Chapter Twenty-Five (Scythe's POV)

Jack finally let me go to Zaid's recovery room.

Zaid was fast asleep, the heart monitor he was connected to beeping gently. He was covered with a thick, warm quilt and propped up on a velvet pillow. He was cleaned up, wearing a crisp white shirt and matching sweats. He looked as good as new, almost as wonderful as the day I had met him, but now, it seemed like a dark cloud was hanging over us.

I approached the bed as quietly as I could, but it didn't matter. Zaid heard me.

His eyes fluttered open and he focused on my face before he blinked.

"Scythe?" He asked. I tried to smile, but it failed, so I just nodded. Zaid sighed with relief, reaching out and taking my hand in his. I stroked his knuckles for a moment, both of us silent. Until Zaid seemed far too uncomfortable with it, looking up at me, concerned.

"Scythe, what's wrong?" He asked. I didn't want to say anything about my talk with Jack. It left me feeling cold, but at the same time, it was so hard to refuse, so hard to lie to Zaid's face now. His eyes were beautiful, glowing in the fluorescent lights above. His skin had regained some color again and his hair wasn't sweaty anymore, now soft and scattered on the pillow.

"Zaid..." My voice trailed.

I felt paranoid. I glanced around the room, but it seemed clear. No little cameras, no open door. In fact, the room was completely sealed, no window, with only a small vent in the corner. I looked back at Zaid.

"Jack took one of the pups." I stated. Zaid's eyes flashed with something, but it was gone before I could tell what it was.

"Okay." He answered, his voice tight. I could vaguely hear Jack's voice in the back of my head, cooing about how Zaid wouldn't give a shit about our pups, but I knew he was lying. Zaid did, but it seemed he was as paranoid about Jack as I was.

"We're going to wait until you're healed, then take the other pup and leave." I replied.

"Which one did he leave?" Zaid asked. I looked at him, puzzled. I opened my mouth to ask him, but before I could, the door to the bedroom opened to reveal Ash, dressed in black from head to toe and holding a very unfriendly looking gun. My eyes flickered as a smirk swept across Ash's face.

"Jack would like to speak with you." He stated. I frowned. I sensed danger without even having to sniff the air. It was a suffocating sensation, a heavy lump in my chest. I looked at Zaid, who seemed alarmed and was trying to sit up, only to wince. I placed a hand on his chest.

"Wait here, I'll be back." I assured, glancing at Ash for confirmation. Ash shrugged honestly. I grimaced. Zaid looked at me, his eyes wide.

"Scythe-"

"I will be back."

"But-"

"Just rest. You're in no shape to run around right now. I'll be back with the pup." I promised. Zaid still looked ill at ease, but he didn't struggle anymore as I went to the door, stepping out with Ash jamming the barrell of the gun into my back. I winced, flashing him a glare, but he just smiled wickedly.

"Start walking, daddy." He commanded. I didn't really have a choice, so I obeyed, walking down the hallway. The only sounds were the tapping of our shoes on the tiles as we moved.

"What does Jack want?" I asked at last.

"Dunno. Probably wants to give you your kid." Ash answered nonchalantly. I still felt uneasy. Something was wrong. Something was dangerously wrong.

And where was Kyler? He was supposed to have attacked Jack by now, right? Maybe that's what was going on. Kyler was waiting to get Jack alone. I could only hope that was so as Ash led me through several corridors and up some stairs until I found myself in the room that looked out over the lab.

The glass window was thick and covered an entire side of the wall from floor to ceiling. The rest of the room was an expensive black glass desk and a black leather chair sitting across from a computer and several file folders.

"Jack will be with you in a moment." Ash said, then shut the door behind me and locked it. I snapped my head around, glaring, before I hesitantly went to the window. Peering down, I saw that the surgery area had been cleaned of blood. Thank the Goddess. The pups were gone, which hopefully meant they were safe in the nursery.

