"You were never on my side. Fool me once, fool me twice. Are you death or paradise?"
~Billie Eilish, 'No Time to Die'

~~~

*Landon's POV*

"I'm bored," Lucca groans, leaning his head back against the seat.

"Suck it up," Enzo deadpans from the driver's seat. "We're only halfway there."

Lucca releases an odd noise of distress, making him sound like a dying whale. Ryland winces, leaning over to whisper in my ear.

"Thank goddess that we left Kai behind," he says lowly. "I don't think I could handle two whiny wolves."

"Can we at least stop for a bathroom break?" Lucca complains.

"I second that!" Lyn chirps. I turn around, noticing her face is a bit green.

"Lyn, are you okay?" I ask worriedly. "You don't look very good."

She smiles weakly. "I think I'm just getting overwhelmed. Enzo, could we stop somewhere?"

Obediently, my brother clicks his turn signal and pulls into the nearest gas station. As we're all getting out to stretch, Lucca tries to make a beeline for the bathroom, and Enzo blocks him so Lyn can get there first. The sound of vomiting echos in the bathroom, making us all grimace.

"Uhh... is she okay?" Lucca asks, no longer struggling to get past Enzo.

"I'll check on her," Ronnie offers, knocking on the bathroom door. Lyn unlocks the door, allowing Ronnie to slip in before locking it again.

"Lyn's stomach as always been sensitive," Ryland informs us. "She's probably just carsick. While we're here, we might as well get some food. Babe, do you want anything?"

I shake my head, not knowing if I'll be able to handle having anything in my stomach. Ryland smiles softly with a nod of understanding, pressing a kiss to my cheek before heading off to find some food. Sighing, I lean back against the wall and rub my hands over my exhausted face.

"How're you holding up, Lan?" Lucca asks, leaning on the wall next to me.

"About as well as I can be, I guess. I can't stop thinking that every second we're not finding Leon, something horrible is happening to him. I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if Leon suffered Easton's fate."

"Can I ask you a serious question? Now that it's just the two of us."

I frown curiously and nod my head.

"Why do you care so much about Leon?" Lucca inquires. "I'm not trying to be a dick or anything, but wasn't that kid awful to you? His entire family kicked you out right after you lost your mate, and they've always blamed you for Easton's death. If I were you, I probably wouldn't care if that whole family kicked the bucket."

His question doesn't make me angry. I'd understand if no one can grasp why I'm so intent on rescuing Leon. The truth is... I still care about the Butlers. Don't get me wrong, I'm fucking pissed at the way they've treated me over the last five years. We'll most likely never be on good terms again, and there will always be lingering resentment for the way they threw me out right after I lost my mate. But... they're Easton's family. He would hate how they've treated me, but we would still hold onto one truth: they're still his family.

That doesn't justify what they've done by a long shot, but it's enough justification for me to want to save Leon. Because regardless of what a dickhead Leon's been, he was once my little brother. I can't let him get hurt, I just can't.

"I saw Easton's wolf, Elias, in the wolf spirit world," I start, making Lucca's eyes widen. "He mentioned that Easton dealt with a lot of pain that he didn't show anyone. Not even me. I had no clue, so I was powerless to help him. But, Leon... if I can prevent Leon from suffering that same fate, I will. I don't care if no one else gives a fuck about whether he lives or dies. No one deserves to go through what Easton did."

Lucca clears his throat. "Fuck. Now I really do feel like a dick."

I laugh dryly. "Yeah, well, I don't blame you for not caring about someone you've never met."

"I may not care about him, but I care about you. If this is that important to you, then I'll try to help however I can."

"Thanks, Luc," I smile, bumping his shoulder with mine. The bathroom door finally pushes open, and Lyn emerges looking a lot less green. Ronnie makes sure she's steady before waltzing off to track down Lia.

"Thank fuck," Lucca breathes a sigh of relief, dashing into the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" I ask the pale Luna.

"I'm better now, thanks," she croaks, her voice a bit hoarse. "Where is everyone? Are we set to keep going?"

I nod my head and shout for out group to head back to the car. I pound on the bathroom door as everyone finishes purchasing their snacks to take on the road.

"Babe!" Ryland calls out as he walks over to me. The sight of him instantly makes my tense muscles relax, and I pull him into a tight hug. His delicious scent of honey and vanilla comforts me as I bury my face in his neck. "Hey, baby, is everything alright?"

"I love you," I murmur against his neck. Ryland pulls back so he can look at me properly, and I smile to reassure him that I'm okay.

