I felt better.

It sounds insane, but I did. It was like I had been woken up from a peaceful sleep or given an extra shot of an everlasting espresso. My blood was humming loud, burning like a delicious fire that licked its way throughout my body.

The more it hummed the more Evan's hummed. His beast reached out and met mine, testing it and challenging it. My beast loved it, she loved pushing our younger brother, she loved how his veins hummed even louder when we pushed him.

We ran quickly home and we were coming close to the cabins, I felt him.

Ethan.

Soon I saw his beast furiously running towards us. Shit. He knew. He knew that I had been gone.

Dammit. Dammit. Dammit.

He skidded to a halt as a low growl vibrated off of him. He flickered his eyes to Evan, Ryder, then to me before he rumbled some more. My female wasn't in the mood though. She rumbled back. Our male needed to get over himself.

"Where were you?" His anger was hard to hide. I couldn't blame him in a way. He probably panicked when he realized that I wasn't there.

I sighed and looked at Evan and Ryder. "Go home, I need to talk to him." Ethan cocked his head as his brother trotted off with an amused glint in his eye. He looked back at me with blue-green eyes that were full or fury and fear. Fear from his mate that had gone missing in the night. "Take me somewhere we can talk."

He looked at me for a while then turned and ran in a direction that I knew. To the treehouse. We ran hard there, he was sparing me no mercy and I wasn't going to spare him any either.

My mate was an alpha male and after my little tumble with Levi, I was damn well determined to make sure he knew what kind of blood he had. Oh, he had an ass beating coming. A Thorne ass beating. No more beating around the bushes or hand holding, it was time to put all our cards on the table.

We made it to the treehouse as the night breeze ran through my fur. My wolf growled in approval. She may have injuries old and new, but it didn't matter. We were an alpha female, a female that would one day look over this pack, and we wouldn't let our wounds hold us back from what must be done.

I ran to a familiar burrow and pulled out a shirt and some spandex shorts with my teeth then quickly shifted to my skin and pulled them on before Ethan came marching out from another set of trees with some shorts on.

"Where the hell were you!?" he growled out. He was pissed and he was mildly entitled to be, maybe really entitled...

"What does it smell like?

He sniffed the air and snarled. "You smell like Levi and another male, now tell me sunshine, who the hell were you with?!"

I started to slowly walk around him. God, I wondered if this is how Levi felt? He was fuming, he was fuming and his veins started to hum. I could feel the energy from here and I wondered if he even realized it.

"Well, I was with Levi," I answered honestly. "The other male is Liam." He growled a little which made me roll my eyes. "Easy Ethan. He's nothing. There was a potential bond but nothing more, I feel nothing for him but friendship. He's like a brother to me."

I said the words but I felt guilt. I should have told him about Liam before. He tugged at his hair and started to walk slowly as well. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

"I should have told you, I'm sorry. I would have eventually, it just didn't seem important after I met you, the bond felt so insignificant with him."

"So why were you with him tonight?" He snapped out. I could hear the jealousy. My beast rolled her eyes at him as he looked us over and snarled so more. "Why were you with him and why do you look like you got the shit beat out of you sunshine?"

I snarled at him. "It was a tie!" He cocked his brow as we mirrored each other's arched steps. "Levi and I had a go tonight. We tied."

"You went to the border? Are you out of your mind!? There are rogues coming across the borders and you just ran to one in the middle of the night?!" I looked up and met his furious eyes. I understood his confusion and frustration, but this was good for him. His veins were humming louder, stronger. He needed to feel this, feel this fire. "What other secrets are you keeping from me?"

"I shouldn't have kept things from you, you're right to be angry but I felt like I had to do it."

"Are you kidding me?" he snarled out. "Do you know how worried I've been about you? I went to your cabin and listened to some bullshit lie from the vamps before I tore off looking for you. I've been out for hours Charlotte, I thought you were hurt or worse!

"But apparently you have more secrets to keep from me. Tell me, where and you have my brother been sneaking off to in the middle of the night? Or my sister?" I stilled and snarled as his eyes filled with cold fury met mine. The tree. He saw us run for the tree. "Oh, I saw that. I have slept outside your cabin every damn night since we heard those damn voices, I just thought you would come to me and tell me. Tell me what the hell it is you're up to!

"And now you come back and you want me to listen to you, you want me to trust you when you come back from being missing for hours smelling like another male and look like you took a turn with those rogues again!"

I snarled viscously to him as my wolf snapped at him. He may be our mate, but he was our round two and we were more than happy to beat his ass right now. "Ethan," I warned.

