Unbroken Ch 35 The Wolf, a women of the otherworld fanfic

This is how SuperNatural1985 and I picture Sorrentino Estates: http:/www(.)dreamhomedesignusa(.)com/Villa%20Serena%20Payne%20Stewart%20Mansion(.)htm

Please read Max's POV on the situation in SuperNatural1985's one shot titled Strong Part 5.

I'd like to thank SuperNatural1985 for her amazing editing skills and for all her help and support! As she has already announced in her story, The Way to Live, Max will be making appearances throughout this story as one more of the Pack. I encourage you to please read Max's original story in The Way In, also by SuperNatural1985.

*Kim has now been introduced into SuperNatural1985's The Way to Live and was already featured in Struggling, Disastrous,It Begins, Broken Bonds, Hurt, Challenge, Aftermath, Werewolf Law 1 and Unacceptable.

Keep Holding On – Avril Lavigne

You're not alone, together we stand
I'll be by your side, you know I'll take your hand
When it gets cold and it feels like the end
There's no place to go, you know I won't give in
No, I won't give in

Keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Just stay strong
'Cause you know I'm here for you, I'm here for you
There's nothing you can say, nothing you can do
There's no other way when it comes to the truth
So keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through

So far away, I wish you were here
Before it's too late this could all disappear
Before the door's closed and it comes to an end
With you by my side I will fight and defend
I'll fight and defend, yeah, yeah

Here me when I say, when I say I believe
Nothing's gonna change, nothing's gonna change destiny
Whatever's meant to be will work out perfectly
Yeah, yeah, yeah

Ch 36 The Wolf

Reese POV

I growled viciously but was only answered with another growl and a hard squeeze on the shoulder from a much more dominant wolf than me. I wanted to pace to lose some of the edge, but Nick held me tightly in place. I breathed through my nose so as to not inhale the smells of the garbage that was strewn all over the alley. My wolf prowled viciously within me, anxiously awaiting the call that would take us to our mate and give us blood and revenge. I could see that Antonio and Nick felt the same way I did, but they were in much more control of their wolves than me, though they didn't feel the pull of the mate bond as I did so their wolves were easier to control right then.

As far as I could tell, Kim had not been hurt, though the sound of her scream had pierced through me like a shard of ice and had almost made me Change which is exactly what Kim had done after screaming. Only Antonio's dominance had made me stay in human form. We had no idea where she had called from, so Karl was tracking the call using the technology they use on the television shows my Kim was so fond of.

After what felt like an eternity later, Antonio's phone rang. Elena was quick and to the point, giving us the address of where Kim was and telling us that they were on their way. But we were closer so we would get there before them.

The three of us ran back towards the car without a word. Antonio drove us to the address quickly—though not quickly enough for me—not even bothering to park appropriately before getting out. We stormed into the rundown apartment building where Kim's scream would not have been out of place. We followed the faint stink of cologne to the fourth floor where Antonio pressed his ear against the door to listen for about half a minute that seemed like forever to me and then he snapped the doorknob and the three of us barrelled inside without a second thought.

The smell of death and blood greeted us, going right through me to my wolf, but the fear I suddenly felt held him back. Antonio and Nick were old and experienced enough to be able to control their wolves, but it was hard for me sometimes, especially if I was hungry like I was now. But I was too afraid for my mate to think about eating.

I slowly started walking into the shack-like loft—probably worthy of Hagrid himself—and my eyes instantly went to the body lying a few feet away from one of the two doors. It was Turner. I could smell him and his cologne even over the stink of death that emanated from his body. His face was covered in blood and his head was at an awkward angle, clearly snapped.

Ignoring the body, I went straight into the small bedroom behind it and I almost howled at the sight. My mate was in wolf form, covered in blood and lying over the corpse of her friend. My wolf sang within me at seeing our mate, but Kim growled at me when she saw me, pulling her ears back and baring her teeth. She was protecting Abbey.

"Amor," I said gently and lowered myself so that we were at eye level. She just growled at me again, but the happiness and fullness I felt right then was overwhelming. My mate was okay. I faintly heard Antonio and Nick coming over to me and heard one of them suck in their breath, but I ignored them and focused on the dark brown wolf before me, her dark fur crimson with blood. "I'm not going to hurt her," I said slowly to my mate so she had time to decipher the human language. When she didn't back down, I lifted a hand towards her, slowly so she wouldn't think I was attacking her.

"Reese," Antonio said in warning, but I ignored him. My mate wouldn't hurt me, even if she was overtaken by her wolf's instincts to protect her friend, even in death. She growled lowly at me and her hind legs prepared to pounce. Just when I thought that I had made a mistake, I saw her nostrils flare and her eyes brighten with the intelligence of the human.

"Kim," I said gently and a soft whine escaped her throat. I forced myself to stay absolutely still as she stood, in case she interpreted my embrace as an attack, but I needn't have worried. The bond was strong between us and her wolf recognized her mate. They both knew I would never hurt them.

Careful so as to not disturb the body, my mate came over to me and nuzzled my neck, whining loudly. I wrapped my arms around her, burying my head into her blood covered fur. I sighed as I felt her in my arms, feeling the bond flow between us, reassuring me that she really was okay. One whiff told me that the blood that covered her wasn't hers but Abbey's and Turner's and she had been soaked in it when she had lied over her friend's body to protect her.

