Sorry this took a while to get out...I was writing it one way, and then I realized it wasn't working out and had to re-write three fourths of it. NOT FUN.

Anyway...thank you very much to my reviewers and also to my beta, the wonderful laurazuleta18! Thank you so much hun!

Enjoy!

Two Winters and a Summer: Chapter Three

Shannon pounded her fists against the wall. She kicked the bedpost, screamed till her throat was sore. She threw everything she could find against the damn door, rattled the doorknob manically like she could somehow take the whole thing off. She took the sheet off the bed and ripped it down its middle with her hands. "Get me out of here! Let me out, you fucking sick bastard!" she screamed, blurry tears running down her cheeks. She stomped her feet, hoping to make dust rain down from the ceiling below.

Last night, after her confrontation with the pack, Collin had collected her in his arms as if she was a damn doll and carried her upstairs. She had collapsed onto the bed immediately and, ashamed as she was to do so, sobbed herself to sleep. Her spirit had been burnt out. She had been told that there was no use…she had to stay here. She was being forced in the pack's twisted happy fucking family.

Shannon was trapped…a prisoner in this white wonderland. She felt so hopeless just laying in her bed once she woke up…she couldn't take it anymore. Right then, she resolved to fight them the whole fucking way through. Those crazy things weren't going to tame her easily, morph her into some brainwashed pet that followed their every order and command. They tried to tell her this shit was for her own good, but she wouldn't buy it. She'd never buy it. She didn't understand how those other poor woman had willingly settled themselves into the ironclad watch of these monsters.

A deep sense of pity and disgust filled Shannon as the memory of Nessie ran through her head. The stupid girl seemed so content with where she was. She was so young…so ignorant. If these damn 'imprinters' really cared about their so called mates, they would want them to be happy and free. She felt like some caged bird, wanting to get out so bad but those restraining bars were holding her back.

Prisoner, Shannon thought grimly. She was a fucking prisoner. But she wasn't gonna let herself be a hopeless one.

Before she could kick the wall again, the door flew open and a burly werewolf charged in, scooped her up, and dropped her on the bed. "Stop it!" Brady growled. "You're upsetting everyone and only hurting yourself. Please, stop it," he begged. Shannon eyed him distrustfully then firmly shook her head.

"I'm not going to stop until you let me the fuck out of here. You sick bastards can't keep me a prisoner forever!" she screamed. Brady ran a hand through his hair in frustration, which only served to satisfy her, as did knowing that she was causing their perfect little bubble to pop. If they were to cause her pain, she was going to dish it right back out at the mongrels.

"We're not keeping you prisoner…and we can't just let you leave," he sighed, almost guiltily. She scowled at his forged sympathy. No way would she buy into that bullshit so easily.

"Keeping me here against my will and not letting me leave for seemingly no reason…hmm, wonder what other word would fit that definition?" she snarled. Brady clenched his fists and mumbled a curse word under his breath.

"I can talk to her, Brady," a soft voice suddenly interrupted. Shannon's head whipped up to see the scarred woman from the other night standing hesitantly inside the doorway. Brady growled softly almost immediately and in a second was at her side, pushing her back with slow, careful nudges.

"No, you can't. She might hurt you. Sam wouldn't want it. He'd kill me, Emily. Go entertain Claire, please…they'll all kill me…" he pleaded desperately. Emily, apparently, clenched her jaw and defiantly took a step into the room. He looked back and forth between the two of them in utter turmoil. Finally, he met Emily's gaze and a silent argument seemed to take place between the two. Soon, it was evident that Emily had won because she strode the length of the room only to sit next to Shannon on the springy bed.

Brady accosted them with two sharp warning glares and then said, "I'll be standing in the hallway," he paused and leaned forward, emphasizing his next point profusely, "and all of the wolves in the house can hear you! So don't say anything to…upset each other." Emily's mouth pursed but she nodded immediately.

"Alright, I'll be good," she smiled forcedly. He sighed, stepped into the hallway and shut the door.

"Sorry for that. They're so overprotective…which is really why we're here in the first place. I still love them, though." There was no conviction in her tone as she was proclaiming her apparent favor of this 'pack' of hers. Shannon raised her eyebrows questionably but Emily subtly shook her head, reached her hand into her jeans pocket and pulled out a small notebook.

"Anyway, Jake kind of explained it but you seemed so upset, maybe you didn't understand all of it. They need to keep us here because we're basically their heart. If we get hurt, they get weakened…and it is essential that they don't get weakened," she said slowly, though Shannon wasn't focusing so much on the words coming out of her mouth and Emily didn't seem to be either. The tone of her voice suggested she had memorized some absurd script and was reciting it to her. Instead, she was focusing on flipping through her little notebook.

Finally, she found what she was looking for and looked up at Shannon. "This is a little poem I wrote which describes my feelings for Sam…my imprinter. Maybe things will make more sense if you read it," she suggested lightly, trying to place the pad of papers in the palm of Shannon's hand. Disgusted, she wretched her hand back and shot Emily the bird.

