"A package?"
"Freya...don't."
Freya looked at Clara curiously and folded her arms across her chest. "Is something wrong?"
"My brother blackmailed me. Freya, you must understand: I had no choice." Clara insisted. "He would have made me into the hybrid I was supposed to be."
"What have you done?" Freya knotted her brow together. There was an uneasiness in her chest.
With a sigh, Clara lifted the box's top and showed her the contents inside. "It's Jackson's heart."
The witch gasped and place a hand on her mouth. Jackson was dead. Clara killed him. The uneasiness quickly turned into a despair for the Alpha wolf. Freya held herself tightly and stood, staring at the box. There was nothing she, nor anyone, could say. Clara stood just as silent beside her. The top was placed back on the box to preserve any decency she had left for the wolf. Her mind wandered back to the auto shop. What she felt when that witch bitch starting taking away the effects of the spell... it was pain unlike anything she'd ever felt. Her bones literally broke and shifted, like her body was trying to remake itself. It was. A shudder passed through her at the thought of having to turn even once.
Elijah and Vincent returned to the courtyard of the compound. Freya was clutching her chest with one hand and a piece of parchment in another. Clara has tears in her eyes and blood on her hands. They were staring at a small, cream-colored box on the table.
Elijah immediately sensed something was wrong. He rushed over to them. Vincent hung back.
"Freya? Clara? What's happening?" Elijah questioned, his voice full of concern.
With tearful eyes Freya replied lowly. "A messenger came. Some compelled tourist. He left this..." She decided to keep the part about Clara to herself for the time being.
Clara, whose face was covered in tears, gestured towards the box on the table. Elijah, both concerned and suspicious, gently lifted the corner of the lid to the box while Vincent watched from behind. When Elijah saw the bloody heart inside, he immediately shut the lid and took a deep breath to prepare. "Who?"
"Jackson." Clara's voice broke.
Elijah closed his eyes and sighed for a moment. He was overwhelmed by the news.
Freya held up a letter in her hand, which had a message handwritten in print. "Courtesy of the Strix." She sighed and sat down on the couch.
"'Dearest friends, please find enclosed the heart of Jackson. Hayley's will follow unless you meet me at Coltrane's Auto Shop, 1268 Adderly in the ninth. Kind regards, Tristan.'" Elijah sighed. "'Ps. Don't be too hard on my dearest Clara.'" He paused. "So, unless we meet their demands, Hayley will be next." Then, he met Clara's teary-eyed gaze. "What did he mean by that?"
"He made me..." Clara trailed off. Suddenly she wanted Lucien to wrap his arms around her and tell her it wasn't her fault. But it was. "He- I ripped Jackson's heart out."
"What could he have possibly done to make you do such a thing?" Elijah's accusatory tone angered Clara.
With gritted teeth she replied lowly, "He was going to undo the spell. A witch who was a descendant of the one who put the original spell on me- she was under his control. If I didn't rip Jackson's heart out,have turned." Clara fidgeted with the ring on her finger. "I'm sorry. But-"
"I want you to listen carefully to what I'm about to say Clara," Elijah spoke slowly and narrowed his eyes. Clara was unsure of what to do so she clasped her hands together nervously. "Hayley will want to kill you for this. She just might try, in fact. I suggest you go to Lucien. Go now. We'll rescue her soon enough and you shouldn't be here when she arrives back."
