I hated vehicles.

They combined several things that I absolutely despised at my current place in life. Confined spaces, inability to move, and forced proximity. I liked having freedom, roaming, not being stuck with a bunch of people I barely knew. Hilla was fine, she mostly napped or read magazines she picked up at the mundane gas stations. Julieta was quiet too, either talking low to Hilla or reading as well. But then there was Luiz.

Luiz talked, and talked, and talked. It was a nervous chatter too and I wasn't going to lie, I took great enjoyment out of staring at him flatly to where his speaking would speed up and he would start doing more nervous rambling. I had forgotten about that, how he tended to fill up uncomfortable silences with rambling whenever he could.

However, there would always reach a point where my staring would really get to him and he would shut up for about ten minutes... and then he would continue. I knew it was a nervousness thing for him, anxiety. I could faintly remember him and I having long discussions about his anxiety, especially after his mum and dad died in that accident. He had troubles with feeling confident, for being a beta his father would be proud of, for worrying about Julieta's safety when she would go to school and he wasn't there to protect her.

He had worried about everything and nothing at the same time. He had been anxious about everything in regards to his life. I had forgotten that. Seemed like his ability to cope with it had gotten worse too. Which tracked. Julieta had been banished and then stopped writing him after she had gotten kidnapped, he had been banished. Keeping up on using his coping skills for his anxiety had probably been on the bottom of his list.

I understood that, however I was in no mind to be able to be patient about it. There was little between us anymore except the distant past. I tolerated Lilith's anxiety issues because she was my family, because Micheal was my beta brother but Luiz? I had little patience for it, not to mention I was already highly agitated because being stuck in the vehicle for nearly twenty-five hours was doing a number on me and my wolf.

If I was agitated, he was even worse. It was hard to sit still with him pacing in my head, pushing at me, growling in agitation, baring and licking his teeth. He wanted out and I wanted out too but I knew I had to stay where I was. Getting out of a vehicle moving 110kmph was not a smart move but my wolf wasn't smart when he got like this. His idea was just get out and deal with it but I also knew we couldn't deal with anything if we were a smear on the asphalt with broken bones.

Although I was thankful we were getting close to Provocatio. It wasn't that I recognized the area, it was because I could feel it. Tension had started to radiate off of Julieta and Luiz. I couldn't see Julieta but I could feel the tension and hear her shifting in her spot. Luiz kept tightening his hands around the steering wheel, clearing his throat, his eyes darting around in front of the car. That and the bond underneath my skin started to wake up more. It was damn near rejoicing and I curled my lip up at it. I didn't want that inside of me. Vera was a snake, a vicious and cruel snake and there was nothing to rejoice about being near her.

Despite how the bond had changed, becoming cajoling and soft. It didn't change the facts of what happened. It didn't change that Vera had slipped me wolfsbane and had her toy challenge me for the delta position. It didn't change how she laughed, how she sneered at me. All I could remember was watching the female I had thought was the most beautiful female in the world turn into a monster right in front of my eyes.

The bond was a nuisance I could do without. I felt something like nerves twist my stomach. It was weird but a part of me didn't know how I would react to seeing Vera again. My wolf gave a low whine that I felt through my entire chest. I didn't know if we would lose our heads if we saw her, heard her. The last thing I wanted to do was end up begging her like I did last time. I was so angry, rightfully so in my mind, over what she had done, I didn't want to lose that, to have the bond make me forget what had happened and what she had done.

That had been my biggest concern, one I shared with my wolf. We knew how the bond was, how it wanted us to be back with Vera. It punished us at first, I knew it probably punished her too but she was just as stubborn as me. I knew that but there was no way in hell I wanted to go back to a female like her. Not one that lied, cheated, and brutalized others while she fulfilled her ambitions for power.

"How do we want to approach Antonio about this?" Luiz's voice broke through my thoughts and I shrugged. It wasn't like I could do much talking, nor did I want to. Further to that I had done way too much thinking over the past few days. I was getting sick of it and I was finding I had a low level headache most of the time.

"Tell him that bitch poisons people." Hilla snorted with amusement. "Most people would take that into consideration."

