Chapter Six: Part Two

I ran my hand over my face, ignoring the blood that I smeared across my skin as I did so. My life was no longer truly mine. It had been something I had fought for five years but I couldn't run anymore. I ignored the pack as they moved forward, seeing if any of the dead belonged to them.

"Alpha, may I please look at your arm?" It was Jason and I shrugged. I didn't want to even look at it, didn't care to see the damage. I could tell it would be a bloody mess of torn skin and ripped muscles. Cool hands ripped my shirt and I hissed at the pain that flared through me as the fabric brushed the ragged edges of the wound. "You have... an unusual way of fighting." He said it carefully and I looked up from my bloody hands.

"That was for Dylan. I let him know he was no match for me, even if I remained in human form." It was the truth. I had let Dylan know he was no match for me as I tore his heart out using my human hand. Well mostly human, the claws were all my wolf.

"You certainly made an impression in the pack with that. I doubt anyone will try to challenge you. You managed to neutralize him in less than thirty seconds." He sounded equal parts impressed and disgusted. I guess, despite being a Healer, he didn't appreciate the brutality of the actions I had taken.

"He was cocky and blinded by his own pride." I always knew that would be how I would take him down. I had years being trained by Jace. Not just Jace though, Michael and Kiel taught me everything they knew and made me practice until I felt like I would collapse and never move again. Dylan had assumed his experience would count for everything. I glanced at his naked form before my gaze shifted to a bloody hole just under his sternum, obviously that hadn't been the case.

"Still, not very many Alphas fight in human form against challengers." He said it slowly as he rubbed his hands together and moved towards the large wound on my shoulder he had uncovered.

I leaned away from him slightly. "I'm not most Alphas, Jason. Leave them, they'll heal fine." The pain was hot and throbbing and it would take at least three or four hours to heal completely but I didn't want him to tax himself on something so trivial.

"It will scar." His tone was warning and I shrugged, the bleeding would stop in a few minutes and it would heal. I didn't care if I had a scar from it or not. A part of me wanted to scar, so I could have a reminder of just how stupid I had been, how weak.

"Let it." It was preferable, a mark of my mistake as their Alpha. I had let the situation escalate and I let it turn into the bloodbath it became. I slid my gaze along the ground, the red of the blood looked strange on the grass. It nearly turned the green grass red in its stunning vibrancy.

"May I please at least make sure it's clean and stopped bleeding?" He asked it hesitantly and I nodded, ignoring how the damaged shoulder flared with pain at the action. I wouldn't be able to move much as it healed. Jason continued with the task and I let my eyes slide over the pack members. Each of the dissenters had been claimed, all but Dylan. The shifters flowed around him like he didn't exist. Their anger was palpable towards him and I knew their anger towards me would be just as intense once the shock wore off. Their wolves would be mad at Dylan, the humans would be mad at me.

My wound throbbed hotly as Jason's overly warm hands hovered over it. I could feel him speeding up the healing process and my flesh knitting together slightly. I reached up and pushed his hands away, ignoring the pain that rose as I twisted my body. "That should be enough, Jason. Don't strain yourself on my behalf." I looked at him and the blonde shifter let his hands drop to his side. He didn't want to leave my shoulder unhealed but I had required it of him and he wouldn't go against my word. Not now, not after what I had just done. Despite that, I felt no fear from him. I had been right, it had been about respect and that respect would temper the fear until the fear faded. I never wished to have my claws sunk into another pack member for as long as I lived and they would be able to sense that.

"What are you going to do?" He gestured to Dylan. The meeting area had slowly cleared of people and I stared at the dead shifter. A huge part of me, the part that agreed with my wolf, wanted to leave him there to rot but I couldn't do that to a member of my pack. Despite all that he had done, Dylan Colter was still a member of my pack and he deserved the burial rites just as much as the next person.

"He will be given his last rites just as any other and buried with the family." I looked at the bleeding bite marks on my forearm and Jason hissed out between his teeth. Anger was palpable in his energy but I brushed it off.

"He tried to take your position." Jason and his wolf were feeling the anger of having a packmate betray the pack. It would be wide spread in the pack for the next few days. Dylan had tried to sacrifice the safety and closeness of the pack by making a bid for power. He had tried to divide us, to place a wedge in the bonds we shared. The pack would remember it for a long time and the anger would linger.

