Chapter 4: The Shock

Chapter Four: The Shock

Even in the darkness, the light will always find a way.

Ella’s POV

I feel it coming on, I start to get dizzy and the ground starts to spin. I am going to faint. I try to push myself to just make it into the door, but I know I’m not going to make it. Damn it Ella come on I am telling myself. Everything starts to go spotty and I do the only thing I can think of, I grab onto Liam’s arm and make him take the baby. With that my entire world goes black. Shit.

I wake up in a complete panic. I see Liam leaning over me and I instantly jump up.

“Xavier, where’s Xavier, what did you do to him? Where is my baby,” I start getting hysterical. The last thing I remember is handing Xavier to Liam. Oh God what have I done? Before I can form another thought, Liam stands up and walks over to a car seat. Relief washes over me, Xavier is still here. Liam hands me the car seat and goes outside.

I start looking over Xavier and see he doesn’t have a scratch on him. Thank God he is ok. I unbuckle his seat, and wrap him up in a hug. After a couple minutes Liam still hasn’t come back in. Is this my chance? Maybe if we run I can get us somewhere safe before he comes back in. That thought dissipates as soon as it’s formed. I hear a long howl in the distance.

He shifted? I remember Liam telling me so long ago that shifting typically was something they did at night. Normally if they shifted during the day it was used for fighting, to release anger and training. What in the world does he have to be angry about? He found me, his plans now will go exactly as he wanted.

Xavier starts fussing and I realize he probably is starting to get hungry. I have no idea how long I fainted for, but seeing Xavier’s cues it must have been for a while. I pull out my breast and he instantly latches, filling himself full.

The door flies open and instinctively I jump. When I look at the visitor my eyes go wide.

“Hello Ella it’s been a while,” Amara says, with a smile on her face.

Before I have time to reply her eyes glaze over and she walks outside. What in the world is going on? Why is Amara here?

Liam’s POV

Trying to keep my composure I walk in front of Ella. I couldn’t bare being in the car any longer. I have no idea what I was thinking taking her to this damn motel. If she causes a scene it can get messy quick. I could see how tired she was getting but she had refused to let her eyes close.

Right as I am about to open the door, Ella grabs onto my arm. I instantly freeze at the jolt her simple touch creates. I turn around to face her and before I can even think, she is handing me the baby. My heart feels like it is constricting but I don’t even have time to process the feeling because next thing I know, she collapses. What the fuck is going? Panic consumes me for a split second before my instincts kick in.

I hold him in my left arm and quickly grasp Ella before she hits the ground. I throw her over my right shoulder, holding the baby carefully to ensure I don’t accidently hurt him. Making sure I have them balanced, I open the door to the room and set Ella down on the couch.

The baby starts crying and I panic not knowing what to do. It’s not like I haven’t been around babies, but this isn’t exactly a normal situation either. I remember Ella had a pacifier for him so decide to take him back out to the car. I grab his little bag and car seat and head back into the room. I quickly buckle up the baby and give him his pacifier. He starts sucking on it and just stares at me. For a moment I get lost in his eyes. I reach down gently and brush my finger across his cheek. The simple motion seems to soothe him so I continue to do so until he closes his eyes.

I can hear Ella’s heartbeat which helps my nerves calm down a bit. I get to the side of the couch and look down at her. She looks so damn fragile and helpless laying there. I don’t know what the fuck happened to her but something isn’t right.

Grabbing my phone I start to dial frantically. “Amara I need you here now, I will send you my location, take my jet and get here.” I bark the order and hang up, immediately sending Amara our location. She’s a good four hour drive but taking the jet she will be here in no time. I scramble to the bathroom and grab a washcloth, getting it wet with cold water. I place the rag on her head and after about an hour she starts to stir a bit. Next thing I know she is jolting up in pure panic.

“Xavier, where’s Xavier, what did you do to him? Where is my baby,” She is in hysterics as she is accusing me of doing something to the baby. I know I am about to explode for her accusing tone, but instead I walk over to the baby. I take one good look at him and give Ella the car seat. I see the relief wash over her and it infuriates me even more. I know I am close to losing control, I can feel a shift wanting to come out. Apparently Ella senses it too based off the look she is giving me. I have to get the fuck out of this room. With that thought I open the front door and step outside.

I see a strip of forest just ahead and go into a full run. The moment I make it to the trees I shift. No it’s not the most practical move to make and can be risky considering I don’t even know whose fucking territory I am in right now. At the moment I don’t care. My senses clear completely and I let my wolf take charge.

In my wolf form I truly am unstoppable. Many packs fear me for the size I become. With fur as silver as the moon and flecks of gold all through my fur, I tend to be a spectacle among other wolves. This form has helped me win a lot of battles and save more lives than I can count.

I instantly start to calm down being in this form. The anger melts away with each pounding step. I hear Amara in my head “Now I see why you wanted me here so fast boss, I think you have some explaining to do,” she says with amusement laced in her tone. Shit she got here quicker than I thought she would have.

“Keep an eye on them please, I need just a bit longer,” I ask Amara.

After a few moments of running I lay down and stretch for a moment. Letting all the emotions dissipate before I turn around and start to head back to the motel. Right at the edge of the forest I shift back. Fuck, I forgot I shredded my clothes. “Amara I need something to wear,” I can hear her laughing in my head and as I crouch behind the trees, I see Amara opening the door. “You better thank Carter, he had a feeling you would need a bag packed,” she says coolly as she opens her trunk. She heads to the forest line and throws me the bag.

