Chapter Sixty-Nine – The aftermath

Katlyn went over to Ariel, helping her get back on her feet. There would be time to grieve the loss later, but right now Anthony needed medical care And then there was Adam. Katlyn would rather not think about that just yet.

“I shouldn’t be here. I should go. They are going to...” Ariel started to protest, but Katlyn held a firm grip on her friend’s shoulder, guiding her back to where Anthony was sitting on the ground, a member of the pack already dressing his wounds.

He looked up when he heard them coming, a sign of relief flashing across his eyes before a smile presented itself on his lips.

“How are the wound?” Ariel asked, averting the eyes of the man dressing the wounds. One glance and she could tell he didn’t care much for her. No wonder, she’d tried to kill one of them.

“I’ll live to see another day. But this is just temporary, I will need to get stitched up later. But they are a bit preoccupied with other patients at the moment” Anthony answered, standing back up on his feet once the man was done dressing his founds.

“Thank you, Jonas.” Katlyn smiled. Jonas returned her smile with a nod before walking back towards the clinic.

“Did they kill anyone?” Ariel asked worriedly. She could no longer hear wolves howling, or the familiar sound of arrows whisking through the air. Everything was silent. It gave her hope the fight was over.

“Which side?” Katlyn asked, shuddering a little. Anthony took one look at her before discarding of his sweater, handing it over to her. She needed it more than then he did.

“The – hunters” The word left a bad taste in her mouth now.

“They tried” Katlyn answered. “But we have damn good healers”

They walked back around the house to where most of the pack members had shifted back into human form, guarding the few hunters that were left conscious. Others dressed in black was lying around, some on their backs, others face down.

The green grass had traces of blood that the rain hadn’t been able to wash away.

“Are they dead?” Ariel wondered.

“He is” Katlyn pointed to where a man laid, pool of blood surrounding his head, his neck looked like it had been ripped apart. Ariel had to look away. Somehow this sight didn’t sit well with her stomach, surprising enough.

“Any others?” She had to know.

“Your dad is dead, but you already knew that” Katlyn answered, a little louder this time as they joined the circle of still shifted wolves sitting on their rear ends, watching their Alpha intently.

A dark brown wolf came to their side, nudging Katlyn in the side. She stroked the wolfs head, smiling down at him. When Ariel looked, the wolf seemed to have a sad expression on his face. Like he was grieving.

Ariel picked up the pace, closing the distance between her and the trio in the middle in just a few short steps. Several of the wolves growled at her, but she didn’t care. She had to see it for herself. Had to know if someone had finished what she had started, what she now wished she could take back.

Talia sat in the middle of the circle, Adam’s body still laying on her lap. Tears where still streaming down her face, but it wasn’t tears of joy. Adam’s chest rise and fell under her palms. Gone was the blood and the wound. The skin was smooth, like he’d never been shot.

Ariel fell to her knees just to the side of them, relief washing over her yet again. He wasn’t dead. They didn’t kill him.

“What are you doing here?” Talia asked, her eyes now focused on Ariel. There was something in them, a kind of anger, that was directed at her. She didn’t blame her. Ariel was the one who had tried to kill him. Had exposed them to her father. Had been the pawn behind this whole play. She didn’t blame them for being angry at her. Understood if they hated her. Understood if they never could forgive.

“I had to stop him. I had to stop my father” Ariel answered with a whisper, her eyes lingering at Talia for a moment before moving to Adam, his eyes were close, but he was breathing, before finding Xavier. The way he looked at her, it was the worst. The pity mixed with anger made her feel little and helpless.

“I heard he died” Talia turned to look at Adam again, her hands moving from his chest to his face, stroking away a couple of stray strands of hair. Up close like this, he looked more like a God than a monster. Ariel had to remined herself that he wasn’t one. Neither of the wolves and other creatures surrounding her were. The true monster laid dead in the woods.

Ariel took a shaky breath. Now that everything was out in the open and adrenaline had left her, she felt tired. So tired. And alone. She didn’t have a mother, because of her father. And she didn’t have a father, because of himself. And when it came to her siblings. The thought of Noah made her want to punch someone. And the others, they were all distant and far away, even Isaiah.

“He had it coming” Ariel simply said.

“The police want to talk to you, about Kieran. I’m sorry for your loss.” Talia continued, her eyes still focused on Adam, her hands caressing his cheeks and hair. He could have died, but he hadn’t. Somehow, she’d managed to heal him, just like Xavier had healed her. And the look on Xavier’s face when he’d seen it, it was surprise and shock. Even Nadine had been surprised.

“Thank you. I’m glad you don’t have to go through the same.”

A silence fell over the women as more and more of the wolves shifted back to their human self, walking around butt naked while rounding up the fallen hunters. Most of them were still alive, just knocked out cold for the time being.
–
Devan walked back towards the gate, finding the woman Penny, he had helped save earlier. She was still propped against the car, head bobbing like she was falling in and out of consciousness. The fabric on her chest was colored red from blood, and the scent made Devan grimace. He couldn’t explain why he hadn’t let Marie kill her, but there was something about the young woman. She could have pulled the trigger, could have killed Adam before everything went to hell, but she hadn’t. She had hesitated, giving them enough time.

Maybe it was the hesitating, or the scared look in her eyes, Devan just couldn’t let her get killed without a chance to explain. And who knew, she might come in handy.

“Penny?” His voice was low as he hunched down before her, shaking her shoulder lightly. Her eyes opened slightly, blinking a few times as she tried to get him into focus.

“You” She gasped, trying to scamper back, but the car way in the way.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you” He looked into her eyes, his deep brown soft and calming, holding nothing but care. She knew the eyes. The eyes of the wolf that saved her.

“Is it over?” She whispered. Looking around, she couldn’t see much from where she was sat. There was a slight uphill from the gate to the property, everyone gathered further up ahead she gathered.

“Yes” Devan answered her, offering her help to stand up. She was about to accept it when her eyes landed on his hands, and then further down. He was hunched down naked, exposing all of his private parts.

Penny looked away in a rush, red flushing her cheeks.

“You’re…” She tried to speak, but it was all but a stutter. She didn’t consider herself to be a prude. But then again, she wasn't used to being around naked men who just strolled about like it was no big deal.

“Oh” Devan looked down, realizing himself that he hadn’t taken time to get some piece of clothing to cover himself. It made him laugh. The fact that she got embarrassed was cute.

“Does it bother you?” He asked. Penny shook her head, but kept her eyes focused on the treetops as he helped her on her feet. She needed a little support, the loos of blood had left her feeling lightheaded, and his arm found her waist, supporting her on the walk back to the property.

Their welcome wasn’t friendly, the few still in wolf shape wasn’t slow to growl, occasionally snapping after her. But Devan didn’t care. He just sent them a look and helped get the injured woman to the clinic. He didn’t care that she wasn’t one of theirs, all he cared about was her need for help. And there was only one person he believed was willing to help someone who had fought for the enemy.