I heard a sigh of relief from behind me and then movement as one of them—Nick because of the lighter footsteps—went back into the main room and called Elena. I felt Antonio kneel down beside me and I lifted my head and looked at him to see warring emotions flash behind his eyes. I pulled my mate harder to me, feeling complete for the first time since she had been taken, and she sat down on her hind legs, letting me wrap my arms around her entire body now.

"Princess," Antonio murmured and Kim whined softly from in between my arms. Slowly, Antonio lifted a hand and touched her head lightly. A sound somewhere between a whine and a whimper escaped my mate and she shifted her head a bit and licked her father's hand.

I pulled back gently and kissed my mate's muzzle, bringing my face down to it and holding it there for a moment. She wined again and moved her head away to nuzzle my neck. I embraced her again, holding her tightly in my arms as if my life depended on it. My mate was okay. She was alive. And she was here with me. I whined softly into the fur around her neck and she whined back, digging her muzzle into my own neck, her wet nose making me shiver.

"I love you," I whispered and felt her start shaking in my arms. I knew that had she been human in that moment she would have been crying in my arms. I inhaled her scent and once again felt the bond between us that completed us and made us one and the same.

Antonio POV

Slowly, so as to not startle my daughter, I stood and went over to the body behind her. I kneeled down beside Abbey and heard Kim growl lowly but she didn't move an inch from her mate's arms. A warning growl. She knew I would never harm Abbey's body but just in case. Her protective instincts were still in overdrive with the wolf so close.

Gently, I closed Abbey's eyes that held the eternal look of terror. I tried not to think about the gash on her neck and turned away from it, but my eyes fell on the handcuffs that were tied to the bed with a metal chain. I clenched my fists to control my anger, half wishing that Turner wasn't already dead, so I could have my justice—a lot of ripping would have been involved, for sure. But I knew that if Turner hadn't been dead, then my daughter probably wouldn't have been able to call Reese, thus allowing us to find her.

I watched my daughter and her mate for a moment, thankful to the gods that she was alive and well. My principessa was so brave, so brave. She was still new to this life, to being a werewolf and everything that that entailed and yet she had killed Turner. Though from what I could gather, Abbey's death had ignited her anger which had most likely led to her killing Turner. I pushed thoughts of Noah's inevitable pain aside and gave Kim and Reese a moment longer, knowing that they needed to feel reunited, before standing.

"Reese," I said softly. He looked up and I saw his wolf in full view. His hadn't pulled him out on purpose, but his wolf no doubt wanted to be at the forefront to protect his mate. However, I couldn't have two young werewolves at the mercy of their wolves' instincts. One was more than enough. I called on my own werewolf and let him peek out, pushing Reese's back.

"We need to get her back to the house," I said once his wolf had retreated. Reese nodded and looked worriedly at his mate and then at the blood that covered the floor. I nodded when he looked at me and followed his gaze back to the blood.

We still hadn't taken Kim on a run around humans. She had had control for months and we had decided to start taking her on runs near humans before summer. The wolf is in almost total control when we are in wolf form and humans are food for the wolf. And a wolf in the wild always takes advantage of the food he finds, whether he's hungry or not. Kim had "food" right here before her but instead of eating she had protected her friend. Her wolf had taken Abbey as Pack, so she would never hurt her, even if she was possible food for her wolf. I was so proud of my daughter in that moment that tears threatened just as they had when I had first seen her when I stepped into the room. Even if she hadn't snacked on Abbey, she could lose control at any moment and do just that because of the smell of blood and death. We needed to get her out of here.

I took a deep breath, calming myself before going over to Reese and Kim. I laid a hand on my daughter's fur on the back of her head and murmured, "Princess, we need to get you out of here." I spoke slowly because it's hard for us to understand human speech while in wolf form. Kim definitely understood me because my words were met with a deep growl.

She flung herself out of Reese's arms and jumped over Abbey's body, growling and baring her teeth at me as she poised herself gently over her dead friend's body. "Sweetheart," I said gently and knelt down so she wouldn't think of me as a threat, though I'm not sure if I accomplished that since I was almost three times her size. "We're not going to hurt her. We're going to take her with us." Abbey needed to be buried and we would do that back at the estate. I tried not to think about the pain my daughter was going through and all the pain she still had ahead of her. They had been so close, almost like sisters. I pushed these thoughts aside and focused on the situation before me.

"Change," I ordered, meeting her gaze with my wolf in full view. She backed down immediately with a whine and took a few steps back but lost her balance and fell on her hind legs. She whined again when she saw my wolf once more and collapsed on the floor, curling up into a ball with her back to us and Abbey.

I stared at my daughter, anger searing through me like a red hot arrow. Kim was in so much pain that she refused to Change back, even if I had ordered it—things were much simpler when we were wolves. Sometimes Kim was able to fight our orders—though not the Alpha's—since she is a bitten wolf and doesn't feel the pull to obey as strongly as us if she doesn't want to obey, like now. I clenched my fists and forced down the raging wolf that wanted revenge and thirsted for blood at seeing the hurt my daughter was going through. No. I couldn't let him out. Turner was dead and Kim had killed him.

