Fate Decides

Chapter Twenty-Five

Something is shaking my shoulder. Mumbling, I try to roll over to get away from the insistent shaking, but my rounded stomach prevents me from escaping. My back is sore and the persistent ache has just been getting worse. The blankets I am searching for are not below or around me and the cold wetness of mud squishes as I move. Blinking my eyes open, I realize that I am no longer safe with my mates. The memory of being surrounded by alphas and then total darkness comes rushing back to me as I struggle to sit up.

"Finally," a relieved voice says.

Hesitantly, I turn my head towards the unfamiliar voice and find two bodies hovering next to me. They are both teenagers, probably around my age, but look much younger. The girl has a hard scowl on her face as she meets my gaze, while the boy just has a look of weariness.

"We've been trying to wake you up for hours," the boy says, sitting back on his feet from a kneeled position. The girl scoots closer to the boy as if she is afraid to be too far away from him. I do not blame her. Strangers are some of the most frightening things out there, especially in the world we now live in.

"Who are you?" I question, my voice scratchy from lack of use and sleep. I swallow, trying to relieve the tickle in my throat, but it does not seem to help.

"Better question is who are you?" the girl finally says, a bite to her voice. She does not seem too fond of me if her harsh glare says anything.

"Allie, hush," the boy says, turning to look at her before returning his gaze to me. "I'm Micah, and she's my sister Allie."

I nod my head, looking around for Taylor. Micah notices me looking and points behind me. Turning my head, I see my friend slumped against the wall, eyes closed and lips parted.

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah, just sleeping," Micah tells me, helping me to stand up and waddle over to Taylor. "You guys have been out for days."

"Days?"

"Yeah, at least two, but you lose count in here," he says, motioning his arm around him.

Looking around, I see that we are in a small wooden shack. This place is even smaller than the tree house we had been living in, and that is saying something. Holes in the roof let in bits of sunlight, casting an eerie glow about the room. And there is a perpetual stench, most likely caused by the rusted over bucket in the room, used for god knows what.

"Taylor," I say softly, gently shaking his shoulder to wake him up. He does not budge, staying completely unconscious, unaware of what is happening around him. I am almost hesitant to have him wake up, knowing that he will most likely fall into a full blown panic attack once he realizes what has happened, but my desire to have someone I know around me is too strong.

"Taylor," I try again, shaking him a bit harder than last time. He stirs a little, but his eyes stay closed. "You need to wake up, Taylor."

A moan falls from his lips as his eyes finally flutter open. Slowly, he raises his head up from the awkward sideways position it had been in while he was sleeping. Lethargically, he blinks his eyes and takes in our surroundings. The mud below us and the unfamiliar shack trapping us in makes his breath speed up, and I can tell that the memories are coming back to him, too.

"L-Liam," he says, finally fully awake, the panic clear in his voice. "Please tell me this is a dream." Tears start falling down his face and his bottom lip wobbles as he tries to catch his breath.

I wrap my arms around him, pulling him as close to my body as I can. He buries his head into my neck, and I can feel the wetness of his tears on my skin. Hesitantly, I shake my head and I feel Taylor trying to take in shaky breaths as he fights the panic attack.