I Don't know if you guys listen to rock music, but the song for this chapter is Hail To The King by Avenged Sevenfold. And I chose this song because... well ya'll will see by the end of this chapter. HAVE A FANTASTIC DAY! I will see you guys soon (sometime within the next couple days) with the next update. Love you all!!

KATE
The next day was... surprisingly... uneventful. Mom tried to look for Everly and found nothing. Me and Chleo shot back and forth ideas to kill Konrad, each plan crazier and stupider than the last.

My anxiety had hiked up so bad that my vision was blurred. I sat down, my head turning.

"Kate what's wrong?" Chleo asked, bending down to my level.

I shook my head, glancing at the clock on the wall. Midnight. I had just waisted December 30th doing absolutely nothing. We had gotten nowhere.

"I turn 20 in 26 hours. I'll be a werewolf, Chleo." I admitted quietly. It had never really hit me until now just what I had signed up for months ago. I felt like a senior, just now realizing that I was graduating and I had my life ahead of me.

Chleo stood up, letting out a long breath. "Just.... get some sleep. It's late."

I nodded and said goodnight to my mom and dad, saying that I'd see them tomorrow. By the time I woke up, I'd have even less time until I was a full werewolf.

And... and Arlis wasn't here to help me go through it.

***

I woke up to someone shaking me slightly. I groaned and pushed their hands away. Again, arms shook me. "Kate." Chleo whispered. I blinked my eyes open, his face tired and aging. "We have to go back to the pack."

I shook my head. "Why? Shouldn't we wait here while my mom tries to find Everly."

Chleo stood up straight. The sun flittered into the room in brilliant and vibrant oranges and golds. The sun was just rising, settling over the tree line outside my house. "She won't find Eve. Not if she's hidden on the map or dead."

I closed my eyes and threw my arm over my face. "Why are you in such a rush? Couldn't this of waited until the sun was actually up all the way?" I rolled over to face the wall.

"Jonah never slept last time when our brother was taken, neither did Dalia. They're not sleeping now. The—"

"Chleo, what does this have to do with going back to the pack?" I groaned. I fell asleep crying last night and I fell asleep late. Probably only an hour or two ago. I needed my rest.

"If you'd let me finish..." he paused, probably to glare at me. "They were awake and patrolling when they found..." Chleo paused again. I didn't think this time it was because he was mad.

I turned and looked at him as his face fell. "Damion and Jacobi are dead."

Two people I'd never forget. Damion and Jacobi, the people who single handedly tossed me into this world. People who tried to kill me, people who, in a way, brought me to be in this amazing life.

"How?" I asked.

Chleo's mouth bobbed for an answer. "One of the pack warriors was stationed there, witnessed the whole thing. It was a black wolf. A werewolf. A rogue."

I shot up from the bed, all my senses alert and awake. "You don't think—"

"Heads were torn off their shoulders. Their feet were mangled and ripped to shreds. Their hands... placed in the crucifix position." It was very... specific.

My mouth went dry. "What does that mean?" Chleo didn't answer. "Chleo! What does that—"

"That's Arlis's mark!" Chleo screamed, clenching his fists together so hard his nails drew blood from his palms. "Arlis did that to them!" He quieted down.

"So he's out!? He's back?" I smiled, sitting up onto my knees. "Chleo!"

Chleo's face fell. "Did you not hear a single word I said? He's rogue, Kate. Rogue!"

I shrugged. "So I can fix him."

"He killed two people." Chleo pulled at his hair.

"Two, very bad people." I argued. If Arlis was back, Rogue or not, he could come home. We could be together again. We could get rid of Konrad, together. "What time is it?" I asked.

Chloe furrowed his brows but checked his watch anyways. "7:30, why?"

"18 hours until I'm a full blooded werewolf." I raised my brows. "I'll be strong. We can go and fight—"

"Whether you were about to say Arlis or Konrad, no. Both are far too strong. You'd be dead in seconds." He put his hand on the back of his head and released a stressed breath.

I was going to say Konrad, but I felt that what he had just said was wrong. "Arlis won't kill me." I said, glaring at him.

"Kate. He's Rogue. He would." Chleo looked out the window and shuddered. "A Rogue will protect his mate at any cost. And those Rogues do feel that death is a mercy and a way of protecting them. To keep you safe, from harm, they'll kill you. Sometimes." He held his hand out. "You're my brothers true love, I won't let anything happen to you. But you have to trust me."

