CHAPTER 87 — POSSIBLE WOLVES AT THE DOOR

CHAPTER 87 — POSSIBLE WOLVES AT THE DOOR
DONOVAN’S POV

The knock came again, it's softer this time.
I kept my gun trained on the door as Violet moved to stand beside me, her hand resting on my arm in silent support.

“Who is it?” I called out again, my voice low.

“Just me.” The voice was familiar, it's Laura’s.

I hesitated for only a second before moving the barricade just enough to see her through the gap.
She stood alone in the snow, her clothes were torn and bloodied and her face pale with exhaustion.
No one followed her up the path.

“Let me in,” she said quietly. “I know you don’t trust me, but I can help you.”

I looked at Violet, who nodded slightly. I pulled the table aside and let Laura stumble inside, immediately barricading the door again as we heard shouts from the trees below.

“They’re close,” Laura said, collapsing onto the bed as I moved to check her injuries.
“Alessandro’s men found the tunnel entrance, but Damien’s holding them off with some of his guys from the casino.”

“Where are Alistair and Damien?” Violet asked, moving to the stove to pour hot water into a bowl for Laura’s wounds.

“Alistair stayed behind to help some of his guys,” Laura said, wincing as Violet cleaned a cut on her forehead.
“Damien’s leading the Volterras on a wild goose chase through the mountains, I think he's trying to draw them away from you.”

I watched Violet tend to Laura with gentle efficiency, her hands are steady even though I knew she was still hurting from what Laura had said to her earlier.
Even in the middle of danger, she couldn’t help but care for people, it was both her greatest strength and her biggest weakness.

“He’ll lead them right to the old monastery ruins,” I said, pulling up the map I’d memorized of the area.
“There’s only one way in and out of there. If he gets trapped…”

“He knows what he’s doing,” Laura said, catching my arm as I moved toward the door.
“Damien had survived worse than Alessandro Volterra. But we need to move because they’ll find this place within the hour.”
I gently pulled my hand from hers and caught hurt expression before she wiped it off as if it was never there.
I turned to Violet. “We can take the ridge path to the old church, it’s steep and dangerous, but it’s the only way they won’t expect us to go.”

“Then let’s go. I’m not leaving without them.”

“First we get you to safety,” I said firmly, even though my heart ached at the thought of leaving my brothers behind. “Then we come back for them.”

We packed what little supplies we could carry, canned food, water and blankets, then we slipped out the back door just as flashlights cut through the trees below the cabin.
The ridge path was exactly as I’d described, it narrow, icy, and with a sheer drop to the valley hundreds of feet below.
Violet moved carefully with her hand tight in mine as we climbed higher into the mountains.

Laura followed behind us, moving with surprising grace despite her injuries. Every few minutes, we’d stop to listen for pursuit, but all we could hear was the wind howling through the pines and the distant sound of gunfire echoing off the peaks.

After hours of climbing, we reached a small cave that's hidden behind a waterfall, another one of Rosa’s secrets. I helped Violet inside, then turned to block the entrance with rocks while Laura built a small fire from dry pine needles and branches.

The cave was warm and dry, with a small pool of fresh water from the waterfall seeping through the rocks. Violet collapsed onto a flat rock, pulling her knees to her chest as she stared into the fire.

“I keep thinking about my mother,” she said quietly.
“One minute she’s with Marco, the next Alessandro shows up and everything changes. What if she’s what I thought she was?”

I sat beside her, pulling her close against my chest.
“She’s your mother, Violet. No matter what choices she’s made, that doesn’t change.”

“Does it matter if she’s been lying to me my whole life?” she asked, her voice breaking.
“Does blood really mean anything when people keep betraying you?”

“Blood doesn’t make family,” Laura said from across the fire, her voice soft.
“Loyalty and love does. I should know – I’ve spent years thinking blood ties meant something, but the only people who’ve ever really had my back are the three of you.”

Violet looked at her, then back at me. “You still care about them, don’t you? About all of them.”

Laura nodded, tears streaming down her face.
“I never stopped caring. That’s why it hurt so much when they looked at you like you were the answer to everything they’d been looking for. I thought I was supposed to be that person, the one who stood by them through everything.”

“But, we don’t have to be enemies just because we care about the same people, you know.” Violet said, moving to sit beside Laura.
"I don't want to talk about it." Laura said moving away from her.
Heavy tension return to the cave as everywhere became silence leaving everyone their thoughts.
I wonder Laura will come to realize that I have moved on.
As the fire crackled and the wind howled outside, I pulled out my radio, trying to raise Alistair or Damien.
Static filled the air, but just as I was about to give up, Damien’s voice cut through the noise.

“…read you loud and clear, Donovan. Come in.”

“Damien!” Violet scrambled to my side, pressing her ear to the radio.
“Are you okay?”

“Better than okay, sweetheart,” his voice was breathless.
“I’ve got the Volterras chasing me all over the northern pass. Alistair’s with some of my men and they’ve taken control of the main gate at the compound and are holding off Alessandro’s reinforcements.”

“Where are you now?” I asked, adjusting the frequency to try and get a clearer signal.

“At the old monastery, ” he laughed, and I could hear the sound of engines in the background.
“I’ve got them right where I want them. But I need you to get to the church because Alessandro’s second-in-command is planning to move against the Gray Circle council there.”

“We’re on our way,” I said firmly.
“But we need to get you out of there first.”

“Negative,” Damien said, his voice turning serious. “I’ll lead them on a tour of the mountain roads. You just focus on protecting Violet and stopping whatever Alessandro has planned. And Donovan…”

“Yeah?”

“Take care of her. All of you take care of each other.”

The radio went dead, and we sat in silence for a moment, the weight of what he’d said hanging heavy in the air.

“He’ll be okay,” she said quietly. “Damien will surely find a way.”

“I know,” I said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
“But we need to move, we’ve got less than two hours to get to San Gimignano before the council meets.”