The Fade

Chapter 7 - B

Seeing the silhouette of Nathan's body up ahead, I immediately stop, gripping on to Jason's hand. He stills, eyes ahead, seeing in the dark perfectly, terror in them.

"Jason, don't." I whisper, warning him.

The officers approach behind us, too slow to stop Jason. He quickly rips his hand from mine, sprinting through the woods to his brother. Gasping, I don't think twice before taking off after him, not wanting him to face it alone.

"STOP!" The officers scream at us, running after us with their torches.

Given that they're human, they don't have the terrain well, giving us the upper hand. Even daemphurs are better built for the woods than humans.

Jason falls to his knees upon seeing his twin, instantly his guard comes crumbling down and he releases the most heartbreaking sob I've ever heard in my life. My heart breaks a little inside, and my eyes tear up. For a few moments I stand and watch Jason as he embraces his brother, uncaring that he's brutally mangled or that he's gone. His sobs over his body, gripping onto him and screaming.

Taking a shaky breath, I silently move to Jason's side, knowing he needs comfort from the living, not the dead.

"Jason." I croak, kneeling down beside him and gently pulling him off his twin.

"He's dead, Ronnie!...HES FUCKING DEAD." He sobs, eyes piercing black, canines exposed as his anger takes over.

I say nothing, knowing no words can possibly end his suffering. So instead I wrap my arms around him, forcing him to release Nathan's body. Even as he sobs against me, even as his claws sink into my flesh as he grips onto me, I make no sound. Despite the pain, I didn't push him away, instead I hold him tightly. Silently crying even as the officers begin to tape up the area, forensics taking images and checking everything raging from the trees to the floor.

Arriving back at the police station with the officers, I slide out of the car after Jason who quickly moves inside the building, silent. Following after him, I hear the whispers and crying of Jason and his family, so I stay across the room to give them space. Huddling up in the corner, I remain silent as I come to terms with what I've seen tonight.

"Veronica...how are you holding up?" The gentle voice of Mrs McCall forces me to raise my head.

Quickly wiping my eyes I straighten up. "I'm fine, Mrs McCall, do you think Jason will be ok?" I ask softly, quietly as she takes a seat beside me.

"Baby Im not blind, I know you're hurting just as much as we are." She softly whispers, taking my hand in both of hers.

My eyes sting and I look away from her bloodshot eyes, my throat tightening. I feel like I'm imposing on them, like I don't deserve to cry because he wasn't my family.

"He wasn't even going to come to my party, and I bribed him to. He only came because I wanted him to....if he hadn't, he'd be..." I trail off, my voice breaking.

"Maybe, maybe not, we can't torture ourselves with what could have been. The only one to blame, is the one who did this." Her voice is gentle, wavering a little as she holds back her tears.

"They're saying it's an animal attack." I sniffle, leaning my head against her shoulder.

"We know different, we'll find who did this." She promises, her tone hushed.

"I know it's a lot to ask given everything, but would you mind staying the night? I don't want Jason to be alone, or you." Her voice is so heartbroken, so sad that I couldn't say no.

"I'll bring the gear, you bring the guns." I murmur to her.

Mrs McCall smiles a small genuine smile, giving my hand a squeeze. The saying has always been kind of an inside joke after Nathan's fourteenth birthday. He put on a show, pretending to be the godfather and told everyone to bring the gear, he'll bring the guns. Every time we get together, which isn't very often, we make the comment merely out of habit.

"You're soaked, I have a spare change of clothes in the car you can use." She suddenly says, taking a deep calming breath before standing up.

"Are you sure?" I ask softly.

"Definitely, you're going to get hypothermia if you don't get dry and warm, and I can't deal with anything happening to you, or Jason." She gives me a small smile, gesturing for me to wait as she exits the station.

Mr McCall and Jason talk quietly in the corner, huddled together. I presume they're talking about who did it, and what species. Truth is, to me it seems like a wolf. The puncture wounds, and the bites on Nathan's ankles are very specific to how wolves take down their prey. This wolf went straight for the kill, no questions asked. It's not my place to say anything, and I doubt they want an outsiders opinion so I choose to remain silent about my theory.

"Thank you." I take the clothes that Mrs McCall offers me, standing from the chair as she shows me where the bathroom is.

Locking the door I quickly strip out of my wet clothes, leaving my damp underwear on. Filling the sink with warm water, I begin to wash away the blood, my hands trembling as I scrub them with soap.

Glancing in the mirror, I freeze as I see myself for the first time. My skin is pale, blotchy and splattered with blood, my eyes bloodshot and dull, tired. My hair mattered on the left side with both blood and mud, dried against my scalp. All in all, I look like I've been dragged through hell and back.

Once my hands are clean I begin to clean my face, harshly scrubbing at my skin to remove his blood. Tears stream down my face as I rinse my hair out under the tap, the deep red blood washing down the drain hole.

Some time later I exit the bathroom, feeling a little better now that his blood isn't covering me.

"Miss, would you like me to dispose of your items?" An officer asks me kindly, as if seeing that I don't want them anymore.

"Please." I mutter, handing him the wet clothes.

"Your family is waiting, they'll inform you of what we know." He gives me a small smile.

Nodding my head I turn around, wrapping my arms around myself as I enter the waiting area. Mrs McCall turns to me, giving me a small smile as she examines my much cleaner appearance.

"Come on baby." She wraps her arm around my back, rubbing my arm as we exit the station.

The entire ride to their home is silent, Jason keeps a hold of my hand, needing the comfort without saying anything. My head throbs, and I realise just how tired I am, and how sore my body is, like all my energy has been drained.

My eyes close on their own accord, and I fall to sleep against Jason's arm, my hand still holding his.