Ella’s POV | woke up on the couch in Colton’s packhouse.
| don’t even remember how | got there, but Dee was placing a cold cloth on my forehead when | finally cthrough. She looked worried, but when she saw that my eyes had fluttered open, she breathed out a sigh of relief.
“Oh, thank goddess,” she said lovingly before standing to her feet. “Colton, she’s awake.” Colton rushed towardand sat on the edge of the couch, running his fingers down the side of my face.
“Hey, sweet girl,” he said gently; | saw sadness in his eyes, and it hurt my heart to see him like this. “I'm glad you cback to me.” His image becdistorted as tears filled my eyes.
“Please tellit's not true,” | croaked, not wanting to remember what | was just told. | didn’t want to relive the moment my father toldthat Scott was dead.
“I'm so sorry...” he breathed, taking my hand and bringing it to his lips.
My heart shattered and crumbled inside of me. Scott had done a lot of wrong in his life and we might not have been together anymore, but that didn’t mean | wanted him to die. He was never supposed to die.
He was supposed to be the Alpha of his pack and live a long and healthy life.
“Ella!” | heard my nfrom the doorway as Becca rushed into the living room.
When | looked at her face, | saw that she had been crying. Her entire body trembled as she threw herself at me, wrapping her arm around me.
“This can’t be happening. How did this happen?!” She sobbed.
| looked at Colton through my tear-filled eyes.
“How did this happen?” | asked; glad my voice cout stronger than | felt.
“I'll get your father,” he said, kissing my forehead gently before standing and running out of the room.
Moments later we were joined by Kay and Luis. Kay had bloodshot eyes, so | knew she'd been crying too. Luis looked sad, but he wasn’t crying.
“I didn’t know him...” Kay admitted softly. “But | know he didn’t deserve this. Nobody does.” “Why does everybody keep dying?” Becca cried as Luis wrapped his arms around her.My father soon walked into the living room, his face pale and grim. Colton was behind him and returned to my side. He wrappedin his arms and heldtightly; | was content basking in his warmth, but my heart hurt so much that | could hardly think about anything else.
“I'm glad you cback to us, Ella Bean,” my father said, approaching me. “I am so sorry | had to be the one to bear this news.” “What happened?” | asked again, wiping the tears off my face.
My father sighed and looked around at my friends before his eyes landed on me.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇt“He was ripped apart from the inside out,” my father explained, makingwince at his words. Colton heldtighter as if he was afraid, | was going to crumble to the ground. He heldlike he was holdingtogether.
“They aren't sure what caused it. But his heart was ripped out.” “Do they have any leads?” Colton asked.
“They are looking into all the officers,” my father answered. “They are the only ones that had access to him.
Oddly, none of them saw what happened.” “They should all get fired,” Becca sobbed.
“Isn't it weird that Scott dies as soon he wants to talk to us about something?” | asked, drawing everyone's attention to me. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence.” “You think whoever killed him was trying to keep him quiet?” Colton asked.
| didn’t have to say anything for him to understand what | was saying.
“The chief is looking at security footage to see who entered Scott's cell,” my father explained. “Hopefully we will know more information soon.” “How's Alpha Emmet?” | asked; remembering that Emmet was here as well.
“Not good,” my father said, sighing. “I'm not sure he will recover from this. | know | wouldn't be able to if something like this happened to you or your siblings.” He shook his head with sadness written all over his face.
“Where is he?” | asked, my voice was barely audible now.
“We set him up in one of the guest rooms,” Colton explained. “We gave him sleep meds to help him rest. He's not going to be any good to anyone wound up like he was.” I nodded, not realizing that it was late in the evening.
Brody entered the room and he looked drained.
“Sarah’s not doing so good, you guys,” he said, looking at my father and then at Colton. “She wasn't feeling well before this. She was pale and tired; when she left the bathroom earlier, she had sblood on her shirt. She toldit was from a bloody nose, but | think she was lying. | think she’s really sick.” My heart fell into my stomach; | knew something had been wrong with Sarah since | saw her in that closet at school. She wasn’t well then, | knew she wasn’t well now. But she seemed to be managing since then.
“Where is she?” | asked, standing to my feet.
“In our room,” he answered.
Colton kept a hold of my hand as we made our way out of the living room. My father and Brody followed us as we went up the stairs and toward the guest room that Brody shared with Sarah. | could hear her crying from outside the door, which broke my heart even more. But her crying soon turned to distress and sounds of pain, which made a knot form in the pit of my stomach.
| quickly rushed into the room to see her holding onto her stomach. She was sweating profusely, and her entire body was trembling.
She groaned out in pain; Brody rushed to her bedside, sitting beside her.