"What? What Charlotte?" he barked out. "Were you ever going to let me mark you? Huh? Or are you just going to dangle your neck in front of me while you hold my past and yours against me?"

That was it.

I charged him and rammed into him before he knew what was happening. He hit the ground in shock right as I sent a fist to his chin then hit the middle of his chest hard, causing him to lose his breath for a moment.

I jumped off and started to stalk him. I could feel Levi stir in my mind, my father. His wolf reached out to mind and nudged her.

"Beat his ass girly, you know what to do."

I growled in approval. I cocked my head at him while he looked at me in shock. "First of all, insecurity doesn't look good on you love. I told you, Liam is nothing. I am sorry I didn't tell you, but that was the least of my concerns right now."

He jumped up and snarled as he wiped the blood off of his lip. "Concerns? What the hell are you talking about?"

"The truth Ethan. The truth I know you know. The truth that is burning in your veins right now. I should have done this sooner," I grumbled to myself. "Do you really want to know the truth?" I asked him deviously as I stepped closer to him.

He rumbled a little and cocked his head. "Spill sunshine."

I smiled deviously then took another step towards him. He stepped to block me but I turned out of his way and nailed him in the kidney before trotting back the arch I was walking.

Ethan snarled but I only chuckled as I felt his veins burn more, burn brighter. "The truth is I met with Levi, and Lander, and Billy, and your brother because there is some screwed up shit going on here and you have your head up so far your ass you can't see it. I don't really think that's it, I think you don't want to see it because it scares the hell out of you 'white hot.'"

He snarled and lunged at me. I dodged but took a blow to the ribs. My beast cared not though. We blocked his arm then hit him in the gut hard before nailing his shoulder with our fist.

I stepped away and walked more quickly now. Ethan snarled at me but his veins were burning now. There was a fire. A fire that I needed to feed, I needed to bring it out of him.

"You're doing good girl, just keep at it."

Levi.

I smiled inwardly before I snarled back at Ethan. "You're buried in self-loathing, guilt, and you're own pain so deep you don't want to see what you are. You know what's happening here, you know what's happening and you know what the right thing to do is. You haven't done it, though. What the hell would your dad think?"

He lunged at me again. Fists flew and met skin drawing blood. I eventually kicked him hard in the chest away from me and started pacing around him. His blood was close. It was so close. I could feel it. My beast reached out to it and pushed at it, challenged it. She knew we had to keep going, keep pushing.

"You know where I snuck off to? I followed the damn whispers," I said as his mouth dropped. "I know I should have told you and I'm sorry. I really am sorry I didn't tell you, it was wrong. I had my head up my ass and Levi set it straight, but it took me to the tree Ethan. The tree the alpha's swear a blood oath on. I touched it and saw things, saw memories."

"What the hell?! You didn't think to tell me?!"

"I didn't know how because they were so painful. Because I saw things like your mother Ethan. I saw your mother making a damn sandwich while singing in your kitchen. I knew she called you 'white hot' before you told me because I saw her say it. I saw her say it and I saw Levi call Eve 'little red' the day that the attack happened."

Ethan snarled as his veins burned brighter. I could see the pain. I wanted to kiss him and smack him in this moment, but I know I was close. I knew we were close.

"I saw more Ethan. I saw things like your dad in his office and I saw you. I saw you here at the treehouse." His eyes widened as his body stilled. I kept walking slowly though. You had to get the infection out of the wound so it could heal, and right now I was tearing it out as much as I could. "That night you felt my pain, you felt it because I felt yours. I saw you in the treehouse and you were so torn up. I saw the damage to the house, I saw the self-inflicted gashes, and I saw you almost slit your own damn throat.

"I don't ever think I have been more scared than I was in that moment. I knew it was a memory, but I still cried out to you because you were so close to doing it. It broke my damn heart, Ethan. I felt all that pain and it broke my damn heart.

"I heard Evangeline and I saw her come for you. I saw you go to her. Then I saw a part of your soul die. The part of you that scares you, it's still there and fighting to come back.

"I know your pain and I understand, but you can't dwell in it. I know you think it should have been you, but it wasn't. It wasn't you because the moon had other plans for you, plans like this damn pack, your pack–our pack. I'm tired of watching this guilt and fear eat you up because I know you're stronger than that.

"So you want to know when you can have my neck?" I asked as I stepped a little closer to him. He was fuming. His veins were burning like a fire that licked its way to me and made me shiver in delight. "When I came here there was this alpha male roaring his head off. He chased me up a damn tree and somehow turned my damn life upside down. My beast won't settle for less, because the moon did not promise us less. I know what you are and so do you. So when that male shows back up, then he can have my neck, until then I will happily bide my time babe."

