"I don't understand?"
Miranda stood with wide eyes as the hunters told her what happened.
"What don't you understand, Keeper?" Oisin yelled in frustration. "We got our asses handed to us by that bastard!"
Miranda trembled.
"That's not possible." She ran her fingers through her hair aggressively. "An Alpha... But--"
No matter how she tried to digest it, none of what they said made sense. While normally Alpha's are powerful creatures on their own—
They still needed a pack to overwhelm their prey. And yet one lone wolf killed not one but two skilled hunters!
The Keeper clenched her teeth.
"Noah... Cassandra..."
Her voice cracked as she quietly called out the names of her fallen brethren.
Martha and Kane had not spoken from the moment they came in.
James pitied the latter.
He knew that Kane had suffered the most— and not just physically, but mentally.
The deaths of Cassandra and Noah happened under his judgement. It was his call to enter the cave.
No one here blamed him. No one except Kane himself.
James took a step forward and reached for Kane's back. He gave the latter a gentle tap on the back.
"Are you okay?"
He asked, sincerely.
Kane did not respond.
He clenched his fist and his jaw tightened.
His face turned ugly as he fought back tears that were rushing to fall down from his eyes.
Silence loomed over the room like a death sentence.
No one said a word.
****
Outside Durnloop High, Theo sat by the parking lot, waiting for Martha to come pick him up.
The rain had stopped a little before classes ended. The sky was still covered in gray clouds, a small gust of cold air brushed past the lad as he stood.
He trembled, slightly and let out a breath.
'... Where is she?'
His eyebrows furrowed.
He took out his phone and checked the time.
"3:45."
Great.
Theo bit his lips out of frustration.
He could feel something swell up inside him. Suddenly, an unbearable urge to throw his phone away emerged from deep with.
He ran his fingers through his hair, maintaining steady breathing. Standing in the cold did not help keep him calm.
It made him feel even worse.
Theo quickly reached for his bag and took out a box of pills. He took one out and swallowed it greedily.
This was his third pill for the day.
Fluoxetine (prozac) was the prescribed pill for his disorder but Theo felt like it was slightly ineffective.
It did dampen his anger a little but that was it. Only its side effects seemed to have gotten worse.
But Theo figured it was because he was taking more than he was supposed to.
Theo!
While he stood in the parking lot, waiting for his aunt, he failed to see that there was someone looking at him.
She sat not too far but not close either. A girl with short, jet black hair, often stole glances at him and then looking back down on her phone.
The girl seemed to be watching a video as there was a bit of noise and moving images on her screen.
As if he felt her gaze, Theo turned and looked at her. The girl gave him an awkward smile and waved.
He rolled his eyes and looked away.
The girl froze.
Then—
Her face twisted, forming an ugly, irritated expression.
"Tch... Ignoring me are we?" She muttered to herself. "Let's see if you'll ignore me after everyone finds out you're the son of a murder!"
She tapped her screen a few times before looking back at Theo with a victorious smile.
****
Shit!
Realization had finally struck Martha. She looked at the time and hurriedly took her car keys and went out the door.
Kane saw her leave and followed after her.
"Hey, Where are you going?" He asked.
"We still haven't... " He paused. "... We still haven't come up with a plan yet."
Martha had a troubled expression on her face but she did not turn and continued to walk forward.
"I know..." She muttered quietly.
"I just have to... I have an errand to run."
The answer did not satisfy Kane. Her brows furrowed as anger began to swell up from within him.
"An errand, seriously?" He was dumbfounded.
Martha froze.
"People died, Martha! And all you care about is an errand?"
Kane's words felt like nails to her heart. If only he knew what she was going through.
What her family was going through.
But she couldn't speak about it.
Her life outside of being a hunter was kept secret as per Miranda's orders. The group was not even allowed to exchange their first names, even though they did.
It was a safety measure in case one of them was compromised.
So the whole group was oblivious to Martha's situation.
Even Kane.
She turned and looked at him straight in the eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Look I'm really sorry, but this is something I have to do."
Kane stood and watched as she went into her car and drove off.
***
After waiting for nearly an hour, Theo thought about walking home himself. The only problem with that idea was that he did not know this town all that well.
"I should have taken the bus."
He muttered quietly.
It was only after a couple more minutes did Martha arrive. She quickly got out of the car and went to Theo.
"Oh god, I am so sorry. She held him tightly in her arms.
"I got held up at work and I didn't realize the time."
She tried to explain but Theo ignored her and went into the car. Finally out of the cold, he turned on the heater and let out a short breath.
'Excuses, excuses... I'm sick of it!'
He clicked his tongue.
"... Right." Martha muttered quietly to herself and then went back to the car.
Theo stared out the window, not even sparing her a glance.
Martha sighed internally and drove off.
Her day had just gotten worse.
First she had to deal with the deaths of her companions and now... An upset nephew.
One that has a whole lot of baggage to carry on his own.
She massaged her temples as if she felt a migraine. As she passed the hiking trail, her eyes wandered off on their own.
Looking in that direction left her bitter. Her hands tightened on the steering wheel, an action seen by Theo.
The lad had turned his head slightly as he noticed how quiet Martha had been. Her entire behavior was a bit odd.
But he wasn't going to ask. He was still angry at her.
And that anger clouded any care he had for her