Recrudescence

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The room was dark. Sonia was cowered in a corner, rocking on her heels. The voices in her head became so intense, she could no longer tell which voice was which.

You're a failure.

They are all against you. Everybody hates you.

They will kill you.

You should run.

Omar is working with your father. They will lock you down again.

“LEAVE ME ALONE! LEAVE ME ALONE!.” Sonia covered her ears, pressing hard in an attempt to block the voices. Her eyes were wide. Drops of sweat covered her forehead.

You are weak!

Do something!

“SHUT UP!” she screamed so loud she could feel her throat scratching.

Everything in the room around her was turned upside down, the chairs, the table and the couches. At first, the guards rushed to her, every time they heard a commotion. However, after many items being thrown at them, they just stood outside the locked room.

Useless.

Just kill yourself. You are dead anyway.

Run.

She stood on shaky legs and went to check if there was a way to escape. Only for it be futile, like every other previous attempts.

It was hard to think with a throbbing head and a blurry vision.

Nobody listen to you because you are worthless.

Make them listen.

The revolutionaries are coming. They will kill you if they find you here.

Sonia looked around, desperate for a way out. An idea started to form in her hazy mind.

Oh, they will listen all right! She thought, a disturbing glint in her eyes.

She went to the kitchen.

What are you doing?

Are you kidding me? You're hungry!

“Shhhh, let me think,” Sonia said, pushing her sweaty hair from her face.

She looked around the kitchen. “Nobody listens to me. I just wanted to be left alone. Maybe I wasn't loud enough.”

She locked her tired eyes with her friends, her headache jumbling her thoughts. “Maybe I should make them listen. I have an idea.”

She rushed to the bathroom, opened the cabinet and reached for the deodorant spray, knocking everything in the process.

Giggling, she went back to the kitchen and put the spray in the microwave. She then dragged the heavy fridge to the middle with its back facing the microwave.

“I bet everybody will listen now.” Sonia said, blinking to clear her vision.

You will kill them like you killed your mother?

You are a monster!

Yes, kill them! They have to pay for what they did to you.

Sonia pressed her palms at the sides of her head to ease the pain to no avail.

“No!” She said, her voice was way louder than she intended. “I’m not killing anyone. I'M. NOT. A. MONSTER.” She stopped, wincing, and shook her head.

Too much energy inside her body made it impossible to stay still in one place. She paced wringing her hands.

“I know their security system inside out. I will warn them. Nobody's going to die.”

She took a pan and put a whole kitchen paper roll inside. She grabbed a half-filled oil bottle and emptied it in the pan. A generous amount landed on the floor and on the counter. She wiped her shaking hands on her clothes.

“Where is the lighter?” She opened every drawer, not caring to close them back.

They are coming. You don't have time.

Skip that part. Don't warn them. Let them burn.

“Found it!” It was in the first drawer, but in her haste, she didn't see it.

“I should act fast.”

Like a headless chicken, she ran from the kitchen to the sitting area, and came back with a chair. She used it to put the pan on top of the fridge after lighting up the paper roll.

She then set the microwave at three minutes. “That will give them time to evacuate.”

She turned to her friends, her skin tight with goosebumps. “This should work.”

Smoke covered the ceiling and the fire alarm went off. Sonia pressed the button turning the microwave on, and rushed to the door.

Her guards came in. “What did you do?” One of the two women asked, covering her nose.

They rushed her out of the room. The smoke affected werewolves more than humans. It confused their senses.

People were coming from all directions. The warriors, strategically placed, assured a calm evacuation. Even her guards helped.

This is good. I can run now. Nobody's going to know, and nobody's going to die, Sonia thought, she can't have the weight of another murder on her shoulders.

She remembered her mother's lifeless body, then she remembered Omar's mother! She stopped dead in her tracks.

What if she didn't hear the alarm? What if she got stuck inside? What if she was too slow to get out in time?

Sonia headed back to Blenda's room. She opened the door when an explosion was heard.

That was too soon. Sonia panicked. The microwave exploded sooner than she expected.

Blenda woke up startled. She saw a frantic Sonia ushering her to get out.

“We need to go outside.”

Not waiting for her to move, Sonia grabbed her hand and ran out.

She will not kill Omar's mum!

Blenda was dragged behind the human. She found it endearing that this little woman was trying to save her, despite what happened at their first encounter.

They were passing by Sonia's room when a massive explosion sent the door flying. It hit them both, smashing them against the opposite wall.

When she came back to her senses, Blenda found herself on top of a bleeding, unconscious Sonia. The warrior, the protector, inside her snapped to life. She carried Sonia, like she once carried a small black cat away from their burned pack house.

Dust and flames burned her lungs, bringing back memories Blenda never wanted to relive.

The pain that ripped her heart from her chest that night. The sight of the pack house in fire, the chaos, the panic, the cries and the bloodied white sheets that covered dead bodies.

That day, the ‘Head Wolf Warrior' was too late to save her pack and her mate.

When the void consumed her senses, and life was no longer an option, her claws extended to stop the agony, only to be stopped by a faint mew that reached her ears. It gave her purpose.

That day, the broken legged cat saved the Luna. They became inseparable ever since.

Today, Blenda will not fail her pack again. She would not let a mate die under her watch.

With eyes filled with tears, she pushed through the fog of memories and pain, focusing on one task, to bring them to safety.

She reached the outside at last. Her son was the first to come to her.

“She’s ok. She fainted.” Blenda said, panting, trying to reassure them both.

Omar took his mate from his mother's arms.

Sonia's eyes opened slowly. She was confused at first, but when her eyes landed on the alpha, they widened. She gripped his shirt. “You made me do this. I wanted to go home. Do you hear me now?”

“Loud and clear, sweetheart. Loud and clear,” He said, eyes fixed on the plumes of black smoke swirling in the sky.