Chapter 71

Erin’s POV

It was about an hour’s drive back to our old home from Gavin’s pack. Henry had come to pick me up much to Gavin’s dismay.

We didn’t speak much during the morning as I packed my things, but we said our goodbyes, and I even said my goodbyes to Seth who seemed as if he was actually going to miss me.

I wasn’t sure at what point I fell asleep. But one moment I was sitting beside Henry in his car, and the next I was staring at Jessie in her face.

It was the moment I found out what she was; she had blood all over her face and soaked through her clothes. Her eyes were red and piercing; it was like she was no longer the Jessie I had known.

It’s been a couple of months since I had seen her; when I joined the Moonshadow organization, I hadn’t had a lot of time for her. Perhaps it was my fault for being too busy to notice the changes in her.

I saw the drained human on the ground; he was long dead and Jessie was standing over his body.

“Jessie…” I croaked, rushing toward her with tears in my eyes. My body was shaking as I stared at my best friend; I was staring at the face of what she had become. “What happened to you?”

“I’ve been trying to tell you…” She whispered hoarsely. “I…I… I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

She stumbled backward; her eyes were returning back to their normal shade of green and tears escaped her eyes at a quick pace.

I quickly took off my coat and wrapped it around her bare shoulders; she was completely naked and I had never seen her look this pale.

I knew her 18(th) birthday was only a month ago and I wondered if this was some kind of sick ability that she had. But looking at the deceased man in front of her and the blood covering her flesh, I knew it wasn’t an ability.

This was no gift from the moon goddess.

“I thought maybe it would have skipped my generation as it did with my older sister and brother,” she said, her words quivering.

“What? I asked, unsure of what she was talking about.

“My father…” she whispered. “He’s a vampire…”

My heart plummeted into my stomach; how had I not known that my best friend’s father was a vampire? This entire time?

She was filled with so much grief and fear that it destroyed me.

“I’m in so much trouble…” she cried.

I was sent by my boss, Theo, to investigate suspicious murders in the area and it turns out Jessie was the one responsible.

She had no idea I was a part of the Moonshadow organization; I would be breaking contract if I told her the truth.

“It’s going to be okay…” I assured her. “Nobody is going to know about this. I promise. Let’s get rid of this body and get you cleaned up…”

She sat frozen as I tried my best at hiding the body; I was breaking so many rules and I would certainly get kicked out of the organization if they knew. But I needed to protect Jessie; right now, she was my main priority.

Once the body was gone, I helped Jessie to her feet and we walked to my small apartment just right outside of the pack we were in. I lived alone, which I found to be the best considering I was hardly ever home. It was more of a decoy home than anything. I mainly lived at the headquarters because I was always on missions with my partner, Henry.

I helped her into the hot shower and waited while she finished cleaning herself; once she was done, she left the bathroom with her damp red hair stuck to her shoulders and a towel wrapped around her frail body.

She was still shaking as she curled up on the couch, tears falling from her eyes once again. I wasn’t sure what to say to her at that moment, so I allowed her to cry. She murmured some stuff I couldn’t understand through her crying, but I didn’t ask her to repeat herself. I knew it was difficult for her to relive what was happening.

I was still wrapping my own mind around the fact that her father was a vampire, and her mother was a werewolf.

Which made Jessie a hybrid.

That was almost unheard of.

My phone rang and I knew right away, before even looking, that it was Henry on the other end.

“I have your location pinned; you went home?” He asked as soon as I answered the phone.

“It’s a long story,” I explained, trying to keep the worry and hurt out of my voice. “I can’t really talk right now.”

“You need to tell me what’s going on, Erin,” he said firmly; he wasn’t messing around.

I didn’t want to lie to Henry… I trusted him. He was my partner and over time, he has become my friend.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I hid in my room, out of earshot of Jessie.

“It was Jessie,” I whispered.

“What?” He asked; I had spoken about Jessie many times, so he knew whom she was upon hearing her name. “What do you mean?”

“She was the one who killed those people…”

“I don’t understand. Why would your best friend do all of that? From what you tell me, she wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

“She wouldn’t,” I said almost coldly. “Something happened…”

“Tell me what it is and we can fix it. If these murders weren’t really her fault… like maybe self-defense, we can fight it and clear her name,” Henry suggested.

My heart tugged painfully in my chest as I closed my eyes, releasing some stray teas. I knew telling him this information was a risk, but I had to.

“She’s a hybrid,” I whispered.

“A what?”

“A hybrid… half vampire, half werewolf,” I explained.

“I know what a hybrid is,” he said in disbelief. “But those are very rare… are you sure—”

“Yes,” I blurted. “I’m sure… she’s terrifired, Henry. She isn’t sure what to do and I’m not sure what to tell her.”

“Okay…” he breathed. “For starters, we need to report it to headquarters.”

“No…” I said quickly. “I cant report it. They would want her dead.”

“She’s your friend, they won’t hurt your friend unless they have your complete understanding. You need to trust Theo.”

“I do trust him, but I need to do what’s best for Jessie,” I told him.

“This is what’s best,” Henry said with finality in his tone. “It’s your duty to report this, Erin. It’ll put everyone in danger if you don’t…”

“Henry—”

Just as I was about to continue my protest, I heard the door of my apartment opening and slamming shut. I felt a rush of panic as I rushed to the living room.

She was gone.

“Erin? What is it?” Henry said on the other line. “What’s wrong?”

“Henry, she’s gone,” I cried. “I need to find her!”

“You need to report it to Theo!” Henry said just as I hung up the phone.

He was right; I needed to let the organization know. I opened my email list and quickly typed out my findings about Jessie. I made sure to note that she was my friend, and that she shouldn’t be touched until I can reach her.

I let him know that I wanted to protect her and maybe keep her in a safe facility until we knew exactly how to help her.

I pressed send quickly and shoved my phone into my pocket as I rushed to find her.

I was able to pick up her scent easily in my wolf form; I ignored the buzzing of my phone in my pocket. As I made my way through various parks and forests, I heard screaming along the way. That must have meant she had made her way through here already.

My heart was thudding violently against my chest; I heard the yelling of men and women in their towns. I heard the cursing and rage; causing me to pause.

What the hell was going on?

I grabbed my phone to glance at the screen and I saw a bunch of missed calls and texts from Henry.

I opened one of them and it felt like my entire world was crashing around me.

“Erin! You didn’t just send that email to Theo. You sent it to every Alpha in the werewolf territory! Everybody is aware Jessie I hybrid.”

Oh, my goddess.

I rushed to find her even quicker, but I wasn’t fast enough.

By the time I reached her, it was too late. I watched as my best friend was slaughtered by angry wolves.