I'd tried everything I could to reach Amaury but to no avail. The last few days had been tough without his guidance and I didn't dare piss anyone off. We'd only just entered the first stretch of November. I should've expected these times to come though. Not having to worry was fun while it lasted, however, Amaury's murder had always been the main priority at the back of our minds.

It was time that I focused. I'd been letting too many other things distract me here.

My menstrual started just as I expected. It was a good thing I bought those pads when I did. Dylan and Dimitri had been breathing down my neck with training. Bennett and Claudia had been taking Vincent's place in watching over me. Vincent and Mariah had been in and out, dealing with stuff in secrecy. I assumed it had to do with the unknown threat running rampant.

The death toll was now up to three. Three lives lost, but not forgotten within the pack.

One of them had been a teenage girl, only twelve-years-old. She was found slung in the bushes with teeth marks along the right side of her body. Mauled to death. I could hardly stomach the news when I overheard Mariah telling Vincent. She'd suggested that an Erebus wolf had been responsible for the girl's death. That meant they were on Calamitous grounds.

And if there was one, there was probably more crossing into Calamitous when they weren't supposed to be. The mountains were going to need a thorough sweep through. Vincent had already requested one be done tonight. Supposedly, he'd be tagging along. The wound on his side was mostly healed so he wouldn't have been putting himself in too much danger.

I couldn't wipe the strain in my chest from my emotions. It was the first time I had ever heard so many people grieve in sync with the same powerful cries. The whimpers lit up all of Calamitous, so loud, they were unbearably sad. It made me incredibly anxious. I couldn't wait to get to the bottom of all this. Sheesh, I had almost cried too and I didn't even know her.

The people of Calamitous were stressed and confused on what to do. As of now, the territory was on heavy lockdown. No one was to go in or out of the forest without someone at their side—the buddy system implemented—and everyone was on a curfew if they did walk off Calamitous grounds. It was a temporary solution for what felt like a permanent problem.

I had a bad feeling about all of this. The shadows were hiding somewhere around the forest. And while we dealt with one major problem, the shadows were probably still multiplying into groups. And I still had no fucking idea where they were coming from nor what they were. That on top of the Erebus wolves was enough to wipe us all out.

"Genesis." Two soft taps caught my attention. I noticed the door to my room was wide-open. Claudia's body was leant half-way inside with her head propped at a tilted angle. She crooked her index finger and turned. I furrowed my eyebrows, frowning.

"What's going on?" I asked, following her.

"Don't you want to eat?" Claudia walked down the steps.

"Oh?" I halted. "No bringing my plate to me? No locking me back in the room?"

"I'm sure you can be trusted to roam the house on your own, by now."

"Seriously? I can just walk around on my own now?" I asked, my voice almost rising into a high-pitched shout. "With permission?"

She yelled back, "Hurry up or you'll get left behind!" Her body disappeared beyond the stairs.

"No more locked doors! I'm free from that dreadful room!" I could almost cry. But instead, I pushed my glasses up and rushed down the stairs. The bottom of my converse thumped along the wood until I jumped off the last step. Mixed with the familiar pine smell the downstairs area carried, was the smell of meat. I couldn't quite put my finger on what kind.

"Table's over there." Claudia pointed to the large wooden table just inside the two large pillars separating the dining area and the living room area. The two shiny, wooden pillars gave the alphas home more a cabin feel than it already had.

"Pork today?" I stabbed my fork into the lump of meat stacked on top of a bowl of white rice, sitting on top of the table. Claudia looked at me and wrung her hands around together.

"What? You don't like it?" she asked.

"No, no. I'm just not a big fan of pork, that's all. It's not like I don't eat it."

"Sorry, it was all Vincent had in here for me to whip up today." She shrugged. "I'll keep that in mind for next time."

"Thanks," I said.

Claudia smiled and nodded.

"Have they left already?" It was something close to midnight. I'd found out Erebus wolves loved to roam at night. Their nicknames behind Erebus wolves were night stalkers, because they roamed all hours of the dark, hunting their next prey. That's why Vincent thought it'd be best to sweep the mountains during the late hours while they were on watch.

Funnily enough, Vincent and I happened to run into two of them while walking a safe distance away from the road in broad daylight. That was weird in itself.

"They should be circling the territory now," answered Claudia.

I slowed down and took a glimpse at Claudia's wrist. The white long sleeves of her shirt were pulled up, so I could see the tattoo stamped below it, that I had spotted earlier in the weeks throughout the pack.

"Hey, um, your wrist . . . what's that tattoo mean?" Our eyes met as I shoved some food into my mouth, chomping down on the edge of the fork.

"It's the symbol of our pack," she responded.

"The symbol of your pack?" I questioned.

"It's a form of tradition for shifters to get their pack symbols tattooed on their skin when they turn eighteen. It's how we're officially initiated into the pack. Each pack's symbol varies."