Luiz shook his head. "It's not so easy. We were all banished-"

"Not me. Don't drag me into it. I'm only here so I can maybe drag some bitches by their hair." At Hilla's retort I snorted in amusement and I heard a similar snort from Julieta.

Luiz gave an aggravated sound in his throat. "Obviously I wasn't referring to you. Ay dios mio you are irriting." He adjusted his grip on the steering wheel. "The three of us were banished. We have to work against that. Tony won't just up and believe us. He would think we're lying. For some of us it's been years since we were banished." His gaze flicked to me and he winced as I gave him a flat look in return. "But all of us showing up after that long, it looks suspicious, like we are wanting to get back into the pack."

"Isn't that the whole point though? The challenges were fucked with so they don't count. Meaning you get back into the pack." Hilla sounded slightly confused and I crossed my arms over my chest, I didn't want back in Provocatio. I had Fortis, even if I didn't know where I fit in at the moment.

"Yah but that is secondary to getting Vera and Blake stopped. She can't keep poisoning people and getting away with it." Luiz looked around as he slowed the car to make a familiar turn. I did my best not to wiggle around. My wolf and I were really done with the car, we wanted out to stretch our legs and run for a few miles.

"Obviously but this Alpha should really think poisoning accusations are heavier than you maybe lying about it." I could tell Hilla was needling him slightly. She seemed to like to get underneath Luiz's skin. I couldn't say it wasn't amusing so I kept my mouth shut.

"Your opinion is lacking context of the entire situation and the traditions of Provocatio." He snarked back at her and I rolled my eyes slightly, looking out the window.

After a few minutes of tense silence, we started to ascend up the slight mountain trail towards the pack. This area I knew. That familiar climb up to main pack grounds did cause a faint feeling inside me. My wolf went still, our eyes taking in the different tree line. Some trees were still there, taller than we remembered, others were newer, smaller. It made sense, that things would change but it was interesting to still see some landmarks that still lingered even though so much time had passed.

Micheal and Luka had stopped pressing so hard against the barriers I made to block them out. It made me suspicious but I refused to let my guard down. Knowing them they would pull back only to battering ram my blocks without warning to try to break through. No one else was pushing against me but I refused to get lax in keeping that block strong. This wasn't their problem and I needed to do it by myself. I couldn't drag anyone down into the murky mire of my past like that. They had families to think about rather than my past catching up to me.

I would get this dealt with, all of it. Then I would go back. The pressures and the drama of the last few days was catching up to me. I rubbed at my face. I had killed some males, took over an illegal rogue pack, helped support a female give birth, did my best to protect her from people being assholes, and now we were so close to getting back to Provocatio so I could deal with Vera and finally bury that part of my past.

It felt like too much almost, too much happening and going on all at once. I felt like I barely had a chance to breathe and I missed Fortis. I missed the kids tugging on my fur. I missed sleeping soundly in the inner den with Heidi and DB. I missed my family. As much as I didn't know where I fit anymore, as much as I felt awkward and like I was being left behind, I still loved them. This was the longest I had been away from Luka and Micheal since we first met. Yah Luka would disappear from running with the wild wolf pack for a few weeks at a time but I always had Micheal with me.

This... I didn't care for it. I knew I needed to do it, I knew I needed to get my past dealt with and buried but I didn't like being away from those I claimed as my family. Shifters, much like wolves, were pack animals, social animals. We needed our packs and I was no different. I didn't like being seperated from them.

I shook the maudlin thoughts away as I felt my block softening. I needed to stay strong, to not get lost in that frame of mind because I knew for a fact Luka and Micheal would be able to break through the block in the mindlink. And I really, really, didn't want to drag them into this mess.

I stared out the car window as we continued the small climb. It usually took ten minutes to drive from the base to the main pack grounds but the road was a bit smoother, as if they had gotten it built up and redone, so it only took us seven minutes. The area was similar to what I remembered but time had definitely changed things. It had been inevitable but I was glad it didn't quite feel like I was going back in time. Mt wolf aggreed with me, even though he kept bombarding me with images of running through trees. He was really done with the car.

