The Werewolf's Sabbat Ch. 11

"Come on! Get out of my damn way!" he yelled at the car ahead of him as he honked the horn and hit the gas pedal. Mitch had been driving for a good ten minutes when his heart suddenly sank in his chest. All the fear he was feeling that he was sure was coming from Janette was suddenly gone. Everything inside him went quiet. It was as though their connection had been cut off. She wasn't there anymore.

Mitch flew as fast as he could down the dirt road leading to his mansion. His mind was screaming out to Janette, begging her to give him a sign as to where he could find her. "Just hold on baby, I'm coming. Just hold on," he whispered, praying desperately that she was okay.

"Are you sure you don't want me to drive... ya know... with your state of mind and all?" Liam asked as he nervously fastened his seat belt.

"No." Mitch said flatly. "I can drive just fine."

"What is that up ahead?" Jack asked from the back seat, pointing ahead.

Mitch looked in the direction of Jack's pointing finger and noticed what looked like a car sitting in the ditch. As they drove closer, he realized it was Janette's car and he felt his anger soar. He slammed on the breaks bringing the car skidding to a stop sideways in the road. The three men jumped out of the jeep and quickly ran over to the banged up car in the ditch. Mitch searched the car but Janette wasn't there. He ran his forefinger across the red substance on the steering wheel and gazed down at his mate's blood on his hand.

Liam and Jack both jumped back away from Mitch when he suddenly shifted to his wolf form, and took off into the woods leaving his clothes shredded on the grass. They glanced at each other and nodded their heads before both of them burst out of their clothes in their wolf forms. Breaking into a dead run, they followed Mitch's mental signal. It didn't take them long to catch up to him quickly following his mate's blood trail.

"Brother, don't worry. I think she's going to be okay. We will help you find her, okay?" Liam said trying to sound reassuring. However, he wasn't sure if she would be okay himself. He was deeply worried about his brother's mate.

Mitch started to slow his running when he finally picked up his mate's scent along with another scent. He raised his muzzle to the sky and let out a deep angry howl when he recognized the other scent as being that of the wolf they had been hunting for. He then let out another series of howls that he knew would reach the pack and they would know something was wrong. As Mitch was sniffing along following Janette's trail he felt Thor enter his mind and knew he had shifted.

"What's the problem, Sir?"

"FIND HIM! NOW! He's on pack land and he's likely injured Janette!" Mitch commanded, knowing that Thor knew exactly to whom he was referring.

"Yes sir!"

Mitch stopped suddenly and signaled for Liam and Jack to stop when he saw the figure with her arms above her head hanging from the tree several yards ahead of them. He emanated a menacing growl deep in his chest and raced over to her. The sight of his mate's bloodied and broken body made Mitch's stomach turn with nausea. "No. Please God, no," he thought to himself as he shifted back to his human form. He quickly ran up to her and held onto her body.

"Jack, help... please," he choked out. Mitch held her up as Jack untied the rope. When the rope gave way, Janette's body dropped limply into Mitch's arms. Her eyes were half-open but unseeing, one almost completely swollen shut. She wasn't breathing. There was a large gruesome gash in her forehead and her lip was split in several places. He examined her body further and when he saw the blood covering her middle, he raised her shirt up to find numerous deep wounds along her sides. Mitch dropped to his knees and held her close to him, fighting back tears of agony and loss.

Liam knelt down next to his mourning brother. "Mitch?" He laid a hand on his shoulder carefully. "Mitch, I think we need to take her back to the house," he said in a low soft voice. "It's not far from here. Come on. I'll walk with you." Liam turned to see Jack's eyes filled with tears. "Jack, will you please go bring the jeep back to the mansion? We will meet you there." Liam watched Jack race back to the main road and turned to his brother. "God Mitch, I'm so sorry."

Mitch sniffed and wiped a tear from his cheek before setting his jaw firmly and lifting Janette in his arms. "Let's go," he said in a shaky voice. He didn't wait for Liam. He started walking in the direction of the mansion, his eyes straight ahead and black as night.

Liam could feel the anger radiating off Mitch and decided to give him space. He walked behind him several paces still keeping an eye and nose out for the intruder who had murdered his brother's mate.

Mitch walked for at least twenty minutes holding Janette carefully in his arms, trying not to jar her body anymore than was necessary. When they finally reached the mansion Mariah came running out the back door towards them, her eyes wide as saucers and her bottom lip began to quiver.

"Oh my God, Mitch. Please don't tell me..." she trailed off as he walked past her, not even sparing her a glance.

Mitch ignored all of the curious eyes watching him. Some of them were full of tears and others just shook their heads, not believing what they were seeing. The small blond boy who Janette had been playing with earlier that day came running towards Mitch. His little mouth was drawn down at the corners and he began to cry when he saw the condition of Jan's body.

"Shan? No, Shan. Please wake up." The boy's mother hurried forth to collect her child and carried him away from the scene, consoling him.

Mitch took his mate upstairs to his bathroom and carefully stripped her blood soaked clothes from her cold body. He ran warm water in the bath and gently laid her in it before he grabbed a cloth from the cabinet and began washing the dirt and blood away. Once he had her clean and dry, he slipped a white cotton nightgown over her head and slid her arms through the arm holes. He brushed her hair the best he could, only letting a single tear fall, and then carried her to his bed where he lay her down. He pulled a clean sheet over her body and folded her hands, one on top of the other, on her abdomen.

Mitch sat on the edge of the bed gazing down at her and felt his control over his emotions leave him. He leaned over Janette and rested his forehead against hers letting out the first of several anguished sobs. "I'm so sorry, Jan," he whispered. "I promised I would keep you safe. I told you that it would be safer here with me. I have failed you. Please, forgive me." After several minutes, Mitch brushed her hair away from her face with his hand and kissed her bruised and bloodied lips one last time. "I love you." He sat up straight and cleared his throat, wiping the tears from his cheeks. He slid his hand down the side of her face once more and stood up to leave the room.

All eyes were on Mitch as he slowly descended the stairs, his eyes reddened. Members of his pack approached him almost all at once to offer their condolences and he raised a hand to halt them. "I appreciate everyone's concern," he said in a bold voice. "But there's a lot to do now. If you don't mind, I need to go talk to Janette's grandmother." He paused and took a shaky breath, lowering his gaze to the floor. "And then I need to arrange a funeral." He scanned the room once more before walking out the front door to his jeep.