-Athena-

''Wow! It's been three days since Amunet's disastrous presentation and it's still making headlines,'' I chuckle as I take a sip of my coffee on Wednesday morning and lean back on my chair.

''I know right! She is still doing damage control,'' Nancy laughs as she drops a pile of folders on my desk.

''What's this?'' I eye the documents.

''Well, we put up a great show so here is a list of people who would like to meet with you,'' she produces a paper and places it on my desk. ''And these are their individual folders. All their details are in there from their height to the colors the like and the ones they don't. I've also done background checks so no one is a fraud.''

I raise an eyebrow. ''Very impressive. I'll take a look at these files tonight, thank you.''

The rest of the day goes by in a blur. By the time the evening comes around, I'm so exhausted. As soon as I arrive at the building, I rush in to my apartment and thank the lucky stars that I didn't run into Theo on my way up.

Don't get me wrong. He was very helpful at the award show but that's about it. I needed some space from all these- feelings I'm getting when I'm around him. Which in my opinion, I should not be having. Goddess! I need to keep them in check.

After taking a shower I decide to cook some dinner for myself. It's been long since I had some quiet and alone time. I defrost some chicken and boil some potatoes. Ain't nothing better than some fried chicken and mashed potatoes.

As soon as my dinner is ready I sit down to eat. ''Ahhhhh nothing beats a peaceful night like this one.'' 

My eyes then fall on the calendar hanging on the wall. ''Hmmm.... the photo-shoot is scheduled for three weeks from now so I have some time. This weekend should be a good time to visit Mom and Ethan,'' I muse to myself. 

It will be hard, knowing that I pushed them away when they needed me the most.

A part of me tells me not to go, to just continue with the way things have been going. But this other part, this other damn part that I'd been ignoring for too long is suddenly overpowering all my other senses; pushing me to do the right thing. The thing I should have done in the first place, not pushing everyone away. And that's the part that won.

 ''That's it. I'm going!'' I stand up and mark the calendar.

As I sat in my study going through the folders Nancy gave me I hear a faint noise outside my window. I get up and look outside but there's nothing there.

Some of the shops and restaurants are now closed. People on the streets have lessened as well. However, a rotten stench fills the air. My senses go on high alert as I lean out the window hoping against hope that it's not one of those wretched vampires.

Amunet's warning rings in my head as I sniff the air for them, when my eye catches the garbage truck that was parked around the corner. I breathe out a sigh of relief and shut my window. 

I continue with my work for another hour until I decide to turn in. I do my normal skin care routine then slip into my bed.

I toss and turn around feeling uneasy all of sudden. ''Oh come on! I've had quite a day today and I'd really like to sleep!'' I take a deep breath and close my eyes again hoping that the sleep overcomes me.

Crack!

I shoot up from my bed, immediately regretting my decision as i'm hit with a head rush. ''Oh crap,'' I clutch my forehead for a few seconds before regaining control.

''Whose there?'' I shout as I tip toe my way to the living room. My wolf stirs up and is now on high alert. As soon as I get there I notice someone standing in the middle of my living room, their back facing me.

''Hello, Athena.''

''Who the hell are you?''

''I believe you're not in a position to ask me that,'' he sneers and before I could reply someone grabs me from behind, putting their hand over my mouth so that I don't make a sound.

I try to free myself from them but they are strong. Like really strong. So definitely not human. Which means – Vampire!

As if on cue, the horrible stench gets to me and I have to control myself from throwing up. I swallow the bile and bite down hard on my attacker's hand causing him to loosen his grip on me. 

''Argghh you stupid bitch!!'' he shouts in pain.

''Takes one to know one, bitch,'' I spit at him then knock him out in one blow.

I turn to the other vampire who is looking at his accomplice lying unconscious on the floor. ''What.... what have you done?'' he points at him in horror.

''I protected myself, what else would I do?'' I shrug.

