Betrayal & Redemption

Chapter 13

Jackson POV 

Showtime, Arlo says. 

I don't even bother with my clothes and shift seamlessly to my wolf. I let out a loud growl and watch the three respond by bowing their heads. In a flash, I tear into the one that doesn't. I have him pinned on the ground by his throat and bite down until blood fills my mouth. I squeeze harder and then jerk his head, breaking his neck. I drop the lifeless body and turn on the others. I leap back so that I am between my mate and the others. They're all hesitating, but one finally gets the courage to come at me and the others follow. I duck and then reach back grabbing one of the pouncing wolves by the back paw and I swing him around to take out the other two. they go flying into the brush and then coming charging out again, pissed. This time, I don't wait for them. I run up and grab the back leg of one, crunching the bone between my massive jaws, satisfied when I hear him yelp loudly in pain. He retreats and I face the next one. 

How many wolves does it take to send a message? Arlo asks. 

Just one, and I think that other one can deliver on 3 legs, I respond with a grin. 

I charge into the next wolf and a moment later his muddy brown fur is in shreds. Finally the last one and I circle each other. It's not even close to a fair fight- my wolf is the taller than Caroline and this little mutt comes up to her waist. 

I launch myself at his neck, ripping his throat out and tossing it into the muddy pile. Shifting back to human form, I run to the trunk of the car, stark naked, and grab a pair of sweats. I'm covered in blood so I don't throw on a shirt. I go to Caroline who is standing right where I left her, a look of sheer horror on her face. 

"Caroline," I tell her, trying to keep my voice calm. 

Shit. We should have done that in the woods,  I tell Arlo. He remains silent. 

"Caroline, sweetheart, are you okay?" I ask, shaking her. Finally her trance breaks and she looks at me, covered in blood- but thankfully, none of it is mine. 

"I-I..Jackson...you..." she's crying. f**k. 

I grab her up into a tight hug, doing my best to keep the blood off of her. 

"Shhh, it's okay baby. I got you. You're safe," I tell her. I want to kiss her but my face and throat are covered in blood.

Her small frame wracks with sobs. I pick her up and put her in the passenger seat. She dropped everything so I quickly stuff it all in the trunk and slide into the driver's seat. I fire Katya up with a roar and take off through the town, ignoring every stop sign and traffic light. I pull into a storage facility and make my way around the back to where I keep my getaway car stored. I punch in the numbers for the door and go around to get Caroline. I lift her out of the sports car and onto the plush leather of the SUV. She clings to me, crying still. 

"Shh, sweetheart, it's alright. You're okay. They wanted to hurt you- and I won't let anyone do that. Okay?" I pet her hair and she just continues crying. 

I run out to where the owner of this place keeps the hose, drop my sweats out of the way, and spray all the blood off of me. I throw my sweats back on, grab everything out of the Katya, and pull her into the storage unit next to the QX-90. I pop the hood, remove the battery cables, and throw them in the trunk of the Infiniti before climbing behind the wheel and pulling it out of the garage. I punch the door opener on the top and the door behind us descends. 

So long, Katya. I will be back for you as soon as I can, I think to myself. I love that car. 

I check the dash- full tank of gas and no i***t lights. I kept this thing stored here in case something happened with the Alpha's daughter- to get her away as quickly as possible. I head out on the dark highway heading north, the speedometer hovering around 110. I reach over and grab Caroline's hand. She calmed down a bit, she has hiccups but her sobs died down. She looks over at me and I meet her gaze. She climbs over the center console and into my lap, I set the car to cruise control and hold her. I have no worries about being pulled over- the plates that I have will trace back to the FBI so we are clear to haul ass out of here. I kiss her head and she buries her face in my neck. Before long, she's asleep on me, still hiccuping every now and then. I inhale deeply, appreciating her scent. The wolfsbane smell is even weaker today than it was yesterday. 

