Chapter 52

Gavin’s POV

The rain was quick but extremely effective. As soon as it cleared, Gavin was ordering the fire and police department to get inside the building and get everybody out.

Just before Gavin ran inside himself, he spotted Erin from across the scene. She was standing in a quiet and secluded area, staring up at the sky. He glanced upward as well, watching as the clouds lightened and the sun returned, warming, and drying the grounds.

He glanced back at Erin; he felt a fondness for her at that moment. Her powers were incredibly amazing, and he found himself in awe.

She was glorious and beautiful; even more so now than she was all those years ago.

How could he have treated her so cruelly earlier?

His wolf was right; he shouldn’t have been so harsh against her. It was obvious the breakup affected her as well. She thought she was doing him a favor; doing what was right to secure his future.

She was young and didn’t know any better. She didn’t know how deeply he was in love with her. How deeply he was still in love with her.

He wanted to prove to be the man that she deserved; he wanted to be by her side through thick and thin.

Gavin pulled his gaze away from Erin long enough to get inside the hospital. Everything was soaked and burned to a crisp.

There were many victims that didn’t make it and a lot that was seriously injured. They were taken out of the hospital and transferred to another hospital.

There was a lot of panic, a lot of crying, and hyperventilating.

Gavin tried his best to calm down those he passed but there was one room he was heading to.

As he reached the door, he kicked it open only to see Susanna still in her bed.

She was sitting up and looked shaken. Her eyes were incredibly misty, and her lip was quivering. She was trying hard not to burst into tears.

Though she was shaken, she looked seemingly unharmed. She wasn’t even covered in any soot.

In fact, her room didn’t look like it was touched at all.

“You weren’t hurt?” Gavin asked, staring around the room curiously. “Did the fire not reach this room?”

From the looks of the outside, it was surprising that there were some rooms that were untouched.

She wiped some tears off her face as she struggled to get out of bed.

“No, it didn’t. I got lucky I suppose,” she sniffled. “Oh, Gavin. It was awful in here. I didn’t think I was going to make it out alive.”

She burst into tears as she ran towards him. He remained still when she threw her arms around him. He wasn’t going to hug her back, but he didn’t push her off either. Despite everything Susanna had done, Gavin still cared for her as a friend, and he didn’t wish her any harm.

“We need to transfer you to a new hospital,” Gavin told her, stepping away from her. She looked up at him, startled.

“No!” She protested. “Can’t I just stay in your packhouse? You can take care of me… can’t you?” She asked, batting her long lashes at him.

“I’m afraid not. You need medical attention. I’m transferring all the survivors to a new hospital.”

She pouted, but she didn’t argue.

He lifted Susanna off the ground and carried her out of her room. She leaned her head against his chest as he made his way out of the hospital and into the light of the outside.

Most fell silent when he emerged from the building; their eyes were anything but pleased. Most of their lips were pressed together and their eyes narrowed at him.

It was very accusing.

He paid them no attention though as he brought Susanna to one of the ambulances that had recently arrived from another hospital.

“I’ll come to check on you later,” Gavin told her, putting her down.

“Why can’t you come with me?” She pouted.

Gavin glanced across the scene to Erin who still remained in her spot. She looked a little shaken as she stared around at the quiet crowd. Her face was red, and she was avoiding his eyes even though she could feel his eyes on her.

“I have to deal with things here,” he answered. “Go on,” he ordered as he turned away from her and began walking toward Erin.

Before he could reach her, a hand wrapped around his wrist, stopping him. He looked down at an older woman who was staring up at him with bloodshot eyes and a pale face.

“You did this,” she hissed. “This was your fault, Alpha.”

“Excuse me?” Gavin asked, alarmed by her words.

Gavin understood that tension was high and that everybody was on edge, but to be blamed for such a heinous crime when he was nowhere near the building during the fire?

Her hand remained around his wrist, and it began trembling as tears filled her eyes.

“Y… you monster…”

He placed his hand gently over hers until she released her hold on him.

Before he could say anything in response, another voice sounded from behind him.

“What kind of magic did you use to start his fire?”

Others were glaring at him with fearful eyes; reporters were turning on their cameras, pointing directly at Gavin’s face.

“We know it was you who did this! You did nothing to help since you arrived. You watched the hospital burn!”

Beta Seth was by his side quickly.

“The Alpha isn’t going to take any of these accusations. Leave the premises this instance,” Seth ordered.

“What does the Alpha have to say for himself?” One of the reporters asked.

Seth was about to answer again when Gavin raised his hand in front of Seth’s face, stopping him. The rest of the crowd started to silence slightly as well, giving Gavin some room to speak.

“I will be answering all questions at a later time. For right now, I want you to take care of yourselves. Victims are being transported to another hospital. You may either join them or return to your homes.”

More murmurs and accusations spread across the crowd, but Gavin had said all he needed to say at that moment. He turned away and went straight to Erin on the far side of the scenery.

“Are you okay?” Gavin asked. “What you did was incredible.”

She glanced up at him, giving him a tired smile.

“It’s been a long time since I used my abilities like that,” she admitted. “I guess it took a lot out of me…”

“You should get back to the packhouse and get some rest,” he told her, keeping his tone soft as he addressed her.

She nodded, but there was uncertainty on her face.

“I could hear the others talking,” she whispered. “They think it was you who started this fire.”

“I know,” he said, glancing behind his shoulder at the gossiping crowd. “I’ll make a statement later to address the situation.”

“I don’t know if that’ll do any good,” she said, shaking her head. “The fire didn’t feel normal. It’s obvious someone with abilities started it. They aren’t going to be satisfied until someone is held accountable.”

“I’ll find out who started it,” Gavin assured her. “I will clear my name. It’s not something for you to worry about.”

She nodded, but she still looked unsure.

“What?” Gavin urged.

“I’m sorry for earlier…” she breathed. “That fight—”

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” he said, stopping her words. “I’m the one who’s sorry. I overreacted. I understand why you did what you did…”

She looked surprised as she met his eyes.

“I’m not going to let something like that get me down,” he assured her. “I promise… it’s okay.”

She gave him a small smile and nodded in return.

“I’ll go back to the packhouse now,” she said tiredly.

“Thank you for saving the hospital, Erin. I seriously owe you everything.”

She gave him a small laugh.

“Yes, you do.”

…

Henry’s POV

“We need you on a new mission,” Theo said, leaning against his desk and peering over at Henry.

“What’s going on?”

“There’s been a slayer sighting. They are returning and they are after those with abilities once again.”

“How do you know they are back?” Henry asked. “I thought we got rid of them long ago.”

“They’ve been following someone,” Theo explained. “They’ve also been using wolves as vessels to get what they want. They’ve returned much stronger and smarter. We need to be wary.” He paused for a moment. “We need to make sure they don’t get her…”

“Her?” Henry asked, raising his brows. “Who?”

There was a moment of long pause as Theo met Henry’s eyes.

“Erin.”