“What is it?” Noelle asked, looking at Edmund. He would not turn to look at her despite the obvious urgency in her voice. “What do you see, Edmund?”

“Noelle,” Edmund responded quietly, “come here and take a look at this.”

Noelle walked closer by Edmund and leaned forward, placing her eye against the lens of the microscope. She did not see anything and she was growing impatient as she waited to find out what he discovered.

“Just wait for it,” Edmund whispered.

Noelle suddenly realized just how close he was, standing next to her. She tried not to let his breath (that was tickling her ear) distract her from her blood, sitting beneath the scope.

Out of nowhere, she saw a blur fly across the screen. She leaned back quickly and blinked a few times to clear her vision. “Did you see it?” Edmund asked, watching her expression carefully.

“I’m not sure,” Noelle admitted. “All I saw was a blip kind of thing? Like something flew really fast underneath the lens or something.”

Edmund shook his head. “No, no, Noelle. That was in your blood sample that you saw the blip, as you call it. Do you realize what is happening?”

Noelle stared at Edmund dumbly as she waited for him to explain further. She wasn’t a scientist and had no real interest in the subject, apart from general stuff that may or may not have intrigued her over the years.

“Okay,” said Edmund, obviously struggling to remain calm, “let me back up here and try to explain this as simply as I can.”

“Gee, thanks,” Noelle grumbled.

Edmund shot her a warning look and she pretended to zip her lips shut, and mocked throwing away the key. He rolled his eyes and then cleared his throat theatrically before he started to explain.

“I’ve kind of explained this before when I talked to you about how the cure would work for werewolves —or almost werewolves. The one to turn them back into humans. The elixir would go in and essentially it would break apart the werewolf genes, making them weaker. This then allows the human genes to rekindle themselves and voila! Does that make sense so far?”

“I guess so?” Noelle said, more as a question than an answer.

“Okay, well, this is your blood that we are looking at. And that blip —ugh, how can I say this so that it makes sense?”

Edmund turned frustrated, looking toward the wall. Then he turned to resume, facing Noelle as though a light bulb had gone off in his head.

“Think of it this way! That blip that you saw was like a bomb exploding, because right now, your genes are at war.” Edmund beamed at her, visibly pleased with the metaphor he had concocted, but Noelle felt more lost than ever.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean? That my genes are at war?” Noelle asked growing agitated.

“Noelle,” Edmund said excitedly, “you’re a true hybrid now. You have completed your first transformation, but the human genes in your body are not just rolling over on this one! No, those suckers are fighting back big time. Fighting against the new werewolf genes that have come to town.”

“Wait a minute, wait a minute,” Noelle said, sitting down again. “So, you mean to tell me that I am not a werewolf, but I am not a human either?”

“What did you think I meant when I told you that you were a hybrid?”

Now it was Noelle’s turn to roll her eyes. “Well, I know the technicalities behind it. I just figured, you know, that both sides would kind of mesh together. You know? Not that there would be an epic battle happening inside of me making me faint all over the place.”

“Well, if my theory is correct, the side effects should lessen the more and more you transform. That’s because your wolf genes will only grow stronger. Or of course, there is another option,” Edmund said slowly.

“What’s that?” Noelle asked.

“You could take the cure,” Edmund said looking straight into her eyes. “You could become a full-on human again.”

His words hung between them like a bridge connecting Noelle with Edmund. Once again, she found herself face to face with an impossible decision. One way could lead her into Edmund’s arms again, but she was not sure if that’s where she wanted to be at all. The other way could lead her back to Declan. But which way would lead her to herself?

“Do I have to make that decision?” Noelle asked quietly.

“I’m afraid so, Noelle,” Edmund said, finally turning to break their gaze. “The longer you wait to decide which side to choose, the weaker you will become.”

Noelle nodded as though what he said made complete sense. There was a loud knocking belting at the door, and Noelle’s parents peered inside of the basement.

“Say none of this to anyone else,” Noelle whispered to him. Edmund gritted his teeth and hesitated before nodding.

“How is it going in here?” Garett asked, eyeing the two of them carefully.

“Well,” Edmund said, resuming the familiar doctor voice that Noelle used to know so well, “we did a full work up and it looks like nothing is wrong, she is just fatigued from all of the excitement.”

“Oh, that’s great news, honey!” Abigail smiled at them. “We were so worried.” Noelle could only nod her head.

“Right.” Garett coughed to clear his throat. “Help me out here, Edmund. What are we supposed to do in this situation, exactly? I mean, you kidnapped my daughter on one hand, but on the other hand you may have done it for good reasons, I guess. But I’m her father god-damn it, and there’s a really big part of me that still wants to kill you for what you did to my baby girl.”

