Noah POV

I lie without any desire to move... I feel so dirty; no matter how many times I clean myself, I feel dirty. And I feel ashamed that Charlie was touching my vile body and had to remove all the marks left on my body.

Both of my mates were touching me so gently and with such care. Care, I'm not worthy at all. I'm something used and weak; they don't need me. They managed to do everything themselves, even defeating the creatures. There is no more point in my presence between them.

Linus is deep; he is alive because I healed in two weeks, but his mind is shut away from me. I'm not sure if he allows us to shift again.

Charlie did his best; he survived, gave birth to our son, and helped her fight and save citizens of the Shadow Pack. I did nothing but submit to my humiliation and suffering. Like I submitted to them. I allowed them to use me, defile me. Their hands are on my body, and their snarks echo in my dreams, so I'm scared to sleep. I'm thankful for sleeping pills because they make my mind blank.

I feel numb day and night, and as much as I want to be touched by my mates, I fear it. I'm scared I will never let them touch me again, but at the same time, I feel relief that they won't have to touch my disgusted body ever again.

Some part of me wants to ask how many raped me, even though they all are dead. Nick would know for sure, but the other part of me is scared of asking.

I eat, but not enough. I sleep, but I'm always tired. I keep my distance from Tonya and Charlie, ignoring their hurt and worried eyes. It will be better if we never...

The noise of a crying baby suddenly reaches my ears, and I open my eyes and sit looking around. I'm in our bedroom, but on the bed next to me lies a crying infant. I haven't heard anybody entering; how the hell...

The infant is crying intensely, and I just look at it, not knowing what I should do. So I scream for help, but nobody comes, so I have to open the door, but the corridor is empty. Since when there is no wolf in the packhouse. I can go downstairs; someone has to be there, but I don't do it because crying changes into much stronger sobs and screams, and out of instinct, I run back to the bed.

My hands are shaking as I slowly take the baby into my arms. I have no idea what I'm doing because I have never held a baby before, and that's when it strikes me that I'm holding my son in my arms for the first time. He was born two weeks ago, yet this is the first time I hold him; this is the first time I actually look at him.

Every time Tonya or Charlie asked me to hold him, I refused. Any time they asked me anything, I refused. Now, I cradle the small, wiggling body to my chest only because I have no better idea. My son cries as I slowly walk with him around the room, but with every minute and every step, he seems to cry less and less, calming down bit by bit.

Somehow, the tears are going down my face, and I don't understand why. Just that this fragile body in my arms was created by me, and he is so tiny and so defenseless. I dare to look into his face, and a set of brown eyes stare into me; he is so innocent, so pure. And he is mine to protect, to make sure that nothing wrong will ever happen to him, to teach how not to make mistakes and how to stand up again after he makes mistakes as every living creature.

I kneel, cradling him stronger to my chest. He seems to like it because he is visibly calmer. The tears keep going down as I hold him close to me.

The door opens, and I look in its direction; Tonya and Charlie are standing there, and for the first time since I came back I smile at them, not stopping my tears.

They both come closer and kneel next to me on the floor.

"I want to name him Brian. What do you think?" Charlie asks.

"It's a good name," I whisper, looking first at him and then at Tonya.

She gently touches my back, and I allow myself to rest on her shoulder, accepting her comfort and warmth; my tears keep going.

"Do you... do you still want me... do you still want a family with me?" I whisper, and Charlie leans closer to put his cheek on mine.

"I love you; we will get through this," he says as Tonya kisses my hair.

"I love you, too. I love you both with whole my heart."

"I'm... I'm not well... I'm scared that I will never be well again; I'm weak."

I don't look at any of them saying these words. My eyes are stuck to the floor.

"You are not Noah; none of us is. We have each other, we have Brian. This is just the beginning for us, not the end. We will get through it and make it better," Tonya says.

And that's how we stay for a very long time, silently hugging each other as I finally feel that maybe I came back home.

Chandler POV

Pearl is tracing unwounded parts of my body with her lips. We have just finished making love, slowly and gently, since I'm still hurt and in bandages, having slight problems with moving, and yet I'm so happy I came back home, back into her arms.

My mother, who also suffered some injuries, had a chance to meet my future wife, and I'm thrilled that Pearl has won her over almost instantly.

"We need to get up," I say, although I don't want to. I want to stay in this bed for the whole day.

"The bad wolf will be here soon?" she asks, and I nod; she helps me get dressed, and I kiss her again before I leave the room.

Terry, also in bandages just like I, waits for me in the living room next to the Alpha study with my mother and Tonya, her now silver eyes piercing through me; I'm sure she is furious. After some time we watch the car parking in front of the packhouse by the window and Alpha Damon and his Beta stepping from it.

The Alpha doesn't look well, so maybe what he has done sits heavy on his conscience.

Alpha Mikkeli smiles, welcoming him into his house. I really admire the ice he has to have in his veins to act so perfectly in front of the man who was his friend.

In silence, we wait as they enter the house. Silence is broken when Damon screams because the warriors have been waiting for him, as he is brought tied up into the room where we are. Tonya moves a bit, so she stays away from his sight as Damon screams when he is strapped to the heavy chair with silver, and James injects him also silver to surpass his wolf.

Mikkeli Blackwood looks at him coldly and his Beta sadly. Hayden and his son James give him hard looks. Kathy's sight is full of hate.

"What the fuck is the meaning of this, Mikkeli, what the hell?" Damon asks dumbfoundedly, but he doesn't trash in his restrains. His eyes go toward me and other hunters, and he seems to recognize Terry.

"We have questions, lots of questions," Hayden states, and Damon yells that he won't overlook this humiliation and demands respect.