"He was still a member of the pack. That doesn't change because he made an error of judgment." A rather large error in judgment but an error none-the-less. I used my good hand to deftly undo the buttons to my shirt. There was no use for the fabric to remain on, it was ruined beyond repair anyway.

"An error in judgment? He tried to kill you, Alpha." Disbelief coated Jason's voice and I shrugged as I paused in removing the shirt. I winced as it caught on my open wound and despite his disbelief, Jason quickly helped me lift the fabric over the painful tears in my skin.

"And he paid for that. He made an error in believing he could take the position from me in the first place. He was blinded by his own self-importance. He was driven by greed but that doesn't change the fact he was not a rogue or an outside challenger. He was a member of this pack." I looked at the healer carefully, he was warring with himself. The human understood what I was saying, he agreed with it but the pack wide anger of the wolves would hold his mind for a few days. Resentment towards the others in the rebellion would be less but as the anger towards Dylan faded, it would be switched to me. The wolves would settle and the humans would start to analyze my actions and the situation. Dylan had tried to separate families. I had succeeded.

No one would challenge me and their anger would not grow violent but they would question me and the families of those who I had killed would resent me, maybe for years to come. I didn't blame them but I was accepting of the fact that it needed to be done and that the pack was now safe. Despite my apprehension of accepting my position as Alpha, the urges of being one constantly hounded me. Dylan Colter had been an urge that hounded me from day one. First as an urge to put him in his place for his sly subordination and then as the years passed, the urge to protect the pack from his poison gnawed at my spine and the back of my skull.

The urges were silent now. Everything was silent and it was blissful. I sat coated in the blood of my pack members and I felt at peace for the first time in a very long time. It was a feeling I had forgotten. I hadn't noticed how tense I had been for so long until everything had let go. I had done my duty as Alpha to Fortis and I could relax knowing I had done it as quickly as I had.

"Alpha?" Jason's voice filtered into my thoughts and I shook my head before looking at him. I felt oddly light and I knew it wasn't a good thing. "You've lost a fair bit of blood, you are going pale. I'm going to close up the wounds on your forearm." He looked at me as if for permission and I frowned. I didn't want them healed but he gave me a pleading look. It seemed as though I wasn't the only one who had urges gnawing at my bones. I gave him a small nod and he moved quickly, his hands shaking from the strain of holding back his gifts.

Hot tingling radiated out from his hands as the edges of the ragged wounds pulled together, the muscles slowly melding together once more. My skin slowly repaired itself, leaving unmarked smoothness over where the damage had been. There was no reminder the wound had even been there.

"Alpha Sterling." Benji came out from the trees, his voice ringing in the still warm air. I nodded to Jason and he quickly left, trying his hardest to ignore the urge to return and finish healing me completely. The further he went the less the urge would be, I knew it would still gnaw on him a faint ache that he would have to push aside but without me within his line of sight, it would be bearable.

"Delta Benji, I hope your mate is alright." I said it as he grew closer and he nodded quickly as he stepped over Dylan's form as if the body was not even there.

"She left when Dylan challenged you and went to help the younger shifters. I informed her of the results and she's worried about you." His eyes were concerned as he took in my bloody form and the angry wound on my shoulder.

"There's no need to worry. I'm in one piece." I waved my hand flippantly, letting the faint ebb and flow of pain that radiated from my shoulder wash over me. It would continue to hurt for several hours but I could deal with it. I deserved to deal with it.

"Not enough of one piece. Maricella will scold me for your wounds." Bennett's voice sounded from beside the stage and I jumped. I had forgotten he was there. I looked over my shoulder and he nodded at me. "For a person who's apparently a shit Alpha, you fight very well." His look turned appraising as he looked me over. The look was familiar, he had done it the first time we had met. He dismissed me as a threat, my form not powerful enough for him to worry about in a fight. The fact he was changing that assessment made me smirk.

"It would be a tough fight but I would probably win." I said it casually and he simply nodded. With the intense training I had, very few people would be able to take me in a fight to the death. Bulk and muscle did not always ensure a win. My issue was lack of confidence and I tended to avoid confrontations because my wolf always grew a little too bloodthirsty at the thought of a fight. It didn't mean I wouldn't win. I just liked people thinking I wouldn't. It made things a lot easier.