Edmund’s face contorted somewhere between laughter and fear. He couldn’t tell if the death threat was in jest or whether it stemmed from a very real place. Edmund looked at Noelle and he hoped that she could see his apology in his eyes. He had said the words so much that they had lost their flavor. He could only rely on their connection now —or what might be left of it.

“Why don’t you come up for dinner?” Noelle asked. The question shocked all three of the people standing in the basement.

Garett and Abigail exchanged a worried look, but Edmund looked the most perturbed of them all. It didn’t take a scientist to know that he was unsure about where the invitation came from. Was Noelle trying to make amends, or was she taking an opportunity to trap him? Edmund’s stomach grumbled as if on cue, and that seemed a sufficient enough answer for everyone standing in the basement.

* * *

Declan met up with Maria following his talk with Dustin. She was about to head out to her favorite spot and offered for him to come along as well. They walked along, talking animatedly about their most memorable hunts until the conversation drifted into more defined territory. A place where they discussed the toughest things they’ve had to do as the chosen alphas of their packs.

“This whole problem with the hunters in this area is really getting to me,” Maria said. “I mean, they’ve always been here and we’ve dealt with the one-off situations pretty well. Usually, we just scare the shit out of them so they leave us alone. But it’s like they grew in confidence and size, almost overnight. I can’t explain it.”

Declan listened carefully as Maria spoke, and he made a mental note to discuss all of this with Gabriel when he came for the meeting of the alphas for the following night. This pack was not that far from Declan’s own pack and so this concern could easily spread to them.

Maria pushed aside the lower branches of the trees and Declan saw that they had reached a small river. The water rushed by quickly and you could hear the rhythmic trickling sounds as the water moved carelessly over the stones. Maria smiled at him, pleased with his reaction to the scene. She reached down at the hem of her shirt and swiftly pulled it up and over her head. Declan watched her carefully as she leaned forward to pull her shorts off.

“Are you going to join me?” Maria asked, a devilish look dancing in her eyes.

Declan did not respond. He reached down to his own shirt and took it from his body, followed quickly by his jeans. Maria walked into the water and it covered her all the way to her collar bone. She turned and looked at Declan, daring him to follow her.

He walked in and the chill of the water stopped him in his tracks. Maria let out a melodic laugh and said, “What happened? You don’t like the cold?”

“Can’t say I’m the biggest fan of it.” Declan laughed once he’d recovered himself. He walked further out into the water, determined not to let her down. For some reason, he cared about what Maria thought of him.

“This is the only place I can come to really think,” she said quietly.

“It’s peaceful here,” Declan said in a calm voice. He closed the space between them so that only a few inches of water stood between them.

“Well, it’s hard to think now, with you here,” Maria said. But Declan recognized that look in her eyes.

“Do you wish I didn’t come?” he asked, pressing his body to hers.

Maria shook her head and Declan immediately closed the gap between their lips. He ran his hands through her wavy blonde hair and pressed her face to his. Desperately, he ran his tongue along her lower lip and teased her mouth open. She invited him in and playfully bit at his bottom lip. The bite sent heat throughout his body.

He reached around to her back and unclasped her bra, letting it fall into the water and drift away downstream. Declan ran his thumb over her nipples softly, and before cupping her breasts and bringing his lips to them, sucking softly. Maria threw her head back in pleasure as she lightly ran her fingernails down his back.

Declan felt along her stomach to the curve of her hips until he hit the piece of fabric that separated him from what he desired most. He ripped her panties as he gazed right into her purple eyes. Her eyes widened a little and Declan smiled at her reaction. She reached at his waistband and pulled down his own boxers, allowing his hard cock to spring free. She massaged it gently, stroking it back and forth. Now it was Declan’s turn to close his eyes in pleasure at the rhythmic tugging.

In one swift motion, he picked her up and held her body against his own with one arm. He placed himself inside of her. She wrapped her hands around his neck and rocked herself against him, gently at first. She brought herself up and Declan took the opportunity to suck at her hard nipples. She began picking up the pace and bringing herself up and down with speed.

Declan could tell when she was close because her breathing picked up pace and she shut her eyes tight in concentration. Seconds later, he felt the rush of wetness cover him as her muscles contracted in and out around him. Without removing himself from within her, Declan carried her to the shore.

He laid her down on the makeshift beach of dirt and sand and he started to rock himself into her. Declan pushed her legs back so that her knees were to her chest. He pushed himself in and out as deep as she could stand it, and finally, he could feel the tension released. He let himself go inside of her.