"What about the alphas?"

"I know you've seen Vincent's tattoo a few times now." Claudia smirked at me. "Unlike the rest of the pack, the alphas tattoo is always in two of the same places. Along either the left or right shoulder, down."

"Right," I mumbled, ignoring the flutter in my stomach after her smirk. His tattoo was one of the hardest things to miss about him. Even when he was naked and I saved his ass after the Erebus wolf attack, I noticed the sculpted black ink covering his arm. It was only now that I was taking the time to acknowledge it more.

"Oh shit." I glanced back up when I heard Claudia's voice again. Her face was scrunched up, ears perked as her eyes circled around the ceiling, as if she was gazing up at the sky.

"Whelp, that's my cue to go." She sighed out a soft noise in between her words, muttering a few profanities too. I was confused as to what she meant until I heard it.

There was a loud noise—like a cry for help—but it was a long, drawn-out howl. Deep from the center of the woods, it rumbled without pause. I couldn't tell who was howling or why, but she was obviously being called out to by someone.

"Sit tight, Genesis. It's going to be a long night." Claudia sucked in a breath and masked her worry with a smile. But it hadn't gone unnoticed. Then, she was gone. I saw her green eyes morph into gold before she exited the house in a speed-walk.

I dashed up the steps on both my feet and palms, nearly smacking my face. When I got to the window inside my room, there was a blur of white glowing under the blanket of stars overhead in the night sky, charging down the mostly empty streets.

"Wow." I breathed.

Her fur was majestic, with a coat as white as snow.

Claudia tilted her head back to the moon, letting out a loud howl in reply to whoever howled for her. Part of me was jealous her fur was so pretty. Seeing her also reminded me that the next full moon would be approaching very soon. If I didn't have my shit together by then, this time just might have been harder to control than the last.

"Okay, that's enough, Genesis. Let's figure this shadow crap out," I gave myself the usual pep-talk, then scrambled around the room in search of my bag.

When I'd picked up a few things from my apartment that day, I grabbed a sketch pad, an eraser, and a mechanical pencil. However, I hadn't used either one since I'd been here. But now I had a reason to use them. My food was less warm than it was before. There was no more steam flowing from the top.

I pushed the bowl aside and laid my items down on the table. At first, I stared at a blank page with a blank mind. Then, I closed my eyes. I imagined. The voices, the dark figures, the dark forest—I imagined all of it creeping into my mind—and I sketched what I remembered.

"Hmm, familiar. . ." A voice lingered.

I dropped my pencil and screamed.

"Genesis, it's just me. Take deep breaths. Relax," a deep voice tried to soothe me.

"Amaury!?" My jaw clamped shut. "You're in my head!"

"I've always been in your head," he stated the obvious.

"No, no. You're in my head and I can't see you!"

Amaury chuckled. "I told you I was still trying to utilize this method."

"B-but. . ."

"It's the same way we've always been talking. All I've done is manage to find a way to speak with you outside of the dream state. I'm not sure how, exactly. But I've done it." I took deep breaths as he told me to do and closed my eyes again, then opened them.

"This is too creepy for my taste." I huffed.

"Worry not, Genesis. This is easier for us to communicate. Now, I can speak with you whenever I please. It'll come in handy for the both of us. Now, what is that?"

"Oh, um, this is something. . ." I trailed off, unsure of what exactly this was, myself.

"Something?" he quoted.

"I think," I added.

"Try me," were his next words.

"Well, I keep . . . I keep seeing these things in my head. Sometimes when I close my eyes, I see something dark lurking. No, not just something. There's always a few of these things. And I hear voices sometimes. But the voices are only there when I fall asleep.

"I don't know how or why. Just the other night, I had a weird nightmare. There were multiple voices whispering in my ears and I saw dark, almost black, trees surrounding me. But I had no idea where I was. Then, I woke up."

"And did that area look like this?"

"Yeah. I thought they might have been bad dreams. That's all I could really put into it. You know, trauma can fuel nightmares? But they're becoming more distinct. More prominent too. Something's very strange about them."

"When these whispers talk to you, what do they sound like?"

"Well, the words are unclear. They sound like jumbled thoughts."

There was a pregnant pause.

"Is that so?" His question felt rhetorical.

"What? What's wrong?" I persisted.

"I fear I'm not the only one in your head."

"Huh? What do you mean?" My heart picked up pace.

"If this is a recurring thing, I think I wasn't the only one to enter your mind through the bite that night. It's just a thought, but there's a possibility that when I handed over my consciousness to you, I handed over the shadow's too."

"Y-you're kidding, right? Are you telling me what happened to you is going to happen to me!?" My stomach was sinking. No, it was drowning full-speed. I couldn't breathe.

"No, no. If that was the case, I don't think you would have survived this long. It's been over a few weeks. No way you'd still be living by now if that thing was possessing you. My guess is, there's a fragment of it stuck in your brain.

