I Am Worthy

Chapter 9: Why?

“What in the f**k!” I groaned as I came to. I tried to move my hand to my pounding head but something was holding it back. I feel like I have been drinking vodka for two days straight, that's how dry my throat is and how bad my head aches. I feel groggy and struggle to open my eyes, but get there in the end. I am sitting on a large sized bed with grey satin sheets. However, my hands have been cuffed to the headboard, which is incredibly inconvenient. I didn’t recognise the room. In front of me there is a chair beside a large oak desk with a laptop sitting on top with what I assume was a walk-in closet to its side. A large floor to ceiling window was to my left with black curtains draped to its side. To my right was an oak chest of drawers with a door going into the wall behind me and another into the wall beside the drawers. Beside the window was a large looking loveseat, also in black. The whole room was very dark and had little to no colour, but it was still beautiful. I could smell that Xander had spent a lot of time in this room, and that irritated me. I could feel that irritation gradually building, like an itch I can’t scratch, “XANDER BLACKSTONE! YOU LET ME GO RIGHT f*****g NOW!” I yelled with all the breath I had in my lungs, making the entire room shake. Within seconds, a very pissed off Alpha came bombing into the room from the door beside the chest of drawers. He looked around before finally looking at me and I noticed his eyes soften a little, but within the blink of an eye he had covered that softness with an icy glare.

“Let me go.” I said with a dangerously low voice. He smirked at me as he responded, his tone equally as dangerous as mine, “Now, now, Little Wolf. Why would I let you go when you belong to me?” He approached me slowly and then went to brush a strand of my hair away from my face but I reacted to his close proximity by sinking my teeth swiftly into said hand. “AH, f**k!” He half yelled as he quickly pulled his hand away, I smirked at this as I felt his blood trail down my chin and then my neck, swiping my tongue out to get more of a taste. “Don’t make me repeat myself, sweetheart.” I stated with a devilish smile spreading across my face. His expression went dark as he looked at me, then he disappeared. I took a good look at the rope wrapped around my wrists, then got struck with a fantastic idea. “Alright Isaac, let's hope your lessons actually helped me with my control.” I thought to myself before I focused. I imagined all my rage and all my pain being sent to each of my wrists and allowed them to stir. I pictured a small flame licking at the rope from each wrist, allowing it to thin and eventually break. “Oh thank god!” I muttered as I stood and rubbed each wrist to ease the agitated skin. First things first, where the f**k am I? Because it is clearly not my pack.

I have spent the last five minutes trying to mindlink with River and Dominik, but the link feels weak so I don’t know if they can hear me. I have since decided that walking straight out the front door won’t be such a good idea, so looking from the window I figure I can stick to the landing… maybe… with a few broken bones… But it is currently my only option. Four stories isn’t too bad. Right? Upon opening the window a little so I could fit through, I heard heavy footsteps coming down the hall outside the room. I guess it’s now or never. With a sigh, I climb out and twist a little so that I can push the window closed again. I lower myself until I am hanging, then begin to shuffle my hands across a little at a time so that I can stay out of view. “Deep breath…” I whisper as I build up the courage to let go and drop. Just as I let go, I heard a deafening roar coming from the room I had just escaped. “See ya, sucker.” I half said as I fell. I hit the ground hard and, surprisingly, didn’t break a single bone. Thank the goddess for that. Now, which way to go? There is just forest and more forest, but I can’t just stand here, I need to move. Masking my scent, I shifted and ran through the woods.

I had been running for at least two hours without slowing down or taking a break, my legs were beginning to ache from the constant movement and my lungs were burning. I had heard multiple wolves howling in the distance about an hour ago, which only fueled me to continue running, but I didn’t catch a scent of anyone nearby. I can run a little further. I am bound to be out of the territory that was holding me hostage by now, but I cannot risk slowing down just yet. I am only a small wolf in comparison, after all, meaning that any normal werewolf can cover the distance that I have in about half my time. After another two hours of running, I can feel myself beginning to slow down. I take a look around the area I am currently in to try and find somewhere safe to hide out whilst I rest and eventually find a fox's den. I take a sniff around and notice that the scent is still quite strong. I squeeze myself in and come face to face with a little red fox who looks awfully panicked. He began snarling and nipping towards me to get me out, but instead, I made myself as small as possible and lowered my head to show that I meant no harm, but the little fox remains anxious, but I get why, a wolf just crawled into his home and is making no known moves to leave.