After another minute I could see some familiar buildings, the colours slightly different than they had been all those years ago, some faded, others a bit brighter like they had just been painted. There were a few new buildings as well, a large communal building it looked like, and some smaller houses. We pulled towards the main parking area that now had a nice little fence blocking it off and I looked around. Everything looked the same but different at the same time. It was strange.

I felt the bond tugging at me incessantly and I rubbed at my chest. It could curl up and die and I hoped by the end of this that it would. I hoped that we could finally move on, that we could leave Vera behind with the rest of all this. I frowned slightly as I turned my head and spotted a large crowd at the challenging grounds, the sight of it had me stiffening.

"Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck!" The curses exploded from Luiz as he slammed on the brakes and threw the car into park in the middle of the gravel parking lot. I fumbled with my seatbelt, needing to get out but Luiz was already out of the car. "Antonio! Tony!" He bolted for the crowd and I snarled as I managed to get my seatbelt off and my door shoved open.

Vera had clearly been impatient. I had hoped she would spread it out more, not wait less than a year and go after Antonio. She was getting greedier, more impatient. I knew it made sense that she was. She was getting closer to her goal of becoming Alpha female so she would push and push and push until she got it. She was a fucking pit viper, never satisfied with what she had. Me being a delta had been enough, Blake taking the beta position had been enough but not for her, never for her. Her ambitions were far too dangerous.

I left the car and ran after Luiz as he jumped over the small fence and rushed for the crowd, calling for Antonio. I cleared the fence as well, ignoring my wolf as he pushed against me, wanting us to shift. I narrowed my eyes as Luiz tried to shove through the pack members but wasn't really getting far.

They were cheering and some shouting and when I reached the edge of the group, I let my dominance surge outwards. That had most ducking and pushing away from me to escape the burning shove I was giving them, silently telling them to move their asses out of my way. I shoved past Luiz and through the crowd, my wolf snarling in my head as I bared my teeth. I was aware that Luiz was following me and I pushed people aside to try and reach the center of the pack, to that inner ring where the challenge was held.

"Hey! This is a challenge!" People from the front of the crowd pushed against me and I just swung my arm out with another snarl, sweeping them aside.

"What the fuck is this?"

"Who the fuck?"

"What's going on?"

"Is that Luiz?"

"What the hell is he doing here?" I could hear them muttering and shouting in confusion as Luiz's name was spread around. Their confusion was palpable but that gave my wolf and I an edge to get through to where we needed to go.

I made it through that final ring and I could hear Vera's sultry rasp as she cheered on Blake and my wolf and I snarled even as the bond surged up inside of us, ecstatic to be back around her. I watched Blake drove his fist into Antonio's face. The other male sloppily lifted his arms and I knew that action, that disorientated, unsure of what was happening, action to try and protect yourself. I knew it because I had done it. Antonio had definitely been poisoned, I could guarantee it.

This needed to be stopped, now.

"Get him, babe!" Vera cheered and I shuddered under the sound of it. As much as the bond rejoiced, all I could do was remember how she cheered when Blake had done that to me. I took two large strides across the open challenge arena and grabbed the back of Blake's shirt and yanked him backwards so quickly he choked on his shirt collar. "What the fuck is this?" Vera's voice pitched upwards and I tossed him away from me without much effort as I kept my eyes on Antonio.

He was down on one knee, looking like he was going to go down for the count, I reached for him. He needed to stay upright or the pack would declare the challenge over. "Tony! Madre luna, Tony!" Luiz grabbed him as he almost keeled over onto his face. He was fucked, he would be fucked for a few hours at least. I went to help him get Antonio upright when I sensed movement behind me.

"Hey! This is a formal fucking challenge for the Alpha position. You can't interfere." Blake's snot nosed voice had me and my wolf's hackles raising up. I could feel the phantom hackles up and down my spine as I slowly turned my head to look at him. My eyes narrowed as my focus went straight on him. I was vaguely aware of Luiz trying to get Antonio back to his feet and the shouts from the pack that we interrupted the challenge.

