Chapter 10

When Annie came back to, she was laying on a bed instead of the floor and there were cold compresses on her forehead. "How the Hell do you work this thing?" She heard Nick grumble and the sound of Velcro as something was fitted around her arm. Her eyes flitted open a moment later, causing Nick to abandon the blood pressure cuff in favor of brushing her hair out of her face.

"Annie, thank God. How are you feeling?" Nick asked as he took a seat in the chair beside the bed she was currently lying on. Apparently, while she was out, the others had set up another hospital cot.

"A little lightheaded, but otherwise fine. What happened?" Jeremy was the one to answer her, sitting in his bed to the right of her, and looking much better. He informed her that she had passed out about an hour ago. Jeremy's best guess as to why was because of exhaustion on top of the strain of giving so much blood to him during the transfusion.

"Nick was a bumbling idiot when you hit the floor, fretting over you and not leaving your side until you woke up." Antonio added in good humor from the other side of Jeremy. Annie found herself smiling a little while Jeremy chuckled. "Couldn't even figure out how to use the blood pressure cuff and stethoscope." Nick was quick to counter his father's last statement, claiming that normally they would use digital blood pressure cuffs and technically none of them knew how to use Annie's cuff. He never refuted the fact that he was incessantly worried about Annie while she was unconscious.

Elena and Clay came into the room shortly after that, reminding Annie that they had been fighting when she passed out. Apparently things had cooled down a little since then. Clay actually smiled when he saw she was a wake, claiming she had scared him and insisting she must never do that again. She quietly answered she would try her best, scooting herself towards the edge of the cot and preparing to rise from the bed. However, when she tried to stand up both Nick and Clay were there trying to force her back down. Once she mentioned that, since no one could figure out her blood pressure cuff, Antonio and Jeremy had gone a whole hour without anyone monitoring their blood pressure and pulse, they let her up. Though Nick hovered near her as though he was afraid she might collapse again.

As it turned out, both Antonio's and Jeremy's blood pressure was in the normal range, much to Annie's surprise. She quickly moved on to checking both Antonio's and Jeremy's sutures, asking what happened during her black out while she did so. The lack of immediate answers that followed alerted Annie that whatever had happened, it wasn't good. She didn't ask again until she was done cleaning both her patient's sutures and applying new gauze. Clay was the one who eventually answered her question: Koenig was coming for the pack. Although Annie didn't know who Koenig was, the looks on everyone's faces summed up that him coming for the pack was a very bad thing.

"Who's Jimmy Koenig?" Annie asked, taking a seat between Antonio and Jeremy's cots.

"He was the pack enforcer, long before I became Alpha." Jeremy began, sounding apathetic as he spoke of him.

"You know all those files about dead Mutts in the basement?" Nick asked, continuing where Jeremy had left off. When Annie nodded, Nick continued. "Koenig is responsible for most of them. Dad calls him the killing machine." Annie's eyes widened at that, looking towards Antonio who simply nodded in agreement. She knew Koenig coming had sounded like a very bad thing. It was worse than she had expected.

"I've set up a meeting with Koenig for tomorrow afternoon. I didn't want him to have surprise on his side. It should still give us enough time to prepare." Jeremy announced after Annie's question had been answered, shifting in his bed and wincing slightly. Seeing his pain threw Annie into nurse mode.

"Jeremy, you are nowhere near ready to fight. You just barely escaped poison with your life. Your body is still weakened. I'm not clearing you just so you can fight the werewolf version of the Terminator." That earned her a stern look and a reminder from Jeremy that he was alpha and he decided when he was ready to fight. Sighing, Annie immediately turned to Antonio. "Don't even think that you're going with them. It's out of the question. Poison is one thing, but you just scraped by with surgery and your body is nowhere near ready to fight. Period."

"Antonio won't be fighting Annie," Jeremy reassured her, surprising Annie at how easy her word was taken. Antonio on the other hand didn't look phased at all, almost like he had already known it. Had they already discussed all this while she lay unconscious on the floor? "You are right he needs his rest. Which is why both he and you will remain behind when we meet with Koenig." Damn it, they had discussed it already. And they were doing it again. They were going all overprotective on her.

"What? You're kidding right? I can't just stay behind while the four of you march off to do battle with the bionic killer! He sounds twice as bad as Leblanc, which is saying something because Leblanc is a twisted sociopath." Annie knew they had planned this. They wanted her to stay behind because she was a weakness to them, not an asset. If she was there they would all take turns being her bodyguard all because she was, unfortunately, the youngest and the weakest.

