The only hoax

The werewolves came to an abrupt stop at the sight of someone new, seeing her was enough reason to seize the chase. But there was a clear surprise in their gazes as they shifted between the shapeshifter and the angel hiding behind her. One of them growled in disapproval, though none were especially fond of seeing her. It wasn’t anything Rafael could have prevented, despite him never speaking ill of her in front of them. All he’d claimed was that it hadn’t worked out between them. But the wolves could sense that it had affected Rafael more than he led on, and they hadn’t much liked the way she’d left and kept away. Another scoffed as the fallen angel swore that he hadn’t done anything. Liar. He had stolen that wolf’s only heirloom.

Rafael stepped in front of the wolves, and without any verbal cues, their mannerisms relaxed. Their breathing calmed and their lethal teeth became less exposed. And the moment the alpha’s gaze landed on her the red irises turned into their usual dark brown. “I wouldn’t need to show force if your friend hadn’t run off when he was caught stealing.” He glanced to the fallen angel with a subtle raise of the brow. He knew better than to judge someone for the act alone. For the longest time, he had relied on stealing as the only means of survival. But when you were caught red-handed by werewolves, one of which had an ability to track anyone, it was a lost cause.
Fortunately, he had openly admitted to the crime, so it seemed that the issue could be resolved quickly. “It’s good to see you, Vic.” His eyes returned to her with an indecipherable glint, giving no real indication of whether it was said in sarcasm or not. The last time he tried to see her at the casino, he was kicked out by Kailani. And since then, she’d made no attempt to reach out to him. Despite all the things she’d gone through, it seemed that she was as good as over him being anyone to her.

At this point, it didn’t surprise him that she so openly defended someone who had done him or his pack wrong. Anything to be his adversary. Because the peaceful solution was right in front of them and still she chose to go around it. “I might have looked the other way if he’d stolen a little cash from someone, but I can’t do that when he takes valuables from my pack.” It wasn’t something he was going to let slide just because he knew him. And if this was about owing someone, he’d been fair towards Landon if he’d just come up to him and explained what he needed of him. He was always willing to help a friend in need, which was why they’d helped each other in the past. But to go from that to stealing, to not even back down once he knew who he’d stolen from. It was very sordid of him.

His sentence was met with disbelief, but he wouldn’t lie about that, couldn’t help it if he wanted to. Of course, there was a little spite to her having told people that she didn’t want to see him because he couldn’t find any other reason as to why someone would kick him out of the casino. But no matter how she treated him, it didn’t change the fact that he was happy to see that she was well. Ever since Jack had come to him with the information about her, he’d wanted to check on her, to see for himself that she indeed was okay.

He refrained from reacting to her statement, though he did find it curious. As if she hadn’t already made him unpopular amongst her circle of friends. Keeping him out of the casino and now defending one of them from stealing from her ex. Moreover, he didn’t see how letting a thief escape was supposed to help his reputation. Either way, he certainly didn’t care much to gain their approval with the set of values they carried. “If standing up for my friends makes me unpopular, so be it.” He spoke with calm confidence as he approached them. His gaze shifted slowly from Victoria to Landon. “Please hand it over.” He reached a hand towards the fallen angel without getting too close, knowing that Victoria wouldn’t let him. But he hoped that Landon would do the right thing and give back what he’d taken. If he did that, he’d try his best to forgive him for this, to not let it tarnish their relationship completely.

You can go. Rafael’s eyes darted back to Victoria, his brows frowning in confusion. What was she doing?
In the same instance, Cole moved closer, not willing to give his grandfather’s pocket watch up. And then to some filthy thief. Readying himself to fight for it. So, the moment the fallen angel took the opportunity to step away, he set off after him. Following the voice inside him, that resolute wrath that wanted it back before he really had time to think about the consequences. Deep down he knew that Rafael would help him get it back, but right now all he saw was that the angel would sell or lose his belongings before it got to that, and he couldn’t risk that happening.

Didn’t she see that she’d made herself unpopular? That she had been the one starting this conflict between them? Setting them both down this path and dragging people around them into it. He averted his gaze from her and let out a quiet scoff. It was unbelievable. And he could have never predicted that it would get to this. But he knew better than to argue with her, knowing it would escalate and make things worse. Making this emotion in his chest more painful. It wasn’t what he wanted. All he wanted was to resolve this situation and move on.

