Tragedy (Cole's POV)

I enjoyed a good sleep after my wild night, but something woke me up abruptly from sleep, and I woke up with a confused frown, opening one eye as I tried to find the source of my distress.

My phone's notification buzzing insistently drew my attention to the source of the problem and my eyes widened when I picked it up. There were hundreds of notifications from my social networks and news channels.

I was used to blogs making a fuss each time I had a good night at the club but this was unprecedented.

I let out a loud yawn and sat up on the bed, stretching and picking up the phone again. There were a couple of missed calls as well, and I raised my eyebrows. Whatever the news that was blowing up my phone must be hot.

Curiosity was killing me but I also wanted to call my parents first. I knew they would likely return today but I needed to call back as soon as possible considering how many calls from them I had missed. After deciding to call first before diving into my notifications, I pressed the call button on my Dad's name and waited for the call to connect.

I raised one brow in surprise when he didn't pick up after the first call. I don't recall any time my Dad has missed my call. He always picked up my call regardless of the time or place.

I tried the number again and was waiting for it to connect when I heard a knock on my door. Clicking the open button on my bedside table, I opened the door and Declan rushed into my room.

"Cole! I came as soon as I -" I held up a hand to silence him.

"Gosh let me finish my call before you start nagging. I don't even know why it's taking Dad so long to pick up the call. Do you think he's mad because I ignored all his calls yesterday?"

When my question was met with silence I glanced up at Declan and paused when I saw the stricken look on his face.

"Declan? What's wrong?"

He opened his mouth but didn't speak, closing it again with a quick shake of his head. I felt a chill start rising up my spine and fear crept into my heart.

"Did something happen? Is everything okay at home? Is it Anna? Tell me so that I can help."

I dropped the phone on the bed because Dad didn't pick up the second time either, and I wanted to send him a voicemail partly to apologize in case he was mad at me for not picking up his calls earlier and partly to scold him for also missing mine, but something seemed to be wrong with my PA and that was obviously more important now.

I have never seen Declan look this distraught. He was always so proper and put-together. Whatever was bothering him had to be serious.

"Declan, did something happen at home?" I asked again when he was still silent.

"No. Yes. Goddess, this is so hard.", he stuttered, running a hand over his face.

He sat on the edge of my bed and closed his eyes for a short while before opening them again, and my heart began to pound when I saw his eyes look suspiciously shiny.

Now that I was taking a closer look at him I saw that he was wearing sweats with the top turned inside out. Declan was usually so " perfect" that I couldn't imagine what could possibly make him so nervous and distraught that he wore his sweat top inside out.

"I didn't think that I would have to be the one to- I was so sure that with the way you were always on your phone you would - it's all over the news and- Goddess I'm messing this up because nothing could have prepared me for this and I can't even believe that- Goddess! Cole, I'm so sorry, I just never-"

When he covered his face and his shoulders began to shake I was very alarmed.

Was he...crying?

Another notification drew my attention back to my phone, and I grabbed it. Now that Declan had also mentioned it, I needed to see what had been blowing up my phone all morning. With trembling fingers, I clicked on the notifications and saw several headlines from blogs all talking about the same topic.

Everything in me stilled, and for the first time in my life, I understood what it felt like to be numb, to have all the air suddenly leave your lungs. For the first time I understood what it meant to have everything change in a second; to feel lost, confused, and shattered.

I was so numb that I barely registered when the phone fell from my hands that had suddenly become useless, or when Declan pulled me into his arms and hugged me for the first time since we have known each other.

I could hear him saying "I'm so sorry" repeatedly, but it sounded distant as if he was far away and not plastered against me in an embrace.

'This couldn't be happening. It couldn't be true. Those horrible headlines were just wicked blogs trying to make a buck in the cruelest way possible. It was not possible; it couldn't be possible.'

Maybe I was dreaming? This must be a nightmare and I must still be asleep. That had to be it. I just needed to sleep and wake up to my actual life, not this cruel one I had woken up to.

I focused on Declan again when I realized that he had pulled back and was talking to me. "...is that okay?" I nodded even though I hadn't even been listening to what he had been saying and had no idea what he wanted a response to.

"Okay, okay. I'll take care of everything. And I'll let them know that you don't want to talk to anyone right now," he said as he wiped at his leaking face again. I hadn't shed a tear so far, and I doubted I would. This was just a dream- a nightmare, and I wasn't going to waste my tears on it.

I nodded again and fell back on the bed, pulling the covers up and cradling my pillow. "I'm going back to sleep."

He gave me a sympathetic look that had my heart lurching. "Oh, Cole. I know how your mind works. You're not dreaming. I know this is a nightmare but unfortunately for all of us, it's our reality."

I closed my eyes so that I won't be able to see him, trying to block out what he was saying as well.

I felt his hand gently patting me on the back. "I'm going to hold them off for as long as I can while I try to put things in place for you. I know this is hard and your whole world just crumbled at your feet, and I know this is going to be difficult as heck but I'm going to need you to be very strong.

There are things- your parents had wanted to make sure this situation doesn't happen but unfortunately, they couldn't fix things before this happened and you are going to - never mind, I don't want to overwhelm you now.

Just- just don't trust anybody okay? I'm going to fight with you to make sure everything your parents wanted for you will happen, and there are too many terrible people around you now that you trust. I'll be back soon to bring you some food and check up on you."

I didn't open my eyes or respond but I felt his hand leave my back and heard the door close softly a few seconds later.

As I tried to sleep again the image of those headlines haunted me.

"Breaking News: Alec and Reina Green Die in Plane Crash"

"Socialite Cole Greene Parties the Night Away While His Parents Die in Crash"

"Party Boy Cole Greene loses Parents While His Parents Crash their Plane"

"Breaking News: Alpha Alec Greene and His Wife Die in Fatal Plane Crash."

I stayed in bed for hours, my eyes closed and memories of my parents assaulting me as I tried to sleep the nightmare away.

My parents could not be dead. I would have felt something, right? I would know if they were dead. I would know.

As I finally drifted off to sleep, I felt my wolf's comforting warmth, and for the first time, I appreciated his presence.

The last thought before I drifted off was "Why didn't I pick up the call when they were trying to reach me?"