His eyes were full of so much hurt, that it made my heart hurt.

"Chleo. Why can't we stay here?" I asked quietly. "Arlis wouldn't come looking for us here."

He gave me a dumbfounded look. "He would. He's not, but if he really wanted to find you he would. The pack is the safest place for us right now. Plus, as you keep reminding me, you're going to shift soon."

I looked at the door to my room. "What's the plan then? Let him roam around freely as a Rogue?" I asked, ignoring his very good point of not wanting to shift into a werewolf in the middle of the suburbs.

Chleo shook his head. "Me, and Jonah, and Leif's parents are going to chain him down. If Dalia wants to help she can try."

Oh no. Dalia. Dalia and Leif and their mates. "How is Dalia?" I asked.

Chleo wasn't as happy as he was when I first met him. When he gave me a snickers bar. All those months ago. "She's... okay. I guess. Her brother is a rogue and is out killing people but... it's not like this hasn't happened before."

Not for the first time, I found myself looking at my ring. The rubies and the diamond. It was so simple yet it meant so much. It was a big step.

"He's okay, right?" I asked.

Chleo shrugged honestly, not hiding anything. There was a chance that Arlis wasn't okay, that he wouldn't be okay.

"So we go back to the pack..." I tried to think of what we could do there. "What's our next step towards Konrad?" And then I had my little side quest of fixing Dalia and Leif.

Chleo cleared his throat, rubbing the nape of his neck. "I don't know. And I hate saying that... but I don't." He crossed his arms over his chest, not looking at my face. "I do know we need to do go home. Jonah can't have lord ruler ship for long. He'll run the pack into the ground."

Chleo didn't have any faith in Jonah, that was clear to see. "I'm sure Melloni will keep him in check." I hoped to calm Chleo down in the slightest but it didn't seem to work. In fact, he looked more tense than he had.

He stabbed a finger at me, the back of his neck growing white hairs. "Melloni is worse than Jonah, but you haven't been around long enough to know that!" He pulled his hair as he took a step back, his fists balled. A vein in his forehead looked like it was going to pop. "Melloni is terrifying. Jonah is scary, but he's dumb and rash. He attacks without plan. Melloni on the other hand thinks things through."

I looked around the room for something to defend myself with should he turn full wolf. The hair on the back of his neck was a warning sign, not only to himself but also to anything living around him. "Isn't that better?"

He shook his head slowly. "No. Because she comes to same conclusions as Jonah, attack and kill. But she's smart about it. Not smart enough to pick her battles, but smart enough to always win them. Her and Jonah are perfect for each other."

I smirked, finding some humor in the situation. "Isn't that the point?"

He rolled his eyes angrily. "I wouldn't know, Kate. I don't have a mate and the only girl I've ever loved ended up leaving me for reasons that would drive any normal man mad." He popped his knuckles and then relaxed. His hair retreated back into... wherever werewolves kept it. "Can we please go home?"

I didn't have the heart to tell him no. I didn't have the strength to tell him anything, really. So instead of answering vocally I just nodded a hung head.

He sighed with relief and opened up my bedroom door. "If we leave now, we can be there by nine."

I just wanted to sleep.

I walked passed Chleo and down stairs. I thought about saying Goodbye to my parents and then shook my head. Mom would only convince me to stay. I'd call her when she woke up at a normal time. Not at God-Awful whatever time it was right now.

We snuck outside to the car, getting in, and taking off through the Dawn.

*****

I fell asleep listening to Louis Armstrong who was apparently the most brilliant musician in the world according to Chleo. I didn't know who he was, but his music sounded old. And I don't mean Elvis Presley, or Johnny Cash. I meant like... women couldn't even vote yet kind of old.

And when I woke up, I was laying in bed. My bed. I peeked at the clock, a glowing white 11:24 startled me out of bed. I looked down at what I was wearing, glad to be in the same clothes I left in. Sure, it was pajamas, but it could have been worse.

I dug around in the drawers of Arlis's room and shoved on a pair of skinny jeans and a cute blouse Melloni had picked out at the mall. That seemed like forever ago, meeting Leviticus, being with Constance.

