Lucy's POV-

It hurt. Severely. My heart burned deep in my chest. I wished that I could cut it out. It was excruciating.

"Luce..." I heard from the door.

I whimpered at his voice and sunk even further into the couch that I was laying on.

"Oh, my Luce," he whimpered as he came closer.

The closer he got, the more it burned. I couldn't help but let out sobs at the pain. It hurt too bad.

"Lucy," he sobbed as he looked at me writhing in pain.

It hurt. The pain was harsh. Everything that I had gone through never could have prepared me for this type of pain. It was eating me from the inside out.

"Touch her," I heard Grandmama say from somewhere else. "Touch her, Kale."

The only thing that I could do was cry. His closeness was already hurting me so much. I couldn't even imagine what his actual touch would do to me.

I didn't understand what was happening...

"C-Can I?" The question was hesitant and small from his lips.

I unconsciously nodded.

As soon as his hand touched my cheek, the burning lessened. I sighed in relief and leaned further into him and his touch. I needed him to take the pain away.

The burn was still there, but it was less. The burn was still there, but his fingers dulled it. It was all still there, but Kale helped.

He lifted my back from the couch and positioned me into his lap. He cradled me with care and kissed the crown of my head.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," I heard him whisper.

I didn't understand... What had he done? I was very confused.

"Why don't you take her out to the garden? The flowers seem to really like her and vice versa; nature will help her heal the rest of the way," Grandmama suggested.

Kale wasted no time and carried me out to the garden. He laid us both down onto the soft grass while cradling me to him.

I felt the grass cradling me instantly. It cuddled me in a loving embrace that made me feel safe. I could feel the pain in my chest soften even further.

"I'm so sorry, love. I'm sorry."

I nodded and rolled over into him. I had no idea what he was sorry about, but I forgave him no matter what happened. I'd forgive him over and over again. My love was unconditional, but that didn't mean that I'd let him hurt me constantly. I couldn't live in this pain forever. He had to know that.

Soon enough, Grandmama came out with some tea and someone walking behind her... Nat.

"Hi, lovies, we have a visitor," Grandmama said as she sat down next to me and handed a calming tea.

"Hey Nat..." I greeted her as best as I could.

"What's wrong?" She asked, sensing the obvious tension.

Kale looked down in shame and we all looked at him for answers. I had no idea what had happened, and it was obvious that he knew. He stayed silent for a long while before Grandmama prompted him to speak.

"I messed up..." he whispered. "Raven she- she was... waiting for me in my office when I got back from my run."

"Oh Kale... you didn't," Nat said with a gasp.

"No! No! It didn't go that far but I..." He trailed off, not wanting to finish.

"I'm so confused. What exactly didn't you do?" I asked.

"I, um, Raven tried to seduce me..." Kale exhaled. "Y-you know ­the effect she has on me so..."

I felt my heart stop in my chest. "You mated with her?!" I yelled with a hysterical edge to my voice.

"No! no! I- we... we didn't mate. We didn't have sex! I promise, we didn't!"

I breathed out a sigh of relief. However, my mind put it together that they had to have done something if the pain in my chest was that bad. "But..."

"But... we kissed."

"You didn't just kiss. It wouldn't have felt like that for a simple little kiss," I growled at him, annoyed and overwhelmed.

"I-I'm sorry!" He cried. "It was heated..."

"And... what happened?" I asked him ruefully. "Why did you stop?"

"I- You... I felt your pain."

"What if you hadn't? What if my pain had never made it to you? What if you didn't feel me while you were touching her?" I was crying again and felt sickened.

"I... I don't know." He sighed in defeat. "The pull that she has on me is astronomical. I-I'm afraid of what I might've done."

I sighed at his honest answer. I asked for it, but it still hurt. I still hurt.

"What are we going to do about it?" Nat asked with a hard look on her face as she glared at her brother.

Kale looked at me and shook his head with a heavy and deep sigh. I hated that sorry look on his face; it hurt.

"I'm going to grab some more tea," I announced abruptly. I felt completely out of place, and I was hurting too badly.