''You.... You.... you bit him!'' he yells.

''Of course I did. You want some?'' I flash my eyes and walk menacingly towards him. ''You know...I honestly thought Amunet had learnt her lesson by now. Sending two vampires to kill an alpha. Seriously? I mean look at your friend over there, he is just as good as dead,'' I smirk.

''You talk a lot bitch!'' he snarls at me. 

''Can't help it,'' I smirk, sizing him up mentally. He is quite big so it might take a lot more to put him down. His muscles bulge under the tight t-shirt he is wearing.

''You underestimate our queen, if you think that there's just two of us,'' he replies eyeing me up and down.

''Wait what? Did you just say queen?'' I laugh. ''Oh goddess.... queen? seriously queen? Is that what she has asked you to call her? Oh this is by far the funniest thing it I've heard today,'' I say as I start wheezing in laughter.

''Show some respect girl!'' he shouts at me like I'm some twelve-year-old.

''To who? Your queen? Why don't you tell her to come fight me instead of sending her lackeys,'' I hiss at him.

''You will pay for this!'' he comes at me with full force. I duck and sprint to the opposite side of the living room. The first vampire smirks in my direction and subtly nods his head.

Suddenly four pairs of arms come out of nowhere and grab either side of me. ''It's a good thing you talk a lot; you didn't even realize that more of us have entered your home. Such a pathetic excuse of an alpha you are.''

''Oh well you got me,'' I reply then smirk, ''or maybe you didn't.'' I head butt the vampire on my right causing her to stumble back and let go of my hand. I then use my upper arm strength and bring the other two closer successfully banging their heads with each other.

The last one however is onto me like a leech. She grabs me by the waist which was a bad idea on her end since it makes it easier for me to elbow her in the stomach. Before she could react any further I quickly turn and snap her neck.

The other four vampires exchange glances before coming at me. I duck the first one, then punch the second, however the third one predicted my next move and punches me hard on the side making me fall down from the impact.

They now have an upper hand over me as the leader, I'm guessing, makes his way towards me and grabs me by the neck. ''You'd make a pretty little snack you know, if only you didn't stink like a wet dog,'' he scrunches his nose up in disgust. It is only then that I realize I'm in nothing but a black silk chemise.

''You stink too you know, you ain't special,'' I sass him at the same time calculating the distance between my knee and his groin. ''This is going to hurt,'' I whisper before kicking him hard. He screams in pain and immediately drops his hand.

I recover quickly from my fall just in time to dodge the incoming attack from the female vampire. I grab her by her neck and using all my strength throw her against the wall. She bangs hard against it, leaving a big crack on my wall.

The other three vampires all turn to me, their fangs elongated, red veins popping out from under their eyes. The female vampire stands up and joins her friends; all stalking towards me.

From the corner of my eye I see two more vampires emerge from my bedroom. Oh damn, oh damn, oh damn. Six against one, the odds are certainly not in my favor.

I can do this, who cares if my whole apartment goes up in flames. I'm not going down without a fight.

I give partial control to my wolf and we get ready to fight these disgusting beings. I take a deep breath in when I catch his scent outside my door, just seconds before its ripped off its hinges.

-Theo-

I just finished my dinner and thought of catching up with Charles when it suddenly hit me that he is coming back today. ''Great, guess I'll have to stay up until he arrives. Why did he have to take the last flight anyway?'' I grumble in annoyance.

I grab my laptop and go to my bed. ''Well, if I can't catch up on pack work might as well catch up on the company work.''

I go through a few documents and lists regarding the textile imports and exports that we do. My eyes are getting drowsy and I almost dose off when a loud thump from next door jerks me awake.

Wait next door? that's Athena's apartment. Could she be in trouble?

I get up and run towards her apartment, the stench of vampires making me gag. Shit could that be Amunet? I don't think twice before grabbing the door and ripping it off its hinges.