"Kim, Change," I tried more forcefully, but she didn't even move, just whined softly. I glanced at Reese and saw him looking at my daughter with such pain in his eyes that it hurt to look at. Without a word, he got up and went over to his mate, gently laying a hand on her back. She didn't move.

"Amor," he whispered and started rubbing circles as he moved his hand to her belly. I saw her start to tremble and the smell of her sadness filled the room. I wanted to go over to her as well, but she was so frightened and in such pain that I knew it was best to leave her with her mate. The past day had proven to me how strong their bond was. So strong that I knew that if one day we lost one of them—God forbid—we would lose the other as well. If my daughter had died at the hands of Turner, I knew that Reese would have lost it, he would have broken, and nothing we would have been able to do would have fixed him. In the end we would most likely have had to take drastic measures and eliminate him to protect the Pack, but I couldn't think like that. Nothing would ever happen to them as long as I was around. Or so I hoped.

"Let's go home," Reese murmured into her ear. She whined in answer and slowly stood with Reese's hand buried in the fur on her back. She stared at him with longing in her eyes and Reese whined at her, but she just looked at Abbey and then back at him.

"I'll take care of her, principessa," I promised and Kim met my gaze, searching it, and then nodded oddly. She waited until Reese had stood and then started making her way out of the room with Reese by her side. We walked back into the main room—though not very big—and I stiffened as Kim stepped around Turner, but she didn't even look at him. I sighed softly and followed my daughter and her mate, signalling to Nick that I would be right back.

Reese led his mate all the way down the stairs and to the car which was "parked" right in front of the building. I opened the door and Reese hopped in, knowing that Kim would not get into the car unless he was there. Thank the gods that Kim and Reese were mated or this situation would have been very, very dangerous for Kim and for us. Her wolf only trusted her mate in such a painful situation. Kim climbed in and lied down with her head on her mate's lap and her back to the door, trusting that her mate would protect her if they were attacked.

I motioned to Reese to know if he wanted me to send Nick down, but he just shook his head, his gaze immediately going back down to his mate, and I had to agree with him. Kim's wolf was very strong in that moment because of the situation she had just been through, the fear and the pain that still seared through her, tinging the air with the smells of them. We were her pack, but she was so on edge that the only person she would never hurt was her mate. I thanked the gods one last time and closed the door.

Any passersby would take my daughter as a dog since she wasn't abnormally big, even for a wolf. We retained our body mass when we Changed to wolves, but Kim was small in human form as well so her wolf wasn't very big, at least not big enough for someone to call the police or animal control. We had a collar in the trunk that we used for when we needed to Change around humans to lessen the chances of them seeing a wolf instead of a dog, but I doubted Kim would have let us put it on her.

I was just about to cross the threshold of the apartment building when I heard the sound of tires skidding on asphalt. I turned my gaze towards where the noise came from and saw Clay's car speeding down the road. I stepped back outside and watched as the car came to a stop right next to mine. Clay, Elena and Karl jumped out and ran over to me.

"Where is she?" Elena demanded, her dominant wolf in full view. I backed down from her and nodded towards my car. She spun around and looked over at my children. I quickly gave her the play by play of what had happened and she nodded absentmindedly as she watched Reese stroke Kim's back with gentle movements, his lips moving in silent comforts.

"She's okay," I said and she nodded again, turning back to me and motioning me forward. Kim was okay and safe for now and with Turner dead she was in no immediate danger. We would take her home as soon as the mess upstairs was cleaned up.

We got upstairs to find that Nick had already started the clean up, unfortunately stumbling upon the place where Turner had kept Abbey. I strode over to where Nick was standing, anger clouding his eyes, his fists clenched. I looked into the tiny pantry, seeing the blood that was splattered on the walls and shelves. The sour stink of fear permeated the air and my wolf growled within me, still on edge about the failed hunt.

I turned away from the sight and turned back towards the room, taking in the terrible state the place was in. It looked like a homeless person had been living here, which made me wonder how Turner, being a werewolf, had managed to live here with the smell. Of course something told me that his nose didn't work very well or he would have known that Kim and all the other girls he bit were not his dead lover.

I walked across the room towards the body where Karl and Clay were studying it while Elena checked on the one in the bedroom. The smell of Kim's anger engulfed Turner's body, almost entirely covering the stink of his fear and blood. I kneeled down beside Clay and took in the hands, each finger snapped and pulled from its socket. Both wrists were snapped as well, beyond the ninety degree barrier.

"That's quite a temper she has," Karl murmured, surprise touching his face lightly, and gestured towards Turner's mutilated face. My daughter was an amazing fighter and had a sharp mind, but Karl had never seen her in action and had apparently not thought of her as dangerous up until that moment, from what I could tell from the look on his face. But my Kim was plenty dangerous—one look at the bloodied body before me told me so.

I said nothing to Karl's' comment, however. I was too scared for my daughter to utter a single word right then. This was Kim's first kill and we were already seeing the consequences it was having on her. She refused to Change and I was scared to think of what she was going through right at this moment. Would she hate herself for what she had done? Knowing her, she would most likely blame herself for Abbey's death as well. It wasn't her fault, but Kim tended to think like that and always takes the responsibility for others.

