26

The next few days were spent wiping out any of the left over rogues that remained in the area. The camp itself was searched, and any useable supplies were taken back to the pack lands. Everything else was burned, along with the bodies of the rogues. Nothing was left of the camp or the invaders.

The bodies of all the pack wolves were retrieved and returned. It was a sad grisly job, but Ada helped with it. Injured and tired as she was, she was not about to let the others do this job alone. She knew some of those that had fallen and she was going to make sure they were well taken care of.

It was a slow trudge back to the walled lands, and while they had won, there was no cause for celebration. Many had died from all three packs. Wolves were returned to their families and the other packs left. Many of the rogues had fled and it was impossible to track them over such a large distance. They were all confident that they would not return.

Vincent remained as temporary pack leader while his parents recovered and although there were now wolves missing from the pack, everything returned to normal. It was a surreal experience for Ada. They just moved on. All of them would talk with one another about what happened and smiles filled their faces again. By spring, the dead were remembered fondly but no one held onto the pain of loss.

It was not the same for Ada. She held o to the pain, she always had. She didn't know how to let it go and so it just built inside of her. She tried to pretend like everything was fine but she felt such a well of rage I side of her that no longer had an outlet. As spring came and the world began to awaken and bloom, Ada's heart was still lost in the depths of winter.

Her dreams were plagued with images of featureless wolves tearing through the people she loved. She got very little sleep and it was affecting her waking mind. She would see enemy wolves in the shadows or hear them whispering her name. Vincent, Zack, and Jessie were all worried about her and they all frequently tried to get her to talk to them. Ada had never shared how she felt. Never told anyone her feelings because she had refused to let herself feel. When she finally did, she had almost lost everything she loved and cared for all over again. She was afraid that if she opened up, it would happen again.

Eventually the three friends decided that they had to do something. Ada had become a hero to all three packs, but she was on edge and the longer it went on the more everyone worried about the future Luna of the pack. Ada often went out to the fields, spending time alone there. They knew they would find her there.

"Ada. Can we all talk for a bit?" Vinvent asked as he sat down close to her. She had grown increasingly distant from him and he was worried what would happen if they did nothing.

Ada lifted her head from her work to look at the three of them, but co tinued her job.

"Yea. What's up?" She asked. Jessie and Zack also sat on the ground close to her, there for emotional support for both Vincent and Ada.

"Everyone's worried about you. We wanted to sit and talk with you." Vincent said to her, she stared at him blankly before a confused look was directed to all three.

"Worried? Why?" She asked, shifting the way she was sitting. She was now more alert and on edge and that made Zack and Jessie shift as well. Vincent remained how he was.

"You are distant, you see or hear things and you're not getting good sleep. We wanted to talk to you about what happened." Vincent answered and Ada shifted again.

"There's nothing to talk about. We won." She countered quickly, her voice raising in volume slightly.

"We did. But you don't seem to have left the fight. Your mind is still there." Vincent said to her and she leaned away from him slightly.

"How can it not be? They attacked because they wanted to destabilize the packs. They wanted to rip them down and force everyone to be like them. They wanted everyone to be miserable and violent! They hate pack wolves just because they are happy!" Her voice rose higher and higher as she spoke. Zack and Jessie were ready to intervene if she were to get violent, but she simply stared at the ground.

"They killed my family! They wiped out my pack! They took children and abused them! They forced them to kill other wolves and humans! We raided packs!" She continued on. Vincent reached out and gently placed one of his hands on one of her's and it brought her attention to him. Her eyes were wide and she looked ready to run or cry. Vincent just gazed at her with love.

"I know, Ada. What they did was wrong, and what they did to you was wrong. You should never have had to go through that." He shifted closer to her and for a moment she looked like she was going to run.

Vincent slipped his arms around Ada and pulled her close. She tensed up and she pulled against him, but he just held her close.

"We are here for you Ada. You don't have to be afraid any more." He told her. Right away her face shifted from confusion to anger.

"I'm not scared! I'm angry! I'm mad at them for what they did! For what they put me through! For what they tried to do! Most of them are dead and I'm still so mad!" She shouted, fighting against Vincent's embrace. However, he just firmly held her in his grip. She pushed and pulled at him, attempting to get free and a couple of times looked as if she might hit him; but never did.

Finally she wore herself out and she relented, collapsing into his arms as she began to sob. Zack and Jessie moved in and em raced their friends. Normally an Alpha would never allow another Male to touch his mate in such a way, but Ada needed the support. They loved her as their Luna and as their friend. She needed them and she needed to see that they were going to be there for her, no matter what.