*A few minutes after the events of the previous chapter*

*5/11/90*

Garrett folded his arms over his chest, deciding to cut straight to the chase. "A friend of ours was bitten during your last raid on our village and taken to your pack. We want to know where she is.”

"What do you care?" The werewolf, Steven, spat. His brown eyes were shining with combined fear and anger. "She's a monster to you, now. You probably want to kill her, right?"

"We want to save her," Jade said, narrowing her eyes. "Your leader doesn't have a good reputation."

Steven let out a laugh. "Yeah, I heard you guys talking about how you supposedly got those Ember dogs on your side. You can't fool me. No self-respecting werewolf would help a human, and you'd never help a werewolf. You think we're all immoral murderers, right?"

"What do you call that raid on Castell Henllys?!" Jade snapped, clenching her fists. "You just ran through, killed people, and left."

"It's no less than what you people do!" Steven shot back.

"He's angry,” Garrett thought. “I might be able to get him to reveal a few things if I get him riled up."

"If you hate humans, why did you bite Emma and Coraline?" Garrett asked. "Wouldn't you rather just kill them, like the wild beasts you are?" He watched the werewolf carefully.

Steven's teeth clenched, and he lunged forward, snapping at Garrett. The rope binding his ankles stopped him from getting too far. "You're the beasts! You leave the albinos in your town unguarded and treat them like dirt. They'd might as well be werewolves."

"Emma certainly didn't share your views. She knew you’re all monsters,"

Garrett replied, keeping his voice neutral.

"Hmph. She'll come around eventually," Steven said with a shrug.

“Aha!" Jade pointed at him triumphantly. "So, you have seen her!”

Steven froze. He stiffened, and his face quickly took on a closed, reserved look.

"Jade…" Garrett groaned quietly, giving his friend an exasperated look. He had hoped to get more information, but he’d have to try a different tactic now.

Jade blinked, glancing between Garrett and Steven before realizing her mistake. Her face flushed, and she backed away a bit. "Um… I'll just let you talk to him…" she muttered.

"Thank you," Garrett said before turning back to Steven. Since using the werewolf's anger wouldn't work anymore, a bit of honesty would be better. Garrett crouched down to Steven’s level. "Look, we were not told good things about your pack. We need to know that she's okay. Can you at least tell me how she is?"

Steven stared at the ground and said nothing else. A few more minutes confirmed that he was done talking.

Garrett sighed and looked up at the sky, trying to discern the time. The others would have to return soon and take Steven to Ellora and Coraline. If a patrol came through here…

A sniffle beside him caused him to look down. Jade was wiping her eyes, looking to the side. "What's wrong?" he asked, immediately looping an arm around her shoulders.

"Sorry, I messed up," she muttered. "You could've found out more if I hadn't said anything."

Garrett squeezed her shoulder. "Don't beat yourself up, okay? We still have more of an edge now that we've captured him. We'll get Emma, don't worry."

Jade wiped her eyes and leaned into Garrett, smiling a little. The others, except maybe Coraline, would have scolded or lectured her for her slip-up. Garrett never did anything like that, though. She couldn't remember when he wasn't consistently understanding and kind. She didn't even think he had ever yelled at her, not even once.

"The act won't work," Steven called over.

"It's not an act!" Jade shouted, glaring at their prisoner. "We're good people, and we want to know if our friend’s mother is okay.”

Steven snorted. "By that, you mean you want to kill her to 'cleanse her soul.' Am I right?"

"That's not-! No!" Jade replied, though her cheeks flushed shamefully as she recalled not long ago when they were ready to kill Coraline for the same reason.

"Yeah, I thought so," Steven leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes. After a few minutes, his breathing became slower.

"Is he seriously sleeping?" Jade wondered, half wanting to poke him with a stick to be sure.

"Well, last night was pretty stressful for him," Garrett walked over and draped the coat he had been holding over Steven's nude form. "All we can do now is wait for the others.” He sat down by a nearby tree, keeping a keen eye on the werewolf.

Jade curled up next to Garrett, snuggling instinctively into his side. She stared at the prisoner in silence for a few seconds. "Hey, Garrett?"

"Yes, Jade?"

"What would you have done if I'd been bitten?"

Garrett looked down at her, raising an eyebrow. "What brought this on?"

"I dunno," Jade shrugged. "I just remember what you said before our hunt for Coraline. I repeated to Rose what you said to me that night. That we should keep an open mind, almost as if you weren't sure about the Temple's teachings even then," she looked up at him. "Am I right?"

Garrett nodded slowly. "I've had my doubts. Werewolves aren't like Shadows. I've always known that. The idea that all the humanity in a person can vanish just by getting scratched or bitten never sat right with me. I fought because they attacked our village, but I never thought they were like the Shadows," he squeezed her shoulder. "If you had been bitten, I would have done everything in my power to keep you safe."