My eyes felt heavy from the oversleeping as I walked downstairs, where a large group of people sat in the living room.

Melloni and Jonah shared the love seat, their eyes full of fire but also... fear. Melloni's thick hair was done up in a messy bun. Her eyes were droopy and tired, bags underneath them. She looked paler than her normal dark tan self. She didn't look healthy... but she looked better than from when I saw her last. Jonah was... awake. Obviously. He had some back-brace type thing on his shirtless body.

The other people in the room consisted of Leif's mom Electra sitting on her husband's lap, both still looking as young as me. Leif sat next to them, Maddie sitting on the ground between his legs.

On the ground, Dalia and Travis sat, their hands connected. Anthony and Iris were sitting on the ground also, both looked tired and upset far beyond their years. Iris's entire head was nearly grey. Her eyes had lost a little of the shine they had before. Next to them, was Chleo's sister Vera. I didn't spot Chleo anywhere, which made me confused. Lilly was sitting on the floor, watching TV mindlessly.

Everyone in the room looked at me, their eyes judgmental and angry.

"I know, I'm-"

"YOU LEFT!" Iris screamed, standing up. "JUST WHEN THINGS..." She was trying not to cry, I couldn't decipher whether they would be tears of anger or sadness. "You are not doing your job very well. You are a terrible-"

"Iris, lets give her a break. She's going through what we are but worse." Melloni interrupted, lending out a helping hand.

I ran a hand through my hair, feeling the grease and knots stop it from going through smoothly. I wanted a shower. "I'm sorry I left. It was a spur of the moment action and I did it under... behind Arlis's back." I almost lied and said under his command but... lying has caused me nothing but regret. Nothing but grief. "Konrad was going to kill us. Arlis and I both... had I not gone and given him a... a stupid notebook." I was sure Maddie and Travis were somehow in contact with Konrad right now. The more I though about it, the more it made sense. Their timing, how Konrad knew things he shouldn't of known. Leif's feelings towards Maddie. They had to of been working for Konrad.

The group's eyes all seemed to darken at the same time. "What notebook?" Electra asked, her voice low.

I couldn't meet anyone's face. "A Hunter's notebook." The group either groaned or huffed out an angry breath. "But I had too!" I argued before they could reprimand me. "If I hadn't Arlis and I would be dead."

Leif stood up, his hand still connected to Maddie's. He looked at her for a second before letting go and walking to me. He stared at me for a moment. He was the closest person to my age that I had met since being here. He was just as young and as stupid as I was. His jaw locked and I thought for a second he was going to raise his hand. My body heated up, ready to try and defend myself but he brought me into a hug instead. "We're not mad." He whispered. "Just scared." His arms tightened around my shoulders.

I took a deep breath and embraced him back, enjoying the feeling of just being able to... relax. Someone else hugged me, and I looked over to see Dalia's smiling sad face. One by one everyone came into the hug. A couple of people were crying but I couldn't pinpoint who. I was one of them, and I knew that for sure.

I had thought that Arlis was my home, and I still think that. They say home is where your heart is and he has my heart. But so do the people around me. So do the people I call family. Leif. Iris. Anthony. Sampson, wherever he may be. Dalia. Jonah. Chleo. Lilly. Electra. People who would go to the ends for me, people I'd go to the ends for.

"So... Arlis." Anthony started. "What do we do? If he's rogue again?"

The group divided from the hug, returning to their spots around the living room. I found it funny how they all seemed to just forget about that whole group hug thing. About being weak for a moment. A smile snuck it's way onto my face. Lilly had snuck away, probably back to her room. The guest room.

"That means not even Konrad can control him. And he obviously has some of Arlis in him, because he killed Jacobi and Damon, the people who almost killed his mate. Who also kidnapped Chleo." Dalia pointed out. "We could send Kate after him."

"Where is Chleo?" I asked.

"Hospital. He finally decided to go and take care of his wounds. Your mom did a pretty good job healing some of him." Iris smiled kindly. "I'd love to see her again, she's such a sweet woman." Yeah. I did have a pretty great mom.

"Back to the main point." Electra shot Iris a dirty look. For a small second I wondered who would win a fight between the two. "No... sending Kate in is a horrible idea. Because if Arlis thinks she's in danger... he might just kill her."