The other creatures in the cages below just sat around, slept, or paced. They were just experiments, nothing more. To Jack anyway. My chest ached to see them there, but I could faintly hear Jack in my head telling me that not all of them thought of this existence as miserable.

Ash had to be a perfect example.

He wasn't human.

But he wasn't a were either.

The door opened and I turned around to see Jack walk in, freshly changed into a black silk Italian suit with the white shirt underneath unbuttoned. He smiled in greeting to me, but it was a tight smile that had me on my toes.

Something really was wrong.

"Well," Jack started, clicking on a few things on his computer before picking up the file folders, "I called you here to assure you that Zaid should be fine. It was miracle. The only surviving wolf in my care. I'm feeling rather accomplished. I was feeling simply fantastic. I actually thought this was going to go smoothly... For me. For some reason, though, it was going far too smoothly with you."

"Excuse me?" I demanded, alert as Jack thumbed through the files, then set them down to sit on the corner of his desk.

"You didn't put up as big a fight as I thought you would when I taunted you about Zaid hating your pups, nor when I made you leave me alone with your precious children. How... intriguing. I thought. I figured your relationship with Zaid was... difficult. Oh, here I am, babbling on and on when I can cut right to the chase," Jack smirked, then glanced toward the door, "Ash, if you'd be so kind as to bring in our guest."

Oh no.

My stomach sank into a pit as Ash threw open the door, dragging Kyler in behind him. I felt my inside clench tightly and I ground my teeth together, fists balled up as Ash threw Kyler into the middle of the room.

Kyler was wearing the black suit again, but this time, it had some accessories. A black leather blindfold was strapped tightly around his head, covering only his eyes and contrasting sharply with his white-blonde hair. A metal buckled, cage-looking thing was keeping his arms strung back behind him painfully. His feet were bare and dirty like he'd run as hard as he could to escape. He was breathing hard, stumbling to catch his balance.

Shit, Kyler.

"So, as I was saying, it was supposed to be going smoothly for me, not you. I also didn't think you were stupid enough to put Zaid's life in my hands without having a Plan B. After all, I always have a Plan B. And unfortunately for you, I also have a Plan C, while you do not." Jack stated, pushing off the desk and gesturing for Ash to step back. Ash obeyed, but the filthy smirk on his face told me he was going to enjoy this.

Jack walked over, threading his fingers gently through Kyler's hair before gripping it tightly, jerking the leopard's head back. Kyler hissed at him, flashing his fangs dangerously close to Jack's wrist, but Jack jerked his hair again. Kyler squeaked and gritted his teeth.

"I'll make you sorry you touched me." He seethed, baring his fangs again. Jack just smiled, then looked up at me.

"I have your Plan B, Scythe Rider. What's your next move?" He asked. I glared at him, clenching my fists so tightly, I felt my nails biting into my skin.

Jack knew.

What now? I couldn't attack him with Ash guarding, waving that gun around. Kyler was trapped. Zaid was back in his room, vulnerable than ever. The pups were in the nursery that only Jack knew how to access.

What do I do?

"No move," Jack sighed, "That's fine by me. I have plenty of moves. I'm the King in this game of chess and I'm lucky to have Ash as my knight. He'll make the moves for me. Have fun, Ash. I have a recovering wolf to tend to and my new pups. Good evening, Scythe Rider."

"As for you," Jack said, kneeling down to Kyler, who grimaced as Jack pressed his lips to his ear, "It's such a pity that I should lose you after all the time we spent together. I really loved you, Kyler. You were so fiesty and I just loved spending hours playing with you, but I suppose all toys need to be thrown out after a while. I'll miss you, ma petite panthère." He nuzzled his nose in Kyler's hair before standing up, roughly letting go of Kyler's hair and shoving him forward so he fell face first.

Jack gave me a lazy salute before walking to the door, muttering something under his breath to Ash, who grinned widely. Jack shut the door behind him and Ash locked it, walking to the desk, setting his gun down.

