May the bridges I burn light the way

Time: 19:40. December 9, 2021
Location: Rafael and Victoria’s home
Weather: Just below freezing, a light snowfall
Dedicated to: @Victoria
Outfit

He’d slept more than he ever thought possible the past days, the exhaust settling in after the many sleepless nights. His trip had been a lengthy one, much more so than he’d anticipated because for once, a clue had turned into something worthwhile. After years of searching and careful planning, he’d finally avenged his family. He’d calmed the need in his heart and fulfilled his lifelong goal. His chase put to rest at last, and with it, came the relief of knowing Alicia wouldn’t harm another person again—she wouldn’t destroy another family or orphan another kid. She no longer existed, not in this world. And if it wasn’t for his tremendous excitement of seeing everyone again, he probably would have slept during his travels, from the train ride to Madrid to his last miles home. But there was no way. A little over two months was far more than he'd ever wanted to be apart from those he considered family. Besides that, there was the anticipation of seeing their reaction to his surprise homecoming, having not told anyone of his arrival. He gazed out the window as they drove from the airport and into Aston, admiring the impressive setup of Christmas lights, and as they neared his home, snow was starting to fall, covering the forest in a thin layer of white.

He tipped the taxi driver for getting him further than the usual stop at the main road, now standing in front of the metal gate to his driveway. He carried his suitcase as he walked the rest of the way, a small smile finding its way to his lips as saw the first glimpse of the house. He didn't look quite the same as he had when he'd left. His hair was cut shorter, no longer reaching his shoulders and he had gotten a tan from the Southern Spanish sun. At last, he stepped up on the porch and knocked on the door, alerting whoever was inside, even if they already had caught his presence. He then opened the door, looking slowly around the foyer, realizing how much he’d missed it all as he breathed in the familiar scents. And he swore to himself that it was the last time he’d depart from it for so long.

The sight of Victoria brought an immediate smile to his lips, even more so because she was wearing one of his t-shirts and he could have never imagined that this was what it felt like—to have someone to return to. His arms locked around her as she embraced him, and he lifted her off the ground. For a moment he just held her close, breathing in the scent of her hair and cherishing the feeling of being home. He then leaned back to press his lips against hers. He had many times worried that she’d leave him while he was away. They’d barely made their relationship official before he’d left. And it often felt like he'd dived oceans deep, now floating miles from land in foreign territory. Because he had never been in a long-lasting relationship, let alone one that lasted at all if he’d first taken off. And he wouldn’t have held it against her. He was far from the easiest to be with. Always so pessimistic about love, never wanting to open up or lower his walls. Too flirtatious, or reckless, or contentious. But he tried. This time, he had every reason to try. “I’ve missed you so much,” he murmured as he opened his eyes to look into hers. By now she was as much part of his pack as anyone. She was certainly one of the most important people in his life. Because with her he’d let his guard down. He’d told her things from his past that he never thought he’d tell anyone, and that first step had helped him tell his story to others. But most importantly, she had stuck by him despite it all. She had stayed through the good and the bad. And that was indeed a rare thing.

He placed her back on the floor, moving his hands to her waist to distance himself a little. “It’s over, Vic. She’s gone.” He smiled again, thinking of how unreal it was. He had waited years to be able to bring that kind of news, and it felt incredibly good to get it off his chest. It had been a week since he’d last called and told her that he’d found Alicia—that all he needed was to confront her. But he’d wanted to deliver the final news in person. To just be here with the people he loved and feel relieved because he’d been able to bury that part of his past. Now, he knew the fight between werewolves and vampires was far from over and he’d continue to fight it till the day he died, but this was a big milestone on that journey, and for now, that was enough.

“You like it?” His smile was still spread wide across his lips as she chuckled, but it slowly faded, because she had not responded to his news. And he could tell that it had made her think of something, except he had no idea what could possibly go through her mind besides joy on his behalf. So, he felt suddenly wearier of the situation, worrying that she might have cheated on him while he’d been gone. A thought that swiftly evaporated as she fervently pulled him into a kiss. It was the kind that told him how much she’d missed him, underlying the fact that she indeed was happy to see him, and thus whatever had caused the reaction, it had to be about something else.
He hung his jacket in the foyer before he followed her into the living room, looking around the place until she told him there was something important that he needed to know. He turned slightly on his heel to face her, slowly approaching her to take the glass of scotch. By the tone of her voice, and his prior suspicion, he had a strong sense that something bad had happened.

