JADA WARREN
"Are you okay, Julian?" Isabelle's eyes were liquid gentleness, oozing with care for my best friend. He sent her a guarded smile and nodded stiffly in response.
The doctors had run tests on me three days ago and had deemed me clear to leave the infirmary, telling me to keep my wounds clean. I felt fine for the most part, but my body temperature was worryingly higher than it normally was, although I was assured it was the wolf blood in my system. Still, it made my skin crawl. I had always been a prominent Hunter, the transformation was proving not as simple as I'd hoped.
It was roughly seven and we had just finished eating when Isabelle told us it was time to see Isaac. I know Julian did not want to be apart of this altercation at all, but he chose to come anyways, needing some sort of closure.
My heart ached for him. He had already lost a mate, to lose someone he finally allowed himself to be open for, it had to be excruciating for him. He made it extremely difficult to talk to him, he'd mastered the art of blocking people out to the extent that even I was having trouble.
We used to always use our connecting door to sleep beside each other at night, to talk by ourselves. He had locked the door, leaving me unable to get into his room at night. He woke up earlier than anyone else, trained before everyone else, and then locked himself in his room until dinner, where he avoided eye contact with everyone.
Isabelle sent me a heartbroken expression. How do we help him? She asked me softly through our link. I was still not used to the mental communication, but I managed to keep my unease at bay. I didn't want her to worry about me, not now.
I think this will help him, I responded back truthfully. I'll speak to him tonight, if all else fails. He did the same thing with Lilah. It's his way of coping.
I hope you're right, she sighed, I hate seeing him like this.
Of course I'm right, if I know anyone, it is Julian.
We stopped speaking then, and she unlocked the prison doors that led into the basement. The door guards standing at the bottom of the stairs nodded their respects to the three of us, and we walked by them swiftly.
The cells were not similar to human prison cells in the sense that the cells here were large rooms with silver doors and handles on both the outside and inside. There was a small slot to put their food trays at the bottom of the door, but no other opening whatsoever.
We walked through two hallways of silver doors before Isabelle reached for a handle with her leather glove on. She unlocked the fingerprint lock with the bare hand and opened the door loudly.
Isaac was sitting in the corner, looking rougher than I'd ever seen him. His hair was matted to his face with sweat and grime and the bags under his eyes were dark and heavy. He glanced up with a startled cry, pushing himself farther into the corner. The bruises lining his cheekbones, the marks along his arms, and his busted lip only proved why he reacted the way he did.
I saw Julian's fists clench tightly at his sides, and he jaw clamped shut. When Isaac pried his eyes open and saw the three of us, his face melted into desperation.
"Finally!" He sobbed, "I know-"
"Sit at the table, will you?" Isabelle asked, her voice fluid and demanding. Scared by the Alpha, Isaac scrambled hastily to his feet and stumbled into the chair on one side of the table that was positioned in the room.
There were two chairs on each side, and Isabelle sat down across from Isaac, looking directly at him. I slid into the seat next to her before realizing, and I immediately stood up and motioned for Julian to sit while I pulled the chair on Isaac's side around.
"Why did you do it?"
Ignoring Isabelle's question, Isaac's soft eyes only watched Julian, who kept his gaze away from his. "Julian..." Isaac whispered, "Julian I never meant to hurt any of you, you have to understand. I love-"
"Answer her question," I barked, cutting him off. I know if he finished his proclamation, Julian would lose it completely. I knew they hadn't exchanged I love you's, I knew hearing the boy he loved say it to him after such a great deal of betrayal, would send him tumbling even further downwards.
"He threatened me, he told me if I didn't give him the information, he'd kill my sister." Knowing we were unaware he even had a sister, he continued. "Her name is Holly, she's twenty six. She lives in Canada with some of my extended family. We were separated when my parents died. Please..."
We remained quiet, not really knowing what to say. He continued. "Julian, please, forgive me. I never meant for anyone to get hurt. I didn't want-"
"But you did," Julian answered, his voice blank and quiet. "You did it. Why didn't you tell me?"
