deny that your father was probably killed by protestors after a battle ensued, but I can tell you that my parents refused to be a part of the violence."

Hannes face hardened and he stepped forward, arms dropping away and falling to his sides. "My aunt would not lie to me, Olivia."

"And neither would I, Hannes," I bit out. "I have no reason to lie to you."

At Hannes' silence, I went on,

"I was by my parents' side throughout the protest, Hannes. I can promise you that I would have remembered my parents killing a lycan, especially an Alpha."

"I don't believe you."

Those snarled, four words made my mouth snap shut. Hannes' once somewhat calm demeanor was gone, and before me stood a lycan who was absolutely enraged at my implying that his beloved aunt was lying.

I knew then, that nothing I could say would persuade Hannes to think otherwise.

Disappointment weighed heavy on my shoulders and I scoffed, suddenly feeling exhausted as I backed away from him until I felt the bed brush the back of my legs.

"Get out of the room."

"You do not command me, Olivia." Hannes snarled, but did not approach. I could see the fangs as he spoke and I heaved a sigh.

"But you will leave," I uttered quietly, sinking down to the bed, swinging my legs until they were pressed amongst the sheets. "We have nothing further to discuss, so why bother to stay?"

Hannes growled but he knew I was right. There was nothing else to discuss and I had no intentions of developing any conversations.

Hannes believed his aunt, and I was a fool to think he would have believed me instead.

He did not trust my words and I did not trust him, or any lycan in this pack for that matter. Everyday, I was wary, for I could not help but think that there was some hidden motive that Hannes had for allowing the former prisoners and myself to stay in this pack and it was a struggle being amongst lycans, who I knew could be devastatingly unpredictable.

The door shut quietly after Hannes’ departure and I couldn't help but think that Helda’s offer was more than appealing.

**********

"Will you be coming as well, Yanneek?" I asked suddenly, disrupting the conversation that had taken place between Helda and her aunt.

Yanneek looked up to me, muttered that he was still thinking about his decision. I frowned at that; but knew that Yanneek was a man who would often ponder long and hard when it came to making choices, so I left him alone.

My fingers ripped apart the warm slice of bread that Helda had given me, and I rolled the small crumbs as I listened to Helda's aunt, Elizabeth, explain,

"We will leave tomorrow at dawn. Ryker will bring the car out front to this home and you will meet me here, Olivia. Obviously, you must not tell anyone if you hope to come with us; I have more than an inkling that the Alpha would not be pleased if he found out our plans."

I had told Helda, Yanneek and the rest of her family who I was to the Alpha; Yanneek had barely reacted to this news and claimed that it was evident that I was, whilst Helda was shocked.

"He will not be able to find you if he searched,” Elizabeth reassured, boasted. "Our community is greatly protected and lycans have yet to discover it."

I nodded, rolling the crumbs of bread in my fingers once more before dropping them in a napkin, standing and reaching for my coat, decision made as I said,

"There is a situation which I must deal with tomorrow as well, but I assure you that I will be here when dawn comes."