"Your training surpasses anything I would have thought, Alpha." Respect and admiration was clear in Benji's voice and I nodded.

"I had five years to train with some of the toughest shifters I have ever met. I was bound to come out with a semblance of fighting know how." I finally turned to look at the wound on my shoulder. It was nasty looking, torn muscles, tendons, and flashes of bone were visible but they would be covered with twisted pink scar tissue sooner rather than later. I could almost understand Jason's need to heal it, it looked brutal.

"That was more of a semblance." Benji looked amused at the thought and I rolled my eyes, resisting the urge to cross my arms over my chest. The action would only bring pain.

"That was a statement." I gestured my head to Dylan's cooling body.

"A very good one." A tinge of admiration coloured Bennett's tone and my smirk reemerged on my mouth. The cold shifter liked me or at least respected me enough to show admiration.

"Well, I aim to please." At my words he let out a faint chuckle but it was drowned out by Benji's rumbling laughter.

"You aim to please? Alpha-"

"It's Luka, Benji." It was a soft reprimand. He was now in my ranks, he was free to use my first name rather than my title. He waved me off, the gesture was one that many pack members wouldn't have done. It was disrespectful but I felt pride fill me as Benji did it. I could understand why Jace allowed the rampant playful disrespect he did. It felt nice to have someone be open to you as a person rather than an figure head they could only tread carefully around.

"Luka, you did far more than aim to please. In the next few days, your rather violent display will soothe even the angriest shifters." He looked at me like a proud father and I rolled my eyes once more before shaking my head. His words were true. The anger would grow worse and worse, many of the shifters wanting to feel Dylan's blood sliding down their own skin for attempting to tear the pack apart from the inside out but the image of me doing just that would be enough to sate the wolves in them. It would work even faster being that I was their Alpha. Their wolves would see it as their Alpha, their leader, dispensing justice. The humans would need a little more than a memory of a bloodbath to ease their anger.

"We need to get some warriors in to bring Dylan's body to the temple." I let out a heavy sigh at Benji's growl. It would be how everyone reacted to the suggestion but it needed to be done. I had done something brutal and violent but I wasn't a beast.

"He doesn't deserve the temple." He spat the words out and I could hear Bennett moving closer to us.

"Alpha Sterling has already explained this once and when you are no longer clouded by anger and a fulfilling sense of justice you will understand his actions." Bennett stared at the side of my head and I glanced at him briefly before turning my gaze back to Benji. "After all, who could possibly hate an Alpha who gave his challenger the burial rights of the pack? It's a smart move. The human sides will appreciate the action and show them that he is far from the savage beast he just made himself to look." I glanced at Bennett again, giving him a small nod of acknowledgement.

"Benji, just because you do not like what I am saying, it doesn't change the fact I'm telling you it needs to be done." I kept an edge to my voice, letting him know that despite the lack of a command to my words, I was giving him an order. It would be up to him to do it or to defy me.

I watched as his head bowed in respect. "If you wish for him to be given burial rights, then he shall be given them." He kept his gaze lowered but I could feel the emotions warring within him. The human and the wolf battling over whose emotions would be more prevalent but my order was firm and it would be done as I requested. "Alpha, I suggest you get yourself cleaned up. Miss Maricella has been asking for you." He looked at me and over my form and I glanced down. Dirt and blood covered quite a bit of my skin and I nodded. There was no way I would let Maricella see me like I was.

"Thank you, Benji. I'll head to the house and then go to the temple to prepare the rights." I had to for the Lewis'. Andy and Raela would be first and then Zane once the priests finished putting him back together. My wolf bared his teeth in satisfaction of the memory of our claws tearing through his flesh. I pushed him away. He should be satisfied with the display we had put on, his blood lust would be sated for a while.

I'm heading to clean up. I sent it to Kiel and Michael and they sent back images of the temple and the impression of a question. I sighed. With the dissenters dealt with I felt much safer walking around. Stay there. I will be coming over after my shower. I looked at Bennett and he gave me a sharp nod, all earlier twitches of his face gone beneath the cold mask.

"Make sure Maricella isn't near the front door when I get there, Bennett. It would only alarm her to see me like this." I ran a hand through my hair, wincing as I hit bloody patches that made my hair twist together in clumps. Bennett nodded once more before he walked steadily away from the platform, deftly dodging the pools of blood.