All of it fell to the side as I clenched my hands into fists as he stalked towards me. I started forward as well, my wolf and I wanted a fucking rematch to show this cocky little upstart, this fucking lapdog, what it meant to actually fight. When he got within range I swung without thinking and felt satisfied as my fist connected solidly with his face and the force of it reverberated up my arm. He flailed backwards, hitting the ground. I stalked after him before small hands shoved at my chest, pushing back against me. I growled deep in my chest but when I glanced down, Julieta was shaking her head as she looked up at me.

"Not the time. Not the fucking time!" Her words barely broke through the harsh whine in my ears, the heavy thrall of my wolf telling me to beat Blake's ass until he felt how we did all those years ago. To show him what a real challenge felt like, to have a real down and out fight. But her voice broke through it and I knew she was right so when she shoved against my chest, I allowed her to push me backwards. I covered one of her hands with mine, keeping it pressed there to keep me grounded when all I wanted to do was give into my wolf's wants, hell even my own wants. My eyes narrowed as I watched Vera grab Blake, helping him up, both of them shouting something I didn't care to listen to.

The bond wiggled inside of me like a little parasite. She was just as beautiful as the day I was banished, pretty like a snake. I bared my teeth, growling deep in my chest but allowing Julieta to move me. She pushed against my chest and I walked backwards, not taking my eyes off the two of them. They wouldn't ever get a chance to attack anyone in such a cowardly fashion again, I would make fucking sure of that.

"We need to get him back to his house." Luiz sounded frantic as Antonio swayed back and forth and when the pack closed ranks behind Julieta I finally dropped my hand and turned. I looped my arm around Antonio's waist as he slurred his speech and struggled against Luiz's grip.

I nearly heaved him off his feet as I started to carry him back towards his house. "Pu' m' down. This 's a chall'nge!" He pushed against me and I ignored it as the words slurred together. He sounded drunk and that was all I needed to see and hear. This was wolfsbane, without a fucking doubt he had been poisoned.

"Stay back!" Luiz was waving his hands and I was aware of the pack pushing towards us, clearly upset that we broke up the challenge. I didn't care about that though. We needed to get Antonio coherent and somewhat okay and then we could deal with the rest of it.

"You broke into a challenge!"

"You were banished, Luiz! You aren't supposed to be here!"

"Yah! There are fucking rules!"

"You interfered!"

"It isn't done!"

The voices and calls clashed with each other over the air as the pack pressed towards us. I watched as Julieta rushed for Antonio's house, opening the front door. I nodded at her as I carried Antonio inside. He still struggled against me but when I snarled he seemed startled and stopped for a moment. I couldn't remember if Antonio had always been so wiry, I could have sworn he had been bigger. Then again I had changed a lot over the years, maybe he had too. Or perhaps it was I was bulkier now than I had ever been and Antonio was never one to bulk up.

"Where do you need him?" Julieta looked almost frazzled and I wrinkled my nose as I tried to think but hating every second of it.

"Sweat out. Shower." That was the best way to get rid of the wolfsbane. You sweated it out, you allowed your body to work it out through your pores. The one good thing about our biology was that it would work overtime to get rid of the toxins from our blood streams. His piss would stink tomorrow but he would be thankful for the shower because his sweat would reek.

Julieta nodded and ran further into the house. I heard the shower start and I pretty much dragged Antonio down the hall. She moved out of the bathroom and I carried Antonio inside before depositing him in the shower underneath the hot spray. His head lolled and he looked beat to shit. There were bruises forming on his face, his nose was bleeding too.

I grabbed his jaw and sniffed at his mouth. That bitter scent was clear as he breathed out. Coffee and fucking wolfsbane. I growled deep in my chest as I slapped him slightly with my free hand. When his eyes cracked open, I pointed at him. "Stay." It was a heavy order before I left him there. I needed to find where the wolfsbane was hidden this time. I passed Julieta and pointed at the bathroom. "Watch." She gave a quick nod and darted back into the bathroom.