Rafael didn’t stop Cole from pursuing Landon because he didn’t want him to get away either. Didn’t trust that Victoria would handle it later. After all, she had the choice to do it now. But had he known what was going to happen, he would have. He would have stopped it in a heartbeat, grabbing his shirt and pulling him to the ground himself, if he had to. His eyes glowed red as he watched her fist collide with his jaw, then sent a warning glare to Nickolas to give him the same command as she had given. Stay. The last thing he wanted was for him to get hurt as well. For them to return the punches and cause an even bigger fight. “What the fuck, Victoria?!” he yelled, his gaze fixed on her as he approached them. Nickolas closed his fists but stayed a few meters back, ready to step forward if he had to. Rafael reached a hand down to help Cole get up, noticing a streak of blood run down the side of his face. “Crazy bitch.” He spat at the ground next to them as Rafael took position between Cole and her. The alpha stood broader and taller than him, blocking either of them from coming forward. Her comment to him was another joke. She’d just made this a bigger deal. None of them had taken that move but her. “Oh, so what you’re telling me is act more mature than you are right now?” he growled, taking a step closer to her. If there was one thing that pissed him off, it was seeing someone in his pack getting hurt. Even if she felt that she was protecting a friend, that Cole might have assaulted him to get him to stand down, she couldn’t have known that it was going to end with that.

Her territory? It was crazy how much had changed in just over a month. How she was one to threaten him after everything they’d been through. As if now, that meant nothing, and all that mattered was her new group of people. He tried to sense if there was something in her that would contradict this, but regardless of how deeply he looked into her eyes, he couldn’t find a trace of the Victoria he’d once loved. All he saw was a cold stare. “You’re going to move me?” he asked, already knowing what she was threatening to do. Using her earth powers on him. Possibly even get her crew to come and do it for her. “Is that how angry you are with me? That you can’t even talk this through, so you’d rather I left and pretended that this little incident never happened.” He shook his head slightly, wishing she’d just talk to him about what was going on. But he’d also come to terms with the fact that it wasn’t how these kinds of arguments went. That it was one of the reasons they’d drifted away from each other in the first place. He straightened his back and tilted his head up to look behind her, getting a sense of how far Landon had gone. Knowing the city was just beyond the trees. He wondered if he had gone to get help. If that was one of the reasons she kept insisting on him leaving. But that would mean she still cared, wouldn’t it?
What's it going to be then eh?
His eyes returned to her, that prior doubt shining in them for a brief moment before it vanished and they matched his stern expression. “I’m sorry, Vic. But I can’t leave after what you just did. After seeing Landon take off with our stuff. I just can’t. I need you to give me something. An explanation. A promise to return it to us. Or I'll have to go after him.” He hoped she'd find it in her to reason with him, to avoid what he inevitably was going to do. He hoped that part of her understood why he had to do it. Just like she stood up for Landon, he also had to stand up for his wolves.

In most other circumstances, he would listen. He was done with picking every fight he possibly could with her. Yet here they were. Hindered by something neither could move past. “And I wished you’d just talk to me for once. This whole thing could have been blown over if you tried to reason with us. If you got Landon to do the right thing. Jesus, if this was ever about money, I would have given it to him if I thought his situation was that dire.” He didn’t understand why she was so determined to make his life miserable. Why she didn’t just choose to help him. It was as if it was the last thing she wanted to do. So, even if she promised him that she would sit Landon down and make him return the watches, he couldn’t find it in him to trust her. Even if there was nothing that he’d rather want than for this to turn out peacefully, she’d still attacked Cole. She’d still done a lot of things that had shattered his trust in her. It didn’t exactly help that she openly refused the idea either, stating it wasn’t in her interest anymore.

After she gave him a last chance to leave, his chin tilted in a half nod. His gaze lowered briefly to the earth beneath them before it returned to her eyes. “All right,” he said, his voice sounding slightly defeated. It was a shame that they couldn’t just talk this through, but he couldn’t really force her. She’d probably just repeat her warnings until it made him leave. He placed his arm around Cole’s shoulder, pointing his finger behind his back to signal Nickolas for a direction to run. “You okay?” he asked as he looked down at Cole, noticing he’d smeared the blood from his face onto his hand and sleeve.
“Yeah.” He would be okay with time. He knew Victoria could throw some hefty punches, but he’d not been aware of her strength until now. Nor had he thought she’d make that move against him. Rafael pressed his finger against his back, drawing a line that went the opposite way. Victoria might try to fight them, but it was a lot harder to go after all three if they ran in different directions. She might be able to do it with her ability to control the earth, but she’d have to move quickly. And that was why mere seconds passed before all three set off in a run towards Southside. Nickolas to the far left, Cole to the right, and Rafael in the middle just a few meters from Vic’s position. If anyone should take the worst of her power, it should be him. But they couldn’t wait much longer. They needed to catch Landon before he reached his friends.

