RYAN'S POV:-

　　I was lying on Daniel's couch. I asked Lauren and Gregory to go with the others to help Artemis. I thought she might have run away. But I never thought she would stay behind for me. She was way far away from danger. But her howls made me realise one thing. Artemis went looking for me. Everyone came back after thirty minutes. I tried to sit up on the bed. But it was almost impossible for me. My wolf was too tired to be able to heal me. Amy walked towards me to force me to lie back down on the couch. "You need to rest, Ryan. You look like a total mess. Don't overdo it." Amy whispered in a low tone as she pushed me back on the couch to lie down.

　　Lauren walked towards the couch. She pulled the sheets off of my body and began cleaning my wounds. I grabbed Amy's hand to get her attention. "Did you get them? Did you find her? Is Artemis okay?" I asked in a low tone, hoping to hear some good news. I was concerned about Artemis. I couldn't believe she stayed there just for me.

　　As Amy heard my questions, she turned her gaze away. As if she was hiding something from me. She tried to free her hand from my hold. But my hold around her hand was too firm for her to break free. "Umm .. she .. Artemis is fine." Amy replied to me in a low tone. She didn't look into my eyes while she was talking to me.

　　It felt like she was lying to me. Because Amy never turned her gazes away from me. "No! She is not!" Amira yelled at Amy angrily. I saw fire in Amira's eyes.

　　Amy gritted her teeth as she heard Amira. "Amira! Stop it." Amy growled at Amira angrily. I was staring at them both as they fought with each other. It was a rare sight but it was not the right time for them to be fighting.

　　Hearing Amy, Amira growled angrily. I was not sure why they would be fighting with each other just because I wanted to know what happened to Artemis. "Why? He deserves to know, Amy." Amira yelled at Amy again. She looked determined to tell me what actually happened.

　　I was panicking because none of them were telling me what happened behind my back. "What are you talking about? What are you not telling me? Tell me whatever it is? Now, Amy!" I asked Amy as I could see that she was the only one who was fighting Amira not to tell me anything at all.

　　Amy replied to me in a calmed tone. It looked like she was trying to stay calm but it was not helping her at all. She was concerned about Artemis too. Because Artemis was Amy's best friend. "Ryan, there is nothing wrong. Everything is fine." Amy tried to brush it off.

　　"No! She is lying, Ryan. Amy is worried about you. That's why she is not telling you the truth." Amira yelled at me. Amira could be problematic but she was never this determined about anything at all.

　　I looked at Amy. She was glaring at Amira as if trying to warn her not to say anything at all. "Oh my God! What happened? Please tell me, Artemis is alright." I asked Amira instead of Amy this time. I knew she wanted to tell me but Amy was not letting her say Anything at all.

　　Amy shook her head at Amira, signalling her not to tell me anything at all. Amira shrugged her shoulders as she walked towards me. "She is not! She was fighting the wild pack all alone. And she was surrounded." Amira told me in a low tone while staring into my eyes.

　　My heart dropped as I heard Amira. I knew there was something wrong. But none of them were telling me anything at all. "Amira! Not another word." Amy warned Amira again. Amy practically ignored all my questions for some reason. And she was lying to me.

　　Amira gritted her teeth angrily as she heard Amy's warnings. "Why? Because you are trying to cover how Alpha Elijah actually screwed up. You can't stop me, Amy. It's Daniel's job." Amira asked Amy in an angry tone. Amy narrowed her head as she heard Amira.

　　"Just fucking tell me what happened?" I yelled angrily at everyone. They were playing games while I was worried sick about Artemis.

　　Everyone turned to look at Daniel. Daniel nodded his head, signalling Amira to tell me everything. "We were too late. Artemis is alive but the alpha of the wild pack raped her." Amira finally answered my question in a low tone.

　　My eyes widened in shock as I heard Amira. I was just thinking about Artemis being wounded. I never thought it would be that serious. "Oh my God, no!" I whispered as I held my head in my hands.

　　I was not sure how to deal with everything. It was too much for me to handle. "Yes, that's what happened. Now answer me. Why would you two be so careless to go after a wild pack without informing us? Have you both lost your minds?" Amy asked me in a low tone while she was patting my back gently.

　　I was going crazy because I left Artemis alone with those bastards. Even my wolf thought I was a wuss who ran away. "Oh no! This is all my fault. It's my fault that she went through that pain." I whispered to myself. I was unable to answer her questions.

　　"Ryan, answer the damn question." Daniel yelled at me as I didn't answer the question Amy had asked me. I was just too embarrassed.

