Declan found Gabriel sitting in his apartment. He pounded on his door until Gabriel got up from the couch and opened it.

“What do you…” Gabriel started to say, but was stopped short when he saw that it was Declan standing there.

“We need to talk. Now!” Declan pushed Gabriel inside and he stumbled back a few steps, clearly still in shock.

“Where have you been, Declan?” Gabriel finally managed. “We didn’t think you were going to ever come back.”

“Oh, yeah?” Declan could feel the rage welling up inside of him and he knew that if he could still transform into his wolf form, it would have already happened. “Well, I’m back now. So, why don’t we start with your new laws that you’ve laid down here for the pack?”

Gabriel studied Declan closely as he spoke. He took a few small steps nearer to Declan and watched as he stood his ground, but Gabriel knew that it was all just a façade. The shock of seeing Declan wore off and Gabriel started to pick up on some key things which told him that the man standing before him was exactly that —a man.

“So, you’re a human now, huh?” Gabriel smiled viciously. “It’s interesting if you think about it. I mean, all that time as Alpha and what did you really do for us? Nothing, if you ask me.”

“Everything I did was for the protection of the pack,” Declan said, his voice dangerously low. “I may have not been the best alpha, but I was sure as hell a whole lot better than you will ever be.”

“Did you even think about that when you handed me the title and ran away?”

Declan looked at the man standing before him, and for a moment, he could not even recognize him. Gone was the somewhat cocky but sweet-mannered guy who thought he wanted to be in charge, but never wanted all the responsibilities it came with. Standing there in front of him now, was a power-hungry man, driven by a thirst for respect from the pack, no matter how it might be acquired.

“I made a mistake,” Declan said slowly.

“See?” Gabriel laughed. “You’re not an alpha! Alpha’s never make mistakes.”

“You’re wrong,” Declan said. “An alpha’s true strength comes from the ability to admit when they have made a mistake.”

“Wow,” Gabriel mocked, “how truly philosophical of you.”

“What happened with Megan?” Declan asked, deciding to try a different route. At the mention of her name, Declan noticed a shadow pass over Gabriel’s face.

“She didn’t want to fight for me,” Gabriel said simply, recovering himself. “I gave her the opportunity to choose to join in the next ritual, and she decided not to. I guess some people just don’t know how to appreciate what’s right there in front of them.”

“A ritual you are forcing the females to participate in, to the death? And you were going to pit Megan against her own cousin?”

Gabriel laughed suddenly. “It would have made for one hell of a show!” Declan could feel his blood boiling and his eyes were clouded by fury. Gabriel looked at him, his eyes growing large.

“What the?” Gabriel started to say, but the door slammed open behind him.

Both Declan and Gabriel turned to see Noelle standing there, her skin rippling, intensely. Gabriel looked at her with a vicious smile.

“You may want to reconsider this,” Gabriel said quietly. “Remember, the pack has me as their alpha because that’s what their beloved Declan decided. But you, well, let’s just say that you aren’t exactly their favorite person. Oh, and if they were to find out that you somehow hurt me…” Gabriel’s voice trailed off as his intention hung between them, thick as a cloud.

Declan stepped between the two of them and took hold of Noelle’s hand. “Let’s go!” he urged Noelle.

He tugged her again, and she finally followed him out of the apartment. They walked together in silence, each with their own regrets —Declan ashamed that he could not transform into his alpha form, and Noelle ashamed that she almost gave into her own.

* * *

Noelle returned to her parents’ apartment after a short conversation with Declan. How far had they come from the magic of last night? Noelle wished she could close her eyes and be transported back to the safety of the tent, and into Declan’s arms.

She sat down on the couch next to her cousin who was flipping through channels on the television, aimlessly. Noelle wanted to say something to her but she wasn’t sure what Megan wanted to hear. Her cousin had never been one for clichés like, “It will all be okay” or “Everything happens for a reason.”

“It’s just really shitty, you know?” Megan said out loud, shaking Noelle from her own thoughts.

“What do you mean?” Noelle said.

“Like, first I find out that my mom isn’t my mom. And then I come to find that the guy I’m in love with, is actually a psychopath.”

Noelle sighed. With everything that had been happening in her own life, she had completely forgotten about the news her cousin had recently received.

“Have you looked into at all?” Noelle asked. Megan nodded. “You haven’t found out anything?”

“Not yet,” Megan said as she sat up. She turned off the television and looked at her cousin. “It’s almost like I appeared out of thin air, I swear. I tried to look up babies born on my birthday, but of course, that’s not my actual birthday, anyway. It’s just the day Mom first met me. No one knows when I was actually born. They never searched for me or sent out any kind of missing person’s report. I don’t know where else to look.”

Noelle looked at her cousin and she could tell that she was deeply upset and trying hard not to let it show. Noelle reached over and wrapped her arms around Megan’s shoulders, hugging her softly.

“You’re right.” Noelle sighed. “It’s pretty shitty.”

The two girls stared at the black screen of the television, and Noelle realized that this was the first time they had ever been able to stay in the same room with each other alone. The silence felt peaceful between them, and for the first time in a while, Noelle felt like she could breathe. She never would have guessed that in this crazy time of her life, her cousin would be the one to offer her exactly what she needed.

They stayed like that for a while until Noelle’s parents walked inside the apartment. Noelle could tell by their faces that something was off. “What is it?” Noelle asked.

“Sweetie,” Abigail said softly, “we don’t want you to get upset.”