Turner's head was wrenched at an impossible angle and I could see Clay taking it in, studying it. He was Kim's mentor as much as me, though Kim had progressed so much in the last couple of months that he had only come up to visit us once a month to keep an eye on her training. A training which included learning different killing techniques. Kim had absorbed them without a word and we could see that she had been paying close attention.

Clay suddenly turned the body around and we found the source of the puddle of blood beneath the body. I glanced around the room and immediately found the blood covered knife just a few feet away. Clay frowned as he followed my gaze and I heard him mutter something about weapons. He was so close to his wolf that weapons seemed like the height of low for him, unlike Max who also lived with his wolf close at hand but he just saw it as a means for survival and used what he had, like he always had for most of his life. But I knew that if Kim had used the knife, it was because she had had to, for whatever reason. I had taught her to fight without weapons, but she knew how to unarm armed opponents and use their weapons against them. She was a fast learner.

I left Clay and Karl to take care of the body while Nick cleaned up and I strode over to Elena, bypassing the place where my daughter had been sick. She was kneeling down beside Abbey's body, soaking her jeans with the blood that encircled it, emotions flashing behind her eyes at the speed of light. I knew what she was feeling. She hadn't known Abbey until last night but she was a mother and Abbey was just a child, just like Alex, and neither of them had deserved the end they had had.

I laid a gentle hand on her shoulder and rubbed it softly, feeling her relax at my touch. Even leaders needed to be reassured sometimes and I'm sure that right then she was thinking of her own children and how this could have been them. The werewolf life was a dangerous one, we all knew it which is why we always tended to let the younger werewolves stay pups for as long as possible, letting them live in safety until they were ready. But no one was ever ready for death.

It was late by the time we left the small loft, leaving it cleaner than it had probably ever been. Kim was still in wolf form lying over her mate while I drove and Nick sat beside me. Elena had called Jeremy to inform him of the situation and had told him about Abbey. As Alpha, he would be the one to break the news to Noah.

I gripped the steering wheel hard as I remembered how heartbroken Noah had been last night and I prayed that we would be able to help him through it. More specifically, I prayed that his siblings would be able to help him through it. They were so tight that you would think that they had been raised together since birth. They would be there for him and I knew that the need Kim felt to help and protect her brothers would help her to move past what had happened. Abbey had needed her help once and that had made Kim push her own problems aside to help her, allowing her to move forward with her life. Hopefully the same would happen again.

We reached the house long after darkness had fallen and the lights of the house illuminated the grounds and surrounding forest, giving the woods a sinister look. I parked in the garage and Clay parked outside in the driveway. We had a very large garage, but only our cars and motorbikes fit in here, which were by no means a small amount.

I had barely stepped out of the car when the garage door burst open and Max and Noah flew through it, their faces red and tear-stained. Addison trailed behind them and then came Morgan and Jeremy. Jaime and Hope were not in the house since they had taken the twins out. We had no idea how stable Kim was at the moment and, though it seemed like she was in control, we weren't taking any chances.

I motioned to the boys to keep calm, knowing that Jeremy had warned them about Kim and how unpredictable she might be, but they had obviously foregone the warning in their need and want to see their sister. I stepped around the car and opened the back door. Kim lifted her head off her mate's lap and looked at the wolves before her. She didn't growl, just stared, taking it all in as if she were bored.

Suddenly, she jumped out of the car and strode across the garage towards the door. When she past Noah and Max, my youngest son tried to reach for her, but she just sped up and walked up to Jeremy who stood in the doorway. She looked up at him and then bared her neck, submitting to him. Jeremy didn't even blink at Kim's actions and just nodded to her when she looked back up at him and stepped aside. She padded past him and Reese quickly followed her without a backwards glance. All his attention was on his mate now, the rest of the world could wait.

Max let out a soft whimper, his gaze stuck on the door where Kim had disappeared through, and Noah looked heartbroken which he really was. I went over to my sons and took Max in my arms while Nick took a hold of Noah who collapsed into Nick's embrace. I rubbed soft circles into Max's back as he started shaking while his tears soaked through my shirt, but I didn't care. I just pulled him harder against me.

"She's okay," I murmured and saw Elena evacuating everyone to give us some time alone. We were Pack and we were all very close, but since we lived together there was a deeper bond between us, a sense of trust that grew with every day that we spent together.

"She has a lot to deal with, guys. Just give her some time and she'll come back around, I promise," I said now and heard Noah whimper, knowing that his thoughts were now going to Abbey since Kim was obviously safe and sound.

"What can we do to help her?" Max asked, his voice muffled against my chest. I inwardly smiled. Max was always trying to help and I knew that he would do anything for Kim, anything. Like I've said, if Max wasn't gay, the closeness between Kim and him would have caused a lot of riffs between Max and Reese. Blood would have been shed for sure.

"Just give her a lot of love. And time," I said and looked over at Nick who nodded at me, though I could see in his eyes the worry that I was keeping inside for the boys' sake. Kim was in pain, in shock and maybe in fear. She would stay in wolf form until she was ready to face it all. Jeremy wouldn't force her to Change back. She needed to do it on her own, but if she stayed in wolf form for too long, he would have to order her to Change back. If she spent too much time under the skin of her wolf, she might never come back.

