Izzy

I was too preoccupied hiding from the raging Drew to realize there was another person in the room. It wasn't until the whole room went dead silent that I realized something was happening. Peeking over someone's shoulder, I noticed an older man standing near the door. Despite the fact that he hardly looked over 50 years old, he seemed to be in terrible condition. The sickness of aging plagued the man. It became more and more obvious as the man started coughing the second he opened his mouth.

"You don't know how disappointed I am with you, Christopher," the man spoke as soon as the fit of coughing was over. "Bringing these humans here. Just associating with them is against the rules! When I was disturbed from my sleep and informed of what you've done, I wasn't the least surprised. I just knew you would be the one to pull something as foolish as this."

Of course. This was Chris' father. This was why he was so insistent on making sure his father didn't find out about us, but obviously, he did. Who could've told him? And what was going to happen to all of us now that he knew about us?

"Even Caroline wouldn't be foolish enough to pull a stunt such as this one," his father continued.

Chris looked as if he had just been slapped. Caroline... Chris had mentioned her name before, but I still didn't know much about her. Whoever she is, it was obviously a sensitive subject for him; one that he didn't even like his own father mentioning.

"I would've been dead if it weren't for them," Chris replied through gritted teeth, his anger poured into his words. "But I guess Charlie failed to mention that when he ratted me out."

His father let out a laugh which quickly turned into a chest-wracking cough. It was so bad that he was hunched over in an attempt to make it stop. When the coughing ceased, he looked back up at his son again, shooting him a loathful glare.

"I didn't hear a word from Charles. Goes to show I have two disappointments as sons now."

Chris seemed unaffected by those venomous words. If it wasn't obvious before, now I knew for sure he despised his father and I couldn't blame him at all. This anger was one of an angry, loathful, old man who was set off by everything.

"If he didn't say anything, then who did?" Chris questioned.

Before his father could reply, someone else spoke up. It was unexpected, but also not that surprising. Especially considering how many similarities this person shared with the older man.

"These humans will only cause harm and mayhem among our people, Chris," Drew said, making it all too clear he was the perpetrator.

"Let them stay if you want, Christopher. Just know that the turmoil caused by them being here and what comes after it will be on you. I'm done here," Mr. Reynolds calmly stated before leaving the training room, leaving all of us in a furious frenzy. Even the other werewolves couldn't side with Drew after what he had done.

"Now I'm glad I kicked you," I told him as I crossed my arms. I understand he didn't like us, but he had no right to risk our safety like that.

"Kicking someone when their guard is down - how brave of you. Now I'm ready and itching to fight. Let's see if you live to tell the tale," he said menacingly. My brain was screaming at me to back down and hide, but my ego said differently. I wasn't going to give in to him and show him my fear.

"Drew, calm down," Mary said, trying to keep the peace. It was far too late for peace, but it was a nice thought on her part.

"Seriously," Dakota cut in, his usual smile nowhere visible on his features. "What you did wasn't cool."

Those words must've felt like a betrayal to Drew. I hardly knew him, but I could already tell his relationship with Dakota was a close one. It was obvious because of how often they were together. Despite that, even Dakota couldn't defend his friend's rash actions.

"Are you all serious?" Drew asked furiously. "These humans already have you wrapped around their fingers! They just want to see our downfall; that's the only thing they wanted since the birth of the first werewolf! Humans are lazy, lying, and manipulative creatures and they don't belong here."

The whole room erupted in shouts. All of the Rescuers, including myself, all screamed out our thoughts of him. Anger overpowered my better judgment in this situation. I hardly even noticed Chris and the others trying to get us to stop. It wasn't until people got cocky enough to get in Drew's face that I realized how ugly this was going to get. It hardly seemed possible, but his eyes seemed to grow even darker than usual and a low growl emanated from him. Seeing him like that reminded me of a wild animal being cornered.

Before I could get everyone to back off, he finally snapped. He moved his arms in a quick motion and pushed everyone that was too close to him on the ground. He was obviously pissed, but no one he shoved seemed injured. I couldn't tell if that was just a coincidence or not.

Everyone else was smart enough to get out of his path quickly. In a blink of an eye, it was just me standing there and he was staring right at me, his dark eyes glaring daggers at me. Something told me that he wasn't going to take it easy on me.

"Drew-" Chris started, but was cut off by Drew running straight towards me. Despite the fact I had plenty of time to move out of the way, I didn't. I was frozen in place. He wasn't going to hesitate to attack me, yet I couldn't move an inch.

I threw my hands up in an attempt to block a blow that never came. Looking up, I noticed he was stopped by two familiar faces. While Austin had taken ahold of Drew's left arm, Chris grabbed the other. It only took a single, well-placed shove on Drew's part to knock Austin aside, but Chris wasn't giving up that easily.