Amara’s POV

I only have to wait less than a minute before Liam texts me his location. What in the hell is he doing in Alabama? These past eight months Liam has barely spoken a word to anyone. He ensures that the pack runs smoothly but has disengaged from everyone including me. Even when he just called, the orders were barked. Ella leaving has made him so distant and cold.

Don’t get me wrong, Liam has always done what he has to do, ensuring the safety of his pack. Many people have called him ruthless and unforgiving. Which isn’t far from the truth, but it is only against our enemies and anyone who poses a threat to us. Growing up with Liam though, I know the true nature of the man. He is kind and too caring. He puts everyone before himself.

I remember the first time I met Liam. It was in the seventh grade. Jesse Lafferty had started calling me names for being as he called it, from a poor mutt family. I remember how all the kids started laughing and pointing at me. I cowered in my chair as the tears kept streaming down my face. That’s when Liam walked into class. He seen Jesse standing over me, heard what he was saying and watched the other kids laughing at me. Without saying a word he punched Jesse right in the face. Blood started pouring out of his nose and the room went silent.

“why don’t you try picking on me instead Jesse,” He said coldly as Jesse started to cry. Not one person uttered a word. “ Anyone else want to say something like,” he looked around the room and everyone put their heads down. No one dared challenge the Alpha’s son.

Next thing that happened still blows my mind. The teacher walks in and asks what happened. Liam took the blame for the entire situation. Told the teacher that he didn’t like the way Jesse looked that day. He got a three day suspension and his parents grounded him for a month. After that, no one ever picked on me again. Liam ensured that I stayed close to his side.

I remember a few years after the incident asking him why he did what he did.

“I’m going to be Alpha one day Amara you know this. Every single member plays an important role in our pack. If we start turning against each other now, how will we ever survive in the future. I took blame because it was my fault that anyone even thought it would be ok to look down on someone else. We now and forever are a family. We build on our strengths and lean towards each other on our weaknesses. Plus I really didn’t like he was wearing that day, “ Liam says the last part in a teasing manner.

I had already so much respect for Liam but after those words he had my full trust, loyalty and respect. I knew then that he would be one of the greatest Alphas our pack has ever had. When Ella left, we not only lost our Luna but a part of our Alpha had died that day.

I suppose I don’t blame him, I don’t know what I would do if I lost my mate. Rumors speculate that she just up and ran away, but I don’t believe that for one second. Ella loved him just as much as he loved her. We would sit in her room for hours talking and laughing about our mates while they were in their meetings. I shake off my thoughts and go find my mate.

“Carter I just got done speaking with Alpha Liam. I need you to get the jet ready apparently I am heading to Benton Alabama,” I say kindly to my mate. The look on his face is pure amusement. I raise my eyebrow at him and he just chuckles and leaves the room. I instantly start to follow him. , “Carter what do you know love,” I ask him.

“Here take this with you, I have a feeling Liam is going to need this,” he chuckles as he throws me a duffel bag. “Don’t worry love, you will find out soon enough what’s going on call me when you get a chance , I love you,” and with that he heads out to make the preparations. Whatever he knows it must be good. I honestly can’t wait to get to this small town and figure out what the hell is going on.

Liam seriously picked the smallest town I have ever seen. I find the motel easily and go to the door number he instructed. Not sure what I am about to walk in on, I decide to just fling the door right open.

Ella. Well hot damn, now I know why Carter was cryptic.

“Hello Ella, it’s been a while,” I say while smiling. She look like a mess. Holy shit is that a pup in her hand? It seems there’s so much more to this story than I could have ever imagined. Before I can speak any more words I mind link Liam, amused at what he has to say about all of this. I can sense that Ella wants to say something, but she doesn’t get the chance. Liam mind links me, informing me he needs clothes. Good ole Carter, if I didn’t know any better I swear he can see into the future. I turn around and leave the room before either Ella or I can muster another word.

After I throw Liam the bag I decide to send Carter a quick message. “Well well now I see what you mean. Made it here safe, I will call you in a bit. I love you.”

With that I turn to face Liam.

“So care to fill me in,” I say with a grin plastered to my face. He puts his head down and for the first time I realize he is in emotional turmoil. What in the hell is going on around here? Finding his mate, I thought for sure he would be filled with joy. So why is there so much sadness and anger in him? That’s when reality hits me. Maybe the rumors really are true. She ran away from her mate. Son of a Bitch

I start to get mad myself. What was her plan? I clearly saw the love in her eyes for our Alpha. Was it because she didn’t have a wolf of her own? We all knew Ella wasn’t born into our way of life, but we all accepted her regardless. She truly made Liam happy and vise versa. Did she reject the idea of a werewolf for a mate? I know the human way of living is much different than our own. Humans seems to fall in and out of love quickly. Did her human way make her fall out of love? I truly can not fathom ever falling out of love with my mate, but then again that’s one of the things that separate us from them. One thing I do know, I have plenty of questions for my long lost friend.

I clear my throat and look at Liam, “Whenever you’re ready boss,” I say as he is looking at the door entrance. Those simple words seem to snap him out of his own thoughts. He stands up straight and opens the door.