"We need you here. Antonio is still recuperating and cannot stay here alone, he needs your medical expertise." Jeremy was appealing to her logical side. True, he was relieved they actually had a reason to have Annie stay behind, but he didn't create an excuse. It was the truth, Antonio needed Annie there to help him.

"Fine," Annie relented. There wasn't much chance of her winning a debate this time, and she couldn't be selfish enough to insist Antonio stay behind on his own. He wasn't ready to be left alone. "Is Logan going with you at least?" Logan hadn't come home yet, despite the numerous texts and phone messages to do so. Annie held out hope that perhaps they had reached Logan while she was out, seeing as they seemed to have been very proactive during that time. Perhaps he was coming home to help them fight.

"I texted him a few times, he didn't answer back. But I could see he was picking them up," Nick answered first. "So as of now, no he's not coming."

Great, so there would only be three members of the pack there to support Jeremy. That was bad enough, but the problem wasn't just the fact that the pack was facing Koenig tomorrow. It was also that Logan wasn't usually the one they had trouble getting home. Elena normally took the throne as drama queen when it came to protesting the summoning to come home. Logan was reliable. What was going on that he couldn't make it back after multiple attempts to contact him?

"I can't believe he hasn't answered anyone. I can't believe he's not here." Annie murmured to which the others answered in agreement. "You don't think anything's happened to him, do you?" Worry clouded Annie's mind at the thought that no one could get through to Logan because the Mutts had gotten to him first.

"I talked to him several days ago. He had said he'd come as soon as he could. I doubt anything's happened since then." Jeremy assured her. The last thing Annie needed was to worry more. With the exhaustion already stressing out her body any more stress might lead to an aneurysm. "Now, I think it best if you get some rest, in a real bed. Clay will get you if we need you. Antonio will need you at your most alert tomorrow."

Annie couldn't deny she could use a decent night's sleep. She couldn't risk fainting tomorrow when it was only Antonio and her. So, she agreed. Nick followed her out, not saying anything until he reached out to stop her when they were outside his door. After a moment's hesitation, he suggested Annie stay in his room for the night. It was closer to the infirmary in case Jeremy or Antonio needed her during the night. Annie stared blankly at him for a moment, too shocked to answer. Nick never let anyone in his room. It was his private sanctuary. And he was offering to share that privacy with her. Obviously she agreed, once she recovered enough to speak.

Nick opened the door for her, waiting for her to enter before shutting it behind them. His room was surprisingly neat. The desk was empty except for the lamp and his laptop, and the only items on his dresser were picture frames—most of which had Annie in them with a variety of pack members— and his cologne. He had infinitely less stuff than Annie, though she suspected his closet and dresser held just as many clothes. Nick liked to look presentable, and he hated doing laundry. Both led to him buying new clothes when he didn't feel like washing the ones he had. His walls were a deep green and the thick curtains hanging over the windows ensured that no light would creep in, in the morning. A plus seeing as that meant she might actually be able to sleep in past sunrise as Annie's curtains were strictly decorative. None of those things were the best part of Nick's room though. The best part was that his scent was strong and clear throughout it. It was like aromatherapy, instantly putting Annie at ease.

Taking off his shirt, Nick offered it to Annie. She took it without hesitation, swapping her own with it. That night, Nick's shirt and her underwear were all she slept in—jeans weren't the most comfortable of pajamas. Annie didn't need to curl up with Nick for his scent to envelope her, but she did anyways. Despite having passed out not even an hour ago, it didn't take long for Annie to fall asleep. She wasn't sure if that was because she was exhausted, or because she was completely relaxed with Nick next to her and his scent surrounding her. Annie was so relaxed, she didn't wake up once throughout the night. The first time she opened her eyes was the next morning. At least she assumed it was morning. The room was just as bright as it had been when she had fallen asleep thanks to the curtains, however Nick was sitting at the edge of his side of the bed tying his tennis shoes.

"Good Morning," She yawned as she tried to tame her bed hair with her fingers. "What time is it?"

"Eight," Nick answered before straightening up, turning to give her a kiss on the cheek and asking how she slept. At her answer—best night sleep ever—Nick smiled widely. He was hoping she'd say something like that. He knew he had slept the best he had in years and it was nice to know Annie had as well; he also liked to think he was a big reason for that. "You can go check on my dad when you're ready." Nick added, knowing Annie would be anxious to make sure his dad was still doing alright. "I'll bring you both up some breakfast."