I was aware of Hilla coming inside, "Where's Julieta?" She looked at me pointedly and I gestured to the bathroom. She gave me a firm nod that I nodded back at as she rushed to the bathroom as well. The two females could keep Antonio corralled in the bathroom for a while. I could hear Luiz outside trying to reason with the pack. I silently wished him luck with that, it wasn't my problem.

I inhaled deeply, trying to track down the smell. I sniffed around the kitchen and when I caught that faint bitter scent I was drawn to the sink. I grabbed the lone coffee cup from the bottom and sniffed it. There it was, a faint, very faint acrid bitterness. She had done it the same way she did everything. She put it in a fucking drink. I carried the cup over to the coffee pot and yanked the basket out. I sniffed the used grounds and growled. My wolf's ears went back and I bared my teeth. There it was again, that acrid bitterness. She had mixed it into the coffee grounds.

I set the basket down with the cup and started rummaging through the cupboards. I knew he had the coffee somewhere. I moved things around, growing more and more agitsted when I couldn't find it. It took a bit when I spotted a green tin slightly behind the toaster. I snagged it and pulled the plastic lid off. I inhaled the scent of the coffee and nearly sneezed. There it was. The fucking source of it. I hated the scent of it in my nose, it burned. It was a harsh scent that felt like it scraped the inside of my nose out. I held it away from me, narrowing my eyes.

"Are you okay?" Julieta sounded concerned and I held the coffee can out towards her. She looked confused as she came over and tucked some hair behind her ear before she bent over and took a quick sniff. She almost choked and I could see her eyes nearly water. "What the fuck is that?" She clamped her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide with disgust and concern. Once you had been doused with wolfsbane, your body learned real quick what it was and it was a visceral reaction made so you would avoid it again.

"They won't back off for long. How is Antonio?" Luiz closed the front door and quickly strode over to us.

I watched as Julieta tilted her head. "Wait..." Her eyebrows furrowed as she leaned forward and took a small sniff. "I know that smell." I could practically see the gears turning in her head and I was impressed she was catching on so quick. It made me want to smile. She had always been a quick learner, even as a kid.

"What the fuck is going on? Is Antonio okay?" Luiz sounded even more agitated and Julieta snagged the coffee can from me.

"He's in the shower. Smell!" She shoved it under his nose and I watched as Luiz recoiled from the can with a cough.

"Madre luna, what the fuck is that?" He darted his eyes between the can and Julieta and I watched as she gave it another sniff, making another disgusted face.

"It smells faintly like my tea did. Like that burn in the back of your nose. Like your skin is peeling" She glanced at me and I nodded.

"Acrid." I growled the word and she nodded.

"Yah, like that. It's..." She sniffed again and recoiled. "I know that smell, Luiz." She held it out for Luiz again and he frowned slightly.

"I don't get it." He didn't seem too keen on the can and I growled low. How could he be so utterly dense? He remembered the scent, so did Julieta. I already told him Vera used poison. There were only so many dots that he could put together.

"This is kinda how my tea smelled the day of my challenge, Luiz. The tea that made me sick." She glanced at me. "Do you know this smell?" I nodded sharply and she blinked rapidly. "The day of your challenge, right?" I nodded again and the realization seemed to sink into her and at that I did smirk. She was so fucking smart.

"I don't get it." Luiz looked between us and Julieta gave a low sound in her throat.

"Luiz! This is what she must have poisoned us with! Whatever is giving the coffee the smell is what poisoned us on our challenges. What poisoned Antonio." She shoved the can towards him. "Do you remember the smell?"

I watched as Luiz looked torn for a moment before he sniffed, recoiling again. "Fuck that's disgustin-" He stopped and his expression went flat.

"You remember it, don't you?" Julieta almost sounded excited and Luiz gave one short nod.

"I do, but what the fuck is that?" He pointed at the coffee can, his flat expression burning with anger at the edges.

Julieta frowned and glanced between me and Luiz before her gaze landed on me. I watched as Luiz glanced at me as well. I took the can from Julieta and slowly set it down, putting the lid on it. This was the proof, this was what we needed to take down Vera and Blake.

"Wolfsbane." I looked at the two of them as horror spread across their expressions. "It wolfsbane."