Reese POV

Kim padded across the hallway and to her door before she looked back at me. Her dark, chocolate brown eyes held so much pain that all I wanted to do was hold her. Instead, I opened the door to her room and she ran in, climbed on the bed and curled up into a ball. I inwardly growled, hating Turner for what he had done to my mate. He could at least be thankful that he had not raped my mate. If he had, I would be out looking for a necromancer as soon as my mate was back. But we hadn't smelled sex back at the dirty loft, so it didn't seem that he had done anything, though I would wait for my mate to tell me what had happened.

I stepped into our room and closed the door behind me, slowly walking over to the bed. Kim didn't even move. I sighed and rubbed her back gently as I sat down beside her. My wolf whined within me at the obvious pain my mate was in or she would have already Changed back now that the danger had passed.

"Amor," I murmured and one of her ears fluttered at the sound of my voice. "Sweetheart, let me get the…let me wash you," I said, deciding to not tell my mate that she was covered in blood, though she no doubt already knew it. The smell was overwhelming.

After a moment she chuffed and then stood, jumping off the bed and heading over to the ensuite door which was also closed. She looked back at me, looking a little annoyed through the pain and I smiled weakly. My mate liked being independent, so maybe having to rely on others would make her Change back sooner rather than later. I knew what the dangers of being exposed too long to the wolf were, but my Kim still had time.

I went over to her and opened the door, letting her in. Without even looking at me, she bypassed the shower and went straight to the bathtub which also had a shower head. I nodded at her choice and strode over to her as she hopped in, preparing herself for the ordeal of having a shower while in wolf form. From the look on Kim's face as I washed her, it wasn't a pleasant experience.

It wasn't so bad, though. She let me wash her without complaint—not that she could complain much while in wolf form—and she even let me stroke her face and give her soft caresses. I'm not sure why she had ignored everyone else downstairs, even her brothers, but knowing Kim, I could guess that it's because she doesn't want to bring anyone down with her in her pain. I'm her mate and her wolf knows she would have one hell of a time trying to ignore me, so she let me be here with her, and me alone.

While I bathed her I found that the blood on her front paws was not Turner's or Abbey's but hers. She also had a few scraps and I knew that they were from the blows she had planted on Turner. I forced myself not to worry about that for now and focused on my mate, just my mate.

Once she was mostly dry she went straight to the bed and I was just about to lie down beside her when someone knocked on the door. I stood and went over to it, opening it silently to find Max and Noah carrying two trays of food that could have fed a fat king. I was about to tell them to give me the trays and then send them away but I thought better of it. Kim loved her brothers, so maybe being with them again would make her Change back, though I wasn't very hopeful about this. My mate would Change back when she was ready, but for now we would give her all the love we could.

Noah and Max sat down on the bed beside Kim, but she made no move to acknowledge them. She only moved when I put a steak to her nose. She ate the two trays of food without leaving any crumbs at all while my brothers and I watched her in silence. I could see my brothers' worried expressions and I knew they were scared, but there was nothing we could do except be there for her.

Kim finished eating and then lied down on the bed beside me. I leaned back, lying down myself, and motioned for the guys to take up the spot where Kim normally slept when they slept with us. Max looked crestfallen and Noah looked on the verge of tears as he surveyed Kim's still form. Without a word, Max hopped off the bed and strode over to the bathroom, leaving the door slightly ajar behind him. The grunts and whimpers that were heard a few minutes later made me grin slightly. My little brother really was a genius.

A smallish brown wolf stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later and Noah immediately jumped off the bed and went to Change as well. Max climbed up onto the bed and crawled over to Kim who lifted her head slightly and then laid it back down on the bed. Max whined and pawed at the bed, cocking his head to the side as he looked at Kim. I sat up and shifted my position so I could easily get Max out of the way if Kim reacted badly to having wolves around her. My mate had control but she was in so much pain that I had no idea how this would affect her.

Max leaned down then and prodded Kim in the side with his muzzle, whining loudly again. My mate lifted her head again and looked at Max, staring at him for a few seconds, as if suddenly recognizing him, and then licked his face. Max grinned wolfishly now and huddled into her side, purring with happiness. I smiled down at them, relief flooding through me as I realized that I was not the only one that could comfort my mate.

Noah came out of the bathroom a while later and I went next, rushing through my Change painfully, so I could get back to my mate as soon as possible. I trotted back into the room and found Max still curled up into my mate's side while Noah licked Kim up and down, almost the equivalent of human hugs and kisses. I jumped up onto the bed and lied down on Kim's other side and Noah rested above us, so we were encircling Kim with our warmth and comfort.

I heard her whine softly before she shifted and brought her muzzle to mine, licking it before closing her eyes. I licked her back, hearing her and my brothers purr in contentment before drifting off to sleep with the feeling of completeness filling me and the knowledge that the anchor that held me down to the world was back in place, though slightly battered, but I would fix that and soon.