I couldn't help but think of the red pools were some how an art piece that my wolf had been trying to paint. Pain had been his canvas, brutality his brush, and blood his paint but as I looked at it I knew that grief and regret framed it. It was my only contribution to his masterpiece. His satisfaction was dampened at the reminder of those we had taken who had simply made an error in who they could trust.

I turned away from the sight of the blood covered ground and I looked at my shoulder again, ignoring the painful twinge I got from the action. It would take at least three or four hours to heal completely. I knew I would have to get one of the boys to bandage it to keep it clean while it healed. Jason had done his job well and started the healing process but it wouldn't stop an infection if something got caught in the rapidly healing flesh.

I slid off the edge of the platform, trying my hardest to ignore the dizziness I felt at the action. I hadn't been aware of how much blood I had lost until my head swam and the ground looked like it was rushing up to greet me. Benji grunted as he wrapped an arm around my waist and caught me before I took a nose dive into the dirt.

"Easy, Luka. Looks like you lost a bit more blood than you thought." He gave another grunt as he got me back to my feet and pulled my good arm around the back of his neck. "I'll help you to the house and to the bathroom." He shifted his arm around my waist, seemingly ignoring the blood that was soaking into his shirt.

"I appreciate it, Benji." Despite not wanting to, I leaned against the older shifter heavily. My vision swirled with dizziness as we started the trek back to the house. "Benji, remind me to get a drink of water to try and replenish my fluids." It was one thing that had been drilled into me by pretty much all of my instructors and elders as I grew up. If you lose any amount of blood it is always a good idea to drink plenty of water to help your body recover from it.

"I will. Now please focus more on walking and less on talking. You're heavier than you look." He gave an exaggerated groan and I chuckled.

"Dad always did call me a dense motherfucker." I smiled at the booming laugh he let out. It was good to know I was still amusing despite everything that was going on. The mood grew sombre as we passed by my wolf's masterpiece. Grief was cold and bitter in my mouth as I looked on it.

"You did as you had to, Alpha." The respectful reverence he placed on the title made me realize just how deep I had sunk into the role. It was like quicksand, I had lain still for so long, hoping it would leave me be but the last fight to cement my position with the pack had nearly pulled me under completely. I could feel the crushing pressure of the responsibility of all of the pack members resting on my shoulders. I didn't like it but it didn't stop it from being there all the same.

I winced as I was jostled slightly, my shoulder throbbing hot enough to bring tears to my eyes. I hissed out a curse and tried harder to walk properly. I knew that if I didn't lean on Benji the jolting would be less. I inhaled deeply before I pushed away from him, staggering forward, trying to gather my bearings. His rough hands grabbed my arm as I swayed too far and I waved him off. I let my vision swirl before slowly focusing, letting it center and fall still. I still felt weak and dizzy but I could walk.

"I'm an Alpha remember? I can walk this off, it's just a scratch." The wound was more than a scratch and both of us knew it. There was a reason that it would take several hours to heal. The damage was extensive and it I had been mundane it would have probably killed me but my body had set about healing it as soon as it happened but the process was slow.

"Both of them attempted to practically tear that arm off. It's more than a scratch, Luka." His voice was stern and I gave a low chuckle as I grabbed my useless arm, preventing it from moving as I walked.

"I'm still standing, Benji. That means it's just a scratch." I glanced at him, daring him to poke at the obvious weakness but he seemed to catch onto the game before he nodded. I could feel his urge to make sure I was safe and healthy but he also knew the Alpha needed to prove his own worth. It was a bone deep urge in me to walk away from the fight on my own strength. I wanted to laugh, it seemed as though I wasn't safe from the fabled Alpha's Pride anymore.

I held my head high and straightened my back, pushing away the pain, trying my hardest to ignore to burning it caused. Sweat dotted my forehead but I pushed forward. It wouldn't do well to have my pack members see me as weak right after I showed them I was not. The pack members we passed bared their neck in submission, their eyes glinting with respect. I nodded at each one, ignoring the pain even as some members glanced at the wound and winced for me. Several faces paled and turned away. Their Alpha had taken the wound without a sound but it didn't mean they thought it was pretty.

