Page 5 of Knot Happening

It was our routine, the way I'd slip into my ma's apartment, a quiet haven amidst the chaos of the city.I lived close by, a choice that was dual parts: loneliness and concern.The protectiveness I felt for her was a living thing, a force that drove me to her doorstep more often than not.But it was more than just love; it was an alpha's duty to safeguard his own, and the fragility of my ma rode my instincts hard.

A few days later, the air was different.The tension was palpable, a silent siren that set my senses on edge the moment I stepped into the building.I had texted her earlier, a casual message about bringing takeout, but the lack of response gnawed at me throughout the day.Work became a distant second to the growing dread in my chest.I wrapped up early, picked up her favorite, and hurried over, my alpha instincts clamoring with each passing second.

The door to her unit swung open silently, and the scent hit me like a physical blow.Blood, sharp and metallic.Fear, a sour undercurrent.Death, the unmistakable finality of it.My heart thundered in my chest as I sprinted to her bedroom, the world narrowing to a single, horrifying point.

There she lay, my mother, on the bed that had been her sanctuary.Naked and lifeless, her throat slit in a brutal, gaping smile.Her eyes, once full of warmth and wisdom, were now vacant, staring blankly in the direction of the door—as if she had been waiting for me in her final moments.

I stood there, frozen in the doorway, my mind struggling to process the scene before me.This was not how it was supposed to end.My mother, the strongest woman I knew, was reduced to a silent, still form on a blood-soaked bed.Her life had been stolen, her essence drained away, leaving behind only a husk of the vibrant, loving person she once was.

I approached her slowly, the world around me blurring into a meaningless backdrop.Everything else faded away - the faint ticking of the clock on the wall, the distant hum of traffic outside, even the coppery scent of blood that hung heavy in the air.In that moment, there was only her.It was only then I saw the bruises littering her entire body.

I reached out, my hand trembling, to close her eyes.Those once vibrant eyes that had always sparkled with love and pride when she looked at me.But I couldn't bring myself to do it.It felt like an admission, a confirmation of the horror that had unfolded here.If I closed her eyes, it would make this nightmare real.

My heart clenched painfully in my chest as I let my hand fall back to my side.I couldn't say goodbye.Not yet.

The silence of the room was broken only by the ragged breaths that tore from my throat.I was an alpha, bred to protect and serve, yet I had failed the one person who meant everything to me.My hands trembled as I stared down at the lifeless body before me, the coppery scent of blood a constant reminder of my own inadequacy.

I had sworn to keep her safe, to shield her from the darkness that lurked in the shadows, but in the end, I was too late.The weight of my failure crushed me, a heavy burden that threatened to consume me entirely.I had to find a way to make this right, to atone for my mistakes, but in that moment, all I could feel was the overwhelming grief that threatened to tear me apart.

I would find the monster who did this.

They fucked with the wrong family.

five

HARLEN

In the aftermath,the world seemed to lose its color.The vibrancy of the city's hum was now a distant echo.The once comforting scent of her perfume was now tainted with the unmistakable stench of death.I touched the back of my hand to my nose, the scent of her blood clinging to my skin, a macabre reminder of the senseless violence that had taken place within these walls.

The apartment felt like a hollowed-out tomb, a place where life once flourished, now reduced to a mausoleum of solitary confinement.The walls, once a comforting embrace, now seemed to close in on me, suffocating me with their oppressive silence.I wandered through the rooms, my footsteps echoing in the empty spaces, each step a testament to the profound isolation that had become my life.

I clenched my fists, the rage simmering just beneath the surface, a volcano ready to erupt.My mother's face, serene even in death, flashed before my eyes, and the fury bubbled over, consuming me.I roared, the sound reverberating off the sterile walls, a primal scream that did nothing to ease the agony in my chest.I punched the wall, my knuckles connecting with a dull thud, the pain a fleeting reminder that I was still alive, even though I wished for nothing more than to join her.

The grief hit me like a tidal wave, crashing over me and pulling me under its relentless current.I crumpled to the floor, my body racked with sobs that tore through me, each one a testament to the unbearable loss I felt.My mother, my rock, my guiding light – gone.The woman who had sung me to sleep, who had bandaged my scraped knees, who had been my anchor in the tumultuous sea of life, was now a memory, her laughter replaced by the deafening silence of her absence.

I hurt in places I never knew could ache.The loneliness was a living, breathing entity, wrapping its icy tendrils around my heart, squeezing until I could scarcely draw breath.I was alone, truly alone, in a world that seemed to have turned its back on me.The pack I'd never had, the connections I'd never formed, they all mocked me in my solitude.I had always been the loner, the one who didn't need anyone, but now, the truth of my isolation was a bitter pill to swallow.

My thoughts spiraled, each one darker than the last, a descent into the abyss of my own mind.I thought of my childhood, of the days when my mother's love was all I needed.She had been my world, my entire universe, and now that she was gone, I felt as though a part of me had been irrevocably torn away.The memories were a double-edged sword, slicing through the fog of my grief with moments of warmth and love, only to plunge me deeper into despair as I realized they were all I had left.

As an alpha, my instincts screamed for retribution, for justice.The monster who had taken her from me would pay, of that I was certain.My skills as a mortician would be put to use in a way I had never imagined, a grim twist of fate that would see me ensuring the eternal rest of her killer.I would be the last face they saw, the last whisper of air they breathed.There would be no mercy, no salvation for the one who had dared to extinguish the light of my existence.

I would find the killer, and when I did, they would learn what it meant to cross an alpha like me.They would learn what it meant to take everything from someone and leave them with nothing but the smoldering ashes of their former life.I would become the monster they should have feared, the reaper of their final moments.

I lay on the cold, hardwood floor, the tears drying on my cheeks, the resolve hardening in my heart.The world outside continued on its way, oblivious to the storm brewing within these walls, indifferent to the gaping hole that had been torn in my life.I was a solitary figure in a city of millions, a lone wolf howling into the void, a shadow slipping through the cracks of society.

And as the night closed in around me, I knew that this was only the beginning.The path to revenge was a long and winding road, but I would walk it willingly, for in the end, it was all I had left.My mother's memory would be honored, her death avenged, and in doing so, I would find a semblance of peace in the chaos that had become my life.

A shrill ring pierced the silence of my apartment, ripping me from my thoughts.

My heart pounded in my chest, a relentless drumbeat echoing in my ears as I fumbled for my phone.The caller ID flashed an unfamiliar number, a string of digits that seemed out of place in the chaos of my thoughts.I swiped to answer, my voice a low growl that betrayed the turmoil within.

"Harlen," I said, my grip on the phone tightening.

"Mr.Blackwood?"The voice on the other end was crisp, professional.It was a tone I had heard countless times in my line of work, a tone that rarely heralded good news.

"Speaking," I confirmed, bracing myself against the inevitable wave of bad news.

"This is Officer Daniels with the NYPD.I'm calling about your mother's case."

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