Antonio POV

I hung up the phone and sighed, resigning myself to the inevitable. I stood from my desk and left my study, going to the living room where Kim was spending some time with her eldest brother since Reese had gone to school. He had been all for not going, but Nick and I had forced him to. She wasn't going anywhere and she was well cared for with Nick and me who could easily not go to work if we didn't want to. The luxury of being your own boss.

I strode into the room and found Nick on the floor with Kim by his side. He was keeping up a steady flow of conversation which Kim seemed to be following with interest. The both turned to me when I walked in and Kim immediately stood and came over to me. She pushed her muzzle into my leg and I chuckled lightly, bending down to her level and burying my hand into her fur. She purred in contentment and then went back to Nick, looking at him as if telling him he could now continue talking. Nick laughed and happily complied.

I sat down on Nick's other side and joined them for the next little while, deciding best not to tell Kim what I had just done. I had had to call her academy to tell them that she would no longer be going for the time being. A hard thing to do when I knew how much her music meant to her. What I definitely would not be telling her until I knew she could face it was the uproar the academy was in with Alex's disappearance. We had left no sign of Alex's presence in Kim's room, so they had absolutely no reason to believe that she was involved. But my heart still ached for the boy's parents. I could not imagine the pain they were going through and I prayed that I would never have to live through it.

I reached over and stroked Kim's back, wishing with all my might that she would Change back. She was in pain, that much was more than obvious, and I knew that she would no doubt be going through issues with what she had done to Turner. But she couldn't keep hiding behind her wolf. Jeremy had given her a week at the most and then he would try to force her to Change back using his dominance over her. Hopefully, my daughter would be more human than wolf and then Jeremy would not be forced to make a decision in the best ineterest of the Pack. But I knew that Kim was strong enough to decide to face her problems herself and not be pushed into them. I had to believe that. She was strong and brave, but I knew this was difficult for her and for Reese who was holding on with everything he had to keep his head while with her. I wish I knew how to help her, but I had no idea what I could do except wait. Wait and pray.

Reese POV

The next few days passed with no sign of Kim Changing back any time soon. Antonio called the academy to tell them that Kim was sick and would not be attending until further notice. He was worried, we all were, but while I was with my Kim I pretended as if nothing was out of place and that her being in wolf form was absolutely normal.

Abbey was buried the day we got Kim back, right next to Alex in a clearing not far from the house. I hadn't told Kim this yet, but I would once she had Changed back. Not talking about her friend was not going to make it any easier, quite the contrary, but I didn't want her to hurt anymore than she had to right then.

Abbey's family had called Kim to know if she knew where she was. Since Kim was unable to talk, I had taken the call and explained that Kim had gone to Europe the day after the performance and that she hadn't hear from Abbey since the night of the concert. I hated lying and it was worse to lie about the death of someone they loved. They would never know what had happened to their niece. Abbey's parents hadn't called yet, though I'm sure they would soon.

I spent almost every hour of every day beside my mate. Communicating was awkward, but we made it work. I mostly spoke—obviously—and Kim just nodded or shook her head, sometimes even giving me a look when I suggested outrageous activities like cooking. Of course I had meant that I cook while she was with me, but she didn't seem to like the idea very much. She preferred activities where we both participated, like going out for a walk or watching movies. We would sometimes watch our brothers play Playstation or Xbox, but to not have her bickering or laughing with them was the height of wrong.

I was Changing almost daily now which took up a lot of energy and I was eating a lot more because of it, but it was worth it to be able to feel closer to my mate while in wolf form. Our family joined us when it was time for their Change as well, but mostly it was just the two of us running around the woods, terrorizing its inhabitants. But I always Changed back after our run, Kim never did.

I kept my worries mostly to myself and tried to act like nothing was wrong, both for my mate's sake and my brothers'. They were worried and afraid. It had only been a few days, but they were still scared that she wouldn't Change back. Max was handling it better than Noah, though, since his wolf was always very close at hand and he could understand why Kim was doing this. Noah just had a lot more to deal with, unfortunately.

"You know I love you, don't you?" I asked as I ducked under a low branch, reaching my mate who had run up ahead of me. She cocked her head to the side and watched me approach, her eyes indecipherable.

It had been three days since she had gotten back and I knew that there were some things that Kim had always needed, like acceptance. From the very beginning all she had ever wanted from us, the Pack and her family, was for us to accept her. Max took the longest to do this, but he accepted her in the end and Kim had been ecstatic for days after that. Now she needed to be reminded that she was still accepted here, even after what she had done.

I kneeled down in front of her and took her head in both my hands. "I love you, amor. Always have, always will. I don't care that you killed and tortured Turner…" Kim stiffened as I said this and tried to pull back, but I held her tight. She needed to hear this. I locked my gaze on hers and ploughed on. "We are werewolves, Kim. We are part animals and animals kill to protect and to feed. You killed to protect Abbey and yourself. And if you hadn't tortured him, then I or the Pack would have," I said firmly, making sure that she could see how serious I was.

She gazed at me with glassy eyes, though wolves couldn't cry. Suddenly, she jumped forward and licked me, whining as she did so and then pulled back to look at me, watching me for my reaction.