Cole’s palms collided with the emerged wall in front of him and his claws dug into the dirt. But just as he was about to find a way past the walls, the ground softened beneath him. He looked down to discover the quicksand already had covered his boots. “No, no, no, no.” He fought against it, hoping to get his feet out before they sunk deeper, but the movement just made the sand reach his ankles, then his shins, and he knew it was best to just keep still. To take some time to think while Victoria was distracted chasing the others.

Rafael had rarely sprinted so fast, hearing the shaking of the earth, and then how large blocks hit the trees behind him. Aiming for him. He looked over his shoulders to dodge one headed his way, ducking just in time to feel the object swoosh inches from his head. But the following one came instantly after, throwing him a few meters ahead before he landed on all fours on the ground. He groaned at the stun to his hands and bit the urge to scream from the pain throbbing in his back. Once she heard her land in front of him, his red eyes looked up at her, flaming furiously. He set off with his hands to get up, to at least meet her at eye level, when he felt vines creeping around his legs, pinning him down. Keeping him on his knees in front of her. He didn’t have the words to express how much he hated her at that moment. Just boiling anger. His heart was beating so fast, sending hot, adrenaline-spiked blood through him. His jaw tensed as he suppressed the worst of his emotions, to not completely lash out at her for her actions. “That’s funny because where I’m standing it sure looks like you’re the one eager to fight.” His knees had scraped against a few rocks upon the landing, causing blood to trickle down his legs. The sensation made him lift his hands to assess their injury, but he was barely able to move them as they recovered from the fall. His eyes returned slowly to her as she mentioned vampires, a flicker of normalcy returned to them as his thoughts were taken elsewhere. He had not been in Southside long enough to know just how many more vampires roamed the streets, to know which clans had settled down in his absence, but if what she said was true…

He rose to his feet, flinching at the pain of straightening his back, curling his fingers more as they returned to their normal sense of feeling. Trying to figure out another way, but in the end, he couldn’t risk the death of a pack member. He inhaled deeply, tilted his head back, and howled loudly. Calling out for Nick to retreat. Once he confirmed that the scent of Nick was heading in the opposite direction, his deadly gaze returned to her. He didn’t believe that she’d been worried for their safety, but the alleged risk of dangerous vampires was enough to save Landon. Well, that and her persistent interference.
“We’re still going to want those belongings back. But we’ll leave you for now. Seems to be the only thing you want anyway.” He looked at her for several seconds before he eventually turned around. Not walking very fast due to the jabs of pain he got from taking a single step. But even that didn’t compare to the ache in his chest or the culminating emotions. There was so much more he had wanted to say, but it felt as if it would be useless. That nothing he said could ever reach through to her anymore. And what was the point even then?

He halted the moment he heard her voice. The apology managed to subdue the hurt a little, igniting some distant hope of redemption. And he knew he’d forgive her. It was unfair how she still had that effect on him. He inhaled slowly, telling himself that he needed to keep moving, but then she continued, and he turned around to look at her. His face was no longer the tough façade he’d shown moments prior, but it hadn’t cracked completely either. He was still very much wary of the situation, of what she’d done to him. He appreciated her willingness to talk to Landon, to at least try to fix part of this situation they’d found themselves in. But when she added that last part, he chuckled dryly. Of course, she had to add that to an otherwise promising speech. “I could say the same to you.” He was the one who’d gotten hurt because of her power-play, after all. And either way, would there even be another time for them? Rafael had already made up his mind about staying away, but now that decision seemed clearer as ever. It made no sense to continue to see her if this was how their meetings turned out. He parted his lips to say something more when the scent of a vampire became stronger. His eyes darted to where Nick was retreating, then to Victoria. “Do you recognize the vampire?” he asked, knowing they’d both caught its scent. And he had to know whether this was someone she and Landon knew. If it was someone she could make go away. If not, he had to set off after him, to protect him from the approaching danger.

Once the quicksand vanished, Cole headed in the direction of Rafael. Wanting to make sure he was okay after what he’d heard and from the faint scent of blood he’d sensed. He appeared behind some trees near them, getting the alpha’s well-being confirmed. Then turned his focus to the scent of the vampire as well. Most of his pack members had a deep hatred for vampires, and the rivalry they had ongoing with various clans had not made that any weaker.