"Knock it off! Just look at you," Chris told his friend through gritted teeth. Drew's steely gaze softened for a moment, just long enough for Chris to loosen his grip on him. He looked as if he was going to back down. That was until his eyes made contact with my own. My presence alone was enough to remind him how much he despised me. Well, good job me.

Chris grabbed ahold of his friend again once he noticed his anger flare back up, but Drew wasn't about to be stopped again. He easily found a loophole out of it that I completely forgot was even an option for him: he touched his ring.

The second his finger came in contact with the bloodstone gem, I watched as his figure morphed into a wolf right before my eyes. His narrowed, black eyes almost felt like they were boring right into my soul and his pitch black fur shared a resemblance to the midnight sky. With a low, threatening growl, he proceeded to take a step closer to me.

"Drew, please-" I pleaded, only to be cut off by the loud sound of him snapping his teeth together. I knew that there would be no use to reason with someone who loathed me so much, but I sure as hell wasn't about to at least try.

As I took a couple of steps back, I saw Chris attempt to stop Drew when something stopped him. Out of nowhere, a peculiar looking object flew through the air and hit the wolf before me right in the snout. It wasn't until it hit the ground that I was able to see what it was.

It was... A shoe. A goddamn shoe.

Before I could stop to think who was the idiot who decided that throwing a shoe at Drew would be the best idea, that answer was quickly answered for me.

"Hey, dogface! Over here!" Austin shouted. Surely enough, he was missing a shoe on his right foot. Drew's gaze immediately fixed on him, causing him to chuckle nervously. "O-Oh. I guess I didn't think this out completely."

Austin made a smart move and dove into the crowd of people when Drew released a loud snarl that was undoubtedly directed towards him. By the time I realized I should do the same, it was too late. Drew forgot about Austin and looked back at me. My mind screamed at me to run, but my body wouldn't cooperate. It wasn't until Drew started dashing towards me that my body finally decided to listen.

One hasty step backward only resulted in me falling flat on my ass, completely vulnerable to the infuriated wolf. Chris started running after Drew, but he had already gotten too much of a head start. By the time Chris caught up, it would be too late.

The wolf lunged at me and I barely had enough time to roll out of the way. I somehow managed to avoid getting ripped to shreds, but I wasn't quick enough. A cry of pain ripped through my throat as his sharp claws raked their way down my calf. I tried to stand back up only to find my leg give out under the tiniest bit of my weight put on it. My leg was inoperable and I was left completely and utterly helpless.

"Drew! Stop it!" Chris screamed, but his words were falling on deaf ears. Drew lunged at me again and I knew there was no way I'd manage to roll out of the way this time. He was just too close to me.

He was stopped before I even had time to shield my face. I stared in awe as I watched another wolf come out of nowhere and tackle him to the ground. In mere seconds, both wolves morphed back into humans to reveal Charlie, using both his hands to grasp the collar of Drew's shirt tightly.

"I believe my brother told you to stop," Charlie stated in a deadly calm tone. He looked just as composed as ever, but there was an obvious rage emanating off of him. "I suggest you listen to him next time."

Drew kept his lips pursed into a thin line as he stared icily into Charlie's eyes. As much as he tried to hide it, it was obvious Drew was terrified. I honestly couldn't blame him.

Charlie released him, but he wasn't done with this tense conversation. Before Drew could move away, he spoke. "Consider yourself on probation. As of now, you are no longer allowed to be anywhere near the humans unless I am present to keep an eye on you. Understood?"

"Understood," Drew replied curtly, his voice wavering.

Giving me one last glare, he sulked out of the training room. It wasn't until he was completely gone that everyone rushed over to me. Too many voices with various different questions filled the air. Thankfully, Charlie managed to put a quick stop to them before I had to.

"Quiet down, everyone. Crowding around her and talking won't help her."

He and Chris kneeled beside me after everyone gave me my space. Charlie tentatively touched my calf, causing me to wince in pain. I couldn't even look at the wound. Just looking at all the blood would make me vomit.

"Can you walk on it?" Chris asked. I shook my head in response, too afraid that anything I said would come out as a whimper. The adrenaline was already fading away and I was finally starting to feel the full pain.

Charlie stood back up and looked over at Mary and Dakota who were doing their best to calm down the rest of the Rescuers. "I want you two to take these humans back to the living quarters and help provide them with food. It's late and I'm sure they're starving by now," he told them before turning his gaze back to his brother. "I'll trust you to get Izzy safely to the infirmary. I'll inform the doctors on staff right now that she will be arriving soon."

