Malaysia was putting her stuff away in her old room, pausing at times when memories returned to her of Connor. She smiled even though tears trickled down her cheeks. These memories were something she would forever cherish. 

"Are you okay?"

At Elias' voice, she simply nodded and continued to fold her clothes to put them in the drawer. He stood beside her and grabbed her hand. When their gazes met, she was perplexed that he would look at her in the same way Connor had many times. 

She pulled her hand out of his grasp. "So, we both have toxic families."

He chuckled. "My father isn't as bad as he is portraited...and my brother.... Ethias deep down cared for Connor..."

"Perhaps, you're simply trying to find the good in them...I did that for far too long." She paused, taking a deep breath. "My mother cares so much about keeping up the image of wealth...she never cared whether I was happy or not. I should have known that she never cared about me...She always called whenever she needed money...other than that...it was like I did not exist." 

"Connor and I did everything possible to hide our clan's name because too many times people would use us to be in good terms with my father. Connor was young, but I'm old enough to remember times when I would get close to someone and all they sought was to become part of the clan...It honestly made us not want to let anyone get too close...until we met you."

She smiled and he returned it. 

Sierra walked into the room with a plate of food in her hand and a dazzling smile. "I know you have to be starving, so I prepared this for you." She handed everything to Malaysia and left the room to return with a mug on her hand, presumably filled with tea. "So, are we going to talk about what happened?"

"Did my mother ever come?"

Sierra averted her gaze. "Mal--"

"She didn't."

"She did--but she only came to ask you for money so I went off on her and told her to never return...that woman is no mother." She took a sip of her drink, while Mal began to eat her food on the small table she had bought on a second-hand store years ago. She smiled at the fact neither of them had touched anything in her room, obviously hoping she would someday be able to return.  Sierra and Elias were her family...perhaps even Alec.

"Hey, can I borrow your cell--" She stopped speaking when Sierra placed in her open palm her old cellphone. "Thank you." She dialed the number of the bar, but there was no answer, which was odd. One of the girls was always there to answer the phone. Now, concern overwhelmed her. 

"Is everything okay?" asked Elias.

"No one is picking up at the bar I worked at..."

"Oh, they're probably really busy." Sierra took another sip of her drink. Perhaps she was right. There were many times when they would not have a second to breathe, making one drink after the other. 

"I'll try again later." She paused for a moment to eat. "I've been thinking...What if I agree to be Joel's surrogate? Some humans do it."

"No," Elias didn't even think it over.

"Why not? I would rather simply carry his child for nine months rather than have him continue hunting us like this...Elias, if he agrees to it--"

"He won't."

"We won't know until we give it a chance."

"Mal, you're being naïve."

She stood and growled. "How exactly how am I being naïve? All that bastard wants is a child--Well, I'll give it to him--" Elias made a move to leave the room, but she stopped him, gaining a hiss from him.

"Whoa, both of you need to relax," Sierra said before pinching her chin with her free hand. "Huh, I wonder if this is this a result of that pent up sexual--"

"Sierra!" Malaysia's face became too hot, whilst Elias simply chuckled.

Sierra broke into a fit of laughter. "What? Can I not think out-loud in my own home?" She exited the room, shutting the door closed, her laughter still filling the air.

"She has a screw loose," Malaysia said before letting out a nervous laugh.

Elias stared into the distance before his eyes settled upon her. "I know you, Mal." He stepped closer. "You want a child...One with someone you love, not someone you hate."

Her eyes averted to the ground. "I'm not given much of a choice..." 

"Mal, Joel wants you as his mate not as a surrogate."

Heat spread through her face at the fact he was too close. She pushed him away playfully, which gained her a soothing laughter from him. "What's with the invasion of space?"

His hand went to her waist and drew him to her. "I missed you."

She couldn't help but smile like a fool. "I missed you too--The long hair suits you." Before he could say anything, she whirled around and headed for the door. Her heart was pounding in her chest, which she couldn't comprehend why.

Sierra arched an eyebrow from where she sat on the sofa. "Is everything okay?"

Malaysia wrapped her arms around herself. "Of course...Why do you ask?"

Sadness flashed in Sierra's eyes as they settled on someone behind her. Malaysia glanced over her shoulder to lock eyes with Elias. Without a word, he headed to his bedroom, confusing Malaysia even more. She began to fidget with the hem of her shirt before lifting her gaze to look at her friend. "Sierra what is going on?"

"Is it obvious?" She took a sip of her drink. "I hate not having noticed it before...I could have stopped it from becoming something serious."

"Sierra, you're not making any sense." Malaysia took a seat across from her friend.

Sierra set her mug on the coffee table. "Mal, remember who was the one who was obsessed with aiding you from the start...That fool fell for you the second he laid eyes on you...Of course, he never made a move because he was turned into a freaking ten year old...but if he wouldn't have...Elias would have done everything to get you into his bed."

Malaysia stood. "You're imagining things...Elias cares for me like a friend and nothing more."

