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er ordered me, causing me to stare open-mouthed at him. My brother had never spoken to me like that before. “What?” I yelled at him, going to push him away from me. If he thought that I was going to let him speak to me like shit, then he could think again. I had changed a lot over the last five years, and nothing or nobody would ever make me feel that small again! “It's mum. She's ill.” the words echoed in my head and changed everything. My eyes widened in disbelief. What was he talking about? “What did you say?” my voice was unsteady as I turned to look my brother in the eye. I could see the uneasiness and upset on his face. He wasn't lying, not that he would lie to me about something so serious as this. Zara reached out to comfort me, but I pushed her away. “I have to get my stuff.” I ran up the stairs quickly, but the tears were already brimming up in my eyes. Grabbing my old suitcase from under the bed, I shoved all my clothes and belongings into it. Not taking any care to organise it like I usually would have. My vision was beginning to get blurred by my stupid tears. I did not know if my mother was going to be ok or not. Why had I not been told about this before now? I had so many questions. My mind was in overdrive. There was a knock at the door, but ignored it. “Isla, please! Just stop for a moment and let me help you. I can come with you.” I heard Zara say as she entered the room and grabbed hold of me. “No,” I said firmly, pushing her away. There was no chance in hell that I was letting my best friend go near my old pack. I would not be responsible for my actions if anyone hurt my best friend. I did not trust any of them as a waste of space idiots. “Fine.” Zara scowled at my bluntness. I could tell that she was offended by my lack of enthusiasm. “I'm sorry, Zara. I did not mean to sound so harsh. It's just for the best. I will be back as soon as I can.” I gave her a small smile as she nodded but avoided my gaze. I was going to miss her so much. Ten minutes later, I had my bags and my suitcase all loaded up in my brother's black jeep. He let me say my goodbyes to everyone quickly, but I could tell he was eager to leave since it would take a while to get back to the pack house. “You better call me when you get there.” Zara smiled through her tears and pulled me into a tight hug. I loved this girl so much; she had been there for me when I had nobody. She would forever be my chosen sister. “You bet I will,” I told her as she reluctantly released me. Wiping her eyes with her jumper sleeve, she nodded and snorted laughter, which sounded a lot like a pig. I grinned at her and tried to stop the tears brimming up, ready to flood my cheeks. “Come on, sis.” Daniel nodded towards the car, and I gave my best friend one final squeeze before getting into the jeep. Daniel hopped in and started it up. He did not say a word until we were a few minutes down the road. “Isla, I am sorry. I know that going home is the last place that you want to be, but we need to all be there for Mum. She is in a bad way.” Daniel sighed and kept both hands on the steering wheel while I quietly processed his words. My mother was unwell and needed all her children around her. I am sure that she will be happy to see me. We were never close, but I still cared about her and did not want any ill health for her. I wanted my family to be happy; deep down, that is another reason why I left when I did. To keep the humiliation of my rejection from ruining my family's pride. After driving for a couple of hours, Daniel pulled into a car park, and my stomach rumbled at the sight of the cafe in front of us. “Hungry?” My brother looked at me with an amused smile on his face. I nodded eagerly. He opened the jeep door, jumped ou