Eventually, the fox calmed down, then he suddenly left, but he came back shortly after with a rabbit in his jaws and offered it to me, which I took from him gratefully, making sure to leave him plenty of meat to say thanks. Once we had both eaten, I had managed to fall asleep, but that peace did not last too long before the familiar sound of growling neared the little fox’s den. He automatically perked up but kept still so as not to draw attention. His eyes flew to me briefly, then back to the entrance of his den. I could smell Xander’s beta, Giovanni, right by the entrance. “Please leave. Please leave…” I repeated in my head as I stared intently at the only way in and out of the den. Eventually, the footfalls of the wolves began to get quieter with distance, but I still felt that something was off. The little fox next to me looked at me then proceeded to creep out of his den. Before he could leave, however, I nipped his tail with my teeth and pulled it back. He looked back, then came over to me. I began to move and crawled back out of the small hole with the fox hot on my heels.

Upon leaving the den, the fox and I exchanged a look and just as he was about to walk further into the forest we heard a twig break. My head snapped to where the sound had come from and the wind blew a familiar scent towards me. Xander. Just as I went to move, his huge wolf form bounded from the trees, aiming for either me or the fox, but I couldn’t tell which, so I grabbed the fox by the scruff and ran, diving between trees and bushes. I managed to lose Xander pretty fast so I quickly dug a hollow and placed the fox in it before throwing dirt over him slightly to hide his scent. The little fox went to move but I sent him a warning look, baring my teeth slightly to make sure he stayed put. Then I took off again, being sure to keep my nose and ears alert for any more signs that Xander was nearby. I managed to go for about 10 minutes before I caught his scent again, causing me to skid to a halt and look around. My hackles were up and my teeth were bared ready for him to show himself. After a minute or so of looking around myself, I noticed a large midnight black wolf stalk out of the shadows towards me. His eyes were as black as his fur, making his wolf look slightly demonic. His wolf must have been around 6ft2. He bared his teeth at me in warning, but I refused to stand down.

We stood growling at one another, his wolf towering over mine, but I would not let him win. I will not cower in front of him. He has no idea who he is dealing with. He lunged at me trying to grab my scruff but I lowered myself and pushed myself away at the last minute. Eventually, I heard more footfalls on the forest floor around us of who I assume is his warriors and beta. Xander did not look pleased that I managed to evade him and growled threateningly, but I would not let him get me easy. Especially after the little stunt he pulled. I could sense his warriors slowly approaching me, trying to cage me in, but I guess the wolf is out of the bag now. May as well go full throttle. “ENOUGH!” I bellowed through an unseen link between myself and the alphas warriors. They all stopped and looked at one another, then at their alpha. I could see that confusion on his wolfish face as he tried to get his men to follow through on whatever order he had given them, but they stood completely still. “Now sit.” I said with a smug feeling as all the wolves I spoke to sat on their haunches.

The alpha began to growl and eventually started to snap at the warriors closest to him, but yet, they still did not move a muscle. I accidentally let out a wolfish laugh at him as I watched his anger grow. He really didn’t have a clue. He turned slightly to get a good look at all of them around us and I took that as an opportunity to quickly and quietly get my furry behind out of there. I walked quietly away until suddenly I felt someone's jaws on my neck. I was pulled from the soft forest floor and could not reach back down. “Put me down, asshole.” I said once I created a link between Xander and myself. He halted in his tracks briefly but then continued on his way. I shifted, which caused him to let me go to avoid his canines sinking into my flesh, but just as he did that, I shifted again and ran. “Stop coming after me and take a hint!” I yelled through the link to him, but it just seemed to piss him off. He began after me but eventually I found myself alone again. I continued running, ignoring the pain I felt all over my body. I don’t know how long I ran for, but the day had been, gone and been again. The sun was setting and I was exhausted, but I couldn’t rest.