He didn’t even know what to say at first, because Southside had been more than just a home to him. It was with the Serpents he’d found some of his best friends, and now they didn’t go there anymore? “Worse?” His throat felt suddenly dry, so he downed half of the scotch. His mind searched through all the possible things that could be worse than getting attacked. He knew that Jack had mentioned some trouble in Southside that he didn’t want to elaborate on, and they got attacked all the time. So, what was it that made this time worse? Far worse. His gaze remained fixed on her as she continued, but she avoided his question, which just made the anticipation worse. Instead, she told him they didn’t want to ruin his trip, as if that meant even the slightest more than them. So, that was what the small hints of secrecy and oddness had been about. “What are you saying?” She had managed to get around telling him the worst part, and although it was reassuring to hear that they all were fine, he needed to know what had happened while he’d been away.

It was a lot to process, to know that the attack nearly had killed one of his best friends. And he damned wished he had been there to fight by their side. Just the thought of the people they'd lost brought an extremely uncomfortable feeling. But he didn't have it in him to ask if someone had died, although he knew that had to be the case. “I wish you would have told me.” He ran a hand over his mouth as he averted his gaze from her, feeling terrible for not having been there, but equally worried at the way she’d looked down when she’d mentioned Anthony. “But I’m glad you’re fine.” He returned his eyes to her, not sure he really believed that statement. But it was better than her stating that it had been Hell while he'd been gone, or that she'd suffered tremendously. He wouldn’t be able to accept his absence in such a case—was barely able to justify it now.
He didn’t like to think of Cassian rescuing her. He had always suspected there to be more than a friendship between them. Even if she assured him that there wasn’t. But if it was true, he supposed he should be grateful. And he was. However, he also wished that he had been there for her when she’d needed it. Because he felt like he’d failed her. As if he should have been able to catch on to the small hints in their conversations over the phone and returned that very instance. Instead, he’d been too occupied with obtaining his revenge to think twice of the problems they faced in Gaia.  

He also wanted to avenge them, to go after Anthony. He’d rarely wanted to rip someone’s throat out as much as he did that moment. But he also knew that nothing good would come out of it. It would only turn into a never-ending war unless one group left for good. The reminder of Jack’s new girlfriend was distraction enough, and his lips tugged slightly in their corners. “Yeah, he’s mentioned her once or twice.” He took another sip of the liquor as if it would help wash down his emotions and make them less prominent. “Hm,” he murmured to her notion about Jack never seeming happier, which of course meant a great deal to him. And it made him think that perhaps something good had come out of it after all. As for as him, he needed to stay away from Southside anyway. It was where the vampire clan whose leader he’d just killed hung out. And he wasn’t interested in getting attacked himself. He reached for the whiskey to pour himself a new glass once she had done the same. “He did?” he asked, quite surprised to hear that he had. It would be almost as strange as if Rafael suddenly found some family other than his aunt in Spain. The only living member as far as he knew. “And what about you? How are you holding up after everything that has happened?” Although it felt great to know that Jack was doing fine, he mostly worried about her. And she’d barely told him what had happened during the attack. To some degree, it might not matter as it was a thing of the past, but he still felt like he ought to know what she’d been through.

He didn’t think it made much of a difference whose decisions it was. It was equally disappointing to know that either of them wanted to keep him in the dark. Especially when it regarded a danger that put their safety and lives at risk. However, he had to believe that Jack had thought it to be the right decision at the time. After all, they were all fine now. And who knew when he’d finalize his revenge, if not the one time he’d gotten a prime opportunity to pursue it. Still, it was difficult to shake the unease and the slight distrust it had created. Every moment he hadn’t dedicated to thinking of his mission, he had spent thinking of them. It stung that they hadn’t told him about something that serious. He felt like they owed it to him to make that decision for himself. Yet as much as he wanted to start arguing with her—most of all to ensure that it wasn’t repeated—he didn’t think it would do much. He had already expressed his standpoint, and there would narrowly be a similar situation in the future. But before he could put an end to his thoughts, he had to ask one last thing, “Is that the only time you’ve kept such secrets from me?” He didn’t mean petty ones as he respected her privacy and freedom as much as his own, but this incident had made him wonder if there had been others like it. Where Jack had ordered her not to tell Rafael something. If there had been times where they’d been hurt without his knowing. “You know what, forget it. I am fairly sure he kept quiet so I would get my revenge.” He took a sip of his drink and looked towards a shelf where there was a photograph of Victoria, Jack, Luke, and him. “Even if it would have killed him,” he continued in a lower voice, directed to the thunderbird, smiling in that captured memory which could never have been the same without him. What mattered most, was that he was alive, and apparently happier than ever, so who was he really to make matters worse and cause dispute between them.  

