Heavy lids slowly, and painfully pry themselves open, causing Anya to squint against the bright stream of sunlight pouring in through the far window of her cabin.
Automatically, Anya reached to the empty space beside her before any thoughts could resurface and remind her that the woman she reached for wasn't there.
"R-Raven?" her voice came out a dry, strained choking noise.
She coughed several times to clear it. That's when the flood of memories from the day before came rushing back in a flurry, causing Anya to bolt upright in bed.
Her body ached to new extremes, parts of her excruciating. She wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her arm. It was as though an inferno blazed away beneath her skin. Limbs heavy, she ignored the pain, instead groaning through it as she got to her feet and stumbled to dress.
Several dry, crispy blood-soaked bandages clung around her torso and neck. The white strips sullied with heaps of her dried black blood. Of course, when she pulled them away, there was no evidence of any wounds ever having been there thanks to her healing abilities.
Her body still ached with an incredible amount of pain, though. The venom from being bitten by another wolf coursed through her.
When in wolf form, the Grounders took on new abilities with the new biology. Including, werewolf venom. This poison acted as a weapon against enemies, meant to protect the pack. But Anya had never heard of it being used against another pack member before.
No matter how angry or how enraged a were would become, you never ever released your venom into another of your kind. The fact that Luna had spread her venom to Anya with intent was a crime against their very nature. And if she was willing to harm Anya in such a way, how far would she go to hurt Raven?
Anya grunted through the pain as she tore the last of the medical materials from her body and tossed them to the floor. Then threw a shirt over her shoulders before slipping into her jacket.
She glanced at her messy bedsheets as she made her way out, noting the massive pool of dried dark blood the bedding absorbed from her injuries the night before. She must had been worse off than she thought.
She hurried out the door, all the while hoping the fight with Luna had all been a horrible dream and this was just a continuation of it, but as she reached for the doorknob and twisted the handle, a whole new surge of pain shot from her wrist, confirming the realness of past events.
The door opened with a creak, the cold morning breeze a welcome kiss to the biker's hot cheek as she stepped out onto the balcony where the commander was already waiting, arms crossed and a stern expression in place as she watched the camp.
A million questions plagued Anya in that instant. Did the commander and the others find Raven? Was she okay? Where was Luna? Did Anya kill her?
Anya recalled blacking out during the fight. Before she went down, she remembered Luna stumbling around, crying out, and bleeding profusely too. She tensed as the last thing she remembered came rushing back in a flash. A particularly sharp-toothed mouth having latched onto her throat, fangs sinking deep into her flesh with the strength of a thousand dogs.
Anya rubbed at her throat, a soreness lingering within. Luna certainly hadn't held back. Anya may had put up one hell of a fight, but she'd had her ass kicked.
It shouldn't have been much of a surprise, though. Luna had a century on Anya at least. The longer a wolf lived, the stronger they became. And Luna was one of the oldest among the pack.
"Where's Raven?" Anya demanded, not caring for greetings or explanations until her question was answered.
Lexa spun around, that stoic gaze just as serious as Anya's as the commander's jaw tightened. "It was just you when we arrived. You were half-dead, Anya. We noticed Luna's blood soaked the area too. What the hell happened out there?"
"We have to find her!" Anya shouted, ignoring Lexa's question. "She took Raven! I'm sure of it."
Lexa cast her gaze back to watching over the camp, seemingly deep in thought. "Luna's one of the oldest among us, Anya. She's wise, clever, shifty. She hasn't gone back to her den, and I doubt she will. It won't be easy to find her—or Raven if she doesn't want us to."
Lexa shifted on her feet just then. It seemed like she was arguing with herself over something.
"What is it?" Anya asked, dread filling her all over again. "Tell me."
Lexa bit her lip before meeting Anya's gaze. "Raven's scent is all over the forest. Luna spread decoy trails right through to the borders. We need to think carefully about our next move and where Luna might go. Raven's life could depend on it."