Every so often, I try mind-linking with River or Dominik, but I must just be too far away from them for us to be… On the same wavelength? I guess? I’m still trying to understand how it works… I can feel a slight buzzing sensation in my head, it reminds me of when I was away… “River?!” I began to call, “Dominik? River?” I kept shouting on the link between us but I didn’t get a response. I kept on running until I felt things snap together. “No, please… I can’t go through this again…” I ran until I caught a scent, Alyssa’s to be exact. There was a metallic smell of blood everywhere. “Alyssa!” I screamed through our link, “Kiara?” Came her wolf's weak reply. “Lynx? What happened? Where are you?” I called through frantically as I followed her scent, my sore legs carrying me further. “By the pack house…” She replied, sounding much quieter than before. I pushed harder, propelling myself through the havoc that had been brought upon my pack.

Upon reaching Lynx, I saw how bad a shape she was in. I shifted back to my human form and placed my hands over her worst wounds, willing them to heal. I ended up passing out in the process due to my already weakened state. When I came to, I was in a room full of wounded werewolves. My pack mates. “Kiara? Thank god you’re awake!” I heard from beside me. I sat up and looked around, trying to see who was around and how bad the damage was. I stood and looked to where I heard the voice to see Alyssa. She threw her arms around me, sobbing. “Are you okay?” I asked as I hugged her back, to which she tried taking a few deep breaths before replying, “You saved me, Lynx and I are so grateful to you. But River and Dominik have disappeared and I can’t find them. It was the Shadow pack. I don’t know what happened K.” she sputtered out through her tears, sounding breathless. “Bring in everyone, injured or dead. Bring them into the main hall and meet me there.” I instructed Alyssa before shifting and searching for River and Dominiks scent. I eventually picked up Dominik's scent and followed it deep into the woods.

I kept myself quiet and my scent hidden as I got closer to where I figured Dom was, just in case the Shadow Pack were still there. I had figured out, however, that Giovanni had been here recently. His scent was faint, but it was there, telling me that Xander did all this. I had never thought of asking which pack he ran, but now I don’t need to, that little f*****g b***h. “Dominik? Can you hear me?” I called out to him on our link. I didn’t get a response. I continued searching the area for a couple more minutes before I finally saw him. He was lying against a tree with a large gash across his torso. I looked around, ensuring it was safe for me to approach him and in the spotted River. He was lying unconscious at the edge of a lake, soaked from head to toe from the water. That must have been why I couldn’t pick up his scent. I shifted and dragged River to where Dominik was. I made sure both were breathing, which they were, then proceeded to try and get River to regain consciousness. I noticed Rivers' eyes beginning to open and started to heal him fully with my newfound abilities.

“Kiara?” He said, his eyes wide with surprise all over his face. I pulled him in for a hug, then got straight to business. “I need you to shift, I will help you get Dom on your back, but we need to get back to the pack house, now.” I said quickly and he nodded in response, then shifted. I began to push Dom into River’s wolf, then proceeded to climb on top, dragging his incredibly heavy body with me. Before I could climb down, however, River's wolf took off in the direction of the packhouse, causing me to grab hold of his fur and hold onto Dominik to ensure he didn’t slip off. We reached the pack house really quickly thanks to him. River shifted and grabbed some shorts once I managed to pull Dominik down, although not very gracefully. “Help me get him in, then I need everyone to create a link with one another by taking hold of each other, dead included.” “What are you going on about Kiara? We were attacked, anyone who survived will want to mourn their dead, not hold onto their bodies!” He said, sounding frustrated. “Please, I need to do this.” I pleaded with him, tears in my eyes as I pulled on a hoodie and shorts that was handed to me by another pack member. River sighed and got everyone to hold hands with the people around them until the link finished with me. I pushed myself further than I ever did. I opened up my mind and allowed the physical link between me and the pack to strengthen. I searched for the souls of the dead and pulled them back, then proceeded to feel all the wounds of the injured. I forced myself to endure the pain of every single pack member so that I could fix this mess. I will not lose anyone else.