"I'm showing you respect, too much respect for the man who personally put the bullet in my daughter's heart," Mikkeli states coldly, and I actually see sorrow and guilt on Damon's face.

"You can't know that; whatever those hunters told you, it's a lie," Damon growls.

"The hunters told him nothing. I told him personally." Tonya's stern voice echoes through the room, and Damon looks at her, surprised and now scared.

I understand his confusion, his fear; no one should've survived the bullet put into your heart. And the way Tonya is now would make everybody scared. Her silver eyes are stuck on Damon, and he seems to struggle but soon bows his head in submission, trembling. Suddenly, he is no longer a strong Alpha but a weak, old, conniving man. Pitiful and disgusting.

"We told your Beta everything we are sure you did, and he helped us. You will die here, Damon, but first, we want answers. You were my friend... you owe me that much," Mikkeli spits.

"How did you meet Liam Brixton?" Terry asks coldly.

"He came to me... he had a way to make my wolf less hurt. I lost my true mate. Hunters took her away; I prevailed but was dead inside. Liam gave me something that suppressed my wolf, and for the first time in years, I was able to enjoy food, sex, and normal life. I was a strong Alpha, dead inside. Liam made me alive again." Damon whispers.

"In exchange for what?" Terry asks another question.

"In exchange for getting closer to Shane, he was interested in the Shadow Pack, and I gave him all the information. Lately, he was also interested in the Black Moon, so he came to me."

"Tania?"

"He sent her. I didn't know or asked why. I didn't know what she was, but truth be told, I don't care." Damon raises his eyes to look at Mikkeli, but his voice is monotonic. "I'm a dead man walking since my mate's death. I don't care anymore about anything, only that the pain was stopped thanks to him..."

"Was it you who staged the deal between Liam and Drew and helped him kidnap my mates?" Tonya asks, and Damon nods. He is resigned totally, maybe even happy that it will end soon.

"Liam needed you dead, wanted you dead to make sure there would be no treaty with the hunters. I'm sorry, Mikkeli, I'm so sorry, but I was too much in it to withdraw."

"Who from the Council was helping you?" Hayden asks.

"I don't know. I did not set the plan; my task was to shoot Tonya. We used the kidnapping to lure you to me. I'm sorry about your daughter Mikkeli, but I need what Liam gave me to stop feeling my wolf's pain. I couldn't go back to this pain ever again."

I gulp; in a way, I understand him... Pearl told me that losing your mate could kill you. Damon lost a mate but endured to lead his pack, but after years, it stopped being enough to keep him going. And Liam gave him a way to stop his suffering, and nothing more was important any longer. Not even his friendship with Mikkeli.

"What is Liam's goal?" Terry asks another question.

"I don't know. I only know that they have an official facility in Alaska. I know where. They also have another one in Arctica. I know that's where Liam is doing something, but I don't know what. What is your plan, Mikkeli? Why I'm here?"

"First, Rosie will come here and will check your memories. We need to be sure you are not lying. And next, I let you drink this," he points toward the small bottle of wolfsbane. "You were my friend; you saved my life years ago, so that I will give you this. Your Beta will report that rogues killed you and will become the new Alpha of your pack."

Tonya stands up from her chair to leave. Hayden, Terry, and I go after her. The rest stay to finish this as we go to the Alpha's study and sit there.

"Officially, Tonya Blackwood is dead," Hayden says. "Mikkeli resigned from the Council and will officially take the Alpha of Black Moon pack's place again. We will convince everybody that he is in pain after the loss of his daughter and will do anything to get the hunters who killed her. He named his successor in the Council, the previous Alpha of Howl Pack Natasha. She knows the whole truth, and we trust her. She will have a task to find out who in the Council is Liam's partner and convince everybody there that the creature incident is the hunters' doing, making sure nobody will be interested in Black Moon too much. That should calm Liam enough and give us time to operate."

"My mother and I will contact clans we trust and try to convince them to help us. So will do your father. He will tell the truth only to those packs he trusts because we have no idea how many more Alphas have some deals with Liam. We will ensure that all spies in hunter clans are eliminated." I say, and Tonya nods, still tapping with her fingers on her desk.

"We will establish a training ground in the Howl Pack," Terry says. "Where we prepare joint squads of hunters and werewolves and develop the strategy to fight effectively with the creatures. And we will prepare the joint squads to go deep into the Arctica. We must find the place they create these things, and it must be there."

"And we must do it till next summer."

Very pale Rosie is standing in the doorframe.

"Damon told the truth; I know the facility's location in Alaska, but he also knows that Liam mentioned that he just needs more time. We have only this winter to stop whatever he is planning."

Tonya nods, and Rosie sits on the couch; Hayden wraps his arms around her.

"What do you intend to do with Drew?" I ask because I know Tonya didn't kill him but locked him in her pack's dungeon.

"He will stay alive a bit longer. He still can have some information, and we will need test subjects to test on werewolf whatever we will find." She states in a dead tone.

I understand her; it's cruel, but if he would do to Pearl the same he did to her mates...

"I want Pearl to stay in Black Moon. She will have a safe delivery and care here since I will travel and train a lot." I state, and Terry nods, understanding my point of view.

Also, only hunters can really infiltrate the FuturaHW Corp. since, for sure, Liam expects werewolves, and it will be my task. I can only hope I will survive it and will be able to go back to Pearl.

"I think we are ready to sign that treaty," I smile at Tonya. "But you are no longer my ally but now my friend. And we will do it together till the end."

"You are also my friend, Chandler," she says." And this is just the beginning. The beginning of a long fight. And I'm proud and happy to be fighting alongside you, Chandler."