He arched a brow as she downed her glass following his question. It wasn’t exactly a great start. He didn’t even realize how tense he’d gotten before a small crack sounded, the glass on the verge of breaking, and he relaxed his grip. A human was a frail being. They were no match against the kinds of them. So either the previous members had to be incredibly powerful, or he was one of the few who had evolved to possess supernatural abilities. “And he is dealing with him how? By admitting defeat?” He didn’t like the sound of that, and although he had no authority over the serpents—of what used to be of them—he only wanted what was best for his friends. And to him, it seemed like they’d given up a whole lot by losing that battle. “So, what, you’ll let go of your past, just like that? And they won’t try to pursue you?” There was still an awful lot he felt that she’d left out. Because why and how had they lost? How had they escaped? Who was this Anthony to barge in and take everything from them? What made him more dangerous than most other people in Southside? If he had abilities, which were they? After all, he was immune to a good amount of them.
He followed as she motioned for him to sit down, although it hardly helped to calm him. But then she said they were okay, and he was once more reminded that it was the most important aspect of it. He didn’t know why he always got so worked up over things. But like an anchor, she pulled him down, dampened it all somehow, and he exhaled. “I know. I just—I don’t know what I would do without you.”  He placed a hand above hers, intertwining their fingers. They were the only people who’d been there for him when nobody was. They took him in when he was sleeping on the streets of Southside. When he was an alpha without a pack. When he had nothing, they'd given him a place to call home. “So, I need you to tell me the truth about all of this. Because I can't rest knowing that he might hurt you again.”

He didn’t question her loyalty so much as he worried that they kept secrets from him regarding similar matters. Because he’d at least want to know about them, even if they didn’t want his interference or opinion. Of course, those doubts rooted back to his embedded lack of trust in almost everyone and everything. It took so little to remind him of how much he’d been betrayed in the past or how cynical and selfish people could be, yet so much to convince him otherwise. Especially when his emotions got involved. He would still confront Jack about it, at the very least to hear his side of the story. But he wouldn’t try to push it too far or start any unnecessary arguments. In the end, he only wanted to know because he cared about them.

He knew he should feel settled as she began to answer his questions, explaining the situation in more detail, but there wasn’t much to take comfort in. They could still pursue her or use her again in some ploy against Jack. Or against him if he went ahead and did something rash. Because that’s how it worked. That's how it had always worked. It was reassuring to hear that she’d stay careful. It was more than he could promise her. Although he’d try. “I promise,” he said solemnly. He would only be a hypocrite for going behind her back when he’d just talked of how wrong it was. He also realized that they had a much better idea of the situation and hence that he should trust their judgment. It didn’t make him not want to act on the injustice, nonetheless, but it did enough to restrain him from doing so right away.
He made note of the powers they’d shown off which only proved she was right to be cautious. His eyes widened in surprise as she mentioned that Anthony was the son of Rebekah Sinclair. It once more emphasized the danger of provoking him. Powerful witches weren’t the kind you wanted to cross ever. But it still felt bad to know that they’d taken everything in the months he’d been gone. That he hadn’t at least been able to fight by their side, even if it inevitably would have ended in defeat. He averted his gaze from her as she explained what Lauren and Pearl had done, seeing the image of them fighting, only to regret it instantly. “Jesus Christ.” But the next thing she said was much worse. She'd been trapped in a basement for a whole week. He darted his eyes to her as a pang of guilt crept into his heart. “I’m so sorry, Victoria.” His face was full of empathy as he looked at her and his hand clenched tighter around hers. As if that would prevent an incident like that from happening again. “I had no idea.” He inhaled unsteadily, having stopped breathing for the last several seconds. He knew now when this had occurred because there had been a week where she’d been gone. Jack had given him some lie about her when she hadn’t responded to his calls, telling him that she would contact him as soon as she was back, and his worries had stopped there. Even though he felt that something was off the next time he called her, he’d believed her when she’d said she was okay. He could have never imagined that things had looked so bad for them.

