A/N- I just wanted to say thank you guys for all the reviews and support! Thank you so much for reading and let me know what you think so far.

Chapter 24

Beca's POV

Motioning with my hands, I gesture for Jesse to move forward. He nods and sends the message down to the line of wolves, all hidden beneath the shadow of the night. We creep forward, careful not to make a sound.

Surprisingly, I'm not nervous but excited. Not just to see Chloe, but for the adrenaline that's sure to pump through my veins any minute now. It's like a high I can't escape from. Something to look forward to. My ears twitch as they take in every sound and my eyes constantly roam, taking in the slightest movement.

When we get to the guards, I climb up a tree and out onto a branch, looking over both of them. The goal here is to knock both of them out quietly as to not alert the other patrols. I take in their positions, calculating the exact angle and momentum needed to knock them out at the same time. If they don't move that is. Moving at an inhuman speed, I jump down, slamming my fists on their heads. They both drop to the ground, out cold.

Without thinking, I laugh, a crazy sound. At this point though, I don't care if I'm crazy. I love the adrenaline and Chloe, who I will have back very soon. The wolves walk up to me and I can see the question in their eyes at my laughter. Chuckling, I wave them off and we crouch down into the grass, following Chloe's scent. Emily told us that they put Chloe in a different room when she was there, but is pretty sure they moved her once she left. I know exactly where they're keeping her. The cells in the dungeon and if Luke is as predictable as I think he is, he put Chloe in my old one.

The world seems to freeze, everything completely silent before we reach the house. The patrols move away from the Alpha's house and past us. Grinning, I flick my wrist, signaling for them to go. My friends surge forward until they reach the back door. Now, it's my turn. I run, getting to them in just a second flat. I can see the surprise in their expressions, even as wolves.

I pick the lock on the door with my claw and it creaks open. All the wolves go through, spreading throughout the house, searching for the red head. I instantly go to the basement, smelling the sweet scent of strawberries waft from down below. Following that, I open the door and can instantly tell that Chloe's not alone.

That's when all hell breaks loose. The house seems to light up and my friends are attacked by all the non shifted werewolves. Screams pierced through the air, scraping my ear drums. Wincing, I head down to Chloe.

"You don't know that," Chloe's hoarse voice hits my ears and when I see Luke hit her, rage clouds my vision. I don't think, just act on my anger and sneak up behind Luke.

"Stop lying to yourself. Its-" My claw rips through his back and I twist, pulling my claw out. Chloe screams, backing further into the cell. Watching Luke hit the ground, bleeding and hearing him take his last breaths don't affect me. I don't feel anything. Not relief, not guilt. Just nothing.

Turning my head to the side, I lean down and watch as he takes his last breath. His eyes meet mine and what I see there breaks my heart. Understanding and forgiveness. Hatred I could deal with, I could understand. But knowing that he understands and forgives me, makes the emotions I didn't feel before, overwhelm me. My fingers slightly shake as I close his eyes.

A small whimper knocks me back into reality and I stand up, staring at Chloe. She's huddles into the corner, obviously terrified of me though I don't think she can see my face. I was so worried about how she would react to my appearance, I didn't stop to think what she would think of the new Beca. The heartless and crazy one. The one who chose isolation and adrenaline instead of breaking her out sooner.

I step closer, reaching a hand out and grip her shoulder, forgetting for a second that I'm not normal anymore. Chloe cries and I can see her start to sway. Oh shit, she's going to pass out. Just as she falls, I catch her in my arms. With one more look at the fallen wolf on the ground, I run out of the basement and howl, the sign to the other wolves that I have Chloe.

On the way out of the house, I dodge several werewolves, surprising them all with my speed. Even though my body urges me to attack and kill, I push forward, knowing that it'll be better just to keep going. Most of the wolves here aren't shifted and there's not many ones who stay in the alpha's house, but if the whole pack was here, we wouldn't stand a chance. My friends fight the wolves, clearing a path for me. Every time one of them gets hurt, I grimace hating that I brought my friends into this.

Once I get outside, I hold on tight to Chloe and take off, trying not to go too fast for the other wolves. One by one, I let them pass me, making sure they're all here. When all of my friends are ahead of me, I speed up, grinning at the adrenaline. I almost forget I have Chloe in my arms.

We get to the house and I go in, spotting the pack doctor. He's been a friend of Mr. Swanson for a long time and has agreed to look Chloe over. Ms. Beale starts crying the moment she sees Chloe, as does her siblings.