"There's a concept that never made sense to me." Jonah widened his eyes. "Killing your mate."

"To a Rogue werewolf, death is often the greatest mercy... the greatest way to be safe." Maddie inputted in.

Leif choked on the water he was drinking. Maddie gave him a weird look and he scratched the back of his ear. "I just couldn't ever picture doing that, that's all." He smiled at her. When Maddie was confident that that's why he choked up, she returned to the conversation. I wasn't sure if the others noticed the interaction however, because they were soon arguing and at each other's throats.

"Well you're not general, IRIS!" I heard Electra scream.

"You're not BETA!" Iris screamed back.

Leif was arguing with Anthony, the same argument as his mother. Was it safe for me to confront Arlis.

"Hey." I said. "Can I have an opinion in this?" I asked. Nobody heard me. My voice was lost in the fires of the forest of words. "HEY!" I tried again. My voice boomed over the crowd, a prow of power behind it. Everyone looked at me with a dash a fear and a whole lot of respect. "Do I have an opinion?" I asked.

Maddie looked me up and down. "No." She chuckled and then continued the argument with whoever she was arguing with, which looked to be Dalia.

Oh Hell no. If being here taught me anything, it was that I didn't have to put up with mouth's full of shit if I didn't want to. Not only did she just back talk me, but I was already pissed because I was being ignored. And plus she was probably working for the enemy? And hurting someone close to me? Hell. No. I tugged the back of her shirt and pulled her onto the floor.

"Who the Hell do you think you're talking too?" I asked, teeth elongating from my gums. No pain, just pure, raw, potential.

From the corner of my eye I watched Travis take a couple steps towards me before Leif stood in between us. "I wouldn't." His voice was rumbling, low.

"What the hell is going on?" Dalia asked.

"Maddie was rude. I don't like her." I stepped my foot on her throat, remembering something Arlis had told me. Werewolves can't shift if they're held down my something. I pressed my foot down a little harder. I bent down so close I could see every individual color shift in her eyes.

"Leif." She asked, her hand reaching out for empty ground next to her. "I can't breathe." She tapped my foot.

"That's the point, bitch." I snapped, claws elongating from my finger tips. The pain was unbearable but I had enough adrenaline in my bones that I hardly felt it.

"Kate stop." Iris's voice quivered.

I turned my head slightly. "Why? She's clearly challenged me for my title."

"She back talked. She didn't chall-" I interrupted Travis with a growl.

"I'll have you all know that both Travis and Maddie are not who they say they are." I didn't offer any other context, just dropped it right there. Travis lunged at me but Leif had him down in seconds.

Maddie laughed, her voice high pitched and far to annoying for my taste. "What are you going to do? Kill me?"

I stepped harder, her mouth formed an O as I stopped all air connection to her head. "If I have too. Do I have too?"

She shook her head, trying to say no.

"I can't hear you. Did you say something?" I asked, turning so my ear was closer to her. I didn't release my foot a single bit.

She nodded her head again. I smiled and picked my foot up, straddling her so she couldn't shift. I looked at her with disgust. "If Arlis were here you'd be dead. You better pray that when he does come back, and I tell him who you are... he's not in the mood for killing two people who are loyal to Konrad and have tricked his family members into thinking that that they are their mates." She looked like she was trying to shift, but couldn't. I was holding her down.

She looked genuinely confused for a moment. "We aren't working for KONRAD!" She yelled.

I tilted my head. "What?"

"We did this for Leslie. Is Leslie working for Konrad?" She asked... looking at my face for an honest answer.

I scoffed. "Leslie is dead. And honestly... I don't care who you're working for... what you did... isn't something that's right in any way." I pulled my hand back and brought it back down, scratching her face.

She screamed and I stood up, looking back to the group of people. "I'm sure you all heard that conversation. Electra, can you hold her somewhere? As well as Mr. Travis?" I asked, but it really wasn't a request. It was an order.

Electra bowed her head and pulled Maddie up roughly. Leif had gotten Travis onto the floor and stood him up. Dalia beat heavy fists onto his back but he ignored her until Iris held her back.

"And I'm going to go find Arlis, no matter who tells me I shouldn't. Anyone object? Anyone have questions."

Melloni smiled at me. "All hail Luna Kate." She empowered, one eyebrow raised. "Where are we going to start?"