Jade's whole body felt warm all of a sudden. She couldn't keep the wide smile from her face nor from tightly hugging her best friend. He made a strained noise but still returned the hug, albeit more gently

When she looked up, he smiled at her, magenta eyes shimmering behind his goggles. Her face flushed. "Garrett, I…"

The sound of approaching footsteps caused the duo to freeze. They jumped up, looking desperately at each other. Was a hunting party coming through? How on Terraine would they explain-?

Rose burst through the trees to their relief, followed closely by Brianna. "Hey. Let's get our friend over to the meeting place. You two can go back and get some sleep, kay?"

"Actually," Garrett said. "Maybe we should come with you. Escorting a prisoner could be tricky. Besides, we still have not met Ellora or talked with Coraline.”

Rose shrugged. "Okay. If you want." She walked over to the prisoner and nudged him with her foot. "Wakey, wakey." Steven stirred in his sleep but didn't wake. Rose frowned and kicked his thigh. “I said wake UP!”

Steven let out a pain-filled yelp. His body tensed. He glared up at Rose. "So, what now?" He looked at the coat Garrett put on him, wrinkled his nose, and shook it off.

"Now, we're gonna take you to some friends of ours," Rose growled. "We'll see if they can get you to talk," she waited for Garrett to re-gag Steven and cut his ankle bindings before looking at Jade. "So, did you find anything out?"

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Emma's definitely in Scar's pack," Garrett said. "That's all we know, though."

"That so?" Rose pulled Steven to his feet and looked him in the eye. "Listen, pal. I won't be happy if I find out that your leader did anything to my mom. Neither will my brother, and he, like all of us, carry Stones wherever we go..."

A brief flash of fear went across Steven's eyes.

Rose nodded. "Good. Glad we understand each other. Let's go."

They started toward the trees. As they walked, Garrett turned to Jade. "What were you about to tell me before?" he asked.

Jade's cheeks turned pink again. She opened her mouth, glanced at Brianna and Rose, and closed it. After a moment, she jumped up to tap Garrett's nose with her finger. "Boop!" she chirped.

Garrett blinked at her before shaking his head and chuckling softly. She really was too cute sometimes.

~o0o~

"We cannot take him!" Ellora said, horrified at the bound werewolf before her. "There is simply no way to do this!" Her spirits had already been low since last night's hunt, where Coraline had been kept everywhere but at her side throughout the chase, the kill, and the following feast. She hadn't even seen her friend until the following morning when Coraline had snuck into her den. Ember had spent the night socializing with the rest of the pack.

"It was weird," Coraline had said. "She hasn't paid any attention to me before. I hope we can get to the meeting today."

Thankfully, they were able to sneak away for the meeting, though it had required much more stealth than before. Now, they were sitting in front of a werewolf from Scar’s pack, who bore several healed slash wounds and was witness to their alliance with humans.

"But won't Ember be happy to have one of Scar's wolves?" Garrett asked.

"It's not that simple!" Ellora said, groaning loudly. "First, she'll want to know where we found him. You took him from the northern end of the border, likely leaving a blood trail. Ember will smell that and smell your scents. That will raise too many questions. Second, he has seen us together and knows what we're planning. I don't want to give Ember a reason to suspect me of anything. Finally, there's no way we'd learn anything from him anyway because Ember would kill him at the first sign of disrespect."

There was a tense silence, during which the humans looked at each other.

"So, what? We kill him then?" Rose asked, looking down at Steven.

Steven made a muffled sound and desperately shook his head. Tears shined in the corners of his eyes.

Coraline stepped forward and took the bandages out of his mouth. "Have anything to say?"

"Please don't kill me!" Steven gasped, looking around. "I…I can't believe it. You really are allies,” he swallowed loudly. "I didn't think Ember would… But I guess she didn't, huh?" He stared at Ellora and Coraline, shaking his head numbly. "What are these humans holding over you? Whatever it is, it's not worth betraying your species!"

"We're not betraying anything," Ellora said calmly. "We simply wish to help a friend.”

"Impossible!" Steven snarled. "These humans are tricking you! I was one myself, so I understand how they think!” He turned his gaze solely toward Coraline. “As were you.”

Coraline knelt in front of him. "Do you recognize me at all?" When Steven shook his head, she sighed. "I was the other one who got bitten. Ellora saved me, but my mom got carried off.”

Steven was silent.

"Look, these are my family and friends. They came after me to free my soul, but I was able to convince them that werewolves aren't evil," Coraline explained. "Now, we want to get my mom back. It's the mating season, so we're really worried. Tell me the truth: Does Scar want to mate with my mom?"

