"Travis?" I ask again, knowing that the person I see in front of me is real, it's not a dream. How is he here? How did he find me? It doesn't even matter. He found me; I should have known he would come.

Relief instantly floods me. "Travis!" I smile, my tears brimming over. I sit up, scooting away from Aiden, and the heavy weight I've been carrying lifts from my body and falls away, making me feel a million pounds lighter. I want to run into his arms and stay there forever, but I hear the commotion behind me and when I turn to look, Alex has scrambled herself to the back wall and Aiden sits beside me looking pissed, his hand inside his jacket no doubt gripping the gun inside.

"What the fuck is going on?! You know him?" Aiden asks in a rush.

I turn back around to look at Travis, not even sure myself that this is really happening. It's only then that I realize he isn't alone and he doesn't look happy to see me. His expression is one of pain and anger as he looks between Aiden and me.

"Shit man, we're not alone," the guy beside him says.

Travis turns to look behind him then faces me again with a look of defeat, quickly slammed down by a wall of rage.

"Fuck!" he growls. His jaw clenches tight as he lowers his gun slightly. My face falls. How did I not notice the gun before? What is going on?

My question is answered immediately as two more men move in behind him. It takes me far too long to process the next few moments. I take in the matching uniforms...the weapons...the walkies. Looking back into Travis's eyes, my tears continue to fall but for a completely different reason.

"You- you're... you're a..." I stutter, my body shaking, my breaths heavy and quick. "What the f-"

"Quiet! Everybody down on the ground! Hands above your heads where we can see them!" his voice booms into the room. "Secure the perimeter!" he gestures to the men behind him.

He still has his gun drawn, now pointed at Aiden. "Hands out of the jacket now! Get down on the fucking ground!"

Aiden stills on the couch, not obeying his orders. His other hand grips his chin and rubs at his face roughly; he looks like he's going to lose it. Pulling the gun from his jacket, he levels it on Travis.

"Aiden don't!" I plead. My gaze darts between the both of them as panic begins to claw at my chest.

The man beside Travis pulls his gun on Aiden now too, "Gun! Down! Now!"

"This is him?! A fucking Hunter?!" Aiden screams at me in disbelief, his eyes never leaving Travis.

I shake my head, my mouth opening and closing..."I didn't kno-"

"Don't be stupid. Put the fucking gun down, before you get yourself or one of these girls killed," Travis cuts me off, his tone brutal and intimidating.

Aiden's expression wavers between guilt and anger, uncertainty and defeat. "Fuck!" he bellows as he tosses the gun to the ground and kicks it to Travis's feet just as the other Hunters move in behind him. He quickly picks up the gun and tucks it into the back of his pants.

"Perimeter clear," one of the men report.

Travis nods his head. "Everyone down on the ground now! Hands above your heads!"

I sit and stare at him in shock and in horror as tears continue to stream down my face. "What the hell is going on? What happened to you?" I barely manage.

"Down on the fucking ground Breeder!" He screams over me, looking me directly in the eyes, his face completely devoid of any emotion... just steady determination.

I move slowly, pain gripping me as I slide off the couch and onto the ground, my gaze never leaving him.

"Sanders, on her, now," he demands, gesturing towards me as he turns to bark out more orders.

"Don't you fucking hurt her!" Aiden yells protectively. His words are meant to protect, but they terrify me. What's going to happen to me now?

With my body on the floor, my cheek pressed to the cold, hard ground, my heart completely breaks and that weight returns tenfold. I feel it pushing down on me, crushing me. We've been caught...by the Hunters...by Travis. My mind fights to understand, to come to terms with what's happening, but I can't seem to wrap my head around it.

Someone, the Sanders guy I'm guessing, grips my arms and pulls them around to my lower back, cuffing them in place as I watch Travis move in on Aiden. He gives him a pat down before cuffing him and lifting him off the floor.

I'm pulled from the ground as I hear Alex scream, and I spin around in the hold of the Hunter to find her fighting and clawing her way out of the grip of another Hunter. A few more men enter the house and help subdue her, but she fights it with everything she's got, twisting and turning trying to escape the hands of these men.

"Let her go!" Aiden screams, his voice breaking, and he starts to fight Travis's hold on him.

Travis grips him by the cuffs and yanks him in tighter. "Don't make this any harder on yourself, you'll all be brought in, no matter how hard you try to fight it."

"Fuck you," Aiden spits.

I don't fight it. There's nothing I can do now, no way to get out of this. I let the man lead me out of the house, going quietly. My stomach churns, and I swallow down the urge to vomit, taking deep breaths to ebb the nausea overtaking me.