"So. I finally get my own pets. Oh, and a wolf to play with this time? This is going to be just precious." Ash mused, taking long strides toward me. I growled threateningly, taking a step back. Ash laughed, his eyes glinting in the lights.

"Trust me, werewolf. Attacking me will be your biggest mistake." He stated. I winced and looked at Kyler quickly, who struggled to get to his knees. Blood dripped past his lips and down his chin before he spat it out, his head tilting around as if he were trying to find out where he was.

"Kyler." I stated. His head snapped toward me and I guessed that his eyes were narrowed behind the blindfold.

"Shit. Don't tell me it's just us three." He grunted, trying to get to his feet. Ash moved fast and caught Kyler around the waist. Kyler gave a sharp cry of surprise as Ash buried his mouth against Kyler's throat. My eyes widened.

No.

Kyler's body trembled and I could only watch as Ash's fangs sank into the leopard's throat for a moment before pulling free. Kyler sank to his knees again, his head lolling to the side as his hair and throat were stained red. Ash wiped his bloodied mouth on the back of his hand.

"I'm not human, as you've already guessed." He responded to my look of disbelief, his hand resting on Kyler's head, fingers laced in his hair. Kyler panted hard as Ash got on the floor behind him, wrapping his arms tightly around Kyler, who writhed pathetically in his grip.

"Vampire." I breathed. Ash smirked.

"Bingo. Oh, but not just any vampire, Lassie. I'm gentically altered. Thanks to Jack, I can walk in the sunlight and your silly stake to the heart thing won't work. You could push me off the Empire State Building and the only wound I'd get is a bruise. Of couse, I can't say the same for your cat." He added, pulling Kyler's head back against his shoulder.

"Fuck you." Kyler seethed. Ash raised an eyebrow, then buried three fingers into Kyler's mouth. Kyler choked, writhing a little as he tried to bite down on Ash's fingers. Despite the blood that seeped from Kyler's mouth from Ash's fingers, Ash didn't flinch, didn't bat a lash as he locked eyes with me.

"You'll be next, werewolf."

No, I disagreed and growled low in my throat again. Ash's eyes flashed and he was on his feet as soon as I lunged for him. He shoved Kyler at me, making me wince. Kyler gasped, falling over my arm before I let him plop on the floor on his ass before I whirled around, only to have Ash backhand me hard across the face.

Pain exploded in my head as I hit the floor, wincing. I reached up to touch the side of my head, where I'm sure striking the floor had caused it to bleed, but Ash caught my wrist and flung me around so I was on my back. He got on top of me, straddling my waist as he smirked, his sleek fangs flashing in the lights.

He dove at my throat, but I grabbed his throat tightly, forcing him back. He gasped, then slammed his hand into my face, causing the back of my head to hit the floor again. Stars danced across my vision, but I refused to let Ash go.

"Shove off, asshole!" I looked up in surprise as Kyler rammed right into Ash, sending him sprawling across the floor. Kyler's legs wobbled and he was still completely blinded, but he seemed strong enough to be of use in this fight. I flung myself to my feet, running to take the blindfold off Kyler, but Ash caught me by my shoulders and threw me at the nearest wall.

I winced, watching as Ash grabbed Kyler by the hair, bringing him down the floor in one swift movement before he slapped Kyler good across the face. I ground my teeth together, pushing off the wall and lunging for Ash again, but this time, he stood up quickly and caught me around the waist, pulling me over his head and slamming me into the floor.

All the air was knocked from my lungs, leaving me to gasp and writhe on the floor for a second. That split second was enough time for Ash to whip around and smash his foot down on my chest. I choked for air as Ash ground his foot down on my chest, moving it to my throat.

"I would've rather torn your throat out slowly, watch it spew like a fountain, but you give me no choice. You'll die an ugly death." Ash sighed with a shrug, then lifted his foot, but I quickly rolled out of the way and slid across the floor. As soon as I did, Kyler used his legs to catch Ash's ankle, bringing him down to the ground.