Steven stared at Coraline, narrowing his eyes as they locked on hers. He glanced at the others before looking back at her again. "There was no way for you to know about the other girl…" he muttered before sighing. "Okay, fine. Yes. Scar's been watching Castell Henllys for a while. He saw Emma and felt bad for her. He wanted to save her. Fix her. That's what the raid was for. You were there, so he bit you too. I guess he thought that bringing a friend with us would make her more comfortable.”

"Save her?! Fix her?!" Rose all but shrieked, her eyes turning to ice. "She didn't need saving! She had a life in Castell Henllys! She had friends! She had us!"

"She was living in a town with a part that wasn't protected," Steven shot back. "Your town didn't care about her. I know how humanity looks down on cripples. Scar can appreciate her. He'll be good to her."

"I don't care how good you think he'll be to her!" Hunter cut in as he glared down at Steven. "People died in that raid, okay? Good people were killed, houses burned down, and I went for days thinking that my baby sister and mother were dead! My mom will never fall for a person who did that!"

"She will! Scar's very persuasive." As Steven spoke, his eyes took on a troubled look. He blinked and frowned a little before shaking himself. "What I mean is, he'll get her to like her new self, and they'll be happy. Then, they can both lead the pack and have strong pups. It’ll be great.”

"You can't persuade someone to love someone!" Coraline gasped. "That's…That's sick! Don't you see that?" She leaned closer. "Tell me the truth: Has she tried to escape?"

The troubled shine in Steven's eyes grew, and he quickly looked at the ground.

Ellora nudged Coraline to the side and took Steven's chin, tilting his face toward hers. "I'd rather not do this, but it will make things go by much quicker." She narrowed her eyes as she looked at him, allowing her alpha stare to activate. She delved into his mind, piercing at the very core, meeting surprisingly little resistance. "Hm. He feels like an omega," she thought before speaking. "You will answer my questions honestly."

"Yes, alpha," Steven replied in a numb voice.

"Is Emma being held against her will by Scar?"

"Yes."

The others made various strained noises, which Ellora ignored. "Has he mated with her yet?”

"No."

There was a loud sigh of relief from Hunter, Rose, and Coraline.

"Is he going to try, even though she's a whelp and will also be unwilling?"

Steven blinked. "Yes."

Rose made a sound that was like a muffled sob.

"Where is he keeping her?"

"In his den. At the center of the territory."

Ellora smiled a little at his quick, easy obedience before she shook herself. "Careful, Ellora. It's easy to get drunk with power when using the alpha stare. Don't get carried away," Ellora thought before speaking. "What part of the western border is the least guarded?"

Steven gritted his teeth, trying weakly to resist, before relenting. "The mid-northern end, where the pin trees are.”

"Oh! You showed me that area!" Coraline said eagerly.

Ellora waved at Coraline to be quiet. "What time of night is best to go in and sneak her out without meeting any patrols?”

More feeble resistance. "Just after midnight. The patrols pass north to south and won't circle back for several hours."

"Good. Thank you," Ellora stepped back, releasing Steven from the stare. She noticed the others giving her wary looks. "I only use that when I must," she assured them.

Steven shuddered, blinking rapidly as he recovered. Then, he looked at the others in turn, new wonder in his eyes. "You…You want to get her out, don't you?"

Rose nodded. "She's my mom. If she were to be…hurt like that…." She shook her head. “I’d kill whoever was responsible.”

"Scar wouldn't hurt her!" Steven protested. "He just needs to make her understand that she'll live a much happier life as a werewolf." Even as he spoke, his voice shook as if he was trying very hard to believe his words.

"He shouldn't be 'making' her do anything! Love isn't something you force!" Jade snapped, glaring down at the werewolf. Her blood had been boiling throughout their meeting, but the talk of making Emma fall in love finally pushed her over the edge. "It's something that just happens completely randomly. You don't expect it to happen, but when it does, you know. You just know. You become willing to sacrifice for that person. You want nothing more than to see that person happy," she shook her head. "Killing people, forcing yourself on someone… That's not love!"

Steven tilted his head. His gaze met Jade's for a moment. Then, he smiled. "Ah," he glanced at Garrett for a split second, too quickly for the man to notice, before looking back at Jade. "I understand now." For the first time, his shoulders relaxed.

Jade's face flushed, and she glanced at the others. Mason, Brianna, Rose, and Hunter looked at her with knowing eyes. Ellora had an intrigued smile on her face. Garrett just looked shocked at Jade's outburst. She cleared her throat hastily. "In any case, do you understand why this is important to us?"