He exhaled deeply when she finished, trying to let the last sentences replay in his mind; that they all got out and that no one had seen or heard from Anthony since then. Because those were good and reassuring things. “I understand. I just wished I had been there for you,” he admitted, slowly letting go of her hand to finish his drink and place it on a side table. He turned in the seat, positioning himself so he was facing the fireplace rather than her. “So, we’ll keep a low profile and stay away from Southside. It’s something I should do anyway.” Alicia’s clan hung out there, after all. He nodded slowly as he came to terms with this. He needed to for everyone's sake.

“Right.” At least it was his intention to be there for her. Although he hadn’t been the best leader, friend, or lover for the way he’d been gone. For how he distanced himself from time to time. For how his life had been focused on vengeance. And now that it was over, he felt strangely hollow. As if he didn’t know what to do from here on out. His whole life had revolved around that one objective, and although he’d always sought the comfort of a pack because it was ingrained in him and because life only got that much worse without it. He knew he had failed them over the past years. If not because he’d repeatedly brought them into dangerous situations or needed their help getting out of trouble. Then because he hadn’t focused as much time on them as he should have. Always occupied with that selfish goal. So yeah, a new beginning sounded nice. Like it was the right step forward. The only problem was that he didn’t know how he was supposed to take that first step. He didn’t share any of these thoughts with her. He rarely shared much when it regarded his emotions. And they were still fairly new. He only stared into the fire, wondering what he was supposed to do. As if the flames would transform into a vision and give him a sign. Because he had absolutely no clue and the possibilities seemed both impossibly endless and extremely limited.

Her apology brought him out of it. And he turned his gaze to her, focusing on the one thing that might help him gain some resolution. “It’s okay. I’d probably gotten my ass kicked.” He sent her a slight smile, not wanting her to dwell on the topic any longer. “Though it would have been worth it.” There was not the number of beatings he couldn’t take if it meant he’d gain some reassurance. If it meant that he could see to it that she was okay. If it meant that he’d tried everything he could to save them, however slim his chances were. His back was already covered in scars. A few more wasn’t going to change much. He also had a few cuts on his arm from knives and claws—part of which he’d covered up with a tribal tattoo. But most of the time he got away with minor injuries. He’d only ever broken his bones as a kid. “That’d be great,” he replied. He wanted to hear Jack’s side of things and he’d missed their hangouts. Even more so now that he knew he’d almost lost him.  

He looked at her with profound emotion as she admitted to missing him. He knew she had from the way she’d kissed him. From the fact that she was wearing his shirt to be near his scent and thus nearer him. But a surge of warmth still appeared inside his chest as she said the words aloud. Only accumulated by the way her fingers traced his hair. And it easily made him forget his prior thoughts as he instead focused on the moment he shared with her.
“I’ve been gone for months and you still don’t cook?” He chuckled and leaned slightly forward as he pulled a smartphone from his pocket. “You okay with pizza?” he asked as he scrolled through the takeout app for one of the local pizzerias, glancing up at her for confirmation. After all, he couldn’t know just how many times she’d had pizza the past weeks.

It had been a nice couple of days. He’d been able to relax, completely undisturbed by pack members in trouble or responsibilities that needed to be addressed. The most pressing problem was that of finding a job. He couldn’t very well continue living off the fortune he’d stolen from the previous alpha. And the freelance work he’d taken on was hardly a stable way of income. But he still struggled to find his way back in the world, which especially included his career. The only thing that he was good at was hunting vampires. And as far as being an alpha, it came as naturally as anything. It was hardly a learned skill. Although being a leader did pose its challenges. But not enough to cause dispute within the pack or disrupt their peace. It was always an outside force that did that.