The scene unfolded far too quickly. Hope had barely reached his eyes at the sight of Nickolas before they changed to reflect the horror he witnessed. He staggered backward as the lifeless body hit the ground, feeling sickeningly dizzy as he stared at the hollow of his back. Cole's yells as he hurried forward were a distant sound, indecipherable as if his consciousness had left the present for the time it took him to process the calamity. Rafael lifted his eyes to meet the vampire when she stepped away from the body, crimson irises glowing in the clearing as they stared at her. Alicia. But it couldn’t be. He had ensured that he’d never see her face again and yet… here she was. Everything about her was exactly as he remembered it. The confusion must have shown through the burning wrath and hatred because she’d hinted to him thinking he’d seen the last of her. And he wondered if she even knew what he’d done. If he had an innocent’s blood on his hands. His hands trembled at the thought before he reached for the nearest tree branch and snapped it from its source. It was no secret that murder was on his mind, but his need to defend Victoria and Cole was at the forefront. Going after Alicia with others around was a guarantee for them to get caught in the crossfire. His vendetta would just have to wait. He briefly glanced at Cole to ensure he kept his distance, seeing him on his knees next to Nickolas, tears streaming down his face. And he swallowed hard before he returned his eyes to Alicia who’d turned her attention to Victoria. He stepped closer when she did, not planning to introduce anyone. On the contrary, he wanted her to stay as far away from them as possible. He halted once she used her vampiric speed to get up close to Victoria and his gaze adjusted to her new position. “Don’t touch her,” he warned. But he also knew that it was a reminder for him to behave. His grip around the stake tightened before he took a few steps closer to Alicia. The fact of her boys taking a liking to Victoria didn’t go unnoticed, but he knew Alicia to be capricious. Easily capable of harming her own if they disobeyed her. Easily compelled to harm anyone if the right mood struck her. “What do you want from me, Alicia?” He had to get an indication as to what her agenda was. If this murder was provoked by something more serious than her usual spite for his kind. For him. If something could make her leave him be for good.

Alicia knew he wanted to kill her to avenge his family. He didn’t care that she deemed that hopeless. He’d still pursue it if it was the last thing he did—for whatever small chance he had of a win. He didn’t believe her when she said she wanted nothing from him either. Watching him suffer was wanting something. Had to be motivated by something more than mere hatred for his kind. But if not. If these killing sprees were completely senseless, it just proved why he needed to end her that much more. He stepped forward as she indicated her leave, not wanting to let her go that easily, but there wasn’t much he could do to prevent it either. “You sadistic piece of—” and then she was gone, disappeared in a flash behind the trees. His nostrils flared as the rage urged him to chase after her, but he couldn’t leave Nick. Instead, he frustratedly threw the branch after her scent, the pointed edge colliding with a tree trunk.

The anger slowly disintegrated into nothing but pain and misery. It shot through him as if that stake had stabbed his own heart, bringing him back to the night where his family had been murdered. His breathing was unsteady as he reached a hand out to grab the tree he'd taken a branch off moments before, feeling like he was about to pass out. “She was supposed to be dead,” he said, feeling as if everything he’d done had been in vain, that he was forever doomed to the vampire’s twisted games. His head lowered as tears started to appear in his eyes. At that moment wishing she’d just taken his life. Ended it all right there. The pack would be fine. They’d just find a new alpha. Someone who wouldn’t fail them as he had. Someone who would have saved Nick. Tears continuously ran down his cheeks and he closed his eyes to try and shut everything out. Eventually, he opened them to return to reality, to face what had happened because of him. He breathed in as he let the back of his hand dry his tears, and walked, albeit slow, towards Nick and Cole. “I’ll carry him back.” He couldn’t just abandon that responsibility, no matter how much it grieved him to do as much as look at him. To know that his wife and son never would… Another deep breath. He kneeled down in front of the body, grabbing his hand in his own and holding it tight. “I’m so sorry,” he said, his voice breaking from the immense sorrow and guilt. He couldn’t stop the tears from falling. For all of it to keep crashing down on him. “I should have protected you,” he whispered, slowly opening the hand he held to glance down at his wedding band. It should have been me. “I should have…” But words were never going to be enough. What he should have done was too late. He attempted a few more breaths to compose himself before he wrapped his arms around the body and pressed the deceased werewolf to his chest.

It wasn’t until he turned to walk that he remembered Victoria was there, thinking it was the last time he would see her. He didn’t expect her to do anything. He had long since accepted there wasn’t to be much of a friendship between them after everything. Not because it was what he wanted, but because that’s what she kept proving. He then looked towards a small clearing, towards the portal to Atheria that they’d need to go, and headed in its direction.

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out