''Athena?!!'' I yell in alarm, taking in the situation in front on me. A mischievous smirk plays on her lips as she looks at the six vampires in front of her, ''shit is

 about to go down for you guys.'' I couldn't help but smile at her belief in me.

''Oh hi there! Wanna kick some vampire ass?'' she peeps through the gap between the two vampires and waves at me.

''Athena watch out!'' I shout as one of the vampires lurk up to her and rams her into a cabinet.

''Damn it! That is some expensive chinaware,'' she shouts as she kicks the vampire off and starts throwing multiple punches.

Three vampires have now surrounded me as the other three take on her. She extends her claws and slashes the face of one of them. He growls at her in anger before she grabs his head and rips it off his body then throwing it to the side. His limp body falls at her feet, covering the floor in his blood.

I throw one of the vampires into her couch then grab him by his feet which in turn leads to her couch getting ripped apart.

Athena is now surrounded by two vampires, one male and the other female. The female one, whose name I learnt is Stephanie removes a blade from her jacket pocket. I catch the glint of its sharpness from the reflecting moonlight.

''Oh come on, I hate it when you guys don't fight fair,'' She groans.

''We never fight fair princess,'' she sneers at her. 

''Oh well, it's expected from your kind after all,'' She replies. 

They both run towards each other while the other guy tries to sneak up to her from the left. She notices this and changes her course of attack.

I dispose off the vampire I'm currently fighting and go after Stephanie who is about to attack Athena from behind. I put my arm around her neck holding her in a choke-hold as the knife slips from her hand and falls on the now blood-stained carpet.

Athena on the other hand rams into him hard, sending him banging against the wall before extending her claws and digging them dip into his stomach. He starts spluttering and coughing up blood thanks to the internal damage her claws  just caused him.

Damn! I'd almost forgotten how fierce she gets in a fight.

She lifts him up and rips his body into two. The sound of his flesh tearing apart echoes the room. 

There is blood all over Athena hands and part of her face too. The remaining vampires all look at her in fear. I'm sure they're all regretting their decision of coming here.

I turn to face Stephanie who was trying to escape my choke-hold as I fight off another one of Amunet's lackeys.

Athena grabs her from me and the two of them begin fighting. The vampire who I was fighting somehow managed to grab the fallen knife and tries to stab me with it but I kick it from his hand and grab him by the arm and bite down on it. He yells in pain as the venom starts sipping into his body. ''Enjoy your slow death,'' I tell him as i chuck him aside.

Two more vampires suddenly appear from the kitchen, they take one look at their fallen friends and try to escape but I stop them. ''How many of you has she sent here?'' I ask them both.

''We don't answer to you, you filthy dog,'' one of them replies. I grit my teeth in and anger and punch him hard in the face. He falls to the floor clutching his left cheek then snaps it back in place. ''That's all you've got? Wolf!!'' he spits on the floor.

''I've got more of where that came from. There's plenty of it to go around,'' I reply and rip out the heart of his friend who made the stupid mistake of trying to punch me.

''I'm not as weak as he is,'' he sneers and lunges at me. We starting exchanging punches and kicks as Athena and Stephanie take on each other on the other corner of the room.

''I'd like you to send a message to your-'' I trail off as he elbows me in the ribs.

 ''Queen! she is our queen!'' he sends another punch my way but I grab his fist midway.

''Yeah right, of course she is,'' I say sarcastically, ''Well why don't you go tell your queen- '' I punch him in the gut, ''not to mess with my mate- '' then kick him hard until he skids to a stop in the kitchen, ''And me!'' I grab him and throw him out of the window like the piece of trash he is.

I turn around and make my way to the living room making sure that there are no more surprise vampires lurking in the dark when a strong metallic smell hits me. Blood. But not just any blood, Athena's blood.

I quickly run towards her just in time to see Stephanie pull out the knife she had used to stab Athena. ''It took a little longer than expected but at least I got the job done,'' she smirks.