The three of them nodded. Mary and Dakota started rounding up the Rescuers while Chris stayed by my side. Charlie, who was now standing near the door, scanned the whole room with what seemed to be a conflicted look on his face. He wasn't someone who easily revealed his emotions for all to see, but something told me he couldn't decide whether letting us stay was a good idea or not. I didn't know myself either. With that last look, he walked out of the building.

Austin came stumbling out of the crowd of people hopping on one leg as he attempted to get his shoe back on. He stopped moving when he reached where I was sitting on the ground and successfully got his shoe back on his foot. Releasing a contented sigh, he shot me a grin.

"Even when I think you're a goner, you still always manage to make it out alive," he said teasingly.

"Well, now don't be too disappointed," I replied dryly.

"So," he started with a clap of his hands, "When are we leaving for the infirmary?"

"The only place you're going is with Mary and Dakota," Chris cut in.

"Like hell I am. Izzy's hurt and I'm her best friend." Austin folded his arms and I sighed. Despite what he wanted to think, I didn't always need him. Especially not when I was in a lot of pain and extremely irritable.

"No offense or anything, but you'll just slow us down."

"Hmph. We'll see about that." Before I could bat his hands away, he wrapped his arms around me and picked me up bridal style. Between having to look at all my blood and the sudden feeling of getting picked up, I felt as if I was about to vomit.

"Austin, put me down!" I ordered sternly. I was never one to enjoy being picked up by someone and Austin was no exception to this.

"Just wait! I'll prove my worth and carry you to the infirmary."

I couldn't see this going well at all and I was exactly right. He took only one step before he began to stumble. He managed to regain his balance before we crashed to the ground with him on top of me.

"Shit. You're heavier than you look," he mumbled through heavy breaths as he attempted to get a better hold of me.

"Asshole," I muttered. That's when it got even worse. I slapped my hands over my face to hide the bright shade of red my face was sure to be. "Austin, put me down. Now."

Just from my tone alone he could tell something was off. "Wait, why? What's wrong?"

"Your hand is on my ass," I told him, my words muffled by my hands. In an instant, Austin put me back on my feet, holding his hands up innocently. Loud snickers were coming from Chris which only made my blush darken even more.

"Definitely a waste of time, but at least that was entertaining," Chris chuckled.

"Remind me to never pick you up, Iz," Austin said, his voice cracking mid-sentence. I moved my hands away from my face and nodded. I could still feel how warm my face was and I knew it wouldn't be going away anytime soon.

"Did you learn your lesson?" Chris asked, raising his eyebrows at the blonde.

"Yeah, I'm going to go back to the group," he mumbled before walking back over towards where Mary and Dakota were gathering everyone else.

Before Chris could do anything, I tried taking a step on my own only to feel burning pain rush up my leg. I started tipping to the side before I could recover from the pain. Chris was quick to act; his hands shot out and grabbed my waist, keeping me steady.

"You're just going to hurt yourself even more," he said exasperatedly. "Just let me carry you."

My stubbornness was a quality about me that I did appreciate, but even I knew when it was time to give in. Releasing a heavy puff of air, I hooked my arm around his neck and allowed him to pick me up. In a much more elegant way than Austin, he, quite literally, swept me off my feet. It felt even more awkward being held in the arms of a person I hardly even knew than it was being held by my best friend. I felt so helpless and I absolutely hated it.

Frowning, he shifted my weight between his arms, looking almost confused. My grip around his neck tightened, worried that something was wrong. He spoke before I could even open my mouth to question him.

"Austin was right," he muttered to himself, amusement evident in his voice. "You are heavier than you look."

I scowled. "You're also an asshole."

******

It took about ten minutes of walking to reach the infirmary. Chris' stamina was beyond incredible to be able to carry me for that long. Besides the change in his breathing, he showed no signs of my added weight phasing him.

As Chris carried me inside, we ran into someone who I wasn't overly ecstatic to meet again: Dr. Wingard. The white, lab coat he wore earlier was nowhere to be seen and instead, was replaced with casual clothes which consisted of a black and white checkered shirt along with a pair of denim jeans.

"You two again," he said in a distasteful tone. He eyed the wound on my leg before releasing an exasperated sigh. "I don't even want to know."

He walked out before either of us could say anything, but I had no complaints. I hardly knew him and I already wasn't much of a fan of his.

Chris carried me to the nearest empty bed before placing me down. The second he was free of my weight, he collapsed into the nearby chair and wiped the sweat from his brow. I couldn't blame him for being exhausted. After all, he did have to carry me a long way.

"Thank you for carrying me here, but you don't have to stay with me," I told him softly. He was already doing far too much for me; I hated the idea of him being forced to stay here and babysit me.