　　I turned to glare at Daniel as I heard him. They were all supposed to help us. But they were all chilling out. Then they had the audacity to ask me those questions. "You think we are crazy to go after a wild pack on our own. We were following orders from alpha Elijah. We went on our own because he promised us both that you will all be on standby, to back us up. We were told to keep it down until we are sure." I yelled back at Daniel angrily. I was furious because Artemis took the fall.

　　Artemis was kind enough to stay behind when she knew her life could be in danger. She let me out. I couldn't believe it. I left her on her own. "What are you talking about? How could alpha Elijah do anything like that?" Kevin asked me in a low tone as he heard me.

　　My whole body was on fire as I heard him. It sounded like he was accusing us of doing what we were asked to do. "You think I am lying, Daniel. Elijah asked me and Artemis to watch for the wild wolves he had seen the night Alisa was brought to the pack." I yelled at Kevin angrily. They were the ones who didn't do their job. And they were asking me why Artemis and I went after the wild wolf.

　　"What do you mean?" Daniel asked me in a low tone. He had a confused frown on his face. As if he was trying to understand what was happening.

　　I growled angrily as I felt like he was playing me. Alpha Elijah's orders were clear. I couldn't understand why everyone was playing me and Artemis. "Oh, don't play games, Daniel. You saw them. Two wild wolves were following Alisa. That's when alpha Elijah rescued her. Alpha Elijah told us everything." I yelled at Daniel angrily. I couldn't control my anger. Especially after I heard what those bastards did to Artemis.

　　Daniel growled angrily as he heard me. He was about to take a step towards me when Grey stepped in between us. "Just calm down everyone. Yelling at each other will not get us the answer we are looking for." Grey calmly asked everyone to calm down. I was not sure how I was supposed to calm down in a situation like that.

　　I couldn't help but feel responsible for everything that Artemis went through. I knew she might be in pain. But I was shocked she didn't leave me behind. In fact, I was the one who left her behind. Grey walked towards me and placed his hand on my shoulder gently. "Ryan, tell us everything from the beginning. But instead of screaming at us, try to explain everything calmly." Grey spoke in a calmed tone, asking me to elaborate.

　　I didn't have any energy to fight them or scream at them. They were pathetic. So I decided to agree. "Fine! It all started the day Alpha Elijah rescued Alisa. A week later, alpha Elijah called us in his study. Just me and Artemis. We were not even allowed to tell the others about this secret mission he gave us." I replied to Grey in a calmed tone.

　　Lauren was almost done patching me up. I was grateful that it was over. Because I wanted to go and meet Artemis. "What happened next, Ryan? What was the mission?" Daniel asked me in a low tone.

　　"Alpha Elijah asked me and Artemis to look around for any wild wolves we could find. We were supposed to inform Alpha Elijah if we came across even one of the wild wolves. But so far, there was no one around at all." I replied to Daniel in a calmed tone while staring at him. No! I was actually glaring at him. Because he didn't do his job.

　　"We were circling around the territory and were reporting everything back to Alpha Elijah every single night. That's what Artemis was talking about at the last meeting. The same meeting when Emma created a mess." I added further in a calmed tone. I was getting emotional as the story progressed.

　　"Today, early in the morning. Alpha Elijah called Artemis and me to his office. Emma was already there. She informed us that she saw two wild wolves in a mall. And she heard their conversation." I added in a low tone. I was angry because Emma was the only one except for Alpha Elijah who was not at Daniel's apartment.

　　Daniel frowned in confusion as he heard me. He looked like he was unaware of everything that Alpha Elijah asked us to do. "What were they talking about? The wild wolves." Daniel asked me in a calmed tone. He was trying to stay calm but I saw his jaws clenching. As if he was angry.

　　"According to Emma, they were plotting to be at the cemetery tonight. They were plotting to get their hands on Alpha Elijah. Alpha Elijah wanted to go but Artemis insisted on checking it." I replied to Daniel in a calmed tone. My wolf started to feel like they actually didn't know anything about the attacks and the task Artemis and I were given by Alpha Elijah.

　　"Emma gave us a description about the wild wolves. Elijah asked Emma to inform you all about the wild wolves as he was going to be discussing the plan with us." I added in a low tone while playing with my hands. Gregory came towards me and gave me herbal remedial juice. It was to prevent any infections and make sure I heap faster.

　　"Alpha Elijah told us that you all would be nearby. So if we were surrounded, Alpha Elijah and you guys would come to get us. That's what I was thinking about too. After all, Alpha Elijah gave us the surety." I added in a low tone. It was the plan Alpha Elijah was going with. He had a doubt that the attack was supposed to happen that night.