"Soon, baby. Soon you'll realize who we are," I whisper to her. I turn the radio on and sit back, turning all the bells and whistles of my car on. This is a fully loaded 2020 model with lane keeping, adaptive cruise control, automatic parking, and even massaging seats. There's a DVD player in the rear and a whole box of DVDs under the seat, snacks in the back that I replenished monthly, and 2 gas tanks in the rear so we won't have to stop for a while. I sigh and hum along with the Toby Keith ballad that's coming through the speakers. 

Caroline POV

I wake up in Jackson's lap, keeping my head down. It's light out now, and he's singing softly to himself, his deep voice vibrating through his chest. I inhale deeply and he runs his finger through my hair, letting me know he knows I'm awake. I pull back and look up at him. 

"Mornin' darlin. Sleep well?" he asks with a smile. 

I can't help it, I return it. Then my face falls and I remember what happened last night. 

"You almost died!" I accuse him. 

"Pfft. I didn't even come close. What fight were you watching?" he gives me a cocky grin and I can't help but smile. 

"Goddess I was so worried..." I hug him tightly. 

"I'm not made of glass, darlin'. Nothing for you to worry about." he strokes my face, not taking his eyes off the road. 

It's so frustrating that he just won't look at me. I climb back over to my side of the car and stretch. 

"Where are we?" I ask him. 

"We are almost to Montana," he says. 

"What?! How long was I out??"

"Coupla days. You were really tired. You woke up a couple times, but went back to sleep after a couple minutes. I moved ya to the back for a bit but I wanted- uh- nevermind. Anyways. I'm sure you're hungry. I wasn't sure when you'd be up- we're about 7 miles from the next rest stop. You can shower and do what you need to do- then we're filling up and heading straight to Twin Peaks Pack," he says. 

That's not a name I've heard before. 

"And what are we doing there?" I ask him. 

"Well, we're gonna get you checked out by a doc, and I have to go over a few things with the Alpha there. We need to tell him what is going on with BloodMoon and..your old pack," he says carefully. I know he doesn't want to set me off. 

I squirm in my seat, I've never had to pee this bad in my entire life. I cross my legs trying to hold it all in as he pulls off the highway to an empty rest stop. As soon as he throws the car in park, I grab a suitcase and dash inside. It's very clean and updated, I'm surprised. I go straight for the shower, locking the door and dropping Jackson's sweats. I shower quickly, brush out my hair, apply some makeup to enhance what little beauty I have, and get dressed in a sweater, jeans, and sneakers. I pack up my stuff and head back out to the car. On the center console sit two breakfast sandwiches and two large bottles of orange juice. I throw my suitcase in the back as he fills up a large container with gasoline. I wrinkle my nose at the smell.

"Not the best smell, but the vehicles need the go-go juice. Speakin of juice, I got breakfast and some snacks. Help yourself," he says, watching the numbers on the gas pump. 

He didn't even look at me! I tell Rae. 

Maybe he's gay ? She responds. 

Can't be. He watched me change and kissed me!   I insist

Maybe he's got a mate, Rae says.

I feel a pain in my chest when I think of Jackson with another woman but I ignore it. He's not mine, I have no right to get mad about him with his mate. I just hope that, if I ever find my mate that he doesn't go off kissing the first girl he rescues in the woods. I hop up into the car and notice there's a small cooler in the back seat. I open it and find a bottle of water. I crack it open and drink the whole thing in one sip. Then I start on the breakfast sandwich he got me- weirdly enough, it's my favorite. Croissant with ham, cheese, scrambled eggs, and mayonnaise. Jackson climbs in and I look over at him. 

"Oh, I didn't know what you wanted. I just got my favorite," he says, picking up his own sandwich and taking a bite. "Is it okay?" he asks with a full mouth. 

"Actually, it's my favorite, too," I tell him. 

He finally looks over at me, and when his eyes meet mine, my heart races, my stomach erupts in butterflies and Rae yelps happily in my head. 

MATE, she howls. 

"Mate..." I say aloud. 

Jackson almost drops his sandwich. 

"f*****g finally," he says to me. 

I put my sandwich on the dash and pull his face towards mine, kissing him deeply. In my head, Rae howls loudly, happy as can be.