In that moment, I took my chance and let myself change. My bones cracked, skin stretched, body twisted and contorted until I was a wolf. I growled and snapped my teeth as Ash rolled over onto his knees, breathing hard.

"You rotten fucking animals." He snarled, grabbing Kyler to beat him for hindering him. He didn't have a chance to hit the leopard because I lunged and headbutted him hard in the chest. Ash bellowed in pain, stumbling back and slamming into the glass where it cracked, but didn't break completely.

I growled again, snarling as I backed up. I quickly let myself change back to a human as a plan hit me suddenly. Ash stumbled, trying to regain his right mind as I ran to the glass desk. I took a deep breath, gathered all my strength, and pushed it across the tiled floor.

It screeched ear-piercingly loud, bringing Kyler back to his knees as he yelled. My ears felt like they were bleeding as I shoved the desk quickly across the floor. Ash's eyes flashed and he looked up in time for the desk to slam into his waist, throwing him up against the glass window one more time.

The glass crackled some more and the first layer broke away, the second just severely busted. Even so, Ash was pinned and struggling to get free. I bolted to Kyler, who was breathing hard on his knees, recovering from the noise.

"Hold up," I warned when Kyler snarled at me, "It's me, Scythe. I'm going to get you out and when I do, go after Zaid. Grab him and the pups and go."

"Fuck that, you go after them. I told you, I'm not leaving this place until Jack is dead." Kyler snapped at me as I undid the buckle holding his blindfold on. As soon as it fell away, I saw the determination in his flaring in his silver eyes. I grimaced, then nodded.

Kyler was here for one reason and one reason only.

To kill Jack.

And I wasn't going to get in the way of that ambition. In fact, I was going to open the gates for him.

I struggled to unbuckle the clasps holding his arms back. The metal was digging into his arms and it was like a huge cage from his elbows down to his fingertips, keeping him contained. I finally undid the last latch, watching the device hit the floor with a loud clatter, just in time for Ash to shove the desk back, sending it flying and shattering to piece at the door, which flew off its hinges.

"Thanks for opening the door," Kyler mocked him, sticking his tongue childishly, "You're such a gentleman!"

"Kyler!" Ash snarled and lunged for him, but I blocked his path.

"Go, Kyler!" I ordered.

"Gladly!" Kyler bolted out the door and I narrowed my eyes, turning to Ash, who hissed at me. I clenched my fists and lunged for him. He caught me by the shoulders, whirling to throw me at the glass, but I did something I really didn't want to do as a human. I bit into his throat, sinking my teeth past his flesh and tasting the bitter, metallic blood in my mouth.

I grimaced as Ash shrieked, grabbing me around the waist and threw me at the nearest wall. He stumbled around for a second, clasping his hands over his throat that was gushing blood before he whirled on me. He started to charge at me, but I flung my leg up and kicked him with all I had.

He flew back and smashed into the final layer of glass, causing it to crack and give way. Ash's eyes flashed, but he barely had time to yell as he fell backwards out the window. I started to rush to make sure he was out of commission, but an alarm went off.

"Northeast window breech. Security System Activated. Code Red Engaged." Whatever that meant, it couldn't be good.

I whipped around, not wasting another second as I ran out into the hallway. I remembered the halls it took to get here, tracing them all the way back to Zaid's bedroom that was open. My eyes widened and I rushed in to see Zaid on his knees on the floor, grasping at his stomach as he struggled to stand.

"Damn it, Zaid!" He looked up as I rushed over, wedging him into my arms so I could carry him out.

"S-Scythe? Scythe, where's Kyler? What's that alarm for?"

"I don't know, but we need to find the pups and get out." I stated, rushing for the door. I ran down the hallway back the way I came from the lab. I vaguely remembered Jack saying something about the nursery being two doors down from the lab, which meant...

I arrived at the double doors that led to the lab. Something possessed me to skid to a stop, peering in, but it was far too difficult to see if Ash had died or not.

