Chapter 47

The other wolves got to work stripping the hunters and a few of them got dressed in their clothing. Ariel moved up into the nicer portion of the prison, mostly to be away from the commotion.

She sat on the floor and took some deep breaths. The air was a little easier to breath, and it didn't make her feel like she was suffocating. With all of the wolves below both counting in her and not trusting her, it was like she was being smothered in hope and fear. She heard footsteps and once more she knew it was Cole before he said anything. This time he sat across from her and when she looked at him, the troubled look on his face had her curuius.

"One step closer to freeing your home." She told him, but his eyes remained transfixed on the ground. He was clearly very troubled, but also conflicted.

"You should get some rest. The others are ready to go." She tried, hoping to get a reaction out of him. When that didn't work, she moved to get up, but his voice stopped her.

"Why did you let yourself get cought?" She sat back down as his eyes moved to her face. He looked hurt. She could not understand what was happening.

"If I hadn't, your warrior would have been killed." She said slowly, as if it was the most obvious thing. He still looked troubled and hurt.

"You could have died." He told her, and she dropped her eyes to the floor.

"I'm just a rogue here in your pack. I serve no other purpose than to help get the hunters out. His life is more inpoartant than mine." She pointed out. His face was red and he looked as though he wanted to shout, to scream. Instead he stood and walked away, back down to the lower part of the prison. Pack wolves were still a mystery to her. The longer she was around them, the less she understood them. Cole acted like he wanted to get close, then he said or did something to remind her that she was only here because she was useful.

Ariel had moved into one of the nicer cells to get some rest. The wooden planks used for beds was no better than what she had been sleeping on, but no worse either. It was hard and cold, but she could bare it in her wolf form. So she slept. It was a deep restful sleep. One, mercifully, without dreams. A restful sleep was hard to come by now. Since the hunters arrived everyone, including her, were terrified they would show up and find them. After having killed a few of their men, ot was even more of a possibility now.

She awoke to Cole gently nudging her. She lifted her head and shifted to her human form. She was expecting him to tell her that it was time to go, but he just stood there before her.

"The scars." He demanded. Ariel sighed and rubbed her hands over her face.

"All these questions. You are very curious." She groaned, still shaking the sleep from her mind.

"How many pack wolves have you killed?" He demanded, to which she sighed.

"None. I've avoided pack wolves as much as I could. It was made very clear to me that I'm not wanted. The scars are from a run in with other rogues. I was alone and they saw me as easy prey." She stood, bit was surprised by the look on his face. Somewhere between horror and shame.

"You ran into pack wolves before you made it here?" He asked, a strange look in his eyes.

"Yes. One not long after I escaped, and then the one where I saved the kids. Though I didn't get the pleasure of being told off by that one." She joked coldly. Cole stood there in silence for a time. Ariel watched him for only part of it before retrieving the tattered and bloody shirt that was her only form of clothing. She slipped it on, but Cole grabbed her arm as she went to walk past.

A warm jolt shot through her body and she had to suppress a shudder. His skin was not even touching g her own, but she could feel him as if it was. Her eyes met his and there was such a raging torrent of mixed up emotions withing his. She found herself longing to reach up and touch his face, to calm the storm of his mind, but she didn't. Whatever all of this was, it could not happen. She looked down at his hand and gently removed it from her arm.

"I can't give you what your looking for." She told him softly. Before he could react or respond, she moved past him and up the stairs. She opened the door a crack and peeked put, glad to see that the sun was setting. Now they could begin.

She gave a whistle down the stairs and slipped off the shirt again, shifting into her wolf and she stepped outside. She shook herself, then stretched, glad for the wide open spaces. It felt good to be out, even if she knew that it meant more fighting. Soon, the others began to join her. All of the wolves that could, and were able to, were going to fight. It was going to be hard and there was no way of telling if they would win, but they at least had to try.

They were going in three groups. Ariel was going with Cole, the alpha who she learned was named Joshua, the large tanned wolf named Mark, the dark skinned wolf named Ilaius, and Cole's father, Alexander. They were to be a small strike team, taking out the important targets while the the other two groups were to cause as much chaos as they could throughout the rest of the town. Everyone knew not to swallow the blood of the hunters, and to get their guns whenever possible. Without those two things, the hunters were far easier to dispatch.