Chapter 1
Jade
What happened when little children gained their parent’s powers? They would receive a massive surge of power. The entire Crimson Pack got to experience at least fifteen children gain their parent’s power. They doubled over and then their heads were thrown back with the force of it all. Their mouths stretched wide in horror as bright light shot out of them. Granny was right behind us. She held back the wolves that tried to go to them. The other children that weren’t affected didn’t move a muscle. They knew the magic would obliterate them if they got too close. The amount of power flooding through the small space was enough to keep me back even though my humanity was screaming in my head that they needed me.
When the light faded from the children we all rushed forward in a massive wave. I grabbed the first child that had collapsed and carried her back to the manor. Her heart stopped beating before I made it to the second step. I laid her on the porch to immediately start chest compressions and CPR. It didn’t matter. The magic had taken her soul. She was gone. My breath hitched and my chest ached as I leaned against the beam on the porch. My eyes sought out Rafe but he had two kids in his arms running toward Granny. Their chests rose and fell slowly. Relief coursed through me as the other children all seemed to be breathing too. Granny leaned over two little boys and based on her expression… I knew they hadn’t made it either. My eyes filled and my lips squeezed closed.
Three of the children didn’t survive the transferring of magic. Granny said it was bound to happen. Their bodies weren’t strong enough to house the power so it went right back to the coven, to power all of the people as a whole. Somehow it recycled. My heart hurt. How much more death would we have to experience? How much more heartache? I didn’t know if I could handle it. I didn’t know if I could survive it.
Mav brought ice cream to my home a few hours later. Cookies and Cream was my favorite. I didn’t know how he knew but I was grateful for it. He sat on the broken couch while I sat on a barstool beside him.
Numb.
We both took turns scooping out the dessert. No words were spoken and I was thankful for that as well. I didn’t know if I could handle small talk. I didn’t know if I could handle any kind of conversation but his presence was enough. When half the carton was empty we both stared at each other.
“Are you okay?”
I didn’t know how to answer it. Was I okay? I had been through enough in the last few months that most wouldn’t survive. But okay didn’t seem like an appropriate description.
He leaned back against the arm of the couch. “It’s okay if you aren’t. When we first went to our training, I thought it was going to be easy. We had been training with Rafe most of our lives. I thought we would be golden.” His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. “Then we got there and it was nothing like we had ever experienced before. We made our first kills that first day. I’ll never forget his face. I don’t know who he was, but that wasn’t a part of the mission. The mission was about obedience and if we could go the distance. I did what I had to but I will never forget it.”
His words made me regret eating so much ice cream. I stared down at my lap as he continued.
“We all went the distance. We all killed when they told us to and by the time Tracey picked us up at the airport, I had a body count of one hundred and fifty people. Mindless killing. Killing for sport. Killing to protect someone. Killing just to obey. It didn’t matter. Killing was what we did. We did it so often that I didn’t even care anymore. I didn’t have an identity there. All that mattered was the next shot. I killed humans, werewolves, vampires, witches, hell some of the supernatural races I had never seen before. All I knew when I woke up in the morning was that I was going to continue to kill. It makes it easier now to kill, its second nature in my muscle memory but not in my head. I don’t know how we even manage to continue to go on with a sense of humor.”
Knox interrupting my kiss with Rafe in the woods came to my mind. “It must be like a defense mechanism now.”
Mav shrugged. “All I know is that it doesn’t get easier. But if you ever need someone to talk to, all of my brothers will be here for you.”
I scoffed. “Because I’m the Alpha’s mate.”
“No, because you’re in our pack. It doesn’t matter who you are or where you rank. All that matters is that you are pack. But we also really like you too. You defied your Alpha and your mate more times than any of us can count. Anndddd,” he sang. “You freaking punched him in the nose. I wish we had been there to see that.”
A smile tugged at my lips. I couldn’t stay upset around these boys, even if I wanted to. “Thank you for sharing that with me.”
Mav nodded his head. “Yeah, just don’t go around telling people that. I like mysexualbody count and I don’t want that to decrease out of fear.”
A laugh burst from my lips. The pillow on the edge of the couch was silky between my fingers and a perfect weapon. I picked it up and whopped him on the head with it. He stared at me stunned before he picked up the other pillow and did the same. I squealed as I slid off of the stool and he came after me again. His attacks were relentless and by the end of it, I couldn’t stop laughing even with my head aching.
“All right, that’s enough. I need her precious brain intact,” Lucas said from the doorway. I grinned at him before I threw a pillow his way. He dodged it easily and it sailed through the open doorway. A snort escaped me. Tracey was going to have our heads for this.
Mav held his hands up in surrender. “The last thing I want is Tracey coming after me for ruining something else in this prized home.”
Lucas snickered. “She will hurt you in ways you never thought possible.”
Mav nodded his head before he wrapped his massive arms around me in a bear hug. “Get some rest. Those purple circles under your eyes don’t look good.”