I continued down, counting two doors down before I came to a stop. Zaid was gripping my shirt tightly, his eyes frantically shifting as I backed up and kicked the door down.

"Wait here." I ordered, setting him down beside the door before I went inside.

I was surprised to see it really was a nursery, but my pups weren't the only ones.

In a far corner past toys and play houses was a small pet bed with four little pups nestled in tightly, completely unaware of the world around them. I ran inside, knocking over several things and waking the pups. They began to whimper and wail at being woken up and I noticed a small machine that was pumping milk for them to drink from. It reminded me of the water things for hamsters and I felt disgusted.

I tore my jacket off and gingerly lifted my pups from the bed, but I paused however when I spotted the other two. They weren't mine. One of them was completely black with no other trace of color and the other was white with russet patches along his tail and paws.

Where were their mothers?

Or... fathers?

Were these the surviving pups of Jack's other experiments?

I backed up, ready to grab my pups and leave, but for some reason, I couldn't.

Who's pups were they?

I tried to remember a wolf with similiar coloring or similiar breed in the cages, but it was too fuzzy to try. Should I leave them here? Should I take them?

"Scythe, what're you doing?" Zaid demanded, struggling to get into the room. His leg were shaking and the front of his shirt was stained lightly with blood, meaning that all the movement was bound to rip open his wound.

"Zaid, stay there!" I ordered. Zaid glared at me.

"I'm not a kid, don't yell at me! What are you doing? Just grab them and let's go!"

"There's someone else's pups here!" I snapped. Zaid blinked, then quickly looked away, biting into his finger thoughtfully. I looked back, grinding my teeth together as I watched the other two pups whimper, pawing toward me. They both already had their eyes open. The smaller russet one had deep, caramel eyes while the black one had mismatched blue and green.

I couldn't leave them here, I realized. They had no parent. It was like Jack said, I reminded myself.

No one else had survived and I highly doubt Jack was interested in a pregnant female.

I took a deep breath and took the puppies into my arms, watching them yip excitedly and wag their little tails as I placed them on my jacket with my own. I quickly wrapped them in my arms, carrying them to Zaid.

"I know this is a lot to ask, but you need to hold them while I carry you. We need to leave, right now." I commanded. Zaid blinked, just nodded as he took the puppies into his arms before I scooped him up in mine, heading back down the hallway for the exit.

"What about Kyler? Where's Kyler?" Zaid asked, sounding deeply concerned. I ground my teeth together.

"I don't think we're going to see Kyler again." I replied. Zaid looked like I had slapped him.

"What? He's... He's not dead, is he?"

"No, but he will be. He won't let Jack get away." I said quietly, rounding a corner and heading down the hallway toward the double doors at the end. I hadn't even gotten halfway down the hallway when there was a loud explosion. I was almost swept off my feet, but managed to slid across the tiles on my boots, skidding to a stop and darting into a room just as hot flames licked past the door before being sucked back.

I panted hard, wincing at the heat. The puppies in Zaid's arms whimpered and wailed while Zaid gripped them to his chest tightly, closing his eyes before peeking up at me.

"What was that?" He managed.

"I have no idea." I admitted, peering out into the hallway that was now scorched black. Metal pieces were scattered everywhere and I waited a while. There was no way anyone couldn't lived through that. We were just lucky enough to be out of range, barely.

"We need to go." I stated, looking at Zaid, who stared at me for a while, then nodded. I stepped out of the room, bolting for the doors again. I was relieved to be out in the daylight. We'd been here for a day already. It hardly felt like it, I thought with a grimace. The van was still sitting out in the parking space and I quickly rushed over to it, throwing the back doors open and placing Zaid inside with the pups.

We settled the puppies in Zaid's lap. He held the smallest of ours against his chest, closing his eyes tightly. I wanted to smile at the same time, cry when I saw tears rimming Zaid's eyes.

"They're okay, Zaid." I assured. Zaid looked up at me, relieved.