I got up and made my way to the kitchen, sighing heavily at the information that I had just been given. I let myself sink down to the floor and caught my breath for half a minute. I was hurt, but I was also understanding. It pissed me off.

I didn't want to be understanding!

I wanted to be angry! I wanted to be mad! I didn't want to hurt any longer!

I couldn't help who I was though... I was a very understanding and forgiving person. Sometimes it was overly annoying. However, it was what made me, me. It's what kept me soft.

When I walked back out, I caught the end of their conversation.

"I don't know... The only thing that I know for sure will stop it all is if I reject both of them," Kale said somberly.

"Don't be an idiot!" Nat said angrily. "You were ready to accept Lucy not long ago at all! Now you're just going to reject her?! Over what? That stupid girl?!" She hit him on the back of the head, making him bare his teeth at her, though there was no action within the gesture.

"I don't want to reject her! However, I don't know what to do. I can't just reject Raven and not Lucy! I have a bond with both of them. Plus, the pack likes Raven more... I am a little worried about what they'll do to Luce if I reject only Raven with no proof of her being fake."

"Go on... reject me then," I told him with a glare.

"Luce..."

"I love you, you know. Does that not count for anything?"

"Yes! Of course it does! I just... I'm confused!"

I sighed and ran my hands through my stringy hair. "Okay... Let's just- shelf it. We'll discuss it later." I stayed silent for a moment. "I had a vision earlier... before all of this crap," I told him matter-of-factly.

He prompted me to continue.

"It was about the war. Specifically, the upcoming attack that we had planned. A week, we need to attack in a week," I finished.

He looked at me with shock. He was under the impression that we were going to be waiting for another month before the attack.

"A week? You're sure?"

"What? Now you don't trust my Oracle abilities?" I asked bitterly.

He sighed in frustration. "Luce..."

"However," I cut him off. "Less people will be going," I said with a nod.

"What?"

"I don't know... it's just what I saw. It's what we have to do, The Moon Goddess has spoken," I answered him.

"Okay..." he said thoughtfully. "Okay. So, less people are going, and we only have a week. We'll get a plan of attack going on after dinner."

"After dinner then..." I agreed and stood up, not even glancing at him.

"Luce..." Kale whimpered. "I'm sorry," he tried while trying to get me to look at him.

"I know that!" I said frustratedly. "But do you think that saying sorry makes everything okay all the sudden?! It doesn't. Actions speak louder than words, Kale! You keep saying that you love me with your mouth, but your actions keep saying something totally different!" I couldn't hold back the tears.

"I need you to believe in me! I need you to love me. I am an understanding person; I get your infatuation with her. But I need you to show me that it is simply just that... an infatuation." I sobbed. "And if you reject me Kale... Remember, remember that promise that you made to me in the hospital when I got my Goddess marks." I winced and shook my head at how pathetic he looked while standing there with pleading eyes.

"I can never hate you... even if you reject me. Even if it kills me, I'd still love you. I need you to remember that as you make your decision. I need you to remember me."

-----

Kale stood at the end of the long table as everyone spoke strategy. All the strongest warriors were there once again. Though, no one was questioning my abilities this time. No one was questioning why I was the one who was speaking.

"But... why would we send less people? This seems like suicide mission!" One of the men argued.

He seemed scared, and I didn't blame him. The pack that we were going to ambush was a rather large pack with warrior bred members and people who've been picked up along the way. We needed all hands on deck. However, my visions did not seem to think so. Mother Moon didn't think so.

"Why wouldn't we send less people?" I asked aloud to everyone.

No one said a word. No one wanted to say what had been floating through their minds all meeting; I was going to have to be the one to say it...

"An attack," was all I said.

"Luce..." Kale said lowly. "What exactly did you see?"

"Nothing, but if the Moon Goddess is saying to keep more numbers here then it only makes sense," I said quickly. "I haven't been made aware of any attack moving against us but..." I wanted to say that I couldn't see Raven or her motives either. I was sure that she was behind the Moon Goddess' err on the side of caution about the situation. "It only makes sense."

