Aella's POV

The days were going as terribly as Aella had anticipated after Logan left for the south. On the night after he had left for Louve's home pack, she had skipped dinner, locking herself up in the room to cry herself to sleep. Fear and hopelessness had gripped her heart with its merciless claws, and she had felt like she would never be right again.

Even in her dreams that night the fear hadn't let her go. She had tossed and turned on the bed as nightmares had populated her dreams. Black swirling smoke had morphed into faceless beasts hunting her down in a dark wood, and the face of the beasts had in turn transformed into Logan, standing far away from her with a deep dark chasm between them. 

Her tattoo had burned like that day Logan had been torturing the rogue wolf. And coupled with the fact that she was feeling the physical strain of having being so far away for him for so long, she felt as though she was hanging by a very loose thread.

The next morning, she had woken up feeling like a shipwreck victim. She was barely able to drag herself out of bed and walk to the dining room for breakfast without having her bath first. The dining room had been empty and she had turned to go back to the room when Louve had appeared as though from nowhere. The other woman too had seemed in a subdued mood, but Aella had been too wrapped up in her own head to take much notice.

After breakfast Aella had walked back to the room. Midway there she had overheard two maids talking about the rogue wolf that was captured. They had said something about his tattoo, about how it was crescent shaped and how it seemed to be the symbol of whichever pack he came from.

The fear in Aella's heart had spread even farther after hearing that. She had run into her room and locked the door securely behind her, breathing heavily as though she was being chased. 

As she closed the door, her mind suddenly flashed back to when she had upturned Logan's room, when the maid had come in to clean it and when she had seen that picture frame of Logan and his parents. She remembered seeing the same tattoo that she owned on Logan's mother's hand, and how that tattoo had stood out to her like a beacon. Somehow the memory kept a firm tug on her mind and she couldn't shake off the chilly feeling that came with it.

Right now, she was standing in her's and Logan's closet, looking around frantically. She knew that the whole pack was slowly putting two and two together, and it was only a short period of time before they discovered that she shared the same tattoo with the rogue wolves they hated so much.

"Not if i hide it from them first." She muttered to herself, then started rummaging in the closet for a suitable cloth.

She knew that from now on she would need to cover herself up as much as possible. Her shoulder was a pretty open place, and anyone could easily glimpse the tattoo and ask her about it. Or worse, pull down the strap of her cloth and see it for themselves.

That last thought made her increase her frantic searching. She came upon several of her white dresses, but all of them were strapless. She silently cursed whoever had had the notion of making strapless dresses for her. 

Soon her agitation and frustration reached a peak and she felt hot rage flow through her veins like blood. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" She screamed and her scream rattled the mirror and windows, shaking a few bottles of body cream on the vanity. She stopped and closed her mouth with her palm, looking around as though someone was there with her. She hoped nobody had noticed that tremor.

Nice work you've got going there, keeping your powers in check. Her wolf spoke up with a condescending tone.

Oh, shut up. The least you could do now is help. She retorted back at her wolf.

She moved to Logan's side of the closet and saw that his side was almost empty. She then remembered that it was wash day, and any other piece of his clothes that wasn't in the washing machine or with the maids had gone with him to Texas. All that was left was a few mufflers and one tattered hoodie.

She looked down at what she was wearing. It was the same black slip and silk night robe that Louve had gifted her a few weeks ago. She decided it would do since the robe practically covered her shoulders.

Her throat was parched; all that searching around the closet had left her extremely thirsty. She wrapped the robe securely around her shoulders, sighed and walked out of the room to get a cup of water.

On her way to the kitchen, she passed by several maids in twos and threes who were discussing about the tattoo and the rogue wolf, and how they were linked to Logan's mother. A needle of fear poked at her chest as she became scared for Logan. What will all of this mean for him, for both of them, in his absence?

It seemed the whole pack house was practically buzzing with information. Everywhere she turned, there was somebody talking about the tattoo, or Logan's mother, or the rogue wolf. It was almost like a scandal.

She randomly stopped a maid who was walking towards the kitchen with a small plastic basket of cutlery. "What is this i hear about my...about the alpha's mother and some tattoos? Tell me."

"Ooohhh, it's the biggest scandal you've ever heard, Miss Aella." The maid said with obvious excitement, her lips wide open in a smile revealing extreme buck teeth. "The late mother of the alpha, that's Luna Jessica, she shares a tattoo with the rogue wolf that was captured. As in, they have the same crescent tattoo! That means that the late Luna Jessica was part of the group of rogue wolves that is killing our pack members. Isn't that crazy?" The maid said, but Aella didn't spare her a reply. 

She left the maid there gaping and walked to the kitchen. She immediately went to the tap and turned it on, splashing a few handfuls of water on her face. This just confirmed everything she had always feared.

She was no longer safe in this pack.

"Fuck, Logan. Where are you?" She muttered to heraelf, then turned away from the sink. She walked over to the humming refrigerator and opened it, taking out a bottle of chilled water. She uncorked it and took a big gulp, feeling the cold water run down her throat and take the feeling of dread she felt along with it.

She was so preoccupied with drinking the water that she did not see that the maid with the cutlery had followed her into the kitchen and was standing right behind her. She turned abruptly and bumped into the maid, upsetting the basket of cutlery in her hands.

Forks, knives and spoons went flying everywhere. "Sorry, sorry...* the maid apologised and went on her knees to pick them up. Aella followed her down and began picking up the cutlery and putting them into the basket.

"No, it's my fault. I should not have turned when i did. I was quite lost in my..." she said and stopped as she realised that the maid had stopped picking the cutlery and was kneeling as still as a marble statue. 

"What...?" She said, her voice trailing off as she followed the maid's gaze and saw that it landed on her left shoulder. A crashing feeling came down around Aella's ears as she realised what has happened.

Her night robe had come down, revealing her left shoulder with the crescent tattoo on it.