"Believe what you want." Sierra picked up her mug and took a sip of the tea, her eyes locked on her. "I know that you can sense it with your blood bond...If you don't want anything with him, make it clear so that he doesn't get his hopes up..." Pain flickered in her eyes. "All these years...I've watched him struggled to keep his sanity...I fear all it would take is one more push to drive him over the edge."

After that talk with Sierra, Malaysia attempted to make distance, but it was far from easy when they were forced to remain in the house all day. Part of her knew that even if he had not done so on purpose, his enhanced hearing allowed him to listen to everything Sierra and she had said. Malaysia watched a movie on the sofa, covered in the blanket, a mug filled with hot chocolate milk in her hands. 

Alec sat down on the sofa across from her. "What kind of idiot runs into the woods when being chased?"

Elias laughed from where he stood. "Right?"

She shot Elias a look. "Maybe, she had no other choice."

"Look, as expected she was caught and killed--why the hell do you find this interesting."

She hit Alec with the decorative pillow Sierra had bought for the holidays. "Shut the hell up--I'm trying to watch the damn movie."

He snatched the pillow from her. She managed to stop herself from spilling her drink all over herself when he grabbed her free hand and pulled her to him. At first she couldn't comprehend why the hell he had done so until she felt the heat spread through her. In the blink of an eye, she had yanked her hand out of his hold, set her mug on the coffee table and made distance, snarls escaping her lips. Her breathing became labored as the heat intensified tenfold, making her cry out in pain.  

For the past three years she had endured her heat all alone.

When her eyes met Elias', who had actually made distance, the heat became too overwhelming. Sweat glistened her body as she fought to remain where she stood. "I need fresh air--" She rushed toward the door, but Alec stopped her. "Alec--"

"Calm down," he said, cupping her face in his hands. "It's okay--"

"It's not okay--I can't--"

"Forgive me--it caught me off guard, but we can handle it. We're old enough to control that urge."

She glanced at Elias to see him looking unfazed by her heat. "How can it affect him now?"

Alec chuckled. "Your connected body and soul, remember?"

Malaysia jerked away and headed to her bedroom when she fell to the knees at the intensity of her heat. Snarls and growls erupted from her lips, her nails changing to wolf claws. If she didn't regain control, she would shift. She focused on controlling her breath until her heart slowed down back to normal. A smile tugged at her lips due to her nails changing back to human. At a scent of oak near her, she glanced over her shoulder to find Alec at the opened door with a smile on his lips. "I've lived long enough to know she-wolves struggled to remain in control during their heat...The fact you can calm yourself down...You're strong..." Worry flashed in his eyes. "Which will draw many in."

Malaysia stared at the floor now. She had not noticed he had moved until he knelt in front of her, grasping her chin to tilt her head back so their gazes would meet. "As alpha of the pack, it would have been my responsibility to find you a suitable mate...Elias...He is not it."

She could feel herself blushing. "I don't--"

"You might not love him, but don't you dare deny you feel attracted physically to him," he said with a smile.

A nervous chuckle escaped her lips. "Guilty."

His playfulness was gone when their gazes met again. "Malaysia...His father would never allow you two to seal your union."

"I didn't think of doing such things anyway." She lurched to her feet, feeling like she was going to pass out from embarrassment. "I'm doing much better so I'm going to finish my damn hot--" She halted when he got too close. 

She went to push him away playfully, but he grasped her hand, his golden eyes falling upon her. "No hybrid has ever made it alive out of the womb, Malaysia."

Her smile vanished. "W--What?"

"If you remain by his side, you'll never be able to become a mother."

"Help!"

Alec stormed out of the room, Malaysia following suit. She became frozen at the sight of Sierra aiding her friends into the house. "I'm sorry--I didn't know where else to take them..."

"What the hell happened?" Elias asked.

"I was at work...They were tossed right into my room..." Sierra was now crying. "I don't know why they aren't even talking--"

Elias headed toward the front door and glanced outside before slamming it shut. "Sierra this could have been a trap."

"Joel knows where I work--Where we live---All these years he has kept a close eye on us---If he wanted us dead, we would be."

"He hasn't killed you because he doesn't know Malaysia is here," Alec stated.

Vanessa coughed and black blood splattered on the floor. Malaysia moved to her side to aid her to the sofa. Even though Angelica stood on her feet, her eyes revealed the agony within. When Sierra and Elias helped Jessica, she fainted. Elias held her up, his scarlet eyes growing wide.

"She has a mark on her neck."

Malaysia inspected it to see tribal lines that intertwined to make what she assumed was a star with claw marks. "What the hell is that?" She aided Elias to take Jessica to the guest room and on the bed. Angelica staggered into the room, hands on the wall. "Angelica, what happened?"

Angelica hesitated. "Wolves came into the bar and demanded to know where you were...They killed Keyla." Malaysia hugged her and she broke down, crying at the top of her lungs. "They tore her apart right before our eyes--Mal, if we stay here...they will find you."

