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"NO FUCKING WAY," Colton hissed. He rubbed his forefinger against his temple as Tia paced in front of her best friend. "We are not staying here."

Tia already hated the pack house. The walls were bland, with a concoction of testosterone and the scent of wet pelt lining the air at every turn in the maze of corridors. Two floors up, and the first door on the left, had been granted as her room. She had been lucky to find it without bumping into another pack member; she didn't want her face to be remembered. After all, she didn't plan on staying for long.

Dirt lined the edge of the windowsill, a deceased fly decomposing on the cream ledge. The room was musky, and the carpet had distinctly been replaced with a thick, woollen material that was soft against Eretria's bare feet.

The woman pulled out the spare pair of leggings from her rucksack, the pack of tampons, and her weapons. She laid the identical five inch throwing knives on the dresser, right next to her mascara and signature bold ruby lipstick.

Tia crossed her arms, involuntarily rolling her eyes. "We don't have a choice." She glared at Colton, whom remained sat on the bed like a frightened child. He was handsome, she realised with a sullen shake of her head, but with the blazing lights casting downwards shadows on his face, he appeared more sinister than he had ever before. "Now get to your room so I can change."

A smirk played on Colton's lips as he exited the room. The door slammed in his wake, and Eretria kept listening until she heard the door opposite her room swing open and shut with a resounding boom.

With her best friend gone, Tia got to work peeling off her dirty garments. The sweatshirt stuck to her bare skin as she pulled it over her head, sending her tresses into a messy array. As soon as she was naked, she hurried into the bathroom and slid into the shower. She vigorously washed her hands to get the blood off them, even though none of the red residue was staining her skin: she couldn't see it, but she could feel it. Buried deep within her organs, the blood of the dead roiled like a tsunami.

The werewolf washed her hair using the shampoo and conditioner already in the bathroom, from the previous resident who had apparently left the pack because she didn't fit in. Tia's nose creased as she saw the dirt drip from her dark hair, her hands glad to rake out all of the debris stuck to her scalp.

In ten minutes, her shower was finished. Water had condensed on the white tile walls and small, rectangular window of the room. Eretria used her hand to smudge away the water vapour on the window, to reveal the magnificent front driveway of the pack house, bordered by pillars. It was a beautiful house, she had to admit. It wasn't too bad calling it home until what needed to be done was done. Ink stained the night sky as the sun dipped below the horizon, marking the end of yet another day.

Tia towel dried her hair slowly and laboriously, and then pulled the soft material around her body. She hadn't felt something so silky for days, and revelled in the warmth it gaze her as she snuggled into the thick towel.

Cold air rushed to greet the brunette's body as she stepped out of the en suite, only to find a silhouetted figure sitting on her bed.

Tia's heart jumped to her throat, although she would never admit her fear.

"Colton, I told you to go to your room..." Tia sighed, but trailed off when she realised the muscular figure was not her best friend, despite the similarities. The male held a photo in his grasp, and Tia had to use her supernatural eyesight to realise that it was a picture of her.

"Hey," the woman strode forward angrily, using one arm to keep her towel in place, while the other snatched the old and torn photograph from the man's grip. "What the fuck are you doing in here?"

She switched on the light to reveal a pair of intelligent hazel eyes, and tousled brown hair. Jared's skin appeared even paler in the light of the new light bulbs.

"There's such a thing as knocking," Eretria continued as Jared rose from the bed. "And who said you could go through my things?"

Tia took the photo, folding it in half and tucking it away into the side of her rucksack. It was an ancient photo, so old the colour had faded into a drab monochrome.

Jared waved his hands as though he was surrendering. For a Beta, he acted like a coward. "I didn't mean to."

Tia jabbed an accusing finger at the man. "What do you mean you didn't mean to?" Her accent was thicker with angry words.

"It was left on the side," Jared replied, backing away as Tia's hands scrunched into fists. She was ready to punch him for the second time in two days. "Sorry, I just came to apologise."

The she-wolf narrowed her eyes furiously. "Really?" She found it difficult to hide the bitterness slathering her vocal chords.

"Yes," Jared retorted.

Eretria raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"I'm sorry."

Tia listening to the wind weave through the tree branches outside her window. The day had cracked open into night, darkness flooding through the seams like a black supernova.

She folded her arms across her chest. "That's great," she smiled, lifting up the left side of her mouth. "Now get out." The man had locked her up in a cell, and although he had let her go, in the end the escape hadn't been worth it. He had killed a man right in front of Tia's eyes, with no sense of remorse. Buried deep down in Jared's soul, hid a monster.

Jared refused to move, his feet firmly placed on the ground as though they were cemented there. Tia could smell the scent of fresh pine lingering on his clothes.

"Why are you here?" Jared enquired. Tia's brow crooked further up her forehead.

"Excuse me?"

Jared shrugged his shoulders. The woman was two seconds away from breaking his nose. "Why aren't you in Mexico? And don't you dare say you moved with your pack. They came from Alaska."

Eretria heaved a sigh. She didn't want to talk about her past, especially to someone at the bottom of her trust list. "Why do you care?"

"I'm curious. I feel like you're hiding something."

It took the woman every ounce of strength to keep her from tackling Jared to the ground. She wasn't hiding anything; she didn't have to. "My pack was murdered! How dare you accuse me of hiding something? I ran because I didn't want to die, and I wanted to start a new life. My parents are still out there somewhere, but they're not my parents anymore. Jasper took me in, and now he's gone."

Tia gulped in a huge breaths to calm her racing and vicious thoughts. "I suggest you come back and apologise again when I'm not tempted to rip out your throat."

"Look, I'm sorry," Jared reared back until his body thumped against the door.

Eretria shook her head disapprovingly. "It's not like you can talk, anyway. Have you even told Connor about the man you killed yet? And not to mention the fact that you're still not ruled out of the murder of my pack. You released us well after they were murdered."

Tia watched as Jared's mouth twitched momentarily into a snarl. A snort rung out across the silence of the room, reverberating off the chasm of bland grey walls. Tia had already decided to paint them dark red: the pigment of fresh blood.

"That's insane." Jared remarked. He trod forward, towering over Eretria's much shorter frame. He was handsome, but it was a brutal and unique kind of handsome that made Tia's skin tingle until her limbs were numb. His face was sharp, yet his jawline was rounded and didn't seem to fit his stern face.

"What's insane is that you came into my room and looked through my stuff while I was in the shower."

Jared inhaled, and opened his mouth to form words. When none came, he reached behind him for the door handle, and pulled open the oak barricade. The corridor beyond was submerged in black. Tia inwardly smiled, glad that she had opposed a Beta and come out unscathed.

Just before Jared slipped away into the hallway, Tia cocked her head. "Oh, and Jared?" She muttered.

"Yeah?" He didn't look pleased.

"Next time you come in unannounced, I'll break more than just your nose."

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A quick update for my amazing readers! First of all, please let me know what you thought! Comments mean a lot more to me than reads and votes ❤️

Thank you all for the support! I can't believe this story is featured! Keep it up and the next update will be very soon,

Lotte xx