"It doesn't seem to be able to reach its full potential. But it's still there and functioning. And I think that portion is causing the things you've been experiencing. The whispers you describe are the exact same thing I experienced while fighting my way through the shadow's control."

"And the area?" I squeezed the edge of the table.

"Well, I'm not sure exactly what that is. However, this place looks familiar."

"Does it?"

"Yes. But I can't remember."

"Hmm, hey, Amaury. . . where did you come from before you were stabbed? When Vincent and I went to do another search of the premises, he told me they couldn't track your scent when they found us. So, they could only trace your death back to me and the dagger."

"I-I"—Amaury paused—"I don't remember. Now that you mention it, I only remember being in a place I'd never been before. Someone was—I think someone was there with me. The person who ambushed and stabbed me. I don't remember their scent. But they were there."

"You don't remember if you came with that person or not?" I frowned.

"No, no. I didn't. I couldn't have. I came alone. But I think they were following me."

"Following you, huh?" I scooted my chair back from the table, standing to my feet.

"Yes." We paused in silence again until Amaury spoke up for a second time. "Hmm, I wonder if this shadow could be of use to us."

"Huh?" I paced the floor in slow motions.

"This area is familiar to me; however, I can't remember. But you have seen it in your dreams. That means the shadows are connected to this specific area. What if they're leading you to where they are? It could be a pattern in their memory. After all, they're not human. There's only so much memory these things can have. If we follow them, we may be able to find the area."

"That's not a bad idea. . ." I said, stroking the bottom of my chin.

"Right. And perhaps, you know a bit more than I do now. What happened when you and Vincent did another search of the area? Did you two find anything?"

"Well, no. We were attacked by a couple of Erebus wolves and Vincent was injured badly."

"Attacked? Is my brother okay?" Amaury's voice rose a notch.

"Yes, yes. He's fine. Your brother is insane. Insane! Do you know that? The idiot didn't even tell anyone about his fever. I had to save his ass or else he would have let himself die." I let out a hard laugh, then growled.

Amaury sighed. "I've scolded him about that many times. . ."

"He's impossible, I swear!" I tossed my hands in the air, scoffing. "If he would've died, then what!? What am I supposed to do if he dies? I'm going to kill him one of these days."

"You speak very," Amaury paused, choosing his words carefully, "passionate of my brother."

"Passionate? No, this isn't passion. This is just. I just. It's just frustration! Yeah, exactly. It's my frustration because he doesn't listen and makes me want to strangle him."

Amaury went quiet for a minute. It was as though he was analyzing my words and my tone. He hummed but didn't say anything more about it. "Speaking of the two of you, I assume this means you two have been making progress?" Amaury's words felt more like a question.

"If that's what you want to call it. We're at least on somewhat better speaking terms now. So, I guess that does count." A sigh left my lips. "Honestly, I think he's learning to trust me more. He just needs a little push. He's as stubborn as a bull."

"Interesting." I could've sworn I heard Amaury mumble in my head. But I didn't think too long about it. My stomach was already doing somersaults again thinking about the smirk Claudia sent me. I didn't need another reason to be stuck in my head about Vincent.

I shook my head and diverted the topic as fast as I could. "How come you didn't know Vincent was injured? Can't you see everything through my eyes?"

"No, it doesn't work that way. I can only tap into your mind. The only time I can take control and tap into your physical being in the outside world is when you shift. That's why I was able to help you shift that night."

"Oh, that makes so much more sense." I palmed myself in the face.

"Yes—" Amaury's voice was cut short by another.

"Excuse me, but who are you talking to?"

"Eek!" I jumped back, startled by my own outburst. "O-oh, you're—"

"Lady Teresa," the woman greeted.

She was one of the main faces I recognized from the crowning ceremony. She wore the same gold eyeshadow, this time with three pretty, gold, tiny stones on her eyelids. Her curls were draped back in a similar fashion to what I remembered. And she spoke with the attitude of a respected queen, with her head held high.

"U-uh, sorry. I'm Genesis."

"I know all about you, Genesis Caleen Anderson. And you didn't answer my question," she said. I thought I was imagining the ghost of a smile lingering on her lips.

"I was just talking to myself. I, um, do that sometimes."

"Is that so?" she said in a similar way Amaury had. I tensed and shrunk back; my shoulders raising as high as my ears. The resemblance was too perfect.

"Y-yes!" My voice cracked.

"Hmm, well don't mind me. Carry on with, um, talking to yourself then?" She raised an eyebrow in my direction. "I'm just here to retrieve something from my son's office."

"O-okay! You do that then." I cringed at my awkward laugh. When she was out of sight, I stumbled into the kitchen, and ducked under the cabinets.

"Amaury?" I whispered.

I heard Lady Teresa entering the office upstairs.

"Amaury!?" I whispered his name again as low as I could.

When I heard nothing, I sighed. Dammit, he was gone.