"I love you too," he says in return; his shoulders relaxing once he sees that I'm fine. I press into him, covering his mouth with mine. Ryland hums in surprise, but doesn't hesitate to kiss me back. His lips easily part for me, allowing my tongue to rub against his. I moan lowly into his mouth, already feeling the world slip away as my pants grow tighter.

"Hey, horndogs!" Lia shouts over to us. "Weren't you the one who just told the rest of us to head out to the car? Move your asses!"

I sigh as Ryland giggles, and he kisses the top of my nose before holding up a water bottle and some crackers.

"I know you said you're not hungry, but I'm worried that you'll feel worse if your stomach is completely empty."

"Thank you for thinking of me," I say, kissing his forehead softly. Ryland beams, intertwining our fingers as he leads me out to the car. Once everyone is accounted for, we settle in for another long drive.

***

"Stop here," Mateo instructs, pointing to the side of the empty road. "This is as far as we should drive. We'll have to go the rest of the way on foot."

We climb out of the car, carefully looking through the darkness to make sure we're truly alone. Once we're sure it's safe, we quietly walk down the road towards the old church. Ryland tightly clutches my hand; his nerves rolling off of him. I squeeze his hand in return, reminding him that I won't let anything happen to either of us.

As the church comes into view, Mateo signals for us to stop walking and turns to face us.

"No one makes a move without my permission, got it?" Mateo sternly whispers. "If there are rogues there, we don't want to attack first and start an unnecessary war. Follow my lead."

Lucca scoffs, earning a glare from Mateo. The rest of us nod in understanding, and we follow behind him and we creep towards the church. An old building with rotting white wood, clearly falling apart on the outside. A crooked cross hangs at the top, eerily watching over us. A faded sign is staked in the ground with the words: Church of St. Bartholomew.

"St. Bartholomew..." Lucca reads aloud. "Why does that sound so familiar?"

Enzo sniffs the air. "I don't smell any rogues. Besides the one running his mouth."

Lucca scowls. "I'm not running my mouth. The name is really familiar to me."

"Never mind that. We need to stay focused. Mateo, what's our move?"

"Everyone, stay together," Mateo instructs. "We're going in. If you sense something, alert me immediately. Don't try to be a hero by taking matters into your own hands. We're a team, and we'll handle this as one."

Sucking in a breath, I follow Mateo into the abandoned church. The door creaks open, and our group slowly enters the building. Right away, the musty fumes mixed with dust makes me wrinkle my nose. It's dark, leading to all of us making our eyes glow so we can see clearly. Wooden pews are tipped over and scattered with splintering cracks running across them. The stained-glass windows are shattered, with shards of broken glass littering the floor. It looks like something right out of a horror movie, making us the group of idiots waiting to become the next victims.

"Holy shit," Lia breathes out. "What the hell happened here?"

"Oh my god, now I remember," Lucca muses as he looks around the church with wide eyes. "St. Bartholomew... I knew that name sounded familiar. I heard rumors about this place from one of the rogue groups I used to run with."

"Rumors?" Lyns asks, worry flashing in her eyes. Everyone stops walking, listening intensely to Lucca's story.

"Yeah," he nods. "Apparently, this church used to be the secret meeting place of some coven. The witches were known for practicing dark magic, and had to hide somewhere the other covens wouldn't find them. I was told that a wolf — an Alpha, I think — got mixed up with their dark magic, and a curse was placed on him. I'm not sure what kind of curse it was, but that wolf ended up going crazy. Feral. Completely tore this church up, along with the coven. It's been abandoned ever since."

Ronnie looks at him skeptically. "That sounds pretty far fetched."

Lucca shrugs. "Maybe. Rumor has it that the feral wolf still lurks around here, which is why no one has returned."

"Feral wolf..." Ryland repeats with a murmur, his brows furrowing in thought. Frowning, I start to ask what's on his mind, but I'm interrupted.

"Clearly, this place is still empty," Mateo comments, looking around the church. "I figured this place wasn't important to Leon's discovery. We should try looking somewhere else."

"Wait," Lyn holds up a hand. "He's here."

"What? What makes you think that?"

"I can sense him," she murmurs. "I feel a pull, down below the church."

"There must be a basement," I note. "Mateo, we should check it out."

"Alright," he sighs. "Enzo, stay with Lyn. Make sure nothing happens to her."

"Yes, Beta Mateo."

"Everyone, follow me. And stay alert."

Moving as quietly as possible, we locate the stairs that lead down to a dark basement. I hear Ryland gulp beside me. Squeezing his hand, I bring it to my lips and kiss the back of his hand. Ryland briefly smiles before remembering that we're about to walk into a dark basement, not knowing what awaits us.