I don’t know if I did it. I ended up blacking out once more. I don’t know where I am. I can’t feel anything. It feels like I am floating. I feel no pain and have no thoughts. I feel at peace. I hear a voice, its pitch is sweet and melodic, it doesn’t scare me. I tried to follow the voice until I came face to face with a beautiful woman who had long dark hair like mine, her skin was a gorgeous olive tone and when I looked at her eyes it was like looking in a mirror. She wore a long white lace dress that fitted her shape just right and flowed out at the bottom. “Hello my sweet daughter.” She said softly, smiling at me. “Selene?” I whispered with shock evident in my voice. “I know things have been difficult recently, but you are doing all the right things now my child. Try not to exhaust your abilities. Also, your mate may not be very understanding right now, but give him a chance. I know it will be hard but you are my blood, so I know you will pull through.” She said with a wink and, just like that, I was left alone in the darkness once more. I began hearing a beeping. It was repetitive and quite irritating to listen to. I began to feel heavy and then came the sound of muffled voices. I began to stir and tried opening my eyes but closed them instantly due to the bright light shining straight into my face. “Turn out that damn light.” I groaned, my throat feeling dry and scratchy as I did so.

I tried once more to open my eyes and tried looking around. It took a minute for things to come into focus but then I recognised the room as one from the hospital on pack lands.

“K?” I heard the familiar voice of Dominic, he sounded tired. I looked in the direction his voice came from and a small smile graced my face. “Hey…” I said when I looked at him. He smiled at me then gave me a lung-crushing bear hug. I sat up and looked around the room, seeing wires sticking out of my arms and going into machines beside me. I then looked at all the tearful faces around me. They all had grins on their faces. It creeped me out a little, I won’t lie. But I recognised most of their faces. Alyssa, River, Alaric, Jamie, Sydney, Juliette, and, of course, Dominik. “Thank you. For whatever it was you did. Thank you. You saved the entire pack and we could not be more grateful to you.” Dominik spoke, his voice wavering and cracking as tears filled his eyes and threatened to fall. “Is everyone okay? Did I get everyone?” I asked, feeling the tears in my own eyes dropping onto my cheeks, fear being the only obvious emotion within my head as I thought of how I was the reason this had all happened. “You did, Kiara. Every single person is alive. Because of you.” River then spoke, holding his sister close to him.

I brought my hands to my face and I sobbed. I allowed my emotions to show, I felt relieved. More than that. I was grateful to the moon Goddess that she allowed me to do all this. Without her, those poor innocent lives would have been left for dead, they would have left this plane of existence before their time had truly come. Thanks to Selene, I was able to help them. All of them. “I’m so sorry. This never should have happened!” I exclaimed, unable to look at the people who surrounded me as tears continued to spill from my eyes. I felt someone grab my hand and squeeze. I looked up to see Jamie. “It does not matter what happened to cause the mess, but thanks to you, my mate and my pup are alive. Without you… I don’t think any of us would have survived.” He said as his own tears fell. I didn’t know what to say so I pulled the wires from my arms, I stood and I hugged him.

“Where are the Shadow Pack’s injured?” I asked Dominik, hoping I could try and see if they could contact their Alpha. My mate. “There are only two, one is the beta. I will bring you to them.” he replied, sounding apathetic. I managed to speak to everyone in my room, then once they had left, Dominik and River sat on the bed whilst I went into the ensuite and showered. I put on Rivers hoodie and a pair of leggings that Alyssa had brought round for me, then met the boys again. “Ready?” Dominik asked, holding his arm out for me, which I gratefully took.

“How long was I out?” I asked, still looking forward. “At least 4 days…” Dominik responded. “Has there been any more trouble?” I continued, making sure I have all the information I can get before coming face to face with my mates beta. “No, I don’t think they know what you did yet. We have wolfsbane coating the cells and silver chains around them so they can’t communicate via their mindlink.” River replied this time. “Okay. When we get down there, would you guys be okay if I spoke to the beta alone? You can do as you please with the other one. If I am his Alpha’s mate, then he has to do as I say. Right?” I questioned, glancing up at the two men who have been nothing but kind to me in the entire time I have known them. “Only if his Alpha has accepted you.” Dom responded quietly. “In that case, I guess I will have to make him do as he is told, willing or not. I have my ways.” I said coldly. I forced all emotion from my features and strengthened my resolve. I will not be a pushover. He will do what I want. He dared hurt the only family I have and I will not stand for it. His Alpha will suffer the consequences of giving the order to attack my pack and I will not go easy on him.