"To think she held some kind of feelings for you fucking disgusts me. You're a piece of shit," I hear Aiden say to Travis from behind me.

My head falls and hangs in defeat. How happy I thought I'd be if I ever saw him again...I never could have imagined how wrong that would be.

"Watch your fucking mouth," Travis says through gritted teeth.

"Oh, does that hurt your feelings Hunter?" Aiden replies with every ounce of disgust he's feeling. "Don't worry, I helped her get over you. And if she wasn't over you before, she sure as fuck is now."

Silence, no response from Travis.

And with that, I hear Aiden grunt behind me. "You fucking Asshole." he mutters. "You don't even care what you're doing here do you? You're all the same, a bunch of fucking sheep."

I shake my head as more tears fall to the ground. Why? I just want to know why, Travis.

My feet hit the steps of the front porch and I look up, taking in my surroundings. Black cars sit parked around the front of the house. Two Hunters stand close together, talking to each other, watching the scene before them as if it's some sort of entertainment. A slow fire begins to burn within me. How the hell did this happen? And Travis of all people? It just doesn't make any sense.

"Affirmative, three suspects in custody. Two suspected Breeders," a Hunter reports into his cell phone as he walks alongside us.

Breeders.

It suddenly becomes hard to breathe and my hands begin to tremble behind me. That'll be my life now...a Breeder. I take deep breaths, trying to keep calm, trying desperately not to fly into a full blown panic.

"Could see the smoke a mile away. Led us straight to them," another Hunter says in astonishment.

My head snaps in his direction, his words immediately crushing me.

I asked for that fire, no...begged for it.

This is my fault.

God knows what the hell is going to happen to us and it's all my fault!

I fall to my knees in the dirt, letting out a loud sob. The tears come much faster now...I'm such an idiot... I did this... and now I'm never going to see them again.

"Woah, easy," the Hunter holding me says as he tries to help me to my feet.

I stand slowly, looking all around me for Aiden. He's sitting on the steps, one hand cuffed to the rail as Travis speaks with another Hunter.

I take the opportunity to make a run for it. Breaking free from the Hunter's gentle grip, I run across the yard, heading straight for him. He looks up in surprise, and I nearly collide with him before skidding to a stop.

"Whoa!" someone yells and I hear the commotion around me.

"I just want to say goodbye!" I cry.

Kneeling down, I look up into Aiden's eyes, "I'm so sorry. It's all my fault," I bawl and press my face into his chest.

He grips my head with his free hand, pulling me in tight. "Hey... hey. This is not your fault. Don't you dare think that," he says with such intensity that I believe him, if only for a moment.

"Let them say goodbye," someone says in the background.

Aiden's hand slides along my face to my chin and he lifts it up, bringing his forehead to mine, "I wish I could say not to worry, that everything will be okay, but I don't know what the fuck is going to happen. But you're strong Maddie. I know that much. I have to believe that you will be okay, that Alex will be okay."

I nod against him, but his words only make my tears fall harder.

I'm going to miss him so much.

I've been so stupid, missing someone who clearly hasn't given a damn about me when I could have let Aiden in. He's been nothing but nice to me. And here he is, still trying to protect me, trying to make me feel better when he sits here with his own future uncertain.

I pull away for a brief moment before moving close, pressing my lips to his. He immediately pushes closer, slowly sliding his lips against mine.

Through our kiss, I tell him everything I feel too broken to say.

I'm sorry for getting us caught...

I'm sorry I never gave you a chance...

And thank you...

Thank you for being an amazing friend, for taking me in when you could have easily left me behind...

Thank you for protecting me...

He takes my bottom lip between his just as we're pulled apart by the Hunters. My chest rises and falls with heavy breaths, and I look into his eyes to find him affected the same way.

"Knew you'd give in eventually," he says, smiling sadly.

I mash my lips together, nodding my head as more tears pour down my face.

Finally looking up, I'm met by the eyes of many. Some of the men are amused as they chuckle at us, some just shake their heads, others stare as they speak into cell phones, and then there's Travis... His stare freezes me in place.

His eyes bore into mine as he stares me down. I can see the emotions warring within him as he fights to keep his temper in control. I'm not sure what he's feeling, but he doesn't look happy. With his tongue in cheek, he shakes his head and spins around, walking away from me.

Guilt courses through me unexpectedly. Why would he care? He's here after all. A Hunter, responsible for our capture.

The sounds and commotion around us seem to quiet as all attention is now turned on Aiden and I. My face heats immediately, but it's quickly overshadowed by the deep sadness that settles in the pit of my stomach.