That may have done it. I don't think I have ever seen a male so furious, including Levi. Ethan let out a growl of outrage that was like the spark that was needed to set fire to the pool that someone filled with gasoline. Oh, my male was on fire alright. He was on fire and walking towards me.

My beast chuckled a little. Our male was about to find our exactly what he and his female were made of. He was about to find out that we were done trying to 'be patient.' Levi was right. Hand holding was out the door and right now an ass beating was sitting at our dinner table with a ravenous belly.

He tried to ram me with his shoulder but I was too quick for him. I turned and kicked his knee in from behind then sent another blow to his kidneys.

He roared loudly then turned and nailed me twice in the ribs, but I only chuckled when he stepped away, surprising him and myself. I leaped to him and nailed him in the shoulder, I went for another blow but Ethan seemed to snap into the fierce wolf that I heard about–the one that put Billy on his ass. He blocked my blow then grabbed my wrist; he twisted it around and made me wince slightly before smiling deviously at me. "Your neck doesn't look so bad right now, does it, babe?"

I snarled at him. I stomped on his toes hard, which annoyed him more than anything; but it annoyed him enough to distract him so I could land my elbow into his ribs.

He stumbled back, but I used his hand on my wrist as an advantage. I let his arm stretch out before I whipped my wrist around and grabbed his arm; I pulled him towards me and kicked at his kneecap then socked him hard on his cheek.

"Well, I guess we'll have matching faces now," I chuckled out.

He snarled as hair started to sprout all over his body. My beast was ready for this. She had been ready for this. She snapped at him and was ready to show him her teeth. He may be her male, but he needed to pull his head out of his damn ass.

He lunged and shifted while we watched him with a smug grin. He felt like it. He felt like white hot fire burning as bright as the damn sun. I shook my head and chuckled a little; he was so caught up in the fight he didn't even realize it.

I jumped into my shift and let her come forward. She shook out her fur and snarled at her male as her veins hummed with our stubborn ass Thorne blood. Thorne blood. He was about to see why the moon gave him a wolf with Thorne blood as a mate.

We ran at him. We ran at him hard and rammed him. We bit into his front leg and shook our jaw violently until he hit the ground with a 'thud.' It was only then that my female released and trotted back around to stalk her male.

He got up and snarled at us. His teeth were sharp and he was angry. Damn angry. We could feel it coming off of him like waves and we knew that if there was a lesser wolf here that they would run away whimpering.

He charged at us this time. Our male spared us no mercy, as we spared him none. He got a good piece of my ribs but we slashed his face with our claws. He snarled again as we whipped around and laid into the skin covering his hips. Our jaw broke the flesh and met the bone.

The pull was in pain, but the fire in my veins that I feel overshadowed it. The fire from his seemed to wash away the pain and only feed the fire in me. I wondered for a moment if he felt the same? If my fire fed his too?

We turned back to him. We were both cut up, beat up, and clawed the hell up but we didn't care. This was a fight between two alpha wolves. Alpha wolves didn't just give up.

We walked slowly towards him, licking our lips at the sight of the blood dripping from the wounds we made; but our male surprised us. Our male had enough. Our male charged at us and held nothing back.

He felt like an alpha male.

It was a wave that ran with him and crashed into me with him. It almost took my breath away, the feeling of the power in his veins. He snapped towards my neck by I smacked his face hard with my paw. It gave us just enough time to squirm out of his grasp and jump back to our feet.

In that moment he roared at us, and he roared so loud it is almost startled me. He felt like his father; like the memory. He felt like fire, white hot fire that was licking over ever fiber of my being. He felt like power, like rage, like fury, but most of all, he felt like the alpha male we knew was buried deep down there.

I lunged at him and within the lunge, I shifted to my skin. I crashed into him as his paws raked against my sensitive sides, but I could care less. I had a damn point to prove and I was driving it home.

But Ethan was quick. My male was not going to just lay down and let me have his neck. He flipped me over and pinned me to the dirt. He pinned me to the dirt but he didn't see my clawed hand around his neck. His teeth may have been grazing my neck, but I also could have had his.

I leaned up a little, close to his ears because I wanted him to damn well hear this. "You feel that?" He growled a little. His teeth were teasing my skin in a way that was anything but painful.

I chuckled a little. "You feel that white hot?"