"If Joel took you to Sierra's job, then he knows I'm here."

Angelica shook her head. "He is using us to draw you out..." She backed away as she began to cough. The cough became worse when she clasped her hand over her lips. When she drew it back, her eyes grew wide with horror at the black liquid coating her palm. "He injected us with some sort of poison...Mal..." Her eyes met Malaysia's. "He dropped us off at her job to see if we survive the night...If either of us do...then they know you're here."

Malaysia wrapped her arms around herself. "This is my fault." When she tried to leave, Elias stopped her. "They are going to die! It's my fault! I should have stayed away!" 

He pulled her to him. "This isn't your fault."

Jessica woke with a piercing scream. Malaysia and Angelica rushed to her side as her body began to shake. Then, she stopped moving entirely. Malaysia stared at her motionless body, feeling her heart shattering into pieces. She had been a fool to believe that she could ever escape Joel...or any other alpha who became infatuated with her.  

"Jessica..." Angelica grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. "Wake up! No!" 

Moments later, Malaysia sat on the sofa beside Vanessa, who didn't look well. She could barely keep her eyes open. "I want you to do it."

Perplexed, Malaysia asked, "Do what?"

"Change me...I'm dying either way."

Alec came from the room, Angelica's arm wrapped around his neck for assistance. If not, she would have probably not been able to walk. "That's what that bastard wants."

Pain flickered in Vanessa's eyes. "Angie...I don't want to die."

Malaysia ran a hand through her hair, fighting back tears. "You know--"

"I know I can still die from the change...I don't care." She inhaled. "Do it...please."

Apparently, in order for this to work, Malaysia had to be in wolf form, so she shifted and followed the instructions given to her by Alec. If everything went as planned, the werewolf venom would heal Vanessa and Angelica.

When Malaysia bit their hands, both clearly bit their lips to stop themselves from screaming in pain. The second she had bitten them she felt an electricity shoot through her body. Now, they all stood in the room, waiting. 

Vanessa began to cough before her body quivered visibly. Malaysia rushed to her side and wrapped her arms around her, fighting back tears. "Mal, I don't--I don't want to die."

Elias moved Malaysia out of the way. She was about to protest before he handed Vanessa a mug. "Drink this." Vanessa began to drink the liquid. Malaysia watched as Elias lowered the mug and now, Vanessa's lips were coated in scarlet. She glanced at Elias, who would not meet her gaze. He stood and walked back into the kitchen.

"Impossible," Alec said from where he stood. 

Vanessa's skin turned back to its natural dark complexion. Even her blond curls seemed lustrous. By the time everyone glanced at Elias, he had given a mug filled with his blood to Angelica. The second she drunk it, she also looked healthier than ever. 

"Did you know your blood would heal them?" asked Alec.

"I wasn't certain."

A silence hung in the air.

"How could this be possible?" Malaysia asked. "Are you fucking me telling me that vampire blood is the key to aid humans through the change?" She glanced at Elias. 

"All our blood does is heal wounds...Whether a human survives the change depends on them..."

"We need to get ready," Alec began to move the sofa and coffee table against the walls, leaving the center of the living room empty. 

"Ready for what?" Malaysia asked.

"For their shift."

Angelica's laughter gained everyone's attention. "Sorry, part of me still thinks this is nothing but a crazy dream..." Pain flickered in her eyes as her expression hardened. "What happens if we fail to shift?"

Alec didn't even try sugar coating anything. "You can die in the process--If you do succeed to shift, there is a chance the wolf will take full control."

"And if that happens?" Vanessa asked, clearly not really wanting to know the answer.

Alec looked directly at her. "Then as alpha I'll have to force you to submit to me...If that fails, then I will have no other choice but to kill you." Alec approached Sierra. "We need to figure out a way to make Joel think they are all dead."

Sierra clearly tried to come up with a solution with no success. "How exactly can you trick them? Whoever is keeping an eye on the house saw them come in with me..."

"I don't want to continue to hide," Malaysia said, staring into the distance. 

Alec broke the distance, his eyes meeting hers. "I understand your frustration, but we are not ready yet."

"Once my friends complete the change, will he catch their scent?"

"Mal, I still have some of the scent blocker," Sierra said. "He isn't their alpha so I'm sure it will block them from him."

"Once they have shifted, we are leaving."

Before anyone could say anything, Vanessa screamed at the top of her lungs before dropping on all fours. When Angelica followed suit, Alec stood beside Malaysia. Across from them were Sierra and Elias, who stood in front of her, ready to protect her if things got out of control.

"Well, this is quite interesting." 

At the husky voice, Malaysia turned and bumped into a tall man with long white hair and scarlet eyes that shone against the light. His eyes moved from her to her friends. Alec snarled but before he even could move, the male had raised his hand, the band encircling his wrist shinning. A golden sword conjured up out of thin air, one that was way too close to her cheekbone. "Move and I'll strike her down, mutt."