Everett’s eyes flicked to the man now standing behind her. Aila looked at Cassius, who was walking with his hands clasped behind his back. Unlike Aila and Davian, the white-haired vampire wore white; it was almost like he wanted to be caught. She rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Everett. “Is this my snack?” Cassius was right behind her now, and his words made the hunter pale.

“No,” Aila snapped. “I need to know if he’s telling the truth, and then we are letting him go.” She turned her head to look at Cassius, and her breath hitched from how close his face was. She leaned away from him, but Cassius’ arm snaked around her waist, keeping her in place.

“Then you need to focus on his eyes,” Cassius muttered near her ear. “Use compulsion.”

Aila blinked profusely, and Everett’s brows rose in surprise. Which made sense; she was known to be a werewolf. Aila cleared her throat and whispered, “How?” This was the first time in the two weeks since they started this madness of hunting down hunters that Cassius was teaching her instead of taking the lead and using his mind control. 

“Just stared into his eyes, and push your will into his-“

“How do I-“

“Think how you want to control him. Then you will see how his eyes will gloss over. Try it,” Cassius instructed and stepped back. Aila looked at Everett, who started to look anywhere but at her.

“Everett.” She grabbed him by the chin and turned his face to look at hers, but he glanced down, which was starting to make her irritable, especially now that Cassius had mentioned being hungry; it was making her own hunger start to burn. “If you don’t look at me, I will let my friend here eat you.”

That got his attention, and he looked at her. Aila threw all the power she could behind, thinking about how she wanted to control Everett, and within seconds his eyes glossed over. “Do you know where Clint is?” She asked instantly.

“No, I haven’t seen him in a year. But I heard he is in hiding after attacking the Alpha Queen. He breached protocol, so the hunters are searching for him and will punish him,” Everett recalled in a hypnotic, droning voice. It made Aila feel sick that she was forcing this out of him, but it was better than torture, especially with a hunter like Everett. He didn’t seem bad. 

Aila released him from the compulsion, and he sagged slightly, breathing harshly with sweat coating his thick brows. Cassius chuckled from behind her. “Don’t put too much power behind it; otherwise, he’ll go unconscious or go into a vegetive state.”

Aila gaped, and she whipped her head back to glare at him. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me?!” She demanded, her hands fisting by her sides.

Cassius shrugged. “I just did. And why does it matter? He’s just a hunter.”

Aila released a long sigh and clutched her head in her hand. “I am letting Everett go,” She snapped, and her eyes glowed with the slight rumbling of a growl in her throat.

Cassius smirked and held his hands up. “Then let him go. But he will probably die. His comrades are all dead, and he is the only survivor.. They’d probably think it is a little suspicious and kill him.”

Aila slowly turned her head back to Everett, he didn’t say anything, but she knew from the expression on his face that what Cassius said was true. “Then..” She trailed off before an idea sprung to her mind. “Find Chase Hunt. Tell him what happened. Tell him Aila Cross released you. Don’t tell anyone else; just head straight to him.”

“I can’t just look for Chase Hunt! He’s.. He’s..” Everett trailed off, and she could almost see the awe on his face. Ah, was he a fan of his? Chase was like some sort of celebrity in the Hunters Association because of his skills and dad.

“Yes. You can,” Aila said slowly, holding his gaze and using compulsion on him. “Find Chase Hunt and tell him Aila Cross attacked the hunters but let you live. No one else was here.” 

She needed to ensure that Cassius wouldn’t go after Everett once she released him. She knew what he was like, and that was something he’d do and continue like it never happened.

Everett nodded his head slowly. “Find.. Chase.. Hunt.. Aila Cross.. attacked.. hunters.. let me live.. No one else is here.”

Aila nodded and looked back to see the van and dead bodies were gone, along with Davian and Cassius. Good. She sighed and released the compulsion on the hunter, who repeated it again. Aila stepped back and crossed her arms while the hunter grabbed his belongings on the ground.

“Go,” She urged. “Before the Green Rock pack catches you.”

Everett glanced at her nervously, then dashed down another alley and disappeared into the night. Aila felt worried about him, but there was nothing else she could do for him, and she hoped he would make it back to Chase. In the last two weeks, they’d been tracking down hunters in search of Clint; it was a good distraction and one she hoped would bring her closer to Cassius. 

Aila was showing a colder attitude now; the countless deaths had been taking their toll on her, and she was becoming ‘thick skinned’. But what kept her going was that at least the people she killed weren’t innocent. In a way, they’d been helping packs and rogues from hunter attacks. Yet, one look at Everett, and she knew he wasn’t like the others; at least that was something. 

Aila walked back onto the high street and stopped when Cassius’ black SUV appeared before her. The night was quiet, and Aila knew Cassius must have compelled the pack members that nothing was wrong. She climbed into the passenger seat and asked what was on her mind. “How do you know where all these hunters are?” 

“I have my sources,” Cassius smirked. “It’s how we have been under the radar from the Alpha King.”

Aila grimaced and looked out of the window. At the mention of her mate, her heart clenched tightly, and her wolf howled in her mind longingly. It had nearly been a month, and although she had been running around after hunters, she still returned to a cold bed and what felt like a hole in her chest. Without Damon, she felt empty, but she could tell just how close she was to finding out what Cassius was after. It wasn’t just about her, there was something else, and she needed to unravel what it was for the good of her pack and other packs in the country.

“And possibly the world,” Malia whispered, making a shiver run down Aila’s spine.