Rafael hadn’t been alerted by Tatia’s scent until he knew she was headed in their direction. The scent grew stronger with every second. But it wasn’t accompanied by anyone. He wouldn’t have a clue as to why she’d come alone so hurriedly unless it was important. Their relation was a mutual alliance and nothing more, so it couldn't be a matter of chit-chatting. From experience, he knew that he couldn’t get along with other alphas. He had never befriended one, and perhaps that had something to do with the fact that they’d always given him a hard time, eventually ending up with them either throwing him out of the pack or him leaving of own choice. Not able to put up with it anymore.
He walked up to Victoria by the window, looking outside at the forest. “I know her,” he said calmly, not needing to say more because if he wasn’t alerted by her trespassing, she shouldn’t be either. The next moment he turned to walk outside, waiting on the porch for her to appear behind the trees. He squinted his eyes slightly as she neared him, sensing she was quite serious in her demeanor. That couldn’t be a good sign. “Tatia.” He greeted her with a faint nod before he stepped down the stairs to the porch. “What brings you here?”

The scent of blood had him glance down at her hands. Werewolf blood. But it couldn’t be. There had never been fights between the packs of the forest. Not in the time he’d lived there. It could of course have been a lone wolf. A crazed wolf. But that wouldn’t be threat enough for an alpha to walk into another’s territory. There wasn’t much that was. It was only natural that he dreaded the news she’d come to tell. However, he could have never guessed for that to be about a pack of Russian werewolves roaming the country whilst threatening different packs. He clenched his jaw as his gaze lifted to the horizon. As if any of them would appear, following in the tracks of Tatia. But he couldn’t sense them, so she must have taken care of the ones that were nearest him. Deciding on testing her pack first. “A twisted mindset?” It could mean a lot of things, though none of them could possibly be good. He also figured it meant that their views differed vastly from the packs around here. But in what way? He wondered how Damian knew about them, if not because it was supposed to be common knowledge. Because they were a famous pack. But whatever the case, it was useful to know someone that had information on them. “How many did you see?” he asked, wanting to know the number of wolves he needed to expect in case they were going to pay him a visit next.

“Thank you,” he said with another nod, appreciating her taking the time to do this. He looked over his shoulder when Victoria spoke. “Yes, that’d be great.” He returned his eyes to Tatia, thinking that at least gave her more time to figure out things with her own pack and help Damian. He pulled a phone out of his jean pocket, writing a group text to warn his pack members. Telling them not to walk into the forest alone. And that whoever could come, should do so before dusk that day. The only real exception to that was if they were at work or traveling. They’d better be able to defend the territory if they were strong in numbers. And he’d better be able to defend his members if they were here with him. He then put the phone back and looked back up at Tatia. “Is there anything else I can do?” he asked, not sure how bad the fight had been or if she was good to deal with everything on her own.

She’d killed two and scared the rest of them off. He inhaled deeply and glanced in the direction of the mountains near Grounds of Lily. He was relieved to hear they were going away from his territory, now mostly worrying about the wolves that lived in that area. But with how fast the word spread in situations like these, he was sure every werewolf in the country would know about it soon enough. It was the same when there had been similar activity from hunters or vampires in the area. He leaned against the staircase railing as Tatia explained what he could do. He once again lowered his eyes to her hands as he partly had meant if she had been injured, but he was happy to know that she seemed well in that regard. He gave her a vague nod, letting her know he understood what she said.
“Right,” he agreed. A reason would be a useful starting point. If they knew what they were after, it was easier to know how to deal with them. His best guess was that they were looking for something. After all, that was the reason he’d moved here some years ago. But he didn’t know enough of the circumstances to know what this pack could possibly be after. Nor what the timing of their showing-up meant. He’d make sure to ask around, but it seemed that Damian might be the key to information since he knew of them already. He pushed away from the railing and stepped slightly closer as she asked if he was good. “Yeah, go ahead,” he assured her, knowing that she had other places to be and since there wasn’t an imminent threat, he wasn’t going to hold her back from that. “Thanks again for the warning. I’ll let you know if I see anything. Take care, all right.” A faint smile passed his lips, disappearing almost as quickly as it’d gotten there. And once the goodbye had been said, he headed back inside.

“That was strange,” he commented as he closed the door behind him, then locked it for good measure. Not so much the part about werewolves attacking their own kind. It was frequently mentioned in history books. There had been plenty of rivaling packs throughout time. But it was strange that they seemed to target multiple packs at the same time. So far from home too. There was something about it that didn’t add up. He walked further into the house towards the door to the basement. He unlocked the door with another key and turned on a light switch to illuminate the dark hallway downstairs. He returned moments later with a black handgun, then tucked it away in a holster in his jeans. “I’m going to check out the territory, see if there’s any trace of them.” If he could do that, even if it was just a whiff of their scent, he’d be able to track them down. Maybe find where they were hiding, though he wasn’t going to do something so reckless yet. Not until he knew more about them. However, it was always a great card to have on hand.