Antonio was awake when Annie entered the infirmary, greeting her with a smile and a comment of how he had thought it was Nick coming. Annie stuck out her tongue at the joke, knowing he was referring to the fact that Nick's scent was fairly strong on her. After sleeping in his room and wearing his tee it was too be expected. Changing the subject she asked where Jeremy was, seeing that he was absent from his cot.

"He's waiting outside for me to start training for Koenig," Nick responded as he entered the room and placed the tray of food on the table beside Antonio. "Eat up," he added before leaving. Annie admittedly watched him go, his athletic cut off shirt showed off his biceps, not to mention he also had a pretty nice butt.

"Are you going to fantasize about my son all morning or are you going to help me with the tray?" Antonio broke through Annie's thoughts, and made her turn a deep shade of crimson. She immediately helped Antonio with his pillows so he could sit up before setting the tray on his lap. As he dug in she changed out his empty fluid bag with a new one. Before she could move on to checking his pulse Antonio insisted she sit down and eat with him, promising she could play nurse after.

Annie conceded, mostly because she was starving. Luckily Nick had brought plenty of food for the both of them. She ended up pulling the tray away before Antonio was really finished, claiming he had to take his recovery slowly, which meant not overloading his intestines with food to digest. He grumbled a little, but otherwise didn't complain much.

After giving him his dose of warfarin Annie went to the window to watch Nick and Jeremy training, her excuse being she wanted to observe how Jeremy could fight with his recent injuries. It was obvious that Jeremy's injuries were affecting his fighting, however he was still kicking Nick's ass. Annie knew Jeremy was a more experienced fighter than them all, save Clay, but she also knew a big downfall of Nick's was leading with his emotions. He was too caught up in seeking revenge for the pain Santos and the Mutts put Antonio through to fully concentrate on guarding his left side when he attacked. It made her worry about him. If he couldn't control his emotions, he might make mistakes when fighting Koenig. Mistakes meant injuries, sometimes even death.

"I wish we could go with them," Annie murmured as she returned to Antonio's bedside. "It makes me even more anxious that we can't."

"Me too, Annie, but we can't." Antonio answered firmly. Annie dropped the subject after that, knowing that it would only make Antonio feel worse for not being able to go with the pack and his son. If Annie worried about Nick as much as she did, she couldn't imagine how much worse it must be for Antonio.

Annie busied herself with cleaning the used medical supplies while the others continued practicing. When it was nearing time for them to leave, they each took turns showering and changing before meeting back in the infirmary. If Annie and Antonio couldn't come along, they at least were going to be a part of the prefight meeting. Nick spoke first, questioning whether Jeremy was ready for this or not, to which Jeremy insisted he was. Annie silently agreed with Nick's opinion, but knew Jeremy was going regardless of what she thought. He had already made that abundantly clear last night.

"What if the deserted factory is just a trap?" Elena spoke up, voicing a concern Annie hadn't thought of yet.

"Koenig prefers to work alone. To be part of an ambush would be beneath him. He's only coming because Santos failed to kill me." Jeremy responded quietly before building up to the rest of his speech. "There have been a lot of changes recently. We have lost Pete, and though Antonio and Annie cannot come with us, we are still one. This is the family, and I need you to know that I draw my strength from you. We will end this today." There were no more questions after Jeremy's final words. He was the first to leave the room after that, followed by Clay and Elena. Nick stayed behind a few moments to talk with his father and Annie, making his father promise not to go into a health crisis while he was gone. When he turned to Annie she threw her arms around him, and drew him into a hug before he could speak.

"Please, be safe. Fight smart. And come home in one piece." She pleaded as she buried her head in his shoulder. He answered with a simple 'I'll try,' before kissing her lips softly. After that he left, not looking back for fear of the look of worry and dread in Annie's eyes. He was confident that the pack would win this fight, though he knew it would be a hard fought battle. If there was one thing he was thankful for, it was that they had an excuse to make Annie stay behind. He would concentrate much better if he didn't have to worry about her safety as well.

