Chapter 101

Matt

The car was filled with tension as Matt drove Celeste back to her small, dimly lit house after their visit to the hospital. Her pale face was etched with worry, but she managed a weak smile as she thanked him for being there. Matt nodded, assuring her that he'd be just a phone call away.

As he pulled away, his phone buzzed, jolting him from his thoughts. It was an urgent message from Enzo, instructing him to attend an emergency meeting immediately. He glanced back at Celeste's house, hoping she would understand his sudden departure.

The sun hung low in the sky when Matt arrived at the usual meeting place. The atmosphere was charged with anxiety, and hushed whispers filled the air. Enzo was at the front of the room and wasted no time in addressing the grave situation.

"There's been a report of a suspected attack in broad daylight," Enzo announced, his voice low but firm. "The rogue werewolf is escalating, no longer bound by the cover of night. We cannot allow this to continue."

Matt's heart pounded in his chest. The rogue's actions were unprecedented, and the threat was real. It would only be a matter of time before the humans realized that it wasn’t a bear or a normal wolf. Their secret would be exposed and all of them would be in danger.

He exchanged uneasy glances with the other wolves in the room, each one realizing the gravity of the situation. Matt carefully did not look at Jack. He was one of the only humans in the room, but he didn’t know that. If the Schreiber family knew how many wolves were on campus, there would be an all out war.

Enzo divided the pack into teams, assigning them different areas to patrol in hopes of locating the rogue before he struck again. To Matt's dismay, he found himself paired with Jack. Of course they had been. This wasn’t going to be awkward at all.

They set off in silence, the tension between them palpable. By the time they reached their patrol area, it was already dark. The moonlight cast long, eerie shadows as they moved through the darkened woods, their senses heightened in anticipation of encountering the rogue.

Hours passed, the forest alive with nocturnal sounds, but the rogue remained elusive. Matt's mind raced, torn between the urgency of the mission and the unresolved issues with Jack. He couldn't shake the feeling of betrayal that had festered since their falling out.

Suddenly, a guttural growl shattered the stillness. Both men froze, their eyes wide with alarm. The sound had come from just ahead, echoing through the trees. They exchanged a knowing look, a silent agreement passing between them. They had found the rogue.

With cautious steps, they moved closer to the source of the growl, their senses alert for any sign of danger. As they rounded a dense thicket, they were met with a chilling sight. The rogue werewolf, hulking and menacing, stood defiantly before them, eyes gleaming with feral aggression.

They aimed their guns and without another word, they both fired. The shots echoed throughout the forest. Blood blossomed against the wolf’s fur, but neither of them had made a killing shot.

The wolf made a weird hacking noise and Matt’s lips pulled back in a snarl as he realized the wolf was laughing at them. The bullets barely seemed to be affecting it. Matt’s eyes widened as he watched the holes start to close on their own. What the fuck?

Werewolves did have superior healing, but it shouldn’t have been this fast. Especially when their bullets were made out of pure silver. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong.

“Fuck!” Jack cursed and emptied his clip into the wolf’s body. The wolf grunted from the impact but showed no other signs that it was at all bothered. It shook itself like a dog after a bath and Matt could hear the bullets dropping to the ground.

Jack tossed his gun aside and pulled out a short sword. The silver gleamed in the moonlight. Matt tensed. There was no way that Jack would be able to go head to head with the wolf. If he tried, he was going to get himself killed.

Matt had seconds to make the decision. He could either keep up the pretense that he was merely a human and let Jack die or he could shift and save the both of them. But if he shifted, his secret would be out and he had no doubt that he would be Jack’s next target.

Without a word, Matt felt the transformation begin. His bones shifted, muscles stretching and contorting as he surrendered to the power of the wolf. In moments, he stood beside Jack in his formidable lupine form, ready to face the threat.

Jack was staring at him in open-mouthed shock and the hand holding the blade twitched. For a split second, Matt thought Jack was going to turn it on him, but to his surprise, Jack turned back to the rogue, his jaw clenched tight.

Matt lowered his head and growled a warning, his front paws digging into the ground. If the rogue so much as moved an inch, he would launch himself at it. Despite the rogue’s weird healing ability, Matt was still an alpha. He could overpower it easily.

The rogue drew its lips back, showing off its sharp fangs. Its tail swished back and forth, agitated. Then, without any warning, it lurched at Jack. Matt met it mid-air and tackled the other wolf to the ground.

They became a blend of fur and teeth. Every time the rogue got in a bite, Matt ignored the pain. He pushed it to the furthest recesses of his mind. He couldn’t let his friend die. He couldn’t let Celeste’s brother die.

Matt managed to grab the wolf’s back leg and he bit down as hard as he could. Warm blood gushed into his mouth. It tasted strange. It was a bitter poison on his tongue, but he ignored that too. He ravaged the leg until he could see bone.

But even as he pulled back, he could see the skin and muscle start to repair itself. Whatever was going on, they weren’t going to be able to kill the wolf by their usual methods. They would need an entire team so Matt did the only thing he could think of.

He tore through the rogue’s neck as deep as he could before turning to Jack and gently bumping his head against him. Jack recoiled from his touch, but thankfully understood what Matt was trying to say. They needed to get out of there before the rogue completely healed itself.

Together, they ran through the forest as fast as they could until they reached the border. Matt kept to wolf form. He didn’t have any extra clothes to change into and he definitely didn’t want to be caught naked.

Jack bent over, hands on his knees, panting. When he caught his breath, he stood up and looked at Matt with contempt. “So, you’re one of them.”

Matt sat down and dipped his head, trying to convey that he wasn’t going to hurt Jack, that he didn’t want to fight. He prayed that it would be enough.

Jack ran a hand through his hair, frustration making his movements jerky. “You having feelings for my sister was bad enough. And now you’re a werewolf. Fucking hell, Matt!”

His hand tightened around the short sword and Matt tensed. He didn’t want to fight his best friend, but he would if he had to. Matt whined, hoping Jack would see that he wasn’t a threat to him.

Jack let out a scream and threw the sword to the ground. “Fuck! You and me are done! Do you hear me? We are done! If you hadn’t just saved me, I would kill you. If I ever see you again like this, I will kill you.”

Without another word, Jack stomped off, leaving the sword behind. Matt whined again. His secret was out. There wasn’t much he could do about it now. If Jack told his family, he was going to have to fight two battles. The Schrieber’s were intent on erasing werewolves from the world.

Matt let out a huff of breath before picking up the short sword with his teeth. Despite what Jack said, Matt still wanted to make sure he got home safely. He followed behind at a healthy distance, keeping to the shadows.

Once he was sure Jack was home safely, he headed home to get some clothes. He would need to report to Enzo about what he had seen with the rogue. Short of blowing it up, he wasn’t sure how they were going to get rid of it.