Another black car pulls into the yard, gravel crunching beneath its tires. A tall, older man exits and slams the door behind him.

"Lieutenant Brown! Lieutenant Holmes!" he yells as he looks around for the men in question. "You will be escorting the females to Base Nine, where you will fly in to the Breeder Compound for questioning and await further instruction," he searches the area before continuing, "Lieutenant Sanders! Lieutenant Brennan! You will follow behind with the boy and fly in to L.A.- "

"Sir! We were first on scene, we should be the ones escorting the girls for intake and interrogation," Travis interrupts.

"These are my orders! You do as I say. You got a problem with that Lieutenant?!"

I turn to find Travis looking more pissed than I've ever seen him in the entire time I've known him. He mashes his lips together in anger, his eyes locked with the man. His hands ball into fists, tightening and releasing, the muscles in his thick arms twitching. Finally, with a quick nod, he says, "No, Sir. We will escort the boy, Colonel."

He brushes past me, not looking at me once.

His partner tugs at my arms. "Let's go, enough with pretty boy here," he orders.

"Goodbye Maddie," Aiden says with such sorrow behind his eyes that it makes it hard to breathe.

"Bye," I reply sadly, and I can't seem to stop the tears from escaping.

"This your car?" the Hunter holding me asks someone and then leads me to it, opening the door for me.

Gesturing me inside, he shakes his head. "Good luck, you stupid, stupid girl." And with that he closes the door, shutting me inside.

I look out the window, scanning the area until I find Travis. He's leading Aiden away from the house as his partner joins him. I follow his every movement as he walks towards his car, shuts Aiden inside of it, and makes his way to join the other Hunters.

My eyes linger on his side profile, watching every movement, every twitch of his face. It doesn't make any sense. That's my best friend out there... How did he go from someone I could trust my life with... to this guy before me?

A Hunter.

I can't seem to draw the connection between the man I used to know and the one who's here now. All of this time I pined for him, wishing I could see him just one more time. I'd take it back in a heartbeat if I could. I never thought he'd be the reason I'm here, being taken in by the Hunters.

He looks up and his green eyes meet mine. The familiarity in them shatter my heart even further as pain lances through me, carving a path so deep I don't think I'll ever be the same. But I refuse to let him see me cry any more. I won't let him see how much he's hurt me, won't let him see that he broke me. I tighten my fists and dig my nails into my hands, letting them take the brunt of my pain while I feel it all slip away- everything he meant to me, everything we had. It obviously meant nothing to him. I never knew him at all.

I feel the skin beneath my nails break, but I welcome the pain. Anything but this, anything but the crushing realization that Travis is a traitor...a liar. Anything but the fact that my future is in the Government's hands now.

A door opens, and I turn in my seat to find Alex sliding into the seat next to me.

"Alex!" I croak.

"Don't. Just...don't," she says quietly. She shifts around in her seat before resting her head back against the headrest and closing her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," I whisper.

She puts her hand up in the air, silencing me. "I can't do this with you right now."

"What?" I ask quietly, feeling a little confused.

"I've already lost my parents!" She screams as she pulls herself upright, looking me dead in the eyes. "And now they have Aiden! What the fuck are they going to do with him?! And what the fuck is going to happen to us?!" She takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Just leave me alone!" Tears start falling down her face as she adds, "I don't want to get into it with you. I don't want to say something I'll regret."

My mouth falls open. Say something she'll regret, to me?

"Alex..." I say in disbelief.

"Maddie, I swear to God..."

"I don't-"

"We wouldn't fucking be here if it weren't for you!" She screams, cutting me off.

The air leaves my lungs in a rush and I look at her in shock, my tears threatening to fall once again.

"We wouldn't be here if we had kept going like we should have. It was fucking stupid to pick you up along our way," she says more calmly than before.

Her words hurt, so much, but they're true. It is my fault. If they had never come across me, they wouldn't be here right now.

I sit quietly, letting that sink in. This is my fault. I already knew that, but Alex believing it makes it hurt a thousand times more.

The pain, the betrayal, the shock, the overwhelming disappointment in myself, in Travis, in Alex- it all rushes to the surface and I'm not able to keep it in any longer. Tears pour down my face as I scream at the top of my lungs, letting it all out. I scream until my throat rubs raw, until it hurts so much that all that comes out is a broken voice...

...just like me. A broken version of who I used to be.

***Author's Note***

So.... What do you think?! Are you mad at us? Don't be mad at us.

As always, we appreciate your feedback! Thank you so much for reading, and if you liked this chapter PLEASE click the star and give us a vote!

***