When everyone was gone the house was unnaturally silent. Annie wasn't quite sure what to do with herself. Antonio seemed the same, even more so since he was confined to bed rest for the time being. Pulling out a deck of cards Annie started shuffling, using the tray that had previously held their breakfast as a table before dealing Antonio into a game of rummy to distract them both. As they played Annie questioned Antonio about Jimmy Koenig, asking if he was really as terrible as everyone claimed. After a moment of considering whether or not to tell his story to Annie, Antonio did.

"Nick was barely six months old when Jeremy was supposed to bring Nick and me back into the pack. But on that day Jeremy was told to stand down. Nobody knew, but my father, Dominique, had sent Jimmy Koenig instead. When he came I explained to him I had made a mistake to leave and raise Nick with his mother. That was before my first change, and once I experienced the change it scared the hell out of me. It wasn't until then that I understood the importance of Nicky growing up and being raised by his own kind, by pack. I knew Jimmy's reputation, figured he was sent to kill me for my disobedience, and begged him to make it quick and take Nick to Jeremy. But Koenig wasn't there to kill me. He told me that my father had a job for me, part of the deal for coming back to the pack. He forced me to kill one of the two Mutts he had in his trunk, by closing my hand around his throat and crushing his windpipes. Then he made me bury both the bodies." Antonio's voice was strong and even throughout the story until he got to the end.

"That's terrible, how could your father be so cruel. It's borderline sadistic Antonio!" Annie exclaimed, horrified that someone's father would be so mean to force his son to murder someone. Just because Antonio had wanted to raise his son with the woman he loved.

"That's the worst part. Jeremy once confronted my father about it, asking about the Mutt I had to murder. My father had no idea what he was talking about. He had never ordered me to kill. That was all Koenig. Koenig forced me to kill a man, just for the sport of it." Malice and resentment colored Antonio's voice after that final explanation. Annie just stared at him, struck with how horrendous and purely evil Koenig was. Setting her cards down, she grabbed Antonio's arm in a reassuring gesture, murmuring a sincere apology for what he had to go through. She would have hugged him had there not been a tray in her way.

They finished their game in silence after that, both of them lost in their own thoughts. Annie was thinking of her own father, both his life and his death, and how she never knew her mother's name, the mother who had died bringing her into this world. Her father had never spoken of her, and Annie supposed it had been because thinking of her had caused him too much pain. She wondered if she looked at all like her mother, what traits she might have inherited from her. Annie would never know, with her father not around to tell her. She found herself wondering if Antonio would ever tell Nick about his mother, while there was still time, or if she would be a constant unknown in his life like Annie's mother was to her.

…BNB…

Jeremy stood alone outside of the factory waiting for Koenig. He had the others waiting inside until Koenig showed up. Koenig didn't keep them waiting, pulling up right as the minute hand hit 12, punctual as always.

"No fanfare? No welcome home sign? Not even a bouquet?" Koenig questioned sardonically as he made his way towards Jeremy.

"We'll save that for the funeral," Jeremy responded firmly. Koenig agreed, claiming the funeral would be Jeremy's. "I thought you retired after Dominique's death?" Was Jeremy's response.

"Sunsets in Sedona aren't for me." Koenig answered cryptically as he lit up a cigarette.

"One more job? You could have said no." But he hadn't. Koenig wanted this job, and not just because of the money. What his true motivations were, Jeremy didn't know. Koenig didn't shed much light on why either, simply claiming he liked to shake off the rust every once in a while. That he'd learned it paid to be ready. Jeremy couldn't help but agree with him on that last part.

"You brought help," Koenig muttered after inhaling deeply and catching the scent of the other pack members.

"I ordered them not to get involved." Jeremy assured him as Clay, Elena, and Nick came out from the factory and surrounded Koenig and Jeremy.

"Only three? I heard membership in the pack was dwindling, but this is a disappointing reception." Koenig goaded with a smirk as he took in the pack that was present.

"This is just between you and me," Jeremy reminded him calmly, to which Koenig agreed, for now. He claimed he would kill the others as well, once he was through with Jeremy. That's when Jeremy started his attack. He got in a few good punches and kicks, causing Koenig to applaud him on still having fight left in him. After that Koenig caught Jeremy, sending several punches to the side of his injury and causing Jeremy to grunt in pain.

"I heard you were stabbed, that must be tender. You've recovered better than I had expected. Faster than Antonio. Tell me, is he not here because of his injuries, or because you wanted an excuse to keep pretty little Annie away from the fight?" This time Koenig's goading got to Jeremy, but he wasn't the only one. Nick lunged towards Koenig in anger, sending a punch aimed at his jugular that was blocked before Koenig shoved him forcefully, making Nick crash into Clay in Elena in the process. "Did I hit a nerve?" Koenig chuckled darkly before launching himself over the railing and disappearing into the factory.