Steven nodded, glancing at the others. "Yes. I can see it now," he met each of their eyes in turn, his bemused smile widening with each second. "I just can't believe it... Omegas can sense emotion, you know. Before, I didn't really look at any of your eyes. Now though, I can see how much you care about Emma. And each other," he shook his head. "This is really starting to feel like a dream."

"You can…" Jade's cheeks turned an even darker shade. "You can sense emotions?"

"And manipulate them," Steven added, turning his gaze over to Rose. "Last night, I influenced you when you hesitated to kill me. Made you feel nice and peaceful."

"So, that's what that was," Rose frowned. Before, the idea of an "alpha stare" had disturbed her. Now, however, she wondered if these low-ranking omega wolves had much more potential to violate someone. At least Ellora and Coraline couldn't read minds. If they could… Rose looked at the two once again. Ellora's hand was on Coraline's shoulder, and Coraline was leaning back against the taller girl for support. It looked like such a natural position for them. "She better not take advantage of Coraline," she thought angrily.

"So… what now?" Mason asked, looking at Steven with a slight frown. "We can't let him go, we can't send him back with Ellora, and we definitely can't take him to Castell Henllys,” he looked at the others. “I don’t want to kill him!”

"Well, I have good news. I don't want to die," Steven said dryly, though with a slight hint of panic returning to his voice.

Ellora tapped her chin thoughtfully. "There's an area near our western border that rarely gets patrols. It's in the wastelands. If we tie him up there and leave him with some food and water, we can release him after we rescue Emma," she looked at the others. "He won't be able to harm our plans then."

"What about the Shadows?" Brianna asked, her brows furrowing. "Won't he just be bait for them?”

"No. Werewolves smell like Shadows. As long as he controls his emotions, they won't bother him," Ellora replied.

Rose frowned. "The Shadows…see werewolves as fellow Shadows?" She hated herself for the sideways glance she gave Coraline. She lowered her eyes when she saw that her sister was already looking at her. “I’m sorry, Coraline. This is still…”

"I know," Coraline cut in. "I reacted pretty badly when I found out that part," she glanced at Ellora, thinking back to the Shadow stampede she caused. "I understand."

"Thank you," Rose muttered, though her shoulders slumped even further. "I'm still judging her, even now. I must be a terrible sister in Coraline's eyes." She thought sadly.

Steven let out a resigned sigh. "Tied up in the wastelands, huh? Well, I guess it's better than being killed," he grinned weakly. "I'm almost looking forward to seeing out with you crazy humans.”

"You're calling us crazy?" Brianna asked, frowning.

"Well, yeah. Any other human would've skinned me by now. You're almost acting like decent people," Steven laughed. "No humans are like that normally, so you've gotta all be crazy!" He paused. "I have an idea. What if I bit all of you right now? You can return with me, and we can all live happily in Scar's pack. You won't have to take Emma away then.”

Almost everyone said "No!" at the same time.

Steven was bound to a firm dead tree in the wastelands a few hours later. An open flask bearing a mix of wine and water sat nearby, and a bit of the kill Ellora caught for her human friends sat next to it. Once everyone was positive that his bonds were secure, they left.

Garrett and Jade paused, falling behind the others, and glanced back at Steven. "Will…Will you be okay?" Jade called over.

Steven grinned wryly. "I might be rapidly losing my sanity, but I'll be fine.”

"Don't worry," Ellora assured them as they caught up. "I'll return in the evening, so he won't escape when he transforms. And in the morning again." Her eyes flickered nervously. "I hope we can rescue Emma soon, now that we have this information. I won't be able to keep him a secret for long."

"We'll need to make a plan," Hunter said. "And get some sleep. We won't be able to save her tonight, but we should try tomorrow night.”

Rose nodded. "Yeah. The sooner we get this done, the better," she shuddered. Steven's brainwashed descriptions of Scar didn't do much to ease anyone's nerves concerning him or Emma. "I just hope we aren't too late."

The humans returned home and prepared themselves for bed. They had a light dinner of leftover sandwiches and plenty of apple cider.

They all tried to keep their moods up and even played a few rounds of cards before they all climbed into their beds.

Once Rose was under the covers, she sighed as her body relaxed from the comfort of the bed. Then, she immediately felt bad for Coraline. Her little sister must be sleeping on a grass-stuffed mat in a cave and would be lucky to have a blanket.

Rose glazed over to Coraline’s throwing knives that sat on her nightstand. She wanted to return them to Coraline, wanting her to have some kind of protection, but the others shut that idea down. Ember would want to know where they came from and most likely would smell the clan's scent on them.

Frowning, Rose turned over and faced the wall, trying to ignore the nervous feeling in her stomach. She only got that feeling when something wasn't going to go right and when she ate something bad. She hoped it was the latter option.