CH 14 - Persefone

PERSEFONE POV The walk back to the pack house was one of the most uncomfortable experiences of my entire life. And considering I once accidentally walked into a chemistry lab explosion after mixing compounds I absolutely should not have mixed together unsupervised, that was saying something. Nobody talked. The three devils followed close enough behind me that I could feel them constantly. Like a second heartbeat crawling beneath my skin. I hated it. Mostly because my body kept reacting to them anyway. Especially after what Thane had done. One second Richard had been hugging me in relief, like the easygoing sweetheart he always was, and the next he’d been choking against a tree with Thane’s hand wrapped around his throat like something straight out of a violent fever dream. The worst part? The look on Thane’s face afterward. Pure shock. Like he hadn’t meant to do it either. That should’ve made it easier to hate him. Instead it somehow made everything worse. Stupid, right? Penny bumped lightly against my shoulder while we climbed the last stairs toward our parents’ office. “You good?” she whispered quietly through the mindlink. No. Absolutely the f**k not. My wolf was still missing. Three rogues apparently thought they were my mates. One of them had almost murdered Richard because he hugged me. And nightmare hybrids with glowing red eyes were apparently roaming around our territory like this was some f****d-up horror movie. So honestly? I was having a terrible night. “I guess,” I lied automatically. Penny snorted softly. Right. Twin bond. Forgot about that. Her expression shifted then, amusement fading completely. “Can you feel Eden?” she asked quietly. “Itaca says she can’t feel her either.” The question punched straight through my chest. Because neither could I. And goddess... I hoped with my whole heart I hadn’t lost her for good. I prayed she was still there somewhere inside me. Still tied to my soul. Just buried beneath something heavy and cold, like she was trapped underwater too deep for me to reach. Panic clawed viciously up my throat. “No,” I admitted weakly. My sister's face paled instantly. Fuck. That scared me more than anything else tonight. Because Penny didn’t panic easily. Her wolf should’ve been able to sense mine. Should’ve been able to brush against Eden even if I couldn’t fully reach her myself. But apparently there was nothing. Or nobody. My stomach dropped harder. “What did they give me?” I whispered. Mom’s head snapped toward me instantly at that. Nobody answered. Which honestly? Was not comforting. The second we stepped into the hallway leading toward the Alpha offices, silence spread almost unnaturally fast. Probably because the corridor overlooked the ballroom where our birthday party had been in full swing less than an hour ago. Music still echoed faintly through the pack house, glasses still clinked somewhere beneath golden lights and flower decorations like the night hadn’t completely gone to s**t— but the second people noticed me? Whispers exploded everywhere. Relief hit first. Then confusion. Then absolute f*****g shock once they noticed the three rogues walking behind me like dangerous shadows. Wonderful. Just absolutely wonderful. I could practically feel the gossip forming in real time. Why is Perse barefoot? Why is her dress ruined? Why are the Tartarus brothers here? Why do they look ready to kill somebody? A group of younger wolves near the staircase immediately moved aside when Aiden looked at them. Smart. Very smart. The tension crawling through the hallway felt so thick it almost pressed against my skin. Growls rolled low beneath the surface from multiple directions, territorial and hostile enough that even guests from other packs started noticing something was very wrong. The triplets reacted instantly. Aiden moved slightly closer to my side automatically. Keres’ claws flashed silver for half a second before disappearing again. And Thane— Goddess. Thane looked exhausted. Still dangerous. Still terrifying. But exhausted now. Like he’d been holding himself together through sheer force of will for hours and was finally starting to crack around the edges. My chest tightened strangely again. I ignored it aggressively. “Office,” Daddy Dalton ordered sharply. Nobody argued. The walk through the hallway somehow felt even longer after that. Like every pair of eyes in Bloodclaw territory was burning holes straight through my back while we passed. And by the time we finally stepped into the Alpha office, the tension following us inside felt heavy enough to choke on. Daddy took his place behind the massive desk while Pops Derrick stayed standing beside him with his arms crossed, expression hard enough to crack concrete. Mom paced once near the windows before turning sharply toward me. “Tell us exactly what happened.” And suddenly every pair of eyes in the room landed on me. Fantastic. I crossed my arms tightly and told them the s**t-show my life had been in the last few days. I told them about the red eyes in the parking lot and at that Mom went visibly pale. Daddy cursed under his breath. Pops Derrick looked ready to punch through the wall. “We thought we killed them all,” Mom whispered. A cold feeling slid slowly down my spine. Killed what exactly? Thane scoffed quietly from near the doorway. The sound cut straight through the room. “Well,” he said flatly, “obviously you didn’t.” Daddy’s head snapped toward him instantly. Violent. “What do you know about hybrids?” he demanded. “I know what happened twenty years ago,” he said finally, voice rougher now. “And I know shewolves are disappearing again.” “A few rogues too,” he continued coldly. “Not that your people usually care much when it happens outside pack borders.” The hatred in his voice hit me straight in the chest. Like a blade sliding between my ribs. Because I cared. Maybe too much. I’d spent the last two years looking for them, tracking every tiny crumb of information I could find through forums, encrypted chats, missing persons reports that mysteriously vanished days later. Following every lead. Every trail. And I’d been so f*****g close to finding something before tonight turned my entire life upside down. Anger flared hot beneath my skin. Because what the hell did he know about what I cared about? What did any of them know about me, really? It was way too easy blaming me for being born inside a pack. Like that alone made me guilty for every horrible thing happening outside our borders. And what were they really doing anyway? Rescuing missing she-wolves in secret? Yeah. I seriously f*****g doubted it. Rage burned hotter beneath my skin, heat crawling all the way up my neck until my cheeks felt on fire. Easy. So f*****g easy blaming me, my family, the packs— like we were personally responsible for every monster hiding in the woods. But what had they done exactly? Besides acting like the three dangerous bad boys on motorcycles every girl in school obsessed over. Cornering people in bathrooms. Starting fights. Looking at the world like it owed them blood. I wanted a fight. Needed one. Adrenaline should’ve been leaving my system by now, yet all I wanted was to kick their pretty asses until they stopped looking at me and my family with that f*****g disdain. A hand caught my elbow instantly. Keres. Of course it was Keres. His grip tightened automatically and for one terrifying second— I wanted to lean into it. Wanted the warmth. Wanted somebody to tell me none of this was real and my life hadn’t completely detonated in the span of two f*****g hours. Then my brain caught up with my body. I pulled away immediately. Too fast. Too sharp. Keres’ expression darkened instantly. Not angry. Hurt. The realization punched unexpected guilt straight through my stomach. Which was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. Because I was the one currently having a psychological breakdown. “You okay?” he asked roughly anyway. “Do you feel sick?” I did feel sick. For way too many reasons. Not that he actually cared. It was just the alleged mate bond. If that was even the truth. Mom suddenly moved closer before the awkward silence could spread any further. “Perse,” she said carefully, “what exactly are you feeling right now?” The question instantly made my stomach twist. Because the answer was: Everything. Too much. And somehow also nothing at all. “I don’t know,” I admitted quietly. Mom stepped fully into Alpha mode immediately after that. “We’re going to the hospital,” she said sharply. Daddy Dalton nodded once. “No arguments.” “Oh good,” I muttered weakly. “Exactly how I wanted to end my birthday.” “We’re coming with you,” Aiden blurted instantly, leaving absolutely no room for argument. And I didn’t even have the strength to argue back. To tell him to f**k off. To tell all of them to crawl straight into hell. Because Eden was gone. And for the first time in my entire f*****g life— I was truly terrified.