''Athena!!!!'' I shout watching my mate stumble as she clutches her right side in pain. 

''I wouldn't if I were you,'' the female vampire warns me while holding the knife to Athena's throat.

''Y...you.... you think that...that....'' Athena starts but Stephanie tightens the grip on her throat making it impossible for Athena to talk.

''Athena, don't talk okay and whatever you do, do not close your eyes, you hear me love?'' I tell her, trying to make sure she does not pass out from all the blood she is losing.

The vampire tilts her head to the side then smiles maliciously as she puts two and two together, ''You are her mate aren't you? well, this is an interesting turn of events. Our queen will love to know about this.''

I see Athena's eyes flash red as she focuses on the vampire's arm. She's going to bite her.

 ''So what huh? So what if I'm her mate, what is your 'queen'- '' I make sure to air quote it so that it irritates her more, ''- going to do about it?''

''She will make sure that you both....... argggghhhhhhhh'' she yells as Athena bites down her arm hard making sure enough wolf venom gets into her system.

''Son of a bitch!!!'' Stephanie yells in pain and pushes Athena who stumbles towards the floor but I catch her before she hits the ground. ''It's okay love, I got you,'' I whisper as she grabs on to me like her life depends on it. 

I hear a whooshing sound indicating that the vampire left but she won't survive. Not her nor the others who have been bitten tonight. The next 24 hours will be the most crucial for them before the venom seeps into their heart and kills them. 

That's of the advantages we have over the vampires.

''I.... I think.... i think it was silver,'' Athena wheezes as I steady her. ''No love, we were lucky it wasn't silver.

''It-it burns,'' she whispers. That can only mean one thing, Wolfs-bane.

''I need you to stay awake okay. Can you do that for me Athena?'' I tilt her chin up so that she looks at me and she nods.

 I slowly place her on the other couch and run to the kitchen. The only way to reverse the reaction is to burn the wolfs-bane out. So I find a knife and place it on the stove to heat when I feel another presence in the house.

''What in the name of the moon goddess happened here?!'' Charles shouts from the living room while switching on the lights.

I run out to meet him and see him examining Athena. ''Theo? care to explain man. I'm gone for ten days and you've managed to wreck a girls home! And what in the world is that stench?''

''Vampires. They attacked Athena about ten of them,'' I explain. 

''What?!! 10 vampires! Why?''

''Amunet,'' I reply stoically then rush back to the kitchen to get the knife. ''She's been stabbed with a wolfs-bane coated knife, we need to burn it out,'' I tell him as I kneel by her side.

''I want you to hold her Charles,'' I order him. He nods and goes to stand by her head, holding her down by the shoulders.

 ''This is going to hurt love,'' I whisper as I lift her night dress and press the knife on her wound.

A blood curling scream escaped her as soon as the knife touches the wound. Charles puts his hand around her mouth making sure not to alert others in the building. In fact, I'm surprised no one heard the fighting that was going on in here.

''Almost done Athena, almost. Just hang in there,'' I say as the rancid smell of wolfs-bane burning fills the apartment. Charles and I hold our breaths so that we don't end up inhaling it.

 The screaming stops and Athena slumps down as the remaining wolfs-bane burns out. ''Thank you,'' she whispers weakly looking at me. 

''You don't ever need to thank me love,'' I reply, then place a soft kiss on her forehead.

''It's okay now, you can rest,'' I tell her while pushing her damp hair backwards.

''Rest? Rest? Look at her man, she is covered in blood. You need a shower Athena!'' Charles yells causing Athena to chuckle which leads her to wincing in pain.

She grabs my arm tight with one hand and grabs the head of the couch with another as I bandage her wound.

''It's okay Athena, it's over now,'' I tell her.

''No it's not,'' she whispers back. ''It has just begun.''

***

Thoughts on the chapter?

Hope you loved it

-Jessica.S