"I love you too," I smiled and stood, looking behind her at the trees beyond. "Bet I can beat you back to the house," I said, but Kim had already taken off halfway through my sentence. She won of course. My mate didn't Change back that day or the day after, but I waited. All she needed was time. She would Change back when she was ready.

On the fifth day after Kim's return, I decided that I couldn't keep skipping out on my duties as an older brother. Noah needed me, but Kim had been the main focus of my attention which was unfair. Kim was dealing through her pain and her issues using her wolf, but Noah was holding it all in. Nick and Antonio had tried to talk to him, but every time Noah just cried and didn't speak a word. I knew that Max was trying hard to help his brother as well, but as far as I knew he hadn't had much luck either.

"Hey, buddy," I called as I walked into the clearing to find Noah kneeling before Abbey's grave. He looked over and nodded, seemingly unperturbed by my finding him here like this. His were eyes red and tears were rolling down his cheeks, but he turned his pain-filled gaze back down to the smooth rock where Abbey's name had been engraved.

I walked over to him and sat down beside him, wrapping an arm around him. He leaned into me, whining softly, and I pulled him closer, letting my wolf comfort him too. Pack bonds were strong within our family and our wolves demanded that we have this close contact. For humans this closeness would seem awkward, but we welcomed it.

I waited silently, just sitting there beside my brother as the pain consumed him. I had no doubt that he had loved Abbey and maybe they had been mates, but without a mate bond, he still retained his mind and body. Had he established a mate bond with Abbey he would have been lost to us, so I was grateful that they hadn't been mates. That didn't mean the Noah wasn't in pain, but at least he would survive.

"I miss you," he whispered suddenly and I knew he wasn't talking to me. I gripped him harder, wishing that there was something I could do to alleviate the pain, but I knew from experience that nothing could dull the ache, nothing ever would, only time.

"She loved you, Noah. Wherever she is, I know she will always love you," I said and was answered with a sob. I pulled away gently and turned around, holding him at arms length and watching as water flowed from his eyes nonstop. My heart ached for my brother and for my mate who I knew was in a similar pain as the young man before me.

"We're here for you, buddy. You need to talk to us. We love you and we want to help you," I told him softly. He started shaking his head and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand before speaking.

"Kim isn't here," he croaked. I sighed and pulled him to me again, his tears soaking my shirt instantly. He missed Kim too, though thankfully my wolf understood that he just missed her as a brother and fellow pack member or not as anything else.

"I know, but she will be, soon," I murmured as I rubbed circles into his back and pressed my cheek against his hair. My wolf whined within me at our brother's pain, pushing me to help him, but I didn't know how.

"I just…maybe if I had…stayed with her the whole time, then maybe…," he started to say but then broke off into violent sobs. I growled lowly and then pushed him back, holding him at arms' length again.

"No," I growled, Noah flinching at my tone. I closed my eyes and forced myself to relax before speaking again. "No. It isn't your fault, Noah. It's not yours or mine or Kim's or anyone else's. It's just Turner's. Understand? This isn't your fault anymore than Dennis' death was," I said and Noah whimpered at the mention of Dennis.

After moving in with the Sorrentinos and Noah and I started to get to know each other, I had realized that Noah had felt guilty about Dennis' death. It wasn't his fault. There was nothing he could have done to prevent his death and I had had to drill that knowledge into him, like I would have to do so again.

"Not your fault," I repeated forcefully and Noah nodded, tears still pouring down his face. I pulled him back to me, embracing him in a tight hug, letting him know that I was here and that I wasn't going anywhere.

I suddenly wished that my mate was here with me. She always seemed to know what to do in these situations. She was a crier herself so she knew how to go about different tears and such. But right then she was spending some time with her father and Nick, like she did most days, though I was normally with her. Jeremy and Elena made almost daily visits as well. Sometimes Elena would even take Kim away and talk to her alone. I have no idea what Elena told her but I hoped it would help Kim to Change back soon. I could only keep the fear in for so long.

After a while, Noah pulled back, rubbing his eyes furiously, and got a determined look in his eyes. "Let's get back," he said roughly and stood. I quickly followed suit, hugging him quickly one more time and telling him that I was here. He nodded against my chest, whispering a soft thank you. I nodded as well, knowing that he would be okay. My brother was so strong.

We walked silently back to the house and once inside I followed the sounds of conversation to the living room where I found Antonio and Nick and no sign of my mate. Before I could so much as utter a word about my mate's disappearance, Antonio informed me that she was with Elena.

"So put your hackles back on the ground, buddy," Nick said, my tension at not seeing my mate thick in the air. I nodded and relaxed my stiff shoulders, rolling them slowly as I sat down on the couch. With Abbey gone, I suppose it was best for Kim and Elena to start making a stronger girl bond. Kim needed women in her life or she was bound to go crazy with so many men. How she hadn't cracked already was beyond me, really.

Antonio leaned back against the couch and closed his eyes as Nick got up, going to the kitchen to get drinks. He came back a few minutes later and plumped down beside his father, his grin failing miserably at trying to hide his worry. Though I had pretended otherwise, I had clearly heard what they had been talking about. My mate.

