Chapter 3 Dead

• RAYNE
• “What the hell did you do?” Aaron asked, roughly grabbing my arm, causing me to gasp as the action took me by surprise. My back hit the wall, and I trembled as he pinned me against it. Orm was fuming and roaring orders, and we were all heading toward Sage’s house or where it used to be since it was burned down in the attack. Everyone thought that’s where he would have gone.
• “Wha-what are you talking about?”
• “Don’t lie to me! Have you any idea what you’ve done?!” He hissed, letting go of me, and tears welled up in my eyes as I realized he knew.
• “Where is he, Rayne?!”
• “I don’t know.”
• “I told you not to lie to me! Do not fucking test me!”
• “I’m not lying. I swear, I don’t know. I just let him out,” I replied with a tremulous voice, and he stepped back, closing his eyes, before suddenly grabbing me by the shoulders and slamming me again against the wall.
• “Why?! Why did you do this?!”
• “He saved me! He saved my life. I couldn’t let him die.”
• “He saved your life and you couldn’t let him die,” he repeated, whispering like he was tasting the words on his tongue before suddenly screaming in my face, causing me to look around, afraid someone might have heard us.
• “You are a huntress. You don’t save beasts; you kill them. You broke the code! You betrayed us. You betrayed me.” His voice came out soft as he said the last part, and the tears I had been holding back fell from my eyes. “I vouched for you. I said you could be trusted.”
• “I’m sorry, Aaron.”
• “Do not fucking speak! You are so fucking selfish. You know what you did is punishable by death! How could you do this to me? You are going to fix this! You’re going to tell me where that dog is, and then we’ll go over there and finish him off before anyone finds out what you’ve done. I will not die because of your treachery. You-”
• “-Arron?” Vin spoke behind him, causing Aaron’s words to die in his throat, and we froze as he came within our line of sight. His expression was a frown that gradually deepened as he advanced toward us, and it was clear he heard us. Aaron quickly let go of me and tried to fix his face while I trembled, scared. “Hey, Vin,” he muttered, stepping back from me. Vin asked if everything was okay, to which Aaron answered yes.
• “Are you sure?”
• “Yes.” His impatient voice was laced with frustration as he cut Vin off, causing Vin’s eyes to trail to me before he spoke again.
• “Well, let’s go then,” he added, “We are riding with Orm,” to which Aaron nodded in agreement before glaring at me. Vin looked between the two of us as we jogged toward the truck, and as our eyes locked, I asked myself if he really didn’t hear us.
• ...
• OLEANDER
• I threw down one more shot, my eyes clamping shut as the liquid burned its way down my throat before getting to my feet, swaying a bit from all the shots we had taken.
• Kade, my friend, and the Gamma of our pack followed me up; his voice slurred as he suggested I spend the night. He said it wasn’t a good idea to drive in the state I was in, but I shook my head, my voice slurred as I insisted. I needed to get home.
• It was well past midnight, and the entire pack had gathered to mourn the slaying of our Alpha and his entire family the night before. After the meeting was over, my peers and I headed to Dane’s house to share a drink in Sage’s honor.
• Sage was supposed to be our next Alpha. In the middle of the night, unknown people attacked his house. The unknown people murdered them all and set the house ablaze, leaving us with nothing to bury.
• I stumbled towards the door, and Kade reached out to steady me. “Stay, man. You can’t drive like this,” he urged his grip tight on my arm. But I pulled away, shaking my head again. “I need to get home,” I repeated and he sighed, but didn’t stop me this time. “Be careful,” he said, his eyes filled with concern, before saying we were going to get through this together. I nodded, though I wasn’t sure I believed him.
• The world felt different now—colder and more dangerous—which was why I needed to get back to my family. We didn’t know who was responsible for our suffering, nor did we know who was next. With one last glance at my pack members, I stepped out into the night, the darkness swallowing me whole.
• Memories of Sage and I played before my eyes, vivid and haunting, as I turned on the engine and took off, and I couldn’t hold back the tears that rolled down my cheeks.
• My house wasn’t far from Dane’s, so before I knew it, I was coming up to my street. Sage’s house was the first one on the street, and as I stared at the pile of ash and rubble left by the flames that devoured everything, a sob tore through my throat. But just then, I caught something in my rear-view mirror, and my foot moved spontaneously, slamming on the brakes.
• “What the” I muttered, reversing as my headlights illuminated what appeared to be a naked body lying in a small clearing near the rubble. Jumping out of my car, my eyes widened, noticing it was a body, and the alcohol that had clouded my mind a few minutes ago vanished as I took slow steps toward the body, my heart hammering in my chest.
• “Sage?” I muttered in disbelief, and my legs took on a life of their own as I sprinted towards him. “Goddess. He’s alive.” I whispered, kneeling next to him before calling out his name, but he looked dead.