Fire And Ice

Chapter 73 - Promises: Retribution and Reconciliation

Kirstin's P. O. V

My hands trembled as I shoved things into my bag. I was a mass of tears, tremors and terror. I could barely see what I was putting in the damn thing through my tears, but only one thing rang through my mind as I dashed around my room.

Get out.

The evidence I'd gathered and some essentials had been the first things to go into the rucksack, so everything else was just a formality. I picked a thick enough jacket for the chill I expected, and a few other pieces of warm clothing, then I zipped it closed with all the finality I felt.

I couldn't do this.

It was the dead middle of night. Most of the house was fast asleep, and anyone who wasn't was thoroughly engrossed in one activity or another. I turned my shower on, zipped my boots up and threw my hood over my head, feeling the bristled edges of my uneven haircut graze against my neck and shoulders.

The window opened with a muffled click, and I climbed out. The bricks of the building were poor ledges for my already unsteady hands to hold on to, but I strained to hold on, fighting back the tears of pain and distraught that threatened to spill over.

I dropped the last few feet, not landing nearly as softly as I'd hoped to, and scrambled to my feet. My legs ached from work and their wounds as I sprinted away from everything I'd ever known, and I refused to give them reprieve till I was well into the forest and out of anyone's sight or hearing range. Only then did I contact Ari, sending her only three words:

'I need out.'

Hailey's P. O. V

Months had passed since summer ended and we'd returned to the city but I missed it all the same. I hadn't realised how constantly my senses were bombarded by an array of harsh human sounds, scents and sights till I'd spent a stretch of time without them. Or how tranquil I felt being so close to nature for so long.

I knew Ari would never agree to it, out of guilt or duty, but everything in me was telling me to go back to our pack to live my days out there. Save for the matter of missing Kaelin and my turmoil surrounding Tim, I'd probably be content there.

Kaelin, smart as he was, had started prepping for the December exams weeks ago and I'd spent the day with him in an attempt to find some motivation to read mine, being three weeks away. I was walking to Ari's place after a day of staring at the same page of a pdf on my laptop, hoping for a nap, a distraction, or both.

When I turned the corner, Ari's mansion came into view, along with a girl, a Werewolf, exiting a taxi in front of it. As I watched her begin the walk up Ari's driveway, the only thing I could think was that she looked... tired. World weary and wide eyed, her short, awkwardly cut hair brushed her neck as she looked around in muted awe.

I hurried the rest of the way to the house, getting to the door as Ari was gently welcoming the girl. She looked up at me as I approached, and the girl followed her gaze to do the same, her brown eyes filled with a mix of surprise and suspicion.

"Good, you're here." She said as she ushered us both inside and out of the nippy November weather. Not that she needed to, radiating warmth as she always did, "Hailey, this is Kirstin, our inside person. Kirstin, this is Hailey, my half-sister."

Surprise overtook suspicion on Kirstin's face, "That means she's..."

"Also Clark's child."

Kirstin flinched at the mention of his name.

"Nice to meet you, Hailey."

"You too..." I said, then couldn't stop myself from asking, "Are you alright? You don't look too good."