Anya turned to her racing thoughts, concentrating hard. Where would Luna have taken Raven? What did Anya really know about the other grounder?
They'd certainly had their fun in the past sharing their bodies and experimenting in different methods of pleasure over the years, but did they ever talk in that time?
Luna was strong and was once considered the lunar wolf of the pack a long time ago. Other grounders looked up to her for that title alone and respected the old tradition of honoring the wolf queen. But that wasn't the way of things anymore.
Lexa was the alpha now, their ruler, their leader, their commander. And Anya was appointed second in command. That was all there was to it.
"Could she be jealous?" Lexa asked, breaking Anya from her thoughts. "You were together for a time. Perhaps that's why she's channeled her rage toward Raven more than other humans. You've never brought a human back to camp before."
Anya began to shake her head, then stopped. "No… not jealousy. But Luna does uphold tradition more than anything. She must've known my attachment to Raven before even I did. She didn't want Raven contaminating the bloodline, which I'd have to do if I chose to mate with her."
Lexa nodded, urging Anya to go on.
Anya moved to the railing, holding onto it for balance as her thoughts ran wildly. "One of Luna's duties as third in command is to dictate punishment."
Lexa exhaled deeply, "She wants to teach Raven a lesson."
Anya's eyes grew wide in fear and realization as she shook her head. "No, not Raven. Me."
A weight gripped Anya's shoulder, drawing her gaze to meet the concern evident in Lexa's eyes.
"I promise you, my friend. Luna will be punished for her crimes against you. Against Raven. And for violating the trust of the pack."
Anya nodded, bowing her head and staring at her feet. All she could think about was how Luna was very lucky the commander would be handling her punishment and not her.
"Does it hurt?" Lexa asked, curiosity shimmering in her blue-green eyes.
The commander, of course, was asking about the venom surging through Anya's system. Such an act was unheard of in a community like theirs. No one had ever crossed that line before.
If Lexa hadn't smelt the poison upon finding the blonde, then the slow healing of her injuries would have been a dead giveaway. Without the venom, Anya would have healed in minutes and woken in the forest. Not hours, and certainly not an entire night.
"Yeah," Anya breathed. "The pain is… more manageable now, but still excruciating. It's like my blood is on fire, and life is constantly draining from me. I've never felt weaker, nor this exhausted in all my life."
Lexa stepped closer, coming shoulder to shoulder as she squeezed Anya's arm. "You need to rest, then. It could take weeks for it to leave your system."
Anya shook her head violently. "No! I can't be lying in a bed while Raven is out there. She needs me now more than ever. I cannot fail her."
One of the younger grounders approached Anya's cabin just then. It was Tris, Anya's second—or more accurately known as the teenage assistant she got to boss around and make do whatever she wanted.
Overall, Anya had great respect for Tris. It was a joy to train the girl's inner warrior, and she was a hell of a lot of fun to roughhouse with come moon day. In wolf form, Tris could outlast half the pack when it came to endurance runs. She made an incredible scout for the pack making her invaluable.
Anya nodded her head at her young friend as Lexa descended the cabin steps to meet the teen.
"Have you discovered who's deserted the pack?" Lexa asked.
Anya straightened, listening hard for the answer. Other than Echo, she'd be surprised if many others chose to go against the commander and leave. Lexa was a great leader and had been since before Anya was born. The pack members were extremely close, tremendously loyal to one another. They were blood-kin.
Anya strained to hear, but Tris was too quiet to be heard across the distance. The teen waved Anya in farewell before returning to the camp.
Lexa returned to Anya's side, arms folded, brows knit together in concentration.
"Well?" Anya asked impatiently.
Lexa took a while to answer as she stared off into the distance, that same nurtured unreadable expression in place. "There may still be hope for Raven yet. All we can do is wait and see." Before Anya could ask Lexa to explain, she was already heading off and waving her goodbyes. "I must go see Clarke now. It's important. We'll talk soon."