“When you start it off like that, Abigail, how do you think she is going to respond?” Garett said as he reprimanded his wife.

“I was just trying to say…”

“Can someone just tell me what is going on now?” Noelle demanded.

Garett cleared his throat and laid his jacket on the back of the couch before sitting down. “We had a meeting today,” Garett explained, “with the council rebels.”

“You met them?” Noelle asked, sitting up straighter on the couch.

“The WHO rebels?” Megan asked, looking between her uncle and her cousin. Noelle ignored her question as she waited for her father to continue.

“Well, we kind of met them,” Abigail said finally. “It happened like Edmund had explained it to us. We received a note yesterday, indicating a place to meet today, and we were instructed to bring Edmund with us.”

Noelle looked around suddenly at the mention of his name. In the chaos of the morning, she had forgotten about Edmund and only now realized that he was missing.

“Where is he? Was he here this morning?” Noelle asked.

“He was,” Garett explained. “He was hiding in the room since Declan had come in with you.”

“Okay!” Megan yelled out. “Can someone explain to me what the fuck is going on? Because, I only know about one Edmund guy —the kidnapper. And I’m pretty damn sure that my own family would not be harboring the man who kidnapped their own daughter… and niece! Am I wrong?”

Noelle looked at her parents and Garett explained the situation as best he could. He told Megan about the council rebels and Edmund’s role with them, which led to their kidnapping. He tried his best to explain the mission of the council which was not to kill the werewolves, but to help turn them back.

Megan sat there quietly with wide eyes as she listened to her uncle. Finally, he stopped talking and Megan looked at Noelle and asked, “Do you believe him?”

Noelle hesitated before nodding. “I wasn’t sure at first, but it seems quite a grand scheme to try to pull off, don’t you think?”

“I guess so,” Megan said quietly, before retreating into her own thoughts again.

“So, that’s that then,” Abigail said, clapping her hands together as though they’d just settled on which restaurant to eat at.

“No, Mom, that’s not that,” Noelle said slowly. “I asked you a question. Where is he now?” Abigail lowered her eyes and Garett cleared his throat again, uncomfortably. “You let him go, didn’t you?” Noelle said. The disbelief permeating with every word she spoke.

“Noelle, their mission relies on him, and I cannot say that what he is trying to do is something that I disagree with entirely,” Garett said, studying his daughter’s reaction carefully.

“You agree with turning werewolves back into humans?” Noelle asked. “What if they don’t want to turn back? What if this is the life they choose? Then what?”

Abigail closed her eyes and said the words that Noelle had been dreading most, “Then they die.”

Noelle looked around the room and she felt as though everything was shifting around her. She had once requested this exact cure for her own family, so why was she so against it now? They had figured out that with her blood, the cure would be able to change those who had already transformed, which meant that her father would be able to become human again. She herself, could choose her humanity over the wolf inside of her. And Declan —he was a human now, too. This could mean that they could finally have the life together that they both wanted.

But there was a voice inside of her that was screaming —she couldn’t yet decipher the words, but she could tell that one thing was certain. This ultimatum was wrong.

* * *

Declan sat in his office alone, staring at the ceiling as thoughts swirled together in his mind. If he closed his eyes hard enough, he could imagine shutting his mind as well so that all the thinking would just stop. But he was not strong enough to keep the lid shut, and so sprang open his mind again, leading the rampage on, in his head, once again.

He had to figure out a way to reach Gabriel. This was his most important mission at hand. If he could reach him and get him to see the faults in his actions, then Declan would be able to venture forth and chase after the witch that might hold the key to his cure. He needed to warn Gabriel about the hunters as well. Even though Dustin’s pack was far away, they were still too close for comfort, and he and Gabriel needed to come up with a plan.

Then there was Noelle —and what to do about her. Declan was plagued by the images of their evening together, but just like every other time, it seemed that their own problems crept in the way again, keeping them from each other. He sighed, frustrated. He longed for someone to talk to. In this moment, he realized that the only person he wanted to talk to was Dustin.

Declan closed his eyes once again, and pushed against the sudden surge of emotion which overtook him. He hadn’t realized how much he had missed out on having a father figure, not until one was presented to him. It had been such a brief time, and yet, Declan felt like he learned so much about himself as both man and wolf.

He thought suddenly about his own family —the pack. This used to fulfill him and there was nothing more he ever thought he could want, but with the restoration of his humanity, he was noticing different desires taking priority. Declan imagined laying out on the grass by the water, and as he looked to the side, he saw Noelle standing there. She was wearing a simple black bathing suit which hugged her perfect curves.

He heard a voice in the distance, and in the water, he saw a small head bobbing up and down. The voice yelled out again, “Daddy! Daddy! Watch me!”

The little boy ducked under the water and flipped his legs into the air as he did a grand handstand. He came down and popped his head from the water and looked at Declan expectantly.

Declan laughed and clapped his hands together and said, “Good job, son!”

Declan’s office resumed his focus and he brought his feet to the floor and rubbed his eyes. He had never thought that he would make a good father, and he was always terrified that the cruelty of his own father ran through his veins. When he was turned into a werewolf, the idea left him completely, and he could not imagine trying to raise a child in such a chaotic environment. But now that he was human again, he found himself considering the possibility.

What if he didn’t turn back? What if, instead, he and Noelle went away together and had a family of their own? Declan shook his head and stood up from his chair with one question lingering in his mind… why did he have to choose between the two families?

“This ultimatum was wrong.”