HUNTED

Within minutes, she felt Damon\'s breathing deepen and his heartbeat slow down. Usually, his steady beat put her to sleep almost instantly, but although her muscles were tired and she was sleepy, her mind, for some reason, was alert. Even with the lights off and her eyes closed, thirty minutes had passed by, and she just lay there comfortably snuggling Damon. She sighed and was thankful he at least was capable of getting some rest. 

He, too, had a long night; it was not just her. While she ran into Gabriel, Damon was out searching for him. Her forehead creased as her thoughts went to Gabriel and then to the secret rooms beneath the mansion. It was bizarre to find out that her ancestors also seemed to have issues, such as the escapee werewolf in that tomb. The werewolf named Cass.. 

Aila pulled back from Damon and rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling, becoming absorbed by the light shining against the darkened room. Shadows trying and failing to reach out and cover the only form of light provided by the lowering moon. She was exhausted, her body was craving for sleep, but her mind wanted to go through everything she had learnt in such a small amount of time. 

Malia yawned, "Well, while you figure that out, I am hitting the sack. Because girrrrl, it\'s not good for you to be staying up so late. We will be grumpy tomorrow.. You better get a decent breakfast in us because otherwise, I will NOT be happy. Or let me go hunting tomorrow night."

"We\'ll do both, don\'t worry. Go to sleep; tomorrow night, you can go hunt."

Satisfied with Aila\'s reply, Malia instantly went quiet, and Aila presumed her wolf had fallen asleep. Hmm, unlike her wolf, she thought now was the best time to go through a few things. For when she would awake again, it would be another day, and most likely another new adventure…

Why was Amelia, Mathias and this Cass locked away? Cass, in particular, seemed to have been buried alive. Her mind was racing and trying to grasp at something, but with the sound of birds chirping in the forest, it was clear, her mind, though awake, was also tired. Whatever it was, she gave up on trying to put a puzzle together. A mystery that seemed to be of no importance.

This Cass person was dead; though she would have loved to read about their story, it would be something to investigate another time. A time when her vampire friend had not massacred 13 people, all in the name of protecting her. A time when these rogues were dealt with, and a time when the hunters were not out looking for her. Or so she presumed. She was, after all, meant to be someone of importance.

At some point, Aila drifted off to sleep, and next woke to something warm on her cheek. She groaned and slowly peeped out of one of her eyes to see Damon smiling down at her and placing a kiss on her lips. Aila pouted automatically for him and opened the other eye to look at the light room and the man looking down at her. Aila sighed; she was quite happy waking up to that face every morning. 

"Time to get up. I let you sleep in until noon!"

Aila blinked her eyes slowly, the sleep in her eyes still trying to leave, "Hmmm, when did you get up then?" She mumbled.

"At 10. I still had other work to do. Come on, I brought you some food up."

At the mention of food, Aila sat up quickly. Her eyes lit up immediately after seeing the tray filled with a cooked English breakfast, "If I keep eating so much, I am sure to get fat." Even with her complaint, it didn\'t stop her from tucking in with her fork.

Damon chuckled, "I don\'t think you will. But I can always send it back, and the chefs can get some muesli for you."

Aila\'s face dropped, "That\'s not even funny. Don\'t ever say that again," she pointed her fork at him threateningly. He held his hands up in surrender before leaving a peck on her head. 

While Damon went to shuffle through some papers and making phone calls, Aila sat eating her food and grabbed her phone once she was finished. Her brows drew together when she saw five messages from Hollie and two missed calls. Aila would have to phone her later, and for now, leave her a quick text. Without reading Hollie\'s messages, she replied: 

[ 12:20PM Hey, sorry I\'ve missed your messages and calls. Let me phone you later. It\'s been a bit hectic here. Ly xx ]

She dropped her phone back down and got changed. Damon was correct; there was a lot to do. For the remainder of the day, the pair visited the grieving families, consoling them and going through the details of the funeral. It was a long day, but it was now a part of her duty to make sure her pack members were cared for. Even if their kin were betrayers of the pack and new Luna, they did not need to know that. 

By the evening, they were again exhausted, but like the power trooper Damon was, he had other matters to attend to. The pair held hands walking through the hallway towards the stairs when Damon let go, "I need to see Darren."

Aila\'s brow arched up, "Did you want me to come with you?"

He reached out and stroked her face, "No. Not for this. Go, join the others for dinner."

Aila nodded her head, but with uncertainty behind her eyes. She knew Darren was in the basement, but she was glad that Damon did not need her for this. She would most likely attack him for causing so much drama the night before.

Damon turned around and walked away, leaving Aila to walk towards the living room. She grabbed her phone and called Hollie. Her friend picked up on the first ring.

"Girl! where have you been!? We need to meet."