The house came into view a few minutes later and I ground my teeth together hard. The pain was like a hazy fuzz over my vision but the newly healing nerves were the worst of it. The taut feeling of my muscles pulling together drowned out any words Benji might have said. It was almost soothing in its constant waves. The pain let me know I was alive, that I was still breathing despite it being ragged gasps that I hid well from the people around me.

I had to be the Alpha that they thought I was. I had taken down a challenger and now I had to prove my strength. Despite it I could feel their will pushing me forward. They wanted me to make the walk just as badly as I did. They wanted me to continue on, to be strong for them. To let them know that despite everything I would hold my head high and be strong for my pack, my family. I wouldn't fail them in that. The feeling was reminiscent of when Maricella would look at me and ask her questions. It felt like such a fragile trust.

Benji pushed open the front door for me and I tried not to stumble through it. I nodded at him and he closed it softly behind me. I leaned heavily against the wall for a moment, taking in deep and ragged breaths, trying to keep the pain from growing worse but knowing it wouldn't lessen. I sucked in a deep breath and pushed away from the wall before I moved to the closest bathroom that I knew had a bathtub and a shower There was no way I was going to climb up the stairs in my condition. I periodically stopped and leaned against the walls. The scent of the blood covering me was nearly choking, making it hard to breathe.

My wolf might have been perfectly content to bask in the blood that covered us but my sensitive nose did not agree with it and neither did I. I pushed open the door to the bathroom and staggered inside, shutting the door behind me as I slowly made my way towards the bathtub. I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror that made me freeze. I turned to look full, almost horrified by what or rather who stared back at me.

His grey eyes were hard like flint that was sparking with triumph for his actions and his jaw was set. Blood was smeared across his face, painting streaks of it against his pale skin, the sweat made small trails down his forehead and temples. The rest of him didn't fair any better. Blood thickly coated the skin underneath the vicious wound on his shoulder and the rest of his exposed flesh was smeared with both blood and dirt. He looked cold and unapproachable. He reminded me of an Alpha. He reminded me of Azrael.

I shook my head and let my shoulder slump as I gripped the edge of the sink. I was no warrior and I wasn't meant to be an Alpha. I turned my gaze away from the image in the mirror and turned on the shower before stepping into it. I let the cold spray beat down on me, I hissed as it hit the wound but ignored it as I slowly wiped at my face, removing the blood and dirt that coated it. The spray was slow to warm and as it did I slowly stripped off my pants, kicking them away as I stepped under the spray completely. Steam rose from the heat of the water and curled around me thickly.

I cursed explosively as the hot water entered the wound. Pain exploded through me nearly buckling my legs but I pushed it away and forced my shaky hands to rub at my skin. I wouldn't use soap yet, that would have to wait for the wound to heal. I could barely take the pounding spray of the water, let alone the harsh burn that soap would bring. I bowed my head, letting the water wash away the blood that clung to the strands of my hair, red tinted water flowed down my skin as I washed away the remnants of our actions.

I ran my hand through my hair and closed my eyes against the red streams of water that were flowing against the porcelain white tub. Not all bloodstains could be washed away as easily. Guilt and regret filled me at the thought of those I knew hadn't expected it to go as far as it did. Andy did as his siblings did, trying to make them proud. Loosing his parents had been hard on him and he had sought constant approval from his elder two siblings. Raela had worshipped her older brother. She would have walked through hellfire if he asked it of her. Brandy had just wanted to fit in. She felt like she needed to belong to something and because of Dylan Colter they were all dead.

My wolf didn't believe in second chances. Not when it came to the poison Dylan had spread. I wished they could have been spared but my wolf, despite his grief for them, found their deaths necessary. I let out a sigh as I turned around, letting the hot water spray against my back, relaxing my muscles. A sudden pounding on the bathroom door wasn't enough to make me jolt. It stopped for a moment before it started even louder if that was possible. I looked through the glass door to the shower.

"Luka!" It was Maricella and I let out a groan. "There's blood everywhere out here!" There was a frantic, panicky edge to her voice as she resumed her pounding on the door and I pressed my hand to my forehead.

I wiped at my eyes and looked out the shower door. "It's not mine, kiddo." I said it loud enough and the pounding stopped, leaving the bathroom in silence except for the sound of the shower running.

"You're lying and I don't appreciate it. I might not like the scent or sight of blood but I know what yours smells like!" Anger tinged her panic but I could also hear her relief that I was alive or at least able to speak.

