CHAPTER 339: 339-SNEAKING IN

Clementine:

Killing my father felt as if I had finally freed myself from the burden of the past.

The guilt I carried from lying there and watching him drag Haiden’s sister who had not even died yet into the north, while I later forgot the memory of it, had vanished.

I felt better now.

However, while all of this was happening, one person had gone missing.

Oriana!

I guessed she believed we would tie her up in the north and leave her behind, which, to be honest, we had been leaning toward.

She kept repeating that she had been influenced by the monster, but there were many other things she had done that made it impossible for me to trust her.

Yet I noticed hesitation in the others. The red teams and Joshua seemed to lean toward letting the ringleaders deal with her because they did not want to make the wrong decision.

My mates and I, however, were certain we did not want her anywhere near our train.

Now that she had disappeared, none of us had the strength to go after her.

We did not want to miss the train, especially now that I had so many questions for the ringleaders after discovering my father here with different powers and becoming a monster.

We finally reached the train station in silence.

While passing through Fleshmingo town and the woods, I remembered every monster we had slain, and I began to wonder if they had once been loved by someone.

I remembered the faun had once been a normal werewolf. What was happening in the north?

Once we arrived at the station, everyone took seats on the benches. Joshua placed Jack’s body on one of them.

The others waited anxiously for the train, while I sat near the tracks with my legs hanging down, staring into the distance.

"Hey," Ian approached me before the others could.

I turned to look at him and noticed the other three stopping midway when they had planned to come toward me.

I guessed Ian had won again. He stepped down beside me and elbowed me lightly.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

He probably had no idea, but his voice alone made me feel better.

"I am now that you are back," I replied, wrapping my arm around his and resting my head on his shoulder.

I no longer cared what anyone thought unless he felt insecure being seen with me.

That thought made me begin to lift my head, remembering how he had not wanted me to return to his pack last time.

Before I could fully move, he raised his hand, placed it over my ear, and guided my head back to his shoulder.

I giggled at the way he made his choice clear.

"There was a reason I did not want you in my pack, and I guess you know that now," he remarked.

"Your brother. Why did you never tell me about him?" I asked softly, keeping my voice low.

"There was nothing to tell. And I know it sounds wrong to call him evil, but that is who he is, Clementine.

He is evil. We never got along," he replied.

"Then why are you in the north and not him? Do you not think they were sending unwanted, dangerous people here?" I wondered, watching him turn toward me.

"While looking at you, I do not think that was the case," he replied, making me frown again. "They were. They simply did not have a choice.

These pack members once signed a pact in blood that they would send their children to the north when their time came.

They are required to follow it. And as for why I was sent here and not him, they cannot send a monster to fight monsters.

There has to be some goodness in someone’s heart to survive in the north."

Ian remarked, giving me goosebumps with the way he spoke about his brother and the way he called him evil.

It seemed something else had happened between them.

"So tell me, my squadmate, what have you uncovered while I was gone?" Ian asked.

As soon as he spoke, I smiled brightly. It already felt like before.

"A lot of things. You will be stunned," I replied. "I will fill you in on everything."

However, I noticed the way he glanced at my uniform.

"So you are in a different squad now?" he wondered, pouting.

"Well, sadly, yes," I replied, turning my head to the other side.

"I think it is time we have a conversation with the ringleaders. We do not need to come back here until everything is cleared," Ian remarked with a heavy tone.

I stared into his eyes and noticed a fire in them. He was ready to stand for what was right. He always had been.

I turned my head toward the back and noticed Joshua, who had placed Nate’s body on one of the benches as well.

It was saddening. The white squad had been nearly wiped out, with Joshua being the only one left.

"Do you think he will be in my squad now?" I uttered, a wave of terror running through me when Joshua lifted his head and made eye contact.

It seemed he was thinking the same thing.

And I did not know about the others, but being on the same team as him made me feel like we would be deadlier than ever.

Finally, the train arrived and our eye contact broke.

Everyone stood up. Yorick and Haiden helped Joshua with the bodies of the white squad members and loaded them into the white squad carriage, while we went into our own.

The black squad rushed inside as well, not paying attention to Oriana for understandable reasons, while I entered the red carriage.

Just before the doors locked, Oriana burst in out of nowhere, throwing herself into the carriage.

I rose from my seat and hurried to the window, trying to see what was happening.

Yorick, Troy, and the others groaned and stood to toss her out, but the door closed before they could reach her.

That was when I realized she had slipped in perfectly again.

She was like a leech. Now she faced the hard, scrutinizing stares of the men she had once tried to control.

Then Ian said something that sent a chill through me.

"Oh, so that is what it was. I kept hearing whispers in my head last time during the ogre fight. Were you trying to control me too?" he grunted, narrowing his eyes at her.

It made sense. She had asked for the power to control all my squadmates, which meant Ian had been part of it, not Zian.

That also meant that when Ian arrived at the ogre station, he had been able to break free from her influence, probably because he had not stayed near her for long.