CONSTANCE
Constance had been with her Aunt Marinda for a while. She couldn't count days, she didn't remember how long. She knew if she walked outside, Konrad could instantly find her. So she didn't leave.

Aunt Marinda was sitting across from Constance, watching a Christmas movie on TV. Constance supposed it was Christmas, or Christmas was tomorrow or yesterday or something.

The Holiday never meant much to her.

Constance wanted to leave, to go find Everly and help her. To go check up on Arlis. She prayed that Konrad hadn't taken him.

But her own fear held her back. She was terrified of what Konrad would do to her if he found her.

She wanted her dad, above all. She wanted him to come back and tell her she was being a wimp and that she needed to buck up and face her fears, save the world like he knew she could.

But he wasn't coming back. And Aunt Marinda had no idea.

"What's bothering you Constance?" Aunt Marinda asked, rolling noodles around her fork.

Constance shook her head and stood up. The cottage was small and cramped. There was barely enough room for the two couches and the coffee table in the living room.

The floor was a dark black color, and the walls were a strange shade of green. All the furniture fit the woodsy feel, brown leather and wood.

It was nothing like her home in Canada. It was darker, surprisingly.

"Nothing." She said. Constance was older than Marinda and yet... Marinda was still her Aunt.

Marinda rolled her eyes. "We both know that's a lie."

Constance walked to sit in front of Marinda and hung her head. "There's something I haven't told you."

Marinda frowned. "What?"

She took a deep breath. "I killed my dad." She muttered, her eyes near crying. But she wouldn't. She wouldn't cry.

She had no mourning time, she wasn't going to start now. "I made a deal with him that I wouldn't let him get taken, that I'd kill him first. And I did and..." she cracked.

She jumped into Marinda's arms. The girls hugging on the couch, Constance crying and Marinda holding her.

Marinda wasn't Kasparov's blood sister, she was married into the family, but Marinda somehow still reminded Constance of her father. They had the same hard exterior and chewy inside.

"He doesn't hate you, Constance. You only did what asked." Marinda assured.

Constance already knew that. It didn't make her feel any better. At all. She should've rebelled, like she normally did. She could've suffered next to him, with him. Instead, she suffered alone. Until... Marinda of course. Who was oblivious to her husband's death.

"I know. I know." Constance muttered out. How was she going to tell Marinda? How was she going to say anything at all?

"Eve and the boys are fine. Terrance is watching them. Your dad is with whoever we go with when we die, watching them, you. This isn't your fault, everything is going to be okay." She was softly crying now too, her voice light and breathy.

Constance let out a small cry out, almost a yell. "Konrad...." She couldn't continue on.

Marinda pulled out of the hug. "Arlis and Becker and a Hunter will bring him down." Marinda was so certain about it. So strong. She didn't know Becker had switched sides. She didn't know Arlis was doing nothing.

"Konrad killed Terrance." Constance spit out, biting down on her hand. Her eyes shut tightly as she felt Marinda's body slide away from her.

Constance opened her eyes and saw Marinda at the door, about to open it.

Constance jolted up from her position on the couch and ran to Marinda, pulling her away from it roughly.

"You can't!" Constance begged, falling to her knees. "Please. I'm sorry, I'm so so sorry."

Marinda looked down on her, her eyes red and tears escaping them in the gallons. "He's going down right now. Whether or not I die doing it is another question."

She took another step to the door and Constance tackled her down. "Think about Eve! And Zach! And Dallas! Zach can't grow up without a mom or dad. Eve is still an idiot and needs you. Dallas is just the same." Constance pleaded with her.

Marinda flopped them over, baring her teeth and Constance. "You don't tell me what to do. That's my husband, the father of my children. You wouldn't understand."

"But I do!" Constance yelled. "Konrad killed my own unborn child." It was a painful topic that Constance rarely talked about, hardly mentioned. It was a fact her own father didn't even know.

Marinda balled her fist. "Get your dagger. It's time we go home." Marinda got off of Constance and didn't hesitate when she stepped out of the door, breaking the magic that held them secret.

Constance rolled onto her stomach and screamed as she punched the floor, crying out. She set her forehead on the cold ground and, for not the first time, wished that she had died before this moment. Whether it have been in place of her father or her child.