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d o u b t

I FELT EMPTY when Jed had to leave.

A part of me wondered if werewolves felt the same or if, like Lorraine had once told me, they felt worse because their human and animal emotions were amalgamated and they felt doubly what we usually did. And if that was the case, I understood the expression on Jed's face perfectly – the way his eyes scanned my features like he was trying to ingrain my image in his memory, and his evident reluctance as he lingered by the doorway of the hotel room.

"She'll be fine, Alpha," Katya brushed his worries off with a casual wave of her hand. She was one of the best fighters in the pack, according to Adrian; and she, Giles and Spike were here on Jed's orders to make sure that I was safe while he was away. "We won't let anything happen to her."

Jed's eyes flickered to me for a moment before he eased back with a quick nod. Adrian was already waiting out in the hallway, and I watched as Jed slung his bag over one shoulder and headed off with him. Giles was about to shut the door when I stopped him, placing a hand on the wooden surface as I squeezed my way out.

"Hey, wait up!"

My feet were propelling me forward before I could even register it, but I knew it was no supernatural mating pull that was making me feel this way. It was a deeper pull than that – something along the lines of how I really wanted Jed to be with me. Always. To never leave. To be safe. You didn't need to be a lycan to feel that way about someone.

Jed quickly turned at the sound of my voice and his eyes widened when I stepped closer to him. I smiled, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear and feeling rather self-conscious all of a sudden, especially when Jed glanced down, amusement flashing in his eyes when he realised that I wasn't wearing any footwear.

"I – " I paused, then threw a glance back to the room. Katya, Giles and Spike were all staring out of the door at us, matching looks of curiosity on their faces. But the moment they saw us looking their way, they quickly retreated. My eyes drifted over to Adrian, who was leaning against the wall with a smirk on his face.

"Don't mind me," His grin widened, tipping a head back as he stared at us, with his arms crossed over his chest. "Carry on." But he hastily straightened when Jed threw him an unamused look over his shoulder. "Alright, alright," he mumbled, turning to head towards the elevator. "I'm going."

When Adrian was far away enough, I turned back to Jed, feeling anxiety gnaw at me like a weary hole in my gut. "You'll be safe, right?"

His gaze softened and he nodded slowly, but I didn't miss the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes at all.

"Good. Just – " I exhaled, taking a step closer and pushing myself up on the tips of my toes. He barely had the time to freeze or react, and I was brushing my lips against his cheek the next second, my lips cool against his warm skin. His citrus aftershave and faint masculine scent was intoxicating and I shut my eyes, trying to memorise him, all of him, for a moment before pulling back, staring up into his dark eyes. "Just come back to me, okay?"

He tentatively drew his fingers up, and I smiled when he touched the spot where my lips had been mere moments ago because it seemed like he was trying to memorise me too. Then he let out a quiet breath. "I promise."

I fell a step back. "I'll see you tonight, then." He still seemed rather reluctant to leave and I offered him a reassuring smile. "Go on. I'll be fine."

Jed nodded and left, even though he glanced back over his shoulder a few times. I watched until they disappeared into the elevator before letting out a sigh.

I missed him already.

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"So tell me again how you and Alpha met?"

Katya looked up at me curiously. It had been an uneventful day so far, and Spike, Giles and Katya seemed content to spend the day lazing around.

I bit my lip to hide an amused smile at Katya's question. "Jed didn't tell you?"

"Jed doesn't tell us anything," she let out an inelegant snort, flipping a page of the magazine she was reading. "So that's no surprise. And I know you've told Lorraine, but she and Spike – " Katya now threw a pointed glare at Spike, who simply shrugged good-naturedly, " – refused to tell us about it. All they kept gushing about was that it was the cutest love story ever," she added, a melodramatic edge seeping into her voice, before shaking her head. "And that we had to ask you."

"It's not our story to tell," Spike argued, looking adamantly firm on the matter before quirking a wry grin at me.