He looked up then, his eyes locking in with Isaac's. When the Korean boy remained silent, Julian's face twisted angrily. "Why didn't you tell me?" He yelled, slamming his fists on the table. "Why didn't you let me help you? Why didn't you trust me enough to tell me? It's my job to protect! I would have kept your sister safe!"
"Julian, I'm-"
"You almost killed her," Julian snarled. "You almost killed Jada. Have you seen the side of her fucking face? Have you seen the claw marks on her cheek and the whip scars all over her back? She's going to be haunted by that every time she looks into a mirror, you selfish asshole.
"Do you know how hard she is taking the transformation? She never wanted to be a werewolf! It's fucking destroying her! She's in constant battle with a wolf she never wanted. Do you-"
I cut him off angrily, temporarily hating him for not only knowing how hard I was taking it without having even told him, but also for voicing the truth in front of Isabelle, who now looked stricken. "That is enough, Julian."
His voice dropped. "I lost my mate already. You almost cost me my best friend. I can never forgive you for that. She is the most important person in my life, and you almost took her away from me. That is unforgivable."
"I love you," Isaac whispered.
"You don't. You don't. If you ever loved me you wouldn't have betrayed any of us. If you loved me you would have come to me. I came to this pack to assist it, I could have protected your sister if it came to that. But you ruined Jada's life instead. You ruined my trust in you. You ruined us. That's a decision you made. Don't tell me you love me, that's bullshit, Isaac."
"It's not," the boy cried out, tears now leaking from his eyes. I felt for him, I really did. I knew he never intended to hurt any of us, I knew he feared for his sister. Jared was incredibly gifted at manipulation, I couldn't blame Isaac for falling for it.
"I love you, Julian, please, forgive me. I'm so sorry, I'm so so sorry. I'll do anything, please don't leave. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me since he died. I never thought I'd be able to move on. But I love you, I'm in love with you. Just, please, I-" He began sobbing so intensely that his entire body wracked with sobs. I watched as Julian broke down.
"I love you," my best friend whispered, defeated. "You were the only person I let in after Delilah, the only person I felt for, no matter how many others I'd tried to pursue before you. I love you so much that it hurts to breathe. But you betrayed me. I cannot forgive you for that. You betrayed all of our trust. Jada will always come first, you knew that when you decided to betray us."
Isaac cried even harder, putting his face in his palms and shaking with sobs. "Please, please, please," he pleaded, "please. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. Please. I'm sorry."
Julian was up and out of the cell in seconds, and I was quick to jump out of my seat and follow behind him. I didn't bother to stay behind to hear what Isabelle had to say, my main concern was making sure Julian was okay.
I followed him past the guards, up the stairs, and down the hall towards the gymnasium in the house. He ripped off his shirt and tossed it to the side, his dagger finding its' way into his fist. He flicked it open and twisted suddenly, aiming at me.
My whip slid off from around my wrist and I caught his arm, pulling him away from me. He ducked out from under the gold that snaked towards him, and he let out a leg and tripped me. I went fumbling to the ground, my back burning as my healing wounds scraped against the floor boards.
I rolled out from under him before he could straddle me, and he dropped to his knees. I snaked my whip around his neck and pulled so the back of his head was pressed against my abdomen.
"Talk to me, Jules," I pleaded breathlessly. "Stop blocking me out."
"Let me go," he grumbled, though he made no movement to get out of my weak hold.
"No."
"Jada, let me go."
"Suck my ass."
"I will if you let me go."
I grimaced, but couldn't contain the snort that escaped. Letting my whip curl around my wrist again, I shoved him away from me gently. While he assembled himself on the ground, I turned away to grab the dagger he'd dropped when he cussed loudly behind me.
"Shit, Jada, your back is bloody as hell. Come on, let's go clean it." He knew he had me there, successfully procrastinating his own intervention to help me clean my now freshly opened wounds. My back was on fire, but that wasn't the reason I scowled at his retreating figure.