　　"We went to the cemetery. We were looking for any signs of wild wolves running around. I remember Artemis kept on repeating that something was off about it all. That her wolf was feeling something suspicious about this whole situation." I kept on going with the story. My grip around the glass was getting tighter. I could feel my hands leaving an impression on the metal glass inu hands.

　　"I thought Artemis was just being paranoid because it was her first time going after a wild pack. So I ignored it." Tears welled up in my eyes as I remembered Artemis' warnings. I was older than her. I was supposed to be there to protect her. But she stayed behind just to make sure I was okay.

　　"Ryan! You should have known better. You never ignore someone's gut feelings. After all, all the wolves have the ability to feel any unknown threats around." Amy spoke in a low tone while staring into my eyes. I felt like I wanted to kill myself. I was the reason why Artemis was assaulted.

　　"That's the thing. My wolf didn't get anything. But Artemis was worried. It's all my fault that she went through that." I replied to Amy in a low tone. My wolf didn't even pick up any scents of the wild pack. It was Artemis who thought that we were surrounded.

　　"What do you mean? What did you do, Ryan?" Daniel asked me in a confused tone as he heard me.

　　"Artemis was asking me to stick together. She told me many times not to go far away from her. I was the one who went away. She got stuck because of me. We were howling for help. I took two chances to howl. Artemis was the one who kept on howling for you all to come and help us." I replied to Daniel in a low tone.

　　I was angry at myself. For leaving Artemis behind. For not taking her warnings seriously. For not taking her paranoia seriously. "But none of us hear us, Ryan. If any of us would have heard your calls, we would have been there to help you. You know that too." Amy spoke in a low tone. Her words made me frown in confusion. Gritting my teeth, I growled angrily.

　　I wanted to yell at them angrily. They had the audacity to speak up after they were warned about the attack. But they just ignored everything. "You all are wrong. Noah and I heard the howls. We were out of the town. But we heard Artemis' howls for some reason. We went straight towards Alpha's apartment. But the elevator was locked. We couldn't get to his apartment. That's why we came to you. And found Ryan wounded." Before I could answer them, Amira jumped in. She yelled at the pack members, especially Amy who kept saying that she didn't hear me and Artemis.

　　All eyes went wide as they heard Amira. Noah nodded his head. "Now you believe me. We were out there, fighting with all those bastards, calling for you all. But none of you hear our calls. Even Alpha Elijah didn't hear us. How am I ever going to forgive myself? Artemis was assaulted because of me." I yelled at Amy angrily. She kept asking me questions as I was making things up. The only one who could have answered my questions was Emma who didn't bother to come.

　　"It was not your fault, Ryan. You were following orders." Amy grabbed my hands and tried to convince me that it was not my fault. If only she could know that it was my fault. Because I left Artemis alone.

　　"It is my fault, Amy. Emma joked about something. She said Artemis would run in the other direction the moment she would get the chance. It was stuck inside my brain. The moment I got the chance, I ran away. And I think Artemis created space for me to run." I replied to Amy in a low tone. I was trying hard not to cry but I couldn't control it anymore. I was sad because Artemis was hurt.

　　Artemis was hurt because I neglected all her warnings. I was being a macho, thinking I could impress Grey with all the stories. But I didn't realise that I was actually endangering Artemis. "What makes you say that?" Amy asked me in a low tone. She was my sister. She was supposed to take my side. But the truth was that I left Artemis all alone in the middle of the cemetery where she was surrounded by a pack of nasty wild wolves.

　　"Because Artemis kept on howling. If she was smart enough to pick up the signs of the ambush, I don't think she would be stupid enough to keep on howling to tell her enemy where she was." I replied to Amy in a low tone. I started crying because I couldn't no longer control my tears. I felt so horrible because of what I did.

　　"As a matter of fact, Artemis was wounded too. She needs to be treated soon. Or we all know what happens to the wolves who get attacked by the wild wolves. We need to get to her and tend to her wounds. I can't stop thinking about the wound I saw on her wolf's back." I added in an angry tone while staring at them all. Grey wiped my tears and Amy and Amira hugged me tightly to help me calm down. They thought I couldn't do anything. But they were all wrong. I could have done something if I just would have listened to her and stayed by her side.

　　I was trying to be a hero. But Artemis was the one who got assaulted. Not me. I could never understand how she might have been coping up with that. "If you still don't believe me, let's go to Alpha's apartment and talk to him. And you should drag Emma from her apartment. Because she was supposed to tell you all about the plan." I added in a low tone while I was crying. I couldn't believe Emma would do something as sinister as that. She pushed me and Artemis in front of the wild wolf for her jealousy against Artemis.