Shards of Sanity (Book 6, Forgotten Series)

Chapter Nine

I stared at the phone that Luka had given me, unsure of where I should start. We were on our way back to Fortis and the phone calls I was going to make was going to be hard. No one should have had to make the calls I was going to do and I was just glad that I would be the one dealing with it and not Luka or Shey. They were cracked and broken right now and it was something they didn't need to worry about.

Lilith shifted on the seat beside me and I glanced down at her, her hair was still in wild tangles and she was still dressed in that white robe and blue shawl. This was a strange situation, I was thankful that Luka and Shey hadn't questioned her presence too much. She had stuck to my side, unwilling to let me go as we had walked towards the SUV from the house she had been staying in. Everything was in an upheaval but I couldn't leave her, I could feel the bond tying us together, holding our souls so close I could feel hers pressed to mine. Once there was that, I couldn't leave her behind.

I turned back to the phone and dialed up Benji with a heavy sigh. Luka and Shey were in the back of the SUV, laying down with Amelia's little body between them. It wasn't entirely the safest way to travel but Ambris said we would make it home fine and they needed to grieve and spend time with her. The phone rang in my ear and I rubbed at my forehead feeling a headache building.

"Hello." Benji's voice was slightly gruff but I didn't blame him because it was far too early in the morning. I knew I probably woke him up but this couldn't wait

"Hey, Benji." I gave another heavy sigh and slowly shook my head. "Can you inform everyone in the pack that Amelia has passed on?" My voice cracked slightly as I said it and my chest felt heavy and my eyes burned. There was a sharp inhale on the other end of the line before a heavy silence fell between us. "We are on our way back but we need to have..." I gave a small cough to try and clear my throat from the lump that had grown in it. "Everything needs to be ready when we get there." I didn't want Luke or Shey to have to deal with setting up Amelia's funeral, they needed time to simply grieve without having to worry about the details. When you lost something so precious to you the details rarely mattered.

Benji cleared his throat, "We will get it done, Micheal. Let... let them know that the pack is behind them with this." I could hear the heavy sadness in his voice and I felt it deep in my chest.

"I will, Benji. I need to make some other phone calls." This one was hard enough but I had to phone the rest of the family and those phone calls were going to be just as tough, if not more so.

"Alright, Micheal, I'll let you go. We need to get everything set up for when you guys get back." With that the call ended and I closed my eyes, pressing the phone to my forehead as I breathed out, trying to control my emotions from rising up as it felt heard to breathe.

I felt Lilith shift on the seat and when I looked over at her she was sitting on her knees, looking over the back of the seat towards where Shey and Luka were with Amelia. I frowned slightly and shifted to grasp her before Shey gave a low growl. "What do you want?" Her voice was cracked and broken but it was hard as she looked at Lilith peeking over the back of the seat.

Lilith gave her a sweet smile before reaching over the seat and brushing her fingertips over Amelia's white curls. "She's such a pretty little female." I watched as Shey's face crumpled and she gave a small sob before she pulled Amelia's little body closer, burying her face into her curls as her shoulders shook, her sobbing renewed.

I felt a surge of irritation rise up in me as I grasped Lilith's arm and gently turned her in the seat. "You need to sit down, Lilith. Properly." She didn't fight me and allowed me to shift her to sit down before I rebuckled her into her seat belt. She started humming lightly, picking at her nails as she brought her knees up to her chest.