I laughed. "There's not much to tell, really," I said, leaning back against the bottom of the bed. "I was walking home one night and then I met Jed in his wolf form," I started slowly, deliberately leaving out the part of him killing Claudius, because I didn't see a need to repeat it. "Thought he was going to attack me, so I whipped out a knife and stabbed him with it."

Katya's eyes widened and Giles pushed himself forward, letting the TV remote slide off his lap and onto the floor. "You stabbed our Alpha?" He asked in disbelief, looking like he wanted to laugh but seeming to hesitate all the same.

"It's instinct. When you see a wild animal charging at you, you have to defend yourself."

Katya chuckled richly. "I guess you can say it was love at first stab."

Love?

The thought hadn't occurred to me until she voiced it out loud, but then I found myself momentarily freezing when I thought of the ramifications of her words. Did I love Jed? I hadn't questioned myself much before; just fell into this whole mating thing the way he did. It wasn't love at first stab, or sight. But it was slowly building up – the way I wanted to be with him, the way I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him, the way I was open to him turning me when the time came for it...

All signs pointed to yes.

"Yeah," I said softly, "I guess it is."

Katya opened her mouth to respond, but stopped when the doorbell rang. It was still midday, and Jed wasn't supposed to be back so soon. Giles climbed to his feet and headed to the door to check the peephole.

"There's no one there," he said, after a long pause. Katya got up, her shoulders tense as Giles carefully unlocked the door, before stepping out. Moments later, he handed Katya a nondescript white envelope. "Give it to Luna," he instructed, still scanning the hallway intently, before taking a step out. "I'm going to see if I can track the person down."

Katya closed the door and held the envelope to me. "It's addressed to you." The envelope was plain, with only the word 'Quinn' printed across. I reached for it, but she hesitated. "I should check to see if it's safe."

I blinked. The three of them sure took their jobs very seriously, thanks to Jed. "Yeah, okay, sure."

Without another word, Katya reached into her back pocket and drew out a knife. It was larger than the one I had, but made of pure steel. "Don't worry," she grinned when she noticed me staring at it, "I won't use it to stab my mate if I ever meet them."

Spike laughed and I grinned. Katya slid the blade across the sealed part of the envelope, then peered inside. "It's just a letter."

Settling down on the bed, I tucked my knees under my chin and read the note.

Quinn,

as promised;

1)    Prometheus will launch an attack on Titan soon.

2)    His full name is Mattheus Norvil.

I knew at once who had penned this. Bianca. She hadn't signed off, but she didn't need to.

But the contents of her note had left my heart beating in trepidation. I reached for my phone to send a quick text to Jed, copying the contents of her letter word for word, before nudging Spike, who was entirely absorbed in the current show on television.

"Have you heard of him?" I asked, pointing to the name in Bianca's letter.

Spike looked at it. "Not at all. Do you?"

I bit my lip. "That was the man who captured me," I said quietly, swallowing hard when a sudden wave of memories flashed in my mind. Spike seemed equal parts angry and worried on my behalf, and I decided against telling him what had happened during my capture. There was only one person I was comfortable telling this to and one person who should know first –Jed. "What about Prometheus?" I asked, swiftly changing the subject. "Do you know anything about that pack?"

"They're not exactly a pack," he hedged. "Prometheus is made up of rogues. They don't have an Alpha but they work well as a team of elite trackers."

"To track down criminals?"

"Pretty much. There's no common law enforcer among the packs, you see, so Prometheus has always taken it upon themselves to enforce the law. Most of the time, it works – let's say there's a criminal in the pack you want to get rid of, but the criminal's on the run. The Alpha of that pack puts a bounty on that criminal, Prometheus tracks the person down and sends him back to the pack to suffer the proper punishment."

"There doesn't seem to be anything flawed with their system," I observed.

"It's not," Spike shrugged, but then his expression turned serious. "Until about a year or so ago, when Prometheus had a change of leadership. The packs haven't heard much, because Prometheus makes itself so rarely seen, and the leader has never been seen. But then there were stirs – we've heard that they were recruiting rogues, and forging alliances with packs while making enemies out of others. They conduct raids on smaller packs; Aitne and Euanthe were razed to the ground because of them."