"You worry too much. I'm fine." I stressed the last two words and let out a sigh when Maricella gave a small cry of frustration. I wondered if my lies were growing worse or if she was just getting better at spotting them. I didn't know which was worse

"No, you aren't!" She pounded on the door before the handle rattled before the door was flung open. Maricella gave a small cry of surprise and I laughed as I saw her nearly sprawl on the floor. "That was not locked." She muttered it to herself as she got her footing back and I watched as her eyes narrowed in on me.

"Luka, I hate it when you lie to me. It makes me worry so much worse." Her bottom lip nearly stuck out, the hurt radiated off of her and I sighed.

"You don't want to see it, Maricella." I kept my tone soft and gentle and even my wolf agreed with me. If she saw the wound it would only distress her. We didn't wish for her to be upset like that.

"I need to make sure you are okay. Is-is it bleeding?" Her face went pale as she looked down at the bloody marks I had left around the bathroom as she swallowed convulsively. I looked at the wound but it wasn't bleeding. Jason had done his job well. Most of the bone was covered now some of the smaller cut around the larger ones had sealed up, leaving small pink lines.

"It's not bleeding but that doesn't mean it's pretty." I watched as she pulled her shoulders back, trying to be brave.

"It's okay. As long as it isn't bleeding I will be fine." She turned away from my gaze and started to open random drawers and cabinets. "Where is your first aid kit?" She was scowling but her voice trembled and I reached forward and shut off the spray, satisfied with how the water ran clear down my body.

"It's under the sink." I pushed open the door and stepped out before reaching for a towel and wrapping it around my waist. I hissed through my teeth as I moved my arm, the feeling of the wound pulling wasn't pleasant but I needed both hands to do the task. I risked a glance at the mirror and was relieved to see myself staring back but the image of the other male was seared into my mind. I didn't want to meet him again any time soon.

There was a clatter on the floor and I looked over. Maricella's face was overly pale and her grey eyes wide as she looked at the brutal wound on my shoulder. I winced and turned so she couldn't see it. I knew it wasn't a good idea to let her see it, she looked two seconds from passing out cold or go into shock, with Maricella you could never be too sure which way it would go.

"I told you." I watched as she swallowed convulsively as if keeping back vomit before she bent down and picked up the first aid kit she had dropped in her shock.

"No. I'm okay." Her voice trembled as did her hands as she picked  up the various items that had spilled from the box. "How are you not in pain?" She said it almost softly and I wanted to laugh. The pain was searing, it was one thing I was certain of.

"I am, kiddo." I watched as she slowly stood up and moved closer to me. Her gaze darted around everywhere but the wound. I would have laughed but the fact she had paled to a rather grey colour and continued to swallow thickly wouldn't let me find any amusement in the situation.

"You are rather calm about it." Without looking she pointed at the toilet and I sat down on the lid waiting for her to gather her courage. I was rather touched that she was willing to go outside of her comfort zone to tend to my wounds.

"It happened. Jason tended to it. There's no need to freak out about it now." I lifted my unhurt shoulder in a half shrug and she glanced at the wound with a heavy grimace.

"But it'll scar." She said it softly and I let out a small chuckle.

"Then I'll look totally badass." I wanted her mind off of it and I succeeded as her eyes flashed with irritation.

"You look like an utter moron from where I'm standing." She spat it out and I inwardly sighed with relief. The irritation brought some colour back to her face as she thought of my idiocy.

"Hey, I was distracted with other things at the time of the incident." I goaded her on and she roughly pulled some paste and gauze from the kit.

"Weak is the mind, the body shall suffer." She scowled at me and I bit back a smile. She was like a tiny kitten who spat at you when you got too close. She was just as adorable mad as she was when she smiled. "Utter idiot, that's what you are." She opened the tin of paste and moved over with purpose before she froze, her hand halfway to the wound on my shoulder.

"Well, my wolf and I take offence to that." I stared at her, willing her to not think about the wound. The last thing I needed was for her to go comatose on me.

"Good!" Grey eyes glared at me as she continued the motion with a trembling hand and smeared the paste into the open wound. I inhaled sharply, hissing in pain. She froze slightly but quickly finished spreading it through the wound. "Do it quick, just like taking off a bandaid." Her voice warbled slightly and I had to agree. It was better for her to do it quickly than to prolong the pain or her discomfort.

