Chapter 53

The sun's golden rays filtered through the trees, casting a warm glow over the clearing I stood above. It had been two full days now since I had first arrived at this remote house in the midst of the wilderness. There was a town nearby and last night, when out on a walk, I heard a few humans passing by, camping in the woods behind.

"Take your position. You're beginning to lack." I heard Malik speak behind me.

The sound of his voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I raised the bow to my chest before pulling back the arrow. My gaze fixed on the target in the distance, a tree with markings made by chalks. It was better than doing nothing and just laying in bed all day.

I didn't want to just mourn as if somebody had died. When in fact, Nicholas was alive and doing quite well without my presence.

My teeth clenched and I let go of the arrow that split through the air and pierced through the tree, right on the red chalk marking.

"I want to hunt something real," I confessed, turning around. "Maybe the rogues in the wild."

Malik shook his head instantly, without even considering. "That's never going to happen. Bringing you in front of a rogue and letting any wolf receive any knowledge about you is threatening alone. We'll have to move then, from here." He stepped forward and explained, his voice stern and unyielding.

While I was disappointed, I understood that he was right.

Lowering my arrow, I crouched over the ground and placed it down. "There's something I want to know your view on since you're always so right." When I rose my head, the rays of the sunlight fell over my eyes and I squinted while looking at him the same time.

"I'm not always right—"

"Honest," He nodded and furthered me to continue. "Do you really think I need to be here? You've spent your whole life next to Nicholas, is his father really a threat?"

"The alpha's father is someone you don't want to know about. He's cunning and ruthless. It has been years that he has been building his name in the werewolf world, taking in packs, forming an army, and gaining power at every chance he can get. But his ultimate goal is to make his son weak, to rid him of his own pack, to show everyone the power he still holds over him," Malik paused, flickering his gaze away from me and onto the bird flying in the air. "The threat is personal."

A chill ran down my spine. "You make it sound like he's playing a sick, twisted game with Nicholas."

"That's exactly what it is. A twisted game of power and manipulation."

I sat back on the ground, my brows furrowed tight. "Why didn't Nicholas stop him? I understand him taking over his father's packs and destroying them, but why hasn't he stopped his father since he has the power to do so?"

A smile tugged at the corner of Malik's lip. "A son can't kill his own father."

It was the truth and nothing more. Nicholas couldn't kill his father, or even ever try to truly destroy him. He could do everything to remain in the game but at the end of the day, his father was always going to win.

My head lowered and my hand wrapped around the bow resting on the ground. I rose back up and grabbed an arrow from the quiver before raising my arms and aiming at the tree. As I pulled back the bowstring, I felt a rush of frustration run through me. Mentally, I punched the air and then released the arrow.

It sailed through the air and embedded itself in the trunk of the tree.

"But I don't think you need to be here," Malik interrupted as I reached for another arrow. I paused and spun around, letting him finish. "The alpha has means to protect you right there, at his home."

It meant I wasn't the only one who was right.

So then why would he let me go? It wasn't just for a day or two. It was for more than weeks, maybe months before he could fight off his father. Why would he do that? He knew what I felt for him and he knew what he felt for me.

Before my thoughts raced, I asked Malik, "Did you talk to him yet?"

"No. I'm prohibited from making any form of contact with him. But when he does contact me, I'll surely let you know."

"Thank you." I whispered before leaning down and grabbing another arrow.

Nicholas was terrified of his father, and it showed, and it disheartened me that he wasn't going to let me stay by his side when all of this was going to go down. More than myself, I wanted to be there for him. But I could not convince him enough.

By evening, I was sitting in the dining room, staring at the food on the table, over the delicate china. Barely anything went down my throat, but I needed the energy. The two nights I had spent alone had been hard and even worse when my bones began breaking in the middle of the night, out of nowhere.

Last night, I woke in terrible pain as if my body was being torn apart from the inside. I couldn't cry for help—there was no one here that could truly take me through the transformation, not even Malik.

I shoved my fork into the food, feeling a sense of frustration wash over me. The reality was always going to remain the same. Even if I became a werewolf, I was still going to be a young, fragile one not strong or capable enough.

"Do you want some more beans?" Maude asked, walking into the room with a bowl of beans.

I shook my head, "This is enough."

With a deep sigh, I took a bite of the food, forcing myself to eat even though my appetite had disappeared. After finishing whatever was on my plate, I headed to my room and allowed all the voices in my head to return.

An aching sensation ran down between my shoulder blades and I stopped on my steps as my one hand reached for the one-seater couch next to the bed. I clutched it and bent over it slightly as my muscles became tensed and taut. It started from nothing and then turned into a pain similar to knives being pierced into my skin.

I bit the inside of my cheek and swallowed the screams that nearly left my throat. My bones began to crack and shift, rearranging themselves. My other arm wrapped around my stomach, where it hurt the most. Last night, it lasted for a few good minutes, which meant I had to cramp myself into a corner of the bedroom until it didn't pass away.

But this time, the pain was worse. It felt like my body was being torn apart from the inside out as if something was urging to emerge from my flesh.

I got down onto the ground while clutching my stomach. My fingernails shifted into twisted, sharp claws that terrified me.

I never shifted, I didn't know how it was going to feel and what else was going to happen.

I needed Nicholas.

A few warm tears left my eyes, dripping over my cheek as I pressed my back against the wall. A groan teetered from my throat and my head lowered as my claws continued to grow.

I tried to rise up to my feet but instantly fell back on the ground. Suddenly, a searing pain ripped through my body and I let out a frightening scream. My bones cracked, each one of them. My muscles stretched, bulged, and moved underneath my skin.

Hair slowly began to tear through my skin and spread all over my body. My vision became a blur and then darkened. I heard every single sound around me, the sound of trees rustling, droplets of drizzle, and the loud thudding steps of Micheal heading up the creaky staircase.

My eyes widened in horror as I watched my limbs completely turn into thick, furry paws with sharp claws. My neck snapped and my spine elongated before the rest of my body turned into a werewolf.

It was longer than just a few minutes.

The pain didn't stop even when I shifted. I lay there on the ground, panting heavily, my vision flickering between my human and my wolf forms. The world looked different each time.

I heard a gentle knock on the door first and then a thud.

"April, are you okay in there?"

"The door's locked," Maude said while shuffling the doorknob. "I thought I heard a scream."

I could smell both of them. I could smell the rain-soaked earth, the scent of the trees around the house, the wet grass, the other two wolves taking circles, and even the dinner.

"I did too." Malik knocked on the door again, waiting to hear something from me, but I couldn't respond.

After a few moments, I let out a low growl, not sure if it was directed toward him or just an instinctual response to the sudden intrusion of another wolf's scent.

"There's someone in there. Should I get the key and call—"

Malik cut her off. "No," I heard him tell her. "Is that you, April?"

All that came out was another low growl.

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