"I know... Jeez, if I were a cruel parent, I'd name him Lucky." He stated. I laughed, thankful to hear that all of this hadn't wiped away his sense of humor. Zaid smiled, then seemed to see something behind me, his eyes widening, jaw dropping.

"Kyler!" He gasped. I blinked and whirled around to see Kyler leaning on the back of the van, breathing hard. Blood ran down the sides of his mouth, a gash ran along his forehead, and he still wore the skintight black suit, but it was torn at some parts, revealing bloody cuts and bruises covering his skin. It didn't help that one of his ribs was poking to escape his torso, making me wince.

"Thank the Goddess you're alive." I said, climbing out of the van.

"Can't kill me." When he spoke, blood dribbled past his lips and he stumbled. I gasped, catching him under the airs as he breathed heavily.

"Please tell me he's dead." He stammered.

"How could he not?" I asked. Kyler stared at me for a second, then he slumped in my arms, his eyes closed. I winced and quickly, but carefully set him in the van, patting his cheek to wake him up. He couldn't pass out now.

"Kyler?" I asked. Zaid frowned, placing the puppy in his lap before leaning over to touch the bloody cut on his forehead.

"He's losing a lot of blood, Scythe. We need to get him to a hospital. There's no time to go home."

"If the hospital finds out-"

"They won't. We need to hurry."

"What about Jack? What if-"

"Do you really think Kyler would come back if he wasn't dead?" Zaid demanded. I frowned, looking away for a second before nodding. I quickly shut the doors of the van and climbed into the front seat. No surprise that the keys were missing, but thank goodness I was a terrible child and knew how to hotwire a car.

It only took five more minutes before we were pulling out of the driveway. I looked in the rearview to see Zaid resting against the wall, tilting his head back as he stroked the fur of one of our pups. Kyler was still bleeding heavily on the floor, lying on his back. I looked forward, grimacing at the sight of the gates ahead.

"Hold onto the pups." I commanded. Zaid looked at me curiously, but quickly obeyed as I pressed harder on the gas. The van smashed right into the gates, making me gas and lunge forward. I heard yelps and a curse from the back as the front end of the van was crunched slightly, the bumper falling off as we barrelled right through, tearing out onto the freeway.

"You all right?" I asked, glancing behind me. Zaid nodded quickly, then went back to hushing the pups, petting them gently and cooing to them. Kyler was still unconscious. I drove almost seventy and even faster at the first sight of the nearest hospital.

I didn't really pay much attention to things after that. It felt like it was a huge blur of action, of lights, of voices.

I remember hitting a curb, almost causing at least three accidents before I pulled into the emergency area. I was out before Zaid, ordering him to stay put. He looked at me helplessly, but obeyed because we knew how dangerous it was for humans to find out who we were.

I gathered Kyler in my arms, stunned by how small and fragile he felt suddenly. I ran into the emergency ward and Kyler was almost immediately taken from me by human nurses that were ordering that I remain here. I was handed a clipboard to file an accident report, because apparently I didn't look so peachy either, but I wasn't about to let them look at me.

I sighed, rubbing my forehead and telling them I had a wife and children to go back to for a moment, but I'd be back. Humans were easily convinced, I noticed with a frown as I made my way out to the van.

"Scythe! Scythe!" Zaid's frantic voice had me dropping the clipboard and running for the van when I saw the back doors open.

I ran around to the back in time to see Jack struggling to keep the van door open. He looked absolutely awful. Blood caked the entire right side of his face, while the left was partially burned, matching his hands. His suit was torn apart like he was mauled by... an angry snow leopard. I ground my teeth and grabbed his shoulder, whirling him away from Zaid, ready to lunge at him when he held up a gun.

I froze.

"No way," Jack laughed, making me glare at him, "I can't believe this. I was almost killed by a leopard. A fucking leopard."

"I think you're more than almost killed, Jack." I muttered. Jack snarled at me, his canines flashing as he pointed the gun at my face.