"No need to punish me, kiddo. I think the scar is punishment enough." I said it teasingly as the paste worked its magic. If I was correct in my guess it was the pain reliever paste that I had stocked up on from the nearest witches coven. I figured it would help with injuries and as the pain became a dull throb, I knew I was right. I let out a sigh and smiled up at Maricella. "Thank you. Feels much better." I watched as she slumped with relief before quickly rinsing off her hand and grabbing the gauze and tape.

She was rather efficient in quickly bandaging the wound up. She layered the gauze almost strategically, the slightly plastic gauze that was less likely to stick to the wound went first. Then the cloth gauze followed, she placed enough on it to give the wound a bit of cushion. With practised hands she carefully taped down the edges, her slightly cool fingers brushing against my warm skin. My wolf liked how his pack member was tending to him as we used to tend to her. His affection for her was undisguised, which was rare for the usually angry beast but I was used to it. If he went crazy on a blood thirsty spree, I had no doubts that Maricella would be one of the only people safe from him.

She let out a sigh of relief as it was completely covered. She gave me a tiny smile. "Probably going to have nightmares because of this but I needed to make sure you were okay. There was blood everywhere out there." I could see the worry and borderline panic painted in her eyes, turning the soft dove grey darker. I honestly hadn't wanted to worry her. I wanted to get cleaned up and bandaged before she noticed.

"I didn't mean to worry you, kiddo." I said it softly and she let out a small sigh.

"I worry, Luka. It's just what I do." The words echoed what she had told me earlier today and I reached out with my good arm and pulled her onto my lap before squeezing her tightly. I let her go and she gave me a strange look. "What was that for?" She carefully got off my lap and I held onto the towel tightly as I stood up as well.

"You looked like you needed a hug." I bent down and kissed the top of her head before jerking my head at the door. "I should get dressed so I can see you off properly." She froze at my words and my eyes narrowed slightly. I had a feeling I wouldn't like she was going to say to me.

"I'm staying." The words were quiet and she looked up at me carefully as if gauging my reaction.

"Pardon?" My voice went slightly hard. She didn't need to see how many of them I had killed. I didn't want that to change how she looked at me. I wasn't sure I could take her looking at me with disgust.

"For the funerals. I'm staying." She said it slowly and I shook my head quickly.

"No you aren't." Anger and panic rose up in me sharply. I didn't need her to see that side of what I had done. Maricella was isolated for a reason, she couldn't handle the harshness of the world so we protected her form that. I did not want her to see the result of what I had done, it would only distress her.

"Gamgam told me what was going on. It's okay, Luka, I understand." Her voice was soft and she reached out to touch my arm and I jerked back. I had given the ornery old shifter specific orders to not say anything.

"What did she tell you?" My voice was icy but Maricella simply looked at me with sadness.

"She told me about the dissenters and how you needed to get rid of them. That's life, Luka. You are an Alpha. Alphas get their hands bloody at times." She inhaled deeply. "You are of the mountains, your wolf is too. I'm not deluded enough to think you had tea and cakes with them as you talked it out. I know you killed them but I also know you had your reasons in doing so." I couldn't remember why I always forgot how clever she was at times, how intelligent she was. Of course she would have figured it out. Of course she would understand because when she was taken to the classroom she learned a lot more about the world than I ever could.

"Okay." The anger drained from me and she squeezed my forearm gently. I nodded slowly. "Okay." I hadn't thought about how much having her there would help me. Her soft sweetness was like a balm to the grief that tugged incessantly at me. She was family and I found I needed her to get through the consequences of my actions.

"It will be okay, Luka." She gave me a small smile and I nodded once more. I gestured to the door with my head and she went up to her toes and pressed a kiss to my cheek. "It will be okay." She dropped her hand from my arm and left the bathroom. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. There was a stillness from my wolf before he curled up and whimpered inside of my mind. His grief matching my own for our lost pack members. Along the strong link I had to the pack their grief pushed down on me as well.

I was Atlas. Holding the pack's world, the pack's emotions and thoughts on my shoulders. I just hoped I wouldn't crack under the force of it pressing down on me. Atlas had been cursed by the gods, I had been cursed by fate and I wasn't sure what was worse.