"Then why doesn't anyone stop them?"

"Because it's not in the packs nature to interfere. Any pack has the right to expand and infiltrate into other pack's land. Titan used to do that. Ganymede swallowed plenty of packs to become the giant it is today."

"And now Prometheus is hunting Jed," I clarified.

"Now they're hunting Jed," Spike sighed. "It's probably to do with Jed taking over as the new Alpha, but it's ridiculous. This is Titan's affair. If we don't have a problem with a change in leadership, then there's no reason that Prometheus should."

"What about Prometheus?" Katya's voice broke our conversation. She strolled over with Giles in tow, the latter of whom looked rather defeated.

"We couldn't find that person," said Giles, sounding somewhat annoyed, settling down on the floor next to Spike. "I asked to review the cameras and all I saw was a hooded figure dropping the envelope off and leaving right after."

I took a deep breath and made a quick decision. "Well – that's okay. Because I know who the person is."

"What?" Giles raised his eyebrows, and the expressions on Spike's and Katya's face mirrored his. "Who?"

"Bianca."

Katya and Giles exchanged glances, before she spoke. "Bianca? Are you sure?"

"Absolutely," I affirmed, gesturing for Spike to pass them the letter. The two of them studied the contents in silence, but the expressions on their faces remained doubtful, if not even a little suspicious.

"This is rich," Giles let out a sharp laugh at last, but it sounded almost sardonic. "She's telling us that Prometheus is going to launch an attack on Titan, when she's been the one leading the missions all this time? When she's been the one hunting down our Alpha?"

"She doesn't do that anymore – " I started, but Katya cut me off.

"Luna, you can't be serious. There is no way werewolves switch loyalties that easily, much less to the enemy lines," Katya shook her head. "It doesn't mean anything just because you saved her. She could be playing you, passing wrong information your way as a smokescreen."

"She wouldn't do that," I insisted.

"Bianca would. She's a rogue who joined Prometheus. Letting her recuperate at Titan was already a stretch too far," Katya's voice was resolute, "Letting her go without any punishment whatsoever was far worse. And now you're choosing to trust her? Honestly – as Luna, you should know better."

I couldn't help it – I flinched, and the way Spike glanced at me quickly made me realise that he hadn't missed my involuntary action at all.

"Katya – "

"Forget it," She ignored Spike and climbed to her feet, striding quickly towards the door. Moments later, we heard the door slam shut.

Giles cleared his throat awkwardly and set down the paper. "I should – " He uneasily got to his feet and shot me an apologetic look, "I'll go get her. Sorry, Luna, Katya's just a blunt sort. She doesn't mean any harm when she says that."

"It's fine," I assured him. The door clicked shut behind him, leaving me alone in silence. All I heard was Katya's voice echoing in my head.

Honestly – as Luna, you should know better.

Katya was right – I didn't know better.

"Hey." Spike nudged me. "You alright?"

I dragged in a deep breath and looked at him. "Do you think they're right?"

He hesitated for a moment, then sighed. "I agree that Bianca might not be the best person to trust," he admitted, reaching for the note that Giles had left behind. "You never can tell with her. The first time she came to Titan land, Alpha gave her a place to stay. But the option to be a part of the pack never opened to her, the way it was for me. I don't think Alpha trusted her very much and I think there's every reason to trust him."

I fell silent. How could I argue with that logic? Because when put like that – I did trust Jed. Far more than I would ever trust Bianca; since he'd never given me any reason to think otherwise.

"Nevertheless – " Spike continued, when he noticed the uncertainty on my face. "I don't completely agree with everything Katya said. You're a good Luna, regardless of what she, or anyone else, might say."

