The Pack Thief

24

Willow's POV

When the sun had fallen to give birth to the nighttime sky, the ship that my broken and weary soul was, sought out a port of relaxation. Somewhere to dock, somewhere that would give me comfort. But even in the sea of the bed that I'd grown to love, my soul found nowhere to dock. There was no solace to be found.

My mind, my body, my soul, all were plagued with a restlessness that left me staring up at the dark canopy. Though physically exhausted from the day behind me, my mind was wide awake. Haunted by the eerie silence around me. The house had come alive with creaks and groans, as if it was taunting me.

The monsters within my soul joined together in the shadows to watch me--To stalk me. I could feel them all around me, just as I could my very own fear. Its dark blanket of terror covered me like the duvet. But its blanket didn't warm my soul. It chilled me to the core, leaving a wake of goosebumps against my skin.

The night had already been so long. And it had only just begun.

The pack link may have finally gone silent, as pack members around, closed their eyes and succumbed to sleep. I was anything but silent though. My wolf cried out for Cyrus, and I with her. Everything inside of me wanted him back. Everything but my forsaken pride. Without him being only a room away, the large house suddenly felt vast like the dark ocean.

It was crippling--Suffocating.

I was alone. Completely and utterly alone. There was no Cyrus at the foot of my bed, or even at the side of it. No, he was somewhere out in the world. He was away, because I had succeeded in chasing him. The man that fought off my nightmares, the one that held my hand, he was nowhere.

The demons that he fought off night after night, were now left to their own accords. And from the darkest corners of my mind, they were born.

Images of the men who attacked me flashed through my mind like strobe lights. Merciless, empty eyes seemed to open within the shadows, staring at me. Laughter echoed around the agonizingly silent house. My ears rang. The walls crawled.

My skin crawled.

I wanted to scream. But instead I was choking on the flashbacks that I could still feel to this day. Their hands against my body, clawing at me and tearing at my dress...Left me wanting to jump out of my very own skin. I hated the skin that they touched.

A layer of sweat began to build up behind my neck, and in an attempt to rid the image of them from my mind, I closed my eyes. As if I could hide from them. Doing so only put me closer to them, trapping me inside of the constraints of my mind.

My heart rattled inside of my panting chest.

My eyes flew open, just as I flew from the bed. The comfort that it used to provide was gone. Long gone. Gone like my mate was. And yet I rushed to his room, rushed to it as if I'd find him standing there with his arms wide open.

But what I found was a barren and empty room. The bed was made, the curtains were drawn. No signs of life existed within the room. It was as if he had never been there--Never even existed. The best memories in my mind, now seemed like nothing more than figments of my imagination.

Reality crept through the door.

I chased my mate away. The man who had been nothing but patient with me, nothing but accepting--I had chased him away. He was gone because of me. A tear caught me by surprise, as it slid down my face. Before I could even wipe it, another one slipped. Then another, until my legs buckled beneath me and I collapsed towards the ground.

My hand was clamped over my own mouth, as if doing so would silence the sound of my wailing. Nothing could silence the sound though. So I released it all. I released it into the empty house, crying to the point that I was wheezing.