They were worried of course, but there was no need to panic, not yet. Kim was still herself and still hadn't lost control of her wolf which she seemed to have tight reins over. But this fact didn't do anything to let Antonio sleep soundly at night. The shadows beneath his eyes told me so. I was worried as well, but I believed in my mate and I trusted that she was strong enough to come through and to keep holding on. So did her father and brothers, but they worry, and I knew they always would.

"Bet that's happened to Nick more than once," I laughed as we watched Jack Sparrow being slapped by a parade of women. Kim rolled her eyes at me and turned her attention back to the screen. She was lying beside me on the floor since she didn't fit comfortably on the couch or in the seats in the theatre room, so we just sat on the floor. Noah and Max were with us and they had both laughed at my comment. Noah was still a little down after the grave scene, but his smiles and laughs were peeking through. He would be okay.

Max on the other hand had been more affected by Abbey and Alex's death than we had ever expected. He had declared Alex's death unfair—since he had not been killed in defence or for food—and he understood what Abbey's death meant for Kim and that this was one of the things that were making her stay in wolf form. But she also had to come to terms with what she had done to Turner. She had tortured and killed him. Her actions had made her sick, proving to us—though we didn't really need proof—that she was just human. Not that we had told Noah and Max about Turner's torture. If Kim wanted to tell them, then she would, but I wouldn't say a word without her say so. I knew she wasn't proud of it, but I was proud of her, so proud.

Suddenly, Noah stood and grabbed the remote from the coffee table, pausing the movie. I stared at him, giving him a questioning look, but he ignored me and looked straight at Kim. One glance at Max and Addison told me that they didn't know what was going on anymore than I did.

"Kim," Noah said gently, looking down at her. My mate cocked her head to the side, surveying her brother with curiosity. I watched him as well, wondering what the hell he was doing. "It's not your fault. It's mine."

I stared at my brother as Kim growled lowly at him and stood, baring her teeth. I hadn't even thought of this. I had been so concentrated on Kim's pain of losing her friend and on what she had done that I hadn't realized that there might be something else in the mix. Guilt. She felt guilty. And now that I thought about it, this diagnostic fit Kim to a tee. She always seemed to carry the weight of the world over her and she always felt responsible for those around her, including, no, especially Abbey. And my brother had figured that out before I had.

"It's my fault Abbey's dead," Noah said now, holding Kim's gaze. She growled louder this time, pulling her ears back as she glared at Noah, clearly telling us that she disagreed effusively with Noah.

"It's not your fault," Max suddenly said, frowning between Noah and Kim. "It's not anyone's fault Turner was a psycho." He glanced at me and I nodded, telling him that he was right. Like I've said, Max and Noah look up to Kim and me as leaders so they always checked with us to know if what they were doing was correct, sometimes if Antonio or Nick were in the room. They had been having a hard time with one of their leaders gone, but Kim was still plenty dominant while in wolf form, if not more, even while in pain.

"Then why does Kim feel guilty?" Noah asked, shooting me a quick glance before looking back at Kim. Kim growled lowly once more and then chuffed, shaking her head and turning her head to the side. Hiding her emotions. Noah was right, she did feel guilty. "It's not your fault that Abbey and Alex are dead. You can't control everything that happens, Kim." My mate didn't even look at him. Instead she turned her back on him and lied down on the floor, curling into a ball. I shot Noah a warning look, but he didn't see it as he watched Kim intently.

"We need you, Kim. I need you. I miss Abbey as well, but it's not our fault," Noah said gently as tears started forming in his eyes. Kim whined lowly and then lifted her head, looking back at Noah. Max stood suddenly and went to stand by Noah, giving Kim a pleading look.

"I want you back, too, Kim, I miss my sister," my youngest brother said, making Kim whine again. She turned her gaze to me, letting me see the pain and sorrow that her eyes held. I lifted a hand a cupped her head, stroking her gently. She closed her eyes and leaned into my touch.

"I love you, amor," I whispered. Without warning, she snapped her eyes open and jumped up, practically running to the door, and only then did I realize that Nick and Antonio were there and had been watching us for who knows how long. Kim shot past them and Antonio looked at me enquiringly, but I just shrugged. I had no idea where my mate was going.

I stood and quickly followed my mate's trail to the backdoors and then to the forest, my family close behind me. Sudden fear erupted within me at the thought that my mate had left and I started running, ignoring the fact that I was bare foot. I sprinted into the forest, twigs snapping beneath my feet—though I ignored the slight pain—and heard grunts and cries of pain. I switched courses and tracked the sounds to a bush where I could hear the sounds of a very painful Change. Kim was Changing.

I sighed in relief just as my family joined me and I noticed that only Antonio was wearing shoes. I grinned at Noah and gave him a tight hug in thank you and then started pacing, already impatient for my mate to come out. She was finally Changing. These past five days had seemed eternal for me with my worries of her never Changing back eating at me at every turn.

When Kim finally emerged, her legs trembling beneath her, I assaulted her in a fierce hug, vowing to never let go. She whimpered at my words and her knees gave way beneath her, making her collapse into my arms. I felt our family move in around us and Max embraced Kim from behind just as she started shaking as the sobs overtook her. Antonio, Nick and Noah closed in on us, forming a group hug that cemented our Pack bonds around Kim, letting her know that we were all here for her and always would be.