Julian never ceased to put me first, and while I appreciated him with everything I had, I wanted to be the one to take care of him this time. He may be oblivious to it, but the minute we reached his room, I was trapping him inside until he at least promised to let me help him eventually.
I followed behind him as we made our way into his room. I sat on the foot of his bed after closing his door and I watched him grab the first aid kit he kept in his closet. I'd already peeled my shirt off when he finally grabbed it, but the sight of me topless was nothing new to him, and he didn't blink an eye.
He sat behind me and I heard the kit unzip. He rummaged a bit while I waited impatiently, and when he finally began to pull off the bloodied gauze on my back, I opened my mouth to strike, but he beat me to it.
"I'm sorry for saying that stuff to him in front of Isabelle. I know you don't want her to know you're taking the transformation hard," he mumbled, hands moving around to continue peeling off my gauze.
At this, I scowled subconsciously. "Dick move," I agreed with him, nodding, "but I know you didn't say it with the intention of ratting me out to Isabelle. I just don't want to worry her, or offend her. I just... don't want to be this."
"You're technically not fully a werewolf," my blonde best friend mentioned, but it wasn't enough. I didn't want to be any werewolf. I wanted to be me, a Hunter, the same woman I'd arrived as. I knew I was anything but.
"It hurts, Jay," he finally whispered. He'd gotten all the gauze off, and I could hear him swish a bottle of rubbing alcohol. "It hurts, to be away from him. It hurts to be in the same room as him. This is different than Lilah. She didn't choose to leave, she was taken from me. He chose to do what he did."
"I know he did, and I'm not suggesting you- fuck!" I cussed, the alcohol burning my open wounds. With my jaw clenched, I said through my teeth, "-forgive him, but try and understand his situation."
"I've already forgiven him for the decision he made. I know why he did it. But he still hurt you. I'm cleaning wounds you got from a whip, Jada. A whip that would have never touched your skin if he hadn't of betrayed us. There is no future for us, I'll be staying in Toronto after the wedding."
"That's your choice, Jules. I love you regardless. I just wish it didn't have to be so difficult for you, I wish you could be happy," I confessed to him.
"You make me happy," he said, his voice soft. "Maybe I'll find someone else eventually, but I don't need someone else to be happy. I'm happy with you, I'm happy with me. It hurts, the betrayal, not being able to be with him anymore. But it would hurt more to stay."
"You're everything to me," I told him in response, feeling him rest his forehead against the back of my right shoulder. I closed my eyes, enjoying the rare moment I got alone with him. I missed him, I really did. It was rare to get such moments with him anymore, but I was grateful to have them.
He finished cleaning my back when I felt Isabelle in my mind. I clenched my teeth together, irritated by her ability to do that, but ignored her and kissed Julian on the cheek briefly. "Thank you. Isabelle is trying to reach me, but I'll come find you tonight."
"Love you, good luck," he snickered, looking somewhat lighter.
I rolled my eyes. "Appreciated."
I left to go find Isabelle, assuming she would be in her bedroom. I found her in the connecting bathroom, her head against the toilet seat. Though not at all sanitary, it wasn't the germs that worried me.
"Have you still not seen Lanie about that?" I asked her, my eyebrows furrowing. "Iz, that's the umpteenth time you've thrown up in three days. Are you pregnant?" I teased gently, but the worry couldn't be hidden.
She spit into the toilet, ignoring my questions entirely. "Why didn't you tell me how you were feeling?"
"Not now, Isabelle. We need to get you to the pack doctor, do you need help up?" I stepped forward, but she weakly lifted a hand and waved me away once.
"I don't understand why you couldn't have just said something to me, I would've understood," she mumbled, sighing deeply. "You need to trust me more, Jada."
I didn't want to deal with this right now. I couldn't, I was not in the mood to argue with my mate, who refused to see a doctor despite her head being inside a toilet seat.
Irritated, I twisted on my heel, throwing a swift, "I'm going to get Charlie," over my shoulder, and then I left the bathroom.