~Nothing~.
Julian and Alex had scoured the entire area around the packhouse, but theyâd come up empty. Julian hadnât picked up even a trace of the scent.
Initially, they hadnât thought to venture beyond their territories, assuming he would stay close.
But he hadnât.
How did he have such an advantage?
Julian was aware he was missing memories and other crucial pieces that could help solve this puzzle, but this was Alexâs home turf. He was losing on his own ground.
Was Julian always Alexâs biggest supporter? ~No~.
But did he believe, somewhere deep down, that Alex was a competent alpha?
~Okay~, not alwaysâ but Maya trusted him with her life, and that was enough for Julian to convince himself that Alex must be a ~good~ alpha, despite his personal feelings.
~So how were they being outsmarted? How was he slipping in unnoticed~? How did he manage to kill ~so many~ around the packhouse without anyone spotting him?
Heâd even shot Maya, and no one had seen a thing.
~It was overwhelming~.
âLetâs go further out,â Alex suggested, heading towards Julian.
âJust the two of us?â
âWhy? You scared?â
Truthfully, the fewer people involved, the better. Julian felt a lot of this was his fault, and he didnât want to risk unnecessary casualties.
~However~, he also felt he owed Olivia a bit, and getting her mate killed wasnât exactly a great way to repay her for saving his and Mayaâs lives.
âNot sure you can handle it.â
âAnd you can?â
âApparently.â
He had so far. At least, his past self had.
âYeah, I donât think so. This is my pack. So you either tag along, or you go back. Iâm not returning until I find something.
âThereâs no way this asshole didnât leave a trace. I donât buy it.â
Alex was trying to mask it, but Julian could hear the fear in his voice. Heâd never faced a hunter before.
Julian didnât know how rare it was, but everyone had been shocked, unwilling to believe it could be ~that~.
Maybe it wasnât a hunter. Maybe it was someone who ~genuinely~ despised werewolves and had learned about their vulnerabilities?
~Could that be possible~? Maybe he could discuss it with Mayaâ¦if she didnât avoid him.
âDonât want to tell your mate you died being an idiot, so I guess Iâll go,â Julian retorted, brushing past Alex and bumping his shoulder.
He ~concealed~ it, but ~damn~, the man was rock solid; Julian had to give him that. Regardless, he continued to stride further from the territoriesâ boundaries, venturing into the unknown.
It seemed like every time someone stepped out there, ~someone died~.
Hopefully not this time.
The wind was gusting. Alex and Julian walked side by side after Alex had finally caught up.
The tension was palpable, as each of them tried to outpace the other.
~It was distracting~.
Distracting enough that Julian was taken aback, stopping abruptly when a scent hit his nose. ~He recognized it~.
He closed his eyes, tilting his head back as he took a deep breath, filling his nostrils and lungs with the familiar scent.
~He had to pursue it~.
Julian didnât utter a word. He dropped to the ground, shifting before he even hit the grass, and bolted in the direction of the scent.
~It could be a trap. But it didnât matter. He had to see it through. ~It was faint - too faint to be a person.
He could hear Alex shifting behind him, but he didnât care. For once, he ignored Alex and focused on his objective, following the scent that was leading him off the path.
~It was familiar~, he knew that.
Julianâs heart pounded, his tongue feeling too large for his elongated mouth. He couldnât think. He couldnât process any of it.
Sometimes, he stepped on broken branches, cutting the pads of his paws, leaving a trail of blood, but he couldnât bring himself to care.
~Faster, closer.~
~We have to get it~.
Why did he need this?
Why did he need it ~so desperately~?
It was familiar, and ~yes~, at first it had reminded him of the scentless scent he had tracked, but it wasnât the same.
Something else was beckoning him, reaching deep into his soul and compelling him to press on.
If he had been in his human form, he would have been in tears.
His heart was pounding, each throb feeling too large for his chest. ~Please, let it be there~, he thought.
He was desperate to ~discover~ what was there, even though he had no idea what he was looking for.
What had started as a feeling of terror, seizing his body and freezing his muscles, had transformed into something ~radiant~.
His eyes were wide, his chest puffed out as he quickened his pace, leaving a trail of dust behind him.
His mind was a whirlwind, too exhilarated to think clearly or consider the potential dangers that might be waiting at his destination.
A warmth spread through his chest as his heart pounded within him.
~So near, yet so far~.
And then he saw it.
Something furry, something brown. Nestled in a patch of grass with a soft ear poking out as if it were waiting for him.
He didnât hesitate, standing tall and taking the final steps that separated him from the object of his fascination.
~A teddy bear. A simple, torn, damaged teddy bear.~
Its fur was brown, the glaringly obvious stitches were white, and two green buttons served as eyes. ~And it was stained.~
The spots looked black, but he knew betterâor at least his sense of smell did.
It was blood.
Old, dried blood.
It covered the ear, the face...and where else?
He bent down, picking it up between his thumb and index finger. As he lifted it from its hiding place in the grass, it was clear that it was missing a leg.
But the smell that clung to it wasnât from his enemy...
Where was it...
~âHELP ME! No, NO, NO!!!â~
The voice echoed in his head, forcing him to his knees, the teddy bear falling from his grasp.
â~Please, please, Iâll be good, Iâll be good. NO! NOOOOOO!â~
Julian held his head, unable to silence the voice...but he ~needed it to stop~. Now, right now. His chin quivered, his mouth fell open as he squeezed his eyes shut.
His stomach clenched, waves of nausea washing over him.
~âJULIAN! JULIAN, PLEASE, PLEASE.â~
He could see ~her~ as if it were happening right in front of him, right now. A manâs hands tangled in her blonde hair, dragging her through the dirt and mud.
Sometimes her face would bounce, hitting rocks and whatever else was in the path.
Her small, delicate hands reached up, trying to claw at the thick arm and fingers that held her captive. No matter how much she scratched and pulled, the grip on her never loosened.
~Why wasnât he moving? Why wasnât he helping her~?
Her screams were enough to chill his blood. Tears streamed down her face; her clothes were torn, and blood stained her pale skin.
~Was it her blood~? Was this ~why~ she was screaming like this?
â~JULIAN, HELP HER! NO!â~
~Another voice~.
But he wasnât moving. He was here.
~On the ground, utterly useless and pathetic. Not helping anyone~.
Julianâs heartbeat slowed to the point where he wondered if it had stopped. He couldnât breathe. The air was too thick.
He couldnât thinkâhis mind was ~on fire~. ~Was he dead~? It felt like he was ~dead~.
The screaming filled his head and he couldnât think or hear anything else.
The flashes of her face, the desperation in her eyes, the blood-curdling scream echoing in his ears over and over again.
â~HELP! HELP!â~
He collapsed face-first into the grass, the taste of earth filling his mouth as the pain in his chest intensified until he could no longer bear it.
He felt his body convulse as his vision faded to black, but he was powerless to stop it.
~He was gone, with nothing but the sound of her voice screaming at him~.