The way Kale looked at me made me know that he understood what I was implementing. Something in his eyes clicked and he looked towards the door wildly. He knew that I was worried about her... Because I seemed to be the only one thinking rationally about her. She hadn't enchanted me.

I truly did believe that she was going to be the cause of our demise if we let her be... If Kale let her be. I knew that it wasn't very fair of me to think or say, but it was the truth. He wasn't the only one with a overwhelming obsession with her, all of the pack was... And it made me completely nervous about the whole situation.

"So how many will we cut from the attack then?" Dillon finally asked.

"Half," I answered with a nod.

There was an uproar from everyone.

"If we have to cut that many then we shouldn't even go!" Someone said.

"We have to!" I announced loudly. "It is the only way that my visions are pointing." I sighed as more people argued.

"Maybe they're right, Luce," Kale said softly.

I turned a heated glare at him as he spoke. "You're supposed to believe in me," I told him.

"I do! Its just..."

"The last time we felt an attack coming and only just a quarter of the warriors left to aid another pack... destruction hit. We lost a lot of lives and numbers that day. The North attacked us harshly, Fleming attacked us harshly," Sam spoke up finally.

"We lost a lot of our parents and elders that night. All while we were off helping a different pack," Trevor said with remorse.

"We were all off aiding another pack and trying to find mates while our pack was being destroyed," Kale confirmed.

"That was the night your parents died?" I asked with a heavy feeling settling over the mate bond.

He nodded in confirmation.

"I understand your hesitance... However, this is the only way to go forward smartly. The Moon Goddess has been abundantly clear about that," I said gently.

"Only a quarter of us left last time and we took huge blows. Now you're wanting to send half of us out?" A high-ranking wolf scoffed.

"Yes..." I nodded. "And that being said, I want mostly warrior women and men who don't look to be quite warrior-looking to be left behind."

"What?!" It was Kale that spoke in disbelief this time.

"The less daunting and scary the left behind look, the less harsh the attack will be," I stated calmly. "I know that sounds crazy... but it's what I've seen." I cleared my throat as everyone looked around unconvinced. "Whoever is to be attacking us has inside help..."

There was a large uproar at my words.

"I know that's hard to believe, but it is the truth. We need strong females and hidden warriors left behind. Whoever is orchestrating the attack will underestimate and it will be a fatal mistake. We have to weed out the traitor." I was pretty sure I already knew who the traitor was.

"And the attack that we're launching? How are we supposed to survive that with only half our men."

"We are going to stick to the last plan but be tighter and smarter, a bit stealthier... but still bold," I announced and gave no one time to argue. "They will see us coming, underestimate us and we will take over their lands. My visions are very clear."

"This is a suicide mission," some said wearily.

"If Lucy says it's so, then that is how we will proceed," Kale said loudly.

"What if she is the traitor? What if she is the one helping The North? Isn't that where you got the little non-wolf anyways?"

I sucked in a deep breath at his words and held Kale back from pouncing.

"I trust her," Kale snarled.

"Because of your bond!" A man said abruptly. "How do we know that she didn't come here to seduce you just for an opening to attack?"

I rolled my eyes. They were asking that of the wrong girl.

I stepped around Kale, who had shielded me as soon as they started questioning us and looked everyone in the eyes. "I was a slave," I announced to everyone. "I didn't just show up one day out of the blue. I didn't just decide a convenient time to prance into the pack unannounced..." I breathed deeply. "I was a slave in Fleming's pack. I was tortured my whole life. I have more of a reason than anyone to want The North defeated."

People were still looking at me skeptically. So, I did the only thing that I could think of, I turned around to face Kale and lifted the back of my shirt up. It revealed the marred flesh that had taken too many lashings, beatings, and clawings.

"I have no loyalties to The North. I want them defeated more than anything," I spoke much stronger than I felt. "The few very fresh ones on my upper back, are the scars that I received while I was here... The rest? That was all from them." I gave them a few more moments to stare at my scarred and gross flesh.

"Now you understand..." I swallowed and left the room with my head held high.

The North had to be defeated. Raven had to be defeated. My pack needed to be broken from her enchantments!