"I don't want to see a poem, okay? I just want out of this place. I don't like my 'imprinter' and every second I sit here I hate him even more! I hate him for taking Embry away from me! I hate this whole fucking pack for everything they've done to me in the past few days!" she whispered furiously and fervently. Emily's expression quickly turned impatient.

"No, no…I really think you need to see this," she insisted, thrusting the notebook forward. Shannon angrily picked it up and threw it against the wall. She was about to push Emily off her bed, because if the room was hers than she was entitled to controlling who was in it, when Brady charged in with gritted teeth and faster than Shannon could blink had her out of the room and the door banging shut.

She screamed and ran toward the door, but it was too late…fucking locked. She rattled it desperately, but no one was coming. "Brady! LET ME OUT!" she screamed, knowing he was just outside. She kicked and kneed the wood as hard as she could, hoping that maybe the locks would give a little or the wood might break…no such luck.

With one final yell, Shannon pounded her fist against the wall. Immediately she regretted it as a sharp pain shot through her wrist and through her hand. Hissing, she cradled her delicate left hand to her stomach. Stupid, damn werewolves, she thought bitterly. Hesitantly, the door cracked open and Brady's softened expression was shown.

"What happened? Oh…aw shit, Collin's going to kill me. Come here, let me see it," he said gently. She distrustfully stepped backwards and he sighed. "Come on…I won't bite," he coaxed. He made his way over to her as if she were an injured baby animal and she figured there wasn't much she could do about it except sit there. The pack had definitely shown their physical dominance over her, and she was afraid that they would hurt her if she challenged that.

He had just started to kneel by her side when Shannon's imprinter, the bastard named Collin, tumbled into the room furiously. "What happened?" he growled, and then whirled to Brady. "You fucking…fucking dick! You let my imprint get hurt?" He seemed livid and completely dangerous, and this made Shannon tremble. He could hurt her so easily, and the image of him slipping his large fingers around her neck and squeezing until she had no breath left etched itself into her mind before she realized what exactly she was picturing.

Shannon cringed as he took her stinging wrist in his palms. She didn't like his touch – it felt wrong and sent horrible shivers up her spine. "Don't touch me!" she griped while jerking away. Collin froze and calmly backed away from her, though she could tell he was deeply hurt. She didn't feel even a little bit of hurt, because he was causing her just as much pain, if not even more.

"Okay, okay… I won't touch you. I just don't want you to experience more pain. Would you let Brady examine it, please?" he asked carefully. His voice was smooth, gruff, and patronizing. Shannon's foot twitched as the thought of kicking him flashed through her head…but that would only cause her more problems. Jaw clenched, she nodded and extended her arm so Brady could look at it. He told her to do this or that and she complied easily.

"Alright…I don't think that it's broken or sprained or anything. I don't think it's necessary to call in the Doc, but she could maybe use some pain medicine," he said with a furrowed brow. Shannon raised her eyebrows…he didn't look any older than twenty-five.

"How old are you? How do you know all this doctor stuff?" she asked suspiciously. Brady smiled a little and shrugged as Collin ran off. Shannon hoped he wouldn't come back, but it was quickly dashed as he waltzed in not a second later with a glass of water and the medicine she was supposed to take.

"The Doc trained me a little…just the basics, you know, but with my heightened senses it's easier than normal for me to comprehend, so I got a little ahead…" he trailed off, stood up and then backed away as Collin approached apprehensively. He knelt so he was eye level with her again and hesitantly let the pills dropped into her palm. Shannon scowled at the small things.

"How do I know this isn't a sedative or some shit, and you just want me to lose consciousness?" she asked. Collin looked at his feet shamefully.

"It hurts," he whispered, "that you'd even consider me doing something like that. God, you have to understand that…you are the most important person in the world to me. Any ounce of pain you feel, I feel it too only it seems magnified to me. When you hurt your wrist, I got so panicked I took two trees down on my way to get you." Collin looked so frustrated, but Shannon didn't buy it. He was lying…if he cared about her, if there was some sort of connection between them like that, then he'd know just how distressed she was just being in this stupid fucking room.

"It'll only help you, and if I'm lying you won't have to take any medicine of ours ever again. Okay?" he asked warily. Shannon frowned and toyed with the little pills before popping them into her mouth…she'd take her chances, because her wrist really stung. She poured the cup of water down her mouth and swallowed them quickly.

"Good girl," Collin murmured before patting her knee cautiously. She cringed away.

"Go away…I want to be alone now," she whispered. He nodded and then paused.

"I'll…leave the door open. I think we can trust you a little bit now," he smiled. Shannon's stomach churned in disgust at his statement, because she didn't want them to trust her, because she sure as fuck wasn't going to trust them.

Furiously, she collapsed onto the bed and slammed a pillow over her face; she wanted this nightmare to be over.