When the throbbing sensation had worn off, he pulled himself out of her and rolled to the side. Perfectly, they both laid there naked, staring up into the sky.

“Yep,” Maria said, “being the alpha is really hard sometimes.”

Declan looked at her sideways and she let loose one of her brilliant smiles. He couldn’t help but laugh, and in the midst of all of this, he didn’t dare to say it out loud, but he was feeling pretty happy.

* * *

“So, Edmund,” Abigail said as she filled his plate with fresh salad, “other than kidnapping our daughter, what have you been up to lately?”

“I’m never going to live this down, am I?” Edmund said under his breath.

“Do you think you deserve to?” Abigail asked humorlessly. Edmund shrugged and offered no response to Abigail’s question.

“Tell us more about these council rebels, Edmund,” Garett said as he thoughtfully considered his pasta.

“I have told you everything I really know about them,” Edmund replied. Garett looked over at him and put his fork back on the plate.

“You said they contacted you when you began that research project for your father, is that right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“How did they contact you? Was it by letter or by phone… or by person? By carrier pigeon, perhaps?”

Edmund stood hungrily at his plate of untouched food, but he knew he would not be able to eat until he had told them everything they wanted to know.

“They contacted me by letter.”

“And what did the letter say exactly?” asked Garrett.

“Not much.” Edmund furrowed his brows together as he tried to recall the contents of the letter. “It just asked for me to meet a Mr. Sanders to discuss the project I was working on. Especially if I was interested in additional funding. Naturally, I went.”

“And did you meet this Mr. Sanders?”

Edmund shook his head. “No, I went to the address they provided at the time that it specified, but no one was there. Instead, I found an additional letter. This is when I learned of the rebel factions and their desire to create the cure.”

“And just like that, you started working on developing this cure for people you never met?”

“No,” Edmund said thoughtfully. “Honestly, I threw the letter away shortly after reading it and I forgot about it until a few months had passed. I then received another letter requesting a meeting with Mr. Sanders. Out of morbid curiosity, I went. This time I was taken into a large, dark room. There was one bright light which shone on me and then a man started speaking. He apologized for the untoward method of meeting. However, given his line of work, he could never know who he could trust. And that’s why he kept his identity completely hidden.” Garett and Abigail exchanged looks with each other.

“This is all pretty weird,” Noelle blurted out. “I mean, if there really are rebel factions hard at work out there, why haven’t we heard about them, until now?”

“They do not openly advertise themselves, Noelle,” Edmund said beginning to lose his patience. “They only seek those who have a specific specialty that might be able to help them.”

“Edmund, eat,” Abigail said quietly. “You’ve hardly even touched your food.”

Edmund looked cautiously at Noelle who nodded at his plate. He felt unsure at first, and the idea had crossed his mind that the food may be poisoned, but he ate it anyway.

There was a knock at the door and Abigail stood up from her place to answer it. “Who is it?” she called out.

“Megan!” the voice responded.

Abigail pulled open the door and Megan stood there. From the doorway, she wasn’t able to see into the dining room, but Noelle’s heart was racing anyway. She had not even thought about how to explain all of this to her cousin and Gabriel.

“Hey, Meggy, what’s going on?” Abigail asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.

“Nothing much,” she said. “This was in the mailbox, though. It’s for Noelle. Is she here?”

“She’s resting,” Abigail responded a little too quickly. “I can give it to her when she gets up.” Megan nodded and handed her aunt the small envelope. She walked down the hallway and Abigail offered a final wave before closing and locking the door.

She walked into the dining room where the three others sat frozen in their seats. “That was a close call,” Noelle said quietly.

“Yes, a little too close,” Garett agreed. “We will have to come up with an explanation sooner rather than later.”

“What did she want?” Noelle asked.

Abigail handed Noelle the envelope and said, “She gave this for you.”

“Who is it from?”

“I don’t know. There is no return address on the envelope.”

Noelle ripped open the envelope and took out the small piece of paper from inside. Her mouth gaped as she read the contents of the note.

“What is it, Noelle?” her father asked, worried by her expression. Noelle looked up at them and then back at the letter.

She said aloud, “Dear Miss Noelle. We are requesting a formal meeting this Saturday evening at seven pm. We would like to discuss a potential role for you within our organization. Signed, sincerely yours, Mr. Sanders.” Garett looked at Abigail who looked at Noelle. Then, all at once, they turned to look at Edmund.

“Once again, she found herself face to face with an impossible decision.”