RAFF

Raff squinted a bleary eye at the bottle of tequila. The golden liquid caught the morning sunlight from the window, and he wondered for the millionth time why he didn't just open it and down the contents. He tore his gaze away and cursed as the journal came into his line of sight. That small leatherbound book sent him back to contemplating the tequila.

"Shit," he growled, leaping to his feet and reaching for a bookshelf. Only to find he'd toppled both of them already. Only his desk and chair remained intact, though the once smooth, mahogany finish of the desk was now filled with claw tracks and littered with wood chips.

Every single word of that book was burned in his brain, the evidence damning both of them. Her for lying, and him for loving her still. That was a fact he'd come to terms with over the long night of railing and roaring against the truth. No matter what, he couldn't go back and change that he wanted her. And not just to sate his lust, though he'd tormented himself in the dark hours with all the ways he wanted to join her body with his- all the ways that could never be.

No, he'd wanted to wake up to her smile and fall asleep to her sighs. He wanted to know all the things that made her laugh, and protect her from all the things that made her cry. They would've traveled the world together, by boat of course, sharing their deepest thoughts while entwined in silken sheets as waves beat against the hull.

None of that was possible: because she was human.

"How long will you punish us?" he cried out, beseeching a goddess that had long ago forsaken him and his people. A goddess who continued to make them pay for the sins of their fathers. The tears scalding his cheeks did not shame him. Let her see what lows she'd brought him to.

His phone buzzed, making his chest constrict- equal parts hope and fear. But he settled on disappointment. "Hey Calum," he said, his voice gruff.

Raff listened to the man talk, and with each passing moment, his wolf grew more frantic, pushing on the wall of skin that separated him from the world. He needed to howl and call the wolves to war, but he remained human, offering responses where they were necessary before ending the call.

"Yeah man. We'll be in touch. Thanks for letting me know. Things have quieted down here, but I'll be sure to keep you posted."

He walked to the kitchen, rubbing the back of his neck while he perused the contents of the fridge. In all the commotion, he'd forgotten Calum's request. He'd narrowed down the list of suspects, the most likely person the one he once would've sworn was innocent. But there were too many small things that had piled up recently to excuse the evidence anymore. And if she was involved, then this whole mess went a lot deeper than he thought.

He heard the footsteps before the knocking began, and he shut the fridge. Nothing but mold and beer greeted him. Might as well cancel that order for grocery delivery, he thought. He'd wanted to stock the house to the rafters because he'd planned on keeping Meribella famished and had no plans to enter the outside world until it demanded their reentry.

The knocking increased in persistence. Clearly, the world would've demanded their attention much sooner than he'd liked.

"What do you want Lincoln?"

His Beta sauntered in, looking almost as irritable as Raff. Blonde hair stuck up every which way and stubble covered a jaw that was usually kept clean shaven. He scratched his own growth and considered letting it stay. Perhaps, he'd let it grow to his chest and become the town hermit.

"Well, at least you don't reek of alcohol this time, and you've not puked on yourself. All in all, I'd say it's an improvement."

"And why would you think I was holed up in here getting drunk again? Unless you knew something I didn't."

Lincoln held up his hands. "Your girl was balling her eyeballs out in her room when I went over there. Thorne told me. Right before she kicked me out on my ass and advised me to stay away. Like literally- started to glow and tossed me outside."

"You're the one that picked a witch."

"Damn, you're right." A wicked grin crossed his face. "How you holding up?"

"I'll let you know once I stop being pissed," Raff answered, stepping aside so Lincoln could enter. Hearing that Meribella was crying put a bigger dent in his anger than he would've liked. "Just got off the phone with Calum."

"And?"

"And their trip to Mississippi yielded some interesting results. One of them revealing the Fae Queen's plans to start a second Uprising. And turns out, she's been trying to recruit the werewolves to her cause, starting with the Starless Pack."

"Fuck man," Lincoln said. "You think that's who is actually behind the hit on you? Though, why would she order Meribella to take you out? That crazy bitch could do it herself."

Raff frowned. "Werewolf hierarchy is too stable. You take out the Alpha, the Beta steps up, and so on and so on. Even if she managed to put a puppet in power, she'd have to get the pack to accept him. No, she needed to turn the pack against me. What better way than by making me break my own rule?"

"A rule that you've gotten rid of."

"Exactly. I want men keeping an eye on Meribella and Thorne at all times. Morgan isn't going to be happy that her plans have been spoiled, and she's going to retaliate."

"Done," his second in command responded, no trace of playfulness on his face. "But we can't just sit on our asses and wait for her to come after us."

"No, we can't. I think it's about time that we fix the little problem we have. We were never supposed to split into two packs. The Starless pack is either going to integrate back into the Orion pack, or they're going to die."

"You're going to start a war," Lincoln said. His words held no judgment; he was merely stating a fact.

"War is coming regardless. I'm going to do what's necessary to insure victory when it counts."

"And what about your woman problem?"

"I'll deal with it once she's safe, but I'll be damned if I'm letting her go. Not after everything. We'll figure out how to make it work."