"Thank you," Ms. Beale cries, stroking Chloe's face. I just nod and lay her out on the couch. The doctor immediately goes to her, checking her pulse and everything that Emily had noticed was wrong. Seeing someone else touch Chloe makes me boil, but I clench my fists to hold it in knowing that he's only trying to help. All the wolves arrive, shifted and fully dressed. Ben goes over to Emily, fussing over a cut on her forehead. Mr. Swanson walks over to Jesse, patting him on the back. He would have gone to the attack, but if Alpha Peirce had figured out he went there and helped us, he would have no status among the pack. He would have been exiled which is what will probably what will happen to me. I've never really had a place in the pack though.

"Beca, are you okay? We checked everyone else out but you." Mr. Swanson comes up to me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm fine," I snap, stepping backward. "Just focus on Chloe, would you?"

Everyone stares at me and Mr. Swanson holds his hands up on mock surrender. His face still holds kindness though even after all I've done.

"Want to tell me about that?" Mr. Swanson asks, pointing to the blood covering my hand. I just shrug.

"He was attacking Chloe so I killed him."

"Killed who Beca?"

"Luke." Mr. Swanson's face pales and his eyes widen.

"You know what this means, don't you?" I just stare at him. "If Julian figures out you were the one to kill his son, he won't stop until you're dead. You've put yourself and everybody here in grave danger."

"What was I supposed to do? Let him kill her?"

"No, but a little self control would be nice. There were other ways to deal with him besides murder."

"He deserved it," I growl, red blurring the edge of my vision. "They all do." Mr. Swanson just looks at me and his face falls.

"What about Chloe?"

"What about her?"

"How do you think she's going to take to you now that you..." He trails off but I can see his gaze look at my hands, my feet, judging.

"Now that I'm what? Crazy? Ugly? It's Chloe, she's my mate. Of course she'll take me." But even as I say those words, doubts plague my mind. I'm all of those things and more, none of them good.

"I've looked Chloe over, but I'll have to wait until she wakes up to do a more thorough check. While I wait, I'll bandage everyone up." The doctor tells us before heading over to Emily.

"I can't be here when she wakes up."

"Chloe needs you," Aubrey tells me, coming up and reaching out to put a hand on my shoulder before stopping herself. Too afraid that I'll snap, I guess.

"No, she needs the old Beca. It's better for everyone if I give her time to see y'all and to rest." No one stops me as I leave the room, tossing my hood on before running out of the house. Adrenaline still courses through me and I grin. Now, what to do for some fun around here?

A little while later, I sit on a branch watching two hunters make their way through the forest.

"Dude, I'm pretty sure it's illegal to hunt wolves out here," one hunter informs his friend. The other one turns to him, swinging his gun along.

"Yes, but my uncle offered us 5 grand each if we get him one. If we get one of the bigger ones that's been spotted, than he'll up it to 10."

"10 grand?" The one with the gun laughs at his friend.

"Each. Now, come on. I think I heard one over this way." They crouch through the forest, making too much sound to ever catch a wolf.

"Why does he even want one?"

"He said it's for research but I'm pretty sure he just wants to show off to his rich buddies. Take the credit for our kill, you know?"

"That sounds like your uncle all right." The hunters stop and listen, giving me the perfect in. I howl lightly, letting it echo through the trees.

"Hear that?" One asks and the other one answers with a shaky yes. I zip down the tree and run behind them, going too fast for them to track me. I laugh, but it's more of a bark, surprising them.

While they're distracted trying to locate me, I run past the one with a gun, snatching it from his hands. He screams and hurries over to his buddy.

"My gun is gone," he whispers. Chuckling, I line him up in my sites. Not sure that my aim is good and not really caring, I shoot and then snap the gun in half. The bullet hits the tree right above the hunters head. Before he can react, I run past him, dropping his broken gun at his feet.

"Fuck this shit, I'm out of here." One hunter takes off running, but the other one just stands there, shaking and staring at the broken gun. I creep up behind him and growl softly. A high pitched scream erupts from his throat and he takes off after his friend.

My laughter echoes as I take off, looking for more fun. I reach the highway and wait for a big semi to come through. When it gets to me, I run and swing myself into the back, holding on. The road blurs beneath me as I clutch the back, leaning forward. The wind whips through my hair and I cackle, loving the thrill. The danger.

When a pair of headlights show up behind the semi, I sigh. A part of me is tempted to let the people in the car see me, to be afraid, but the other part-the rational one- tells me that isn't a good idea. So I jump off, tumbling when I hit the ground. My heart beats fast in my chest and I laugh as I make my way to the house.

The sun is starting to come up, ruining my fun. Oh well. There's always tomorrow.