"Don't tempt to shoot you right here, right now in front of your mate and the pups, Scythe Rider. I was going to take you out into the woods and just devour you, far more humane."

"If that's your idea of humane, I'm afraid of what your idea of slaughter means."

"Fuck you," Jack retorted, "Enough with the games. Shut these doors, right now. Get in the front seat and drive."

"Kyler's in-"

"I don't give a shit where the leopard's at. Get in the goddamn van before I blow your fucking head off!" Jack barked. I winced, then slowly turned to close the van doors, looking at Zaid, who winced before I shut the doors. Jack got into the van first, still managing to keep the gun pointed at me as he let me behind the wheel.

"You're going to drive out of this parking lot slowly and down the road back to my facility. Well, what was my facility. You ought to thank your leopard for that. He knows that place inside outside, turned around, upside down. Or, well, he used to. I'm sure he's not as determined to live like I am. His only purpose in life was to kill me and then die himself. Don't waste your time saving him. Kyler has no more reason to live."

"You're right. Because you're going to die." I stated, narrowing my eyes. Jack growled and went to snap at me, but Zaid punched him across the face. Jack gasped, stunned by the blow and Zaid's strength.

"Grab the gun!" Zaid ordered. I didn't hesitate, reaching for it, but Jack recovered quickly and slammed his foot into my chest so I hit the door. He pinned me there as he went to grab for his gun, but Zaid leaned over the seat, gasping in pain as it dug into his wound. He managed to wrap his fingers around Jack's throat, squeezing tightly.

Jack choked and tore his leg away from me, reaching his hands up as he began to claw at Zaid's arms, leaving long, bloody scratches. Zaid growled, surprising me with how lethal it sounded. His green eyes blazed as he sank his nails into Jack's throat, drawing blood.

"Zaid, stop," I ordered, realizing that Jack had ceased his struggles, "He's dead!"

"No, he's not!" Zaid barked at me.

"Zaid, he's dead!" I repeated, watching Zaid tug at Jack's throat in an attempt to rip him apart. I grabbed Zaid by the wrists, pulling his hands away from Jack's throat.

"Zaid! Zaid!" I shook him a little, watching him blink rapidly as if he were coming out of a dream or, rather, a nightmare. He stared at me for a moment, then gasped and pulled himself away from me, looking anywhere, but Jack, who was now slumped in death in the passenger seat.

"He's dead." I assured him, narrowing my eyes as I looked down at his corpse.

"We can't leave him there." Zaid managed at last. I nodded in agreement and stashed the gun under the seat before I kicked open the passenger door, climbing over Jack's corpse before beginning to drag him out.

"Where are you taking him?" Zaid asked, leaning over the seat as his eyes followed me. I frowned, scanning the parking lot before my eyes fell on the forest that stretched just beyond here and the next town. I looked back at Zaid.

"I recognized this place," I told him, peering behind him to confirm my suspicions, studying the hospital sign, "This is Rosemary, the next town over from Moonstone. The Black Water river cuts through both these towns and dumps off at the Mississippi river further down. If we're lucky, it'll carry him out to open sea."

"Ugh." Zaid looked sick at the idea, but he nodded. We both knew it had to be done.

It was a struggle to carry him all the way through the woods, moving fast as I stumbled and tripped over fallen trees and other things. I paused as I finally made it to the river side, watching the dark, murky water travel by quickly. I looked down at Jack, who's eyes were still open, but no longer seeing.

"You were smart," I admitted with a frown, "But you were sick. To protect my pack, to protect my people, I'm dumping your corpse to the Gods, though. They'll do with you as they see fit and may they have mercy on you, because we surely didn't. To Hell with you, Jack Runningwolf." I grunted as I pulled Jack around, dropping him to the ground before I used my foot to push him off into the water.

He entered with a splash and was almost instantly gone, swallowed by the rapidly rushing dark waters.

Goodbye, Jack Runningwolf.

And this time, for good.