"I'm not too sure about that," I mused wryly, even as I felt my shoulders slump with resignation. "Adrian didn't seem at all pleased the other day when he heard that I wanted to visit the graves of those rogues. And I haven't exactly been taking on any duties yet; maybe Jed doesn't trust me to – "

"He doesn't want you to take over anything until you're ready," Spike corrected swiftly, nothing but absolute sincerity on his face. "You're compassionate, kind and far more receptive to us than most humans are. Not many would be so open to the idea of werewolves, or mating, or living in a pack the way you are. And you saved Lorraine." I glanced up at him in surprise and he smiled. "She told me what you did that day before you were captured by Prometheus. If you'd just ran ahead like she told you to, you would've been safe. Instead, you turned around to help her and that's how we lost you. You're brave and selfless. That's why you're the Luna of our pack."

I couldn't help but feel a rush of comforting warmth sweep through me at his words. Lorraine had been my first friend, Lance was funny and Adrian was the overprotective Beta who always watched over me. But Spike was quickly making his way up the ranks to the one person I trusted and who understood me the most, apart from Jed.

"Thank you," I smiled warmly at him. "Can I make you my Beta?"

He laughed.

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Jed seemed to notice that I was quieter than usual when he returned that night. After biding their goodbyes, the other three left, although Spike stopped to speak with Jed. Once the door was shut, Jed dropped his bag on the couch and turned to me.

I didn't have to be a genius to figure out what Spike had told him. After all, the tension hadn't ceased all day, even after Giles had brought Katya back and we'd all lazed around and watched a comedy flick together. I bit my lip and met Jed's gaze. "Spike told you about what Katya said?"

He nodded, his lips flattening in a grim line and he looked aggravated by the information. This was something I was quickly learning about the hierarchy within Titan. Jed clearly wouldn't stand for anyone insulting or even thinking less of me.

"She's right," I admitted, slowly getting to my feet and stepping closer to him. "I'm not – ideal as a Luna, really," I added, when he began to shake his head. Swallowing, I dragged a hand through my hair and continued, "I – I get scared a lot and hesitate a lot and...I don't really know how to do things for the greater good. I'm more likely to risk the safety of everyone just so I can save another person – that's the kind of decision I'd probably make. Even though Spike says that I'd be a good Luna, I'm not sure he's entirely right. I was even about to trust Bianca because of that text I sent you earlier – and I would have, if Katya and Giles didn't talk me out of it." I let out a sigh, averting my eyes from Jed even as he took a step closer to me. "I just – "

The words trailed off when Jed unexpectedly slid his hand up to my cheek the next moment. I felt myself instinctively leaning into his touch, feeling his warmth like a soft comfort against my skin. He tipped my head up slightly and I blinked, pleasantly surprised when I felt him lean in and press his lips gently against my forehead. My stomach tightened deliciously at the contact, however feather light it was, and I wanted nothing then to reach for him, lean in closer, never let him go.

His breath was a caress on my skin when he finally pulled back, his eyes soft as he gazed at me. "I believe you," he whispered, his voice barely audible in the silence.

My eyes widened, even as my chest fluttered as I heard him speak to me once again. "You believe me about Bianca?" I clarified, feeling rather stunned when he swiftly nodded. "But...no one else does – except Spike, but even he has his reservations..." I trailed off, meeting gaze again and seeing nothing but seriousness in his eyes.

So he trusted me just as much as I trusted him.

The realisation came just as swiftly, and I exhaled, feeling but resisting the urge to pull him into a hug. But I didn't want to scare him away, not when he was slowly but surely beginning to feel comfortable around me. "Thank you," I said instead, a smile stretching across my face as I looked up at him, then fell a step back as I glanced over at the kitchen. "Are you hungry? I saved you some dinner."

He nodded, but I didn't miss the way his eyes flickered over to the bathroom.

"Go ahead," I said as I gestured him towards the bathroom. "I'll heat up the food."

He nodded again and went to his bag to take a new set of clothes. While he took his time in the shower, I reheated the takeaway I'd been saving for him. Giles and Spike had wanted to take Jed's portion earlier but I'd pretty much watched over it like a hawk would over its nest, and thankfully, Jed's food had escaped their insatiable appetites unscathed.