He motioned to a doctor for, what I believed to be, getting blood to bring over before turning back to me. "I'm not leaving you by yourself," he said as he leaned back in his chair, folding his hands behind his head.

I let out a heavy puff of air. I know he only had good intentions, but I hated feeling like a child who needs to be watched. Especially not by the same person who had already done so much to help me that day. He saved my life... Even Charlie saved me from Drew who would've certainly torn me to shreds.

"If Charlie didn't step in... He would've killed me, right?" I asked hesitantly. His features immediately softened. It was obvious he could tell that I was still shaken up about that whole ordeal.

"I don't think he would've gone as far as to kill you-"

"I've heard that line before," I muttered with a roll of my eyes.

"But," he said, casting me a glare, "You need to understand why Drew is the way he is. He grew up in a rough home life. Both of his parents are drunks and have abused him since he was a kid."

"Shouldn't someone do something?"

He sighed. "It's not like where you come from, Izzy. As long as it doesn't affect anyone else, no one cares how parents treat their kids."

"That's awful..." My life certainly wasn't all sunshine and rainbows, but I was lucky enough to never end up with an abusive foster family. I remember a time before Austin and Liam winded up in the same foster home as me when they were both abused by their previous family. It affected them in so many ways...

"Dakota, Mary, and I are the only people who have ever shown him kindness and because of that, he's protective. You can imagine how he felt when I came back home with over a hundred people - humans, for that matter - that he didn't know. The long, bloody history that werewolves and humans share didn't help that matter."

"I'm sorry that he's had such a horrible childhood, but he's still the one making decisions for himself," I told him. Despite his hardships growing up, Austin grew up to be one of the most warm-hearted people I know. If he could do it, then Drew could too.

Chris scoffed and leaned forward in his seat so that he was face-to-face with me. "Said like someone who grew up in a perfect household."

Gritting my teeth, I leaned closer to him and stared directly into his black orbs. "Is that why my parents abandoned me on the doorstep of some foster home the day I was born?" I spat out.

He opened his mouth to speak but quickly shut it. I felt tears pooling in my eyes and I turned away from him to brush them away. I didn't mean to reveal that to him, but he had no right to just assume I grew up in a perfect household. In fact, there were quite a few Rescuers who were in the same foster home as I, including Austin and Alyssa. It wasn't amazing, but at least I got to meet them.

Chris and I sat in silence for a few minutes. During that time, the doctor came over with a needle filled with blood and injected it into my leg. This time, I made sure to keep my eyes tightly shut to prevent myself from passing out again. I tried my best to pay no mind to the black blood coursing through my veins, its healing properties already going to work to heal the deep wound.

"I'm sorry," Chris mumbled, his gaze averted away from me. "I had no idea."

"How could you know? It's not really something I like to share often..." I admitted. I didn't mean to share that detail of my life with him. All I did was use my past to make him feel sorry. Shitty move on my part.

"If it makes you feel any better, parents aren't all that great. You already had the displeasure of meeting my father."

Seeing just how cold Chris' father was almost made me grateful that I didn't have a father figure in my life. Almost. Just being to meet my parents, even if they turn out to be complete assholes, is all I ever wanted.

"What about your mother? Was she nice?" I immediately regretted asking that when I saw his reaction. His gaze lowered and he pursed his lips together tightly. It was obviously a sensitive topic for him.

"Mom died a few weeks after I turned ten. Just a couple of months before... Never mind," he said softly, his words trailing off. He seemed to do that often when it came to talking about his personal life. There were so many things about him I was curious about. Each time he shared one detail, I got an urge to learn about the rest.

"Who's Caroline?" I hesitantly asked. "I've heard her name mentioned a lot. Is she-"

"No one," he snapped.

His eyes suddenly grew darker, indicating anger, but for some reason, I knew that anger wasn't directed at me and I doubted it was directed at the girl in question. Something obviously happened to her that he wasn't too pleased about.

Before I could question him any longer, the same doctor as before came over, redirecting my train of thought on my leg which was now almost completely healed.

"You should be completely able to walk on your leg now," she told me before walking off. I stood up from the bed and carefully placed some of my weight on my leg to see that it was, indeed, fully healed. All the remained was a small, painless mark on my leg which was still undergoing the healing process.

"Oh, good," Chris stated as he stood up to stretch. "It'll be dark soon so we better leave now."

"I'll go by myself," I said as I headed to the exit. His back was turned so he didn't notice right away. I didn't need a babysitter anymore; I was perfectly capable of walking back on my own.

"I don't think-"

I didn't stay long enough to hear him finish his sentence. I was already out the door and heading back to the living quarters. After that frightful training lesson, the only thing I wanted at that moment was sleep.

All I could do was hope the nightmares wouldn't come again.