He pulled back slightly and looked into my knowing eyes and it was in that moment that I knew he felt it. I knew he felt the fire that I felt. The fire that was unique to him, to my male, to my mate; to the alpha I knew he could be.

I cocked a brow. "I know you feel that in your veins Ethan. It's about damn time you did." I saw his fur start to ripple before skin took its place. Soon I was looking into blue-green eyes that were furrowed as they stared hard into mine.

I let out a hot breath as he cocked his head at me. He pushed some more and the flames grew. They didn't scare me, the dances with my flames. The energy from his veins danced with my veins. We didn't fight each other we complimented each other, we pushed each other.

I looked into his eyes amusingly. "We tied white hot. Maybe if you win I'll give you my neck." Before he could say anything I pushed him off of me and started walking back towards the trail we had run down.

"Charlotte!"

"I like the way you yell my name, maybe you'll get to do that more when you grow a pair," I yelled out over my shoulder a little deviously.

I could hear him growl but quickly shifted and ran home before he could catch me. My wolf was pleased. The pull was strained but she was proud of us, she was proud of how we handled our male. We did what we should have done a long time ago.

Derek and Elliot both gave me knowing smirks when I trotted in. I shifted to my skin before walking through the door where Derek proceeded to hand me a robe. "Thorne's back."

"How's your mate?" Elliot teased.

"Oh he's just fine, I think he got the message," I replied with a sly grin.

Derek rolled his eyes and handed me a phone. "Barrett said to call him whenever. He's a good vamp, close to Elliot and me. He should be able to help."

I quickly took the phone and set it on the island before taking a seat on the barstool. I hit the dial button on his contact information then held my breath for a moment why it rang.

"Jesus Char, I love you but you look like shit," Elliot groaned.

I shrugged innocently and rolled my eyes while the phone rang. "Worth it."

"Hello?" a velvety voice answered.

"Um, hi, is this Barrett?"

"Yes?"

"Barrett, it's Derek, Elliot, and Charlotte," Derek answered for me.

"Oh well shit, why didn't you say so?!"

Derek chuckled as my cheeks flushed a little. I sighed and shook my head while Elliot nudged me. "Sorry, um, this is Charlotte. Thanks for taking the call."

"Of course, you're almost like family. I guess Derek is kind of like my cousin."

"Your favorite cousin," Derek replied playfully. "Hey, how's Eveline?"

"Good good, she's right here actually. I'll put her on speaker."

"Hello?" A cool female voice said. She sounded almost exotic over the phone.

"Evie love, how are you?" Elliot asked.

"Elliot! I miss you two! I keep telling Barrett that we have to visit."

"Agreed!" Elliot replied.

Derek chuckled then looked at me a little knowing. I sighed and looked down at the iPhone. "So Barrett, Derek says you can help up with our tree?"

"Oh yes, that is interesting," he replied. "So I talked to Evie, and let me ask you a couple of questions first, ok?"

"Ok," I quickly replied.

"Ok, do you have control when you're in the memory or when you see what the tree shows you?"

I sighed a little. "What do you mean?"

"It's like driving a car," Evie answered. "Could you turn left or right if you wanted to?"

I mused for a bit. "Ok, well not really, but there was this one memory where I was able to walk up to the person in it. I'm always pulled from one memory or vision or whatever the hell they are, to another. But that time I was able to walk to him if you will."

"Hmm," Barret mused. "Ok, how real does it feel?"

"Pretty damn real. I can feel things like the anger off of the people in it. I saw my mate and could feel the power in his veins like it was real life. I felt his pain. God his pain was so strong it literally took my breath away."

"Ok, well so here's the thing. First, it's hard for us to really say since we haven't touched it, so know what we tell you is pure speculation ok?"

"Ok," I sighed out.

"From what Derek has told us, that trees got two powerful things going for it. First blood and ash. Blood is powerful Charlotte. A lot of things are stored in there, like our memories, emotion, power, and what not."

"What do you mean memories?"

"You said you have a mate?" Evie asked a little skeptically.

I sighed. "We haven't actually mated yet."

"Ohhhh," Barrett sighed out. "Well, that explains a lot. Ok well after that happens you'll understand, but just think of blood as like a personal scrapbook for that person filled with memories, emotions, and all kinds of other good shit."

"Right," Evie added. "And ash, well, we never really die. That's a part of them, a part of them that still looks over the pack per the blood oath the swear."

"I think," Barrett mused, "And, Evie if you disagree then say so, I think you are seeing a mix of memories from the blood and what the ash has seen over the years. I mean, it's all there. Think of it like this, the essence of those alphas is in that tree. How do trees grow?"