“Hey, I'm here. It’s okay...” he whispered to her, running his fingers down the side of her face.
“What's happening to her?” | asked, staring at Brody and then up at my father who was staring at Sarah with furrowed brows, confusion in his eyes.
“After the news about Scott, she started to cry and then she started having all this pain in her body. It was so bad that she ended up passing out. When she woke up she had a fever and the pain got worse,” Brody explained.
“I'll call the pack doctor,” Colton said, grabbing his phone and rushing out of the room.
“I'll call her father,” my father said grabbing his phone and following Colton out of the room.
| went to Sarah’s bedside and sat with her, holding onto her hands, | asked, “Sarah, tellwhat hurts.” “Everything...” she gasped, gritting her teeth as tears fell from her eyes. “It feels like my insides are on fire.” She let out a hacking cough and when | saw blood escape her mouth, my heart fell into my stomach.
“Holy shit...” | gasped. “I'm going to grab you a cloth,” | told her.
She sobbed as she struggled to wipe the blood from her mouth.
“It’s okay...” Brody assured her. | went into the attached bathroom to grab a washcloth and wet it in the sink.
When | returned, Sarah was sitting up in bed.
“I need my father...” she croaked.
“My father is calling him,” | assured her.
| sat beside her again and started to wipe her face with the cloth; her body still trembled, but she was no longer whimpering in pain.
“Does this happen often?” | asked her.
Tears welled in her eyes.
“Only when there's a lot of stress...” she murmured. “I think Scott's death triggered it.” “Why does this happen?” Brody asked, furrowing his brows together. “You never tellwhat's really going on with you.” She opened her mouth to speak, but my father entered the room shortly after.
“Your father is on his way,” he said gently. “He will be here soon. He wasn't far away when | called him.” She looked a little relieved by that and she leaned back in the bed.
“Do you need us to get you anything?” My father asked.
She shook her head as more tears fell from her eyes.
“No. But thank you,” she murmured, leaning against Brody who kept his arms wrapped tightly around her.
He nodded.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm“Get srest,” he said gently, turning away. “I'll have your father csee you as soon as he gets here.” | left the room with my father, giving Sarah and Brody talone.
Colton was in the hallway still on the phone.
“Thank you, doctor. We will see you soon,” he said, hanging up and turning to me. “How is she?” “She's resting with Brody. Her father will be here soon too.” We went downstairs to join the others in the living room while we waited. Kay and Becca were still crying, and Dee was doing what she could to cheer them up. | knew they were frightened by all these murders.
| couldn't get my suspicions out of my head; something in my gut was tellingwhoever killed Scott, probably killed the others too.
It didn’t take long for both the doctor and Alpha Jonathan to arrive.
“Where is she?” He asked, as soon as he stepped not the packhouse.
“Upstairs with the doctor,” Colton said, walking toward him. “I'll take you to her.” “The doctor?” Alpha Jonathan seethed. “She doesn’t need a doctor; she needs her medication.” | noticed he had a small pill bottle in his hands as he shook it. | furrowed my brows together as | looked at them, but I didn’t say anything. | went with them up the stairs and into the guest room Sarah was in.
The doctor was already examining her when Alpha Jonathan stormed in.
“Get away from her, she doesn’t need a doctor,” Alpha Jonathan growled, making the doctor stand away.
“I beg to differ, Alpha,” the doctor said, narrowing his eyes. “Your daughter's condition is—" “Managed,” Alpha Jonathan interrupted. “Her condition is managed.” He handed the pill bottle to Sarah; she lowered her gaze, her face reddening.
“It's gotten worse, Dad...” she murmured, opening the bottle.
“And who's fault is that?” Alpha Jonathan growled at her.
Tears welled in her eyes as she glanced at Brody and then at me; then she looked back at her father.
“Dad...” “Take your medicine, Sarah,” he ordered. “Then, we are leaving.” “Leaving?” She asked and | could hear the panic in her voice as she looked at Brody. He looked like he was struggling to keep his wolf under control.
“Yes,” Alpha Jonathan said through his teeth. “We are leaving. If you can’t remember to bring your medication with you, | can’t trust you to care for yourself.” “Alpha—" The doctor tried to say, but the piercing look Jonathan gave him shut him up right away.
“Let's go, Sarah,” Alpha Jonathan seethed.
She sighed as she took the medication.
“What is going on?” | found myself asking. “What's that medication for? What's wrong with her?” Alpha Jonathan looked at me, narrowing his eyes, making Colton tense from besideand move his hand in front ofprotectively.
“Easy Alpha,” Colton growled.
Jonathan rolled his eyes.
“It's to manage her condition,” Jonathan answered. “Without it, she will die.”