When Jed was done, he found me seated on the bed. His food was on the coffee table and I gestured for him to take a seat. His lips twitched when he noticed the notepad and pen next to his plate, and I smiled, tucking a lock of my hair behind my ear before setting the letter Bianca had sent me on the table. Jed was eating, but he paused when I pointed to the name in the letter, his gaze automatically darkening.

"You don't know him, right?" I clarified.

He shook his head, but his grip on the fork in his hand was tight.

Instinctively, I reached across the table and slid my fingers gently across the back of his hand. He stilled for a moment, but it was a pleasant surprise when he seemed to relax after that, like my touch had calmed him down. "It's okay," I said, before letting out a quiet sigh. "I've seen him, though. And he's – " I kept my eyes fixed on the way my fingers were brushing arbitrary patterns across the back of Jed's hand, because I knew that if I shut my eyes, it'd all come rushing back. " – he's a monster."

Jed suddenly pulled his hand away and reached for the notepad. His jaw clenched as he wrote three words across the paper:

I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so

I stopped him then, gripping the tip of the pen tightly to prevent him from writing any more. He paused, eyes flickering up to meet mine apologetically and I shook my head. "Don't write that. Because it wasn't your fault," I told him gently, tugging the pen away from him and setting it down on the table. "There's only one monster here and it sure as hell isn't you."

"When I was captured, the man let me wander the place," I started quietly, "His guards didn't have a problem with me so long as I didn't try to escape. Then I came across this room. And it was – " I swallowed, blinking hard at the memories that blurred my vision. Focused solely on Jed instead, the way he was patiently listening and giving me his undivided attention. " – it was terrifying," I admitted, after a lengthy pause. "It was a dark room and it reeked of blood. There was...bondage equipment and dead women, dead girls and – I don't know how they got there or how long they were in there, but they were all dead, except for Bianca, and I – " I pressed the back of my hand against my cheeks to wipe away the tears. Jed was frozen, his eyes wide and posture rigid as he listened to me. "They were tortured, Jed, and I couldn't save them and I can't get them out of my head – "

I stopped when I suddenly noticed the expression on his face. It wasn't a look of revulsion or horror from my revelation. He looked stricken, and his eyes darted to me for a quick moment before he got to his feet in jerky, erratic movements. I stared at him in alarm as he grabbed his bag and began to pull out a large white folder.

"What're you doing?" I sidled closer to him and watched as he opened the folder. "What is this?"

His hand shook as he held out one of the papers to me. I scanned the printed words and cold dread sank in my stomach.

"This is a list of missing women and young girls," I said at last, feeling my head spin with horror and disbelief. "It dates back to more than ten years. Are these women all lycans? From the different packs?"

He nodded and reached for his pen again.

Been trying to find them, but no one knows where they went to.

"Of course," I shook my head, feeling a shudder rip through me. "The man who captured me had hid these women in the basement. I bet the whole pack didn't even know they were there the whole time."

Jed nodded again, before flipping over the paper to show me a second list. This one was condensed, some of the words so foreign that they sounded strange on my lips. "Azazel, Dimitri, Malthus, Orcus, Raum, Tamiel, Xaphan," I read aloud, before noticing the header and looking up at Jed. "They're the ones you suspect?"

Jed simply held out another piece of paper to me. I took it, only to realise that it wasn't a paper but a faded photograph. At first, it seemed normal, just two men grinning widely for the camera. But the second I recognised the man on the right, I flinched and dropped the photograph.

"That's him," I whispered, my eyes wide as I felt a familiar panic seep in. Jed seemed to notice and he held out a hand, his green eyes steadily fixed on me. I didn't waste a second slipping my fingers through his before looking at Jed. His expression was strange, an odd mix of resignation and guilt and pain all at once. "Do you know him?"

Jed looked away from me and wrote:

Mattheus Norvil

Then he paused, fingers gripping the pen tightly as he shut his eyes for a moment. And when he finally opened his eye, there was nothing but a deadly calm as he rearranged the letters of the name into a new one –

Malthus Trevino