"Apparently they've been planning this in secret for a long time, hiring rogues and stocking up on wolfsbane," Claire says.
"Where did they even got that much wolfsbane from?" I ask.
"They probably don't have too much, just enough to try to assassinate some high ranking werewolves so their packs become weak and unable to defend themselves when attacked," she replies.
I still can't believe the Timbernook pack would go this far. Timbernook is not one of the strongest packs out there but it's neither weak. With an army of rogues they've allegedly gathered and a small stash of wolfsbane to kill the key werewolves who can thwart their scheme to overthrow other packs, Timbernook might just get away with it all if everything went according to their plan.
I don't know how but Claire finally managed to make Ben spill the beans to her: Timbernook was behind all the attacks.
Killing a pack's current Alpha will make the next in line take their place, which sometimes can strengthen the pack further as the pack will then have an Alpha at their prime age. That's why Timbernook targeted the future Alphas of the packs because that'll weaken not only the Alphas but also the morale of the packs.
"It's insane," I tell her. "So why is no one doing anything about it?"
"They will. Everyone is just biding time to get some more proof. After that, Timbernook won't even see it coming."
Claire's phone beeps, notifying an incoming message. She reads it. "It's Lora," she says. "She wants to go shopping."
Lora is one of our friends from a small neighborhood pack. If you want to shop, Lora is the girl to do it with.
"I'm not in the mood," I say.
"Neither am I. But, come on, we need to get out for some fresh air. I can't stay cooped up in here a second longer."
I give in at that. It's been ages since our group date. We haven't gone outside much.
We pick up Lora and head to one of the malls in the city. Just to be safe, we chose the one that's inside our packland boundary.
After three hours of browsing dresses, shoes, handbags, and makeup, Lora finally gets tired. We have our lunch in the mall before we get ready to go back home.
As we walk to our car in the parking lot, Claire drops her phone while taking it out of her purse. As she bends down to pick it up, I hear a sharp sound of metal. In a split second, my shoulder is hit by something incredibly forceful, making me fall.
I don't know if it's the pain on my shoulder where the bullet went through or the back of my head that hit the floor, it starts to become unbearable and I begin to lose my consciousness. The last thing I hear is Claire call my name. She sounds scared.
––––
It's darkness everywhere. I don't remember it getting so dark. My body tries to figure out what to do next. Then my eyelids strain to open. When they open they do so slowly and hesitantly as if they are doing this for the first time.
At first, the light was barely there and blurry. Then the view becomes brighter and sharper.
I see Claire's face first. It takes a second for me to realize she's saying something, and then my body switches on its hearing function.
"Rose!" she says. "Rose, can you hear me?" She turns around and shouts, "Rose is awake! Call the doctor!"
Her shouting is bothering me. But I'm glad I'm hearing her. She's safe. Then I wonder why I'm so relieved she's safe. Why is she bent over me? Why do I feel like I can't move?