Mateo is at the front of the group, leading us slowly and carefully down the stairs. One of the wooden steps creaks, giving away our presence.

"Who's there?!" A voice screams out, making the hairs the back of my neck stand up. "Don't just stand there! Fucking fight me!"

"Leon?" Lyn gasps, pushing past us and rushing down into the basement.

"Luna Roselyn!" Enzo barks as he reaches for her, but she dodges him and rushes straight for the voice.

"Leon!" She shouts, and this time it's followed by whimpering.

"L-Lyn?" The voice whimpers, and my chest aches when I recognize Leon's voice. We scramble down the stairs, where we see Leon lying in the middle of the basement.

Hogtied and beaten, Leon lies on the floor with bruises covering his bloodied body. He's still fully clothed, I notice with relief. Leon looks up at his mate, water filling his eyes as he chokes on a sob.

"Shh, baby, I'm here," Lyn soothes, kneeling beside him and running her fingers through his dark red hair.

"What are you doing here?" Leon cries, eyes widening with alarm when he finally notices the rest of our group. "Mateo? L-Landon? What the hell are any of you doing here?!"

"What do you fucking think?!" I shout back, surprising everyone with my hostility. "We're saving your stupid ass!"

Mateo and Enzo rush to Leon's side, pulling at the ropes around his wrists and ankles.

"Who did this to you?" Mateo hisses as they untie him.

"A pack of filthy rogues," Leon spits through his teeth. "I managed to track them down, but the bastards got the jump on me. Tied me up and left me here. Although I don't know why they didn't just kill me themselves. Fucking cowards."

"Not all rogues are mindless killers," Lucca snarls, snapping Leon's attention to him.

"You're one of them, aren't you?!" Leon roars. "You're a rogue!"

Free from the ropes, Leon lunges at Lucca. Enzo and I grab Leon, holding him back at he bares his canines.

"Leon, stop!" I shout. "Lucca's on our side! He's here to help you!"

"Fool me once..." he growls, glaring at Lucca with glowing green eyes. "Like I would ever trust a fucking rogue."

"Enough!" Lyn steps in between Leon and Lucca, glowering at her mate. "Leon. That's enough."

Leon stares at her, incredulous. "Lyn, you can't seriously be taking their side over mine!"

"We're on the same side," Lyn says as calmly as she can. "Baby... this has gone on long enough. You can't keep hunting wolves the rest of your life. You need to accept that we don't know the identity of the other rogues involved in Easton's kidnapping, or if they're even alive. Chasing random rogues, interrogating them, beating them, it's not good for you. It's not good for... for us."

Leon's eyes soften as they begin to water again. "You don't get it. No one gets it! Easton is dead and there's nothing I can do about it! I tried hating Landon— fuck, I've tried to blame everything on him. But... but I can't."

I sharply inhale. "W-What are you saying?"

His pain-filled green eyes focus on mine. "I've tried dealing with the pain of losing my brother by focusing my anger on you. If I could be angry with you, then I wouldn't have to be angry at him. Fuck, I can't be angry with him. And I can't keep blaming you. Because no matter how hard I try, no matter how many horribly things I've forced myself to say... I still just see you. Easton's mate. My... my big brother."

A sob rips from my throat, and I cover my mouth with my hand. Ryland wraps his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to his comforting warmth.

"And if I can't blame you," Leon continues, "my mind resorts to asking why Easton would do that. Why? When he had our family, our pack... you? Why would he just... give up like that? The only way to keep myself from falling down that mental pit was to refocus my anger. The rogues who tortured him. If I can get revenge on the ones who pushed him over the edge, then maybe... maybe I can move on."

"Leon, no," Lyn shakes her head, tears running down her cheeks as she cups her mate's face. "No. You need to stop. Your anger is consuming you. I love you too much to stand aside while you run off to countless suicide missions. If you're putting yourself in danger, I'll be right beside you."

Leon pales. "No! Think of the—"

"Exactly," Lyn cuts him off. "Think of us. If you get hurt, you're hurting all of us. You need to stop all this. Now."

"B-But..." he whimpers, his voice dropping to a whisper. "I don't know how to move on. How do I move on?"

"Take it out on me instead," Mateo says, and we all turn our heads to the wolf who has been silently shedding tears. Guilt floods his eyes as he wrings his hands.

"M-Mateo, what...?"

"The rogues aren't responsible for Easton's death, and neither is Landon," Mateo chokes out, his voice cracking. "I am."

~~~

?!?!?!?!

Sorry this chapter took a few days. I've been feeling really self-conscious about my writing lately and needed to take a break to regroup.

Thoughts?? HOLY SHIT!!

Q: Have you ever gone to church?
[yes, but I don't anymore]

See you next time!
-Gumbie