POV: SAINT
My eyes felt itchy as I struggled to open them. My body was heavy and painful. Did Sam drag me across the ground? I couldn't scratch my itchy eyes and quickly realized my hands were tied behind my back, though my legs were free. With the little strength I had left, I groaned, sat up, and tried to steady myself.
"Why are my eyes so itchy? Ugh!" I groaned again, raising my legs to attempt to rub my eyes on my lap. After several tries, I succeeded. I blinked rapidly, struggling to fully open my eyes, but eventually, I managed.
I found myself in a small room lit only by a lamp. The place was a mess, with dirty plates and clothes scattered everywhere. I couldn't tell if it was a bedroom or a kitchen. There was just one small window, and it was shut; the broken part suggested it was around evening. How long had I been unconscious, and where was I?
I twisted my tied hands behind me, hoping to break free, but it was no use. The rope only dug into my skin, causing pain. With a sigh of frustration, I got onto my knees, using the wall for support until I was finally able to stand. My legs felt a bit weak, but I managed to limp toward the window to see if I could figure out where I was. I couldn't. Tall trees surrounded the area, making it hard to recognize my location. Does he plan to kill me? Why did he bring me here?
I approached the door and kicked it hard while shouting, "Let me out!" but received no answer.
Pulling back for a moment, I then charged at the door, using my shoulders to slam against it. The end result was the door still being perfectly shut, while I felt even more pain. Still hurting, I stood ready to kick it again when suddenly, it swung open from the other side, striking me right on the nose.
"Ahh!" I cried out, stumbling back and scrunching my sore nose.
"You're so damn loud, shut up, you mutt!" shouted a man, his voice booming. He was a werewolf, an alpha by the scent, and he looked strong enough to break me in half.
"Let me go! Where's Sam?" I asked, my voice trembling.
The man stepped closer and bowed down. "Alright, Luna," he said, and before I knew it, his fist collided with my face, sending pain jolting through my body.
"Ahh!" I screamed in agony, tears filling my eyes as I couldn't even touch my aching cheeks because my hands were tied behind me.
"Can you be quiet? You think just because you're the Luna of that stupid pack, you can give me orders?" he snapped, glaring at me.
"Now you both are being noisy," another man said as he entered. "Sam told us not to do anything to him. Leave him be, Tony. We have better things to do." He walked out after that.
"You're lucky," the first man said, pointing at me before leaving the room, leaving me in pain.
He could have simply told me he wouldn't listen instead of hitting me. It really hurts. I can't help but wonder if Jackson even noticed I'm missing. Mateo, Marcus, and I should have trusted our instincts and not opened that stupid door.
A few minutes later, the door swung open again. Two men pushed Evelyn inside, causing her to fall hard onto her tied hands. Blake was pushed in as well. He rushed to his mother, helping her to her feet. Her hair was messy, her clothes were dirty, and bruises were forming on her pale skin. Her hands were tied in front of her. In contrast, Blake looked completely fine. He had no bruises, his hair was neat, and his clothes were clean. The only sign that he was struggling was the tears on his face.
"Don't worry about me, Blake. I'll be okay, alright? Come on, let's sit down," Evelyn said in a raspy voice.
"Y-you're hurt," Blake replied, more tears streaming down his face.
"I'll heal soon, okay? I promise I'll be alright. You believe me, don't you?" She gently cupped his face with her tied hands. Blake nodded, his eyes watery. She gave him a sad smile, one filled with pain. "Let's sit," she said, guiding him to a corner.
I watched their interaction in silence. Once they settled down, the room fell quiet as well. I was unsure how to ask what was happening. I had thought that Evelyn and Sam were working together, using Blake. But seeing Evelyn like this, I started to doubt that.
Blake would sometimes glance at me, quickly looking away whenever our eyes met. Evelyn had a blank expression, staring off into space. "Um, are you okay?" I asked, even though I knew it was a stupid question.
She met my gaze briefly before turning her eyes back to the ground. "That's not the question you really want to ask."
She was right. I was really curious about what had happened, why she ran away, how she and Blake ended up here, what Sam's plan was, and most importantly, whether she had known about Sam all along.
Instead, I shifted my focus to Blake. "Are you alright?"
Blake nodded slightly and bit his lip. He hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "When you go back, can you tell Tom I'm sorry? I didn't mean to say those things to him."
I gave him a small smile. "Tom isn't angry with you; he's just worried. But don't worry, we'll all be going home soon, okay?" He nodded, his gaze fixed on the ground.
After a brief silence, Evelyn broke it. "Since you don't want to ask any questions, I'll ask one instead. How did Sam manage to kidnap you?" she inquired, her voice lacking emotion. It seemed like she wasn't genuinely interested; she just wanted to break the heavy silence that filled the room.
"My friends and I were supposed to look for something in his house for him to be detained, but it turned out to be a trap. My friends lost consciousness, and I got kidnapped," I explained.
She didn't respond, just stared at the ground. Then I asked, "Why did you run away?"
"That's what Sam told the pack, right?"
"Yes."
She let out a scoff. "I didn't get the chance. I really wanted to take Blake and escape from all this chaos, but he found the plane tickets and kidnapped me instead."
"Why did you want to leave? Did you know—"
"Of course I knew my son was the small whisperer. That's why I wanted to take him away, so he wouldn't have to deal with all this craziness. He doesn't deserve what they've done to him." She cried as Blake held her tight. I had thought she supported all of this. I had assumed she was a bad mother, using her child against the pack.
She wiped her eyes before saying, "There's nothing in our house that would have shown Sam was behind all this. Our house wasn't where the spells were cast on Blake."
"What do you mean?"
"Do you know the gate isn't the only way to leave the pack? I discovered that and planned to escape with Blake, but he caught me." She looked at me and added, "I found out everything about them, which is why he promised to kill me."