"Split up and find him," Jeremy ordered before taking off towards the door Koenig had entered through.

It was ciaos as they all searched for Koenig. Being separated meant that no one knew if someone had found him, so no one knew if the others were safe. When gunshots started firing from outside it set everyone on edge. Koenig, unknowingly, had been followed. LeBlanc had come for Elena, hence the gunshots. Elena had run into him outside as she was searching for Koenig. She got shot in the shoulder as she was running from him, trying to get a homeless girl to run to safety when she appeared out of her hovel by an abandoned, rusted car.

The homeless girl ended up dying, as LeBlanc mistook her for Elena and shot her. Elena barely escaped herself by hiding beneath the rusted car. She was forced to silently watch as the homeless girl fell dead in front of her. LeBlanc came to ensure Elena was dead, cursing when he realized it wasn't Elena. He moved on, away from the girl, determined to find his target, and unknowingly passing right by her and leaving her behind. However the stress of it all started triggering the change in Elena. It took everything in her to force it back down. She barely managed to get away, as the sound of her change had drawn LeBlanc back towards the car.

Meanwhile, back in the factory, Jeremy had found Koenig, or more accurately Koenig had found Jeremy. They reengaged their fight immediately, but Jeremy was weak from the strain of their earlier contact. His body was still fragile from the poison that had run through his blood. Koenig gained the upper hand quickly, holding Jeremy up by his throat, and slowly crushing it as he murmured they both knew it would end that way. Right before he finished it, Nick found them. Koenig was so distracted, savoring the kill, that he was caught off guard. It was over before he could counteract, as Nick grasped Koenig's throat before wrapping his arms around his head and breaking his neck. After taking a moment to realize he had just killed Jimmy Koenig, Nick rushed to Jeremy, checking that he was okay. Jeremy insisted he was fine as he wiped blood from his nose and mouth.

"He knew about Annie. He was taunting us, taunting me." Nick murmured after a couple moments of staring silently at Koenig's dead body.

"I know, Nick. But Koenig's no longer a threat, to Annie or to anyone. You took care of that," Jeremy responded as he clasped Nick's shoulder before pulling him away from the body.

…BNB…

After their card game was over, Annie cleared away the tray, gave Antonio his next dose of Warfarin and some more morphine then checked his vitals. Once there was nothing else she could do to help Antonio health wise, she went to retrieve her computer to give her something to do, bringing back the book Antonio had asked her for when she left. As Antonio laid in his cot reading the mystery novel, Annie reclined in Jeremy's old cot with her laptop. Slipping on headphones she pulled up a playlist on iTunes while flipping through old photos on her laptop. Before that she had checked her email, a little scared of what she might discover, only to find the most bothersome email being a formal letter to all students reminding them that midterms were coming up and listing tips to relieve stress as they prepared for them. Her email was minimized after that as she moved on to the photo albums, which proved to provide ample entertainment.

It wasn't until she was into the album of her early years at the University that a ding went off, the signal for a new email. Moving her cursor to click on the internet icon Annie pulled up her email only to regret it a moment later. The new email was from yet another address she did not recognize, different from the others yet the same in that one aspect. Her palms were sweating as she clicked on it.

You can't save them all. The pack cannot protect you. No one you love is safe.

As with all the others there were pictures and as Annie scrolled through them her stomach was in knots. She knew they usually ended with a dead body, and she could only pray that this time would be different. The pictures were of Annie with each of the pack members at random: her and clay practicing fighting techniques in the yard, Elena and her shopping in Toronto during Black Friday, Jeremy and her at her matriculation into the University, and Nick and her kissing for that first time at the bar during winter break. Though they were all creepy and stalker-ish, it was the last one that really sent her pulse racing. It was a zoomed in photo through the back window of Antonio and her playing cards in the infirmary. They weren't alone. Someone was at Stonehaven.

A/N and then there was a cliff hanger. What makes it even worse is I probably won't be able to update in several days as I am finishing up one rotation, meaning lots of paperwork and assignments. I promise to update as soon as possible though! Hope you enjoyed this installment. Thanks to all who have reviewed/favorited/followed. Makes me smile every time. Let me know what you thought!

Rach

xoxo