"Um, sunlight, water, and I don't know, good soil?"

Barrett chuckled over the line a little. "Trees have deep roots, Charlotte. All that ash is spread around the tree and that tree's roots are about as big as it's limbs are. The ash is on the ground where it is absorbed when it rains, then the roots soak it up through the soil. It's all in that damn tree, it's one very powerful tree."

I sighed and looked at Derek who looked like he was chewing on something. "So what do I do?"

"Well, what's your goal?" Barrett asked politely.

"Well, I want to know if it has anything useful. I mean, all it's shown me are things that, while they are crazy, they can't really help us."

"When we dream walk we usually go into the person's mind with an objective," Evie said. "So for example, if I wanted to see a time that you were really sad, I would theoretically steer the car there. I would press for that specific memory. Or let's say I wanted something more specific, like let's say I wanted to know if you stole my purse. I would press for that memory. If it's not there, then usually you get something related to it that can help. So maybe what you need to do is have something a little more concrete."

I thought for a second while Derek walked to the oven and opened it. The smell of cheese, red sauce, and meat escaped it. He turned and smiled at me which made my belly growl. Two fights in one day will make a girl hungry as hell.

"So what if my 'goal' was for it to find something that show me what happened during a specific event? Or a specific day to be exact?"

"Oh that's way easier," Barrett said. "Just think of that day or event, and if it works like dream walking then you should be able to go there."

"Huh," I mused to myself. I wondered for a bit if I would be able to actually do it. If I could see the day of the attack, maybe it would show me what I needed; maybe it would show Ethan and I what we needed.

"Try it out. Just have your mind set on what it is that you want," Barrett added. "Damn, I am really itching to take a look at this tree. Derek, you think we could pop by after Alex get's us off of this bullshit work?"

Derek chuckled as he pulled the pan of manicotti out. "By all means Barrett."

"Oh and Charlotte, do let me know how those clothes work. I sent a couple of things too for your friend Evangeline, I think she will fit into my size also." I looked up at Derek and Elliot curiously as sly grins tugged at their lips.

"Thank you, we will make sure to take plenty of pictures," I replied as I gave Derek a long look.

Evie squealed a little which made Barrett laugh over the phone. "Ok, well good luck with the tree and your mate. Let me know if you need anything else."

"Thank you, Barrett," I replied.

"Yes thank you Queen B," Elliot added teasingly.

"Oh piss off Elliott," he clipped back.

We all laughed as Evie laughed on the other side of the phone with us. "By you all, we'll swing by soon!" She called out.

With that, I clicked the phone off and looked up at Derek who was putting some pasta on a plate for me. "Clothes"

"Well," he said as Elliot started to uncork and open a bottle of wine. "During the council meetings, it's usually a business casual slash professional attire. Also at the end of the council meeting, there is a little party, which I am sure you know about. It's formal slash semi-formal, which means that Elliot and I get to break out our bowties–"

"Ya we do babe!" Elliot added excitedly.

Derek rolled his eyes as he carried a plate to me. "Anyways, Evie has some of the best taste. I mean, the woman is always dressed like a goddess."

"He's right," Elliot added as he greedily pulled a plate of pasta towards himself. "Pretty sure she is a muse for most designers."

"She's about your size and you know, after talking to her I mentioned the party and the meetings, she doesn't have a lot of female friends. Female vamps can be much more standoffish than weres–"

"Which is total shit because Evie is a doll," Elliot injected with a mouth full of pasta.

I sighed and bit into my pasta which was almost better than sex good. There were so many flavors bursting in my mouth that it almost made me forget about my mate who was probably still pissed off as hell.

"Anyways," Derek sighed out as he toyed with his manicotti. "I told her about you and she was more than happy to send like half her closet over–"

"We narrowed it down for you and Evangeline already, because I swear, when he says half her closet, he literally means half her closet," Elliot said with wide eyes that looked a little tired.

Derek chuckled and shook his head. "We just thought it would be nice for you and Evangeline to look lovely that night and we wanted you to look nice as well during the meetings."

"Babe come, on," Elliot said a little sardonically. "The whole time we were going through her things, your comment to most of them was 'that's not hot enough for them.'" Elliot chuckled a little before looking at me. "Derek was so set on making sure the options made you look like, and I quote 'a daughter of Aphrodite that will also slit your damn throat.'"

I almost spit out my food laughing while Derek rolled his eyes. "That is amazing. Have I told you both how much I love you?"

"No, but you will when you see the shoes we picked out," Elliot added a little deviously.