When I awoke the following morning, it was to the sight of Haden lying beside me, his eyes studying my face with a look of concern. As he saw me open my own, he reached up to cup my face, stroking my cheek with his thumb as he placed a soft kiss on my forehead. "Morning sweetheart," he said softly, and I gave him a small smile, covering his hand with my own, before sitting up and looking around the room. "Saxon left early, to meet with the Elders," he said, with a touch of apprehension in his voice, that made me turn back to him with widened eyes. "The Elders?" I repeated, suddenly feeling that same apprehension, "He's not going to tell them?!" I asked, getting up from the bed and beginning to feel panicked. He stood up behind me, and wrapped his arms tightly around me, "Calm," he said softly, in that so soothing voice, and my heart began pounding a little less. He nuzzled his face into the curve of my neck, breathing me in deeply before he spoke again. "We can trust the Elders," h

Breakfast was an odd mix of both pleasant and awkward, with both of them seeming happy to have me back, but wary of touching any sort of sensitive subject. By the end, I placed my fork down, and sighed deeply. "We can't avoid talking about it forever," I said quietly, breaking a long moment of silence, "We might as well get it over with." They exchanged a surprised, but relieved looking glance, before Haden reached over to take my hand, as he spoke. "We just need to know you're not going to run again, if things get hard," he said gently, and I nodded, feeling Saxon's eyes on me. He was hurt, I could tell, and I couldn't blame him. "I.. can't promise that," I said after a long moment, wincing inwardly at their hurt and frustrated expressions. "If it comes down to.. well, the worst.. I'll do whatever it takes, to protect you, and to protect myself," I explained quickly, and Haden sighed deeply but nodded. He opened his mouth to speak, but Saxon shook his head, his expression looking

Haden gave a short nod, taking my hand and leading me towards the stairs, though his eyes followed Saxon and Byron as they walked away. He looked worried. "You're expecting trouble from them?" I asked quietly, "After everything with Abigail?" Haden nodded solemnly, confirming it. "Yeah," he said, keeping his voice equally low, "And after what we've just learned, we need to be even more on our guard. If Cyrus' sources are right.." He trailed off, his mood suddenly seeming dark, though I couldn't blame him. Even I couldn't have guessed how far outside Lycan laws Yannick would tread, just to get what he wanted. What was it that he had wanted though, I had to wonder. What did Nightfall have that was so enticing? I had no answers, especially given that I'd only heard their name spoken a few times, and little more than that. "Are Nightfall large enough to be a threat to you?" I asked, and Haden sighed heavily, nodding. "They're large enough," he said quietly, "And formidable fighters. E

Haden and Susanna burst out, immediately shifting and lunging for the unkempt, rough looking Lycan who held Cyrus' limp form, its maw still closed around his bright red throat. As its eyes fell on the three of us, the crazed, rabid kind of look in them was clear, making both Haden and Susanna pause. No wolf or Lycan wanted to get too close to that. Susanna reacted quickly still, reaching for a floor lamp and ripping off its shade, spearing the beast before it even had the chance to react. It fell to the floor a moment later, beside Cyrus, who was clearly already gone. I let out a horrified-sounding sob, and Haden was beside me in an instant, in human form again, his arms wrapping me tightly and his chest blocking the scene from my sight. "Goddess.. Cyrus.." Susanna breathed, sounding shocked and heartbroken, as tears began to stream down my face. I shook my head in disbelief. I'd only meet him once, but he'd been so warm, so kind.. Haden squeezed me as he stroked my hair gently,

"They're.. wait, you mean now?!" Haden asked in shock, as Saxon waited no longer, immediately heading for the door. "Yes, now," he said impatiently, turning back to raise an eyebrow at the two of us, still standing there staring at him. "Well?" Saxon asked, and we both reluctantly moved to follow him from his suite to the hallway. As he headed towards the stairs, I hesitated, glancing at Haden, and the doors to his room. He frowned at me, giving a small shake of his head. "No, without Susanna, we wouldn't remember the way," he said gently, "We'd only get lost in all those twists and turns." I nodded, but was unconvinced, quite sure I could remember the exact route she'd taken. Still, I wasn't about to argue with him, especially with Saxon only growing more and more impatient. We followed him downstairs and through the pack house, quickly enough that I had to jog every so often to keep up with his pace. A few people we passed looked as though they might stop him for something, but o