He knew. She’d cover the ground quicker than him. She’d move flawlessly through the snow and she’d be perfectly capable of sensing them if they’d been near enough. But did he want her to take that risk? With everything going on, he wasn’t so sure. Things seemed so uncertain as compared to when he’d left a few months ago. If it hadn’t been for the way they’d stayed together the past days, he would have been on edge with worry. Because he still had a hard time believing that the whole incident with Anthony was over and done with. So, for those reasons, he was close to giving his objection. But in the end, he trusted that the remaining wolves were far from this part of the forest, and the sooner they could complete a search, the better. “Of course, just stay within a reasonable distance.” It was important to him that they could hear each other, at the very least—that he could hear her. And it still allowed her to roam far into the territory, though not much beyond it. “I’ve called on the pack to meet tonight, to talk things through. Maybe some of them will know something about this pack.”

He’d walk much slower in his human form, but the advantage of a gun was that he could get an aim from a long distance. And with his near-perfect accuracy, it was usually the safest bet. If he didn’t have an extraordinary ability at this, he’d opted for his wolf form. He reached for his keys in his leather jacket before he opened the front door, waiting until they both were outside before he closed it and locked it. There were things far too valuable inside for him to lose to a foreign pack. Even though he didn’t think they’d come searching for anything he owned, it was best to be on the safe side. Always. “I’ll head north towards the river.” And with those words, he set off into the snow. It made sense that they'd come by a water source for a drink, and with that reasoning, he might be able to sense a trace of them in the stream of the river that expanded far into the depths of the forest.

The snow crackled underneath his boots as he headed deeper into the forest. He stopped occasionally, alert of a new sound or scent because he needed to be certain that there weren’t any immediate dangers. But most of it was from small wildlife. He eventually reached the riverbank and crouched down, dipping a hand into the icy water. In a swift movement, he splashed it into the air, enhancing the scents and hoping he’d arrived before the water had flown too far and erased their tracks. To his luck, he picked up the scent of two werewolves, one stronger than the other. Both seemed to come from the direction of Tatia’s territory. He rose to his feet, exhaling deeply and feeling relieved because now they had something on them. He looked in the direction of the beach that bordered his territory, being close enough to know they hadn’t gone that way, so he turned to walk back towards the cabin to the southwest. So far it seemed that Tatia was right. But there could always be members with an extraordinary ability for hiding. He hadn’t seen an indication of that sort, but with Victoria in her snow leopard form, he was confident they’d either discover or exclude any such possibility. He stepped towards a fire they had going in the backyard, burning a collected pile of fallen branches and wood from a dead pine he’d cut down. He stared into the flames for a moment before negating the fire to nothing. There was no reason to let the smell or sight of smoke attract anyone. He then sat down in one of the chairs surrounding the firepit as he awaited Victoria’s return.

He lifted his gaze to the house as he heard Victoria approaching, nodding once to her claim. “Good.” Or he supposed that depended on how you saw it. It was good for them, but not so much for Damian. “Or not really… but it gives us time to set up some defenses.” He turned to look at the glowing embers in the fire pit and took a deep breath. He wondered how long it would take this whole thing to brush over and vanish. At least, it seemed the foreigners were far outnumbered. But even then, he knew the peace wasn’t going to last. It never really did in a place like this. He stood up from the chair, not needing to linger outside when the forest had been cleared and Victoria had returned. He stepped towards her as he informed her of what he’d found. “I caught the scent of two of them. So, if worse comes to worst, I can track them.” As tempting as it was to go ahead and follow the tracks, he tried to convince himself that it was better to wait. Especially knowing they hadn’t come to target his pack specifically. He started walking back towards the front door, however, part of him wanted to run the other way. He stood hesitantly in front of the door with the key in his hand before he turned to look at her. “You don’t think I should follow them, do you?” he asked, wanting to hear her opinion. Because even if they weren’t a threat to him, which still was unknown, then they were still a threat to others, and if he could get close enough to gain more information on their operation, he could, at the very least, help the ones who were in danger.