Page 27 of Eclipse of the Pack

Ivy thought about Malcolm. She had dedicated years of her life to working for him. Being a double agent was not an easy task. She had given up any semblance of a normal life because she believed in Malcolm, and he had betrayed that trust.

Ivy hadn’t had any real relationships for years. Sure, she had friends and people she trusted enough, but there was always a secret to keep. She always had to be vigilant at all times. If she let her guard down then it could mean her life.

It had been torturous, but, for Ivy, it was worth it. Until recently.

The anger she felt towards Malcolm surpassed words. She had killed for him over and over again and over again. Ivy had taken everything Malcolm told her as the truth. If she didn’t believe in him and their mission, she would not have been able to do some of the things she had done.

Ivy thought back to all the people she killed. She had no way of knowing who was guilty and who was innocent.

Even if I figured it out, would it matter.

There was nothing Ivy could think of that would rectify all the wrongful deaths she had caused.

“Are you okay?” Jon could tell Ivy was in a bad mood. There were things he wanted to talk about, but he was worried it would upset Ivy even more. The two of hadn’t even spoken about what happened at the diner.

Jon had his own guilt towards Maria’s death, and he was sure Ivy felt even worse about it. Ivy had been thinking about Maria. She had seen death. She had caused death, but watching her friend die like that in front of her had shown her just how precarious the situation was.

“I will be,” Ivy mumbled.

They eventually reached the road. The plan was to find a car or bus to steal, but they still required the cover of the trees. Werewolves or PEACE agents could converge on them at any second. Ivy hadn’t seen the crash scene, but she believed someone would find out they weren’t dead at some point, and they’d be back on the most wanted list.

Ivy hated to catastrophize, but her morale was low. All she could think about was everything she had ever done wrong, everything that was going wrong, and everything that was about to go wrong. Even with Jon right next to her, Ivy couldn’t bring her spirits back up.

She decided to focus on killing Malcolm. Her anger was the main thing keeping her going. Revenge was on her mind, and killing Malcolm felt like the only thing she could do to atone for her past sins. Since she couldn’t go back in time and save the innocent people she had killed, she’d make sure they all got justice.

34

JONATHEN

Jon and Ivy made it to a small Truckstop. Jon looked around the lot. Stealing a truck would probably be a little too conspicuous, and there didn’t seem to be any cars around.

“Let me see if I can get us a ride,” Jon told Ivy. Ivy nodded. She was going to let Jon take care of that part. She was buzzing with anger, and she wouldn’t have been the most… sensitive about asking.

Ivy followed Jon as he looked at the different trucks. He stopped by a few drivers who looked low-key, but they weren’t heading in the direction they needed to. Eventually, Jon and Ivy came across an older gentleman, somewhere around 60, leaning against the side of his truck smoking a cigarette. He watched as Ivy and Jon approached him, taking one final long drag before dropping his cigarette and crushing it with his boot.

“Hi. We were wondering if you were heading north?” The man looked between Ivy and Jon. His eyes skimmed over their dirty clothes. Jon’s demeanor was friendly, but Ivy’s was a little colder. Even though she was somewhat hidden behind Jon, the man could still see she was quite closed off.

“Do you need a ride?” he asked. Jon nodded.

“We were camping and got attacked by a bear. We had to abandon all of our supplies to get away, and we’ve been walking for hours, hoping to find a way home.”

A bear, huh?The man didn’t quite believe their story, but he didn’t question it. He understood the need to keep secrets. Whatever they were running from, he assumed it had to be terrifying them.

“I can give you a ride.”

“Really?” Jon had been ready for another disappointment, so getting a yes made him feel like his and Ivy’s luck was changing.

“Yeah, jump in.” The truck driver held opened the door for them before heading to the driver’s side. Ivy and Jon looked at one another before climbing in.

It was quiet as the driver turned on his truck and pulled out of the Truckstop. After a few moments on the road, the driver turned to the couple.

“The name’s Barry.”

“Thanks for the ride, Barry,” Jon said. Ivy sat by the window, watching the scenery passing them by.

“Are you two headed to LA? Because I can take you all the way.”

“That would be great!” Jon thought they were on a roll.

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