Chapter 10

As he entered the cave, it felt like coming home. Rochelle and him have spent a lot of time there over the past two years, his time was split between there, the Everwoods or with Iliana. The thought of her and what he did to her brought a sharp stabbing pain to his chest. Rochelle had placed an old mirror in the cave, and as he walked by, he saw the dried blood all over his hands, chest and face, Iliana’s blood. Deeper in the cave he knew there was a natural hot spring. He went there to clean up, he undressed and slipped into the water and desperately washed and scrubbed Iliana’s blood from his hands and face, until they were raw. He went underwater and stayed there for several minutes, hoping things were not real. 

He thought about Iliana and how they first met, they both were thirteen, she had just moved into Carrington with her sister and mother, they were staying at her grandmother’s house. His dad was on one of his rampages again, and his mom had quickly sent him, Rochelle, and Viktor into Carrington to “pick up a few supplies she needed,” but, it was just to get them out of the house. So, Viktor drove them to Carrington, and they went to All in All, which was the only store in Carrington, but had everything you needed. Their motto was, “If All in All doesn’t have it, we’ll get it. If we can’t get it, you don’t need it” he actually worked there over this past summer with her. They got there and he saw her walking out with her mother. She had the prettiest curly blonde hair he had ever seen, and bright green eyes. She walked right up to him and Rochelle and introduced herself. She said, “Hi, my name is Iliana Branson, my mom, sister and I just moved here to help my grandmother out. Her name is Chloe Buckhorn, do you know her?” 

He did know her. Her husband Raymond Buckhorn had joined the Blackthorn Pack three years prior, and he died within a year of joining, something about heart complications, at least that is what his dad said. He thought there was more to it than that. Rumor had it that Raymond Buckhorn refused to join the Rogue Hunters and threatened to expose his father. Next thing you know, he died of heart complications. Poor Chloe was heartbroken, she swears to this day that her husband was fit as a fiddle and had no health problems whatsoever. She claims that he was murdered but doesn’t have any proof, just a “feeling in her gut,” she says.  She could never prove anything, so people started to believe she was crazy. Everyone began calling her Crazy Old Chloe, with the help of his father no doubt.  He told her that he did know of her grandmother. She then asked him pointedly if he thought she was crazy like everyone else. He remembered telling her that he doesn’t judge people by what others say of them, as far as he is concerned Miss Chloe is a sweet heartbroken widow that only wants to see justice for her husband. Iliana gave him one of the biggest, most beautiful smiles he had ever seen. She then asked if he went to Wilmington Prep, which was founded by Baxter Wilmington as one of the first school’s that blended humans and wolves together in learning. Again, he told her he did, she said, “Great, I hope to see you around there then,” she gave him another big, beautiful smile and walked off. He looked forward to seeing her around school. After that initial first meeting they became good friends, then two years ago they decided to try and be more than friends, and it worked out great for them. Until now…

He gasped as he lifted his face out of water to get air. He got out of the pool, dried off and put on a new set of clothes from the trunk. He started a fire and burned the clothes that were covered in Iliana’s blood. He then sat and stared at the fire, getting lost in its fiery depths.