So, this is my first attempt at an Otherworld story. I obviously do not own the characters, nor do I make a profit from this. I hope my readers enjoy this.

It was a cool fall September evening at Stonehaven. The leaves had undergone their annual change, and were falling from the trees, dancing in the light breeze as they tumbled towards the ground. The twins were in bed, likely asleep. Jeremy, Elena and Clayton tried to relax by the hearth, discussing the mutt issues. It had been peaceful, the past few months. Too peaceful, like the calm before the storm. It made all three uneasy, waiting for the next shoe to drop.

Jeremy got up to make some hot chocolate, stretching as he ambled towards the kitchen. Hot chocolate was his only culinary accomplishment. Otherwise, Elena or Clay handled the food preparation. A sudden howl broke the silence. Seconds later there was an eerie thumping sound by the front porch. Forgetting the drink entirely, Jeremy hustled back into the main room, to find Clay and Elena on their feet. Elena nodded at Jeremy,

"Yeah, we heard it too." Clay left the room, stalking to the front door. The howl had been a definite challenge. But the thumping noise was troubling as well. The door opened, followed by loud cursing from Clay. The swearing brought Jeremy and Elena to the front hall. What Jeremy saw froze him in his tracks momentarily, his heart pounding in his chest.

Clay was leaning over the body of a red haired woman. She'd been badly beaten, and there was a lot of blood. Jeremy sniffed, confirming his worst suspicions. It was Jaime. Jeremy rushed over, leaning down to check her pulse.

"She's alive. Get her inside. Now." He snapped, in a tone neither Clay nor Elena had ever heard him use. Jeremy never snapped, at anyone. Clay hadn't even heard Jeremy use that tone with Malcolm, the bastard. Clay picked Jaime up as carefully as he could. While Jeremy had the medical expertise, Clay knew enough about injuries to know her injuries were severe. Elena was already moving, grabbing the medical kit Jeremy kept on hand for the pack's use.

Jaime was quickly carried to the closest guest bedroom, where she was gingerly laid down. Then he stepped out of the alpha's way. Elena brought the kit in, setting it nearby. Jeremy did a cursory exam, muttering under his breath. Then he saw something that made him pause, with a sharp intake of breath.

"Fuck!" He cursed loudly, knowing exactly what the rapidly swelling marks on her wrist meant. "Oh fuck!" Elena saw what he was looking at, and her eyes widened. It was crystal clear to all three what had happened. Jaime had been bitten.

Clayton and Elena were at a loss for words. While Clay and Jaime were not friends, he accepted the Jeremy cared for the necromancer. After a while, he'd even begun to find her tolerable. Elena was the friendlier one of the two, and had hit it off with Jaime much quicker. But Jeremy? He and Jaime had been together for a while now. They were a couple. And now she'd been attacked.

As if to remind them, another howl of challenge filled the air. Jeremy looked up, his black eyes blank as he tore his shirt off, and kicked off his shoes. As he walked to the door of the bedroom, Clay stood in his way. Elena knelt by the bed, putting pressure on the worst of the visible wounds.

"Move. Now." Clay was reminded of his own meager vocabulary when Jeremy had brought him home. His tantrum when he'd wanted to go out, without speaking a full sentence. Jeremy's seemingly endless patience with him. Now the roles were reversed.

"No, Jeremy. I'll deal with this." There was an edge to Clay's voice, and he didn't like having to say no to his alpha and father figure.

"Clay, get out of my way." His volume rose, as did the desire to beat the mutt to a bloody pulp before killing it. He'd never wanted to fight someone or something as badly as he did right now.

"Why? So I can bury both of you? Fuck, Jeremy, you're pissed off, I get that. But if you go out that door, she'll die. I don't know what to do, and neither does Elena. "Clay shoved Jeremy back, hating what he was doing, but knowing what would happen if he didn't. "You can't help her if you're dead." A soft moan from the bed stopped the conversation all together, pulling Jeremy out of his sudden rage.

Jeremy moved back to his patient, his lover, and began patching up what he could. Clayton seized the moment, stripping down and changing. There was a dead mutt outside, and this was Clay's job, one that he was well suited for. Elena stayed, not only to help with Jaime, but to keep an ear out for the twins.

For an hour, Jeremy and Elena were incredibly busy. It was difficult, not only to keep a quasi-professional mindset, but to determine the extent of her injuries. The clothes she'd been wearing were a complete loss. Not only from the blood, but her shirt and skirt were torn and ripped nearly to shreds. This had been a vicious attack. Finally, they were finished, the bleeding controlled and bandages applied. Thankfully, Jaime hadn't woken up yet.

"Did you and Jaime have something going on this weekend?" Elena asked quietly. Jeremy shook his head,

"She'd mentioned possibly coming up, but there wasn't anything definite." Jaime stirred, whimpering quietly, before her body started to tremble. Jeremy knew what was happening, and Elena did as well. Seizures. Elena had seen it happen with Sondra Bauer, when the woman had injected herself with Elena's saliva. The end results had not been pretty. While she said nothing to Jeremy, she knew he was probably thinking about that as well. He hadn't been there, but she'd told him and Clayton all about it. She looked at Jeremy, who held a needle in one hand. "Hold her arms down."

Jeremy injected the sedative quickly, while Elena kept Jaime's arms from jerking around. When he was finished, Elena stepped back, watching as the seizure stopped. He stepped away from the bed, noticing for the first time that his hands were covered in Jaime's blood. Elena started to leave the room, wanting to wash her own hands, when Jeremy called her.

"Elena, put some coffee on. It's going to be a long night."

More to come, eventually. Read and review, please.