Chapter 102

Jack

The moon hung low in the night sky, casting a silvery glow over the quiet town of Mountain View. Jack's heart raced as he stepped into the dimly lit room, where the Schrieber family meeting was already in full swing. Faces, stern and determined, turned toward him as he entered.

Jack hated coming here. While he was a member of the family, they never spoke outside of these meetings. After what his father did, they had regarded him with suspicion. As far as Jack was concerned, he and Celeste were all alone.

He wasn’t even sure why they had called him here. Nothing of importance had happened. Other than Matt outing himself as a werewolf. But Jack had kept his mouth shut. There was no way the rest of the family knew about it.

"Jack," His grandfather’s voice cut through the tense silence. "We need to talk."

Jack swallowed hard, his eyes meeting the steely gaze of the man who had all but abandoned them. Even though their grandmother had taken them in for a short time, their grandfather had not been happy about it. All he saw was a traitor’s son.

Jack walked forward until he was only a few steps from where his grandfather sat at the head table. The room felt unbearably cool, even though a fire was raging in the fireplace. Whatever this was about, Jack would find no support here.

"Sit down, Jack," his grandfather commanded, gesturing to an empty chair. "We've learned about Matt's true identity. Did you really think you could hide that from us? Explain yourself, boy. Why did you not immediately report back to us?”

Jack's mind raced, torn between the life debt he owed to Matt and the reality of the dangerous situation he now found himself in. He knew the consequences of going against the Schrieber family, but he also couldn't bring himself to fully condemn Matt to death.

“I apologize, Grandfather. I was in shock. Matt was my best friend. His betrayal cut deep,” Jack explained and that was the truth. He had to be extremely careful with his words. They probably had lie detectors up and running.

His grandfather peered down his nose at him. “Understandable, I suppose. But do not let it happen again. I expect a full debriefing whenever you find out the identity of a werewolf, no matter who they are.”

Jack let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. That could have gone horribly wrong. If Celeste thought that he was cruel, she would think the rest of the family were a bunch of psychopaths. She had no idea the level of depravity their family could sink to.

“And did you happen to learn which pack your…best friend…belongs to?” his grandfather asked and from the tone of his voice, Jack knew that his grandfather already knew he didn’t. He just wanted to humiliate him some more.

Jack hung his head. “No, Grandfather. I did not.”

Jack could almost feel the disappointment. He squared his shoulders. Why did it matter what pack Matt belonged to? He was just another werewolf to them.

“Of course you didn’t. No matter. Despite your failures, we have learned that he belongs to the “Peacekeepers.” He’s a member of the Full Moon pack. Their pacifist ideologies have no place in this world. He must be exterminated,” his grandfather announced and Jack groaned internally.

Despite what he had said to Matt, he didn’t want him to die at the hands of his family. They had such a long history together and Matt had always been there for him. Jack felt like he owed him a great deal.

As the discussion continued, Jack's focus was consumed by the decision that he would have to make. The Schrieber family wouldn’t just kill Matt. They would torture him. Maybe even experiment on him. Jack couldn't help but wonder how they had ended up on such opposite sides of the line.

When the meeting finally adjourned, Jack found himself alone in the quiet aftermath. He knew what he had to do. He couldn't stand by and watch as the Schriebers unleashed their fury on Matt. He owed him that much.

Making his way through the shadowy streets, Jack snuck up to Matt’s door. He didn’t think he was being followed, but he didn’t want to take that chance. He knocked softly, his heart pounding in his chest. The door creaked open, revealing Matt's guarded face.

"Jack," Matt's voice was laced with surprise. "What are you doing here?"

Jack shoved his way inside. He couldn’t risk being seen on Matt’s front porch. "The family knows and they’re coming for you. Consider the life debt paid off.”

Matt's eyes held a mixture of gratitude and regret. He knew that Jack was putting himself at risk by defying the Schriebers. "I know you hate me, but I still appreciate it, Jack. You know you’ll always have a friend if you ever change your mind."

Jack let out a bark of laughter. " I’ll never be friends with a werewolf. You’re an abomination. This is the last time, Matt. After this, you’re on our own."

Matt’s eyes hardened. Jack almost felt relieved. This would be so much easier if Matt hated him too. Losing his best friend, the one person who had always been there for him, felt like another piece of his soul was getting cleaved away.

“I understand,” Matt said and there was no emotion in his voice. It was completely flat. It seemed like Matt finally understood that if they crossed paths again, Jack would not hesitate in taking him out.

Jack stood there for a few minutes. Some part of him didn’t want to leave it like that. But there was nothing he could say or do that would change things. Matt was a werewolf and Jack was from a family who had committed to hunting them down.

He left without another word, his mind racing. His grandfather had said that Matt was a part of the “Peacekeepers.” They were a small, elite group tasked with keeping the peace between humans and werewolves, hence the name.

If one of their own was on campus, that meant there were other wolves on campus other than Matt. Jack wondered how many of his so-called friends were actually monsters. The list of people he could trust just got smaller, if there was even a list left.

Jack was sure that his family had already come to the same conclusion. They had much more resources at their disposal. If they found even a whiff of another werewolf, there was going to be all out war.

Not that Jack minded, but he didn’t want Celeste caught up in the middle of it. And she would be. The Crescent wolves would probably make their move while everyone was distracted and kidnap her. They would make her their Holy Maiden.

If it came to that, Jack would have to get her out of the town. He would have to take her someplace where no one would be able to find her. If that meant kidnapping her and holding her against her will, so be it. She wasn’t that far off from twenty. They could wait it out easily.

Jack entered their house as quietly as he could and snuck over to Celeste’s room. He opened her door and was satisfied to see that she was sleeping safely in her bed. He watched her for a few seconds before going to bed. He would do whatever he had to to keep her safe.