*Grayson*"She was a complete mess when we first found her," Nyx stated as we entered the house. Ria and I had been on patrol with a few of the pack warriors when we'd gotten a call that there was some kind of situation down at Tala's house. It turned out that her mother had almost driven a wooden stake through her heart and killed herself. I frowned as Nyx closed the door behind us before coming to walk us to where the woman sat on the couch, tears streaming down her eyes.I felt my heart drop to the pit of my stomach as my wolf howled inside of me.It was just like I was reliving that morning all over again. We'd gone to inform her that we'd discovered her daughter in an alley and that she was no longer with us. Sarah and Will had been so distraught that morning and I could vividly remember that Sarah had been thrashing and screaming for almost the entire day. Ginny had stayed with her for a few days before she'd calmed down.I pulled a seat close and sat down directly across from S

*Grayson*"Where's your mother?" I asked the pup currently clutching my legs. I looked around, trying to see if anyone was coming after him. When no one appeared in sight, I furrowed my eyebrows, lifting the little boy and holding him in my arms. Keera's words from earlier about ensuring that the pack was more aware of their families echoes in my mind. I hadn't admitted then and I still wasn't ready to admit it now, but she had been right. Everyone was so used to the pack being safe that they were finding it difficult being extra cautious.Even with their pups apparently.I was about to ask Ria if she knew who the pup's mother was when a talk blonde came running towards me. She glared at the pup in my hand, and then stood with her head bowed, not meeting my eyes. I shook my head disappointedly, leaning forward so I could transfer the little boy to her arms. "You might not find him so easily next time." I said simply, moving to continue my walk with Ria. Even the goddess knew that I was

*Grayson*"I'm thinking of calling for reinforcement." I said to Ryan and Jax. We were seated in my office and my hands were folded on the desk as I tried to explain why I had come up with the idea in the first place. I'd already placed a call to the Alpha of one of the packs nearby and he'd assured me that he was going to do whatever he could to help. Ryan and Jax met each other's gaze for a spell before turning to me. "We've lost a total of fifteen people now." I reminded them, pinching the bridge of my nose. "I want the killer found and apprehended immediately." Ryan leaned forward in his seat, shooting me a concerned look. "We want the same thing," He said calmly. "Of course we do." He seemed to be contemplating his next words carefully. "But I'm not sure what you hope to achieve by calling in reinforcement from some other pack." Jax echoed that he felt the same way. I groaned, wishing that they would understand.Didn't they get it?I tapped my knuckles on the desk a little impat

*Grayson*I didn't do this often. Eardrop, that is. Usually I'd always been the type to mind my business and not give a fuck what anyone else was up to. Which was why I was a little surprised that I was standing stealthily by the foot of the stairs, using my abilities to listen in on the conversation going on in the dining area. From what I could make out, Keera, Kathryn and Lexi were the only members of the team who weren't present in the discussion. It was just Josie and Joe talking. I could definitely see how Keera wouldn't be present anyway.She was the topic of discussion after all."She's not exactly as cold as I thought she was," Josie was saying a little warmly. My eyebrows rose at that. It was very easy to see why anyone's first guess on meeting Keera was that she was cold. She wasn't exactly the laughing playing around type. She hardly even smiled at anyone. What I really found surprising was Josie's statement that she wasn't as cold as she'd earlier thought.Keera might hav

*Grayson*The pack had been more than a little busy the last two days. I'd asked Keera and her team to pause whatever plan they had set in motion until we were done with the bonfire ritual. I didn't need them upsetting anyone or poking any wounds since the ritual was already emotional and a bit upsetting as it was. More than that, it was also a way of having them show some respect for our dead.I haven't even been in the house for more than an hour in the past two days. A lot of preparations were being made. Fifteen people had died in total. The council had to pay a collective visit to each of the affected families, bearing a lot of consolation gifts. It was the first step to kick the ritual in motion. We'd covered fourteen of the victims when I'd decided to come back home to freshen up and get a few things.The last victim was Sam.And since he had no family, we'd all decided that we were going to pay our respects to Ginny instead. He had always said she was like the daughter he'd ne